Wraithshard: Siege & Storm by Jonathan Moeller

Author:Jonathan Moeller [Moeller, Jonathan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Azure Flame Media, LLC
Published: 2020-04-13T22:00:00+00:00

Mazael gave the orders as the sun rose, and the camp unfolded into motion.

Molly had pointed out the danger of another force bottling them in the Valley of Burned Men, just as they had done to the Trichirabi. Conscious of the danger, Mazael left a quarter of the footmen and most of the horsemen to hold the entrance of the valley. He did not think that there was another force anywhere nearby large enough to threaten his army, but best not to take unnecessary chances. And if Vel-Anzakh had a nasty surprise tucked away somewhere, the camp at the mouth of the valley would make for an excellent retreat point.

The rest of his men began marching towards Castle Valdrake, with orders to raise two siege camps out of bowshot of the western curtain wall. Once the siege camps were established, Mazael could contemplate the assault on Castle Valdrake, though he had not yet decided how to proceed. He had abandoned all thought of a direct assault, which would be a bloodbath. And if Vel-Anzakh was harvesting deaths to empower his necromantic spell as he had done at Castle Highgate, a slaughter would be to his advantage.

No, Molly had been right. This would require cunning. Mazael could think of two potential ways to open the castle’s gate and let his men inside. The first would be to send Molly to open the gate, and then have his men charge into the courtyard. But Vel-Anzakh and Val-Ulzurda might have left too many guards at the gate for that strategy to work.

The other option was to have Azurvaltoria take her true form and destroy the gate with her fire. Mazael wondered if Vel-Anzakh had realized that a dragon was among his army, and he also wondered if the Trichirabi had as bitter of an enmity for Azurvaltoria as she had for them. How would the Trichirabi react when they saw a dragon? Mazael wanted to preserve the element of surprise for as long as possible. The Trichirabi might not be ready to fight an army using modern tactics, but they might remember how to battle a dragon.

Mazael walked at the head of one of the marching columns as his men moved deeper into the Valley of Burned Men. He could just make out the milling forms of the annubaki warriors upon the curtain walls. As far as he could tell, every yard of the curtain wall was guarded by annubaki. The warriors had to be packed tight within the castle. That gave the Trichirabi ample reserves for holding the wall…but the tight-packed troops would be vulnerable to Azurvaltoria’s fire. Two dragons had destroyed the castle in decades past. One might be able to repeat the feat.

Griffins carrying Tervingi skythains circled overhead as the host of the Grim Marches advanced. Mazael trusted Romaria’s judgment, and he believed her when she said that the Trichirabi had left no traps or ambushes. Nevertheless, Romaria was not infallible, and if Vel-Anzakh sent a sortie from the castle, Mazael wanted to have ample time to prepare his men for battle.

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