//------------------------------// // Battle of the Pass // Story: Sins of the Mother // by Chelis //------------------------------// The entire camp was already on the move when everyone who participated in the rescue caught up with them. The women and children were on the wagons as the men were either walking or on horseback. Turquoise was in front of the pack, calling out for his beloved Anthea, who was slowly waking up. "You're okay! You're okay!" He shouted as he got off his horse and jumped on the wagon that was carrying her. He embraced her, but she was limp in exhaustion. "I'm glad you're still okay," she murmured. The happy reunion ended with Turquoise allowing Anthea to sleep in the wagon as he rode his horse right next to it, protecting the love of his life, while the march continued. Only the front soldiers had the lanterns on to see where they were going, and the camp followed far enough to get away if they were attacked. The people on or around the wagons took turns to guard or to sleep. They had entered a valley as the first light was beginning to turn the sky a lightning blue, following an old, paved road that was not maintained for years, well before the invasion. Star, weary and tired herself, raced up to the front of the pack, where Leon was still awake, not letting the lack of sleep douse his determination "Where the hell are we headed, anyway?" She asked. "There's a fort a few miles out, I will need to get there for the next step to win this war." "What next step." Leon looked to Star and had a wry smile. He looked forward and continued. "You know, Star: I do need a queen when I regain my land from the changelings. How would you like to be my queen-" He turned to look at Star, expecting her to be there flustered, and waiting for him to stop talking to say yes and to meet in a lovely kiss. Instead, she was not there. She started heading back the second he mentioned the word queen. "Oh well, she will say yes eventually" he sighed. Star went back to her group of friends, who were as tired as her and anticipating the chance to sleep, even it was for a few minutes. They did perk up and when Star came to ride alongside them, not saying a word and a tinge of reddening on her cheeks "So, what happened?" Claire asked, "Did he ask you to be his queen or something?" Star's tinge became a full bright red, and rode forward in the space between the wagon and the front line of cavalrymen, causing a fit of laughter in her group of friends. An hour later, a frantic scout ran from up the road to Leon, in front of the rest of the scouting regiment. The rest of the cavalrymen stopped, and Leon pulled his horse to turn around and race back to the foot soldiers and the wagons "Awaken, men of the Griffon Clan! An hour of victory is at hand!" he shouted. The regiment commanders rant to his king for orders, which the king gave and set the leaders loose to get their troops ready "Whats going on, Leon!?" Star asked. Leon had a smile to him as he rode alongside star "Scouts saw another cluster of changelings on patrol racing down the valley, we have around 10 minutes to set up an ambush," he said. "Anything we can do to help?!" "Of course, I have a calvary charge planned if you ant to join." In the end, only Illusion and Star decided to join in the charge, while golden delicious took up his rifle with the dragoons planning the mop up duty. Of course, Illusion and Claire had a goodbye talk and kiss as he left. As star looked around, they were not the only one. Soldiers took off to the wagons to say goodbye to their loved ones. She closed her eyes, and began to think really hard, as if she was trying to send a message to her parents and her brother, even if there as no way she can do it, but tried anyway. "Don't worry, ill be safe," The banner wavers were out and the drummers pounded the walls of the valley with sound. The line infantry was on the road to take on the changelings head on, while the Cavaliers hid in the trees for the trap. By the time that the final preparations were done, the cluster started charging down the road in the distance. "My follow Griffons, it's time to defend yourselves!" Leon Shouted right behind the line of the musketeers. By the time the changelings realized what was going on, it was too late. The musket fire went off and did not stop due to the formation of the lines: the front line soldiers fired and ran back, leaving the second line to run back, repeating the process with a never ending wall of fire every few seconds. The changelings were picked off like flies, each snap of the exoskeleton was an instant death or a slow and painful one. By the time the changelings were in full retreat, the dragons and the cavalry appeared out of the forest to give chase. Princess Starburst leads the charge, wildly swinging her sword down and cutting up any retreating changeling. There was one changeling left, who took off flying in the last act of desperation. The only one who gave chase was Golden Delicious, He aimed his musket as he rode, trying to concentrate on the shot. When he did finally fire off the only shot, the snapping on the exoskeleton was heard, and the changeling dropped from the sky. There was not cheer, no celebration. Everyone slumped back from exhaustion to their positions to continue the march. Even Leon was not cheerful because they still had a long way to go to find a place to finally sleep.