//------------------------------// // 100 - Invaders in the City // Story: Age of Kings // by A bag of plums //------------------------------// “Well, this is a pretty rum way to spend the night,” Spectrum Song said as she peered through Sombra’s large spyglass at the gates with Guard Streak and Honeygold. Moon Tide had told them to go fetch her a drink of water, but when they had come back, the mage had vanished. With nothing else to do, they had gone to the throne room to see if there was anything they could do there. “Oh, lemme see!” Honeygold put her eye to the focusing lenses as Spectrum backed away. “Doesn’t look like the walls’ve fallen yet.” “It’s not a proper siege,” Spectrum nodded at Guard Streak. “Real sieges have one army camping out around a fortified position and starving the other army out. This is just… well, more of a rush than anything else.” “Aye,” Streak nodded. “Morn must be very confident if he’s attacking a walled city like this with fewer soldiers than Sombra’s got.” The three young ones took turns looking through the spyglass at the ongoing battle. Flaming projectiles arced over the wall, smashing into the streets of Saddle Arabia. There were tiny figures of soldiers piling up rubble and other debris at the gate, while other Saddle Arabian troops scurried about, putting out fires and taking up positions to attack should the gates come down. “Do you think this will continue until the morning?” Honeygold asked, swinging her legs under the chair she was sitting in. “Ah mean, even knights gotta rest sometime, right?” “They have to run out of rocks some time,” Spectrum said. “Hopefully. I don’t know where they are getting them from.” “What if we join in the battle?” Guard Streak tapped on the weapon at his side. “We can fight.” “No can do!” Parisa jumped out from under the windowsill and climbed in. “We have to stay here in the palace!” “How’d ya get in from there?” Honeygold looked over the edge. “This window’s really high.” “I’ve been living in this palace since I was born,” Parisa shrugged. “I know all kinds of ways of getting around.” “Nevermind that now,” Spectrum said impatiently. “Honeygold, what of the walls? Do they still stand? “The Saddle Arabians seem to be retreatin’ off the walls, Spectrum,” Honeygold reported. “But the walls ain’t the problem. It’s the gates; Morn’s army seems keen on knockin’ ‘em down.” “Basic castle-attacking tactics,” Guard Streak said. “The gates are normally the weakest part of a fortress, so attacking there will yield the best results.” “Ain’t much the Saddle Arabians can do,” Honeygold said anxiously. “Ah don’t reckon their bows can shoot that far.” Parisa did a little twirl. “Emerald Edge and General Rashid are doing the best they can to come up with a plan. I’m sure everything will be just fine!” There was another faint boom as another flaming projectile smashed into the gates. Soldiers were now piling rubble behind it to deter any battering rams that might attack the entrance to the city. There came heavy footsteps. Parisa turned to see who it was, and sank into a low bow. “King Sombra,” the dancer greeted.  “Oh,” Honeygold said, coming away from the spyglass. “You look ready for a fight.” It was true. Sombra was now decked out in a full set of the finest Saddle Arabian armor, embossed with engravings of djinn and other fantastical creatures. In one hand he held his crowned helmet and in his other, his royal scimitar. “Should the gates not hold, there will surely be a fight,” the king said, and shadowy tendrils coiled around his feet. “But I have a task for you four.” “Oh? What is it, your highness?” Parisa asked. “I have sent my guards to tell all my citizens to send their woman, children, sick, and elderly to come to the palace. There are many chambers and tunnels under the palace where they can take refuge. I need you four to go to the entrance to the underground shelters and clear the way for the people who will come to hide in them. Can you do that for me?” The three Canterlotians and Parisa exchanged looks. “Well, it’s got to be more productive than just standing here watching the battle,” Spectrum decided. “You can count on us, King Sombra!” “Good,” Sombra said, placing his helmet onto his head. “I must be off to help the troops. May our ancestors help us all.” Long after the sun had finally risen, the gate had already held out for as long as it could and the next catapult payload had torn one side of it off its hinges, smashing it back and into the wall of piled rubble, collapsing part of it. One Saddle Arabian archer had been unfortunate enough to still have been standing under it and he was now lost under it somewhere. Emerald swallowed and pulled her hood over her head. She was not skilled in archery like Posey and Rashid’s one hundred and eighty-nine archers, but she at least knew how to use the element of surprise against the enemy. Above them, towards the gates, Gabriel squawked and flew in a circle. “Gabriel says the catapults are preparing one last shot!” Posey called to her from another rooftop. “The cavalry and infantry approaches!” “They are ready to face us, then.” Emerald placed a hand on her scimitar to make sure it was still there. A group of Saddle Arabian men stood close below her, similar swords in hand. They had gotten all the women and children to the palace over the night, and whatever men could fight were now here, ready to defend their home. Emerald didn’t know their fighting skill, but hopefully Rashid’s men could hold them away from the city so they wouldn’t have to risk their lives. “Brace and ready!” Rashid yelled from around the gate as the catapult fired its burning payload into the sky. Everyone ducked down as it began to descend towards the gate and with a deafening explosion of flames, it smacked into the leftover pile of rubble and blasted it across the front of the city, destroying the walls of the nearby buildings. “Retake the land!” Emerald heard someone yell from beyond the walls. She recognized it as Sir Lionheart’s voice. So he was the one leading the charge here. The former pegasus looked through the gates to see the Canterlot light cavalry was the first to arrive, swords in hand as they rode. Behind them, half of the infantry continued to march, mostly consisting of knights in their plated armor, most of them wearing white cloth over their breastplates, with the familiar red sword painted across it, just like the one on the flag that Morn’s man was waving atop the dune, next to the other knight with the metallic sword sigil. The rest of their forces, the heavy cavalry and siege engines hung back, probably waiting to first assess the Masyaf fighting strength. They had to show their hand here, but either way, Morn’s army would not be getting out of this lightly. As the light cavalry galloped through the fallen debris at the gate, Rashid and his archers above the gate released the arrows they had been nocking and in a flash, Canterlotians were filled with arrows and were falling off their horses, some of which ran into others and knocking them over as well. Some of them made it through and were in the process of readying their wristbows when Posey and more Saddle Arabian archers stood from their rooftop hiding spots and fired more arrows at them. The light cavalry was now in disarray as they tried firing back, and this was Emerald’s chance to sneak over using the rooftops. One was busy trying to reload his wristbow and with one hidden blade unsheathed, the former pegasus leapt right off the rooftop, her right arm pulled back and ready to strike. She crashed into the Canterlotian soldier and knocked him off his horse before sinking her blade into his neck. Blood poured from the wound, but he went down without so much as a cry of surprise or pain. Another cavalryman tried to ride into her, his sword at the ready, but putting what she learnt to use, Emerald hopped up piled baskets and grabbed onto a pole sticking out of a building and she swung from it into the man, kicking him down. With her hidden blade, he was no longer a problem and she was quick to return to the rooftops to find her next target. By now, the archers had taken down most of the light cavalry and the advanced infantry was already coming through the gates, their shields and plated armor protecting them from the arrows from above, though some well placed shots managed to get through some knights’ openings in their armor, killing them before they could even get through. The front row of knights stepped close together and raised their shields, while four more knights behind them primed their wristbows to fire. They aimed up through the shields and fired at Rashid’s men and three archers fell from the gate walls, arrows sticking out of their chests. From behind, some of the cavalrymen had jumped from their horses and were now scaling the wall and rooftops to fight the archers at close range.  Emerald changed roofs and kicked a cavalryman in the head as a Saddle Arabian archer tried to fend him off with his bow. When the man was down, Emerald drove her hidden blade into his neck. Below her, the Saddle Arabians with swords began engaging the remaining cavalrymen, swinging wildly at them with close to no finesse. Most of them probably had no training with weapons, but then she saw three civilians cutting down a Canterlotian from his horse and she changed her mind. Perhaps they still had a fighting chance here. And then she heard the sound of something being launched. Emerald had only heard it a few times before, but she recognized it as the trigger mechanism of the other siege engines. Large spears impacted into the battlement above the destroyed gates and one of Rashid’s archers got one right through the chest, sending him flying off the walls a good distance. From below, more knights fired their wristbows up at them and they had to fall back to avoid getting shot. They needed help with taking out the infantry, but Emerald knew that even she couldn’t take them all on. Not without the artifact. And they still had more troops outside the city walls. This wasn’t going well. Emerald heard the sound of the ballistae firing this time and the walls were immediately pelted with a line of arrows, with more of Rashid’s men dropping dead. They had no choice now, they had to leave the walls. Posey ran back towards her, her quiver almost empty. The archer knew Canterlotian armor well and Emerald guessed she must’ve taken down her fair share of knights, but even she wasn’t enough to best all of them. “I think we have to fall back,” Posey said begrudgingly. “Gabriel says the heavy cavalry are on their way. General Rashid’s archers cannot keep this up forever. We will need the palace defenses.” Two cavalrymen climbed up to the roof they were on and drew their straight swords. Emerald ducked under the first one’s slash, then jammed a hidden blade into his foot as Posey rolled over the spymaster’s back and whipped him across the face with her bow. Spit flew from the man’s mouth as he spun off the roof. The second one approached them, sword ready to strike, but Emerald parried him and as she got behind him, she slashed her scimitar high up his back, knocking him forward into Posey, who thrust her hidden blade up his chin. The man gurgled once, then fell as Posey retracted her weapon. There was another rattle of ballista fire and more of Rashid’s men fell to the bombardment of arrows. This time, the Saddle Arabian general signalled to his men and they began to fall away from the walls into the city, sticking to the rooftops as knights below tried to take them out with their wristbows. Emerald didn’t have time to count them, but she would say about fifty of them already lay dead from Morn’s assault. Rashid and his archers continued to let loose arrows, trying to hit the knights through the chinks in their armor, with some actually finding their mark and downing a few Canterlotians.  It was kind of unnerving, Emerald thought. While the Saddle Arabians shouted and roared war cries in battle, Morn’s army did not make a sound. Not as they fought, not when they were wounded, not even when they died. Aside from the clanking of armor, the invading army was silent as a stone. And that was what a world controlled by Morn would look like. It was unnatural and Emerald knew she had to stop Morn from accomplishing his goal. Without archers at the gates now, the heavy cavalry had covered the distance and they were now at the ruined gates, with the smaller siege engines following behind them. There was a mix of Saddle Arabian soldiers in the midst of the second half of the infantry and cavalry as well and their eyes were glowing gold as well, taken over from Excalibur’s power. She didn’t know how Rashid would feel about shooting at his own men, but it didn’t look like there was any choice. With their archers in disarray now, Morn’s forces continued to push into the city, forcing Emerald, Posey, and Rashid and his archers to fall back towards the palace. As the invading armor pressed on into the city, they were suddenly waylaid by groups of Sombra’s soldiers who had been hiding in the side streets. They would appear, attack whom they could, then retreat back down the narrow streets, faster than the knights could follow. This kind of guerilla warfare appealed to Emerald. It was resourceful and clever. Then a wisp of smoke floated up beside Emerald and began to take a human shape before Sombra stepped out of it. “Morn’s army is strong, but if it comes to knowing the city streets and our skill of subterfuge, we have an advantage over them,” the prince said. “Are you faring well? You have not been harmed, I hope?” “None yet.” Emerald shook her head. “But many of your men have already given your lives to protect the city walls. I am afraid tis lost.” “They knew what they were getting into when they joined my army,” Sombra said grimly. “They will not find it so easy to take the palace, I assure you. Your mages have added more assurity to that. But I have a task for you, and perhaps your friends.” “What is it?” “We need to take out the commander of this army,” Sombra decided. “Seeing as you seem to be good at assassinating people, I would have you use your skills to fell the head off this snake. I am sure Morn would have sent someone to give the orders, if he is not doing it himself. Can you do it?” “Sounds easy enough,” Emerald said. If they didn’t have someone leading them, perhaps it would be easier to stop their attack on the city. “But for now, our focus should be getting your men off the streets and into the safety of the palace walls. There are still more armored soldiers on the way. If you can hold them back long enough, I can find the leader and remove him. I believe it to be Sir Lionheart, a formidable opponent.” “Then we will have our men fall back. I will tell Rashid.” And then Sombra vanished into a cloud of smoke that seemed to blow away in the wind. “It would be useful if we could do that,” Posey uttered, then plucked at her quiver. “I do not have many arrows left. We will need to fall back and resupply and wait for the cover of night.” “Right you are, Posey.” Emerald looked to the advancing troops. They would have trouble seeing her approach in the dark, especially if their focus was on besieging the palace walls. She spotted Rashid’s remaining archers hopping from rooftop to rooftop as they made their way away from Morn’s knights. Most of them were out of arrows and they would no longer have the advantage of range. Sombra’s infantry in the streets continued to poke at the knights and disappear down alleyways. They were slowing them down to allow the others to get to safety, which was good. Emerald and Posey dropped down to the streets to help the civilian fighters in getting away. The spymaster landed on one knight who was ready to finish off a Saddle Arabian, and she drove one hidden blade into the knight’s eye slit, feeling it puncture skin within. Posey helped him up and ushered him and the others to move on as more knights advanced on the streets. The pink haired archer fired more arrows into them, but with their shields up, there wasn’t much she could do. Pushing on the last few Saddle Arabian men, Emerald and Posey followed behind them, with Emerald grabbing a crate to use as a shield as the knights used their wristbows. She had been pleased that the mages were so intuitive in making such amazing weaponry, but to be on the receiving end of it… Now she wished otherwise. If she could commend Saddle Arabians for anything, they were much faster than any Canterlotian, and they were disappearing down the streets like foxes in a field. The palace wasn’t far now and Emerald could spy soldiers standing by the portcullis, motioning for them all to get inside. Emerald grunted. She had hoped they wouldn’t lose the city, but they had all been ill prepared for Canterlot’s advanced weaponry. But while the palace walls and the Saddle Arabian prince still stood, Morn had not won yet. “Come on, Sombra…” Emerald muttered as the invading army continued their approach. “I know you won’t let it end just like this.”