We continued riding at a faster clip than before; the supply train was getting left behind. After an hour of riding, we came across a large contingent of troops with several carts towed behind horses.
“Forlinth soldiers ahead, nearly one thousand of them!” shouted a scout.
“Let's charge the bastards! I bet they can’t even fight back,” shouted another.
A number of men roared and raised their weapons.
They were outnumbered nearly ten to one, but seemed undaunted by the odds.
The cavalry started forming into a wedge formation, accelerating towards the enemy forces. The opposing troops looked back, and upon spotting the approaching cavalry, they began to scatter. They moved slower than normal men would, with some stumbling and falling over. A small group of around one hundred Forlinth soldiers seemed to stand their ground, readying themselves for the impact.
As we got closer, I could see why: all of the men were wounded, many bandaged, and in the carts were more soldiers on stretchers. The defenders standing their ground had only swords and the odd spear—a mix of weapons between them, forming a disjointed unit with mismatched uniforms.
Juliana weaved away from the assault and pulled up. “I don’t want to partake in a massacre,” she said to Toby.
I watched as the cavalry collided with the bravest Forlinth soldiers. A few riders went down, but they managed to break through the line, piercing their defences. Dozens of Forlinth soldiers were knocked down and trampled.
The cavalry split off in two directions, looping back around for another strike from the right and the left. The Forlinth soldiers stood no chance as yet more were cut down, taking only a handful of the Freyton City soldiers with them.
By the third pass, the remaining Forlinth defenders had broken, apart from one man who stood steadfast, holding his sword at the ready. Several cavalrymen rushed him at once. The man dodged one rider and cut down another's horse, but the third attacker was too much for him; a lance pierced him through the chest, felling him on the spot.
The fleeing soldiers were then chased and cut down, one by one, including the wounded. A few cavalrymen mounted the carts and thrust their swords into each incapacitated man. We could hear their short screams and pleading before they were silenced.
The remaining troops who had fled earlier were ruthlessly hunted down; many couldn’t run far as they were on crutches. The resulting carnage left a field of blood, with scattered bodies everywhere.
Juliana watched on, frowning at the senselessness of it.
“Why are you upset about this?” Toby asked.
“Does this slaughter seem fair to you? Do wounded men pose any threat?”
“But the soldiers massacred villages. Aren’t they evil? Don’t they deserve to be punished?”
I agreed with Juliana; murdering men in cold blood felt wrong. But Toby’s argument also seemed valid.
“I’m sorry, Toby, but if the soldiers aren’t fighting back and have no weapons, they are considered non-combatants and should be treated as such.”
“But they are murderers. Would you show ordinary bandits that mercy?”
“How do we know these particular men partook in the murders, though? They might have been in a completely different unit.”
“I suppose so,” Toby replied with a tone that showed he might not agree.
The Freyton forces had finished mopping up the Forlinth soldiers; there were no survivors.
“This was a great victory to remember for all time, when we triumphed over an enemy that outnumbered us by a factor of ten!” the commander shouted to the sounds of the cheering men.
Captain Grisham rode up to us. “This is a good omen for the journey ahead. Hopefully, we have more battles like this. I think the Nameless God must have blessed this encounter.”
“I don’t think so,” Juliana responded.
“Well, whatever deity it was, I thank them. And cheer up, Juliana. We won.”
Juliana’s mood had soured; her usual serene smile was no longer on her face.
The soldiers began to dig some graves for the Freyton City men, holding a quiet service for them. By the time they were done, the supply horses had caught up.
Once the Freyton City soldiers had been buried, the commander addressed everyone. “Right, men. Let’s move out; we might catch more of these stragglers retreating!”
The column began to move again, leaving the bodies of the Forlinth soldiers where they fell. We were riding alongside a veteran soldier who looked grizzled, with a grey beard and a crooked nose.
“May I have your name, sir?” Juliana asked.
“Me? Oh, no one of import. You can call me Graham,” the man responded.
“How did you find yourself in the army?” Juliana asked.
“Oh, I was conscripted fifteen years ago. It was for a desperate defence that we were supposed to lose, but somehow I survived,” Graham chuckled. “I guess they considered me expendable, but somehow I just kept living through each campaign and desperate defence.”
“So you are lucky, then?” Juliana asked.
“I prefer to believe that there is no such thing as luck, but you only hear from the people who survive, like me—never the stories of the dead.”
“Ah, I never thought of it that way,” Juliana responded.
“So much for being an all-powerful person, then. You seem quite normal, really.”
“You are the first person to say that to me.” Juliana smiled back.
“So, tell me more about this Nameless God.”
I took control. I didn’t want too much spreading about me; it had already gotten out of hand.
“That is my personal god. I don’t know their name; they may even be an existing deity,” I responded.
“Heh, that was weird. Your posture and voice changed before you answered.”
This old soldier was rather observant, it seemed—likely why he had actually survived so long.
“I have two versions of myself, depending on the situation,” I replied.
“Oh, that’s a bit strange.”
“Yeah, I’ve been told I am strange before.”
The journey continued in awkward silence.
Eventually, more troops were spotted ahead. This time they were just a loose, scattered group of people with no formation, continuing on for as far as we could see. The largest cluster had no more than ten men.
“Forlinth troops ahead! Show them no mercy!” the commander shouted.
Again, the Freyton City soldiers accelerated, forming a large line of cavalry charging across the plains.
The Forlinth men seemed to panic, and their disorganisation meant they just began to run. The riders still caught up, cutting through the retreating stragglers without slowing down. Juliana followed from a distance, watching the ensuing slaughter with disdain.
The disjointed group of Forlinth soldiers was no match for the charging cavalry. They may have outnumbered our forces, but in their disorganised state, they put up no challenge.
We watched as the cavalry crested a small hill before stopping suddenly. Juliana caught up, and we looked down the slope. Below us, an army was forming into ranks, several lucky stragglers running to join the lines.
This army looked organised and consisted of at least five thousand soldiers; our roughly ninety cavalry stood no chance.
Among the ranks, I could see officers directing various sections, each forming a distinct, tight formation.
“I don’t think this group of soldiers is one we can defeat,” Captain Grisham said.
“That is why we brought Juliana with us. It is time for her to actually earn her keep now. You don’t have a moral objection to fighting troops who are actually fighting now, do you?” the commander asked Juliana, sneering.
“I can certainly provide some assistance,” Juliana said, smiling.
The commander looked at us, his face turning red.
“Where is the respect for your commander! I expect to be addressed as 'Sir'!” the commander practically shouted, spittle leaving his mouth and landing on Juliana’s face.
“Oh, sorry. I don’t know human customs that well, sir.” Juliana continued to smile.
Juliana then calmly hopped off her horse and cast a now-familiar spell. We began to grow and change back into the platinum dragon, causing many of the horses to throw their riders as they tried to bolt in fear.
Juliana spread her wings and climbed into the sky. Every soldier in the army below was looking at us, following our movement through the air.
Juliana moved towards the large army before diving on the central ranks at the rear, where the likely main commander was. As we got closer, we saw the familiar spells flying towards us; they impacted our body with no pain, like a light tap.
Juliana then levelled out low over the troops, covering them in radiant fire, immolating most of the regiment in a giant sweep, their screams as they burnt alive filling our ears over the sound of the wind rushing past our face.
Many arrows flew past us like static lines; any that hit bounced harmlessly off our skin. Juliana looked back at the lines we had flown over. A large section was now scorched black, human and grass alike.
The other formations began to charge the hill, likely realising that their best chance was being among our allies in hand-to-hand combat.
Juliana flew to the front lines, sweeping once more with radiant fire, catching more troops in the flames and turning everything black. The smell of burning flesh assaulted our nose.
We then crashed through the advancing forces, using our massive wings and legs to knock down dozens of soldiers as they tried to attack. Juliana snatched up two fighters before launching into the sky and dropping them from twenty metres up.
She then set up for another sweep, immolating a further thirty men in one pass.
Despite the heavy losses, the Forlinth troops were still pushing up the hill. The cavalry remained at the crest, watching the infantry press forward.
Juliana let out a deafening roar over the battlefield before diving for another group of troops. This time, they raised their spears in our direction. Juliana smashed into them, splintering their weapons and sending bodies flying through the air.
She landed heavily on top of the ranks, crushing several beneath her feet, and bit an arm off a guard, tossing it to the ground. The taste of human blood sent back memories I’d sooner forget.
When a handful of soldiers retaliated, she swept her tail, launching them into their comrades and caving in their breastplates. Juliana then took to the air again, flattening the survivors with the wind from her takeoff.
We found another formation getting close to the cavalry. Juliana swept over them, unleashing fire upon the vanguard, which caused the remaining forces to halt. I could hear their screams: “The devil of Freyton City, don’t let her eat our souls!”
The ranks broke and began to flee. The cavalry took that moment to surge rapidly down the slope towards the retreating army, cutting through them like a scythe through grass.
The routed infantry scattered in absolute panic, utterly unable to outrun the pursuing cavalry.
Juliana scorched another cluster of enemies with fire, reducing them to half strength. As that unit began to break as well, she dove on a different group, snatching two more combatants and hurling them into the crowd.
We flew higher into the air. The enemy had suffered heavy casualties, but it still wasn’t a significant proportion of their total force; yet, they were all beginning to run in absolute terror, dropping their weapons and scattering in all directions.
All order among the troops had evaporated, and our cavalry used the opportunity to take free rein in the mass slaughter.
Juliana remained airborne, flying over the battlefield and watching the execution of terrified stragglers for the next two hours as the cavalry worked their way through the five-thousand-strong army. Many managed to escape, but countless others now lay in the dirt, dead or dying.
When the last of the Forlinth troops were out of sight, the Freyton City soldiers let out a massive cheer, raising their weapons in celebration. Juliana landed next to them, shifting back into her Nhalyri form.
The commander was boasting loudly. “Today, men, we achieved the impossible! We defeated an army of five thousand with just ninety riders. The bards will be singing our tales for millennia to come, for the bravery you have all shown today.”
The unit regrouped with their supply train before carrying on towards Forlinth, everyone giddy with excitement from the battle that had just concluded.
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