A Battle For Freedom

- 9 -

Lugh, Vard, Turighon and Allyn stood outside the long towering castle walls of Iona, dressed in silver armour, the emblem of the sword catching the sunlight which was bursting over the horizon towards the bright azure sky above. Before them Verne sat upon his broad muscular ebony stallion. Beside him Fred and behind them thousands of knights, all dressed in the same attire. A sea of silver across the land.

Verne whistled for his knights to follow him, and they obeyed, charging onward. Lugh and his men kept up the speed and marched behind Verne and Fred. They were forced to walk in front of the rest of the army, making them the first knights to advance forward and start the slaughter against the enemy once they arrived at the cross point. Yula had already received the news that Verne was attacking at daybreak and she was approaching too with her own army, joined with trolls, ogres, and even a few orcs, all bloodthirsty and looking for vengeance against the mortal men.

"This is madness, we cannot start our plan at the front of the army. Fred will notice I am certain of it," Vard spoke sharply but in soft whispers so Duke Verne could not hear.

"We have to try," Lugh protested back at his knight. He looked at Allyn, he was the shorter man of the four of them. "Allyn can you attempt to hang back and see if you can merge into the crowd, perhaps if Fred doesn't notice we have our opportunity."

"Right away Sire." Allyn slowed his pace allowing knights to barge past him aggressively and before long he was deep inside the army of bodies. He held up his hand in the air through the armour around him and gave a thumbs up. Lugh smiled.

Fred hadn't recognized, he sat upon his own steed of copper, alert to the landscape ahead of them.

Allyn was soon barely noticable , and Vard squinted around trying to locate him but with no success. They carried on walking trying to not attract attention to themselves as they discussed their next plan of action.

"So, Allyn is now inside the crowd, but we can't all do the same or they will definitely notice," Turighon spoke, his polished helmet placed under his arm. "We remain until we are at the cross points, before they stop, we move into the army and surely find a way out-"

"-Out of that sea of bodies, will be lucky." Lugh gulped nervously at the idea.

After a several hours walk, they reached the desolate cross points between Iona and Kerindoth. It was barren land, empty and lifeless, surrounded by tall ancient pine trees. The sky above them was no longer blue, rather it was grey and hazy, making visibility difficult. The earth below their feet, grew no green grass, rather dried, cracked soil, the outcome of the rising Ran sun.

Yula's army were not anywhere to be seen at the Kerindoth barrier. Verne's army looked around impatiently. Verne narrowed his eyes struggling to peer through the mist and seek out his sisters horde. There was an eery silence.

A raven, descended silently above the army, its presence made Verne suggest it was inspecting.

"I don't like this Sire, it's too quiet," Fred remarked, leaning over to confide to his Duke. Verne still glanced around the landscape ignoring his knight.

"Shoot that creature down," Verne finally reacted, turning to a knight with a bow and arrow. "Do it immediately!" The knight complied and aimed at the raven, he opened fire and did not miss, watching through one eye as the bird swirled down to the floor and landed in a heap in front of Verne. "Good man." Verne smirked at his knight and the knight bowed back.

Vard was the only one of Lugh's men to be standing there, and he stood with fear on his face, hoping Verne wouldn't look down and notice three missing people. But Verne turned back to barren land and Vard sighed in relief.