Chapter 128: Catching the Signals (2/2)

”Cheer up. At least there will be free food.” He said while heading out to the entry way.

Brenden gave him a dirty look. ”You know, technically, all the food here is free because of your scholarship.”

”That's the spirit.” Mike replied, since he was distracted by Tal exiting her room.

She was wearing a forest green sundress which accentuated her long legs. Her hair was done up with a green crystal pin, showing off the graceful curve of her neck and her pointed ears.

[A little on the nose for an elf to be wearing green, but it does suit her. Although, she could do with some jewelry. Now that I think about it, I wonder if there is some kind of accessory making skill.]

”Well?” She asked simply.

”You look great!” He answered with a thumbs up. A gesture that confused the other two in the hallway.

Brenden smiled and nodded his support of Mike's statement, before going back to looking miserable about the whole affair.

Sera exited next, wearing a slightly more formal dress, which matched the blue of her eyes. Clear crystal pendulum earrings adorned her ears, while her long, silver hair was tied back with an ornate sapphire hair clip. She stood several centimeters taller than usual due to her elaborate heels, however, this merely put her close to the same height as Tal, slightly shorter than Mike, and significantly shorter than Brenden.

”What do you think?” She asked, looking embarrassed.

[Not bad at all, although she still looks a bit like an awkward teenager on her way to a dance.] Mike thought to himself as he stared at the Oracle, enjoying the sight of her blushing furiously under his silent gaze.

Finally, she'd had enough, and threw a weak punch at him. ”Say something, idiot!”

”That dress suits you. You look very pretty.” He said sincerely.

She paused for a second, as her blush extended to the tops of her ears. Mumbling something that sounded like 'took you long enough,' she pushed past him into the hallway.

”Let's go! The party is starting soon.” She called, already moving. Chuckling, Mike followed in her wake.

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Sergeant Gregory yawned intensely. The summer heat was beginning to get to him, and he wanted nothing so much as to lay down in the shade of a nearby tree. Unfortunately, he was in charge of guarding one small section of the northern perimeter while the rest of the army forded the river.

His captain had given him strict orders to keep a wary eye out, since the Almirans were at their most vulnerable right now, something that the seasoned campaigner was very aware of.

Unfortunately, the work had slowed down immensely when one of the heavy supply wagons had become mired in the slow flowing river, blocking up traffic. It had taken two Earth Mages the better part of three hours to finally get the thing moving.

By that point, the heat of the day had set in, and the soldiers, exhausted by their hard march up to this point, understandably started dozing off, much to the consternation of their officers.

Gregory yawned again. While he understood why his superiors had him stand out in the woods, he was ready for their relief to arrive.

The Tennundians were supposedly to the south and west, so it would be unusual to see them on the north eastern side. Neverthless, his commandera had scouts combing the woods, just to be safe.

Although, now that he thought about it, he hadn't seen the scouts in his sector report back in a while, something that made him a little uneasy.

Private Kenny, who had been standing next to him, jerked awake, having nearly fallen asleep on his feet. Rubbing his face, he spoke sleepily, ”How much longer you think it's going to be, Sarge? At this rate we'll be missing lunch as well as breakfast.”

Gregory sighed, ”Could you think with something above the neck, for a change? We'll be done when we're done, and not a minute sooner.”

Kenny scratched his neck where a few days of scraggly beard growth had been left untrimmed. He would probably never be able to grow a decent beard, but that never stopped the young man from trying. ”That's all well and good, Sarge, but what if I pass out from the heat and hunger, and the Tens launch a sneak attack or something? I could be strung up for failing my duties. You wouldn't want me to get strung up, would you, Sarge?”

”If it would get you to shut up for a moment, I'd build the scaffold myself.” He growled, but tossed the younger man an apple he'd been saving anyway. ”Now quit complaining and keep an eye out. The scouts are running late, and I have a bad feeling about all this.”

”Roger that, Sarge.” Kenny replied with a gap toothed grin before promptly engrossing himself in eating the apple, to the exclusion of all else.

Gregory sighed. This new generation was hardly worth the trouble of training them.

A snap of branches brought his attention back to the woods in front of him, and he locked gazes with a humanoid figure, right as it released a thrown javelin.

Relying on instincts honed from years of battle, he dropped and rolled to his side, grabbing the signal horn hanging from his neck at the same time. The javelin flew through the space he had just been occupying.

For a moment the veteran and the thrower simply stared at one another. Gregory realized he was looking at an unusually well-armed orc that bore the typical markings of the Skulltaker tribe. When the bushes surrounding the orc started to move as well, he knew it was time to run.

[An orc raid, from the looks of it. Although, I don't know why they would try to attack an army our size.]

Kenny was staring slack jawed at something, apple forgotten, so, after getting to his feet, Gregory pulled the fool behind a tree.

He took a deep breath and sounded the horn, its piercing cry resounding through the river valley. As soon as he stopped, he heard the sounds of answering horns from the other sentries.

”We've done our part, Kenny. Let's fall back and join up with the others….what are you staring at?” Gregory asked, following the private's gaze. He felt his own jaw fall slack at the sight of it.

A veritable tidal wave of orcs was streaming out of the trees. It looked like an entire army of them had descended from the Ash Mountains. Gregory could hear the sounds of combat as the orcs slammed into the hastily formed Almiran lines.

Signal horns sounded from the other side of the river, catching his attention. In the distance he could see another group assaulting the lead elements of the army.

He felt his heart sink. This situation had all the hallmarks of a crushing defeat.

So obvious was this fact, that even Kenny seemed to realize it, since the private turned towards him with tears in his eyes. ”It's been an honor, Sarge.”

Gregory just nodded with a sad smile, hand tightening on the grip on his sword, as he listened to the orcs draw nearer.