Elfhunter (70 page)

Two of the scouts arrived just before dawn of the
following day to report that Gorgon’s army was approaching. They
were dismayed, their faces drawn with anxiety, and they had made
all speed in returning with their news. Their tidings were
grim—more than five hundred well-armed and armored Ulcas made their
way steadily toward the Barrens. Ri-Aruin, Rogond, and Wellyn heard
all the scouts would tell, and they wondered how Gorgon could have
put such a force together so quickly. The challenge of defeating
him would be greater than anticipated, and it was a sobering
thought. But Ri-Aruin was not dismayed, and he spoke quickly to
Rogond and Wellyn.

"Our forces are gathering to the north even now. I
will leave at once, so that I may lead them. I will make certain
that our army will be large enough to overwhelm Gorgon. You, my
son, will have to hold him at bay long enough for our host to
surround him and move in. Are you confident that your defenses will
hold?"

Wellyn looked sidelong at Rogond, who had been a bit
disillusioned at the thought of five hundred fierce enemies
attacking; his last accounting of Gorgon’s forces had numbered
closer to thirty. The Ranger looked into the eyes of the son of
Ri-Aruin, lifted his chin, and nodded.

"They will hold. However, it will not disappoint me
if your forces move with all haste once we are attacked."

"So they shall, Tuathan. So they shall. I will take
my leave of you now and make my way to rendezvous with them. They
will be in position by nightfall. All is prepared." He turned to
his son and embraced him with some awkwardness. "Lead well, my son,
and safeguard your friends and yourself. You will see me again ‘ere
this is ended. May the will of Aontar assure us all of
victory."

When he had gone, Rogond turned to Wellyn.

"May we all live up to his expectations. Let’s go and
inspect our defenses once more, as when last I did so I was not
anticipating five hundred attackers."

Wellyn smiled ruefully. "Neither was I. But remember
that Gorgon will likewise not be expecting the size of the force my
father is planning, which, if I know him well, will be nearly a
thousand strong. The days of this enemy are numbered, do not fear."
Then his cheerful demeanor seemed to fade, and he grew serious.
"Our defenses will have to hold until then." They waited until the
dawn’s light grew a bit stronger, and then went out to inspect
their preparations, for the battle would soon be joined.

The rugged hillside had been set about with shallow
pits filled with pitch; these would be set afire using flaming
arrows as Gorgon’s army attempted to ascend. Their light would
reveal the Ulcas to the sharp-eyed archers, who would be well
protected, concealed around the rim above. The pits had been hidden
under large piles of dry brush; when ignited they would flame up
quickly and burn for hours. They were also the signal to Ri-Aruin’s
host, who would be lying in wait just to the north, to circle
around until the hill was surrounded, then move in and overwhelm
Gorgon’s forces. There were nearly invisible snares set near the
rocky ground; several of these were strung between piles of rock
that were set to slide down upon the ones unlucky enough to stumble
upon them.

About forty of the Elves of Tal-sithian and the
Greatwood would be stationed as archers, but the archers would not
be able to hold off such a number of enemies for long. Thus the
rest of their small force would lie in wait until the archers fell
back, indicating that the hilltop would soon be breached. Gorgon
would no doubt be using the mirror to view the movements of his
enemies, which would otherwise be hidden from view.

When the signal came from the lookouts that the enemy
had been sighted, Gaelen had been instructed to leave the council
and join the archers on the rim. Gorgon would be more hesitant to
attack them and risk killing her; she was too important to his
future plans. In addition, she would be training her vision on the
enemy below her, and he would then learn nothing of the activity on
the hilltop. Nelwyn would be there as well, for her skill with a
bow was unrivaled.

Each of the archers would have the task of lighting
one of the brush-pits, and they had been instructed to wait until
the majority of the Ulcas had moved past them. They could not
afford to alert Gorgon to the fact that they were expecting him, as
he would no doubt retreat and would likely escape to threaten the
Greatwood on a later time. Gaelen had vowed that she would die
rather than allow Gorgon to escape her.

When the archers fell back before the invading army,
they would join the rest of the defenders in hand-to-hand combat
with bow and blade. Horses would be of little use except in the
center of the plateau, where the terrain was gentler. The area
around the steep edges was far too treacherous to go upon mounted,
so most of the horses had been moved to the shelter of a large,
rocky alcove. Wellyn, Amandir, and Oryan would each stand with a
group of defenders. Fima and Rogond would stand with the Elves of
the Greatwood, intending to defend Gaelen and Nelwyn the moment
they appeared.

Wellyn had estimated that it would take the first
wave of Ri- Aruin’s army about fifteen minutes to surround the
hill, and then another ten or so to reach them on the hilltop. They
had been made aware of the location of the traps on the hillside,
and thus could avoid them. Rogond and Galador looked hard at one
another. These would be very long minutes, but Gorgon’s defeat
would be assured once the Wood-elves arrived. Until then, their
primary task was to prevent him from escaping.

Everything would be set in motion by signals from the
four lookouts stationed one on each side of the hill. They would
alert the "council" that the attack was imminent, and everyone
would then move into position. Gaelen would leave first so that
Gorgon could not accidentally observe the others. She would take
her place among the archers and scan the empty horizon, looking out
toward the forest, giving him no sign.

Wellyn and Rogond surveyed the scene, turning to
regard one another in silence. Finally, Rogond spoke. "Will we be
able to hold them off, do you think?"

"I don’t know," Wellyn replied, "but if all goes
according to design, I believe we will stand a good chance. Our
folk will move swiftly once they are summoned, and none will evade
them. This creature is outmatched; he cannot possibly escape."

Rogond lowered his dark brows, his eyes narrowing
slightly as he thought of Gorgon. "You have not yet encountered
him, Wellyn. I will assume nothing impossible until he lies dead
before us. But I have faith in your folk. I look forward to the end
of this, when our task is completed and Gorgon vanquished. And more
than seeing him dead, more than safeguarding the Woodland, more
even than avenging my friends, I would see Gaelen set free. It is
my deepest desire. I know that must seem odd…."

Wellyn shook his head, his long, dark hair lifting
gently in the early morning breeze. "It does not seem at all odd to
me, Tuathan. Let us return to the council-chamber. You must aid me
in making certain that I more closely resemble my father!" Rogond
followed him, reflecting on the fact that the council would begin
on the morrow, and after that, when darkness fell, the night would
be long indeed.

That evening, the defenders were making their final
preparations for the council and the events that would follow. The
lookouts were stationed, as they were every night, but they raised
no alarm. Everyone on the hilltop knew that many would not survive
the conflict to come, and they spent what might be their last night
of life in contemplation and fellowship.

Galador sat alone, waiting for Nelwyn, who had
promised to join him at moonrise. The moon was only a tiny sliver
of light, for tomorrow it would be renewed, and the sky would be
dark save for the brilliant stars. Gaelen had sensed a change in
the air, most likely a weather front, and had noted with regret
that they would see no stars on the night of battle. She would be
gazing at them now, as would many of the Elves this night. Hearing
a small sound behind him Galador turned to regard not Nelwyn, but
one of the Elves of Tal-sithian. She approached Galador, asking to
sit beside him for a moment, for she would speak with him.

"Do not be concerned, Galador of Eádros, for you are
known to me. I have not revealed myself to you, for I was waiting
to see whether you would remember my face." Galador looked hard at
her, and indeed saw something familiar in her eyes.

"It does not offend me that you don’t remember, for
it has been long since we have spoken. Yet, if you search your
thoughts, you may recall it."

Galador’s brow furrowed in concentration, and then a
light appeared in his eyes. "Oriana? Beloved of my friend
Galwaith…can it be you, after all these ages?"

She nodded, smiling with pleasure that he had
remembered. "It has been long, Elf of Eádros, since you were in the
favor of the King. Much has passed since then. I made my way to the
Verdant Mountains and eventually to the Realm of Tal-sithian when
Eádros fell and Galwaith was slain. He never did forget you, my
friend. He wept for your banishment, and even I could not soothe
his heart for a long time."

Galador had not thought of his home in Eádros, or of
his friend Galwaith, in untold years. He embraced Oriana, embracing
his past as he did so, weeping in grief for his friend who was lost
and for the loss of all that he had loved so long ago. She
comforted him with her gentle voice and hands, though she wept also
at the memories brought back in those moments. At last, she dried
her tears.

"Do not weep, Galador, truest of friends. You have
made a new, happy life for yourself now, even as I have done. Yet I
am glad for this time, on the eve of battle, that I might recall
the one whose love we both shared. I shall keep a special watch
over you tomorrow, for his sake. But now, your beloved is
approaching, and I will take my leave. Know this ‘ere I depart—you
were missed and mourned by many. There were those who protested
your banishment, and they nearly moved the King to relent, but his
heart was hardened, and they did not succeed. I was among them."
She embraced him one last time before leaving him. He did not see
her again until the battle was joined.

Gaelen spent the night in solitude, for she was
filled with anxiety and did not wish to risk betraying this to
Gorgon. She had been taken by an oppressive sense of foreboding;
somehow, Gorgon would slip from her grasp. She climbed the rim of
the hilltop, stood silhouetted against the backdrop of brilliant
stars, and sang a song of the Light of Elysia. Every Elf in hearing
paused and hearkened to it, for the voices of the Sylvan Elves were
among the most beautiful to be heard. Not a few bowed their heads
in reverence, as they knew that many would soon be journeying to
those Far Shores. Five hundred dark warriors would need to be held
off for nearly thirty minutes. The task before the Wood-elves was
formidable, but their spirits were united in their resolve. Several
raised their voices to join Gaelen’s then, and the plateau echoed
with ethereal harmony. It was carried on the south wind until it
reached the ears of Ri-Aruin’s forces, away from Gorgon’s army,
which was just as well.

Gorgon grimaced as he endured the pain of the mirror,
for he had held it nearly constantly upon this day, the final day
before the confrontation that he had come to name the "Night of
Reckoning". He was still disquieted, still unable to free himself
from the feeling that his army had been anticipated. The Elves
seemed tense, somehow, and Gorgon had learned to watch Rogond, for
he knew that the Ranger, who was normally quite relaxed and
confident, would serve as an excellent indicator. If Rogond
appeared uneasy or apprehensive, Gorgon would suspect that
something was afoot and would pay very close attention until he
learned the nature of it.

He had gone over his own attack plans once more with
Kharsh and his three other lieutenants, each of whom would command
a phalanx of Gorgon’s formidable host. Each would attack from a
different direction, surrounding the Elves so that none would
escape. Kharsh would take the way from the north, which would be
the most difficult, as it encompassed a deep ravine before
ascending the very steep hillside to the rim. The others would take
the eastern, southern and western faces of the hill, first locating
and eliminating all lookouts; there would no doubt be several of
those.

Gorgon didn’t worry too much about the Elves raising
the alarm—after all, they would be occupied in council and were not
expecting him. At least, that was what his reason told him. His
heart, however, remained in doubt. Best take down the lookouts
anyway, just as a precaution. Then his forces would move as quietly
as they could toward the summit, unless the Elves engaged them, in
which case an all-out attack would begin.

The Elves would no doubt station archers immediately,
but there was plenty of cover upon the rocky hillside, and Gorgon
had instructed his commanders to make use of it. Gorgon himself
would wait until the Elves fell back beyond the rim of the summit,
then he would move from behind, working his way through to engage
them. Their force would be fairly well decimated by then, and he
assumed that his risk would be small. He would make certain that
none escaped, and when Ri-Aruin and Magra both were dead, he would
claim his tokens. Lord Wrothgar would have His prize.

If his doubts were well founded, if the Elves knew of
his presence and were prepared, then Gorgon would retreat. He must
not fall this night, for he had not yet achieved his vengeance upon
the Elàni. Another chance would come; he would simply have to
explain to the Shadowmancer. For a moment he wondered whether death
in battle might be preferable, but to die at the hands of the Elves
was an ignominious fate that he would never accept. He would
proceed for now, but he would remain wary, mindful of all that the
mirror would tell him.