To War 51.

Summer. The Kingdom Of Melaurn.

They're riding south across the border into the province of Corlinda.
They're one of the first of the crown's forces to make their way across the border from the province of Moleau, into Corlinda.
This particular army is made up of predominantly soldiers from various lord's lands across southern Moleau. Though there is a number of the king's men with them.
After all, no matter what. The crown is in command of all the forces that have gathered to fight the nobleman from the province of Karricaw, lord Gormica of Salmah Forest.
This particularly army is all mounted, most of whom would be classed as light cavalry.
With very few, being what one would consider calling heavy horse troopers.
And those that are heavy horse troops, are all the nobility. As most of them are at least wearing half plate armour.
And their mounts all have barding of some type as they ride south into the province of Corlinda, this afternoon on what's been another warm summer day in this part of the kingdom of Melaurn.
A couple of the scout riders come back from where they've been out infront, and inform those at the front of the vanguard, about something they've discovered further along the road they're traveling on.
Those foreriders then inform the nobility, specifically the nobleborn officers from the capital city Calinar who lead this particular army.
The nobleborn officers, both from the capital, and from southern Moleau. Send out more scouts, and ride forward themselves.
Wanting to see what's been discovered further along the road that goes south into the province of Corlinda.
A province that's effectively under the leadership of the Karricawian nobleman, lord Gormica of Salmah Forest.
The nobleman that the king and crown are at war with. As they think he's responsible for the spate of recent attacks upon the locals in southern Moleau.
The nobleborn officers come to a stop after riding forward for a bit, and they join some of the other scouts who have stopped further along the road.
There's silence from them, the only sound coming from their mounts, who occasionally snort, or stomp a hoof.
As along both sides of the road, are twenty two impaled figures, soldiers by the looks of it.
Impaled on longspears that have been shoved into the ground. Those on them have died horrible deaths if the looks on their faces are anything to go by.
After having the spearhead shoved up through their rectum before they and the spears were set in the ground.
Some of the spearheads have come up through the backs of some. Up through the mouths or heads of others.
No matter what, from the expressions on their faces, they've died horrible deaths.
Sometime during the day by the looks of it. As their bodies, even in the heat of the afternoon. Haven't yet started to corrupt.
One of the scouts informs the nobleborn officers that the dead are mercenaries hired by the crown.
As he had seen them a few days ago further to the east, back across the border in Moleau.
The nobleman in command orders them taken down. And dragged away out of sight. As he doesn't want their army to see them.
As he knows seeing some of their own allies treated like this will disheartened the men.
As the scouts take down the impaled mercenaries. And the nobleborn officers watch the grizzly work.
One of the officers wonder what the mercenaries were doing here in the first place.
As this area along the border, is for their army to take care of. And not anyone else.
The officer in command, a marquis from the capital city of Calinar contemplates this.
And after a few moments informs the others that not all of the movements of their allies are known to them.
And they do know that forward elements have already crossed the border into the province of Corlinda.
And no doubt, these mercenaries were part of one such element. Who the enemy have caught.
The marquis grimaces as he watches one of the impaled mercenaries, a nobleman by the looks of it, if is half plate armour is anything to go by.
Body is ripped off the longspear that's impaled him up through his body, and out his mouth.
As it's lowered by one of the scouts, who kicks the spear to knock it down.
As that impaled body is dragged away, the officer from the capital who is in command looks up into the afternoon sky.
He's not the only officer, or for that matter, scout to do so. As they fear attack from the skies more than anything else.
The army of about six hundred riders isn't too worried about what they could face on the ground.
They're large enough to deal with most of what they could come up against.
And being on horseback, if they come up against a far superior force in numbers. They can withdraw fairly rapidly.
Unlike a traditional army, which is predominantly more infantry focused.
But an attack by airship is something they're definitely worried about.
Considering they don't have any air cover themselves. As their own warships are few and far between along the Moleau, Corlinda border region.
The airships in the crown's fleet from the capital Calinar. And those of their allies from elsewhere throughout Melaurn who have answered the call to arms by the king.
Have been picked off rather effortlessly by the warships at the disposal of the Karricawian nobleman, lord Gormica of Salmah Forest.
Warships from neither the province of Karricaw or Corlinda. Two provinces with little in the way of a fighting fleet to begin with.
But mercenary warships of the fleet from the lands Farque that the lord of Salmah Forest has hired.
By the time that vanguard of the army comes along, the impaled mercenaries are out of sight after being dragged away to some nearby trees.
The nobleborn officers who lead the mounted army predominantly made up of soldiers belonging to various noble's armies in southern Moleau.
Are with the foreriders as the army continues southwards now that they're across the border, and in the province of Corlinda.
They'll stop late in the night, as they'll want to cover as much ground as possible.
As from scouting reports they've had of this area of northern Corlinda. They know that there isn't much in the way of resistance they'll find for at least another day.
Though the marquis from the capital city of Calinar has told the scouts to be extra vigilant.
For whoever it was that captured those mercenaries and impaled them, could still be in the area.
And they'll have to be dealt with if the army runs across them.
"We're outnumbered" quietly says Dalinvardèl Tanith the elven spy as he watches the enemy army in the distance heading this way along the road.
"And they're all on horseback too" quietly adds the elf originally from the principality of Alínlae, who is now an officer in the scouts and rangers division of the armies of Farque.
"Nothing new there" quietly says Mira Reinholt the mage who is lying on the ground next to the elven spy.
The once powerful mage who hails from the city-state of Vexil, who is a member of the personal council to lord Farque, then adds "Them being all mounted might be a bit an advantage to us".
Next to the spellcaster, who also happens to be a highly skilled swordmaster. The elven spy nods his head in agreement.
For the road just below where they are, narrows as it sweeps around the low hills, here in this part of northern Corlinda. Not all that far from the border with the province of Moleau.
Dalinvardèl Tanith or Dalin as he's more commonly called by those who know him well.
And the mage Reinholt, are on top of one of the low hills, watching the enemy army in the distance riding this way.
While the elven spy is watching them with the naked eye. The Vexilian mage in exile is observing them through his leather wrapped, brass, cylindrical eyepiece.
"See that group riding together near the front of the van?" quietly asks the spellcaster who was once the most powerful mage of his generation to be found anywhere in the Southlands.
Until he was stripped of the majority of his powers after going offworld when he accidentally cast a rift/void spell he went through.
Knowing exactly who the Vexilian mage in exile is referring to, the spy Tanith says "Those nobles?".
"Yeah" says the mage who is a member of the personal council to the lord and ruler of the lands Farque.
"If we can take them all out fairly quickly, that whole army will be a shambles" quietly adds the exiled Vexilian mage.
"Because of what i can see, they're made up of the armies of five maybe six nobles from across southern Moleau" continues the swordmaster Reinholt who follows that with "With a smattering of the king's men from the capital".
The officer in the scouts and rangers division in the armies of Farque nods his head, then asks the spellcaster originally from the city-state of Vexil "Can you do it?".
The spy Tanith briefly pauses before adding "And do they have any spellcasters we have to worry about?".
"I can't tell, they're still too far away, and i can't sense that far" dryly says Mira Reinholt as he answers the elven spy's second question.
"As for if i can do it" adds the once powerful mage, who flashes a smile as he continues with "Of course i can".
Dalin nods his head, then the elven officer looks behind him, and gestures for one of the messengers in his company to come up.
The young black clad soldier crawls up and forward. And the spy Tanith gives him some orders.
After the messenger crawls down the backside of the hill, before getting up to pass on the orders to the waiting officers halfway down the low hill.
"The Mountain Dawn should be able to deal with a lot of them" quietly says the mage Reinholt with a nod of his hooded head at the enemy army on the road coming this way.
"Beldane too" adds the spellcaster who is also a highly skilled swordmaster.
The elven spy in the gray hooded cloak next to the figure in black, nods in agreement with the Vexilian mage in exile.
Then Dalinvardèl Tanith the elven spy says "They'll scatter to the east side of the road" followed by "Not this side, up the hills".
Councilor Reinholt who is in agreement with that, nods as he continues to look through his leather wrapped, brass cylindrical eyepiece.
Then the once powerful mage who is in exile from his homeland of Vexil, quietly says "Your company will have to take out their scouts when they get down to the bend in the road here" followed by "They'll be completely out of sight from the rest of their army by then".
"I know" says the elven spy who previously served in one of the more prominent of the noble houses in his homeland, the principality of Alínlae.
They continue along the road that goes further south into the province of Corlinda.
Coming up on their right, to the west. Is a number of low hills. While to the east of the road, the countryside is more open.
The officer in command of the army, the marquis from the capital city of Calinar.
Who is riding with the other nobles in the army. With the foreriders infront of the vanguard.
Looks ahead along the road, and can see the scouts just up ahead. But not the ones further ahead of them, as the road sweeps around the hills to the west.
The marquis turns to a fellow nobleman, also from the capital as the two of them ride infront of the nobles from the province of Moleau.
And is just about to tell him something he's been thinking about ever since they found those impaled mercenaries a little earlier.
When they hear a shout from further ahead along the road that goes southwards.
As the marquis quickly looks that way. The ground beneath him, and the other nobleborn officers explodes upwards as a mageglobe comes to the end of it's brief existence.
As he and his mount are flung upwards in the air amongst all the dirt and debris.
The nobleman from the capital city Calinar, who commands this army in the service of the king of Melaurn.
Catches sight of a warship coming up over the hills on the west side of the road.
And as the dirt and debris shreds him and his horse apart as they go flying upwards through the air.
The final thought of the marquis before he dies. Is that he and the army he leads have just ridden into a trap.
It's what he was thinking just before the ground exploded beneath him. When he was just about to tell his fellow nobleman from the capital, that they could be riding towards a trap of some kind.
As the marquis from Calinar dies. The last thing he hears is the warship that's just come up over the hills.
Firing it's magetubes upon the army that he leads. The mounted army that's come south from the province of Moleau into the province of Corlinda.
Where in less than half a day, it's now under attack by the enemy who are fighting for lord Gormica of Salmah Forest.
The nobleman from the province of Karricaw that the crown and king are at war with . . . . . .