DORULL SAGA - SWAMP OF DEATH
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Two wide tunnels, extended out of
the large cave, in which the human army walked in. Reluctantly, Thorin made a
decision to split the troops. Saekul was already leading his soldiers into the
right corridor, thus helping captain Lutir in his decision. They waved at each
other, heading their separate ways. Long, winding, dark tunnel that Saekul went in with the soldiers from Vallsynk, widened into yet another cave. Elf stood
there for a moment, watching this magnificent underground vale. It was
illuminated with hundreds of large torches, throwing the light onto small huts
made out of mud and rocks. Shallow creek flowed out from the hole in the wall,
to the far right, dividing the cave almost in half.
Soldiers already entered the
underground hall, when somewhere from the side, came several goblin shouts.
Raising the alarm, hidden guards already discharged their bows, but missed. In
their haste, they’ve sent their arrows a bit too short. In an instant, the
whole cave got swarmed by armed goblins. Appearing from numerous gaps, lairs
and cracks, they were ready to defend their homes to the death. Losing the advantage of
surprise, compelled Saekul to change their entire approach.
“Charge towards the middle, and
seize the line parallel to that stream.” the elf issued an order “Marksmen!
Deal with those goblin archers, before they manage to correct their aim.”
Two armies charged at each other,
shaking the ground underneath. Sound of them colliding, resembled a
thunderstorm. Swinging left and right, Saekul cleared the way in front of him.
His expertly crafted, carved scimitar, mowed through the goblins with ease. Soldiers followed
his orders, pushing the goblin forces towards the opposite wall of the cave.
Numerous bodies covered the ground behind them, but still, goblin numbers
weren’t decreasing. On the contrary, it seemed there were even more of them
now.
Saekul stopped for a moment, trying
to assess the situation, when, on the other side of the underground valley, he
spotted several openings, from which even more goblins appeared.
“Hold the line behind the creek.”
the elf yelled waving his hand “Close the ranks, they are coming from all
sides!”
Thunderous war cries from the
hundreds of goblins shook the dome of the cave, just behind them. Before Saekul
could even turn around, he knew they were surrounded. Caught by surprise, some
of the soldiers broke the formation. But the elf would have none of it.
“Guard each other's backs.” he said
standing in line beside them “Shoot as many of these rats as you can, before
they reach us.”
The goblins eased off their charge,
and were now moving slowly towards surrounded humans. They were closing in on
them at the same time, from both of the sides, while taunting and cursing at
them. As the space between them shrunk, so the goblin’s bravery rose. Torrents
of insults, followed with unnecessary thrashing and displaying of weapons, gave
just enough time for marksmen to ready their crossbows. Sudden rain of bolts
hit unsuspecting goblins, cutting almost entire two front rows. Their
demeanor changed in an instant. Even the bravest of them, started running
headless, in an unavailing attempt to find some cover. But deadly marksmen
bolts weren’t missing.
After just a couple of volleys, the
number of goblins was halved, giving Saekul an ideal opportunity to issue the
order for attack. Unaccustomed to the ways of war, goblins seemed lost, not
knowing where to go, or what to do. Poor, almost nonexistent leadership and
organization, ultimately meant their downfall, as Vallsynk soldiers broke
through them. In panic, goblins even tried to surrender, but in this battle,
there was no room for mercy. Half an hour later, the final sounds of fighting
died away, as the last group of goblins, pushed to the far edge of the cave,
met their demise.
“Count the dead, we are marching
on.” Saekul said calmly, wiping the blood from his shiny blade.
Somewhat over three hundred dead
goblins, against only a dozen of his men, were pleasing the elf. Those were
acceptable losses. Not wasting any more time, he ordered them into the next
tunnel. Leaving behind the cave full of goblin bodies, the Vallsynk army
ventured deeper into Nual-Deu.
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