Rise of the Horde

Chapter 209: Chapter 20

Outside the camp of the Ereians, there was nothing but silence except for the occasional howling of the passing wind and the rustling sounds of the sands that get moved around by the passing wind. The camp was well lit but outside, it was nothing but pure darkness. Thick clouds above covered the moon that was supposed to provide the much-needed light as the sun made its retreat to the horizon. The camp was like a small paradise in the middle of a dark world that had dangers lurking all around.

Inside the camp were patrolling soldiers in groups of four or more as they paced around their assigned routes to keep watch for any sign of their enemies that might come again to attack them. Simple barricades made of wood from broken-down wagons encircled the Ereian camp with only two exit and entrances which was heavily guarded by throngs of fully geared soldiers. They did all the preparations that they could and waited for the anticipated attack. The whole camp was like a beast sleeping lightly and ready to pounce at the slightest disturbance as soldiers went to bed still donning their armors and their weapons at their arm’s reach.

The temperature turned cold as usual and the steadfast or trying to remain alert Ereians shivered from the cold as they flock toward the nearest source of heat that they can find while others huddled up in their tents to keep themselves warm. There were even those that headed towards where the servants that followed the army were to engage in some body heat-raising activities to negate the coldness of the night. Some of those patrolling near the place of the servants also joined in the fun as they craved for some pleasure and warmth of the flesh.

In the peripheries of the camp, the security remained as tight as possible with only a few succumbing to their biological need for sleep while the security in the center became lax as many activities were going on that stole the attention of many soldiers. Hours passed by which felt like an eternity to the still awake soldiers as they have duties to fulfill with their lives on the line. The night was uneventful as only the sound of nature could be heard but in the center of their camp was full of many events, there were some synchronous sounds and some that come once in a while. Sometimes it was like a perfectly led orchestra and sometimes it was like a chaotic one with the different sounds that were going that don’t need to be explicitly mentioned to know what was actually happening in the center.

Trolls carrying their javelins crept up near the camp of the Ereians with the cover of darkness after waking up a few hours ago as they properly rested first under the command of Skorno while the Rhakaddon Cavalry stayed close to them in their temporary camp. The Verakhs continued in closely stalking their targets as they waited for their comrades to come and cause chaos before doing their work which was to destroy the last of the supplies of their enemies before retreating directly to the Fortress of Vir and handling the matter of entertaining their foes to the Warg Cavalry.

It took the trolls a few moments before they formed up their battle line that they had in their mind which was a four-deep formation extending almost all thought out the length of the eastern side of their enemies’ camp. Dughmar led his clansmen towards the northern side of the enemy camp while maintaining an almost five hundred meters distance away from the peripheries of their target.

The Rhakaddon Cavalry lined up in a single line and prepared to charge towards the enemy camp. The heavy hooves of their steeds were subtle at first except for the slight tremors caused by their massive number moving together in a group. It was a walk at first which turned into a trot then became a full sprint as they headed towards the camp of their enemies with all their might.

.....

The trolls positioned themselves about thirty meters away from the outermost of the enemy camp and with a wave of Skorno’s hand, the first wave of javelins soared high in the sky before falling down towards the unsuspecting Ereians who are now starting to doze off after a long uneventful night with just silence and cold accompanying many of them while others do some warming up in the embrace of their partners or whoever they have found while seeking out some warmth.

Chaos erupted as javelins rained down and skewered some unfortunate humans who were in the end path of the javelins that were thrown by the trolls. A few moments later the second volley came and fell down many more but by the third volley, the Ereians reacted and sought shelter behind their shields and any other obstacle that could shield them from the merciless huge arrows that came raining down towards them.

To the north of their camp, another form of chaos came to life as Ereians who were on patrol started shouting towards their comrades to alert them of the incoming threat. The ground shook as if an earthquake was occurring as the Rhakaddons broke into a full sprint with their heads lowered and presenting their set of horns that by just sight alone was screaming of danger and telling anyone in front of them to move and get out of the way but that was robbed away from the Ereians by darkness.

The Ereians had a suspicion of the identity of what was heading towards them by the distinct shaking of the ground as they prepared a loose formation to engaged their incoming opponents. They opt for a loose formation rather than being tightly packed together like how they normally do since they have experienced and knew already that nothing can withstand the charge of their enemies’ steeds except maybe for tall and sturdy stone walls.

Dughmar raised his weapon high and sucked a mouthful of air as he shouted his battle cry.

“It’s time to RUMBLE!!!”

His shout added to the nervousness of the Ereians as that shout of Dughmar fully confirmed the identity of their incoming enemies. They had that slightest hope that it wasn’t those orcs riding massive unstoppable steeds heading towards them but something else but that shout of Dughmar destroyed all of it.

The Rhakaddon Cavalry crashed against the barricades set up by the Ereians which didn’t affect their charge at all as the Rhakaddons just trampled them to the ground like they didn’t even exist in the first place. Some of the Ereians panicked as they hurriedly tried to get out of the way of the massive beasts as soon as they spot one heading in their direction.

Dughmar and his clansmen broke through inside their enemies’ camp with little resistance as no one was courageous enough or dumb enough to stand in the path of their charge. Only a few volleys of missiles troubled the Rhakaddon Cavalry which was mostly nullified by their armors but some still managed to find their mark as some of his clansmen got wounded but they continued in their attack. Their wounds only made them more excited as they thirsted for more blood and thrill. If they weren’t prohibited from straying away from their clan chief or dismounting from their steeds, many of the Rumbling Clan warriors would have long engaged their foes in a chaotic melee while on foot and fighting by their own liking.

Fire started to spread throughout the camp of the Ereians, as tents were set ablaze by the torches and campfires around the camp that were knocked to the ground and sent embers towards the tents. Smoke, fire, chaos, confusion, and panic consumed the camp. Some Ereians were even running around naked with just a sword or spear in their hands while some are just running to safety as fast their legs could carry them.

“Let’s go.”

Kroth ordered his squad as they started to move towards their target. They sprinted towards what they were aiming for and quickly eliminated the remaining patrols as most of them were attracted by the chaos to the north and east of their camp.

“Move quickly before they figure out what we are up to.”

Kroth ordered his squad while keeping an eye on his squad members. He had Bakrah by his side who was staring somewhere else and not at their target. As the leader of the squad, Kroth needed to make sure about the success of their task and the safety of his squad but little did he know that one of his members was now missing.

Skorno ordered his kin to keep the last of their javelins with them as he unsheathed his sword. One hand holding a javelin and the other holding a sword. Pointing his weapons forward, he led them forward and charged towards the enemy camp to cause more damage and give more time for the Verakhs to do their job properly. The Ereians who were hiding behind any cover that they could find to hide from the raining javelins were surprised as instead of javelins heading towards them, it was now towering tusked creatures with weapons in both hands.