Rise of the Horde

A few days after their last battle, Prince Gyassi and his army were on the move again. A messenger just arrived a day ago that a massive army of monsters were headed to the Town of Gilban which was only a few days march away from the merchant city, Alsenna.

The merchant city of Alsenna is by far the biggest gold pot of the kingdom. It is in that city where most of the treasury of Ereia comes from. Alsenna was the center of trade and commerce, as it is located in the center of the Ereian Kingdom.

It was an order from the king that the city must not be reached by the army of monsters no matter what happens or all of his vanity will not be fulfilled. The city of Alsenna was the old capital of the kingdom until the grandfather of the current king moved it to Ishtar to pay respect to his queen who came from Ishtar and also as a way to bring away the political struggles of the kingdom far from kingdom's City of Wealth.

*****

A very long line of Ereians was stretched out on the horizon as they marched to through the endless scorching sands of the Burning Sands.

In contrast to other armies, the Ereian Army was a light army. Traditional Ereian warfare comprised light armor and little complex face-to-face combat. The heat of the Burning Sands was so intense that it caused the need to decrease the amount of armor worn by the soldiers. Metal was also scarce in the kingdom, as most of their metals were supplied by merchants from the nearby lands, mostly from the empire to the south, that possessed plenty of mines within its borders.

Therefore, most of the Ereian soldiers, except for the cavalry and the famed Ereian Royal Army, did not wear heavy metallic body protection because of their emphasis on rapid advance and swarming tactics. Most battles of the Ereians relied much on swarming their enemies with their numbers and break them apart while their two types of cavalry hammer them from the rear or flanks.

They would only deploy the Ereian Royal Army when necessary and, most of the time, they would just watch until the battle was over. They might be the best that Ereia had to offer, but they took part in less number of battles than any other army of the kingdom.

Soldiers mostly wore tunics, which were loose clothing reaching the knees that were padded with linen as a protective gear against soaring arrows. Because of the scarcity of metal in the kingdom, most of the soldiers wore little or no armor at all and are only armed with shields and spears.

Soldiers of the kingdom were equipped with a shield that was a rectangular sheet, 5 feet in length and was made of sticks that were kept together with animal skin framework. They were used to protect soldiers against arrows and other missile projectiles of their enemies. When the few archers of the kingdom were attacking an enemy, a line of men who carried these light shields would stand in front of them, while the archers shot from above the shields. They barely protected against heavy weaponry.

Ereia had no neighbors nor enemies willing to venture into the dangerous endless desert of the Burning Sands as they deemed it unworthy of their attention, since there was almost nothing worth their effort in conquering it. It is because of this that Ereia lasted for many generations in peace. The only thing that threatened the kingdom is the internal struggles for power of its nobilities and the rare raiding of the orcs to the north.

*****

Commander Ishaq turned his head towards the many peasants who were recruited from the towns and villages that they passed through. They were all marching sloppily, with shoulders slouched and unsteady steps. It seemed like they would drop dead any second from the continuous march that they were being forced to. They were only normal people who receive no military training and only relied on their physical abilities, which was honed through their years of farming and serving the upper class of the society.

"It won't be long till we will have a massive desertion in our ranks. The recruited peasants won't last long. If not for the fear of being pursued by the cavalry and being slaughtered by them. More than half of this army would have long since deserted. Tsk.. tsk... tsk... What a self-centered and unsympathetic bastard." Commander Nassor clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"If not for the threat that my family and I would be doomed if I deserted. I would have been long gone and back in the comfort of my castle." Viscount Redore muttered as he had a frown plastered on his face as he kept a close watch on his soldiers. He answered the call to arms of the prince not because he was willing but because of the threat that his family would experience the same fate as the Darhkariss family if he didn't comply. He didn't only provide soldiers to fight for the prince but he also had to take care of the rations of his soldiers. It is his army but was also wasn't his at the same time. Staring at the back of the prince, Viscount Redore's frown deepened and turned into a scowl as he moved his gaze away from the back of the prince.

"Ha! I thought that all you nobles would side with that brat. I guess some of you are not that greedy for power like those two who did nothing since the start of this campaign but lick the ass of that brat." Commander Nassor pointed towards Baron Masud and Baron Husani who were saying flowery words to the prince to boost the already bloated ego of the brat.

"Ptui! Don't compare me to those pigs who were lucky that they had great ancestors who did all the work for them. They only had to enjoy the hard work of their ancestors and their titles..." Viscount Redore grumbled in annoyance.

"Psshht... Bulwarks of the Sand, my ass! Pigs of the Sand would be more fitting for them," the grumbling Viscount snorted, as he is truly annoyed by the inherited title of the two. If it was the ancestors of the two Barons, he would both respect and admire the title, but now, there is no way that he will respect the once prestigious title.

"Pigs of the Sand! Hahaha...Good one!" Commander Kontar chuckled as he was amused by the Viscount's words. He turned to his right and caught sight of his fellow commander chugging down jars of ale. Again.

"This one is a pig but a good pig... But those two... They are rotten pigs that served no purpose and even their meat might not be palatable even to the monsters." Commander Kontar said while glancing at Commander Karim, who burped loudly after chugging down a mouthful of ale and stared at them in confusion.

"What? I am thirsty." Commander Karim said as he stared back at his fellow commanders and the viscount. After a few moments of silence, he shrugged his shoulders and just focused his attention on his ale and continued to drink merrily.

"Commander Ishaq! You better tell the prince about the situation of the soldiers. The Ereian Royal Army won't be able to hold all of them back when a rebellion arises." Commander Nassor suggested to the quiet commander, who only listened to the conversations.

Commander Ishaq turned his head and observed the sluggish marching of the soldiers. He nodded his head in agreement towards the old commander and kicked the sides of his horse and galloped forward towards the front where the prince was at. It took him a few moments before he finally caught up to the prince, who was smiling happily because of the complements from the Pigs of the Sand.

"Your highness, we better camp soon. The soldiers are already exhausted and are on the verge of collapse. A rebellion might also be brewing among our ranks and only needed a small spark to set it ablaze." Commander Ishaq reported as he rode his horse beside the prince, keeping it at the same pace as the prince's horse.

Prince Gyassi turned his head and faced Commander Ishaq. "A rebellion you say... hmmm... On the next battle, let them collide with the monsters and delay the assault of the cavalry. Let them all die to the monsters if possible and, if not, just reduce their numbers. And give them more rations after the battle. That would help pacify them and keep their thoughts of rebellion at bay. Better yet, just let them all die! We will recruit more soldiers in the next towns and villages that we will pass through." Prince Gyassi said with an emotionless voice. He really didn't care about the common soldiers. The only thing he cared about was keeping the Ereian Royal Army and the cavalry under him.

"But your highness. They are also your people. You must not do this." Commander Ishaq answered and a hint of anger was in his voice.

"You dare question the decision of his highness. Scram before I lopped that head of yours off your shoulders." The audacity of Commander Ishaq enraged Baron Masud, and he gripped the hilt of his sword while staring daggers at the commander.

"Leave now before we change our mind and punish you for your audacity." Baron Husani supported his fellow baron as he also gripped the hilt of his sword, threatening to unsheathe and strike the commander in front of them.

Helpless Commander Ishaq bowed and went away with deep from on his face. Prince Gyassi smiled as the commander went away peacefully and glanced at the two lords who were laughing because of their success in driving Commander Ishaq away. The prince shook his head towards the two lords. There is no way that he will let his best commander be executed for such a shallow reason, and it is nearly impossible for the two bootlickers to defeat Commander Ishaq in a fight.