Chapter 393 - Plan's Sprung

Elliot

His grip tightened around the grip of his sword as he watched the two lines of cavalry meet. The sounds were... nightmare fuel. It was one thing to hold the concept of a cavalry charge in mind; it was another to see it happen.

Beasts of hundreds of pounds met boulders that weigh tons. Two unstoppable forces that smacked into one another with terrifying cruelty. Riders were launched off their mounts only to be ground underfoot into mincemeat without mercy for the colors they wore.

The screams...

He knew Zion was crazy already, and now he knew that such an attitude was a requirement. No one else in their right mind would take part in it.

"Dammit, what the hell's going on. I can't see a thing through all this fucking snow."  Hugh complained, standing a few feet away and trying to squint through the snow.

Most of the Warriors, and especially the Lieutenants, were upset about being left out of the charge. They were always the first to go running into battle, and being held back had irked them.

"I keep telling you that you should put more points in Perception." Valarie poked fun.

Elliot wasn't sure Valarie was right. He had a few more points in Perception than either of them, and he could barely make anything out himself. There was snow everywhere, making it nearly impossible to know what was going on. Other than the sounds.

Thousands of hooves sent it flying in the air like a dust cloud, and when that wasn't enough, their resident lord called down a localized Blizzard like the man was Winter's Chosen.

Some called him blessed by Ymir, but Elliot knew that was a lie. From the stories he'd heard, Chris would sooner face a horde of orcs buck naked than be blessed by anyone.

As he expended more power, it had a visible effect on everyone near. The temperature alone plummeted as soon as the battle started, and Elliot had to infuse his metal with a bit of mana to ward it away.

Fighting with Chris was always a spectacle, but the brittleness he brought from the cold made things much harder than they had to be. He checked his [Steel Skin] again to make sure it was being affected, just in case.

The skill had started as a simple skin toughening and increase in Fortification, and now it did so much more. Linking himself to his armor in a way that straps and fasteners couldn't come close to. Extending his control to morph his metallic protection into whatever form he desired.

Elliot didn't get any more time to worry about his skills or protections as a dome of ice rose into the air. The signal drew everyone's attention and began the next steps of what was to come.

Chris had engaged Tasunka, and only one of them would be leaving the dome.

Elliot wasn't worried.

"Alright, lads and ladies, our time has come!" He shouted to his line of warriors. His order. "We can't let Zion and his band of mad men have all the fun!"

Cheers rang out, and Elliot smiled.

The bison made a sharp turn and headed toward their lines, and the enemy was quick on their heels. The horses were faster, and those unlucky enough to be at the back of the herd were harried constantly as they made for cover.

Elliot wasn't fond of what was going to happen next.

"Let's pray Zion is right," Cole said.

Anders just laughed in his deep, resounding way, "The man may be touched, but he knows his unit."

"Fire!" The shout came from behind them as the combined voices of his fellow Order Captains gave the go-ahead to release their attacks.

Arrow and spell lit up the sky and devastated the land between the rear line of bison and the leading edge of horses. Explosions ripped apart sod and snow alike while arrows numbering in the thousands blanketed the lands.

Zion had promised his unit could take it, and Elliot could only pray the man was right.

"Sydney's been working on her [Arrow Rain] again," Val pointed out, "That was more arrows than I thought it would be."

"She mandated it as a Skill for her unit," Cole said proudly. He was smitten with the woman but wouldn't act on it.

The effects were devastating. Dozens of the nearest riders were sent tumbling end over end to a gruesome end, while the rest either pulled up or diverted away from the danger zone. While the explosions happened swiftly, the craters left behind would hobble a horse just the same.

The attack had done its job. A gap had been carved in between the two groups, enough room to do what was next.

Elliot had assumed that the charge of horses would stop then. He'd predicted when they were planning that they would fall back and regroup with their infantry and their Leader.

Elliot was wrong.

After charging into a herd of bison and weathering the opening volley of hundreds of spells and thousands of arrows, the beaten horse cavalry charged onward.

Sarah was going to be upset. She had tried to save the animals from the slaughter, but it just wasn't to be so.

Mana snaked down his leg and into the snow underfoot, readying their counter in case this was the case. The fifteen-foot pike welcomed his mana and stood ready to spring up to meet their charge.

Anders had a similar pike of ice at his feet, with everyone else standing atop one of their own. Those without tangible affinities were given wooden ones cut from the surrounding trees.

It would be stupid to face the charge without them.

As they closed in, Elliot's heart began to beat faster and faster in anticipation. Zion, who was supposed to be leading his unit, was nowhere to be seen, and Harry rode in his place at the front.

A pang of sadness hit, but Elliot pushed it away. There was a chance the man still lived. A small one.

Harry led what was left of the unit to a specific spot that they had left open just for this occasion, and after the last bison streamed through, the line snapped shut, creating a firm wall of bodies.

Elliot thought once again that the enemy would stop. Take a moment to regroup and think things through.

They didn't.

Their suicidal charge continued apace after recovering from the first volley, only to be met with a second once they were in range. And a third. And a fourth. The riders bore down on them in near single-minded fury, oblivious or uncaring for what was to happen next.

With only a hundred feet between them and the charging cavalry, Elliot finally gave the order and activated his Skills.

"[Stand Fast]!" It was a small boost to reduce the effect of a charge.

Long, deadly sharp implements of death sprang from the ground with their tips hovering in place to receive their wayward charge. hundreds of them as row after row of warriors raised them into place and braced them as best they could.

Elliot's mana sank into the metal pike, and even his Law drove it to become the most durable it could be. A snapped pike was death, and no one skimped in the face of hundreds of pounds of momentum bearing down on them.

Blood sprayed into the air as horses impaled themselves and riders went soaring overhead. Those still alive after their high-speed fall were skewered by the ranks behind them.

Horses screamed as they were slaughtered and crashed into. The painful neighs are both sickening and saddening. A few pikes in his field of vision either missed or snapped. Watching his order get trampled changed that to anger.

"Back! Back!" Elliot roared the order over the sounds of battle.

While the horses were fast and hit their lines first, the thunder of running footsteps wasn't far away. The infantry was coming soon, and they were in no position to face it.

Pikes were abandoned, and what wounded they could reach were dragged or picked up. Arrows and spells rained down constantly as uniform volleys were abandoned for speed.

Blood covered him as he shouted the retreat again and again. His sword lashed out at the scarce rider or marooned soldier. Those still mounted were taken down by chopping off the mount's legs before a swift execution to follow.

The rear line fought them off, and his Lieutenants spilt blood to cover their retreat.

As they ran, Elliot counted the distance covered in his head. Every step was a few feet closer to their mark.

50 feet.

25 feet.

The infantry had reached the line of pikes and began climbing over or making their way through the pile of corpses.

15 feet.

Those who were slowed were separated from those who weren't.

10 feet.

That separation grew larger as those with higher Agilities charged ahead of those with lower.

5 feet.

What was once an even and well-formed charge was split and splintered into sections.

Now!

No one on the other side was ready for the explosion of snow that came next. A thick wall of ice and stone shot from the ground and cut their number in two. It wasn't an even split, but it was enough.

His unit had done its job and drawn them in. Now it was time to hammer them into the anvil.

Elliot wheeled around and exploded into motion. His mana and aura unleashed rivers of power through him as his direction changed in an instant.

"Charge!" The order was entirely unnecessary, as everyone was ready for what came next.

Based on the bloodlust reverberating off the front line, Elliot could tell his Order hadn't liked having to run. They wanted to stand and fight, and now they would get their chance.

Metal flowed around him as his thick plates of armor were shaved down and his sword grew. [Defensive Stance] shifted to [Offensive Stance]. [Banner of the Bear] carried that shift to the entirety of his Order.

Elliot was first into the fray, and his lengthened sword claimed two lives in one swing. The enemy was unprepared and uncoordinated. They hadn't expected to be separated, and they were overconfident in seeing a foe retreating.

[Shield Dash] sent him hurtling deeper into their lines and sent more flying into the air. His Journeyman [Sword Mastery] was put on full display as he reaped lives. [Shield Mastery] kept him protected from retaliation, and what his shield didn't block, his armor and [Steel Skin] did.

In what felt like seconds, the line he had carved met a wall of ice with no more enemies in front of him.

His turn to find more foes to slay only resulted in seeing his equally bloodied Lieutenants standing in a similar position to him.

"Lower the wall!" He yelled.

The only other enemies to find were on the other side.