Rise of Dachwald (Boxed Set, Books 1 through 2) Read online

  “With all due respect to you, Biltzen, I can’t dispatch more than a dozen troops without direct authority from my general. And my general is going to demand more than than your and Milfred’s word of just how widespread the damage is for me to be able to dispatch more than a dozen soldiers. I’m very sorry. Perhaps if more people arrive from the southern provinces that can vouch for the extent of the damage, more troops will be deployed, but even then, I couldn’t guarantee it. I’ll leave the decision up to you: Either I can deploy twelve of my finest soldiers right now to help you hunt down these rascals and bring them to justice, or you can wait and see if more people arrive that can verify your story and thus enable me to obtain permission to deploy more soldiers. Many of the Vechengschaft would like to see some action, but I must justify it to my superiors.”

  Biltzen took in Mindgkor’s words carefully. Biltzen was a man of action, and he hated the thought of dillydallying while these rogues made their way back to safety. But he also didn’t like the idea of confronting a thousand men with Milfred, ten farmhands, and a dozen troops. His eyes narrowed slightly as he mulled over the dilemma.

  “Captain, might I have a few words alone with Milfred?”

  “Certainly,” he replied. “I’ll wait for you here.”

  Milfred and Biltzen stepped outside.

  “What do you think?” Biltzen asked Milfred.

  “I’m not sure. I’m especially not sure why we are the only ones here! Given the damage we’ve seen, there must be hundreds, if not thousands, of landowners and farmhands absolutely enraged by now! Where in Ifindgall are they?!”

  “Perhaps they’ll arrive soon. After all, we did leave immediately after seein’ the damage. Perhaps we got here first. Perhaps others ain’t too far behind.”

  “One thing’s for sure: while a dozen soldiers are sure better than none, they wouldn’t do much good against a thousand men! Perhaps we can wait a day, and if no one else has arrived, just accept the dozen soldiers; however, I say we wait to see if more people start tricklin’ in. That way, we can hunt these rascals and be ready for a scrap if need be,” Milfred responded.

  “Agreed. We’ll wait a day and see what happens.”

  They both walked back into Captain Mindgkor’s office and told him.

  As they were stepping out of the doorway, they heard a low rumbling sound.

  It sounded like a herd of horses’ hooves striking the ground. The sound was low and faint, but increasing steadily in volume. Biltzen, Milfred, and Captain Mindgkor walked hurriedly out of the castle to see what was going on.

  In the horizon, a tremendous dust cloud was forming.

  BOOM-BOOM, BOOM-BOOM, BOOM-BOOM! went the sound methodically and rhythmically like a distant drummer playing a steady tune.

  Several of the Vechengschaft immediately began scurrying about and shouting orders, while others sprinted inside the castle. One soldier, perched high on a battlement and looking out into the horizon through a long telescope shouted, “TO THE CASTLE!! TO THE CASTLE!!”

  Seconds later a large GONGGGGG . . . GONGGGGGG . . . GONGGGGG could be heard echoing throughout the valley. The sound came from a large tower in which a 240-pound hulk of a man pounded a gong with a hammer so large most men would have been proud to lift it off the ground, never mind swinging it. The sound reverberated loud enough to make one feel it was his head being hit with the hammer, perhaps an act of revenge by the large gong for the unspeakable abuse it was enduring at the hands of its cruel chastiser.

  Screams echoed throughout the valley. Frightened, panic-stricken screams. Screams rarely heard in this tranquil locale. For most of the people in the valley, this was the first time that they had ever been summoned to flee to the castle, except for an occasional drill, always announced weeks in advance.

  Surrounding the castle were numerous curtain walls, and an invader would have to survive the merciless torrent of arrows, stones, fire, and boiling liquid that would be cast upon him without quarter whilst piercing these defenses before reaching the innermost wall, which stood even taller and was still better defended, making the successful conquest of Castle Dachwald an endeavor legenday in its futility.

  There were several underground tunnels the Dachwaldians could use to traverse these walls underground and reach the heart of the castle, a mile-long journey. The tunnels eventually joined together, leading to a single hundred-foot tunnel at the end of which lay the entrance to the heart of the castle itself. All tunnels were heavily guarded by elite Vechengschaft soldiers, but the hundred-foot final stretch leading to the heart of the castle was teeming with elite soldiers during even the most peaceful of times, all of whom were ready to give their life in defense of that corridor. In the event of an enemy invasion, Dachwaldian citizens knew they had to enter the castle without delay because by the time an enemy army got within a mile of the castle, Vechengschaft troops stationed inside the tunnels would seal all external entrances with a wall of eight-inch-thick steel whose surface was so skillfully covered vegetation matching its surroundings that enemy soldiers would have little chance of discovering it and less chance of ever penetrating it.

  In the event an enemy ever did pierce this subterranean labyrinth, a large wheel inside the castle courtyard measuring twenty feet in diameter would be turned by ten of the most stalwart soldiers, opening a series of underground doors that would divert a river directly into the tunnels, quickly flooding them and trapping in a watery prison any so unfortunate as to be there. In the event the breach was discovered when the enemy were close to the heart of the castle, a lever could be pulled exposing tiny openings across the final door, and through these would be poured the foulest of acids, whose effects were so immediate and so painful that the ensuing screams of even the most hated enemy could bring a shudder to a brave man’s heart.

  After about twenty minutes, most of the Dachwaldians had managed to go through the numerous underground passageway entrances and were pouring into the castle courtyard. By this time, the sound of the approaching hooves was much louder, the formless shapes of the men comprising the dust cloud starting to become clearer.

  A mile away and closing.

  “Close the tunnels!” shouted Captain Mindgkor. A bugler promptly trumpeted his command, and the external entrances were all promptly sealed.

  The soldier who was perched on top of the battlement with the telescope saw something strange. These didn’t look like enemy invaders. They looked like Dachwaldians. The gonging had ceased upon the closure of the tunnel entrances. Most of the Dachwaldians from the surrounding area had long ago gotten the message and entered them, and those still inside the tunnels were scrambling like a large family of mice fleeing an army of cats. Those that had not already entered the tunnels were on their own. He descended the stairs alongside the wall as quickly as he could and approached Captain Mindgkor. “Captain, I could be wrong, but this doesn’t look like an enemy invasion. They look like Dachwaldians.”

  “We’ll keep the gate and tunnel entrances sealed,” Captain Mindgkor responded, “until we’re sure of their motives and who they are. Send a group of men to the front gate of the first walled enclosure and find out what this mob wants. And take Milfred and Biltzen with you; perhaps they’ll know some of these men.”

  “Yes, sir,” the soldier replied.

  He, Milfred, and Biltzen walked through the gates of the curtain walls and finally arrived at the front gate. The large mob of people descending upon the castle looked like a tsunami approaching a beach, and as it did so the faces of the people became clearer and clearer. When the mob was about thirty feet away, Biltzen saw someone he was almost sure he knew, but he couldn’t make the man’s face out. Then, suddenly, Milfred said, “By Kasani, that’s Sinizen, my neighbor!!”

  “JUSTICE! JUSTICE! JUSTICE AND REVENGE! WE DEMAND BOTH OR THESE WALLS WILL BE CAVED IN! JUSTICE! JUSTICE! JUSTICE AND REVENGE! WE DEMAND BOTH OR THESE WALLS WILL BE CAVED IN!”

  The mob continued shouting this chant in unison like a trained cho
ir, armed only with words but ready in spirit to take on the mighties of foes.

  “We better go speak to Captain Mindgkor quickly!” Milfred said and dashed back to the main castle wall, his sword clanking against his leg armor.

  “Captain Mindgkor, I’d say enough farmers from the southern regions of Dachwald have arrived for your superior officer to not only permit you more troops, but to give you the whole damn army!!”

  “But this mob must be destroyed; it is threatening the castle!” Captain Mindgkor responded, his eyes darting about, hoping that Milfred would finish talking so he could begin ordering his men to attack.

  “Captain . . . sir, with all due respect, I believe you misunderstand: This is no mob. These are our countrymen. They’re simply here to demand justice. They have no idea what’s happened. I’m sure if they’re informed the Vechengschaft is willing to deploy troops for hunting down the rascals that have ransacked our countryside, they’ll quickly become much more reasonable.”

  “Act quickly,” Captain Mindgkor returned. “My duty is to protect this castle. If this mob of ruffians isn’t pacified within minutes, I’ll have my longbowmen turn them into flaming pincushions.”

  Milfred ran back towards the front gate. By this time, the mob was already there and was beginning to pound on the door. There was a small opening on the door to allow defending crossbowmen to shoot at people using a battering ram or otherwise trying to break the door down. He could see Sinizen through the door.

  “SINIZEEEEEEN!!!” he shouted through the door, “Calm this mob down, or you’re all gonna have so many arrows sticking through you you won’t touch the ground when you fall!!”

  “Milfred??!” Sinizen could see Milfred’s face through the large gate.

  “Yes, it’s me. Now will you please calm these rioters down!!”

  Sinizen turned around: “QUIEEETTTT!!”

  The roar of voices was reduced to a low rumble, like a bad thunderstorm that had done its worst and was on the verge of dissipating altogether.

  “Speak quickly,” Sinizen said. “I don’t know how much longer I can control them.”

  The sincerity in his tone was chilling.

  “Sinizen, I know why you’re here. For the same reason I’m here . . . for the same reason Biltzen’s here, for the same reason that ten of your best farmhands are here: our farms—our livelihood—have been completely demolished.”

  “I wondered where those ten lazy louts were; I thought maybe they were in on this!”

  “Don’t be silly. Biltzen first came to my place, and then we went to your home to see if your farm had been attacked. Your wife informed us you’d already gone off to check on another farm. Knowing it was a long journey to the castle, she asked ten of your farmhands to accompany us, just in case we ran into trouble. Look, we can talk about all of that later; the bottom line is the captain here—his name’s Mindgkor—was already willing to give us up to twelve of his best troops simply on the basis of my and Biltzen’s word, but he told me his superior officer wouldn’t let him have more than that unless more farmers came and vouched for the extent of the damage. It’s wonderful you all came, but you’ve got to calm down, or, instead of helping you, the Vechengschaft is gonna cut you to shreds!!”

  “Very well,” Sinizen replied; “how many of us will they permit into the castle?”

  “I’ll find out. In the meantime, shut this mob up!”

  Without waiting for Sinizen’s response, he and Biltzen dashed back towards Captain Mindgkor, but as they began to do so, they saw that he was already coming their way. As they got closer, he said, “The mob is quieting down—what have you learned?”

  “Sir,” Milfred replied, “it’s alright. They’re just mad as Ifindgall because all of their crops have been destroyed, which is understandable enough. Now, you promised you’d deploy more men if more people from the south showed up and confirmed the damage. Well, for Kasani’s sake, I think this oughta be enough for you to dispatch the whole army!”

  “Bring me twenty of the wealthiest farmers from the crowd. I want them to vouch to my superior officer that the damage has indeed happened. You can rest assured a large number of the Vechengscaft will be dispatched if they can do so. This could mean war. Hurry!”

  Milfred and Biltzen brought in twenty of the richest farmers through the gate and walked into the castle. By the time they got there, Captain Mindgkor was already with his superior officer, Colonel Mechwalgden.

  After the twenty farmers vouched for the damage, they were excused so that Colonel Mechwalgden and Captain Mindgkor could discuss the military’s response. The colonel looked at Captain Mindgkor hard. “I’ll give you two thousand troops. This is the most I can give. Go and explain this to the rabble outside. I’ll discuss this with my general, and we’ll have the force assembled and ready by dawn tomorrow. Rest assured we’ll soon know who did this, and the perpetrators will be hanging like ornaments from trees all over the country side of Dachwald. The farmers and their farmhands will all spend the night in the castle to eat and recover from their long journey. Tomorrow, I need them all to return to their homes tomorrow so they can do their best to harvest what little of their crops remains.”

  He then turned around sharply and walked towards one of the castle towers.

  Captain Mindgkor went and informed the masses of the news. Their mood was slightly elevated by it. It seemed the Vechengschaft was taking this matter very seriously. Little did they know just how seriously.

  General Sivingdon, the supreme general of the Vechengschaft, addressed Colonel Mechwalgden and Captain Mindgkor: “Do you know what this means?! FAMINE! At least seventy-five percent of our nation’s food is produced in the south. If the intelligence you’ve gathered is accurate, it appears nearly all food production in the south has been destroyed. The people in the northern regions produce a sufficient amount of food to feed themselves, but the excess that they have would only be enough to provide the southerners starvation rations. Either that or the whole country will have to go on wartime rations. Otherwise, the people in the south will likely become so hungry and angry civil war will break out! We can’t let this happen. The pacifistic feelings in Dachwald already make us an extremely vulnerable target for our enemies. We must find the perpetrators and punish them viciously and publicly. If they’re foreigners, we’ll declare limited war on the country they came from, unless they promptly compensate us for the comestible and financial damages we’ve incurred and hand over the perpetrators to us unconditionally. I would be in favor of launching a total war to send a stern warning to never consider attacking us again! Of course . . . that would be difficult.

  “As you know, the constitution only permits a total war if the military, senate, and King Duchenwald are all in agreement. This would be extraordinarily difficult, although perhaps this situation might make it feasible. I’ll make the king aware of the situation and let him know the high number of troops I’ve authorized to track down the perpetrators. Fortunately, I don’t need authorization as long as we don’t cross any foreign borders. We’ll simply have to wait and see what we find: if this was the work of traitors in our midst or an attacker from afar. We’ll know soon enough.”

  The officers nodded. They realized this was without question going to be the biggest military operation on which they had embarked thus far in their military careers and could be the most significant operation on which they would ever embark. This was their shot at medals, promotions, glory, the right to tell lavishly enhanced stories of bravery to anyone they could get to listen over large cups of cold ale until they were so old going to the bathroom would be a quest in and of itself. They prepared to discuss with their subordinate officers the planning of the operation. For most of the remainder of the night, they reviewed the upcoming operation. Faces drooped over maps like spectators analyzing a close chess match. As they did so, the Dachwaldian farmers and farmhands slept. No chessboards for them to worry about. No positioning, flanking, ensnaring tactics to review. Just sleep. De
ep, dreamless sleep.

  Chapter 15

  The next morning was beautiful. It seemed a harbinger of good things to come. A bright orange glow traveled across the horizon as the sun rose steadily and slowly. While the sun rose, battle formations were being assembled. All two thousand Vechengschaft were mounted on horses. This was a drain on Dachwaldian resources but had been considered necessary by General Sivingdon. “Speed is essential!” he had repeated over and over the prior night. However, not all two thousand were cavalry. All Vechengschaft were given some training in riding and fighting on horseback, but of the two thousand soldiers gathered for this manhunt, only a thousand were true cavalry. The others were longbowmen, halberdiers, and other men-at-arms. The plan was for these troops to divide up into five groups of four hundred men each. Sivingdon named the groups Company A, Company B, Company C, Company D, and Company E. Company A was to go all the way to the extreme southwest of Dachwald; Company B, south-southwest; Company C, directly south; Company D, south-southeast; and Company E, to the extreme southeastern border between Dachwald and Sodorf.

  Each company had expert trackers. Sivingdon hoped they would be able to find some tracks in the fertile regions of the south. If they rode fast, they’d make it to the southern farms within a day or two, and if they rode even faster they just might make it to the border in that amount of time. Sivingdon couldn’t help but think it was at the very least slightly suspicious that apparently all the damage had been done in the south and Dachwald’s longtime enemy, Sodorf, just happened to be directly south.