Chapter 12

We arrived at the western encampment a few minutes later. I had been surprised to find the people of the capital forced to live outside the fortified area of the city. What genuinely surprised me was the number of soldiers that were camped outside the core of the city. Based on the Dran’s vanity, I would have assumed he would keep as many soldiers he could between him and any Voguel. My gut told me that these were ones he could not confirm as totally loyal to him. So, under the guise of protecting his people, he made sure any who were not completely loyal to him were left where they could be killed by a Voguel attack. It sickened me and I had not expected my opinion of the Dran to fall any lower, but I had been proven wrong.

We sensed our companions were in a large tent at the top of the encampment zone and made our way there. Lillian and I garnered looks of mistrust, confusion, and anger as we passed, but Janet’s presence made sure they did not act on it. We arrived at the tent and were immediately ushered in. Kayla, Ingrid, Irenia, Faye, Cherish and Elsie stood around a large table with two others. They were going over a large map of Vishant province, moving various markers and pieces around.

Janet gave a quick salute and said, “Enton. I did not expect to find you cast out of the main city. What has changed since I left that resulted in this?”

“It was you and your platoon,” he said with a sigh. “When you were here, the Voguel did not dare to attack anyone, else you would arrive and dispatch them. Few Voguel ever escaped your grasp when your team arrived. It seems the lull in attacks was them biding their time. The first blood moon after you left, nearly every village in the northern regions was hit by Voguel. Whomever they did not slaughter, were assumed captured and turned.”

“You said the northern region was attacked, did that include the village of Int’samba?” Janet asked.

He shook his head, “that was one of the only villages not hit; we believe that was due to the mountain passes being too snow covered to traverse. With each blood moon the attacks grew and moved ever closer to the capital. By that time though, the element of surprise had gone, and we had done our best to station platoons in every town and village we could. We have held them at bay and done damage to their ranks, but we are struggling to keep up.”

“Still, it does not explain why you are out here, though,” Janet replied. “Though I am also at a loss as to why a lot of civilians are currently living outside the protection of the city walls.”

Enton sighed, “No, it does not. The reason so many have been exiled to this section of the city, is because we asked the Dean for more people and supplies. He has refused to spend money on equipment we need for our fight and he will not ask the other provinces for help. Instead, he pulls together all those loyal to him and places them in the protection of the central city walls. I expect he hopes that he will survive this and that those who are loyal will help him rebuild, on the bodies of his people, what was destroyed.”

“We did what you asked and talked to the various battalion leaders and platoon commanders,” Kayla reported, addressing Janet. “So far, everyone outside the central walls will stand with us, though they know our first job is to finish the Voguel first. We were going over the most recent reports of attacks as well as which platoons that are stationed across the province would side with us.”

We nodded and approached the map. Blue signified soldier groups loyal to the Dran, green signified groups that would stand with us and red signified Voguel attacks.

“Enton, how much detail do you have on the initial attack by the Voguel after Janet and her team had left?” I asked, as my eyes scanned the map.

He turned his focus over to me and gave me a quick look before asking, “Who the fuck is this and what is he doing here?”

Janet’s eyes narrowed, “Davik is with me and is second in command of the Torgal. He has killed more Voguel than some platoons here have, and his wolf is an invaluable resource when fighting them.”

He turned back towards her and said, “Be that as it may, he should show some respect.”

“Really? And why is that?” I asked as I started walking around the table towards him. “So far, I have seen nearly zero respect from your soldiers since the moment I stepped foot in Vishant. Now, I do not know how you train your soldiers, but soldiers in Bardack are taught to have manners. Even Janet here was arrogant during our first encounter, but she learned quickly that it was foolish. Your Dran was the same way, but now he has learned to watch his tone. My question is, do I need to teach you the same lesson?”

My words had upset Enton and he got in my face. “Janet may be a good fighter, but she is not as good as me, and neither are you, you little shit.”

I sighed “Fine, it looks like we will have to do this the hard way. Get every platoon and battalion commander over here to watch, so I do not have to repeat myself.”

Enton laughed at my words and nodded, not realizing how serious I was. He called over a subordinate and told him to assemble all the commanders. He then gestured for me to follow him outside. I glanced at Janet and she had a stone-cold look on her face. In the bond, however, I could feel all of them trying hard not to reveal their laughter at what was about to happen.

We made our way to an open training field and I could see, due to the slope of the ground, that it would be easy for everyone to see. Janet walked alongside me in silence and Lillian padded along beside her; the rest of our group followed behind us. When we reached the field, Enton made his way to one side and I saw all too clearly that this would be a repeat of my first encounter with Janet.

I turned to her and asked, “Should I toy with him before going full out? Or should I just end this as quickly as possible to make it easily remembered in the future?”

She looked up at me and smiled, “My love, treat him exactly as you did me the first time we met and the guards we just dealt with. Dramatic examples always leave the most lasting memories.”

I nodded and moved over to my side of the field. He had drawn his sword and was making a show of practicing with it.

“You should warm up a bit, “he said arrogantly. “That way, you will put up a good fight for or men to watch.”

I ignored his poor attempt at goading me and replied, “Are you ready, or do you need more time to warm up?”

My lack of response at his comment irritated him and he stopped his flourishing sword movements and got into a ready stance. He still had a smug look on his face, but that look would not be there for long.

I closed my eyes, allowing my self-restraint to be lifted as I readied my combat awareness. I opened my eyes and settled them on my target. He would be of no consequence and would not require me to tap into my newfound energy reserves. He nodded in confirmation of our starting and I burst towards him at full speed. While my enhanced movement caught him off guard, he was able to sidestep out of my path. He attempted to strike me with the flat of his blade, but I slapped his sword out of his hands and grabbed him by his armor.

Gasps escaped from the crowd, as within only a few moments, Enton had been disarmed and lifted up over my head. For added measure, I began to squeeze my grip on his chest plate and the sound of groaning metal filled the air. I watched as fear filled his eyes at my show of power and I shoved him lightly to the ground.

“A few things, everyone,” I yelled, so everyone gathered could hear me. “First, my only intention was to disarm. Had I wanted him dead, I could have drawn my sword and pierced his armor and body in one movement. I also could have ripped the armor off of him and, with a well-placed blow, caved in his chest. Second, that was not my full speed or strength. If you speak to the guards who are stationed at the portcullis, they can tell you of how I raised it, by myself, high enough to walk under it.