Chapter 33

The sun was just above the horizon when Jorgarn Elmwood spotted Emertland. It felt like a lifetime since he had seen the shores of his adopted homeland. But it had been only three years. He saw the captain signal the other ships to let them know the long journey was about at an end. Even over the roar of the sea, he heard the cheers go up from his shipmates and from the passengers on the ships around him.

Only a few of the passengers had been gone as long as Jorgarn – Pernice, Lippit and Belad sprang to mind – but all the others had been gone for at least two years. And there were many who were not returning home at all.

Almost 275 had left with him three years before. He had added reinforcements and sent back the wounded – including Bralan – after the first year, when Renoit and Melodart had replaced Fieth and Gorin. Men had come from neighboring countries to join the force – 70 Longview rangers had arrived days after Jorgarn's army encamped on the Salarian border. The Emperor had forbade Wenta from sending official aid, but Longview law allowed any who wished to join Jorgarn to leave without sanction. Wenta encouraged 100 of his best trackers to do just that, and 70 took him up on it. Now only 48 would be returning.

Domita sent a 35-man group, almost half of its newly formed standing army, to join. The men were called Cavalry and rode horses into battle. It was effective in the short term, although the men dismounted if the fighting became heavy. Its biggest use, Jorgarn had found, was in chasing down the enemy as it fled from the field.

Emertland's neighbor to the East, Tark, sent 100 archers into the fray. The Tarks used a stout bow, capable of firing over longer distances. And they set their arrows afire before casting them. Jorgarn had gasped at the tactic the first time he had seen it. The Tarks also brought 200 of their bows with them and trained 100 more to use them. Flaming death from a distance was certain to strike fear into an enemy's heart. Another group of 50 had come with Renoit and Melodart but the 100 who started didn't leave. The Tarks had fought bravely, but archers were usually poorly protected and a vital target. Thirty-two of the soldiers had died in the fighting.

Another group of enlistees came as a surprise to Jorgarn. Soldiers from Velotta, battle-hardened and grizzled, arrived to join the Emertland cause when their enlistments were up. Some months, they would come in pairs. Some months, there were 20. Weeks after Fieth and Gorin had headed back to Emertland; King Landor's forces were close to 500 strong. Now, barely 300 sailed back to Emertland.

Tears clouded Jorgarn's vision when he thought of the fallen. Some names came forth with waves of emotion – Usala and Alite, Traymer Ducotte and Bren Seni and Melodart, his mentor, his guide and his friend.

He dreaded telling Sir Torbert about the loss of his oldest daughter and heir. He hated to face Gorin when he told him of Melodart's death. He was certain Gorin already knew. Renoit and Melodart were scheduled to return home after a year, to trade Second duties with Gorin and Fieth, who would rejoin the fighting. He was certain the Seconds left behind would expect the worst.

At least Renoit was returning with him, wounded but recovered.

He spotted a contingent of 75 Guardsmen hurrying down the quay as his ship entered the harbor, Torbert and Gorin at the front. They were dressed in their battle armaments – chain mail, studded boots and tunics.

Jorgarn and Pernice stood on the prow as the ship neared the port, but no towing vessel came to meet them. The other ships sat farther out in the harbor, waiting their turn anxiously, the noise and excitement coming from them grew as each minute passed.

Word arrived in the castle as soon as the ships were spotted on the horizon. The guardsmen and guardswomen had dressed in their battlements quickly but cautiously. They marched in step to the dock to wait.

Torbert spotted the leader quickly, he stood, tall and proud, on the deck. The man had long, greasy hair that was tied behind his head but cascaded down his back. His reddish-brown beard hung to his chest. The time had come, at last.

Although there was 30 yards between them, Jorgarn heard Torbert's words clearly.

"Destroyer, you shall not take Emertland!" he yelled. "We will fight to a man. You might have us outnumbered but I promise you will be the first to fall! Sail from these shores and do not return."

Jorgarn heard the words but he did not understand them. He hazarded a glance at Pernice, who stood silently by his side. Pernice responded with a raised eyebrow and a shrug.

"Sir Torbert," Jorgarn yelled back. "It is me, Jorgarn. These are your troops, the guardsman and guardswomen of Emertland. We return to its shores victorious."

Jorgarn watched Torbert's eyes widen. The man's mouth dropped and he clutched at his chest before toppling backward. Only Gorin's quick hands kept Sir Torbert from crumpling to the ground.

The war had started gradually. In fact, it had begun well before Jorgarn had left Longview for the first time, but no one knew it.

The ships passing through the sea between the countries had come under attack from what were believed to be pirate vessels. The attacks had been sporadic but gradually gained a consistency that Lippit had noticed. Pernice had suggested to King Landor that instead of sailors, the pirates meet Guardsmen on their next attempt.

The attack came as Lippit had predicted and the outcome was determined from the moment the pirate vessel had tossed its ropes aboard. Instead of attempting to repel the boarders, several strong hands grabbed the ropes and pulled the ship toward the Emertland vessel.

While the pirates looked for orders, the Guardsmen leaped aboard and attacked. A short but fierce battle ensued but when it concluded, the pirate vessel was controlled by the Guard. A cursory search revealed little, but Pernice found a true manifest hidden beneath the captain's bed. The ship was part of the Salarian Navy.

While Emertland and most of its bordering nations had used the "100-Year's Peace" as a time for downsizing their armies, the nation of Salaria, which had a minimal army to begin with, had increased its naval operations.

Salaria sat at the northernmost tip of the Tilico Sea, the body of water that separated Longview from Emertland. It bordered both nations but neither considered it a threat to its safety. Salaria was not a force to be reckoned with. The problem stemmed from the nationality of several sailors aboard the vessel. They spoke Salarian but Seni, whose province bordered the nation, could tell from their diction it was not their native tongue.