Free Breaking an Empire by James Tallett Page A

become more inventive with their attacks, we’re going to crumble like so much bad masonry.”
    While Locsyn was speaking, Rhyfelwyr joined the little group. “No, we aren’t going to crumble. You’ve seen this army in action. You think it can crumble? We’ve battered two Lianese cities, crushed their armies, and we’re still marching, while they flee in front of us.”
    Locsyn raised an eyebrow. “Optimism? That’s unlike you, Rhy.”
    “Only leg I can stand on, Loc. I suggest you do the same.”
    “Right, right. Soldiers are always good at ignoring facts. Guess I can do it one more time.”
    The sergeant patted Locsyn on the shoulder, and the two friends wandered off to find a quiet area, where they could speak of old times, of youth and of happiness. Taflen sighed, and made his way through the camp, stopping here and there to talk, recording responses for his history of this campaign. The veteran knew it would never see the light of day, but it was his ambition to finish, and so he pushed ahead, letting the work carry him forward.
    ***
    That night, as camp was made, burning casks of pitch and tar arced high into the sky, smashing down upon the soldiers of Glanhaol Fflamboethi. Shouting and cursing, men readied themselves and turned out towards the night, where they were met by a shower of arrows and javelins from skirmishers who had slipped into position after darkness fell. Backlit by the campfires and the burning casks, the Veryan soldiers made easy targets, and were felled in droves. The horn sounded for retreat, and the Veryan troops pulled backwards, to see a series of small flares fly over their heads from within the camp. The skirmishers, revealed in the light, turned to flee, but they could not outrun the wave of fire that spilled over them, as the mages of Bhreac Veryan laid their wrath upon the countryside. A few casks flew into the air, aimed at the Veryan mages, but they were quick to avoid the projectiles, and the burning tar splashed harmlessly away.
    Upon a far hilltop, from whence the casks had come, the soldiers of Bhreac Veryan saw several figures stand and make gestures. Even from this distance, the message was clear: we are coming for you, and you shall die. The Veryan soldiers jeered and called in response, mocking the Lianese airmages, for that is what those men were. They had finally been called into battle, as the Veryan army approached their last city. The soldiers had known they would face airmages in some battle, but to see their efforts repulsed by the firemages was a welcome sight, and restored the faith of Glanhaol Fflamboethi. The Veryan troops went to bed that night mourning their fallen comrades, but secure in the knowledge that this campaign could be, and would be, won.
    With their tactics foiled a second time, the Lianese soldiers withdrew from the battlefield, giving the Veryan troops free passage to Niam Liad. This heartened the army considerably, but for Rhyfelwyr and his squad, it became a source of worry. “Even with the losses we were taking in the midnight raids, I’d rather face those than have the same soldiers standing atop a city wall, firing at us. Have they forgotten Horaim? We lost a third of our men in that trap, and they may well invite us into Niam Liad for the same purpose.”
    “Relax Taflen. If nothing else succeeds, we burn the city to the ground and go home, calling it good. You think they forgot Miath Mhor? We scorched the city to the ground rather than enter it, as we should have done with Horaim. It was only the food that stopped us that time. Now, well… we have more food, and we don’t have to make it to another battle.” Locsyn and Taflen were once more debating the state of the campaign.
    “I see. So the predicament the Lianese are in forces them to expend their army attacking us before we get to the city walls. You realize, of course, that this means we will be engaged in more ambushes, and that they haven’t withdrawn all the way to Niam