Chương 67

"For Silvermoon!" The roar of the soldiers around me never stopped as we charged across the once well maintained road down the entrance to Silvermoon towards the horde. I could feel the way my knees trembled as I kept the Hawkstrider on target. The sound of my breath in my ears echoed back from inside the taken helmet. My hands gripped harder on the shield and sword. The screams of Trolls washed away almost everything else, a rumble growing stronger and stronger the closer I came.

The flash of a flaming sword caught my eye. Felo'Melorn, raised up and in a flash of heat a large chunk of Trolls were suddenly on fire. Good. Right. I could do something besides just charge in. Focus. Devotion Aura was already out, but I pushed the feeling of the skill to its maximum, feeling as it washed over my allies. Seal of Righteousness was filled with Mana ready to empower my blows.

A quick Mirror Image over riding on myself, gave me a bit of protection, but I started throwing spells across the charging group. Inner Fire to make sure they'd have the endurance for this, along with Power Word: Fortitude. I couldn't boost anyone's strength or magical power, but hopefully I could give them a better chance of getting back. Yet I wasn't alone in casting.

Mana Bolts, flung forward almost like a volley smashed into Trolls sending some stumbling, others falling face first into the mud as we approached, or a lucky few taking heads and ending at least a little more of the threat. While others went for larger castings. The King's massive pillars of fire that he flung out burned tens of Trolls with each shot easily stemming parts of the tide to our sides, while others launched Arcane Stars slamming a dozen attacks into the horde all at once or more.

It was a flurry of Magic that very quickly shifted the wall of Trolls in front of us, cutting us off from the rear guard that Grunkle was a part of. I ended up somewhere near the side of the charge, not quite on the outer edge so my sword couldn't reach, but when we finally hit the trolls it hardly mattered. The crash was brutal as we seemed to simply run over the trolls, their cries filled my ears as our Hawkstriders stomped over rolling bodies that we had crashed into.

But nothing was within my reach, so I continued to cast, burning one of my Mana gems to keep going, to try and help as much as I could. And then we seemed to be through, and the Elf soldiers on my left towards the Trolls were suddenly making no headway, we'd met up with the backline, and suddenly everywhere there was fighting.

"Aaagh!" A scream beside me made me jolt, and I just managed to raise up my shield, instinct saving my life as a tomahawk slammed into my shield deflecting off, a tomahawk that had been aimed at my head. Yet, my focus was on the elf beside me, now clutching an axe in his arm.

"Holy Light!" I cried out, using the somatic component of the spell, to focus myself. I felt… Off. Like I was having an out of body experience. Everything around me simply felt different than it should be. But that wasn't going to stop me from helping! The axe came free and the wound closed, and then I had no time to think. Healing came freely, injuries came faster. I lost track of time, as we fought. I had no idea what the plan was. Were we retreating? Fighting? Dying?

All I knew was the preparations and training I had been doing for years. Heal, support, cast spells, recover Mana through it all, and keep casting. I could hear the spells of many of the mages around me stop. They fell back on wands, or blades, and yet where they suddenly lost their main talent. I just kept going. When I would turn to heal, I'd throw a Mana gem at some of them, to keep them going, to keep something happening.

And through it all, despite my breathing echoing in my helm coming out in gasps, I still felt… Strong. My heals flashed across the side of the battlefield, never stopping, Any injured elf was brought back up, at least every one that didn't outright die. I had no time or ability to try and resurrect. I'm sorry. This was all I could do. A flash of Holy Light, and I grit my teeth feeling it take more Mana. No, as long as I was here, I wouldn't let anyone die! Not without a fight!

I flashed out another Holy Light, surprising both elf and Troll, that had just slammed an axe into the soldier's neck, expecting it all to be over, but the Elf roared, grabbed the axe and slammed it into the Troll in turn. I couldn't hear anything, I realized. It all just came out as a constant noise, pounding through my ears. My mana drained, and a fast Evocation brought it all back. More flashes of Holy Light, more saved lives. I felt it then, a shift as I realized something had happened.

I cast another Holy Light and turned. The rearguard was moving through the center of our push! We'd created a path! Wounded. I hissed, as I cast another Holy Light on an elf around me. Injured that were too badly hurt to fight. But… I couldn't shift. The left side was crumbling every moment, and it was only my healing that kept the Trolls from pushing through us. So I didn't. I focused on what I could do. On what I needed to do. The Elf beside me went down, and as I started casting, a Troll was there.

My shield lashed out catching the spear that was aiming to finish off the falling back elf, and suddenly I wasn't behind the front line, I was the front line. My sword lashed out, even as my focus on the healing spell was disrupted I smashed the spear down as the Troll aimed for me, and then lunched forward, guiding my Hawkstrider with my legs. And my sword cut with a burst of golden light, the line of blood surprised the Troll, but it only enraged him, and suddenly I had a much larger creature lashing out at me.

But… My shield deflected a strike away from my leg and the Hawkstrider, and with an opening even as the Troll tried to thrust again, my sword went out in a spray of blood and the top of the Trolls head came off. He'd leaned too far forward, giving up defense for aggression. It was like my own failed battles against Grunkle when I was learning how to use Arcane Bloodlust. Yet I didn't have a moment to think, to try and heal again, one Troll was replaced by two.

My sword lashed out parrying an axe as I swiped with my shield pushing a spear into the other Trolls space, but there was no let up. The two attacked me with a fury. Yet, they weren't working together, two fools getting in each other's way, a constant furious berserk barrage, but I maneuvered them both into each other's paths, and forced their own weapons to clash.

And in those moments I lashed out, my sword a fine steel blade, cut through troll flesh, sending the axe Troll stumbling back shouting in pain as I cut through the side of his face. Not deep enough for a kill, but this meant I was only facing one Troll as the press was disrupted, and in a few moments a clash of blades that caused the spear troll's aggressive attack to leave him far too close. I pinned his spear and lashed out, thrusting my sword through his chest, towards the troll's heart.

It had to be enough and it gave me a moment. Inner Fire washed over me, removing the exhaustion of fighting for my life. I felt it more than saw, the press of the Elves around me pulling back, and so I stayed with them, my Hawkstrider furiously snapping at any troll getting too close as we backed up. Had we done enough? Had we gotten them all? I don't know. I just knew that I had no more time to think. Troll after troll.

And so I fought, taking wounds, some I even had to heal while deflecting blows as best I could, a spear in my sword arm making holding it hard. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. An axe smashed into my helm, disrupting my vision with red. Something smacking into my leg as I guided my Hawkstrider. The wounds came, and yet I fought. Until a noise, the sound of a horn, and I jolted as most of the elves around me turned and started running. Those that could anyways.

My hawkstrider made it a few steps before I saw it. Some of the elves were too pressed to run, un-mounted, and fighting on foot. I turned and started healing once more. Rejuvenating the flagging elves as best I could, and I wasn't alone. We were all trying to retreat, and I noticed arrows and bolts of magic flying down into the Trolls. Had we retreated enough to be under the wall's protection? It didn't matter to the Trolls. They fought still, pushing and pushing, desperate to kill every elf they could reach.

The blood was everywhere, and yet, I fought on, healing, pushing against the exhaustion as best I could. My voice was silent besides whatever spell words I needed. I couldn't even hear my own voice, as I cast spell after spell. And as we slowly pushed back more of the elves falling, more of the swarm of Trolls getting tighter and tighter, I realized I was fighting with the rear guard. The King was there, his sword lashing out and cutting through anything the Trolls brought to guard against it.

More a Lightsaber than a blade of metal, searing through everything. And yet. Even with his guard. Even with Grunkle! Alive and still riding his Dragonhawk fighting alongside the kingsguard, it was just too many. We were getting swarmed just like the rearguard had been! I had to do something, change something. Healing stopped, and instead I started dropping Inner Fire. Each cast came much faster than Holy Light, and with each cast a surge came over the spines of the elves fighting.

A slow spread starting from the left flank as energy returned to flagging limbs and bodies. My voice shouting out the spell words, although only the fact my voice was so raw could I tell I was shouting. And finally I reached the center, and Inner fire dropped on the royal guard, on the King. Tired bodies surged, and the crush of the Trolls was pushed back for a moment, the flash of Felo'Melorn alone enough to start driving even the limitless Trolls back.

And I continued, Inner Fire dropped onto Grunkle and I saw his back stiffen as his gaze shifted for a moment, our eyes locked. I didn't get to see him any further, too busy casting more! Another Evocation, and my insides turned. I'd been forced to use it too early since the last time. Had I used it recently? I couldn't even remember. The haze of fighting simply overwhelmed my senses. Yet still I did what I could, Inner Fire spreading across the front saving as many lives as I could. Would it be enough?

I didn't know, but it would have to be. I found myself again on the front line a moment later, without knowing how it happened, my shield blocking blow after blow from a Troll carrying two axes, as I gave ground for a moment and then lashing out, my sword cutting through one of the trolls arms like butter, and unfortunately it fled before I could finish it. The fighting flashed to more casting. We retreated and with every step more were injured, more trolls pressed against us. And yet we held.

The soldiers of Silvermoon, our armor, our weapons, and our magic. It slowed the trolls I noticed, spells arcing over our heads from above, arrows coming down like rain always into the trolls. It gave us the breathing room we needed. Otherwise this would have been nothing but a massacre. There were just too many trolls.

An elf went down and I charged, slamming my shield into the Troll, the burst of light from Seal of Righteousness blowing him back as I made enough room for the elf to scurry past, bleeding badly but alive. And once more I was in the fight. The troll's aggression was unreal, and I knew why. Each time I faced a fresh troll they'd give it their all, and if I didn't make the kill? They would scurry back, missing a hand, or an arm, or with their intestines hanging from their belly, and yet, they would survive.

Mama had been right, I had as an idle thought. You could see their healing while in the battle. And yet some trolls did go down. Seal of Righteousness caused a burning glow to each strike, and sometimes that seemed to reach deep enough. Bursting their heart, or lungs, and dropping them. Hopefully killing them. Then suddenly there was a shadow over my head, and no trolls directly impacting the line. I looked up. The gates! We'd made it to the gates! No.

I was breathing, I could feel my hawkstrider under me twitching and freaking out, but we weren't done. The King was acting as a bulwark and his guards were holding the line at the front, but they were practically surrounded, a dozen or so feet from safety. The Trolls had focused on the King. I was too far. Devotion Aura, spellcasting, anything. It was too far to reach. I breathed in. Retreat sounded nice. To get back to quiet, to stop hurting, to stop the fear that was filling every muscle in my body.

Grunkle was still out there, his Dragonhawk still swirling around as they did along with the Kings guard trying to fight their way through. I turned. The soldiers that were at the gates were terrified. They were hurt. Almost all were injured, and maybe I could heal enough to surge some forward. But… I turned. The amount of trolls at the back weren't that thick, just thick enough. But one girl couldn't charge through. If only I had some grand AOE spell. If only I had full armor I could just charge in.

If only I had more experience. If only, if only. But I had what I had. I grabbed what I needed straight from my mount, and urged it forward. Full speed! If I was closer, Devotion Aura would help. If I was closer, I could cast spells. If I was closer, I could hit them with my sword! If I was closer… I could fight. Just as I was going to crash into the back of the trolls I leapt. And I was weightless. Feather Fall.

Using the poor hawkstriders feather for the component, I went launching right over the back of the trolls.

"Inner Fire!" I roared, maybe. I couldn't even tell anymore. But the cast hit a stumbling guard who surged up and killed the troll about to finish him.

"Holy Light!" I started casting as I came down, but before I hit the back of one of the guards a strong hand grabbed me by the scruff of my neck and I was pulled up. I heard something, a buzz that I was sure was someone cursing me. I couldn't understand it, the noise was just too much, but the spell finished, and it burned away the wounds of one of the guards that had fallen, the jolt as he was healed, as he rose up and smashed himself into another Troll was what needed to happen. Then I cast again.

Another injury washed away, an elf relying on just his shield arm, his other hung loose at his side suddenly regained his strength. We shifted, the Dragonhawk I was sitting on the back of, a strong arm around my waist held tight as we surged forward and a sword cleaved out, finishing a troll. My own shield bursting up to block a thrown spear, the only thing keeping us from getting speared through. But my spell casting never stopped. Another Holy Light. An Inner Fire to restore energy.

An Evocation to get more Mana, and that clenching feeling in my body rose up worse than ever. And then as I kept casting, over and over. Sustaining the entire group. Fire burning through every inch of my body as I forced myself to keep casting. To keep pushing. It suddenly ended. The gates closed around us, as the bravest and stupidest of the trolls pushed through only to be completely cut down, the rest running to escape the barrage of magic and arrows.

I wiggled suddenly and dropped floating to the ground despite grasping hands trying to stop me, and as I landed I suddenly fell. What? My leg simply gave out under me? I looked down, and realized just what must have happened. A large gash covered my left leg, nearly from my hip, and down. I must have gotten hit at some point. I didn't remember it though, and it was only now that I felt it.

"H-Holy Light." I whispered, my voice suddenly audible for the first time in a while, I sounded hoarse, exhausted, and the golden light flowed over me, as I forced myself to rise. There were injured and I was a healer. I limped forward, towards where many of the fallen soldiers now lay, right out on the street. Meniel was already among them with the other healers, but there just weren't enough. So despite the exhaustion, despite the pain, slowly growing all over my body as the adrenaline faded. I started casting.

I cast the spell over and over. Forcing myself to stop to breathe, to let the pain from overusing Evocation fade before trying to do it again.

"Dorah." The voice cut through as I stood hands on my knees and breathed.

"Grunkle." I whispered at him, my voice feeling like it was raw from how much shouting I had done. He stood there, battered, and yet he had no real wounds. His armor had caught any attack it seemed. Lucky. Or perhaps Papa's enchanting work on his shield had made the difference. Either way he stood beside him, his face pulled tight into an overwhelming emotion, anger, frustration, perhaps a hundred other things.

"That was foolish." He snapped at me, and I just blinked. Well yeah? This whole thing was foolish. Someone, whoever planned this had fucked up. And I was honestly too tired to even get angry about it. So many people had died. We'd left so many behind in the field, forced to abandon the dead, and the only soon to be dead. The trolls would not be kind to any that survived. I could only hope they would die before they were captured. That alone was a sick thought.

I turned away, and steadied myself, Evocation flashing over my hands as I forced myself to once more regain my Mana. And it hurt. But hurt I could deal with.

"Holy Light." I whispered over the injured soldier I'd been standing in front of, the woman had taken a stab to the chest, and she was wheezing badly, and yet she wasn't even one of the ones the healers had focused on first. Her breathing evened out, and I exhaled myself. She would live. Now I just- My leg gave out again and I found myself splayed out over the cobblestones.

"Dammit." I hissed, I made to stand, but my legs just wouldn't move. A strong hand was on my shoulder.

"Alah'Dorah. That's enough." Grunkle muttered as he kneeled down next to me, but I just growled. I wasn't exhausted, I'd fought longer before! This was stupid! I could! I could still help! How was I supposed to save everyone if this little war crushed me!?

"No." I growled, angry at Grunkle even suggesting it!

"I'm nowhere near done!" I shouted at him, my voice loud and booming, and I forced myself up. My leg shook, my balance betrayed me, but there was succeeding and failing, and I'd promised long ago I wouldn't fail! I got up, and stepped, then another, then I started healing. I wouldn't stop until every wounded elf was back on their feet.