At the news, the group was pushed on with a new urgency. Fallow immediately departed on horse in great haste, cursing himself for leaving his legion in the first place. Gatal warned him of the danger of riding out alone now; that the battle lines were unpredictable, but Fallow was insistent. “I am a lieutenant with the 32nd legion; I need to be with them if battle has reached Central!” Quickly, the man saddled up his horse and galloped away, leaving behind his luggage that would only slow him down.

Along with the message was another from Vorash and it gave, if possible, even bleaker news. Gatal translated aloud his voice full of dismay. “Three whole armored legions from the forest defense have been virtually wiped out, along with their supporting infantry!” he had told them, his own voice barely registering in his astonishment. “Fort Bronx, Drashnel, and Camberlin by the river have been all taken by the enemy, only Fort Kinberlin to the north was able to hold out. The 5067th and 2032nd Mounted battalions have been pushed back with great losses. Several of the archery and scouting legions have gone simply MIA.” He turned back towards the group, his voice heavy, “The enemy has pierced through the forest making a straight line towards Central Hill. Everything in its path has been destroyed. This is impossible!” he breathed out in disbelief. He looked up solemnly at Drake, “New lines have been drawn in Central valley along the river, between the walls of Central and the forest. And they appear to be holding for now. But who knows how long that will last!”

The group had been woken at the clamor and was stunned at the news. For the soldiers of Kami their panic quickly turned into a fierce desire to return as soon as possible. They felt the spiritual summons to make for central to join in the fight rather than keep moving to Fort Newhouse. “We need to move to Central!” Horebour had cried. “Kami is making his call, we must heed it! He will need every able-bodied soldier to help. This is the day that was prophesied; surely this is the last battle of the enemy. Kami is calling all men to his him, we need to return and help fight! Leasnal is on us!”

But Drake had different thoughts and split quietly from the group and had asked Gatal if there was any place that would be safe for his men. Gatal glared at him and said, “No, there is no place that will be safe out here! The entire frontline is being overrun, as I had predicated! Only the walls of the city will keep them safe! But even that may not last much longer.”

“Then let’s get to the city!” Drake snarled. “As it turns out all of Kami’s armies are nothing!”

But Gatal was talking to himself again, saying, “This power was beyond any of our calculations, something terrible has come; only a being of immense divine power could do this to us. Not even in my worst case considerations did I think that this could happen so quickly!” He looked up and cried out in dismay, “Soul!”

“Gatal!” Ashton interrupted, stepping closer to them. “What will it take make it into the city?”

Gatal looked at them squarely and shook his head, “You can’t make it! As you say, your men are not fit for such a march. They will not make it to Fort Newhouse in time, much less Central, much less the city! And how do you propose to enter the City? Soldiers do not desert the army, but that does not mean that your party will simply be welcomed into the gates! Unless an official order is given to retreat,” The priest yelled, flinging his hands in the air. “It’s impossible!”

“If the forces are as overwhelming as you so,” Drake protested, keeping his ground. “Why wouldn’t a retreat be ordered? We wouldn’t be shut out here by the city to die, would we? Or are all commanders like Lieutenant Dravis, refusing to withdraw no matter the danger?”

Gatal’s eyes gleamed suddenly, ignoring Drake’s question, “I must keep you alive, nothing else matters anymore! Not your men, not the army, not even the entire frontline. Come with me already!”

“No!” Drake responded incredulously. “I’m not leaving without my men and I have no intention of going with you in the first place.”

Gatal looked at them with cold calculating eyes, and then turned back, “You are my only care now, Drake! I must get you to safety.”

Drake felt his rage well up inside of him and he said in a deadly voice, “Are you even listening to me? I said I’m not following you! And I’m not leaving these people behind, Gatal!”

Gatal shrugged helplessly, “The enemy is surely closing in and cutting us off from the city as we speak. You and your men will not make it alone. Your men will not make it at all.”

Ashton broke in, “What about your spell work, Gatal? Can’t you give these men energy to march on? What about the miracles that magicians are supposedly able to perform?”

Gatal gave him a look of contempt. Then he closed his eyes and said, slowly, as if ripping his heart out, “no, it is no use after all. It was a long shot to begin with, but it is all over now. Who would have thought the enemy would move so quickly? Stay, leave, run, do whatever you want, I do not care anymore. I will leave now and join my Commander on the hill. You all can just die out here.”

Drake felt the chills of reality sweep through and broke in desperately, “Wait! Stop, I’ll make a deal with you!”

Gatal looked at Drake lifelessly and didn’t speak. Drake struggled for words, and Ashton asked plainly, “If we make it to Camp Newhouse, and secure some horses, can we ride back to the city and make it in time?”

Gatal said quietly, “What is it worth to you?” He looked at Drake. “What deal are you proposing? I can use my magic to get you to Newhouse quickly, and then you all would have a chance at making it back alive. But it would be a great sacrifice for me to do this. In return I want no resistance, no delays. You are to come with me willingly afterwards! Do you hear me Drake?” Drake felt a cold wash over him as Gatal spoke with finality. “Make your decision quickly, Drake! Will you stay here with your men and die, or will you choose to save them and sacrifice yourself to me? Choose quickly, I am losing my patience!”

Drake felt great anger come over him suddenly. Anger at the need for this choice, anger at the war he was forced to be a part of, anger for the events and the beings that had put him in this spot, out in these desolated plains at night. But he also felt fear, fear that the words of Drfuil would come true and the one day he would lose himself to the ring and become the vessel Drfuil desired. He knew that to give in, would be a heavy push towards the end that Drfuil had created him. He suddenly felt that he had been led up to this point purposefully.

Drake looked at his men; they had packed and geared up for the return journey quickly and were eager to leave. They looked dead and beaten; It was clear that they would not be able to complete the journey on their own. Drake remembered what Ashton has said, seeming so long ago. He had said that the creation of bonds with his comrades was probably a part of the indoctrination process, that is was the way he could be controlled. He was hateful that such a thing could happen to him, but nonetheless, powerless against it.

“Fine!” he had stated, trying to swallow his anger. “Get us safely to the city gates and I’ll accept your conditions!”

At Drake’s words, Gatal performed his spell work as he promised and even secured the help of Horace. The spells they used filled the men with energy as if new life spring up into them, to Drake it was like the rising of the sun in his homeland. Ashton had described it this way, “It’s much more than just physical healing and energy boost, it’s an emotional and spiritual renewal as well. And with it, came the feeling that you could do anything, overcome any obstacle and every fear. It was like waking up one day and realizing that you are strong! It was similar to the time on the plains in the wilderness, the whole body heated up, and you felt ready to take on the world!”

Drake did not receive any of the spell work though, as usual, his ring negated all the energy and magic cast on him. Gatal had said to him, “I have done what I can for your men, but you will have to push yourself. Let us pray that it will be enough!”

“Pray to whom?” Drake mumbled, but either Gatal did not hear him or just ignored him.

Fallow was long gone by the time they started out; he had galloped away as soon as he could. Drake wondered if they would ever see him again. It suddenly occurred to him that Fallow now knew about him. Was he a possible threat? Drake decided it didn’t matter at this point.

When they were ready the group charged forward like wild beasts. They had turned their shock into grim determination, and with the boost of energy they had received they looked to run the entire way back to the city. Drake had to restrain them slightly.

The group marched on eagerly through the night and sooner than expected, they had reached Fort Newhouse by early morning, just as the sun was coming up over the horizon. The camp was in chaos, they too had been caught off from the network. The fort had been built on a hill in the plains and from it; the western forest could be clearly seen. At the moment, almost all of it was in flames.

The fort’s commander was flustered and agitated, but he was stern in his decision to remain at the fort. Drake didn’t really care either way at this point. With Gatal with them, their request for steeds was readily answered, along with additional provisions. Ashton tried to convince them of their imminent demise, but the commander shook his head and said to them, “I have been ordered as Captain of this fort to guard and maintain it until otherwise directed by my Commander. How can I leave my post now? No, I cannot abandon it.” Drake didn’t bother to argue with him.

From Fort Newhouse, it was straight north to central. The enemy was still pushing in from the east at an alarming pace; Drake hoped they would make it to central before it too, was conquered. The men believed that they were rushing towards the glorious last battle and the salvation of Kami, but Drake was simply hoping to make it in time for the retreat.

Ashton voiced Drake’s concern out loud to him along the way, “What if no organized retreat is ever made? Without one, I do not see how we could enter the city.”

Drake grunted back, “There are so variables. All I can do is hope that this Soul is as competent as Gatal makes him out to be! We will make it to the city somehow, I promise you!” He tried not to think about what he had promised Gatal. Would this be the end of his pitiful life as he knew it? They followed the barren road as fast as they could.

Fallow had reached the Central by late morning, but only after pushing his poor horse Carla hard. He knew he would not be able to join his mounted legion with her if he went to battle, a decision he regretted to have to make. He gave her over to the stable boy at Central when he arrived and watched her wistfully get led away. Beyond that, he was just relieved to find Central still alive and strong when he arrived. He wondered if he would ever see Carla again as he let her go.

Central was the land that encircled Command Hill, roughly a mile in radius. A great wall and other defensive structures and towers lined its edges forming an impressive sight. The whole thing could be considered one large fort in itself actually, with the hill rising majestically inside of it. It could house thousands of troops in itself and was considered the most secure location in the Frontline. Fallow had ridden up to the gate and was able to pass through without trouble. From the one of the commander’s inside he learned that his legion was not there.

“The 32nd had gone up south yesterday morning.” The logistics lieutenant told Fallow.

“I know, I was with them!” Fallow burst. “But where are they now?”

The lieutenant shook his head. “We’ve lost contact with all of our expeditionary legions, the 32nd included! We have no idea where they are. Presumably, still patrolling our southern perimeter!” he shouted in frustration. “Everything has been thrown into chaos since we lost the network; we’ve lost contact with everybody not immediately in our area. Kami’s throne, we can’t even communicate with the Hill!”

With that, Fallow left in a daze. For some reason, he had expected to find his legion at Central, but now he was alone and quite lost without them. He couldn’t ride out again to try to find them either, not with the enemy advancing on them. With nothing else to do, he eventually made his way up the eastern wall and looked out. He had seen the battle lines from his ride in, but the sight from the wall was beyond his imagination. Heavy lines of troops had been positioned between Central and the forest. Fallow could see various skirmishes raging across the way. But always the forces of Kami fought defensively, holding the line and fighting off the enemy. The strong river that flowed from the city into the forest had another key point in this no man’s land, and Kami’s forces held it still despite the intense fighting around it. Fallow wondered for how long they could stay there.

Another soldier was up there with him nearby, looking out solemnly. The man was missing his left arm, and right side was heavily bandaged, but he still stood proudly on the wall facing the enemy. Judging from what remained of the man’s uniform, he saw that he was part of the 324th mounted legion. Fallow moved over and said to him, “I am Lieutenant Fallow of the 32nd Mounted.”

The man turned and nodded, “Marshal Sargy of the 323rd.” He paused and then added, “Or what’s left of it.”

Fallow frowned asked, “I have been away up south since this morning, can you tell me what happened?”

The man grunted, shaking his head “Nothing is clear right now, after the initial attack two days ago we had set ourselves up ready for further invasions. But somehow, despite that, the enemy had smashed through Fort Bransley late yesterday. Since then, they had taken three consecutive forts along the river, Bronx, Drashnel, and Camberli, at unimaginable speed.” The man turned and looked at Fallow. His right eye was covered up. “My legion was part of the counterstrike we had prepared at the last fort. We had fourteen different battalions gathered, but we failed. My legion was wiped out completely and we were forced to retreat. As you can see” he pointed out towards the fighting. “We have drawn up new lines here, but I cannot join them now, I barely escaped alive.”

Fallow felt overwhelmed, and had to forcefully hold back his tears. Looking over the field again he cried out, “How could this happen? How could the enemy be so strong?”

Sargy looked at him wildly, “The anit-Kami is with them! A terrible magic was upon the fields, it spread fear and confusion among the men. Communication was cut off, we were alone and surrounded! In the forest, there was nowhere to run! Plus,” the soldier added. “There were ghosts! The enemy was using magic to deceive our eyes. We didn’t know half the time if what we were seeing was real or fake! We had no chance out there.”

Fallow shook his head. That’s what happened to Drake’s scouting legion! He thought. The man spoke again, but this time with a sly smile, “But look! We are now under direct control of General-Commander Soul! We are holding them off now at the river and the other areas. The enemy cannot use their same trickery in the broad day light and openness of these plains. We have powerful magicians on our side now too; they have been gathered from the city.”

“But the network is down, is it not?” Fallow asked, noting that the man used Soul’s former title. He let it go but wondered where the man’s enthusiasm came from. Fallow was fighting the despair in his gut.

“Yes, but in these close quarters,” Sargy said, gesturing towards the battle. “We can still communicate traditionally. Here,” the man said confidently. “We are able to overcome the power of the enemy and with commander Soul in charge we will be able to push back the enemy finally. It is said,” the man added with a childish smile. “That this will be the last battle, the final battle!”

“Leasnal.” Fallow said, looking out again at the warring men.

“Yes, Leasnal! under the power of Kami and the walls of the city, we will end the war here, today even!” The man’s eyes shined. “I am so glad to be able to witness it, though I am wounded I am still alive. Praise Kami!”

Fallow didn’t respond, but left the wall and Sargy silently. He entered the paths of the fort again and soon found what he was looking for. The magician he now confronted was wounded as well, and the more that Fallow looked around the more he noticed that mostly wounded men occupied the fort. Or at least this section. He approached the magician and asked, “Spellcaster, where might I find Lord Magician Vorash? I must see him!”

The young priest looked up; his eyes were dead and lifeless in sharp contrast to Sargy on the wall. Despair seemed to ooze from the man, but he replied flatly. “Check the command building. How should I know? The network is down, you know.”

Fallow bowed slightly in respect to the wounded priest, and then made his way hurriedly to the tall tower on the eastern side of Central that housed the immediate commanders. There he found Captain Davison and Vorsash in heated debate. He opened the door cautiously and witnessed the Head Magician was screaming again, but this time at the captain.

“WE NEED TO ORGANIZE A RETREAT!” Vorash shouted. “PUT AWAY YOUR IGNORANT BELIEFS AND DO AS I SAY!”

Davison replied back stonily, “Go back to the walls, you worm! Your words are heretical; we will fight and defend this territory and keep the will of Kami! We will hold them at the river, stop being a coward and keep your forked tongue in your mouth. I will not issue the order to retreat, unless Commander Soul tells me too. I only answer to him.”

“But we have lost contact with the hill!” Vorash spat. “How do you hope to receive orders from him? Without contact with the commanders, that makes you the head officer out here. You ignorant, foolish, slimy human; you will get us all killed! The frontline is not defendable! You must organize a retreat!”

Davison’s eyes flashed, “What are these blasphemous words I hear from you? You suggest retreat on the day of Kami’s victory? Where is your faith, where is your loyalty, where is your duty? You are a coward! Away from me, you vile beast, before I have your head! Soul may have appointed you as lord magician, but I do not recognize the words of a traitor!”

In a cry of fury, Vorash suddenly unleashed a spell. Fallow feared that he was going to kill Davidson, but instead, the whole western side of the room burst apart in magical fury. From the hole, the battlefield could be seen clearly and the dark smoke from the burning forest hung in the background. The cries of men and the din of war could be heard with the gusts of wind. Fallow and Davidson stared out at the hole, stunned, and Vorash shouted, “Look out at the field and open your eyes! Haven’t the best of your armies already fallen at the slightest touch of the enemy? Even now, you soldiers remain alive and fighting thanks to the effort of my magicians. Realize this Captain, in this war you humans will not be able to fight anymore. You soldiers are useless before this new power of the enemy. You hold them off now, but that will not last forever, nor even a day! The enemy will be applying new strength to their forces here soon and we will not have the ability to retreat then. While the network is down, we are practically helpless to defend reasonably. You must give the order to retreat; only the walls of the city can save you now!”

Davison stared out of the hole, his face pale and afraid. But he spoke sternly, “We cannot lose, not here, not like this. Not when the arm of Kami is with us and his Will before us! If Kami is with us, who can stand against us?” He turned back toward Vorash and a strange light was in his eyes. “We will win here today, Vorash! Have faith in the soldiers, in your magicians, in every person who is fighting for us now. But especially, have faith in Kami who has promised us victory and salvation.”

With that the man turned and sat down heavily, his face still white and his hands shaking. With a note of disgust, Vorash left, nearly knocking in Fallow on his way out. “So!” He said cruelly to Fallow as he passed by. “where is your legion now, Fallow? Have you come here alone to watch the final moments of the Frontline? All is vain, go back to the walls and find the best way for you to die.”

Vorash make to pass, but Fallow Grabbed his arm. He said to Vorash, “I do not plan on dying today. Tell me Vorash, what will it take to organize a retreat?”

Vorash snorted, “Didn’t you hear? There will be no retreat, not when everybody believes in our victory.”

“I do not believe.” Fallow said intensely. “I will call for the retreat myself if I have to. Now Vorash,” Fallow said staring down at the magician. “We are going to get this army to retreat, even if I have to arrange a Coup!”

Vorash looked at him, amazed. Then he laughed and said, “Finally, a human with some sense! Come, I will need your help. Perhaps we will be able to save these men, after all!”