Zimmy says "What?!"

Raindrop says "Are you crazy!?"

Roland says "It would improve morale to have you fighting on the wall where the men can see you."

Nived says "Settle down! I'm sure Ash has his reasons, so let's wait until we hear them."

Zimmy says "Well, Ash? Do you have a reason?"

"If I don't fight outside, we are going to lose."

Roland says "Why do you think that? Sure they outnumber us by 10 to 1, but when defending, that is manageable."

"Against living opponents maybe, but against undead, who need to be killed by destroying the head?"

Roland says "True, that is going to make the fight harder."

Shard says "Not to mention we will be fighting in the dark!"

"There is something else to consider. Our losses can be raised by the enemy."

Roland says "Meaning the more losses we suffer the stronger the enemy can become."

Zimmy says "I hadn't thought of that!"

Raindrop says "How is you fighting outside going to change that?"

"If I am outside where I can move around I can reduce their numbers a lot more. I can probably take out a quarter of the enemy."

Roland says "You plan to kill five thousand undead by yourself?!"

Raindrop says "He can do it. You didn't see him fighting in the middle of the army to slow them down!"

Zimmy says "You think he should do it?"

Raindrop says "No! I still think it is insane! But what choice do we have? He is right that we cannot win as things stand. Have you forgotten about the death knights?"

Nived says "Good point. Ash is probably the only one who can defeat a death knight on his own."

Shard says "Yeah, if a death knight were to reach the wall how would we stop it?"

Roland says "All it will take is one breach in the wall and we are finished."

Zimmy says "Does all this even matter? No matter what we say, Ash is going to go out and fight the way he wants."

Shard says "True. It's not like any of us can stop him."

"Anyway, since I will be outside, Roland will be in command of the defense."

Raindrop says "So, what aren't you saying?"

"What do you mean?"

Raindrop says "You are holding something back. I can tell."

"Chances are, the death knights are not the only thing the enemy has. I need to be outside where I can react and deal with any surprises."

Roland says "Shouldn't you take your troop with you?"

"No. As good as they are, they can't move like I do. Besides, you will need them on the wall."

Shard says "Since there is no more point to arguing with him, we should get to work."

No one likes it but they can't think of any more arguments so the meeting ends. Roland and Shard leave to organize the defenses, Nived goes to the wall to prepare, but Zimmy and Raindrop stay. Once the guys leave they turn to me and glare at me like I did something wrong.

Zimmy says "This is not how a king should act!"

"You forget, I am not a king! No matter what you may want, once this fight is done I will be gone."

Raindrop says "Do you want me to go out with you?"

"No, I want you on the wall firing thousands of arrows. I am counting on you to thin the number of enemies who reach the wall."

Zimmy says "Are you really going to leave after everything that we have been through?"

"I have no choice in the matter. Once the fight is done I will return to my world."

Raindrop says "If you had a choice would you stay?"

"No. I have people waiting for me and a much larger war to fight."

Zimmy says "If you have a war to fight why were you sent here?"

"Basically, this is my training. In order to have a chance of winning my war I need to become stronger."

Raindrop says "What could you possibly need to be stronger for? You are already strong enough to face an army on your own!"

"My world is facing a demon invasion."

Zimmy says "No wonder you were able to kill a demon and not freak out!"

"I have already come face to face with a demon lord, but I was not strong enough!"

Zimmy says "A demon lord? They really exist?"

"Yes, unfortunately."

Raindrop says "I am beginning to understand why you take so many risks."

Zimmy says "Well, I understand why you have to go, but we will miss you."

"I will miss you too. I am not good at this stuff, but Zimmy I want to thank you. I would have never made it this far if you hadn't trusted me."

When I see Zimmy's face turn bright red I decide that it is about time for me to get moving. I quickly leave the room, but not before I hear Raindrop laughing about something. As I am heading for the north gate I realize that fighting is so much simpler than dealing with people.

Once I am outside the town wall and see the progress on the trench I am satisfied. So I order the digging stopped and for the oil to be spread, once that is done I order everyone back inside the gate. The sun is just setting, the enemy should be here within the next hour.

The men who were digging will at least be able to rest a bit before the fighting starts. The trench and the dozens of tripwires will slow down the first wave quite a bit. Whether or not it will be enough, we will just have to wait and see.

Moving away from the town wall I start looking for a good place to sit and wait. In the end I decide on a decently tall tree that is out of the enemy's line of march. From a branch near the top of the tree I have a good view, so I settle in to wait.

Before long I can see the enemy army in the distance, but it still takes a while for them to get close to the town. As I watch the army pass my position I keep an eye on them but so far I don't see anything but zombies. What I am looking for is probably at the back of the army so I continue to just sit and watch.