The first few soldiers did not notice the Chula shaman, and Ukaro instructed his tiger to roar. The front of the column immediately halted as the soldiers stared up at the tiger and its rider. Excited shouts rippled through the Omungan ranks as the following riders started to bunch up. Several Omungans unstrapped their bows and frantically nocked arrows. Ukaro grinned broadly showing his teeth as he glared at the invaders.
“We have been patient with you,” Ukaro shouted. “We will be patient no longer. Leave the Sakova now or die.”
A hail of arrows sailed toward the Chula shaman even as the rear of the column continued to advance. Ukaro sat passively as the arrows soared towards him. Several Omungans started shouting victoriously just before the arrows abruptly changed course. Ukaro shook his head in an obvious display of pity.
“You have been warned,” shouted Ukaro. “Prepare to die.”
More arrows flew at the Chula shaman, but Ukaro merely patted his tiger. The new arrows also abruptly changed course as the tiger turned and walked slowly away. As Ukaro disappeared from the promontory, a group of Omungans shouted and gave chase. They ignored the shouted orders from their officers as they raced up the slope next to the promontory. They crested the rise and charged through the fargi trees searching for the tiger and its rider.
The riders broke formation and rode over a wide span as they searched the forest. Suddenly, screams ripped through the woods as a hail of arrows flew into the Omungans. The screams halted suddenly and silence reclaimed the ancient forest. SkyDancer rode across the line of dead Omungans shouting as she chased the frightened horses back towards the rise.
The halted Omungan column heard the short screams. Just a few moments later, the unburdened horses began appearing. Havoc rippled through the column, and the officers had to shout threats to keep the soldiers in formation. Finally, the column continued its trek deeper into the Sakova.
The column rode uneasily through the fargi forest. Many a soldier kept his bow strung and an arrow nocked as he looked nervously from side to side. Eventually the officers called a halt for the midday meal. The news of the tiger incident spread to the soldiers who had not been close enough to witness it. While the uninformed soldiers openly scoffed at the tale of a cat-man riding a tiger that was impervious to arrows, it was all too obvious that they believed their fellow soldiers.
The officers who overheard the spreading of tales reacted with threats of punishment, and the midday break was shortened. The column was reformed and the Omungans rode unwittingly towards the defile.
The officers grew concerned as the sides of the canyon continued to narrow. Their eyes constantly rose to check the rims above them, but they continued forward. A clatter rose from the Omungan soldiers, and one of the officers left the column to see what was causing the break in silence. As he rode against the flow of the column, the officer scowled at the troops who were speaking. He saw one of the men point to something at the side of the trail. He rode towards it and stopped when he recognized the cut tail of hair. He contemplated picking up the severed tail, but he was concerned that it might be poisoned. He wheeled his horse around and headed for the vanguard.
As the officer rode towards the front of the column, his eyes were no longer glued to the rim above him. He scanned the ground of the canyon and saw one severed tail after another. Well over a hundred of his men had had their tails cut during their foray into the Sakova, and the officer began to subconsciously count the tails as he passed them. When he reached the vanguard, the officer rode alongside the leader of the soldiers. He pointed out the next tail of hair as they passed it. The chatter from the rear of the column grew louder, and the leader gritted his teeth. His eyes bounced from the rim above his head to the trail of tails lining the canyon floor. A sudden chill ran up his spine.
Suddenly, a large cloud of smoke rose above the center of the defile before the column of Omungans. The leader called for a halt, and the column began to bunch up as the other riders were paying more attention to the tails lining the canyon than the riders before them. The officers in the column rode forward to find out why the leader had called a halt.
The strange white cloud flattened vertically, and the face of the tiger-man appeared in the center of it. The image was much larger than life, and many Omungan soldiers gasped as the cat-like eyes peered down at them. While everyone was staring at the strange image, the cat-like man spoke. His voice echoed through the entire canyon.
“You do not understand the power of the Sakova,” the cat-like man said loudly. “You have been warned. Now you shall die.”
Suddenly, a bright light appeared in the canyon before the Omungans. The soldiers stared in awe as the light sped towards them. They watched in frozen fascination as the ball of light flattened into a horizontal disk. Their eyes opened wide in fear as the flat disk spread and blades of pure light appeared spinning around the large disk.
The screams of the group of officers were short as the blades of light sliced through their bodies. Blood flowed over the backs of the horses as the dismembered bodies of the officers fell to the ground. Still the Omungan column remained frozen in disbelief.
With shouted war cries, the Sakovans charged into the canyon from the far end. The cloud dissipated, and the Omungans stared as they saw the enemy charging. HawkShadow, Ukaro, Goral, and StormSong led the charge. The Omungans suddenly realized that the battle had begun. Many of the Omungans chose to turn and retreat, but a few opted to attack. The rims of the canyon filled with Sakovan archers, and arrows flew into the Omungan column.
Amidst the hail of arrows, the Sakovan riders tore into the vanguard of the Omungan column. HawkShadow and StormSong slashed left and right as they surged into the Omungans. Goral swung his massive maul, instantly crushing whatever it touched, while Ukaro issued a stream of fireballs. The Omungans who had decided to attack had a sudden change of heart. They wheeled their horses and sped after the other retreating soldiers.
The Sakovans gave chase, but they kept their chokas slowed down to match the speed of the Omungan horses. The idea was to keep the Omungans running rather than engage them. Other Sakovans showed themselves along the path of retreat. They did not join the battle, but rather guided the retreating Omungans by appearing on small rises on each side of the path HawkShadow had chosen. The chase lasted until nightfall when HawkShadow called a halt to the pursuit. The Sakovans gathered and rallied around HawkShadow.
“That went rather well,” smiled StormSong. “Do you think they will stop for the night?”
“Not a chance,” grinned HawkShadow. “They will ride until they meet the larger army sometime tomorrow. I will send some riders out to shadow them. Any stragglers will be killed, but the rest will be allowed to flee.”
“Now we must prepare for the larger army,” interjected SkyDancer. “They will not be so easily routed.”
“One group at a time,” sighed HawkShadow. “We will need some new tricks for the next group.”
Ukaro joined the group, and HawkShadow grinned broadly at him.
“Must you go to Tanzaba?” asked HawkShadow. “I enjoy having you around. You are the perfect picture of what we have tried to portray in the tales spread to the Omungans.”
“I enjoyed being with you Sakovans as well,” Ukaro grinned back. “We work well together. I feel like a Chula Sakovan. It is as if I belong here.”
“We do indeed,” agreed the Sakovan assassin.
“I must do as I promised the Star of Sakova,” the Chula shaman continued, “but I have time to teach some of your mages how to cast the light disk. I think you would use it wisely.”