Someone among the attackers had planned very, very well.
“Get the hippogryphs to cover!” Haldrissa ordered. She drew her glaive. There was still no sign of the invaders themselves, but that would surely change in moments. Haldrissa had to use what little time remained to her advantage.
Her gaze fell upon Kara’din, who ran from wounded fighter to wounded fighter, using his druidic powers to heal them as best he could. The commander chose to leave Kara’din to his own devices for the moment as additional concerns occurred to her.
“Archers, form ranks!” She saw that some had already begun to, but as a whole they were not moving as quickly as Haldrissa would have hoped. “Northeast, east, southeast! Twenty paces from the gate!”
Of necessity, the main post was surrounded by high wooden walls. When it was being built, the trees sacrificed had been honored as if they were fellow warriors. Haldrissa now prayed that the trees had retained their great prowess even in death. She suspected that the Sentinels would need it.
Guards on the wall crouched low as they surveyed the forest beyond. Thus far, they had given no sign of sighting the enemy, although a few moved about as if momentarily believing that they had.
The deadly whistle of another rain of arrows filled Haldrissa’s ears. Denea shouted a warning to the gathering huntresses to quickly raise their shields.
Arrows clattered against the shields. Unfortunately, some of the huntresses did not move fast enough. Screams rose as at least three of them fell with shafts sticking in them and others struggled with wounds. Haldrissa looked for her own archers and was grateful to see them ready to return fire.
Arrows nocked, the archers awaited the word. The commander gave it to them without hesitation.
Now the whistling became a sign of hope as night elven arrows soared out over the wall. Haldrissa raced toward it, aware that she would not be there in time to see the bolts descend, but hopeful that there would be evidence of their success.
She heard cries from without as she climbed. More than a few. The orcs might have good archers among them, but they were not Sentinels. Haldrissa was certain that her people would inflict far more damage. She only hoped that it would be enough.
As if in answer to her question, another stream of arrows returned just as the commander reached the top. Although she managed to duck, the Sentinel nearest to her was too slow with the shield she carried. The thick arrow completely piercing her throat, the dead night elf toppled back off the wall.
Haldrissa peered into the forest. For the first time, the Horde began stepping from the protection of the trees. They were spread throughout the edge of the forest in various positions, and while a few had bows, others seemed intent on merely watching.
No . . . not watching. Counting. Counting the return fire and the number of Sentinels on the walls.
Squatting down again, Haldrissa turned back to those farther inside. “Cease fire! Cease fire!”
Below, Denea looked as if her superior had gone mad. She hesitated long enough for another rush of arrows to answer those from the Horde. Haldrissa silently cursed as the bolts flew over her. The orcs were expert warriors; by now they could make a good estimate on the Sentinels’ strength in terms of the archers.
Sure enough, as she looked outside again, she saw the orcs at the edge begin to creep back. Simultaneously, the forest quieted. No new flight assailed the night elves.
“They have retreated,” one younger Sentinel naïvely murmured to a comrade. “They are gone.”
“No,” the commander replied, startling the pair and others nearby who, in the excitement, had forgotten that she was there. “No, they have only moved back a little for a short time. We remain under attack. The first person to forget that will likely not have to worry about punishment from me. The Horde will have already killed her.”
The warriors grew solemn, and several tightened their grips on their weapons. That was how Haldrissa wanted it. If they remained ready for the worst, they had a far better chance of survival.
She quickly descended to Denea. “How are the archers?”
“A few wounded, three dead. Say the word and we will send another greeting to those vermin!”
“Never mind that. The hippogryphs! Were they able to get most of them to cover?”
“Four are uninjured. Two more are wounded but able to fly. Two others have injured wings and cannot be counted. Another is sorely wounded, and I fear he will die.”
Six viable hippogryphs. It was better than Haldrissa had hoped, although fewer than she would have liked.
“We do not have much time. See if Kara’din can do anything for the less-injured ones first,” Haldrissa ordered. She paused as a dark look passed over Denea’s face. “What is it?”
“I meant to tell you next. The druid is dead. In the last flight of arrows, a good number fell his direction. He was focused on our wounded and failed to protect himself sufficiently. I believe he died quickly, pierced so many times.”
Haldrissa cursed. “They saw a chance to take out the druid. Where is Parsis?”
“No sign. He may be dead already.”
The commander could not waste more time on the subject. The Sentinels had survived without druidic assistance for millennia and would do so now. “We move on, then. Get every archer ready quickly. The Horde will not wait long before beginning their attack in earnest. We do not know how many of the outposts have been hit and how many of those have been overrun already. We need to get word to Darnassus, but this time I want sufficient cover for the hippogryphs and their riders.”
“Do they each carry a copy of the message?”
“Damn the message! At this point all they have to tell General Shandris is that Ashenvale is under full assault. Now, go get them ready!”
Denea rushed off with a swiftness that the veteran warrior suddenly envied. Haldrissa already felt as if she had fought an entire battle, not merely the opening skirmish.
The archers reassembled, though initially they kept in a loose enough arrangement that if the orcs fired at where they had initially stood, there would be few casualties. It bothered Haldrissa to even think of success being measured by trying to have losses kept to a minimum, but that was war. The more of her fighters she saved, the better, even if it meant some others might have to sacrifice themselves . . . including her.
The hippogryphs were ready just a few minutes later. In all that time, the orcs had not fired one shot nor even sounded one horn. Haldrissa worried about that. Whoever was in charge of the attack had something insidious in mind, she was certain.
Denea signaled her. Haldrissa silently motioned for the archers to ready themselves. When they had their bows nocked and aimed, she nodded to the brave scouts and hippogryphs, then to her second.
Denea waved off the party. The great winged creatures flew into the air, their riders bent low. Each animal took a slightly different direction, but all headed toward the west.
“Fire!” Haldrissa commanded.
The front ranks of the archers let loose. The second held back, though, just as she had ordered.
The stream of arrows soared out toward the forest. As that happened, the hippogryphs beat their wings harder. They rose higher and higher.
Again, Haldrissa gave the order to fire. The latter ranks shot. All the while, those who had first fired readied their bows once more.
There was no return fire yet. Haldrissa almost held her breath, waiting for the Horde to try to shoot down the hippogryphs. Yet, they did nothing.
At last, the winged creatures and their riders were out of bow range. The commander finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“Look there!” someone cried.
Haldrissa looked for the long-awaited flight of Horde arrows, but instead a more stunning view awaited her. High above and closing fast from the east were nearly a dozen blurry specks that coalesced just enough to reveal reptilian forms with batlike wings. Red reptilian forms.