Swords of Isadren (BoyxBoy)

Chapter Sixteen: Storm

The next day was the day that they finally reached the border.

The sky was cloudy, and the scent of both life and death was hanging in the air, testing Asman's ability to distinguish the two.

He could tell that they were coming to the place where a battle had been fought. With the scent of dead bodies and blood it was almost obvious. But there was also the light scent of men, fires, and mud.

It made sense for there to be a fort at the border. It would leave the possibility of either side gaining ground at a standstill.

The Isadrenians could not pass the fort without conquering it, and the Feliasians could not go further beyond the Isadrenian fort either.

The road that the Guard had been on would unfortunately lead right to Fort Jasdan, named after the river that separated the two kingdoms; and even though the fort was likely near empty, the Guard would not take it over until they knew that they could defeat the line of Feliasian soldiers across the river.

In the letter, it read that Fort Aidell of Isadren had not yet been invaded, but was on the brink of it.

Niallen, Stulvon, Asman, and Vanora has all been the ones to speak of a plan. Vanora was one of the best strategists in the Guard, Stulvon was Niallen's second, and since Asman had called them to fight technically, those were the ones that Niallen chose to speak with.

Since the forts and the bridge to cross the river were at the thinnest part of the river, it would take the Guard traveling through the forest to get to another spot that they could cross at. Even though it was one of the widest areas in the river, the place where they would cross held two small islets within the water. This would give them enough shallow spaces to be able to walk or at least swim the horses across.

Once they were across, there would be a short walk to the north gate at Fort Aidell. Asman quickly realized that it would be easy for the Guard to just continue north on the road towards the Capital, yet when he mentioned this, Niallen and the other two had been quick to say that they were willing to fight still.

If the Feliasian numbers were still too great, then they could just as easily return to the Capital and send more men with a more accurate account of their numbers.

After telling the Guard the plan, that is what left them now quickly approaching the Jasdan river and its islets.

The walk through the forest had to be quiet, just in case there were soldiers hunting or patrolling the nearby wood. The Guard stayed on their horses just in case they would need to run, and for the sound of only at most the horses hoofbeats and not human footsteps.

They were far enough from the fort that they could not see the walls, but close enough that once they reached the river, it was easy to see the bridge not too far down from them.

In addition to the bridge, were also the two clearings which were used for battle. One held the smell of death that had been bothering Niallen and Asman, and one held the smell of life and the soldiers they meant to avoid and then attack.

The river was large, but the islets truly did provide shallow water. Shallow, but also not so enough that the Guard could walk across. So then they went through the motions of gathering the bags and stripping what clothes they could as to not get them wet.

The larger horses went first, with the tallest Guards guiding them as dry items were held above their heads; Niallen and Stulvon were in this group along with Cedran.

Asman was cold without the shirt and trousers he had stripped of, and all of the shorter Guards were the same as him. Dahlia stood next to him as they led themselves into the frigid river next.