Rise of the Horde

The game of chase lasted until nightfall. Those who made a beeline towards their camp managed to escape. But those who went elsewhere were hunted down by the pursuing orcs. The Warg and Rhakaddon Cavalries spearheaded the chase with their allied riders following after them.

A cold night breeze swept through the previous battlefield. A breeze so cold that made the wounded men who were praying for rescue to shiver in fear. They thought that the chilling wind was death, coming to claim their pitiful lives.

Spread out on the battlefield were the warriors of the horde, the different warbands stood guard while their Ereian allies rescued those who can still be saved. Among the pile of corpses, they soon saw the hopeful eyes of the wounded. It didn't matter which side the soldier belonged to. The rescuers saved as many as they can.

There was also the hard part of ending the agony of those who were beyond saving. They would rather end them right there and then rather than prolong their suffering.

Everything that could be still of some use were cleared out from the battlefield. Weapons, armors, shields and other equipment, none was spared. As long as it was something of value, it was taken.

Khao'khen was waiting for those who were still out to make their return. He was going through the scrolls that were taken by the Verakhs from the enemy camp. The information that was contained in the scrolls gave him a much clearer understanding of the enemy army.

Among the scrolls was also what seemed like a royal order of appointment from the current king of the kingdom. The name 'Rakabis Dekases' was clearly written in the scroll and appointed as "Grand Commander' by the current monarch 'King Gyassi Vienna'.

Khao'khen finally learned of the name of Ereia's current ruler. Adhalia never mentioned his name or addressed him in a proper manner. She just kept on calling him names like "bastard, scoundrel, rascal, villain, rogue" and many more other names. Some of the names that Adhalia used to address the current king were terms that he was encountering for the first time.

Pertaining to the way that she addresses Gyassi, Khao'khen just shrugged his shoulders. He didn't care what she calls the king.

By midnight, the warriors who were still outside the walls returned. Alongside them was a long line of captives. Pride and joy was clearly written on the faces of the orcish riders. Their blood drenched bodies, steeds and weapons was a witness to how much enjoyment they have experienced.

The captives had their heads low as they silently follow the one in front of them. A gloomy aura engulfed them which was a dark contrast to the aura that the orcs had.

Some finally had their fill in the previous battle and were clearly happy but there were those who were not. There were those who weren't able to participate much or had no participation at all in the previous battle.

The happiest warband when the battle was just starting to get heated became the most dejected. At first they thought that they would be able to fight more than the other warbands and rack up more glory than them, but that didn't happen. The only number of kills that they scored was from their two waves of javelins.

The eight warband sulked while the other warbands laughed at them. There was nothing that the warband master of the eight could do in their current situation. The other warbands had the right to boast of their achievement.

And it wasn't just them who were crestfallen. The sixth and seventh shared with them the same fate. Only the fifth who was supposed to reinforce their right flank got to participate in the battle fully.

The warband master of the fifth led the warband to hammer the flanks of the Ereian left center when he saw them collapsing under the renewed attack of the Drakhars. He made use of the opportunity presented and veered off from the order that was given.

Each warband had the authority to make decisions by themselves on the battlefield according to the circumstance presented. And with the opportunity presented to him, he made good use of it.

The residents of the town were glad of their side's victory. Although they didn't receive the victorious orcs cheerfully, they were very receptive of them.

The Ereian camp had gone awfully silent. Exhausted soldiers were on their butts while the wounded tried their best to nurse their wounds. Their commander had yet to show himself up after the battle. Survivors out in the desert who manage to escape the pursuit of the enemy cavalries came trickling back towards the camp.

Although most of them returned to the camp, there were still some who decided to abandon the army. Those who were knowledgeable of the dangerous terrain headed towards the lands of the nomadic people who inhabit the treacherous parts of the kingdom.

*****

There were tribes, settlements or bands of people who refused to submit to the crown and opted to stay in those perilous parts of kingdom rather than kneel down to nobility. They were people of many professions.

They engaged in banditry and robbed unsuspecting caravans or raid unprotected settlements. Sometimes they would even assault caravans with guards as long as the risk was worth it. The loot depending on what it was would then be put to good use by them. If it was grain and other daily necessities, they would keep them and use them for themselves.

And if it was goods of luxury, then the bandits would become peddlers and engage in peddling.

There were also times that they would be employed as guards by travelling merchants to deter other bandits. A partnership between the bandits and merchants existed. Some merchants would hire them not as protection detail for their caravans but to rob their rivals in the business field.

There were even some bandit groups that were sponsored by wealthy merchants. They would then be mobilized to eliminate or hamper their rivals.

Even some nobles also employed their service to perform some shady things for them.

This group of people discovered the use of the back gooey substance that could be found in some places along the kingdom. They have discovered that the substance was very flammable and they weaponized it.

Raid parties would often bring small jars filled with the substance. The jars they use were of easy to break quality. They would then seal the mouth of the jars with rags extending out a few inches and also drenched in the substance for easier use. The raiders would then light the exposed rags and hurl it at their targets.

The jars would then shatter on impact and the substance would then be smeared upon the subject, setting it on fire. They basically created their own version of molotovs.

Among the rebellious people, there was once a powerful warlord among them. His raiding party was thousands in numbers. It was his group who were the first to employ in battles their version of molotovs.

Towns without stone walls fell prey to his group's raids. Wooden walls couldn't keep them out since they would just set it ablaze and wait for the inferno to turn the wooden walls into ash before continuing their raid.

This was the peak time for the people who opposed the crown and the nobility. But sadly the glorious era only lasted for two years. The war lord was caught because of his weird brutal addiction which was butchering people alive. It was said that he relished in the sight of their suffering and enjoyed their screams of pain.

He was given the moniker "Mad Butcher" by the Ereians. It was the young fathers of Adhalia and Faynah who caught the crazy war lord. And he was quickly sentenced to death through the same way that he did to his victims. The "Mad Butcher" who butchered his victims alive was butchered alive, in front of a crowd.

The execution was weird as the criminal didn't let out a sound as he was cut piece by piece, it was only later that the executioners discovered that he was already dead for hours. Still, they continued with the way of execution and cut him into small pieces.

The tool that the "Mad Butcher" used was a pair of axes and the same axes was use on him.

His death tamed down the other rebellious groups but this did not stop them completely in their way of life. With the aid of some of the kingdom's merchant and nobles, they thrived in the perilous parts of the kingdom.

The vast desert was their home and they have long been used to the raging sandstorms that were prevalent in the parts of the kingdom that they were in.

*****

After they have made their return, Khao'khen called for all the leaders on their side for a council. He needed their opinion on how they should move forward.

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