From out of a haze of dust, at the point where the descending valley turned rightwards, out of view, came the first ranks of enemy soldiers, chainmail clad axemen, leaning their weapons against their shoulders. They had a slow, steady pace, set by the beating of the distant drums. The effect was ominous and I felt my stomach tighten. Behind them came a large body of lightly-armed spearmen, the silver points of their upright weapons flickering in the sunlight.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyfIkyfAxmS
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1DK6r2LWXM
Then came their light cavalry, thirty of them, taking a long while to file into view; next the ten heavy cavalry. Their archers were not yet in sight, nor the drummers, nor their commanders or the Shaman, yet the axemen were coming straight on to the bridge without pausing. Whether it was complacency or stupidity, they were going about this all wrong.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTvH7TF3Z8C
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfry84hGLRy
'Blood and Thunder, do you see the chance?' I looked a Lord Arval for confirmation.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbZqVtHw8Ns
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0cihS2uRF
His face was grim. 'Order us on sire and we'll go to hell or glory.'470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr9jESeselb
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡteIccFZ3x5
I laughed. 'I can do better than that. Follow me. Open the gate!' I shouted. Then I took the potion bottle, uncorked it and gulped down the contents. 'Rhino!'470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYpk2GS9lOe
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPrfTlV4QvC
For once my great bulk was valuable, I felt it stretch and stiffen as I fell forward onto all fours. Probably I was not a full adult rhino, but the weight and sharpness of the horn in front of my eyes was up to the job at hand.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXgJ8Mz92Hn
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPcaLpmvHyi
I set off, a lumber at first that was a trot, once through the gate I stepped up to a canter and finally hit my stride at a gallop. Being a rhino was intense. Although my vision was blurry, I could smell the sweat of my enemies and heard the loud thuds of their marching steps on the wooden bridge.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj90zXG7JEj
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpCqXGYzoLM
Fifty yards and their shouts of alarm rang through the air. The axemen needed the spears in front of them, grounded. But my calculation was that we would get there first. It was intuition and it was the kind of decision that you make in an instant and have to commit to.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9nO3qsANd9
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3aDOwwAYz6
Forty yards and I was throwing mud up from my hooves as I urged my heavy body to its upmost. This was living! No longer trapped in a body that couldn't walk up ten steps without having to pause for a rest, I was a raging storm; an unstoppable torrent; a tsunami about to crash on the shore. And I loved it.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡekNrOw5jcl
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAqKRV0wvOx
Thirty yards, some of the axemen were trying to run back through the spearman, who were massed too tight on the bridge to bring their weapons to bear.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDRPQcz1Oc1
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpDROrfiqIl
Twenty yards. Splashes either side of the bridge as men dived out of the way of the coming hell: me.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡirigVjZYDY
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76zQQJSHfj
Ten and I was the tip of an avalanche. From the scent of fear, they knew they were going to be engulfed.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS4Uk3JwlNR
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbPKyhMWUQG
Impact!470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsnS1Tl6ust
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswzV6NOXf6
There was a green box flash and I took it, of course.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFOXY1eCszY
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbtKvsoplNQ
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2tA7iVDXcV
You have hit an axeman for 147 hit points.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjQcMc32mm6
You have killed an axeman!470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZixhRSzLnr
You have gained 60 Experience.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmKEOcKsYm3
You have unlocked the Impale proficiency.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlcFOqkcu14
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Qo2bKxeln
You have bashed an axeman for 31 hit points.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVYecEyAjsR
You have killed an axeman!470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRBPSZSQazq
You have gained 60 Experience.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7BZVzAZOcr
You have become better at Bash: 2470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqx5vmE2pJM
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW5chBnUDNF
You have bashed an axeman for 34 hit points.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEHj99p9HnU
You have killed an axeman!470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpq8xQRfBhN
You have gained 60 Experience.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6RdMwODynX
You have become better at Bash: 3470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbEeOxFZaR7
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUHURH8kL4M
You have bashed a spearman for 26 hit points.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxVWIqP7tyy
You have killed a spearman!470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDI2NbO50zx
You have gained 40 Experience.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhPUrXMOd2F
You have become better at Bash: 4470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4367RzKoXk
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwWrUKQnrD1
You have bashed a spearman for 22 hit points.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhhwn6RzaF5
You have killed a spearman!470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKOmOjrLDX
You have gained 40 Experience.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgUkV57im0b
You have become better at Bash: 5470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8DzrCaMrdY
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXm5VtSwOeJ
The notifications flew by and I ignored them as I pushed on, crushing soldiers under my hooves, impaling them and throwing their dead bodies to the side. Several axe blows struck home on my front shoulders, flanks and chest but twice I experienced the sweetness and glow of a level increase, each time completely healing my wounds.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5HqmzTNL3U
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFEbrbi0r6R
Screams of wounded and panicked men rang out all around. But through the cries, I could hear a voice like a howling wolf, it was Lord Arval, screaming, 'come on! Come on! For Greyland!'470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJR8WNSwErm
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡikPot9gSLc
The crush on the bridge was intense, which favoured our side. While their axes and spears could not be brought into play, I could still smash my powerful head into faces ahead and either side, as well as break legs with stamps and kicks of my feet. Our horsemen, too, were nearly immobile, but they could still cut down with sword or stab with lance.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw2GcwzZEMg
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG5rJcrmUTL
Step by step, we pushed on, nearly clearing the bridge. My only concern now was the timing of the potion. How long had it been since I drank it? Surely only a few minutes, despite the massive carnage we'd inflicted on their army.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW6nAvYS2RB
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3kw0TTEhgD
Then, with a sudden release, we were through, the remnants of the unit of spearmen running back down the narrow path in panic, which instantly disrupted the formation incoming light cavalry. Did I have time to keep going into them? I had to try.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRCfFS43CLQ
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkEZgHnFZfc
The fact that I'd levelled up twice meant I experienced no fatigue and a quick check told me my hit points were at 32. Filled with confidence and energy, I used the room ahead of me to build up momentum again.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0LLEhIPY08
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8xBnT5Pj48
'Follow the king! For Carlos!' Behind me, Lord Arval was still going strong it seemed and the answering roar of our soldiers had a clear note of triumph. Again, I could smell the fear of men and horses even before I crashed among them, showing no mercy to the animals whom I gutted and whose delicate legs I crushed.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPch2TuYjgX
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNnTn5xWzO
Far louder than the cries of men and the clash of metal on metal were the high-pitched equine screams of injured horses. Unlike the heavy destriers behind me, these horses had not been trained for the press of the melee and they were frightened, some of them rearing up and throwing their riders to the ground. Even so, one or two lances managed to stab down and cut through my thick hide. My hit points dropped quickly from 32 to 19 following a third hit. But then I levelled up again, soaring up to 40 hit points.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmfKw85xEUj
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ectM7cfVa
Their light cavalry unit was in full retreat. I was just preparing to launch myself again, with the intention of smashing right through the heavy cavalry and into their archers when I found myself staggering, once more in human form, completely without armour. Fortunately, there was no immediate threat.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡonoYVPueUl
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnZs5IiYrF
'Get back sire!' Lord Arval urged his mount past me and ceased his own charge, guarding me by interposing his large destrier between me and the enemy. Our four other knights did the same. Either side of our little defensive knot, our light cavalry came past, cheering that they were scattering their foes. Even so, the tide of the battle was turning. The ten enemy heavy cavalry were drawn across the road and were not budging, even for their own fleeing infantry and light horsemen, some of whom risked going over the broken terrain of the rising hillside, others trying to squeeze past on the river bank, falling in as often as escaping.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi3FyqUUp9s
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCma1Sbv91
Beyond the line of horsemen, their officers must have gotten some order among the archers because arrows flited overhead with increasing frequency, some struck striking the plates of Lord Arval and his armoured horse.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHbeAAwHyTw
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSbxkL9mNpx
Our problem was that we couldn't easily reach their archers. Our light cavalry lunged ineffectually at the enemy knights but couldn't break their ranks. There was room for our archers on the other side of the river, but if I ordered them to go there, we would be outnumbered and lose in the exchanges with enemy fire. The ballista was far too slow to bring up. This could really hurt us. Our riders and horses were beginning to suffer.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlRGWIq55tD
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECN3nUeVWk
Another rousing cheer from behind me. It was the arrival of our twelve heavy infantry and a large body of light infantry with Carlena at their head. There were a good mix of spears, axes and swords among them. This was exactly what we needed!470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL0zjgsM5sR
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLfhNuUGamL
There was a fierce look on Carlena's face as she ran past me, pausing to raise her hands and then, with a flash, half a dozen fire darts splashed onto an enemy horse. The animal collapsed. Cheered by the success of this magic our newly arrived soldiers ran past and also cut and struck at the horses in front of them. We were winning again, a huge press of our soldiers climbing over the dead animals and past enemy knights who were still fighting, so as to get among the archers.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLtDRHFg3bg
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQ0I2YXH8n
I felt that we were on the brink of victory, when cries of consternation from our men made my heart sink. The very land was working against them: bushes and grasses reaching out to entwine their feet and immobilise everyone. The enemy archers, on the cusp of routing, took heart and through the chaos, I could hear an officer of theirs urging them to hold and fire at the immobilised targets.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsghdnmcZRb
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrxgOzuWhwT
'There,' screamed Carlena, pointing to a man in a bearskin, whose sabre-tooth tiger pet was walking in a circle around him, protecting him while he cast spells. It was their shaman, who had climbed up the hillside and come close enough to cast what to me seemed like an Entangle-type spell. 'He's out of my range.'470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2uChyfF6gs
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3llv9XCZ4t
'Archers!' I called, but we only had a few men around us with bows.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJyTfeu4bJz
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLfunJEDG7v
Carlena ran towards the enemy spell caster and I admired her, because that tiger was fierce looking. The enemy Shaman had spotted her run too, and was clearly aiming a spell at her, his arms gesturing swiftly.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡefOitycgga
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0folUX4J2i
Caster battles could be short and violent. I found myself clenching my fists anxiously as I watched, oblivious to arrows and screams and the movement of the people around me. Was Carlena going to be taken out by a powerful spell? It would be a disaster for us if this went wrong.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Xtod66PMt
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkTfHzYQbbJ
Then the Shaman was down and behind him was the chancellor. Parrin had backstabbed their caster and taken him out! Our men were free again, the enchantment of the plants dissolving with the death of its creator.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjcHDhT2mRw
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡefmw4ODx3Z
'On, on! We have them!' Lord Arval set off again, the other four knights moving with him. It left me unprotected, but it was right. Even though a few enemy archers saw me as their target and I did get hit twice, we had them. Archers were no match for heavy cavalry and they knew it. Soon bows were abandoned as most of their army fled for their lives, while dozens of men huddled in groups, hands in the air, trying to surrender.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡizwabSUj82
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL4BMKvClE9
Up on the slope, our elderly scout was being savaged by the dead Shaman's pet sabre-toothed tiger and was clearly wounded. Carlena, however, had not stopped running and was in range for a spell.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlvj2jfiKiw
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5NObXnLnw1
'Freeze!' The animal was checked and Parrin scrambled clear.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpodxm7QyWl
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFdQUPsfx8Y
'You! You!' I got the attention of two of our archers with an urgent shout. 'Kill that tiger.'470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ97sifzJ5eM
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaI2oLoOAdt
It took several hits, but Carlena had enough mana for a second Freeze and was able to keep the animal locked in place while the arrows thudded home.470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpyWVIoFVkr
470Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ70rSv5DvYs
All at once, it was relatively quiet. Yes, there were still groans and the clank of weapons and armour but the sounds of fighting were in the distance now, down the road. All around me Greyland soldiers were smiling and laughing. Some looked at me with frank delight, as if in this moment rank did not matter, that we had shared an experience that transcended the barrier between king and foot soldier. And we had. This was a victory to savour.
