TO ARMS

The ride to the southern fortress was intense but Valerian did not stop for anything.

He went with only horses and no carriages with the intention of getting to the fortress in time.

The Southern part of the Kingdom was sparsely populated which made it prone to the foreign danger.

The one town there was that stood between the border and the rest pf the Kingdom was Olsen.

Olsen was the Southern fortification of Scoln but the Darians had greatly reduced the numbers of its soldiers.

A third of the five thousand had survived and on those a third, only one thousand two hundred were unharmed.

By Mid day, Valerian who was being led by a couple of royal guards could see Olsen in a distance.

The royal guards bore the royal flag and once they were spotted by the soldiers, the soldiers rushed to them.

They were about ten horsemen in number and they were well built and vicious looking men.

Judging from the ranks on their uniforms, they were no ordinary soldiers at that.

Valerian was halted by the soldiers that stood on guard at the entrance of the city.

"Reveal yourself." They demanded.

"I am the Queen." Valerian said in his defence and he showed them the Queen's seal.

The soldiers took it and studied it to see if it was real.

"You may come with us." The soldiers said and they led the way into the city.

At the end of Olsen was the fortress whose walls were tall and long it was probably the very last barrier there was between them and their attackers.

When Valerian arrived at the fortress, he got off his horse and a tall man walked up to him.

"How may I call you?" The man asked.

"I am the Queen of Scoln." Valerian replied.

"Your Majesty." The man said as he bowed down.

"How can I call you?" Valerian asked.

"I am Balder, Commander of the Southern fortress and troops." The man replied.

Valerian took time to study him and he had red hair that was short and spiky.

In addition, he had thick side bans that were well shaped with a scar on his left cheek.

"I shall work with you for the time being and his Majesty the King has sent me to inspect the damages." Valerian said.

"Then come with me." The man said.

Valerian did not hesitate and he followed the man to the interior of the fort which was distorted.

"What exactly happened here, tell me in detail?" Valerian asked.

"We were taken by surprise by the Darians." Balder replied.

"When?" Valerian asked.

"Yesterday at noon." The commander replied.

Where are the casualties?" Valerian asked.

"They are in the city." The commander replied.

"Take me to the walls." Valerian demanded and the commander followed.

They climbed some stairs and eventually srudying the wall, the area past it had a few trees in a distance.

It was clear and there were patches of blood on the ground.

"How much of the enemy did you wound?" Valerian asked.

"I have no idea." The commander replied.

"Can't you at least estimate in a fraction?" Valerian asked.

"About a tenth." The commander replied.

"How large was the army?" Valerian asked.

"About twice the size of ours." The commander replied.

"They are doing all they can to make the Southern defense fall, then they shall attack with full force." Valerian said.

"When are the reinforcements arriving?" The commander replied.

"To begin with, do we have land mines?" Valerian asked.

"Yes." The commander replied, " however they are not very many." He added.

"Can you plant me like about thirty?" Valerian asked.

"Yes, where?" The commander asked.

"One kilometre away and each of them in a straight line with intervals of two hundred metres between them." Valerian replied.

The field is open so send in fiften men and instruct each to plant two two.

Once done they must return to the fortress immediately without delay." Valerian added.

"Alright then." The commander replied.

"What most dominant weapons did the attackers use?" Valerian asked.

"Cannons." The commander replied.

"About how many?" Valerian asked.

"More than a hundred." The commander replied.

"How many does the fort have.

"Twenty two for the time being, the others were destroyed." The commander replied.

"Then have them scattered along the walls, I want all the men at the cannons aiming for the enemies cannons." Valerian ordered.

"Alright then." The commander said.

"We stand guard at all hours and in all positions." Valerian added.

"Of course your Majesty." The commander said.

"How far is the enemies camp?" Valerian asked.

"We did not manage to send in spies, there might still be some Darians around.

They could be about five kilometres away." The commander replied very well.

"They weakened the defence so it is not enough, they shall emerge again by surprise when we least expect.

It could either be very early in the morning or late at night, early dusk or noon of tomorrow.

I need three shifts of watchmen drafted and our defence shall depend on them, each shall take shifts of six hours, I shall need to visit the town." Valerian said.

"If your Majesty says so." The commander replied.

"I shall leave immediately, take me to the casualties." Valerian said.

"Alright your Majesty." The commander said.

The order was passed and immediarely, the soldiers got to work and did what Valerian had said.

Fifteen soldiers were sent one kilometre away and they planted the landmines in the order that Valerian had said.

The twenty two cannons were planted along the fortress wall that protected Olsen.

The healthy soldiers took shifts watching out for the enemies as Valerian rode to back to the city.

The casualties of the previous attack were being nursed in the infirmaries.

Many had been badly wounded and they had also died and Valerian waa moved by the sight.

"These men are savages and they are serious." Valerian said.

"If our numbers are less, then we are not enough to defeat those men." The commander said.

Valerian moved out of the infirmaries and looked around at the whole place

The town was very peaceful and everything even business was still taking place.

It did not look like a condition of war or perhaps the people were neglecting.

Soren moved to the city square where masses of the people were gathered.

Some people stopped when they saw him walking up into the city with a couple of guards and soldiers.

Valerian looked for a platform and nearby there was a foundation of a building under construction.

"Attention." Valerian called as he raised his Royal seal.

Every one suddenly rushed to him and they all began shouting and asking questions.

"Where are the reinforcements?" Some asked.

"Are more soldiers coming?" The others yelled.

"Are you here to help us." They went on and the majority were all expecting Valerian to say yes.

"No reinforcements are coming here to help us." Valerian finally said and the people immediately quietened down.

"What do you mean your Majesty?" The commander asked.

"We shall not be receiving reinforcements." Valerian repeated once again.

"We are all doomed."

"Those men shall kill us all."

"What is our king doing?"

"What are we going to do?"

"Where do we go from here?"

"Does his Majesty mean to desert us at this very critical moment?"

The people asked all sorts of questions they could find.

"What has this got to do with the King?" Valerian shouted.

"Only he can save us." The people replied.

"Whose lives are at stake here, aren't they the lives of our brothers, are they not the lives of our siblings and parents.

Our elders, our children?" Valerian asked.

Every one became silent.

"Must it rest with the King ti protect your household, must he leave his palace to come and fight them off for you?" Valerian asked again.

The people quietened down.

"I stand here with you, and I come in the name of your King, I am your Queen and I am not fighting just for myself.

I am fighting for my husband and I am fighting for my children, I am fighting for my grand children and the ones that shall come after that." Valerian said as he stepped down from the foundation.

"If it is to protect our city, our country and our land, this is an obligation that we all share.

Those men are cowards, they hide behind trees and there guns, what are we fellow brethren?" Valerian said as he moved to his horse and mounted it.

"Each of us is capable enough to fight for the land that is ours or else our brothers who have died die in vain.

Stand with me and fight for your homes and I promise you, no stranger from a foreign land bears the right to steal them from us.

Abide with me and I shall take you beyond your greatest strength, we do not need an army to fight this war because we here are an army." Valerian said.

"Fight with me, fight with me, fight with me." Valerian cheered himself.

The rythm started and every one joined in until the whole square eventually stood with men women and children alike.

Valerian couldn't help but feel happy.

"If you are with me, they shall not prevail." Valerian said as he lifted his rifle in the air.

The soldiers around him followed his example and they along with the people raised their weapons and hands into the air.