NO RETREATS, NO SURRENDERS

"What do we do your Majesty?" One of the generals asked.

"We can not face them off in the open especially when we are still short of numbers." Valerian said.

"So what then are we going to do?" Another asked as they studied the map.

Valerian looked and thought for a while.

"We could draw them away from the open field." Valerian replied.

"Where to your Majesty." A third general asked.

"To the Southern highlands, if we can draw them to the mountains then we could defeat them there." Valerian said.

"The mountains will offer us a small disguise." A general said.

"We won't be able to be seen." Valerian said.

"So I want the army divided into six different parts." Valerian said.

"About one thousand in each of those groups." Valerian added.

"We are facing off tens of thousands of Skartian troops." One of the Generals said.

"Then we must force them to retreat so the first group will attack head on." Valerian said.

"That would be endangering the soldiers." One of the generals said.

"They won't last long on the battlefield and we must give them a believable retreat." Valerian said.

"And if we retreat?" One of the generals said.

"They will pursue us so definitely they will have to follow." Another said.

"And after they follow the second group shall wait until they have approached the valleys." Valerian said.

"It is going to be an inevitable move to retreat further if they reach the valleys." One of the commanders said.

"We won't retreat, two other groups will be surrounding the valleys and the moment we have the Skartians trapped.

Those in the mountains will fire." Valerian said.

"The Skartians will not be in the position to clearly tell where their enemies come from.

They won't be able to receive clear targets and that means that they will by no means recover from a defeat." Valerian said.

"They might retreat, it they do that then it is a dead end for us all." Another general said.

"And that is why we still have two more groups." Valerian said.

The generals looked at him as their eyes studied the map.

"The fifth group shall advance towards the enemy camp, they will have most likely cleared it out in the strife to continue further." Valerian said.

"You aren't suggesting that we loot their artilleries your Majesty because in a very short time, we can't loot all of it." One of the generals said.

"He is right." Another proposed.

"We aren't going to loot the place as of yet and I don't think we are going to bother looting it." Valerian said.

"Then what are we going to do in the camp?" The General asked.

"Plant landmines and explosives everywhere especially where the arsenals lie.

The camp will still have some people left behind to guard it primarily as a contingency plan.

They will not be strong enough to hold us back and by the time they will try to contact the others, it will be late.

The very least that we can do is capture the place and make ruins of it.

That way even if the Skartians retreated in the valleys, they wouldn't be in the position to resist us.

They will move further towards the Southern boarder." Valerian said.

"And afterwards your Majesty?" They asked Valerian.

"We make an example of all of them and no one stays alive." Valerian replied.

"Yes your Majesty." The Generals said.

"When do we attack your Majesty?" They asked.

"The soonest, now, we can't give them time to prepare to foil our counter attack." Valerian replied.

"Yes your Majesty." The generals said.

"Prepare the troops now." Valerian said.

"Yes your Majesty." the generals said as they bowed down their heads and walked outside the tent.

The soldiers gathered around and the six thousand troops that were gathered were split into six groups.

Each group had a total of a thousand men and they all took their respective positions.

Valerian stepped out of the tent later after every one else had organised themselves and walked amongst the generals and commanders.

He took a hold of his flag in his right hand and then the Scoln flag in his left as he stood in front of the six batallions.

"Today, by the time the sun sets, the Scoln flag shall rise and fly over the land that is ours.

We shall burn the Skartian flag and they shall no more come near Scoln soil ever again." Valerian said.

The soldiers cheered on louder that the sound travelled up to Skartian camp.

The Skartians however did not mind until there was a loud sound that approached from beyond the hills and the mountains.

After a while, the Skartian soldiers that were on the lookout spotted Scoln flags flying in a distance.

The Scolns were marching towards their camp and at once the warning gong was sounded.

"The Skartians upon hearing the sound of the gong reacted by organizing their troops.

"It is the Scolns, they are attacking." The soldiers shouted amongst themselves.

The Skartian generals emerged from their tents and at once got onto their horses.

"Every one, get ready to fight, prepare for war has come upon us all.

This time, the green flag will hover above the Scoln soil and we acquire our Victory." The Skartian acting commander in chief said.

The Skartians got ready.

"If they get nearer the camp, they might inflict some damage onto it." One of the Skartian generals warned.

"We are more powerful." Another said.

"They are aware that we haven't yet settled down so they are most likely bringing their entire force against us.

If we can crush it then we advance further north and we won't give them a chance to man their frontiers.

They will be too late to defend them." The acting commander in chief said.

"So what do we do about it?" Another General asked.

"We attack head on, for open battle." The acting commander in chief replied.

"Yes Sir." The Generals all replied.

The generals then spread to all different fronts of the Skartian army and watched in a distance as the Scoln soldiers advanced.

The soldiers were having steel shields and they were coming closer at a steady pace.

"Attack." The Skartian commander in chief gave his order.

At once, the Skartian troops set out towards the Scolns rolling along with them canons and other artillery.

The Scolns fired and the Skartians did the same in retaliation as the two antagonistic parties closed the distance between each other.

Valerian rode his horse back at the fortress as he monitored the war from where he was.

When the two collided, it was with a very great force and shootings erupted from amongst the warriors.

Many on either side were falling and dying but the war continued nevertheless.

It had been about an hour and the gods seemed to be in favour of the Scolns.

The majority of the Skartians were being massacred and the acting commander in chief being more and more furious sent more troops to the battlefield.

The Scolns having noticed that there was another regiment of Skartian soldiers approaching, they were given an order.

"Fall back." The General that commanded them said.

The Scoln soldiers responded and went in the opposite direction from that in which they had come from.

They moved farther to the Eastern part of the South lands into the mountains where Valerian awaited with two other regiments.

The acting Skartian commander in chief took notice of the retreat.

As it was the case that Valerian had planned, he eventually fell for the ruse and gave the order.

The Skartian troops charged in pursuit with a very small fragment remaining behind to defend the camp.

The pursuers were led by the Skartian General himself as they arrived into the valleys of the hills.

They followed until they beheld the Scoln soldiers at a distance and they seemed to be catching up.

They were in a deep valley and the mountains towered high above them they did not suspect any danger.

About one hundred thousand soldiers rode in as the Scoln soldiers surrounded the mountain tops.

As the acting Skartian Commander in Chief of the armed forces moved on further, he eventually came to a halt.

Ahead of them on one of the hills tops he saw two flags flying one being the Scoln flag and another of pure white and gold with a blue 'V' in the centre.

Amidst both flags was a soldier he had never seen of before dressed in white and gold seated on a white horse.

The sky could almost respond with thunder and the ground rumble.

"Valerian took hold of a golden horn in his possession and then he blew it out loud.

At once, bullets began to rain on the Skartian soldiers from all sides that they were thrown into panic as the majority died.

"What is happening?" The Skartian commander in chief asked.

"We have been trapped Sir." The Generals and soldiers replied as they strived to strike back.

It was impossible for them however because the enemy they were fighting at the moment was unseen.