Chp.6: Sneak attack

Following the outbreak of war, two military camps had sprung up in the Karbraland Great Forest: one was for the ogres, the other was for the fairies. Each of these camps was exactly three kilometers away from the border that formally divided the territories of the two peoples. Although placing them closer together would have reduced the time it took for the two armies to engage each other and would have facilitated an occupation of each other's territory, it could also have facilitated things for the enemy for the same reason, and therefore it was better to keep the armies positioned at a certain distance and in favorable strategic positions.

Unlike the ogre military camp, the fairies' camp was very different. Just as the ogre camp reflected their social situation, the fairies' camp also reflected their nature. It wasn't a camp built on the ground, as the ogres had done, but above the treetops. It wasn't actually a real military camp, but many camps built on different trees close to each other. It had been built using special magic that flattened the foliage and made the leaves very compact, creating a sort of platform on which tents or even real structures could be pitched.

As for the division of the army, it wasn't too different from the ogres: even in the military camp of the fairies the soldiers were in the outer band while the officers and the most important structures were positioned in the center, well protected. However, this was less of a problem than it was for the ogres, since soldiers could rely on height to make them feel more secure. Also, the fairies soldiers' equipment was much better than that of the ogres, which kept the mood up despite the situation.

Fairies differed from ogres not just in different camp and better equipment, but also in discipline. Unlike the few members of the upper class, in fact, the ogres who had taken part in the war were almost all former hunters, not used to following orders and used only as cannon fodder against the enemy. On the contrary, the fairies present there had undergone rigorous training in order to be ready for all the pitfalls of war. Although the sudden mobilization of the ogres had taken the faeries by surprise and even recruits and ex-veteran soldiers had to be sent to war, all of them still knew or remembered the basics of army formation and were able to carry out orders as soon as they were given.

Fairies were much better at strategizing than ogres. Their warfare technique was based on precision and calculation, as opposed to that of the ogres which relied only on brute force. Their formation was designed to allow soldiers to rotate continuously, allowing them to rest or replace fallen comrades. In this way, even if they were fewer, they still managed to create a defense while suffering very few losses. As far as attack was concerned, the fairies relied mainly on pincer maneuvering: they lured the ogres towards a point and then closed their escape route using their ability to fly to quickly surround them. The ogres always managed to break out in the end, but using this method many of them died killed by soldiers or crushed by their own comrades. Furthermore, the fairies relied also on another technique, the sabotage.

And that's what ninjas were for. The ninjas were a special unit of the fairies' army that numbered just over 600 soldiers, since certain requirements were needed to become a ninja that only a few fairies managed to pass. They specialized in attacking covertly, both during battle and during lulls. Their only aim was to damage the enemy as much as possible by relying on their cloaking techniques. The more damage they did, the more the enemy lost strength, and consequently their companions from the rest of the army had a better chance of victory.

However, the duties of a ninja didn't stop only at this. They also had the task of discovering the enemy's strategies, identifying any weak points, tracking down enemy spies, looking for enemy patrols and their routes... and also monitoring certain places that could be exploited by the enemy to open a breach, and that therefore the common soldiers couldn't patrol to prevent any spies from noticing them and discovering what they wanted to keep secret.

"Hey, Mirta, hurry up! It's time for the patrol!"

A short-blonde haired fairy stood in front of a curtain, calling to the person inside. It didn't take long before another fairy, with brown hair and purple eyes, came out of it. "I'm almost done. I was just finishing up getting the rest of the equipment"

"You're always the same, Mirta! We're going on a patrol, not a reconnaissance mission!" the blonde fairy laughed. "There is no need to always check to take everything with you"

The brown fairy glared at her. "Ella, you are too superficial. We must always be ready for anything. If they call us back to deal with a surprise attack, we must respond immediately!"

Her tone was very serious, but the blonde fairy didn't seem to care. "Sure, sure. Hurry up now! Let's go, or Thiara will scold us for being late!"

Mirta sighed, aware that she had just talking in vain. Although she was torn by the urge to scold Ella seriously, she ignored it and took flight with her. The two of them flew towards the outside of the military camp, towards the crown of a tree above which there were already two other fairies. One of them was tall and with long raven hair, while the other was slightly shorter and with brown hair, lighter than Mirta's ones. The first was named Thiara and was the leader of that small unit, while the other was named Ghara and was her second-in-command.

"You are here. Good, we can go" Thiara said with no emotion in her voice. The four fairies arranged themselves in a perfect line, and then all took flight together. A tenth of a second later, their bodies shivered as if they were made of water, and then vanished completely from the sight of any creature with eyes.

Mirta flew quickly towards their target. She couldn't see her companions either, but that wasn't a problem since she had a detailed map of the route they were to follow imprinted in her memory. She knew that it was the same for the others too: even if people like Ella might seem a little silly, she was still an elite soldier and as such she knew their way by heart. Therefore Mirta could continue flying with the absolute certainty that all her companions were directly next to her.

The spot they had to patrol was an area of ​​forest about a kilometer away from the military camp. It was a rather dark place due to the very dense treetops. If the ogres had discovered it, it could have become the scene of a battle: in fact it was a very unfavorable terrain for the fairies. In fact, the ground was almost completely devoid of plants due to the lack of sunlight, therefore the ogres would not have found any obstacle and could have charged without having to worry about anything; moreover, the fairies normally relied heavily on archers, placing them behind treetops to strike at opposing troops, but the trees in that area were too tall and spread out, and as a result the archers could not strike at close quarters. They would have been forced to position themselves at higher points, but in doing so the arrows would have lost a lot of force before hitting the target; to top it off, since there weren't many places to hide, the ogres could have simply raised their shields above their heads and walked forward regardless of the rain of arrows. While this would hardly have resulted in their victory, the fairies would have to pay a heavy price. For this reason it was absolutely necessary to prevent this from happening; that's why Mirta and her companions had to patrol that area at regular intervals, to intercept any possible spies or scouts from the ogres.

Fortunately, in all those weeks the ogres had never discovered this territory. Mirta was sure that this time it wouldn't have been different, yet she couldn't shake a strange feeling. She knew it was impossible, but it was as if someone or something was watching them. She felt uneasy, but no matter how much she looked in every direction, she couldn't see anything, not even an animal. She didn't know what it was...

Her thoughts were cut off cleanly in an instant. For a moment, time seemed to slow down: she felt a searing pain hit her tailbone, as if a boulder had just fallen on her at high speed. Instinctively she thanked the gods that whatever it was had hit her in the lower side of the back: if it had hit a little higher, it would most likely have shattered her spine and all her internal organs as if they were made of paper.

It took her a few seconds before she recovered and realized that she was falling rapidly. But before she could do anything, something stabbed her in the sternum. She looked down and she saw that two huge paws had grabbed her and that gigantic claws were digging into her belly. The pain was intense, but it wasn't enough to make her forget that she was still falling; she tried to fly, but whatever creature clung to her must have weighed at least a ton. In the end she made the only choice available: she concentrated all her mana and she summoned the strongest protection magic she knew, and she braced herself for the impact with the ground.

Despite the protection, the impact was extremely violent. Mirta hit the ground with the left side of her body, and she immediately felt the bones of her shoulder and arm shatter. Her entire body vibrated from the force of the impact, but luckily that wasn't enough to damage her internal organs. After the initial hit, Mirta rolled on the ground for several meters, until she hit a large rock and finally stopped.

The pain she felt all over her body was so excruciating that it dulled her mind, but nevertheless the fairy tried her best to keep her thoughts clear. She was an elite soldier and as such she knew how to keep calm even in the most desperate situations. She knew she couldn't afford a single second of delay. The creature that had attacked her had let her go on the impact, but it would have most likely attacked her shortly thereafter. With all her strength, she used her mana to start a healing process all over her body. She grit her teeth and tried her best not to scream as all of her bones repaired themselves and the flesh reformed over them.

But just when her body was mostly healed and she was beginning to think she was out of danger, she heard a voice: "You survived. Too bad for you"

Although her body wasn't fully healed yet, Mirta's hand ran towards her dagger and she prepared to fight, but before she could do it something scaly grabbed her by the neck and forced some kind of liquid down her throat. Suddenly, her strength left completely, as if someone had sucked them out. Her body seemed to go numb and she became still.

"It must be some kind of narcotic!" she screamed in her head, trying to stay awake. As quickly as she could she used her mana to find and eliminate the toxin inside her body. But the narcotic was too strong, and her body was weakening too rapidly…

"Don't fight. You have no chance to resist it" that voice said again, and something appeared in her field of vision. Mirta tried to focus on the creature in front of her. It was huge, silvery, and looked like a reptile… maybe a lizard… but much, much bigger than normal…

"This sleep potion is powerful enough to knock out even a level gold warrior. I've verified that" the creature said waving what looked like an empty glass bottle in its paw. "I doubt you have a higher level of strength, so, as I said before, you have no chance"

Unfortunately, the creature seemed to be right: Mirta's mind was seriously failing. The fairy tried to resist for a few more seconds, then she lost consciousness. An instant before passing out, she heard the creature's last words: "We'll have a lot to discuss in the future. In the meantime, good night"