Chapter 17: The Difficult Situation

Varius was still captive and was tied to the pole. He struggled to escape away but it was not easy for him.

"Damn it. If only I had a sharp object."

He could see a few tribal guards roaming around and keeping an eye on him. His mind raced to find a way to get out of there. Suddenly, an idea struck his mind.

He started crying loudly, as if he was in agony. "Help me! Help me!" He rolled up his eyes, stuck his tongue out, and vibrated his entire body in a violent manner. It was as if he was possessed by a demon.

The guards came running when they saw his condition.

"What happened to him?" one asked.

"I do not know. Maybe something has possessed him," the other replied.

"Whatever happened. We need to look into it. Untie him."

The other guard nodded and untied Varius. Little did they know their captive was too skilled a fighter for them to handle once out of his bounds.

Varius suddenly took a bite on the neck of the guard who had untied him and ripped out his throat in one go.

"Aa… aa…" the guard gasped for air. He could not believe what had just transpired in a second. He grabbed his neck and dropped to the ground.

"What the hell!" The other guard pulled out his sword. "You will lose your life for what you have done."

Varius spitted out the chunk of meat from his mouth. He licked the blood around his lips and grinned. "No one can kill Varius."

The guard swung his sword, and Varius ducked it. He tried to swing it back, but Varius blocked his arm. He kicked his feet to make him lose balance. Once the guard was out of his balance, he grabbed his neck and twisted it.

"What is happening here?" another guard came running when he heard the noises. He was shocked to see Varius out of his bounds. Without wasting a second, he attacked him.

But it was easy peasy for a veteran warrior to deal with him. Varius walked away after getting rid of the nuisances and found a horse to escape.

"No one can escape my wrath now." He galloped away in a hurry.

***

King Hammer was on his way to a retreating point when he got news from his spies that there was a third army approaching the lake from the east. He immediately understood who it must be.

"Brother Rozerd," he grinned. "So, you have finally decided to make a move."

Both Rozerd and Dyna were his enemies, and he could not afford a contact between the two armies. There was a chance that they could join hands. It would be difficult to get the castle then. There were not many options left for him. Either he had to cut off their route to never let them meet, or annihilate one army so that there could never be an alliance. He knew what to do.

He ordered the tribal chiefs. "We will go back!"

***

Dyna had camped on a hill near the targeted castle. She eyed at the castle from there. Gilbert and Jacos were with her.

"Are you sure the prince is in that castle?" Jacos asked.

"Yeah, the source is a reliable one," Gilbert answered. He avoided telling the amputating tale of how they got the information.

"What if they move the prince somewhere else?"

"We have already considered that," Dyna said. "We will keep a check on every route connecting the castle. Your men are also hunting for any secret passages in the jungle."

Jacos nodded. "Right. When are we going at it, then?" He bumped his fists together. "I can not wait to go into the battlefield. It has been a long time since I had taken part in one."

"Be patient, Jacos," Dyna said. "We have to analyze their tactics. They must know we are here, yet we can not observe much strange movements from them."

"What can they even do?" reacted Jacos. "We have blocked the supply routes. They can not ask for reinforcements now."

"What if they had already asked for reinforcements?" Gilbert wondered.

"Then we have always a chance to retreat," Jacos replied.

"You are right, but I am not here to retreat," Dyna said, her eyes unflinching from the castle.

"What should we do then?"

"We will attack without wasting much time."

***

Prince Rozerd and Prince Colt had readied their army and were marching towards their destination. Until now, they had got the information that King Hammer was taking his army to attack the castle. Both the princes were side by side on their horses leading the soldiers.

"We will camp in the east of the lake," Rozerd said. "We will stay there until their clash is going on."

Colt nodded.

A soldier suddenly arrived on a horse. He looked a bit tensed.

"What happened?" Rozerd inquired.

"My prince, there is an issue," the soldier said.

"What issue?" Colt asked.

"There is a third army marching towards the castle. They are tribal people, but not under the command of King Hammer."

Colt and Rozerd glanced at each other.

"Then who is commanding them?" Rozerd demanded.

"It is a woman, my prince," the soldier replied.

"A woman?" Colt found it strange for an unknown woman to lead a tribal army to conquer a castle. "Do you know who this woman is?"

"Not yet, my prince. But our sources have confirmed that there are at least three tribal chiefs under her command," the soldier said.

"Three tribal chiefs under a woman?" Rozerd wondered. "Just who is she?" He noticed the soldier was a bit tensed and understood there was something he hesitated to tell them. "Is there something more I should know?"

"My prince, King Hammer had retreated earlier from the lake, but he is again marching towards it," the soldier dropped the bomb.

The eyes of Rozerd expanded in shock, as he knew it was not good news. "They had retreated?"

His army was heading towards the lake because he knew Hammer had camped there and must have moved ahead until now. It was the only place around the area for an army to set up a camp and rest. They had almost reached their destination, and if his brother's army was not far away, there was an almost hundred percent chance of a clash.

Colt, too, understood the issue they were facing now. "What should we do now, brother?"

"Let me think. If we do not plan out our move now, we would be too much into a difficult situation," Rozerd reacted with a tensed face.

Colt thought for a second and said, "Brother, just give me some of the cavalry."

"We do not have many horses. What do you want to do with the cavalries?" inquired Rozerd.

"Just trust me. This is the only way to stand a chance against brother Hammer," Colt assured him.

Rozerd could see his brother had something in his mind, and he, too, had an idea of what it could be.