The cavalry

Even at full gallop, the horses struggled to outrun their pursuers. Torgny was in high spirits. Here, in the thick of things, he felt so alive, drunk with success and his renewed pride.

The plan had worked almost as anticipated. They had quietly entered the sedentary camp in the middle of the night and had abducted Lana in her sleep. In her shock, she had not reacted at once and they had time to gag her, tie her up and then remount before someone saw them and raised the alarm.

The first men to chase them were ill-equipped, riding directly on the back of the horses, without saddle, they were poorly armed and lightly dressed to face the cold night. When Torgny, still riding fast, straightened his back, he could see behind them the dust cloud raised by the second wave of pursuers. No doubt these would be better prepared.

The loud pounding of the hooves on the dry ground would have impressed young Olek. Torgny, on the other hand, couldn't stop laughing. The pain in his ribs, where Chloé had hit him, put him in a trance, close to insanity. His companions who knew him well remained focused to keep up with his frantic pace and anticipate his sudden changes of direction.

His unpredictable character and his disturbing laughter also helped to unsettle their current enemies who wondered which crazy maniac had kidnapped their precious Lana. The latter, thrown across the saddle, almost on Torgny's lap, was no longer struggling, she had lost consciousness from hitting her head on the side of the horse.

The day was already dawning and the race continued, faster than ever. In the daylight, a now calmer Torgny and his people could see the formidable deployment of forces in hot pursuit. As a true warrior, the young man could appreciate the qualities of the opposing army and its generals.

In all likelihood, if the commander knew a minimum of military strategy, the small group of young people would be caught up before reaching their camp and their families. Torgny was gritting his teeth now. The horses were no longer very fresh and would soon show signs of fatigue. Even their sturdy little horses needed rest.

The first group of pursuers had already fallen back to regroup and had blended into the crowd, swallowed up by the second wave that was coming closer like a tidal wave sweeping away everything in its path. Torgny spurred his mount some more, they were coming in view of the jumble of boulders that had concealed them recently, it was their only chance.

He hoped that Fergus, Nikodem and the others had already left. An additional dozen warriors would not make much difference in front of the human tide belonging to the sedentary people. Were they five hundred? Maybe a thousand of them.

At least he wouldn't have to worry about protecting the beautiful Chloé. She had attacked him with a knife in her hand but she might as well have defeated him with no weapons other than her steel-blue eyes. The violence and madness in those eyes had shaken the fragile balance of Torgny's whole universe. And he had been forced to admit that his heart no longer belonged to him. Since their separation, the young man's nights had been haunted by images of this skinny little woman with her enigmatic face and her eyes so inordinately large that they were all one could see.

Torgny's group entered the narrow pass that was the only access to the jumble of boulders on this side. It was a good place for an ambush but nothing had been prepared. Their only advantage was that the sedentaries riders could not move forward with several people abreast and that it was possible to repel them long enough to block the actual access with a large stone. The plan seemed hopeless and left too much room for improvisation and the contingencies of battle. From the very beginning, the struggle had been uneven and unfair and it would be easy for part of the opposing army to go around and attack them from the rear. Everything would then be lost.

Torgny was about to dismount to lay Lana in the small cave that had sheltered Chloé for a short while, in order to be able to move freely for the impending fight. He had barely set a foot on the ground when a messenger appeared beside him. Sumai! But what was he doing here?

The others were already busy fighting off the assaults from the numerous enemies. They were determined to fight to the end and would rather die than live in shame. Sumai quickly summarized the situation. Nikodem had entrusted him with the task to bring Torgny and the rest of the group with him. And it seemed Sumai had a hard time catching up with them.

The point was that the group of twelve, with Chloé, had belatedly decided to go towards the city with Nikodem and Fergus in the lead. They intended to infiltrate the city, even if it seemed unrealistic or crazy. It gave them a new purpose in life. They too had made their move despite the possibility of not coming back. Always foresighted, Nikodem had decided to call for reinforcements to help them fight, if necessary, the Outcasts and the City guards.

Torgny immediately saw red. Once again, he mounted on his horse, which was still carrying Lana, and shouted the order to follow him. Without further thought, he set out for the city. If Nikodem wanted him to join them, he must have left tracks and a way to cross the river.

He took great care to be seen by the sedentary fighters who had to go around the treacherous jumble of boulders to continue the pursuit. The detour wasn't difficult as long as they didn't try to enter the impregnable natural site so they were getting closer to the small troop leaving their shelter. Torgny was planning to take advantage of them against the Outcasts. Both groups were mortal enemies after all, their mutual hatred was far deeper than a small squabble over an unwilling fiancée.

Sumai was now riding his own mount, much fresher than those of his companions, and was easily overtaking the column, though his friends' horses were galloping at full speed, to show them the way.

When they arrived in sight of the city, the fighting was already engaged between the Outcasts and Nikodem and his small troop. The reinforcement sped up again, in hope they were not too late. In the legends told by Fergus' grandfather, the cavalry always arrived late, sometimes after the battle. At least it wasn't over yet, there was still hope to find their friends and Chloé still alive.