Something is coming. Lots of somethings.
Sirajuddin heard Nahash’s whisper and replied, Shall I come down?
Not yet, said Nahash. Could be another distraction.
Right, said Sirajuddin. He continued soaring above.
Enemy incoming, whispered Nahash to his general.
"Men!" shouted the general. "Look alive! We have company!"
The soldiers stiffened and readied themselves, spears, shields, and bows out.
Movement in the trees. Various figures darting back and forth. Some on two legs, some on four.
I have a huge mass of birds coming at me, whispered Sirajuddin to Nahash.
Ravens? asked Nahash.
Looks like, said Sirajuddin. A few hundred?
They’re a distraction, said Nahash. Watch for those fairy lights.
The movement in the trees stopped. An eerie silence fell.
Butterflies surrounded the soldiers, blinding them.
"This again!" said William.
"I hope the dragon can deal with the wasps," said David.
Wolves charged into the line of soldiers. Some fended them off. Others got knocked to the ground by lupine momentum.
Nahash focused his will and sent a blast of arctic air radiating out from him in a wave. The butterflies fell to the ground, paralyzed. The soldiers lined up against the attacking wolves as best they could, given the trees and uneven terrain. Archers began to take them out one by one. Nahash threw several wolves into trees with his mind, crushing their spines.
Arrows flew from between the trees and hit a number of soldiers. Nahash peered into the darkness. He saw men with bows there — and one woman? — lining up their next shots.
Nahash fired rays of heat at five of the attackers he could see. Two managed to dodge. The other three had holes burned right through them and fell dead.
Above the fray, the cloud of ravens circled Sirajuddin, blocking his vision. After tolerating it for a moment, he focused his mind and sent a conical wave of force into their midst. A score of them fell to earth. The rest scattered.
At that moment, thirty-seven star folk appeared and fired energy attacks at the dragon. Sirajuddin managed to deflect most of them, but not all. He found himself blind, deaf, burned, frozen, and shocked.
The fairies are back, said Sirajuddin to Nahash. A whole host of them. I’m not sure I can handle this many.
We have our own problems down here, said Nahash. Get to ground. If we can lure the fairies down here, at least the soldiers can swing their swords at them.
Yes, sir, said Sirajuddin. He blindly opened a portal between himself and the ground and dropped through it. He hit the ground hard, causing the trees around them to shudder. The portal closed behind him.
You okay? asked Nahash as he killed more men and wolves.
Blind and deaf, said Sirajuddin, but not too wounded. Their spells are not that powerful. Give me a minute.
They heard a shout. "Fire ants!" The ants had moved in during the fight and now attacked the soldiers beneath their clothes.
There was a loud buzzing. The wasps were back. The men began to swat at themselves, making them easier prey for the wolves.
Nahash clenched his jaw. Enough of this. He focused and sent a wave of flame out from him. It was hot enough to singe the hair off the arms of every man there, and enough to rob the wasps of their wings. They fell to earth and began to swarm with the ants.
Nahash siphoned heat from his surroundings. For a hundred feet, the temperature dropped to below freezing. The men shivered, but the ants and wasps stopped moving and biting.
Sirajuddin and Nahash felt searing pain. The star folk were attacking from above, around thirty feet up. Nahash slung his iron at them, but missed.
Nahash felt strong vibrations coming their way. Far too big to be men.
Do you feel that? Nahash whispered to Sirajuddin.
Something big is coming, said Sirajuddin. I still can’t see.
Stay behind me, said Nahash.
The star folk focused their attacks on Nahash. It took all of his concentration to deflect them. He had nothing left to throw the iron.
One of the forest folk charged at David with a spear. David held up his spear and shield and waited. The attacker went at him like he were wild game. He blocked, causing the enemy’s spear to get stuck in his shield, and drove his spear into the enemy’s side. He fell the the ground, writhing in pain.
"Dave! Look out!" shouted William. William was suddenly at his left, his shield blocking an arrow meant for David. "It’s a woman!" he shouted. He pointed.
David looked. He saw a dark-skinned woman with angry eyes aiming another arrow at him. He got his own shield up in time, this time. A wolf leapt on William, knocking him to the ground, and tried to bite his face off. David put his spear through its heart.
A hail of seven-foot arrows flew from the trees. Three of them flew right up to Nahash’s face or torso before stopping in mid-air and falling to the ground. Two others hit Sirajuddin in the stomach and liver. He let out a loud hiss and fell forward, holding himself up with his wings.
Fly! said Nahash. Get out of here!
Not sure, said Sirajuddin, I can do that, sir. He continued his downward pose. It almost looked like he was bowing to Nahash.
A ray of heat severed Sirajuddin’s necklace. It fell to the ground. A kuchibu sprang out from nowhere, grabbed it, and took off into the brush.
A bolt of lightning flew at Nahash from beyond the trees. He deflected it, sending it veering down into the ground at the last moment.
Nahash and his soldiers watched in horror as a dozen one-eyed giants emerged from the wood. All but one had breastplates and helmets of steel. Five wielded a sword four feet long and a shield four feet in diameter. Five others had bows twelve feet long. One wore armor, but bore no weapons. The last wore hunting garb and wielded a different bow.
The sword-wielding cyclopes advanced on Nahash as their archers drew more arrows. Nahash put rays of heat through two of their bodies, felling them and igniting the trees behind them.
The star folk rained down another batch of spells. Nahash and Sirajuddin were seared.
The wolves were dead or scattered. The soldiers held their own against the natives firing arrows at them. Their archers fired back and killed a few.
Nahash took stock. The soldiers could handle the forest people. He and Sirajuddin could handle the fairies, but Sirajuddin was down. The cyclopes were a new and unknown threat. And there was a mage somewhere.
He hissed at his general and whispered, Call a retreat! Everybody back to camp!
The general did as he was told. The soldiers began an orderly disengagement.
Nahash wrapped his tail around Sirajuddin and took to the air. He opened a portal to one thousand feet up. One of the cyclopes reached them just as he flew through and slashed Sirajuddin open with his massive sword. Sirajuddin made no sound.
Nahash looked down. He didn’t see the fairies. Men fled from the forest in ones and twos.
William and David held the rear guard while their men escaped. They were almost to the treeline when they came face to face with a cyclops. He swung his sword, splintering David’s shield. David tossed it and gripped his spear with both hands.
William thrust his spear at the giant, who flicked his wrist and chopped the spear in half with his sword. William drew his own sword. He gave a stern look to the giant’s one huge eye and said, "We’re leaving."
He and David slowly moved in a circle around the cyclops. David held his spear high and said, "Let us go, dude. I’ll poke your bulbous eye out."
The cyclops’s eye got wide. He backed off.
Nahash watched as his soldiers fled the woods. The enemy did not pursue.
He flew back to camp.