Theuses nodded grimly. "Well, that means there's no retreat."

"We can only go forward. You said it yourself," Castor said. "The only way out of this mess is if we get through the Urki lines and stop Bantu. Merric, take the soldiers around so the elves can disable the archers."

Merric shifted in his saddle. "No. I won't lead my men to their deaths. There's got to be another way."

Castor face went steely it wasn't like Merric to question orders, let along flat out refuse them. "Merric, if we're going to do this you're going to have trust me totally. Horace will take charge of the army in your absence, but until you come back with that task complete, those are your orders."

"No. Either we find another way or we look for a way to retreat. Leading a hundred men to their deaths is rash and foolish," Merric said solidly.

That was it. Castor had lost his patience. "Did you not hear me? I am your king, meaning you do what I say! It is plain there is no other way to go forward as there's sure as heck no way to get back, at least not with our numbers. GO."

Merric shook his head. "Don't you see? This will be a useless sacrifice! You're making a useless gable with other men's lives!"

Castor moved directly in front of Merric and looked him in the eye. "After this attack you are relieved of your position. Attack now."

Merric's face went red and his jaw clenched. "Yes sir." He said through gritted teeth. He turned his horse around and, without a second glance, disappeared through the crowds of soldiers.

Theuses pulled one of his warriors aside. "Warfen, take nine other warrior spell-casters to the cliffs. We need to disable the archers and siege machines." The warrior answered something in the ancient language before dashing off amid the battle.

Even as the elf was running away, confusion went up throughout the ranks of Urki. Taking advantage of the chaos, the elves pushed forward, covered by multiple volleys of elfish arrows.

"It's working!" Theuses growled.

Horace was rubbing his forehead with the back of his hand before getting a startled look. "Lord Castor... Merric- he's going too far behind the Urki."

Castor stood up in his stirrups to see over the lines of soldiers. "No! Darn it Merric! Horace, shift around our left side and move forward with our right side." He turned to Theuses, but the elf already had his hand up.

"I'll move my left flank forward and to the right to try and cover ground. We'll see if we can mend this gap."

~ ~ ~

From his command position on a boulder amid his troops, Tarris looked on with a smug look on the chaos of battle. Looking at human general as he pushed with his meager amount of soldiers against the thousands of Urki, Tarris saw his chance.

"Drakon," He mumbled. With a flash, Tarris transformed into a massive, glittering serpent. "General Merric. It's time we met properly." With a pump of his wings, Tarris leaped into the air.