Two days passed rather uneventfully for Dustin and his allies. With insufficient personnel to launch a direct assault on the city, they could do nothing more than maintain the siege and await the arrival of more troops from the east. No more attacks came from either inside or outside their circular formation, leading to a rather steady status quo which Dustin squirmed to disrupt before his foes did.

Thankfully, on the morning of his third day heading the operation, Dustin espied movement on the eastern horizon. Closer inspection revealed two battalions approaching, waving the banners of Antapeño and the New Alcontean Empire respectively.

Dustin gladly welcomed the new soldiers into his collective and wasted no time in gathering the various captains and commanders to a tent to coordinate the distribution of forces. Forming a cramped circle around Altruz's map of the Innutukian capital, they quickly descended from pleasantries and introductions to the practical matters before them.

"Once we have combined our forces to strengthen the perimeter," Dustin said, "I believe it is time to take direct action. I intend to launch an offensive against the city with the aim of taking the emperor into captivity."

One of the Alcontean officers kneaded his braided beard in his fingers. "With all respect, your highness, your father the king had informed us the goal was to starve them out until surrender."

"And I have seen fit to change the goal."

"Understood. However, as we weren't aware of any intentions to breach the walls, we brought no siege engines with us."

"Oh, but we did." said a squat Antapeñan commander.

Dustin smiled. "Excellent. Which types?"

"Four battering rams, two catapults, and a siege tower. The question is, would you rather destroy the walls or climb over them?"

Altruz cleared his throat. "If I may, your highness, the factor of intimidation you would gain from crumbling their walls to dust may work better in your favor."

"Better than climbing over? I agree." Dustin said, "Morale has already been low, so destroying their barrier of protection might cause it to shatter entirely."

The Antapeñan commander bowed his head. "I will see to it. The quickest option would be to smash the gate, with mostly battering rams at our disposal. But I could arrange for the catapults to be deployed instead. Which is your preference?"

"No need to choose difficulty when we have a more expedient means at our disposal. Bash a gate down and we'll make entry."

"Which one? It appears they have five in total."

"Not four?" Dustin asked, glancing down at the map.

Altruz nodded. "Yes, your highness, all the walls have one gateway each, except on the west, where there are two."

"So that's why you insisted on doubling our personnel on that side, I see. Where is the emperor likely to be?"

"The palace, your highness, seems the most obvious location, especially if he has a bunker in its depths."

Dustin crossed his arms, mind racing a million places at once. "We have no way to be assured of his whereabouts at this point, but the palace is as good a place to start as any. Where is it located?"

"The southern quarter, your highness." Altruz rubbed his finger across the palace's likeness on the map.

"Then we breach the southern gate."

"How many will be going inside?" asked the Alcontean captain.

"I want a force small enough to be highly mobile, but large enough to survive being surrounded in enemy territory without too much difficulty. I'll handpick a team from my own men, and I want you each to pick out thirty of your finest to accompany me."

"You're going inside personally, your highness?"

"Indeed." Dustin patted the hilt of his sword. "A man who makes others fight his battles for him is a coward, in my view."

"I would counter that strength and stratagem rarely go together in one man, but you seem to be an exception, your highness."

"I strive to be so. Strengthen the perimeter, prepare the battering rams, and pick out an attack squad. I wish to be ready to breach in an hour."

****

Pleasure and confidence intertwined themselves in Dustin's heart as he beheld the ninety-man force allotted to him. Almost the entirety of his Monteraynian squad had been comprised of familiar faces like Jude's, Kyle's and even Paulo's, along with skilled veterans who had proven their worth but hadn't attained to Dustin's inner circle. They wielded the greatest variety of weapons out of any group, with swords, bows and arrows, spears, and various pole-arms all receiving roughly equal representation. And then Kyle added further variety with his pairing of crossbow and self-made thunder lance.

The Alconteans presented a more uniform sight, with each man girded in a full suit of the motherland's fine plate armor and each seated atop a handsome steed. Their arsenal, though less various, followed a certain logic Dustin could appreciate. The ten soldiers in the front of the formation carried shields strapped to one arm and spears couched on the opposite side. Behind them, a second row of ten also wielded spears, but without shields, they could attack with more flexibility. And then the last row provided the ranged weaponry of several crossbows with traditional bows as backup.

Meanwhile, the Antapeñans chose variety over uniformity. Half the force rode horses and wielded bows, throwing knives, javelins, and crossbows, while the other half would travel on foot while wielding polearms. All manner of spikes, hooks, and hammerheads glinted on the ends of their weapons. For those who rode horses, they eschewed armor for greater mobility, and their horses received protection instead.

"A mighty force has been granted to me this day." Dustin said, looking over the nearly hundred faces before him. "And we have a glorious task ahead of us. In generations to come, it will be known that by the strength of our hands and the valor in our hearts, we brought this war to an end. Most of all, it shall be known that the Lord God above blessed us His people with victory over their foes."

Dustin eyed Jude and gave him in particular a grave nod before continuing. "It is true we will encounter resistance inside, perhaps even foes as determined for evil to prevail as we are to conquer with good. We may encounter dark powers, unnatural phenomena which should not be wrought upon the earth. But no matter who or what we face, we must maintain our resolve. In God's name, we shall prevail!"

The men gave out a spirited cry of agreement. Each one raised a fist to the sky with enthusiasm written across his features. Dustin took heart at their display of support.

"When those gates come crashing open, we'll charge in and take advantage of our element of surprise." Dustin said, "Myself and the Monteraynian force will spearhead the attack, pressing toward the palace as we advance through the city. I wish for the Alcontean ranks to move along our left flank, preventing any attack from the side and engaging any hostiles at range if need be. The Antapeñans will do the same on our right. I wish for all men to pay attention to my orders as well as any from your direct commanders, as they are still at liberty to break off from the main force if a sudden need requires it. We must be relentless as well as flexible. Now, let us nab an emperor and win a war!"

With another shout, the men began to shift into their places. Dustin mounted Consequence and patted him to move to the head of the Monteraynian formation. Once all three squads had taken their places, they trotted up to the southern gate, where Antapeñan soldiers waited with battering rams. The moment Dustin gave a signal, they began the breach.

Knocking, crashing, shattering, the doors came down under the quadruple impact of the Antapeñans' battering rams. Reduced to splintery shards of what they had been, the remnants thudded to the ground. Snow powderized in the air upon impact.

Dustin wasted no time. He shouted and yanked Consequence's reins, leading his men galloping to the ruined gateway. His sword gleamed in the morning sun as he held it high, leaping over chunks of debris to attain entry.

The snowswept city of Raneteink Lek stretched out before Dustin, a landscape dominated by heavy stone architecture and virtually nonexistent foliage. To say no care had been given toward aesthetics would be an understatement. The heaps of snow piled up on either side of the roads, atop houses, and along fences lent some beauty, but the Innutukians themselves were hardly responsible for those sights.

At first, not a soul appeared in view, causing Dustin a good deal of confusion. No warrior emerged to challenge their progress into the city, and the Monteraynians advanced considerably far within the gates without even a single arrow being fired their way. No archers situated on what would be convenient perches, and no soldiers awaiting a challenge.

"Perhaps they've concentrated their forces around the palace primarily." Dustin remarked to Jude, galloping a few paces behind and to his right, "Otherwise, allowing us in this far unchallenged is simply inexplicable."

"It must be something of the sort. Remember, it has been days since even one of them peeked out over the walls, as far as we could tell."

"True. They may have locked the entire city down, which would suggest they have some nasty surprises planned for us."

"Stay alert, my friend."

Dustin resolved to do just that. The road finally widened enough that the Monteraynian division could spread out across its breadth and have the Alconteans and Antapeñans tramp through the snow on either side. Their only vulnerability would be an attack to the rear, which currently seemed a low threat.

They came upon a circular courtyard, where the first Innutukians showed themselves. A hail of crossbow bolts erupted from behind an improvised wall of crates, pelting the wall of Alcontean shields. Supplemented by archers who could loose more arrows with less force from the back, the Innutukians maintained a high volume of ranged attacks the Alconteans couldn't counter with their ten crossbows.

Some of the Monteraynian archers attempted to push forward so they could assist, but Dustin held them back, guarding his countrymen behind the Alcontean regiment. His mind raced for a strategy that would destroy their opposition with as few casualties as possible. Not one bolt or arrow had penetrated the wall of Alcontean shields yet, so at least his indecision hadn't cost lives yet.

At random, an Antapeñan arrow fired high managed to arc over all the friendly ranks and lodge itself in an Innutukian's collarbone. He screamed out in agony, dropping his crossbow to rip the serrated head from his flesh. Having only worsened his plight, he tumbled over a stack of crates and let his blood melt the snow.

Dustin finally hit on an idea. He turned in his saddle to address his men. "While the Alconteans hold place, we'll provide the offensive edge. Kyle, confuse them with the lance of thunder, and then we'll all charge around the Alcontean front to wipe out the Innutukians. Are we ready?"

"Ready!" cried the men, and Dustin turned to pass on the plan to the other commanders.

That done, he allowed Kyle to edge out just beyond the edge of the Alcontean shield wall, create a spark, and fire his thunder lance. The earth quaked, and a strange pressure washed over the surrounding area, causing Dustin's ears to ring. He watched as the lead ball vomited from Kyle's weapon sped to the terrified enemies, demolishing their wall of crates and killing at least two men in the process. Several more injured each other in the scramble to escape the hell Kyle had unleashed on them.

Dustin gave the command, and the Monteraynian thirty charged out from Alconte's protection. Weapons ready, they assaulted the scrambling Innutukians, who scarcely put up a fight at all. Dustin hacked and slashed through fleeing foes with no resistance, and Jude's arrows found the calves of escapees rather than the arms of attackers.

One of the Monteraynians cleaved an Innutukian's wooden shield in half with an axe before relieving him of his head. Another stamped over a dozen men with his horse, no need to use his spear. Dustin engaged one brave soul who held onto a little courage, but his skill didn't match his heart and he quickly fell to the prince's sword.

In mere seconds, a quarter of the Innutukians had been killed off, and all the others had fled. The vast majority of the men tasked with defending the capital had neglected their duty in favor of their lives. Dustin puzzled over the cause for the utter loss of motivation among the enemy ranks; Monterayne hardly needed to be mighty to win, but only determined.

He returned his men to their place in the formation, and Dustin briefly dismounted to speak with the other squad leaders. Alconte's commander threw up his hands, visibly baffled to the same degree as Dustin, while that of Antapeño appeared more amused than anything.

"It appears all Innutuk's real men died already." the Antapeñan remarked. "That wasn't a fight, but a massacre."

"I know, it felt wrong." Dustin said, "If those are the warriors the emperor has at his disposal, I fail to see why he hasn't surrendered already."

The Alcontean shrugged. "Perhaps he's ended himself to avoid the embarrassment."

"I find that unlikely, though not impossible. More than likely, he has retained his best men for his own personal guard, and we've only encountered the lowest ranks he considers dispensable."

"Likely so. For Innutuk's sake, I certainly hope that wasn't the best she has to offer."

That agreement being reached, they briefly discussed strategy moving forward and essentially decided on retaining the formation they'd already established. Fleeing troops were no worry, but Alconte would continue to guard Monterayne's left flank and Antapeño would do the same on the right. According to the map, the palace lay a ways northeast of their position, so they would skirt the courtyard's edges until they reached a path leading east.

After mounting his horse and spreading the word amongst his men, Dustin led the way in their intended direction. The same feeling of peculiar loneliness settled over him as they progressed through the desolate city. Only now, knowing how pathetic Innutuk's resistance could be, some of the tension he'd experience before no longer seemed as pressing.

Apparently, the farther east, the less the Innutukians had swept the snow off the streets, leading Dustin to conclude they more often used a northward-bearing road to reach the palace. Even so, he considered that a state of affairs in his favor, meaning they'd likely be less vigilant in defending an attack from that direction.

The snow on the road eventually became so high that he opted to guide the men through what could only be a graveyard instead. A far thinner layer of snow covered the ground there. Hundreds of tombstones jutted out from under the white blanket, bearing hundreds of names Dustin would be hopeless to pronounce. The only lettering he could translate was a sign near the middle of the graveyard, which said "resting place of the great men".

As Dustin passed the wooden sign, a peculiar sound pierced the still air. A bright tone that penetrated the quietude and caused his ears to tingle. The shrill song broke up and here, punctuated at points like a chorus from a brass band. He slowly turned to eye Jude and Paulo behind him, dread setting in his heart as he contemplated the possible source of the sound.

"The Trump of Ibis." Paulo said, confirming Dustin's fears, "It seems he's done it."

"What now?" Kyle scoffed, "Will the city's fighters finally grow some—"

A tombstone came flying through the air for no apparent reason, and one of the Alconteans moved just in time to knock it aside with his shield. Then a ghastly head appeared, peeking out of the indent in the snow. Dustin's mouth ran dry at the sight of a pallid corpse prying itself out of the ground, spear clasped in its slender fingers. Its chapped skin peeled away to reveal rotting flesh, sinew, and muscle, presenting a truly terrifying sight as it began to amble clumsily across the snow.

Dustin's heart failed him when he cast a glance about and observed the entire graveyard releasing its dead back to the surface. The animated cadavers grew in number as seconds passed, and with each wielding a weapon of its own, the unnatural horde began to close in on Dustin and his men.