A biting wind laced with huge snowflakes assaulted the faces of Dustin and his squad while they braced for the Innutukian barrage. Jude and fifteen archers crouched behind shields planted into the snow, while Dustin and Kyle stood behind them. While Kyle leveled the open barrel of his increasingly famous thunder lance at the incoming attackers, Dustin wielded the crossbow he carried as a side weapon. Behind the group waited a dozen horses, including Dustin's own steed Consequence.

Dustin focused on taking steady breaths while he waited for his adversaries to come within range of his projectiles. Every lungful he pushed through his lips dissipated into a thin fog as it met the winter air. While the vapor faded to nothing, he sucked in a new breath, so cold the sensation resembled a hundred needles pricking the insides of his throat.

He rubbed his numb nose while squinting at the Innutukian riders closing in. "Almost there...prepare to shoot on my command. One...two...three...go!"

All at once, Dustin's archers loosed fifteen arrows and he fired a crossbow bolt with a quick squeeze of the trigger. Kyle's contribution would be a little delayed, as he required a spark to set off the reaction that would propel his projectile.

The arrows arced through the air, while the bolt flew in a straighter line. Dustin watched and waited for them all to make impact with his approaching foes. Without realizing, he held his breath.

And then impact came. None of the arrows availed anything. Most deflected off the armor plating over the horses' snouts. Others broke on the Innutukian shields. The most favorable outcome was that of Dustin's crossbow bolt, which lodged itself irretrievably in a soldier's shield. Still, no damage had been done, and the mounted charge held strong.

An earsplitting bang sounded just feet from Dustin's ear, that being the sound of Kyle firing his thunder lance. The air rippled around him as he watched the ball of lead hurtle toward its target.

This impact did damage, and devastatingly so. The metal orb ripped straight through an Innutukian's shield, presumably lodging itself inside his body shortly thereafter. At any rate, he tumbled off his horse while wailing miserably. One of the horses stumbled over him, and before it could recover its footing, a hoof came down awkwardly on his fallen shield. The shield only slid over the snow like a sled, felling the horse and its rider.

As the cascade of chaos continued, weakening one side of the cavalry charge, Dustin urged the archers to continue loosing arrows at will, whatever speed they could achieve. Meanwhile, he braced the crossbow against the ground to tug the string back and place a new bolt inside the firing mechanism. Here and there, he continued to steal glances at the battle beyond.

He peeked up just in time to see a particularly fast rider that had escaped the chaos on his side of the formation. Having broken into a full gallop, the warrior prepared to hurl a spear at the small group of Monteraynians. Dustin's eyes widened, and he reached over to Kyle's shoulder.

"Duck!" he cried, kneeling behind the line of shields himself. Seeing as Jude had been focusing his arrows on the more coherent formation on the right side, he tapped his back and pointed at the more imminent threat.

Before Jude could loose an arrow on him, the Innutukian tossed his spear, and it only managed to knock one of the shields over. He promptly hunched over in his saddle and hid himself behind his shield. No matter for Jude, it appeared, as he simply targeted the man's exposed leg instead.

Dustin stepped around the archers, stooped down, and picked up the fallen spear. After setting their toppled shield back in its place, he turned to his men.

"I want you all to focus on taking down the coherent unit." he said, "I'll pick off the stragglers over here."

All men barked affirmatives, and so Dustin returned Kyle's crossbow to him, hoisted himself atop Consequence, and set off. As he galloped into action, he noted the spear had been unusually weighted, with him being forced to place his grip on the shaft rather high to achieve balance. He remedied the awkwardness somewhat by couching the weapon in his armpit as he rode.

The moment Dustin reached the disorganized cluster of Innutukian horses and men, he began to take the brunt of their fury. A pair of mounted warriors closed in on him. Scowls etched across their bearded faces, they moved in tandem, spears poised to inflict lethal damage. Dustin braced himself to face them.

He ducked his head to evade an incoming spearhead. Then his eyes cut over to see the Innutukian on his other side angling his spear to stab Consequence in the ribs. A quick jerk on the reins, and Dustin urged his horse to spin about. The spear stabbed open air, and Dustin leaned over to grasp its shaft.

Dustin yanked with all his might. The Innutukian managed to remain in his saddle, but at the cost of his balance. While he and his horse stumbled away, Dustin engaged the other warrior.

The other Innutukian's lips twitched every which way as he calculated his next move. All the while, Dustin complicated his decision-making process by constantly urging Consequence to shift his footing. With his target always moving, and never in any logical pattern, the Innutukian froze in indecision.

Dustin made up the man's mind for him. Lunging with his whole body to lend extra power to the thrust, he plunged his spearhead into the Innutukian's throat. Then, hearing hoofbeats in the snow to his rear, he swiftly withdrew and spun Consequence about. Just in time, Dustin knocked aside another incoming spear shaft.

Enemies began to surround Dustin, forcing him to move doubly as fast to ward off their many attacks. He batted away axed heads, spear points, and spiked implements designed to rip flesh from bone. Consequence rocked restlessly beneath him, pawing at the snow and nickering as he did so. Together, prince and steed dodged death on impossibly narrow margins at every turn.

Dustin gasped when an unexpected axe blade flew right by his head. It missed, but seeing a lock of his dark hair float down to the snow below couldn't fail to be disconcerting. Heart hammering, he rammed his spear into the chest of the Innutukian who had attacked him.

Though the impact failed to penetrate the warrior's armor, mangling his spearhead and throwing his shoulder out of joint instead, Dustin still succeeded in one thing. He'd knocked a foe off his horse and secured himself an opening of sorts. Dustin tugged on Consequence's reins with a sharp cry. They squeezed past the riderless horse and galloped into open terrain.

No longer surrounded by Innutukians, Dustin rode into the frigid air and devised a new strategy. He'd ride circles around the warriors as they attempted to attack him, picking them off one by one while making himself a difficult a target as possible. Of course, one glance at the useless spear in his head caused him to doubt his success, but he had no choice but to try.

When another Innutukian trotted up to engage, Dustin hurled his mangled spear as a distraction while he drew his sword. The hefty length of wood knocked aside the snout of his foe's horse, causing him momentarily to lose control of the bucking beast. Dustin prepared to finish the Innutukian off in his moment of weakness.

But before he could unleash his sword, Dustin lurched sideways. Something had thrown Consequence off balance. As he tumbled off his saddle, Dustin realized a clever cavalryman had encircled them and bashed into his steed to dismount him. He dove headfirst into a thick mound of snow.

Dustin's body froze at the sudden coldness, but he forced himself up regardless. He had no time for even a second's delay. He unsheathed his sword and immediately held it up to deflect an incoming attack from a mounted foe skirting by.

His foes made every effort to keep him from his horse, forcing him to engage mounted warriors on foot. With their height advantage and the ability to put momentum behind their attacks, the Innutukians knocked Dustin around at every turn. Over and over, he fell into the snow rather than endure a blow from their blades and points, which only served to make him wet, cold, and heavy.

Dustin lazily lifted his sword to block a saber strike aimed at his face. Before the attacker could ride away and give his comrade a chance to attack, he gritted his teeth and snatched the man's arm. With a great tug, Dustin pulled the Innutukian to his level.

While the man's horse abandoned him, Dustin swung a downwards blow that would have severed his spine. Instead, he rolled until he'd escaped his reach. Then he leapt back up and challenged Dustin with his eyes, skewed saber blade firmly grasped in his hand.

Dustin engaged so quickly the man hardly had time to react. He clumsily attempted a defense, but only delayed Dustin's victory. A swift slice to the neck, and he collapsed into reddening snow.

The small triumph gave Dustin just the encouragement he needed to press on. As Innutukian warriors began to close in with weapons poised to inflict their worst, he braced himself to meet them. No matter the disadvantages heaped against him, he resolved he would emerge victorious.

****

Several grueling minutes passed, a span of time that put all Dustin's abilities to the test. He ignored and endured many things as he battled the Innutukian onslaught, from aching muscles to the sheer mental effort of concentrating on so many foes at once. Worst of all was the numbness spreading over his body. The sensation of frozen sleeves clinging to his skin had once been an irritant, but now he felt his arms so little it no longer bothered him.

At last, he struck down a scarred brute wielding a mace, kicked the body away, and spared a glance at the open plain around him. He'd vanquished all his foes, and his squad of archers had taken care of the others farther away. Not a single Innutukian had broken through to compromise the siege effort, and it appeared only one of Dustin's own men had suffered an injury in the process.

He called Consequence back, and then together, they rejoined Jude, Kyle, and the others. The group trudged back to the camp sluggishly, all rubbing aching limbs as they went. With biting wind eating at the skin he could still feel, Dustin wished he had the energy to dash the rest of the way to the command tent. He yearned for nothing more than a warm drink by the fire.

Unfortunately, stepping back into the warmth of the tent didn't prove as comfortable as Dustin had imagined, as it began to reawaken all the numb parts of his body and cause them to scream in pain. He squirmed from the tingling of thawing flesh, a sensation like a hundred ants crawling inside his skin and biting at it from inside.

He glanced up from rubbing his forearms back to life to see Captain Altruz and the other officers where he'd left them, poring over the map and discussing battle plans. Dustin let out a deep breath and stepped back into their company.

"The threat has been dealt with." Dustin said, "What did I miss?"

"Much talk, your highness, but no headway." Altruz replied, "Without more men, your highness, our options are limited."

"Are there any alternate entry points we haven't yet explored? Water runoff vents, wells, anything of the sort?"

"Not on this side of the walls, your highness, no. Why?"

Dustin shrugged. "If we had a way to covertly send a handful of spies inside, we may be able to capitalize on what little element of surprise remains and apprehend the emperor."

One of the commanders let out a heavy sigh. "We can rest assured they can see our every move. They have vantage points, and they have countless archers on the walls. The onslaught of arrows hasn't stopped all morning."

"Now that I've brought reinforcements, we no longer need to maintain such a tight perimeter. Have the men retreat out of range while we await our allies' arrival. It seems our only option is to outlast them, so we must minimize our casualties in the meantime."

Altruz stepped toward the tent flap. "I will distribute these orders, your highness, but I do have one more concern to share with you, as you have taken command of this venture."

"Speak your mind."

"I agree, your highness, that we need to outlast the Innutukians, but our provisions have run low."

"My men and I all brought ample provisions along, so that should buy us some time." Dustin said, "We also would be prudent to search the bodies of that cavalry unit we just battled against. Surely they had supplies on them."

"I'll see to it, your highness. In the meantime, you'd best warm up and rest."

"Your advice is sound, Captain. I'll be pleased to take it."

Altruz acknowledged with a smile and a dip of his head. Then, strapping his helmet to his head, he stepped into the chilly outside to distribute his orders. Dustin descended into the thoughts of his mind while rubbing life back into his hands over the crackling fire.