From out of a haze of dust, at the point where the descending valley turned rightwards, out of view, came the first ranks of enemy soldiers, chainmail clad axemen, leaning their weapons against their shoulders. They had a slow, steady pace, set by the beating of the distant drums. The effect was ominous and I felt my stomach tighten. Behind them came a large body of lightly-armed spearmen, the silver points of their upright weapons flickering in the sunlight.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYzkqqr0O67
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlQnHa14bi5
Then came their light cavalry, thirty of them, taking a long while to file into view; next the ten heavy cavalry. Their archers were not yet in sight, nor the drummers, nor their commanders or the Shaman, yet the axemen were coming straight on to the bridge without pausing. Whether it was complacency or stupidity, they were going about this all wrong.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Vc16sv1sB
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLKt8wYvBvr
'Blood and Thunder, do you see the chance?' I looked a Lord Arval for confirmation.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLML6tuaNAq
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEtqCnhhDmt
His face was grim. 'Order us on sire and we'll go to hell or glory.'536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDLymwBA747
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbfo3pHQzdh
I laughed. 'I can do better than that. Follow me. Open the gate!' I shouted. Then I took the potion bottle, uncorked it and gulped down the contents. 'Rhino!'536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6sEBvN1w2x
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcYc0f2rwMB
For once my great bulk was valuable, I felt it stretch and stiffen as I fell forward onto all fours. Probably I was not a full adult rhino, but the weight and sharpness of the horn in front of my eyes was up to the job at hand.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡugWZC9r8LG
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOCZMGqm7ux
I set off, a lumber at first that was a trot, once through the gate I stepped up to a canter and finally hit my stride at a gallop. Being a rhino was intense. Although my vision was blurry, I could smell the sweat of my enemies and heard the loud thuds of their marching steps on the wooden bridge.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwJ9TZYOPm7
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbIzptrgkp9
Fifty yards and their shouts of alarm rang through the air. The axemen needed the spears in front of them, grounded. But my calculation was that we would get there first. It was intuition and it was the kind of decision that you make in an instant and have to commit to.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCxBkfnDVy
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdyr8472QvY
Forty yards and I was throwing mud up from my hooves as I urged my heavy body to its upmost. This was living! No longer trapped in a body that couldn't walk up ten steps without having to pause for a rest, I was a raging storm; an unstoppable torrent; a tsunami about to crash on the shore. And I loved it.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39niRhhEwx
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6krLDzXfOW
Thirty yards, some of the axemen were trying to run back through the spearman, who were massed too tight on the bridge to bring their weapons to bear.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRleV0lASst
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvkG7gXOaio
Twenty yards. Splashes either side of the bridge as men dived out of the way of the coming hell: me.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6sxQBDwO7
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkq9NElFCOc
Ten and I was the tip of an avalanche. From the scent of fear, they knew they were going to be engulfed.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXE3GOhjRWQ
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9krSAA9SdY
Impact!536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhsPMqXGUv1
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQBcVXTzlmR
There was a green box flash and I took it, of course.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGALcpYJnuv
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPqOHoH0zGA
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKg5pI49yc6
You have hit an axeman for 147 hit points.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx7n681yB7s
You have killed an axeman!536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzs0cA5vaJC
You have gained 60 Experience.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVWZYKd6Nng
You have unlocked the Impale proficiency.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ9Gxn6NBc4
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3pe5mcUbem
You have bashed an axeman for 31 hit points.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpYvkB5yP5Q
You have killed an axeman!536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCwsamv4M0n
You have gained 60 Experience.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmPLLY2ShUw
You have become better at Bash: 2536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvXbklWrh2E
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa6aK8kh4Pc
You have bashed an axeman for 34 hit points.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbOokN5p0SS
You have killed an axeman!536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTmuIkgXppV
You have gained 60 Experience.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfamT0jbEX9
You have become better at Bash: 3536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAhoy2DZlU9
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmIiPCZnkJA
You have bashed a spearman for 26 hit points.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1866J11g0D
You have killed a spearman!536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQhFyX6BYJb
You have gained 40 Experience.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6jCnfT1OHh
You have become better at Bash: 4536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0huHqFgr8b
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdu3CEW7SQe
You have bashed a spearman for 22 hit points.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq3TSAWExAm
You have killed a spearman!536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0RldmwHXBJ
You have gained 40 Experience.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMRp0hbd8qS
You have become better at Bash: 5536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhnD74iNyRk
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbUis1s5UPM
The notifications flew by and I ignored them as I pushed on, crushing soldiers under my hooves, impaling them and throwing their dead bodies to the side. Several axe blows struck home on my front shoulders, flanks and chest but twice I experienced the sweetness and glow of a level increase, each time completely healing my wounds.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUn3oUohOAy
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV4Qs6nIdno
Screams of wounded and panicked men rang out all around. But through the cries, I could hear a voice like a howling wolf, it was Lord Arval, screaming, 'come on! Come on! For Greyland!'536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNUFAypp43P
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDYMPbGkk3H
The crush on the bridge was intense, which favoured our side. While their axes and spears could not be brought into play, I could still smash my powerful head into faces ahead and either side, as well as break legs with stamps and kicks of my feet. Our horsemen, too, were nearly immobile, but they could still cut down with sword or stab with lance.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxklLzzwD2U
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6wrp3GEuOY
Step by step, we pushed on, nearly clearing the bridge. My only concern now was the timing of the potion. How long had it been since I drank it? Surely only a few minutes, despite the massive carnage we'd inflicted on their army.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ56I97vrnMx
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDgbavQzXzB
Then, with a sudden release, we were through, the remnants of the unit of spearmen running back down the narrow path in panic, which instantly disrupted the formation incoming light cavalry. Did I have time to keep going into them? I had to try.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLtIGPMGQ3A
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33dmooX9ql
The fact that I'd levelled up twice meant I experienced no fatigue and a quick check told me my hit points were at 32. Filled with confidence and energy, I used the room ahead of me to build up momentum again.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI6BgVqEbhA
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡztbyuhxiLh
'Follow the king! For Carlos!' Behind me, Lord Arval was still going strong it seemed and the answering roar of our soldiers had a clear note of triumph. Again, I could smell the fear of men and horses even before I crashed among them, showing no mercy to the animals whom I gutted and whose delicate legs I crushed.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnWOmCK7oJK
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsTuhDcHNpg
Far louder than the cries of men and the clash of metal on metal were the high-pitched equine screams of injured horses. Unlike the heavy destriers behind me, these horses had not been trained for the press of the melee and they were frightened, some of them rearing up and throwing their riders to the ground. Even so, one or two lances managed to stab down and cut through my thick hide. My hit points dropped quickly from 32 to 19 following a third hit. But then I levelled up again, soaring up to 40 hit points.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡifYXCqYoGf
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXS5UC1RL1Q
Their light cavalry unit was in full retreat. I was just preparing to launch myself again, with the intention of smashing right through the heavy cavalry and into their archers when I found myself staggering, once more in human form, completely without armour. Fortunately, there was no immediate threat.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXxtb23WVnm
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx27ekk0fHJ
'Get back sire!' Lord Arval urged his mount past me and ceased his own charge, guarding me by interposing his large destrier between me and the enemy. Our four other knights did the same. Either side of our little defensive knot, our light cavalry came past, cheering that they were scattering their foes. Even so, the tide of the battle was turning. The ten enemy heavy cavalry were drawn across the road and were not budging, even for their own fleeing infantry and light horsemen, some of whom risked going over the broken terrain of the rising hillside, others trying to squeeze past on the river bank, falling in as often as escaping.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡof67GqPcQA
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4BewRuJ00e
Beyond the line of horsemen, their officers must have gotten some order among the archers because arrows flited overhead with increasing frequency, some struck striking the plates of Lord Arval and his armoured horse.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNSJcrA4cKj
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDQi11SUsy0
Our problem was that we couldn't easily reach their archers. Our light cavalry lunged ineffectually at the enemy knights but couldn't break their ranks. There was room for our archers on the other side of the river, but if I ordered them to go there, we would be outnumbered and lose in the exchanges with enemy fire. The ballista was far too slow to bring up. This could really hurt us. Our riders and horses were beginning to suffer.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHiKSCryDy2
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1deYrgzpkE
Another rousing cheer from behind me. It was the arrival of our twelve heavy infantry and a large body of light infantry with Carlena at their head. There were a good mix of spears, axes and swords among them. This was exactly what we needed!536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg4wNyT9ug0
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsz6XCcgy5v
There was a fierce look on Carlena's face as she ran past me, pausing to raise her hands and then, with a flash, half a dozen fire darts splashed onto an enemy horse. The animal collapsed. Cheered by the success of this magic our newly arrived soldiers ran past and also cut and struck at the horses in front of them. We were winning again, a huge press of our soldiers climbing over the dead animals and past enemy knights who were still fighting, so as to get among the archers.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsX6pVcpnOK
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcHBbpVdokW
I felt that we were on the brink of victory, when cries of consternation from our men made my heart sink. The very land was working against them: bushes and grasses reaching out to entwine their feet and immobilise everyone. The enemy archers, on the cusp of routing, took heart and through the chaos, I could hear an officer of theirs urging them to hold and fire at the immobilised targets.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNhD7flZepd
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡURNvJcIHTA
'There,' screamed Carlena, pointing to a man in a bearskin, whose sabre-tooth tiger pet was walking in a circle around him, protecting him while he cast spells. It was their shaman, who had climbed up the hillside and come close enough to cast what to me seemed like an Entangle-type spell. 'He's out of my range.'536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWLxHgfSBMS
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbPe3ou1a7
'Archers!' I called, but we only had a few men around us with bows.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7ygSJLyir4
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLKC1ukEosV
Carlena ran towards the enemy spell caster and I admired her, because that tiger was fierce looking. The enemy Shaman had spotted her run too, and was clearly aiming a spell at her, his arms gesturing swiftly.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswmPWd9Q4Z
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRMc5xWDEIK
Caster battles could be short and violent. I found myself clenching my fists anxiously as I watched, oblivious to arrows and screams and the movement of the people around me. Was Carlena going to be taken out by a powerful spell? It would be a disaster for us if this went wrong.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡugxXX8DBEH
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHePGCxUhOR
Then the Shaman was down and behind him was the chancellor. Parrin had backstabbed their caster and taken him out! Our men were free again, the enchantment of the plants dissolving with the death of its creator.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmzy0X4hdNM
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE3Pk9Gf7XM
'On, on! We have them!' Lord Arval set off again, the other four knights moving with him. It left me unprotected, but it was right. Even though a few enemy archers saw me as their target and I did get hit twice, we had them. Archers were no match for heavy cavalry and they knew it. Soon bows were abandoned as most of their army fled for their lives, while dozens of men huddled in groups, hands in the air, trying to surrender.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyQi4douoQF
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuDRoRMXy0G
Up on the slope, our elderly scout was being savaged by the dead Shaman's pet sabre-toothed tiger and was clearly wounded. Carlena, however, had not stopped running and was in range for a spell.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkxcOha2gvo
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxqWdXQRxT0
'Freeze!' The animal was checked and Parrin scrambled clear.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx9EEOdobUw
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWIxKbINBy5
'You! You!' I got the attention of two of our archers with an urgent shout. 'Kill that tiger.'536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdgWOstLNlA
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB7RVvoPPJr
It took several hits, but Carlena had enough mana for a second Freeze and was able to keep the animal locked in place while the arrows thudded home.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDApFuztj1j
536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaokKHK90aI
All at once, it was relatively quiet. Yes, there were still groans and the clank of weapons and armour but the sounds of fighting were in the distance now, down the road. All around me Greyland soldiers were smiling and laughing. Some looked at me with frank delight, as if in this moment rank did not matter, that we had shared an experience that transcended the barrier between king and foot soldier. And we had. This was a victory to savour.
