Quelaran is filled with new hope. After some pressure by Princess Su’rel, the senate approves Prince Dolar Qatar ascending the throne and the people regain faith in the government. At the same time news from the south reaches the City of the Seas: the Wrath of the Sun besieges the Citadel of Steel itself. Now that the Errech have penetrated to the beating heart of the Therradorian warmachine, Quelaran and Drogor prepare to launch the next assault. An army of Kharkat, humans loyal to Quelaran, has formed at area 15, while the Avenging Brothers of the Bloody Oasis are mobilising at area 17. The war is in its final stage.
However, for the hard-pressed Wrath of the Sea and the Grand Army of Drogor, the war is far from over. They had to regroup at area 16, a necessary step back. The Drogret aren’t too happy about this move, because moving back is the wrong direction. The Quelar, on the other hand, finally catch some breath after months of running and fighting.
Despite the fact that they’re still in Therradorian territory, the situation in the camps of both armies is initially stable. Both Quelar and Drogret forces stole enough from the Therradorian and Snailglorb settlements at Smearslo to sustain themselves for a few days. The next step is to get a supply line to the City of the Seas, which is established without trouble. Apparently, the Therradorian forces are keeping their heads down for now.
A train of refugees crawls through the area like giant centipede. Thousands of Quelar settlers and their human slaves are leaving Smearslo, heading back to Quelar territory. The Wrath of the Sea helps them on their journey north, but can’t supply them. Everything is needed for the battered troops.
While the Quelar have their hands full, the warriors of the Grand Army of Drogor are restless and eager to continue the war. Sure, they haven’t really shaken off the injuries of the previous battle, but the inspiring presence of Karnish II and Orgrok Mandor makes them forget the pain. Karnish declared the Therradorians are the best sport in Drogret history. This almost caused the entire army to run back to Smearslo. To calm down the impatient troops, Drogor Shamans work day and night to get the wounded Quelar and Drogret back on their feet, so the army is quickly ready to pull out again.
Wavelord Xurel regularly checks the infirmaries. He is in command while the Prince is away to fetch the Kharkat army. Prince Dolar Qatar was still recuperating from his Blight infection when he left. Hopefully, he is sharp enough to manoeuvre over enemy territory with his usual skill. Xurel wishes his Prince to return soon. He has a bad feeling and intelligence reports get more troubling by the day. Apparently, the Legion of Steel is re-arming and gathering again, Jack of Steel is still alive, a powerful individual has joined the Legion, King Slobglobsa is gathering more Snailglorbs to join the Therradorian cause… Therrador might be a battered nation, but it’s far from defeated.
One day a diplomat shows the Wavelord a map with locations of enemy troops. “The Legion is on the move again, my lord. And there are enemy forces to the north. We’re stuck.” Xurel shakes his head, looking at the map. “They’re actually forcing another battle,” he says. “How is it possible that a defeated army is chasing the victors?” “Decent strategy on their side?” The diplomat carefully suggests. “Other than that, it seems the Therradorians have superior intelligence.” Xurel raises an eyebrow. “I don’t mean, of course, that they’re smarter. I mean that they know more about us than we know about them.” Xurel sighs. “At least the Drogret will be happy.”
Messengers quickly spread the word through the Bloody Oasis forces: “The Legion of Steel is coming!” The Drogret erupt in celebration. The Quelar silently start preparing.
At dawn, Wavelord Xurel, accompanied by three White Bolts, flies to the shore. There he walks to his ankles into the sea. “Mother!” He yells over the breaking waves. “Cousins!” He screams until his voice becomes hoarse. Nothing happens for several minutes. Then the sea suddenly retreats. Is Qulior leaving? Or… “Look, the horizon!” One of the White Bolts says. “It’s rising!” In awe the four winged Quelar stand and watch a tidal wave rolling in their direction. Xurel picks up a hand-full of salty wet sand and kisses it. They fly up, while the sea roars under them and washes over the dunes. When the water calms, hundreds of small, fish-like figures emerge from the water and form regiments on the beach. Xurel lands before the leader. “Cousins! You have returned!” “Our Mother loves you and your kind,” the Ichtei captain says. “You won’t face this decisive hour alone.”
Prince Dolar Qatar soars through the sky to get an overview of the situation. He can hardly believe his eyes. The supposedly beaten Legion of Steel is on the offensive. How can there still be so many Therradorians? He counts about twenty units, plus three units of Snailglorbs. It has never been this large, and the last battle wasn’t exactly easy. The Bloody Oasis forces aren’t fit to take this on. The Kharkat reinforcements won’t be enough. The Prince realises he needs the Avenging Brothers, but that army is hardly mobilised and too far away… Prince Dolar Qatar turns north, having made his decision. The Avenging Brothers simply have to come.
A patrol of White Bolts flies over the Wrath of the Sea’s camp and urges all troops to take cover. Soon after, the Therradorian Trebuchet commences its bombardment. “Fetch the Drogret!” Wavelord Xurel yells at a messenger. “And notify the Kharkat!” A giant rock lands just before the Wavelord’s tent and an explosion of pieces of rock levels everything in a range of five meters. Xurel slowly gets up, shrugs some dust from his wings and estimates the damage. One of his staff officers looks badly wounded. “That damned machine,” Xurel spits. “I’ve had it. White Bolts, Quelee, to me!” Wavelord Xurel takes to the sky, while the White Bolts and Quelee scramble and hasten to his side. As the Quelar flyers draw near to the Legion of Steel, they’re met with a hail of arrows. They spread and dive down. Fast and bloody hand-to-hand combat erupts around the Trebuchet. Therradorian archers draw hand weapons and jump to the aid of the warmachine crew.
Meanwhile, a massive amount of steel-clad Therradorian legionnaires marches forward, backed by Archers, flanked by Snailglorb infantry. The Quelar pull back a little, and not only because it starts to rain arrows. Only two of their units, the serpent-riding Dashar Knights and the allied contingent of Errech Arleesar, are fit to take on that wall of steel. The Wrath of the Sea backs off further and further, while the Yrtlin Aloka try in vain to slow down the Therradorians with their throwing-tridents.
A powerful voice bellows: “Quelar, make way!” The Quelar units quickly scuttle to the flanks. Deafening voices scream as one. The Grand Army of Drogor charges over the muddy field, shrugging off the rain of arrows. But the units of Therradorian Swordsmen pick up speed as well. With a mighty clash, the two armies connect. Orgrok Mandor’s camel riders, the Berserkers and the Desert Beast Herd punch a deep hole in the Therradorian battle line. The other Drogret units prevent the line from closing.
The Wrath of the Sea’s ground units are reinforced by the Ichtei and a group of Priests. Once again, the Quelar will go after their nemesis, the Snailglorbs. On one side, the Retorii lead the charge, as these veterans of the first war for Smearslo can put down giant gastropods quite efficiently with nets and tridents. On the other side of the field, the Dashar Knights spur their sea serpents and prepare for slimy impact.
Wavelord Xurel presses on with a small party of White Bolts and Quelee, relying on their speed, their blades and determination to get to the Trebuchet. The Therradorian Archers are pinning them down and the number of Quelar nobility is quickly decreasing. The Trebuchet hurls another rock, this one sent to an Ichtei regiment. The warmachine crew isn’t too concerned yet to start packing and with their eyes they follow the rock’s trajectory and the following destruction. Then the Master Engineer, peering around through goggles, suddenly alarms his men. From the north the Quelar reinforcements are arriving: five units of Kharkat and the most dreaded flying unit, the Divine Guard. The Trebuchet slowly turns to this new threat and flings a giant rock at it. The Divine Guard experiences some turbulence when the rock soars through their loose formation, to land between the Kharkat. After this last shot, the warmachine crew quickly starts to pack.
The line of Therradorian Swordsmen has been divided in two due to the Grand Army’s attack and the Legion of Steel is wavering. However, the Therradorians learned from the last battle. The Drogret that passed the line are met by salvos of arrows and intercepted by Therrador’s elite Knights, led by general Jack of Steel himself. Orgrok Mandor lets out a war cry when he sees Jack’s banner drawing closer. He spurs his camel and leads the Drogret cavalry into a frontal collision.
Meanwhile the Quelar ground troops work their way through the Snailglorbs and engage the Swordsmen. The tired Quelar are motivated by the allied unit of Errech, who eagerly fight Therradorians after the battle in the south. On the other side of the field are the Quelar flyers, now reinforced with the Divine Guard, still locked in combat with the Therradorian Archers that guard the Trebuchet. They are stuck and forced to ground combat, because taking off into the sky would risk getting their wings shot to shreds.
Crown Prince Dolar Qatar flies over to observe the battlefield. The approaching Kharkat plough through the arrow barrage and prepare to engage the Archers to help out the Quelar nobility. Orgrok Mandor and the Drogret shock troops push back Jack of Steel’s Knights. But it is not enough. The line of Swordsmen is holding back the Quelar ground troops and the gap the Drogret made is getting smaller. The Grand Army is forced to concentrate on the main battle and can not engage the Archers. And that is bad news, because now all Archers concentrate on the Divine Guard, White Bolts and Quelee, who are at the edge of defeat. To make matters worse, the Kharkat that could save them are engaged by a reserve unit of Steelblades. Someone is coordinating the Legion of Steel extremely well. Dolar scans the field. Who is this strategist? It can’t be Jack of Steel. He has proven to be a very skilful commander, but he is locked in combat with Orgrok Mandor and can’t possibly oversee the situation and give orders. There has to be someone else. Prince Dolar Qatar remembers the Supplier, one of the Three Guardians of Therrador. The Supplier was eventually slain, but if there are two Guardians left, one could be here… But he can’t see this person and there is no time to find him. The Wrath of the Sea is about to break, and if they break, the Grand Army of Drogor will be crushed. The unthinkable will happen if something doesn’t change soon: the Quelar and Drogret campaign against Therrador is about to fail. Dolar quickly returns.
Heavy drums and a horn sound in the distance. Wavelord Xurel, hit by five arrows, pushes two Archers away and takes off into the sky. His wings are severely hurt and two more arrows pierce them, but he flies vigorously and swoops back with renewed strength. “It’s Prince Qatar and the Avenging Brothers!”
The Great Guardian of Therrador sighs and nods to one of his messengers. A decisive victory was so very close, but these fresh reinforcements might just turn the tide in favour of the Quelar and Drogret. Everyone knows what to do. The Trebuchet leaves, although pestered by Divine Guard. In its wake the Archers slowly regroup, pick up their wounded, and move back, covering themselves by shooting at will. Suddenly they stop. A horn sounds and all Swordsmen turn tail, some throwing down their shields and dragging wounded comrades with them. The Archers release a few salvos on the Quelar and Drogret, to force them into hiding. The Steelblades try to run off as well, but the Kharkat don’t let it happen and catch them. To Orgrok Mandor’s dismay Jack of Steel also pulls back. He orders to pursue. However, apart from the Kharkat and Drogret riders, no unit is actually able to chase the Therradorians. The Legion of Steel manages to get away again and leave the victors defeated.
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