David Bishop and the Mystic of Creation T.C. Crawford (icecream ebook reader txt) 📖

one thing for sure – we will give these demons one hell of a fight!” he pounded his fist on the table to drive the point home, eliciting a few hearty shouts of agreement throughout the chambers before continuing.

“One of the reasons our forefathers chose this valley for their new home is because of its defensive position within the ring of mountains. The mountains are high and unforgiving, should anyone try to enter the valley through any means other than the narrow pass from the North, or the Southern Tunnel to the South. Knowing this, they built this great city in the valley, depending on its isolation and security to protect our people for generations to come. We will use this to our advantage.

“I propose we build a series of fortifications here, here, and here, behind the mountain pass and before it, along with lookout towers on the northern side to provide ample warning in the event of a pending attack. This will give us foresight on when they are coming and prevent us from being caught off guard.”

Everyone around the table nodded in agreement, seeing the logic in the barbarian King’s plans.

“We have a vast amount of stone and wood from the valley and from fallen debris that we can use to build several walls leading up the mountain pass on both sides. This will hopefully slow the enemy march once they reach the top of the pass, and the narrow walkway through the mountain will force the enemy, although vast in numbers, to bottleneck and therefore reduce the overall number we must fight at one time.”

General Ryan chimed in.

“This is where we must hold them, for if we let them through the passageway into the valley, they will be able to spread out their numbers and we will quickly be overrun. Should this happen, Rex, how long do you suppose we could hold them off within the castle walls?” he asked.

“I’m not sure...it depends on how many of them are left, and how many of us are left at that time too.” he said somberly.

Everyone in the room knew that if it came to that, their time would be short-lived at best. The castle was well fortified, but it could only do so much against an army of demons and black mages. Knowing this, they were all the more determined to make sure they held the enemy at the entrance to the valley.

“Orin, what protection will you be able to provide for us against their mages? You proved to be quite a valuable asset during the battle of Eldergate.” said General Ryan.

Orin had been standing and pacing back and forth around the room, deep in thought while listening to the strategies being presented.

“Hm? Oh yes…well, I can tell you this much. When the Mystic Wars broke out long ago, there were many more of my kind around to help battle the endless waves of demons and black mages. And even with our numbers, we dwindled away until I was all that was left. The forces we will be up against, they will be ruthless, cunning, and powerful. The mages are humans, or once were before they sold their souls to the Defiant One in exchange for their powers. Now, they are but a shell of what they once were – though no less formidable.

“I will focus my efforts on the mages like you say and do whatever I can to help with the barriers before the enemy arrives. That is all I can do… it is all any of us can do.” he said, slowly looking around the room.

Rex nodded in agreement before replying.

“In the meantime, I will instruct my men not tasked on the fortifications to begin preparing for a long siege. We will need an abundance of supplies and food stored away for the men, women, and children. We have already started to increase production as much as possible and the townsfolk have been preparing all produce for long-term storage. Once the siege begins, we won’t be able to focus on our farms or livestock – the food will need to be harvested and prepared or risk being soured.” said Rex.

“Agreed,” said General Ryan before addressing the room.

“I’ll have my men help in whatever way possible. We have increased our training exercises to ensure the men are prepared and fit for battle. We will continue to request that any man capable of fighting please step forward and volunteer for service. We have already had several dozen speak up and begin their training, however, we fear it is not enough. We will need every abled bodied man we can get if we are to survive the coming battle.” said General Ryan.

“What about the woman and children?” asked the King, concerned for the wellbeing of his people. “Heaven forbid if the demons make it through our defenses and into the valley, we can’t ensure the safety of our citizen’s if that happens” he said.

“He’s right” said Rex, “When the enemy finally comes, we will have all the women and children make their way through the Southern Tunnel, and once we are sure they are all safely through, we will block the entrance once again to prevent any pursuit. It will protect them from the enemy, even if it means locking us inside the valley without a means of escape.” said Rex, to which everyone agreed. It would be a necessary sacrifice, even if it meant their own demise – a sacrifice each of them was willing to make to ensure the safety of their families.

With everyone now aware of their task and ready to get to work, the war council set out to put their plans in motion, making sure they used every last minute to prepare for the coming siege, knowing that every moment they had was a blessing not to be wasted.

Chapter V

After trekking for what felt like hours through the unyielding darkness of the Southern Tunnel, David began to wonder if