Therion's Dutchy - Embattled
From the wall, Toben surveys the battle field. It was different, and yet somewhat comforting, to be on this side of the engagement. He can still remember what it felt like to stare down the business end of those canons, even if it was from afar. Butterflies danced in his stomach as the army began is march across the field, executing their plan.
The black army on the other side of the field was massive. The sheer numbers they brought was impressive, if not a little daunting, but he was still glad to see that they had not brought the trolls with them. His gaze falls upon his last point of concern, the large tents at the far side of the battle field. A few minutes pass without any sign of movement. It's only when the soldiers march passed the large stones when one emerges. Toben watches the figure like a hawk, waiting to see what it's going to do. The sequence of gestures and hand waving from the opposing mage fluctuate in order and tempo, but familiar enough for Toben to recognize what's about to happen.
Quickly, Toben raises his arms and begins his own gestures and chanting, except that he performs them in reverse order. The enemy mage finishes his spell first, and a large flaming sphere emerges out of nowhere and begins hurtling towards the dukes troops. It gets larger and larger as it arcs upward and it's growing shadow stretches across the battle field pointing straight at its intended target, the second battalion on the left. Toben, suppressing the urge to panic, quickly finishes up his somatics. Concern washes over his face as he waits to see if his counter works.
The flaming sphere begins to arc downward toward the squad of men, and its looming shadow darkens the area surrounding the troops. Seconds before impact, a magical disturbance begins to swell around the ball of fire, and it fizzles out in a puff of smoke just over head.
Toben exhales a sigh of relief. He looks back to the men on the one and picks one out. "You there. Inform the commanders that those robed figures we saw are indeed enemy magic users. We may need to come up with a plan to take those guys out if they become more involved in the fight. You, and you." He points to two soldiers dressed in the same uniform as him. "What are your names soldiers?"
The two step forward quickly and salut. One barks out, "Reginald, sir!" The other follows suit with, "Thurman, sir!"
Toben nods. "Very good men. Reginald, you stand there, ten paces from me. And Thurman, you stand there, another ten paces from him. Keep your eyes on me, and when I start moving my hands around to cast, I want you two to mimic me as best you can. It doesn't have to be perfect, but if anyone is paying attention on the other side, I want them to think we have more magic users than we actually do."
The two eye each other nervously, but eventually nod and take their positions, glancing back at Toben occasionally.
