Prelude - The Spear and the Shield
((Since Lena seems to be able to post again, I'll move this a bit along))
In the end, Mattaki's counsel was heard, but not acted on, the young Irhand had only managed to ostracize himself further.
The troops were moved, marching in parallel to the road, but easily overtaking the Deutsche on their slow march towards Telzetub. The garradumei barely had time to get in position when the ursagi sprang the attack, charging down from the hills down the road in a wide line, crashing into the Deutsche line.
The impact caused immediate panic and wreaked havoc, with the Deutsche screaming in terror and fleeing from the onslaught. Then the garradumei finally had finished their flanking maneuver and attacked the top of the German column, bunching the line up even further. But the militia forces were not used to the quick marching of the ursagi and their attack and progress came slower than planned.
Still, victory was close. So close that the battlemages had to stop their own attacks for fear of hitting their own troops.
But then, disaster struck.
It started with a rumbling of noise coming from the skies, and then a screeching cry as a Deutsche flying wagon descended from the sky like a bird of prey, attacking the bunched-up garradumei in the rear, who had not quite committed to the battle yet.
Another flying wagon flew lough across the hills and shot at the battlemages, killing and wounding many before turning away to duck their counter attack.
The battle was over when the Deutsche opened fire with their quick-firing cannons, taking out whole Zukesheds in a matter of seconds. But still the Axtzal kept fighting, the call to retreat did not come before there was another rumbling sound and the Deutsche heavy wagons came, with more fire and more fireballs tearing up the countryside.
Mattaki ran with the rest of the garradumei. The battle was lost. There was no honor in fighting to the last man. It was better to retreat, regroup, reconsider and attack again, Fakhad the Great had said so himself and had turned many erstwhile losses into eventual victories.
Left and right of him, the garradumei fell when struck by the Deutsche weapons. Once he had reached the safety of a crater in the road he turned, thrust out his spears, and sent death towards the Deutsche soldiers going after the garradumei.
He heard a whistling sound and turned, but then was catapulted by a massive shockwave into the air and sent tumbling to the ground.
Everything turned black, then.
How long he was out, Mattaki was unable to tell, but when he woke up again, he was surrounded by dead Axtzal, all piled up in mounds. Dazed, he tried to grasp what had happened.
[Language unknown: "Osee, Mander'tinortlinüilpl, Of hishereau ulcapa aronfo evck cawhll reswasvir naiene."
"Ioin ponti werom prinni."
"Alvir k, ati sontinter p urisno wiant masa waort intlo tiolhi? Stous verel tr sanonsrea ntiticpr. Eklin ted ou on uresanthu day, enc. N rat a pa illthince."
"On, Erfo'ivhantüulas."
]
A face moved into Mattaki's field of vision. There was blood and a bruise on the Deutsche's face. He said something.
[Language unknown: "Pratna ic ca foin ateovepre ce, entmanpro."]
Then a rifle butt came down on Mattaki's head and the world turned black again.
((I'll give you a chance to fill in your own point of view of the battle, but I'll move this along to a new thread))