The Accidental Archmage by Edmund Batara (read out loud books .TXT) 📕

abilities.

“My lord, you do know we will be watched. I am sure the jotnar and the dokkalfr also

have scouts watching the Gap,” said Habrok who was seated at the back of the wagon.

“As my friends, Mac and Tosh would say, indubitably, Mr. Habrok. But this is but one

wagon. They will come and investigate. But not in force. By that time, I expect your

traps to be lethally effective. Won’t they?”

“Oh. Don’t worry about the traps, my lord.”

“But we may have to walk back when everything is over. If we get to walk back,”

advised Tyler. With that statement, nobody talked anymore. Their watchful eyes

checking and assessing their progress and surroundings.

Finally, they got to an old trail which entered the forested area on the left side of the

Gap. Habrok got off the wagon and took the lead. Jorund continued as the driver while

Tyler moved to the back of the wagon. Their speed noticeably slowed down. Brambles

and small branches blocked the barely noticeable track. Birds were still around,

observed Tyler, which means the surrounding area was clear for now. They continued

along the path for the better part of two hours by his reckoning. The trees have gotten

denser and the slope of the path had sharply gone higher. Finally, it ended at a low

cliffside.

“Time for us to go up, my lord."

Habrok was already up on the top of the cliffside and had left ropes dangling down.

They spent about an hour bringing their food and gear up. After that, the two followed,

but they first moved the wagon some distance away and freed the two horses. While

Tyler and Jorund moved their things from the top of the cliff to the beginnings of

another path which wound further up the mountain, Habrok went ahead to scout the

campsite. After some time, the man came back.

“Clear,” Habrok reported, “The site ends at a sheer cliff. The trail winds up. Very

defensible if we can build what is needed. Nice view of the Gap but it’s also a dead end.

Sorry, wrong choice of words.”

“Come on,” said Jorund, “These things won’t move themselves. And we have a few

hours of daylight remaining.”

As they reached the camp with their things, Jorund asked Tyler to remain while he and

Habrok do the moving. Tyler was thankful, his cardio had not improved to the level of

the two warriors. Instead, he asked Habrok to start laying down some traps as soon as

they have finished transferring their food and gear.

Tyler crouched and went to survey the Gap. He was about a half a mile up a sheer cliff.

The bottom was full of rocks and shrubs. The spot was at the foot of a mountainside

and surrounded by inaccessible stone, except for the part which led down the trail. The

trail itself was mostly rocks at its sides, enough for a man to pass through. Tyler

estimated it to be around eighty to a hundred feet starting from the bottom of the trail.

It twisted its way up to the campsite. It was obvious though that part of the stone had

been removed manually to open up the trail to the site. The spot itself had the

remnants of the old camp, thankfully bare of human remains. A run-down and wrecked hunter’s lodge with skinning and curing shelters were all that’s left.

In the distance, he could see the town. He could also see where the barricades and

field traps ended and the unblocked open terrain began. Some trees in the campsite

afforded a degree of cover but he believed protection could be improved. “What I

would give for some razor wire,” thought Tyler, “and a fifty cal with unlimited

ammunition.”

He went to the ruined lodge. Half of the roof was gone, a wall and the door were

missing but those can be fixed. It was empty except for the garbage of a looted

dwelling. Their belongings were being stacked outside where the door used to be. He

then went around the clearing, trying to spot possible weak points. The only ones he

could see were the trail opening and the viewing ledge.

Have to prepare against ice drakes and flying creatures. More food and water.

Especially water. There are enough trees at the bottom of the trail to cut for defenses.

If we have enough food and water, we can stay here for some time. We can block the

trail at certain points, laying down traps. Jorund and Habrok can watch my back while I

attend to the jotnar and dokkalfr. But I really have to improve the cover on the ledge.

He went back to viewing the Gap, trying to imagine how the jotnar and the dokkalfr will

attempt to approach the town. He assumed they’re going to bring up catapults,

battering rams, and other heavy siege artillery as well as siege towers. The problem

was the estimate about their numbers. “A great many” and “numerous” are not exact

terms. He decided to start with an estimate of ten thousand. From what he had

observed during the ambush before, the foe tends to rely on overwhelming

numbers. Ten thousand, that’s a tall order. But he didn't have to wipe them all out. He

just needed to inflict enough casualties to make the assault against Scarburg fail.

The sunlight was fading when the two finally finished bringing up the gear. Tyler went

to them as Jorund was preparing their meal behind the lodge. Habrok was watching the

trail but he beckoned him over. As he prepared to illuminate the lamp, Habrok signaled

for him to wait. The ranger scrambled to the roof and laid out a tarp, same as what

they used back at the jotnar encampment. He extended the tarp over the cooking area

and attached it to the cliff wall. He picked up the planks from the destroyed wall and

laid it on the side of the tarp facing the Gap.

He does know his job, reflected Tyler. Preliminaries over, Habrok joined them.

“I can have another tarp cover the hole in the roof, my lord. Though we have to cover

the windows, at least those which will give out light towards the Gap. The door faced

the rock wall so it will not be a problem for now. But tomorrow, we should have a

temporary door to cover