Four Horsemen: Chapter 9 Part 2 of 3

“Use the ballista,” Mya fired, reloading by feel she jutted her chin towards the shadow burned part of the wall. “Stick some of your crazy balls to them and see what happens.” She pulled back on the lever under her rifle aimed and fired.

Petor checked the ballista, everything was in the right place.

He drew back the lever wheel at the base, drawing it back easily, he grabbed a handful of the shot, putting them in the trough against the pouch that would have secured a bolt.

“Here goes nothing.” He aimed and fired, pulling on the wheel, he had it back in the ready position as the runed shot started to glow and drop among the enemy advance.

One detonated into fire, another summoned three bears, another sent the fighters shooting off into the sky, a group let out cries of fear and retreated, Blue powder blew out of the last one, coating the ground and those around it. The fighters cried out trying to clean it from their eyes and mouth.

“Next ones you get, label them,” Desari said.

“Umm, yeah,” Petor hesitantly put two handfuls into the pouch and fired.

Fighters went mad, others found summoned beasts in their ranks, one blew up into a group of darts that shot out in every direction, tracking and hitting the enemy.

Petor kept piling in the sling shot, sowing chaos among the enemy.

“Aim for the ones pushing the towers!” Valter said.

“We’ve got breaches on the left side!” A guard yelled out.

“Hold here, they’ll figure it out,” Desari said.

Petor loaded more sling shot. If they make it past us, there are no other walls to hold them back.

A section of wall was torn apart with catapult boulders.

Valter turned and ran, jumping over the wall into the catapult pit.

“Shift your fire to the left!”

Petor fired into the oncomers his slingshots ignited with different spells against a siege tower, cutting out the side as it collapsed on those rushing past.

“Good hits Valter! Shift fire left and bring it in!” Mya yelled, reloading and firing.

“Ladders!” Petor yelled as the first infantry made it under the walls.

“Aim over the walls, drop rubble on them if you can!” Valter put his weapons away and grabbed a section of stone broken by the shadow beast’s attack. He heaved it up and threw it down over a ladder.

Wood broke and screams came from below.

Petor grabbed the stones remaining in the box and threw them over the wall

Another ladder reached the top of the wall. Petor threw the box over the wall and drew his spear, using the butt to push the ladder back and over.

The enemy had made it to the walls, giving the stone and shadow golems a wide berth. A siege tower was hit with a catapult’s payload, raining wood on those around it.

“They’re making it forward.”

“Push the ladders free!” Valter yelled.

Petor ran down the wall, two men struggled to push a ladder away, a fighter ran up burying his axe in one man’s head. Petor stabbed him in the chest before he had time to kill the other defender.

Petor turned his spear, and shoved the ladder, his muscles strained as another fighter ran up the top of the ladder.

Petor let out a yell, the man’s eyes went wide as he let got of his sword and scrambled to hold onto the wall only to find thin open air as the ladder was thrown backwards.

Mya’s pistol barked taking down two fighters that made it to the top of the wall. Guards around the ladders did their best to fight them off, but they were getting pushed back, allowing more up to the wall.

Enemy fighters reached the top of the wall, further from Petor, swinging their axes and swords. Gritting his teeth Petor charged forward, he slammed one up against the wall with the side of his spear, drawing the sharpened head over his neck, stealing his life as Petor stabbed his spear through another’s armor, he swung his spear, smacking two on the crenallations backwards. He jumped up on the wall, stomping on a helmeted head running up the ladder and back kicking the ladder, filled with fighters, off as he used his spear like a bat, launching another attacker into the growing mass of attackers.

Desari’s arrows cut down three making their way up a ladder.

Petor jumped off the wall and pushed another ladder free.

Shadows ran over the wall like sentient oil. The shadow golem rose over the wall throwing a punch. Petor brought his spear across the beast in a slash that opened it across the chest.

It protected its core, Mya’s shots blasted holes in its arms as it grew shorter, shadows wrapping its core.

Desari’s arrow slid through its side, stabbing into its core. It started dissolving, shadows draining away.

Petor let out a yell as the beast stumbled.  His spear shot out, cutting through its chest and scraping its core. Essence, much stronger than what he’d leached from the enemy fighters flowed through him.

Arrows hit the wall as he drew himself back, the core disintegrating with Desari’s arrow through it.

“Down Petor!”

He dropped to his knee, Valters bolts slammed home into several enemy fighters.

“Clear!”

Petor took off at a run using his spear to throw the fully laden ladders back over the wall.

He reached a broken section of wall, cutting down two fighters that reached the top of the wall he kicked the ladder away, pulling out slingshots he threw them down into the enemy below. He forced his breath through his nose. His spear dripped with blood.

The wall shook.

“What was that?” Petor asked.

“They have a rock golem hitting the gates,” Desari grabbed another arrow.

Petor ran back towards them.

Fighters cried out as they were stung by the bugs, the golem didn’t stop its attacks.

“Cover me,” Desari leaned over the wall, a thread of essence running down her arrow as she fired.

Mya’s revolvers took out two that made it to the top of the ladder. Petor glanced through the openings in the wall, Desari’s Arrow hit the rock golem smashing on the wall, burning a hole through it and detonating.

It’s head, shoulder and half its torso exploded outwards, raining on the other attackers.

Valter’s crossbow hit the shining rock in its core.

Its core detonated, killing those around it and breaking through the wall, causing a section to collapse.

Petor held onto a nearby crenellation. A ladder hit the wall next to him, he grabbed it and threw it backwards.

Petor ducked as a fire pot crossed overhead, feeling the breeze of its passing as it smashed beyond the wall.

“Shit,” Valter hissed.

“Petor hold the breach!” Desari said.

Turned back towards the broken wall.

“Ah, fuck me.” He took a running jump, landing beyond the rubble wall, he turned, facing the opening, the dust settling into the mud from the day’s rains, stone finished dropping as fighters ran through the breach. Petor charged them, his feet dancing between the rubble as the enemy tripped on it, climbing over the small hill.