Chapter 18: 18. Loyal Dog

Class was going well, Elder Leo while not accustomed to teaching a group of students knew what he was doing. The few times Sister Kaja asked to speak, she had provided useful clarifications, especially for the non-Lleial. Watching from the side, with Lieutenant Floria at his back, Keir gave them a smile of encouragement, this might actually work.

A soldier entered the tent, coming to Keir's side. “Mage Von would like to speak to you, at the pass, Mage Keira” he said.

Wrapping his cloak around himself, he motioned towards the exit. “Very well, lead on.”

A horse was waiting for him, being held by his bodyguard, Private Sofia. “If you would wait a few moments, Regua, Sergeant Pol and Private Biel are collecting our horses.”

He heard Lieutenant Floria click her tongue against her cheek. A slight glance showed her scowling, he was fairly certain Sergeant Pol was going to get a lecture in the near future about leaving his position without notifying her. He pretended not to notice anything amiss, he was fairly safe in the camp for now, and this was her duty, not his. He'd let her whip her soldiers into proper bodyguards, and if she couldn't, he'd step in. But she'd have a chance to do it her way first.

When the horses and wayward guards arrived, he mounted his horse, which was slightly bigger than a pony, and headed towards the pass.

The route was different from before. Before it had been almost deserted, full of ruts and holes, and half turned to mud. Now work crews were filling in the worst parts, laying down logs and sticks to cover the mud and provide a firmer road for carts, horses and people. Wagons, some horse drawn, more often pulled by people, were making their way up to the camp, bringing lumber, charcoal, foraged food from the forest, smoked and salted meat and tanned hides.

The increasing activity was a joy to see. But what made him truly smile, was the improved spirits. The workers were attacking their jobs with real energy, the work parties were singing as they heaved logs into position, the wagon drivers were shouting jokes and friendly insults at the people forced to walk and were receiving the same in return. It was a veneer over the horrors they had faced and knew they would face again, but it was real.

Coming to the bottom of the pass, Keir almost didn't recognize it. A few thousand workers, properly fed and motivated could do amazing things.

The fortifications had been reinforced and expanded. There were now at least ten lines of trenches, set up in an arc creating a vicious crossfire for any attackers. Soldiers were being trained to leave one trench line and retreat to the one behind, with proper cover fire and control, working as a team instead of individuals.

Wire and wooden stakes were stretched across no mans land. Teams were digging pits in the dirt, they were a sheer drop from the front and a gentle slope in the back, which would allow soldiers in the trenches to fire on any demons that fell into them. In the distance he saw a team digging what looked like post holes. Following several yards behind, a pair of soldiers were carefully burying something in the holes.

Where the forest had been was now a burned and logged wasteland. Smoke rose from the ruins, preserving the last of the demon hides and meat. A temporary sawmill was turning small hill of fallen trees into lumber. Smaller pieces of wood, too small or weak for lumber, was being turned into charcoal. It would burn hotter and longer than regular wood, and was easier to store for winter.

Once the work was done, this would be a proper fortress, and a good base to work from. Unfortunately they couldn't hide behind walls and trenches, they had to expand. It was the only chance for survival.

They came to a clear field behind the artillery. Von was watching a dozen or so mages practising spells,  slicing, burning, and destroying log targets. The show of strength was impressive. While training soldiers to fire a gun was much simpler and could be done en masse, and artillery could throw their explosive shells farther than most mages could cast spells, the versatility of a mage could be decisive.

“Hello, Von,” Keir called out.

“Good morning, Keir,” the mage replied, walking over to them. He looked tired, his skin was paler than usual and despite the extra food his eyes were sunken in and his cheeks hollow. “Thank you for coming.”

“I've been meaning to talk to you, but it seemed like you were hiding from me.”

The mage grinned, but it seemed strained. “I've been busy. We're trying to come up with a regular repertoire of offensive spells, so we know what to expect when we're fighting side by side. It's been a problem with mages coming from so many different places. Now that we have the time to train, we're using it as best we can. You've been busy as well from what I've been hearing.”

Dismounting, Keir nodded. “I have. We have a lot to do and very little time, so I'm using it as best I can.”

“Two weeks and then we head for Koder. That is going to be a challenge.”

“Koder isn't the problem. The winter offensive will be.”

Von looked at him sharply. “You want to attack the demons in winter?”

“I've mentioned it General Ajani. I don't think he quite understands the scope of my plans however. The dead do not get cold, they don't freeze, and they don't stop until they are destroyed. I'm going to be creating tens of thousands of dead soldiers, they'll spread out throughout the winter slaying any demons they come across. By spring, I plan on having every single demon within five hundred miles of here dead, and any demon in a thousand miles fearing for their lives.”

“You don't think small, do you?”

“If you make large plans, even if you don't fully succeed, you've still gained something useful. The trick is making sure it's realistic and that if it fails you can still recover.”

He nodded, but looked curious. “So why didn't you accept more students to your school?”

“We need competent students immediately. Once I have this batch trained, I can use some of them to teach the basics to a larger class. The two teachers that are teaching the basics also seem competent, I may be able to have a new class starting in two months.”

“The Lleial elder and Sister Kaja are working well together?”

“They seem to be. They're both intelligent and realize what's at stake, so any concerns they might have are being put aside for expediency.”

Keir could tell Von was slowly working his way up to something. The mage seemed to enjoy drawing things out. “You didn't call me down here to discuss the school or my plans for the dead, what are you really concerned about?”

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“Commander Alder asked about your geas. Apparently he thought I had you under tighter control.”

“I don't know why he was so concerned. I thought we had a very pleasant discussion about what I can and cannot do, and have come to an understanding,” Keir replied, not bothering to hide his smile.

“Are you going to cause problems?” Von asked. “He opposed resurrecting you, and used every means he had to keep me from doing it, but he commands the loyalty of most of the professional soldiers, and his position makes him a powerful figure in camp.”

“I understand. I worked with many people who would have happily gutted me if they could have succeeded. I have only done what was needed to smooth things out between the Lleial and the rest of the camp. I didn't even push him to make a decision at the moment.”

“But you are thinking of ways to break or get around the geas?”

“Wouldn't you be doing the same in my position?”

“Mage Keir, have you studied the geas in any way?” Von demanded.

Keir scowled as his mouth started moving without his permission or control. “I have studied the wording, and looked over the basic spell.”

“What have you discovered? And can you break it or avoid its affects?”

“You've somehow connected it to my soul, which should be impossible. I don't know if it can be broken. I can however avoid the problem entirely by making sure I can't hear or see any commands from a Blue or higher mage.”

The mage nodded, looking satisfied. “Thank you.”

Sneering at the words, Keir snarled, “You could have simply asked. I'm not going to lie about something so trivial.”

“I needed to be sure.”

“If that's everything, I have important things to do.” Keir didn't mention that a bath was one of the things he'd like to do after being forced to speak like that.

“Actually there is more for you to do. Come with me.”

Following the mage, he took a moment to look back at his bodyguards. If looks alone could have struck Von down, the Lleial would have killed the mage a hundred times over. It was fortunate they hadn't tried to do that. As much as Keir wanted to slaughter the man for commanding him like a dog, it wouldn't be prudent, yet.

So he kept his mouth shut, studying the soldiers and defences as they walked to the edge of the fieldwork. The smell of rot and death filled his nose the closer they got. When they reached their destination he saw a massive pile of bones, mostly demon, but some human ones thrown in as well. Many still had some flesh on them, and around the edges he saw a lake of offal, where organs entrails and rotten meat had been thrown. Off to the side were rows of shallow graves, each one marked with a symbol of the Mother.

“Here is your army,” Von said, gesturing at the materials.

Smiling thinly, Keir said, “Time for your dog to earn its keep.”

Opening himself to the magic, he channeled it first into the bones and then into the offal. The bones knew what they had once been. Several hundred skeletal demons of all types climbed out of the bone pile. They walked and jumped into the rotten flesh, emerging dripping blood, covered in a thick layer of rot.

Silently they formed into four groups of a hundred. Onlookers gasped, many of them throwing up from the gristly sight.

Turning his attention to the graves, he pumped more magic into them. These wouldn't be simple zombies, they would be ghouls, intelligent, strong, and capable of thinking strategically and communicating. In each of their minds, he gave a list of instructions. Kill the demons. If they couldn't kill a group of demons, find reinforcements and then kill them. Conserve their numbers by attacking small groups and individuals. If possible use hit and run tactics and attack when the demons are asleep. Protect any humans they find and tell them how to reach the camp, guard them if necessary.

Eighty ghouls crawled from the grave. Breaking into groups of twenty, they joined the demons, barking orders at them to form ranks.

Finally Keir made ghosts for scouting. Five ghosts went to each group, hovering over the ghouls, waiting for orders.

Silently Keir ordered them to go and do their duty.

Turning to Von, he asked, “Do you require anything else, sir?”

“No. Just do the same tomorrow, and every other day until you run out of bodies,” the mage said, his voice low and dull.

“I shall carry out my duties to the letter, sir.” Turning away from the mage, Keir headed back for his horse. He would ride through the area killing any pests that infested the soldiers and workers, then head back to the camp. He had things to do there.

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