The Saga of Silver Wolf - Chapter 2

Chapter Two – Into the Fray

         As Silver Wolf entered the briefing room, we were all there, sitting around the dark stained mahogany table speculating on our next move. Silver Wolf looked around at us before he took his seat at the head of the table.
         “Malek, what can you tell us about the planet, are there any civilisations, dangerous terrain, hazardous weather situations?”

         Malek stood and addressed us with what information he had managed to gather.
         “There is a severe ion storm over the entire planet, sensors are having difficulty getting through, although I am fairly sure that there are small civilisations about the size of an average village and seem to be fairly medieval in their technological state. The terrain seems fairly similar to old Earth, trees, grass and mountains – the usual. I did however find an area of the planet that has a high concentration of refined iron. Which I did think was a little odd given the current technology level. There is at least one small populated area nearby.”
         “Thank you Malek; Avad - I want an away team prepped for a scavenging mission of 6 personnel, and no discernable technology. We’re looking for information that may help tell us where we are and what just happened. There may not be high tech levels here, but if there is refined iron here that’s the place to start.”
         “Yes sir,” replied Avad.
         “Malek, continue scanning, I want details of that cloud, our location and how to get back to our previous position ASAP, -” commanded Silver Wolf before addressing me.
         “- Gringor, you’re in-charge while I'm away; Shadik, organise all available personnel to help with the wounded and also in engineering under the direction of Jenrick.”
         “Okay sir.” agreed Shadik.

         I never liked Shadik, the man was slimy, literally, he always had a patchy stubble and lank, dark greasy hair and his eyes never quite looked right, always slightly off or so it seemed, and there was a funny smell when he was near, sort of beef burgers and cabbage, and we were clean out of cabbage.

         As we were filing out of the briefing room, Silver Wolf asked me to stay a moment. He was leaning over the briefing table staring at the console set into the centre.

         “I want you to be careful, while I'm away. Normal to us might not be normal wherever we are, anything comes near you, I want passive scans only and I want the shields repaired ASAP. The computer is still down, have all turrets manually mounted and have them switched to manual mode under your personal command only.”
         “You got a funny feeling about this one?”
         “Yeah - something like that,” he said to me.
         There was a frown on the Captains face, now the Captain is usually quite impassive and doesn’t show his concern to any of the crew. He looked me once in the eyes before he left the briefing room.

....


         Silver Wolf arrived in the hanger with his away pack and various 'medieval' weapons and clothes from the ships replicators. Ferne 88 raised an eyebrow as he walked across the hanger deck, obviously adjusting to the feel of the garments that he was definitely not used to. A loose fitting chain mail shirt with a leather jerkin on top, tight leather trousers and rough brown boots made up the outfit. There was a sword hanging on the left side of his hip, and this was the only thing that looked natural on that big frame. Her own outfit was of similar design, form fitting leather trousers with a leather jerkin and soft black boots. She too had opted for a sword, although she had also decided to carry two long knives as weapons, each about one foot in length and easily mistaken for short swords.

         “Alright people, listen in; Avad has probably told you what we are likely to face so we are going to take this nice and careful, we’re in a situation that we are unfamiliar with, let’s not do anything foolish.”

         The last remark was directed at Hamish - A Scot with flaming red hair and a flair for the vicious - a real good man to have in your corner.

         “Och, Captain he started it, he right near came onto me! Me a full grown man being tapped up by a dandy, it's just not nat'ral.”
         “Indeed. Get on board, let’s go,” commanded Silver Wolf.

         As the small away team vessel headed out of the Wolf's Maw and descended to the planet that filled the front view port, Silver Wolf cast his eyes over the sensors as Gyaneshwar continued the descent.
         “Can you get us through the Ion storm?”
         “Yes sir, I can fire a small burst of negative Ions that should open a corridor to the planet, we wont be noticed.”
         Gyaneshwar's hands flew over the console and the ships deflector fired a stream of negative Ions and opened the corridor as predicted. When the ship was about a mile above the planets surface, it started to accelerate it's descent despite the efforts of Gyaneshwar.

         “Sir, I can't slow the descent...”
         “What's causing it?”
         “Sensors are indicating nothing, just a whole load of iron in and around the clearing of the forest below,” Gyaneshwar replied.
         “Brace for impact!” Silver Wolf called to the rest of the away team. “Set the inertial dampeners to full! And fly toward the trees, not the clearing, they'll take the brunt of the crash!”
         “Aye Sir,” replied Gyaneshwar.

         As the shuttle flew towards the trees, the birds there raced to the safety of the open sky in a great flapping of wings, some losing feathers in their haste to escape the on-coming craft. With a long crash, the craft careened through the trees, snapping branch and twig and uprooting whole trees as it came to a final agonising rest several hundred metres from the initial impact. Silver Wolf was the first to his feet, checking the crew to see if they were alright, before opening the outer hatch and scanning the ship for any dangerous leaks.

         Beigid approached Silver Wolf from the hatch with a small handheld engineering scanner and started to take readings of the ship.
“It's not as bad as it looks, Captain. I should be able to repair it with the equipment we have on board.”
         “How long do you need?” Silver Wolf asked.
         “Several hours at best, here's the list of parts and equipment from Jenrick,” Beigid said as he handed a data pad to Silver Wolf.
         “Okay, get started; get the shield up first and activate it so you can work in safety. The rest of you, I saw a river a couple of miles north-east of our position, lets head there and see if we can find a settlement of any kind.”

         Without another word, Silver wolf turned and headed into the forest leaving a few muttered curses behind him as the others hurried to grab packs and weapons and tried to catch their striding Captain. It took about half an hour to reach the river, with Auvala the cook, slowing them by taking scans and checking for flora, fauna, animals and fish that might be edible. After several miles there began the faint sounds of metal banging against metal, much like that of a blacksmith at work. Silver Wolf raised his head and moved further from the river so that he may better determine the direction the sound was coming from.

         “Captain?”
         “Yes, Gyaneshwar?”
         “Scanners only have a small range due to all the iron in the region; I'm only detecting animals, no people or civilisations.”

         Gyaneshwar is another big guy, a real muscle-bound, pumping-iron no-necker, except he had a brain. The guy was smart, not your engineer type smart, but smart non-the-less. This guy could get you out of situations that you thought were buggered. There was this one time; we were pinned down by some enemy fire, the type that if it moved it was full of holes. So we’re all thinking – ‘crap what do we do?’ When Gyaneshwar, calm as you like crawls a few feet away and starts throwing boxes, bricks, next-doors cat, anything he can lay his hands on. The fire is coming over our barricade so thick that the shots ware having to take a number and queue behind one another to get by. And he looks me square in the eye and says “This'll only take a second.”
         Sure enough, all we here is BOOM, and the enemy weapons start exploding in their hands - sweet.
Later he explained that he knew by the sound of the firing that they were using old T-20 Blitzer rifles and that the core generator in each weapon would explode if the weapon was discharged for an overly long period without sufficient cooling time. Like I said - smart.

         “Well, let’s head down river and check out the source of the sound.”
         “Okay people, lets go” said Gyaneshwar.
         “Och, we cannae even take a wee sip o' yon water o'er there? Ach well.”

         Sometimes you had to smile at Hamish, he was comic relief.

         It was about twenty minutes or so, with the metal-on-metal sound getting distinctly louder when the party approached the edge of the trees and could make out the sight of a wooded palisade some few hundred metres away in a clearing. The palisade was a large affair and showed signs of much use. There were large areas that had been patched, whether from rot or attack was unclear. The tops of the logs were pointed, and beyond those points were the bobbing heads of sentries as they patrolled along the gantry beyond. As they stepped from the forest into the clearing a shout of alarm came from the palisade and several heads rushed to look over the top at the source of the commotion.

         “Stand fast stranger, what is your business here?” the gruff shout came from one of the men atop the palisade. The view from the tree line gave away few details of the palisade guards save a dirty helmet and a tall spear.
         “We are travellers - in need of aid and information.”
         “You will find no aid here - only death; ere you take another step closer.”
         “We mean you no ill will friend,” replied the Captain, “we seek supplies and knowledge - nothing more.”
         “There is no aid here, now begone afore I loose an arrow...”
         There was a hurried conversation taking place upon the parapet and a different voice called out.
         “Come forward stranger - you will be met.”

         Silver Wolf looked at his companions and issued a word of caution before continuing forward to the palisade and the gate that was slowly opening to admit them. As they approached, Silver Wolf could see the inside of the encampment and noted that there seemed a startlingly small number of people moving about in such a large compound.

         “Hail - although I can not say well met stranger. I am Dahbian, elder of this community and I bid you welcome in this dark time.”
         Dahbian was approximately eighty or so years of age and walked with a slight limp in his left leg. He was dressed in blue and grey robes that had seen better days and a cane that was used more as a guide of where to step that to support his weight.
         “What mean you, dark times Dahbian? What ails this community?”
         “We have a sickness that consumes the women and the old, it turns our muscles to rot whilst we still breathe, we are besieged every other night by the growing number of Picts that now inhabit this region and our food begins to grow thin as we have not the men to cultivate more. But enough of our troubles; come sit at my table and tell me about you.”

         Silver Wolf and his companions took seat at a fairly stout table big enough to seat twenty that was set in the centre of the compound; he cast his eyes about the place to take stock for himself. Most of the men were of average size and a little undernourished, they had a tired look in their eyes and clothing that was almost as scruffy as the dirt they walked upon. There were few women folk about although there seemed an abundance of children who were set about tasks rather than playing as would have been normal. The buildings were small wooden affairs in surprisingly good repair given the appearance of their occupants. The palisade was stout and did indeed show the signs of constant repair to keep it that way, closer inspection showed that the repairs were indeed due to attacks and not neglect.

         “We have travelled from afar and seek foodstuffs for our journey and we require various metals for our companion who could not journey with us. In exchange, we could look upon your ill; we are knowledgeable in the art of medicine.”
Dahbian looked calmly at Silver Wolf, although there was a faint spark of hope in his eyes.
         “If you are able to cure our ails we will gladly trade with you; what we give in food, our women folk will be able to recoup in the fields when they recover.”
         “Agreed. Gyaneshwar you’re with me. If you would like to show us the way Dahbian,” Silver Wolf held a hand for the old man.
         “No preamble eh? Hee, Hee, Hee,” laughed Dahbian, “Well follow me then; I would have thought you would take a drink with me to settle our accord.”
         “Business first, more time to drink later,” Silver Wolf replied with a slight grin.

         Dahbian led Silver Wolf and Gyaneshwar to a larger than average building and explained that all the sick were kept in one place, that comfort may be given without undue delay to those who were most in need of it.
         There was an acrid reek as the door to the hut was pushed open and the smell of dozens of unwashed bodies wafted from the hut. As Silver Wolf stepped in, he could see at least two dozen or so beds lined against both sides of the walls and one man moving between the beds offering what aid he could to the sick women. He looked up at the intrusion and hurried forward to greet Dahbian and the strangers. Silver Wolf moved away from Gyaneshwar with Dahbian and the other man in tow allowing Gyaneshwar to unobtrusively take some scans of the women nearby. After a few minutes Silver Wolf returned and stated that he would consult with Gyaneshwar to see if there was anything they could do as then moved further down the room, this time leaving Dahbian and the village doctor alone.

         “Well?” enquired Silver Wolf.
         “Without knowing their physiology Captain, I would guess at a form of radiation poisoning - but I'm no doctor.”
         “Radiation poisoning? They wouldn’t have access to that kind of technology. Are you sure?”
         “It's what the scans indicate Sir - but like I said, I'm no doctor.”
         Silver Wolf gave a grunt before he walked back to Dahbian and led the elder outside into the fresh air.
         “Dahbian, have your people encountered any strange metals?”
         “Yes, some weeks ago, one of our scouts returned with some unknown metal, it was too soft for weapons, armour or tools, but it did polish well, so we fashioned it into jewellery. You believe this is the cause of our illness?”
         “I'm not sure; could I talk with the scout who found it?”
         “Unfortunately Silver Wolf, he died about a week ago when the Picts attacked, although he never showed signs of the illness.”
         “Do you still have the jewellery? I would like to see for myself.”
         “One moment, I will fetch some,” said Dahbian before he limped away to another hut.

         Silver Wolf and Gyaneshwar returned to the large table and updated the rest of the team about the situation.
         “Radiation? Here? Where would they get such a thing?” asked Ferne 88.
         “Ach who cares, lets treat it and get back to the ship, I don't like leaving it unguarded with naught but a spanner monkey for company. I'd rather not be stuck in some back water place as this, although the prospect of a good fight sounds promising with those Pictsie things.”
         “Ferne's right Hamish; if they managed to get radiation poisoning it must have come from somewhere nearby. Maybe there’s another craft somewhere out. Possibly from something that we can scavenge from.”
         “Och aye? And what are the chances that we just happened to crash a few miles from another ship that crashed here, AND that it's from our universe with the parts we need?” The sarcasm was just oozing from Hamish as he continued on, “Maybe they'll have a chilli dog stand and a big slushy, or a nice bit o' steamed haggis, all drippin' in butter with fresh Neeps and Tatties an' a fine malt, oohh how I could murder a fine malt aboot noo.”
         “Actually chances are quite good Hamish, the spot where we were waiting for Meephon to arrive was the spot where a large mining ship - the Arcillion disappeared. That was the ship that carried the largest mined load of Iron in the history of deep space mining, and its loss set about the constant warring between the Urmine Corporation and Trimine Syndicate. Before you joined the crew, the Wolf's Maw hired out to the Trimine syndicate as a guard vessel for some of their mining fleets, the pay was - very profitable,” Silver Wolf replied to Hamish’s jibe.
         “Humpph” replied Hamish to Silver Wolfs story.

         Dahbian came from the hut he had entered previously and made his way to the table to rejoin Silver Wolf and his companions.
         “Here is some of the jewellery,” he said, “My wife liked the jewellery, especially this necklace, now she is with the others, wasting away on some dirty cot desperately clinging to life.”
         As tears started to well in Dahbians eyes Ferne 88 moved to comfort the old man and Gyaneshwar quickly scanned the jewellery to check its composition. He gave a quick nod to the Captain when he was finished.
         “Dahbian, we believe that the jewellery is the cause, our people had something similar happen to them. We have something that may help.” With that, Silver Wolf gave his anti-radiation tablets to Ferne and issued her with the instructions she needed to pass to the doctor of the camp, the others supplied theirs in kind.

         Dahbian seated himself at the table and indicated to a passing child that he was to bring food and drink for the guests. As Ferne 88 returned from the doctor’s hut, she seated herself beside Silver Wolf just as the food and drink arrived. It wasn't much, but Silver Wolf was grateful for the hospitality from an already beleaguered community. Hamish and Gyaneshwar were both very grateful, whole mouthfuls grateful in fact, whilst Auvala was busy tasting each foodstuff and drink with thought and care, obviously deciding which to take on their departure.
         They talked for a small time after eating, before Silver Wolf asked,
         “Can you perhaps spare a guide Dahbian; we would like to take a look at the place where the metal for the jewellery was found.”
         “I can't really spare the men, but I feel I owe you a debt for your service with the ill. Zarak!” the old man had a penetrating voice for such a frail body.
         A small man appeared from around the corner and hurried to the old mans side.
         “Yes father?” he asked.
         “I want you to take these people to the mountain of metal,” he motioned to Silver Wolf and his companions, “Lead them safe.”
         “Yes father. This way,” he intoned to Silver Wolf.
         Silver Wolf and his companions rose from the table and followed Zarak towards the gate.
         “Thank you Dahbian, we shall return,” said Silver Wolf resting a hand upon Dahbians shoulder.
         Dahbian patted the hand but said nothing, just staring into the distance.
         “Auvala, it may be dangerous and you are no fighter, stay here and study the food, we will come back for you.”
         “Yes Sir.” replied Auvala, her strong southern accent showing the obvious relief at not having to go. Talk of the Picts and the cannibalism had not gone well with her.

         Zarak led them into the forest never speaking or looking back, trusting that his charges were following and keeping pace. The whole party moved in silence, ghosting through the forest as silent as a shadow moving along a wall. It seemed like an hour or more had passed when Zarak crouched and motioned for the others to do the same. Silver Wolf crept silently beside their guide and breathed into his ear. “What see you?”
         Zarak stared slightly to their left and Silver Wolf followed his gaze. Moving in the distance about seventy feet away were some small men, no taller than five foot, walking quietly with their short bows held at the ready. As the light came sparsely through the thick canopy of leaves and branches above, all that could be seen was a mere silhouette, and Silver Wolf marvelled at the eyesight of the young man next to him. As the Picts continued to move away from the party, Zarak was about to move when Ferne 88 held him fast by his arm. He looked enquiringly at her and she indicated with her chin another party of Picts also on their left moving to the same destination as the first group. He nodded his thanks and held his ground until they had also moved off before he once again continued their journey through the silent mass of trees.
         Not much further on they encountered several interruptions as the Picts seemed to move more freely about this part of the forest and Silver Wolf knew it would surely only be a matter of time before they were discovered. They continued for perhaps another twenty minutes before they broke into a long clearing that seemed almost a mile wide and was gouged deep into the earth. Silver Wolf turned and gave Hamish a smug look, whilst the latter returned one of haughtiness. Zarak turned to head down the gulley and soon they were passing large mounds of molten metal, many of which were covered with moss and lichen; as they progressed, the come upon ever increasing mounds until the could see in the distance an enormous pile of iron reaching high above the tree line.
         Still they advanced until they finally stood at the base of this mountain of metal which seemed fused together as if by a great fire. Their guide said nothing but took up a place of concealment and scanned the trees for any signs that they were being followed. Silver Wolf liked the young man, he was all quiet business, no bravado, he just did what he had to do.
         Gyaneshwar took his scanner from its place of hiding and started to take some readings of the surroundings, he motioned Hamish to follow and they disappeared around the mountain of iron.


         “You think we'll find anything?” whispered Ferne 88.
         “Hopefully,” replied Silver Wolf, “Guess we know what happened to the Arcillion.”
         Silver Wolf and Ferne 88 waited in concealment for Gyaneshwar and Hamish to return; the minutes seemed to crawl into hours as the stayed motionless watching the occasional Pict patrols move by in the distance. As Silver Wolf gave thought to locating Gyaneshwar and Hamish they returned from wherever they had gone, considerably more weighed down than when they had left.

         “It's the Arcillion sir, I've got the computer core, and just about all the circuit boards that looked salvageable, they’ll be outdated but maybe Jenrick can do something with them,” reported Gyaneshwar
         “Okay, let's go.”
         Silver Wolf moved from his place of concealment and headed over to where Zarak was located. The scout moved silently from his position and started to lead them through the Pict territory and back to the encampment. Once again the patrols were a hindrance to their progress and both Hamish and Gyaneshwar were sweating visibly from the strain of carrying all the equipment they had salvaged. Silver Wolf was about to ask if he could take some of the burden but Hamish, anticipating the question, indicated that it would make too much noise and they should just continue on as quickly and quietly as they could.
         So they pressed on moving ever closer to the settlement, dodging Pict patrols as they appeared. Both Zarak and Ferne 88 were able to spot the patrols long before they were within earshot and things seemed to be going well, until the last patrol moved off and as Gyaneshwar and Hamish stood up, Hamish stubbed his foot on an outgrowing tree root and fell on top of Gyaneshwar. The resulting noise was enough to cause the Picts to stop and head in their direction, giving call for other patrols nearby.
Silver Wolf spat a curse and moved forward with Ferne 88 and Zarak at his side, Gyaneshwar and Hamish continued on towards the camp, already knowing they were only a hindrance in any combat at this moment in time. As the Picts drew nearer, they spotted the shape of the two heavily burdened men and turned to take aim at the easy targets. All too late they realized their mistake as Silver Wolf, Ferne 88 and Zarak were upon them. The swords of the three attackers whistled through the air and three of the foes fell dead, several limbs dropping beside their former owners.
         The remaining two Picts turned to meet their assailants and let loose with a cry of alarm that was answered from a not too distant patrol that was rushing to their aid. Ferne 88 sprang from her position, dropping her sword and drawing two daggers from her side even as she leaped, she spun in mid-air and each dagger found their mark as she cleanly sliced each throat from ear to ear sending blood fountaining forwards as she grabbed the hair and pulled the heads back ripping the wound open further. Zarak was suddenly sick at the casual brutality of the woman, who seemed non-plussed by the pools of blood she had so quickly created. She calmly cleaned her daggers upon the bodies of the fallen, picked up her sword and moved on, leaving Silver Wolf to drag the still vomiting Zarak along.

         The calls and shouts from the Picts grew to a shrill pitch as they found their fallen comrades and this in turn gave cry to further calls as suddenly the forest was full of Picts screaming and baying for blood.
         Silver Wolf and the now recovered Zarak caught up with Ferne 88 who was trying her best to help Gyaneshwar and Hamish with their over-burdened backpacks. Silver Wolf grabbed a pack from Hamish who continued on a bit quicker now, whilst Ferne 88 and Zarak took one of the shoulder straps each from the pack that Gyaneshwar was carrying and allowed the other big man to start recuperating his strength. They ran onwards ever conscious of the Picts upon their tail, and the sounds of their howling was definitely getting louder as they closed the gap upon their quarry. Just as Silver Wolf was about to drop the pack and fight, they broke through the clearing and could see the palisade in the distance. The wall was filled with faces as the people were preparing for what seemed like an assault upon their small settlement. The gates were thrust wide open to admit Silver Wolf and the others as the sounds in the forest ceased and a silence enveloped the area. It seemed as though Mother Nature herself was holding her breath waiting for the attack, and she did not have long to wait. Screams and shouts filled the air as more and more of the Picts seemed to be arriving at the edge of the forest, just out of sight, hiding in the trees as the light faded from the sky.

         Dahbian rushed to Silver Wolf and his son Zarak.
         “Son, are you injured, all this blood,” he motioned at the bloody mess that Zarak was covered in.
         “Not mine father, the girl makes quite a mess,” he said pointing at Ferne 88.
         “Dahbian, we are sorry that the Picts heard us, let me take control of the defences. I am well versed in the art of warfare.”
         Dahbian looked Silver Wolf up and down “I'm sure you are Silver Wolf, as you wish. Zarak give him what he needs.”
         Zarak looked at Silver Wolf waiting for his orders.
         “I want every able bodied man upon the parapets with all the crossbows you have, two children per man to load the crossbows. All the old men down here with the bows and arrows, some children to fill the buckets with water in case of fire and I want as many small jars and jugs as you can fill with oil from your cooking. Get sheets and old clothing torn into strips and light small fires along the ground next to the old men. Go!” Silver Wolf barked.

         Zarak moved off, shouting orders to several men and children in his passing who in turn ran to carry out the orders of Silver wolf.
The noise from the forest was almost deafening when the Picts finally emerged from the tree line to stand in view of the settlers. Silver Wolf managed to get a good look at the antagonists, small swarthy skinned individuals covered in tattoos and strange markings; dressed in bits of fur and rags, with short bows and short swords to accompany them. They were an ugly sight. The clearing was fast becoming full with them and Silver Wolf wondered just how many there may be when one of the villagers started gibbering in terror - certain of the fate that was advancing before them.

         “Have courage, our defences are strong and they have nothing to breach the gate, we shall win this day,” Silver Wolf bellowed.
Some few of the men turned to look at the giant frame of Silver Wolf, believing that if such a man could believe that it was true then maybe he was right.
         “Today, we provided medicine for your woman folk, and they shall have health renewed. Let not these foul Picts be their undoing, when your women return let them have a place to live, let them have a man to be proud of, a man who stood this day, and fought this day. Today I stand and fight and I bid you stand with me! Have courage, today we shall stand, today we shall fight, TODAY - WE SHALL BE VICTORIOUS!!”

         There was a great cheer from the defenders of the settlement and they stood a little taller on the parapet, with backs straight and grim determination upon their faces.
         “Och, nice little speech there laddie.”
         “It seemed to work, you like it?” Silver Wolf asked.
         Hamish brushed his nails upon his tunic as he said, “Well, it was a little rehearsed for me, but the local’s sure look pleased.”
         “Everyone’s a critic,” said Silver Wolf sarcastically.

         The host of Picts gave cry again as another Pict stepped forth from the trees, he was of the same build and stature as the other Picts, but wore an ornate headdress that seemed to symbolise him as the chieftain or shaman of the host. He called forth his warriors in a guttural tongue and screamed one word whilst pointing towards the parapet, “Akanaar!!!”
         As one, the Picts surged forth intent upon feasting on the inhabitants that stood so defiantly before them.

         Silver Wolf looked below to the old men waiting nervously as they fingered the strings of the bows they held.
         “Steady!” He commanded.
         The archers dipped their cloth bound arrows into the jars of oil at their feet.
         “Aim!”
         This time the archers lit the arrows from the fires at their side and aimed above the parapet.
         “Fire!”
         As one, the arrows were loosed from the bows to sail over the parapet in long graceful arcs of fiery death to land upon the host as they continued their advance.
         “Volley!”
         The archers continued to shoot in their own time, the crossbowmen atop the parapet let loose with a volley of black bolts near invisible in the fading light to pepper the ranks of the baying Picts advancing below them. The Picts went down in droves as both archers and crossbowmen continued to shoot in wave upon wave on death upon the host. And still they advanced...

         “Great Flyin' Scotsman - Giant Bear!” shouted Hamish.

         Silver Wolf directed his attention to the new threat emerging from the forest, a great bear of immense size, easily ten times the size of a normal bear and when it to stand upon hind legs, could touch the tops of the trees without stretching. The bear would be able to breach the parapet no problem; bringing it down would be difficult. Silver Wolf ran from the parapet to the group of archers below and grabbed a lit ‘cloth wrapped’ arrow and a jar of oil before heading back atop the parapet. The Bear had advanced considerable distance and was only twenty or so metres away from the encampment when Silver Wolf returned. He moved directly in front of the giant bear and bellowed a mighty challenge at the monstrous beast before him. The bear reacted by standing upon hind legs, towering above the parapet and roaring with all his might in response.
         “Aim for the mouth!” he ordered the nearest two crossbowmen; they aimed and fired, dropped crossbows at their feet for the huddling children to reload, picked up another crossbow and fired a second volley at the target. The bear scream in pain as the bolts pierced the soft flesh in the roof of his mouth; as he dropped to all fours, Silver Wolf jammed the arrow into the oil pot which lit immediately and threw it straight at the bears face. The pot flew to its destination, undamaged by the arrows and bolts still being fired at the Picts below, and smashed upon the bears face spilling into the very mouth that had been the subject of the crossbowmen’s attentions moments ago.
         The bear howled in pain as the oil continued to burn intensely both inside and outside of its great maw. The smell of singed fur and burned flesh filled the air, and the shaman who had the beast under some form of control seemed to be trying to desperately regain it as the monster careened around the clearing scattering the Picts in all directions, caring not who or what was in it's way as it sought to escape the intense pain still being inflicted upon it by the burning oil.
         The Shaman seemed to get some control of the beast, if even for a second as the bear turned towards the encampment; raising himself upon two legs once more he lumbered forward a few steps.
         Silver Wolf watched apprehensively as the bear moved forwards towards is target, not able to see as its eyes had started to melt from their very sockets into two great rivers of white goo, giving the bear the appearance of crying before it fell forwards impaling itself atop the parapet and smashing it to splinters, crushing men and children alike under its great dead frame.

         Silver Wolf was flung clear of the wreckage, but he lay dazed upon the ground as the Picts gave a great cheer, seeing that the palisade was breached. Gyaneshwar and Hamish were there beside their dazed Captain and Ferne 88 arrived a second later to help him to his feet as they met the onslaught of the Picts head on.
The archers continued to fire, whilst the remaining crossbowmen atop the ruins of the parapet continued to fire volley after volley of crossbow bolts at the advancing horde in some desperate measure of defence to stem the impossible tide.
         The four companions stepped forth towards the carcass of the giant bear just as the first of the Picts breached the perimeter; their swords sang death as they started to hack their enemies to pieces as more of the Picts continued to gain entry to the compound. Each of the three men had a unique technique which seemed to blend into one single unit of flashing steel as they dismembered and slew all who opposed them, meanwhile Ferne 88 returned to the archers to co-ordinate a more concerted defence.
         She called forth to her Captain to duck, and as he crouched like a hunting tiger beside the similarly positioned Gyaneshwar and Hamish, arrows whistled overhead to fell the front rank of Picts.
         Then they were on their feet, weapons swung with great powerful strokes as muscles, sinew and bone were separated from bodies long dead before they entered the encampment.
Again the order to duck came, and once more the three men crouched, grateful for the small respite this volley of arrows would provide. As the Picts fell once more, the three men threw themselves at the seeming relentless horde, blades covered in entrails and innards that once belonged to living beings. For a third time the call came, the three men ducked, breathing heavily from their exertions, the thud of the arrows was closer as the dead fell before them, closer and closer were the Picts advancing. Silver Wolf knew that soon they would no longer be able to hold the breach, and when this happened, the settlers were doomed to a fate they so desperately wanted to avoid. A second volley quickly followed the first, one arrow coming so close that the feathers of the shaft seemed to almost brush the long mane of hair upon Silver Wolfs head.
         The Picts were still pouring into the compound and try though he might, Silver Wolf aided by his companions were finding it an impossible task to hold them at bay. Those crossbowmen nearest the breach turned their weapons to bear and fired as fast as they could into the horde of Picts, the children at their feet trying desperately to keep a crossbow ready.
And still the Picts came on. With great cries and ululations, they stormed in and quickly mounted steps nearest the breach. Crossbows turned and fired but there were too many to stop.
         Dirty swords were swung; men and children alike were butchered where they were kneeling, some still reloading when the blades bit home. Screams of agony and torment could be heard all around the encampment as crossbowmen and archers rushed to the aid of their already dead friends and children.
         Silver Wolf cursed under his breath and indicated that Gyaneshwar should guard the bottom of the stairs. Scooping a discarded axe from one of the severed limbs at his feet, Gyaneshwar threw it at an on-coming Pict before rushing to guard the flight of steps that lead to the parapet. His sword became a blur as he hacked and slew all that came in his path, bodies and heads dropped to the ground in equal measure as he made a grisly trail. Picts advanced on him as they noticed the immediate danger to them and after one particular rush had been dealt with yet another wave surged forth.
         Arrows whistled into the ranks of the Picts and Gyaneshwar thanked Ferne 88 for the timely assistance with a nod of his head before cleaving into the horde once more.
         With his goal reached, Gyaneshwar was surrounded on all sides by Picts; many were still clambering up the stairs, unaware or unconcerned of his presence. His hands began to grab tattered loincloths and he threw Picts to their deaths upon the upraised swords of their comrades, fervently hoping that aid would arrive soon from the rest of the archers. A second volley gave respite as droves of arrows riddled the Picts in long wooden shafts of death.
Help arrived in the form of crossbowmen from the far side of the encampment, with the Picts concentrating on the breach, the far side was able to manage with reduced numbers freeing these defenders to help restore a boundary through which the Picts would hopefully not be able to penetrate again.
         Arrows were unleashed again with unerring accuracy, this time towards the parapet top, causing several Picts to topple either one way or the other from the ledge. Crossbows soon began to fire again.
         A pitched battle still raged at the foot of the stairs and at the breach where Silver Wolf and Gyaneshwar hold an impossible line aided by defenders in fights that were short, brutal and ugly.
         Scores of men and Picts were slaughtered at the hands of one another and it seemed that the focal point of the breach was aimed not at ransack, pillage and murder but at slaying the strangers who seemed to be the key to this defence.
         Hamish swung his sword with powerful strokes cleaving through flesh and sinews with equal measure to the curses he bellowed. Silver Wolf had fought with him many times and the curses that had once been a distraction seemed to keep him from losing his senses. Keeping the bloodlust at bay, the bloodlust that you could taste like a salty liquid iron trickling down your throat.
         Suddenly Ferne 88 was there, once again at his side; she flashed him a quick smile then seemed to pause for a split second before she spun upon the spot. Both of her long knives were held out creating a whirling tornado of death, she seemed to pick up more and more speed before disappearing in a small puff of smoke only to re-appear atop the body of the fallen great bear. Picts fell in their dozens, with limbs and blood flying in all directions; she became a spinning maelstrom of death as those blades cut through living tissue as easily as they cut through the air. The Picts were unable to pass Ferne 88 as she moved and danced between them, breaking bones and snapping necks with her feet whilst her knives continued their deadly work. Silver Wolf watched for a moment, allowing his vast lungs to suck in some much needed oxygen before he climbed to the top of the parapet ruins and scanned the throng below.
         The Shaman was still there, screaming his inarticulate cries of fury at being denied the victory he craved, but he had advanced and was within range of the crossbows. Silver Wolf snatched a loaded crossbow from one of the remaining defenders and fired at the shaman in one quick motion. The bolt flew true and the shaman fell, dead before his body hit the dirt. One of the Picts called forth and the battle froze, they looked to where their leader had fallen and gave forth a cry of dismay; Gyaneshwar called for the archers to loose the fire arrows again, and as the first volley was shot, arcing high in the air before falling like deadly rain in the press of bodies, the Picts resolve broke and they fled back to the darkness of the forest almost as quickly as they had arrived.
         A great cheer went up from the defenders, knowing that they had survived by far the worst attack they had encountered and that they were safe.

         Silver Wolf and the companions were taking a much needed rest, with Hamish and Gyaneshwar joking with one another, “Look at the state of me,” exclaimed Hamish, “I look like you in your best clothes!”
         Gyaneshwar let loose with a mighty laugh when Auvala approached carrying a jug of water. She moved with a limp in her right leg and the fingers upon her right hand were bleeding from where the skin was torn and still hanging raw to the touch.
         She handed the jug to Silver Wolf and sat next to him. After a long drink, Silver Wolf handed the jug to Hamish before speaking to her, “Thanks. What happened to you?”
         “I knew I would be more hindrance than help in the fight, so I set myself to carrying water to the men and dragging the wounded from the battle. I was atop the parapet carrying crossbow bolts to the troops when I heard a loud howl; I looked up to see the huge beast...”
She motioned to the carcass of the bear that was still smouldering a few hundred yards away.
“I almost ran in fright, but I looked down at my feet and saw a small child trying desperately to load a crossbow. She looked up at me with a smile and said 'It's alright; you can play with the toys too.' I steeled myself and continued on down the line giving bolts to those who needed them. Suddenly there was a loud crash and I was thrown to the ground below, when I looked back the girl was not there, nor was the parapet or the other children that were with her. Just that big...thing.”
         She said the last with obvious disdain and spat in the direction of the monster. As the jug was passed round, all of the companions were listening to the cook tell her tale.
         “I picked up one of the spare bows and started to fire every arrow I could find. The bowstring kept slipping from my fingers and I couldn't seem to fire more that a few feet in from of me. I kept trying and managed to fire at the creature. I hit one of those little men. I fired again and again until I ran out of arrows, then I moved towards the old men who were still firing. I started to fire their arrows, as fast as I could, one for every child. I never even knew her name you know, that girl who...”
         She broke off as a sob escaped her lips. Ferne 88 moved near her and put an arm around her shoulders. “My fingers started to hurt,” Auvala continued, “but I kept firing, firing at those little men responsible for her death, that little nameless girl. Firing until they too were dead, dead! All dead just like her, with their filthy little rags and their dirty skin. Dead like the child that now has no life to live.”
         Ferne 88 looked imploringly at Silver Wolf, then at Gyaneshwar and Hamish.
         “Dead, I killed them for her,” Auvala looked at Silver Wolf, “Don't you see, I did it for her; I killed them!” She hitched her knees up to her chest and began rocking back and forth whilst repeating the same phrase, “I killed them; I killed them.”
         Silver Wolf looked deep into Auvala’s eyes until she finally subsided. “You have avenged her Auvala. Tho' she walks the greys lands, she walks in peace.”
         “Aye right enough lassie, ya did grand,” said Hamish with a strange softness to his voice.
Gyaneshwar kissed Auvala lightly on the forehead, nodded once to her and then injected the contents of a needle into her neck. Auvala smiled and fell into a deep sleep.




         Several hours had passed and the sun was beginning to appear over the tops of the trees when the sensors alerted Beigid that something was approaching. He grabbed the nearest weapon; a twin shot blaster, took cover behind one of the chairs and aimed at the door.

         “Beigid are you inside?”
         “Captain Silver Wolf? I'm so glad you're back,” replied Beigid moving towards the door.
         “So am I Beigid. Can we return to the Wolfs Maw?”
         “Repairs were completed several hours ago, and I ...” Beigid stopped mid-sentence as he came in view of Silver Wolf. They were a bloody mess, literally. Entrails still clung to bits of armour and the blood was caked in most places a dark red stain over what had once been clean and new.
         “What? I mean how? Wha... I heard sounds of fighting far off; I didn't think it was... Where are the others? Are they...”
         “No. We're fine; they’re a few minutes behind, pushing the cart. Open the cargo door, and prepare for launch.”

         As the shuttle engines hummed, Gyaneshwar and Hamish started to push a cart laden with their plunderings from the wreckage of the Arcillion and piles upon piles of fruit, vegetables, two legs of Giant bear and a still sleeping Auvala into the shuttle, Ferne 88 arrived and reported that they were not being followed.
         “Gyaneshwar, take us home.”
         “Aye sir” the reply was weary.


         About thirty seconds after Allakor told me the shuttle was returning I was pacing back and forth on the gantry waiting for it to dock. The shuttle was damaged; I could see that before it even passed the force shield that separated the hanger from space. I was on the landing deck as the shuttle doors began to open, fully intent upon berating Silver Wolf for being away from Ship and out of comms for so long, when he stepped forth; a large blood stained mess, dripping bits of, I don't know what, upon the deck.

         “What the hell...” I started.
         “Save it Gringor. Briefing room - one hour, get the doctor to look at Auvala, and I want Jenrick to assemble a team to go through the stuff we recovered from the Arcillion and have his findings at that meeting.”

         I looked Silver Wolf and the rest of the team up and down, then wrinkled my nose with a not too subtle sniff.
         “Fine, TWO hours.”


         As I entered the briefing room accompanied with a fairly excited Jenrick; Silver Wolf and the rest of the away team were already present, although Auvala was still with Baiyush, our doctor.
         Silver Wolf looked up as we took our seats and without any pause, recalled all that had happened on the planet below. Now I can take most stories like the one just told to me as a bit of a tall tale, but I could well believe this one, as described to me. It was certainly a bit to take in, and it sure did explain those two enormous ‘legs’ that were carted off to the kitchens.

         “Gringor, your turn.”
         “Well Captain,” I said “The sensors are up to 90%, engines and shields are back to full and weapons are fully functional. The main computer is nearly 100%; all but the minor systems are working.”
         “Thank you Gringor, Jenrick what do you have for us?”

         Jenrick stood with the air of a man finally released from a long silence. “I looked over the various components and items that you returned with, some real finds; the computer core that you brought back held up surprisingly well, I managed to retrieve the Captains logs, this last one should be of particular interest.”
         Jenrick hit a button on below the main briefing console and nearly hopped in delight back to his seat.

         The display showed a fairly middle-aged man with short black hair and a well trimmed beard, he had the manner and bearing of a man of rank.
         “This is Captain Hade of the Arcillion; this will be my last entry into this log. It has been several weeks since my ship crashed onto this planet. I have no idea where or indeed when we are. Our sensors are still not functioning outside the ship and my crew are slowly being killed by raiding attacks from small swarthy skinned primitives. A man has come aboard who claims to be able to lead me and my crew to safety. We have managed to repair one of our shuttles and he has provided me with some co-ordinates of a nearby planet where we can receive help and medical attention. I have stored them on this log in the alpha-22 encryption sequence. Good luck to you if you find this recording.”

         Just as the man was about to leave the view screen, another man appeared in the background and then they both left the room. The screen went black at this point and Silver Wolf looked around the room.
         “Jenrick, decrypt those co-ordinates and get them to Allakor.”
         “Got them here Sir,” said Jenrick brandishing one of his many data pads.
         “Good work. Gringor, Jenrick carry on. The rest of you - chow time.”