Limits

We walked towards the pond, where Ophilis and Aliris plants could be found. On our way, we met the angry Craftsmen Fraction Leader. He demanded my arrest, and insisted on me paying for my crimes. I summed my response in one simple sentence. "Self defence". He became even more angry, and even tried ordering Ulon around. This time Ulon replied, "Do you have evidence it was not self defence?". The guy replied, "There were witnesses!". I said, "Yea, but they are under you, and will do whatever you say. Do you have independent witnesses, not biased towards you?".

He stayed quiet for a while, then said "This is not the end Human, I will remember this". He left after that, while we resumed our walk towards the pond. I still had the tools necessary to acquire Serelis, therefore I didn't need any preparations. We dived into the water, where I showed Ulon how it was done. I extracted some Serelis, after which we returned to the surface.

"So that's how it's done? It's quite complicated. How did you come up with it?", Ulon asked. I replied "Well, I set up a pool outside of Apium, and tested everything I could. That is how I got the method. Either way, I will need quite a lot of Serelis for Sedon. We will wait another day or two. When I gather enough, I will leave". Ulon nodded, and said "I will try to get those tools done. This way, we can help you out a bit more. By the way, why do you need so much of it?".

I replied with a smile, "I believe this could help us counter Eterians. With a calm mind, we should be able to break through their illusions much better… At least in theory". Ulon exclaimed "That is a great idea! This means, we can use it here as well, just in case". I nodded while adding, "That is why I told you about it. Every Fraction Leaders has the strength to protect their home. Not only can you help with Eterians' illusions, you can also fight them with the use of Antal Shrooms. Keep that in mind".

Ulon nodded, and quickly headed to some other place. He needed to make the tools, while I had to extract Serelis. A few days passed, before I managed to extract appropriate amount of Serelis. The Leader of Craftsmen Fraction tried to make trouble for Ama and even me. But when he learned that Ama and the rest were protected by Warriors Fraction, he gave up.

'Everything is taken care of. We can leave now, and head back to Boltier first' I thought. I met up with the two Fraction Leaders, and told them I was ready to leave. The Warriors Leader assembled his warriors, and designated those who would follow me. Ulon also provided six farmers, who would take care of the herbs in Sedon. Ama was already there, therefore our group could leave.

It was quite a large group. The warriors alone numbered over a hundred. This was a force to be reckoned with. Most of the enemy camps I encountered, had maybe 50 people in them. As we left Apium, I told the warriors "We will make a stop in Boltier. We need to collect supplies for you guys, as well as Sedon. I hope they provide a lot this time". The warriors didn't have an issue with that, and agreed. After all, it was in their business to have supplies, no one would complain if we made a small stop.

I used a different path this time. Mostly because I wanted to encounter more enemy camps. I wanted to test out their skills, coordination and spirit. If they did well, I would have nothing to worry about. Besides that, I told Ama what to expect. She replied to me, "I don't have much experience with walls, but I will try my best. I'm only afraid that four of us, will not be enough". I said "About that. Shades will help you guys out. Not only it is their city, but they stick together and help out on their own. Just don't be under the impression that this will be easy… But I wouldn't choose you, if I knew you wouldn't handle it".

She laughed while replying, "I don't think you had much of a choice". I shook my head, then said "I could always kill those that oppose me, I can be ruthless too… You already witnessed that". She replied almost immediately, "I never liked that bastard. It might be wrong of me to think that way, but I was secretly happy when you did that". This just proved how oppressed she was. With no ability to talk back, or do anything against orders. She was like a slave, with the exception of her possessions and freedom of movement.

Before we reached Boltier, we encountered one enemy camp. It was rather decent size, I estimated that it had around 67 people. I could feel the warriors behind me getting ready. They were warriors after all, so I said "I will not interfere. You have the advantage in numbers, so take care of it. Let's see how well you've been trained". A few Atols nodded, and ordered their men.

There wasn't one leader for the whole group, like a general. The whole group had five such leaders. Each responsible for a separate group of people. They devised a strategy how to attack, and carried out an attack. This was a good sign, they didn't simply rush the enemy, even though their numbers were greater. 'If they simply rushed, the amount of damage they would sustain, would be greater. With a strategy, they can minimize that' I thought, and looked from afar. I had no intentions of stepping in, even if a few of them died. This was war, and people would die. They were warriors, and had to be prepared for that. Besides, I wouldn't always be there to save their asses.

The leaders decided on a rather simple strategy. Two units advanced in a straight line towards the enemy camp. While the other three approaches from both flanks. The purpose of sending others on a longer path, was to encircle the enemy. The two units going frontal attack, would be used as stalling tactics. 'I would send three units to hold the line, while two for the flanks, but we will see' I thought.

The enemy camp didn't simply stay there, and did nothing. Slethers came out with bows, and began shooting at the two units advancing. Because Atols didn't carry shields, they had no way of shielding themselves. Fortunately, they had armours. Otherwise they would be slaughtered. Although no Atols died yet, a considerable portion of them was injured. This didn't spell too well for them. 'Their problem is lack of shields, and lack of ranged weapons. Sedon has archers, but as a stand alone unit, they could perish against archers very easily' I thought.

It was something we would need to address back in Sedon. Fortunately, the amount of archer the enemy camp had, was not that big. Only 17 of the Slethers were archers, while the rest stood in front, waiting for the Atols to arrive. 'They are not stupid either. They only sent half of their people to the front, the rest is at the back, awaiting Atols' reinforcements' I thought. But, that could haunt them later. In this case, my strategy would be different. There were a few stronger Furians in that group, but as I promised, I wouldn't lift a finger.

Ama asked worried, "Will they be alright?". I replied while looking at the battlefield, "They will win, but how many soldiers they will lose, it's up to them really. I need to see their independent thinking, we can work something out from there". She asked "By couldn't you help them?". I replied seriously, "Ama, this is war. They are warriors. They are also aware that death may come at any time. They marched towards the enemy without hesitation. That alone is respect worthy, they should be proud to be such warriors. Remember, war doesn't forgive".

She didn't reply, but looked worried at the battlefield. The Slethers stopped shooting, when Atols got close. They changed their weapons to swords, and charged at them. This was a mistake, the backlines should've attacked. 'Obviously Furians don't want to endanger themselves first. Moreover, they are the ones commanding those troops. If the Atols remove Furians from the game, they will win without problems' I thought.

It seemed that the Atol Leaders noticed that as well. They charged at the enemy, with their longer range weapons. Spears were quite useful in such battles. They could attack their enemies sooner, and stay further away from immediate danger. Slethers didn't last long against Atols. They quickly perished, while Furians and Grondors attacked next. The other enemy unit was about to engage with Atols too. They wouldn't stand a chance though. They had to face three Atol units, while the frontlines had problems with only two.

'The enemies could've won this, or at least damage Atols much more. If they all attacked the two frontal units at once, they had a higher chance of destroying them. Now that the numbers came into play, they no longer have a chance' I thought. I had to learn about strategy from Irwin. Although I was no general, I knew the basic concepts of formations and different manoeuvres. 'Although I wouldn't be able to command a huge army, I could win this one with very little losses' I thought.

Atols had the advantage from the beginning, if used correctly, they would've disposed of enemy easily. 'So far only six Atols died. A few of them are injured, especially after those arrows hit them. Not bad, but could've been much worse if Furians played differently' I thought. The Atols cleared up the enemy camp, at which point we joined them.

I said "Not bad, but we will need to work on you guys. Don't get me wrong here. You have my respect for marching at your enemies without hesitation. But! You need to improve your strategy, as well as formations. For one, none of you carry shield. If the two units who engaged in frontal attack possessed shields, the damage you would suffer would be minimal. You also lack ranged weapons. If the enemies had double of triple amount of archers, the losses you would suffer would be devastating". The Atols looked at each other, but didn't comment back. They understood their weaknesses, and that was already a good outcome.

I continued, "Everyone who is injured, come over. I will treat your wounds, and we will move on. As for the enemy camp? Whatever you find is yours. This was your battle, and I will not take anything from it". I then turned towards the farmers, and said "You guys come over as well. I will show you how to treat wounds. This will be an opportunity for you too, an opportunity to become army medicians". They looked at each other, and quickly walked up to me.

I showed them how to treat simple wounds, apply bandages and so on. I explained which medicine and herbs to use, while treating patients. They seemed very interested in learning all that. After all, they were treated as simple farmers. If they could achieve more, why wouldn't they try. With the injured taken care of, and the camp looted, we resumed our march towards Boltier.