"For what I plan to do, it's better I am in front. Once the spell is cast, attack with everything you've got. Show these foul beasts what fear is."

Breathing heavily, he began the spell. Those closest to him could swear they felt the air getting even hotter by the second. With a great cry, Jacen unleashed they spell. A wall of flame swept across the village burning anything that was still unharmed and singeing the clothing of the defenders as it washed over the enemy. As he fell to the ground exhausted, he saw the others follow after the wall, cutting down the trolls as they tried to put out the fire the was searing their flesh. Before Jacen blacked out, he felt someone grab him and begin to drag him away from the fighting.

Jim, Rini, and the remaining defenders charged forward violently, axe, sword, and the occasional crude spear cutting a path of destruction. Unfortunately, for every troll that was killed, two soldiers were killed. After about ten minutes of fighting and being whittled down to less than half a dozen men, Jim and Rini pulled back into the burning town.

"Damn. We're going to be overrun at this rate. Jim, go check on the progress of the evacuation. I'll do what I can to hold back their progress with so few men." Rini's face was a mask of pure determination, though inside he was beginning to lose hope.

What was obvious before had become blatantly so now. The Venurians would win this battle. Wistria would fall. Jim and Rini knew this as they looked at the corpses of their fallen comrades and at the army which stood largely north of the town still. The Venurians were sending in their cannon fodder, the trolls, to wipe out the town. In the grand scheme of things, Wistria was probably pointless to them. A tiny farming village out in the middle of vast plains and population rarely seeing five hundred including visitors with no useful infrastructure.

Jim split the remaining men with Rini as he left, riding at full speed on horseback south. With twenty men, Rini now faced hundreds of trolls pouring into the village from almost every direction. Roughly formed legions of trolls were marching east and west of Wistria, preparing the box formation that would trap any survivors inside. Looking back, Jim and his company had already exitted the village and were speeding down the sloped plains towards the villagers which could be faintly seen in the distance. They couldn't be more than a mile or two away, and they couldn't run like that forever.

Now was the time for Rini to decide. Live and run to the villagers, or die now fighting the advancing horde against impossible odds.

Rini scanned quickly, seeing troll after troll march forward mechanically. There were trolls on both sides of him, and upon seeing this, the last shimmer of hope fled from Rini. "Men, prepare to retreat hastily! We have no hope here."

Rini and the soldiers began running the best they could, stricken by exhaustion and fear, and headed south, towards Jim and the other refugees. He only prayed that the villagers would be safe.

Wistria was overrun. Buildings turned to ruin and property smashed or looted. The survivors of the very short battle had made their escape on horseback as the massive army settled behind them. The faint feeling of gratitude towards the Gods for their relatively easy retreat was washed away by the truth that they would be coming, they just didn't come at that moment.

Desperate times now called for desperate measures, and this was too true for the refugees of Gole and Wistria. A small minority of them had horses or oxen to carry them, slowed down by the hundreds of people forced to go on foot. Any belongings that could not be easily carried were discarded on the plains of Kenshuria that afternoon to make way for the fatigued villagers.

Some needed to rest, but Jim and Rini just could not let them. As much as it pained their hearts to look into a child's eyes and tell them they had to keep moving for a few more hours, it was for their own good. They would have a quick rest in the evening and then continue in the night to try and avoid the possibility of an early ambush.

Midgaard, as far as Jim and Rini had been told, is a fourteen day journey south of Gole Forest. They had already made good time today, but both wondered exactly how long some of the villagers would last under these conditions. Travelling at such speeds was not healthy, and the refugees did not employ many healers.

As Avelia's Beacon made its descent into nightly slumber, Jacen woke up amidst the survivors of the battle. Most were napping, others were just staring a hole into the dusk beyond. Salves and bandages had been applied to any injuries the defenders had sustained, unfortunately those with worse afflictions never left Wistria.

------------
Meanwhile, near Wistria

Raenor lay prone in the grass of the plains, crawling slowly to the peak of the slope. Everyone behind him could see the massive pillars of smoke, and it took several of them to collectively stop Elmric from performing a furious charge. The ranger looked over the top of the slope and saw the remains of Wistria in the distance. Fires were still visible even from his distance, but they seemed to be dying slowly.

The biggest point, or rather points, of interest were the thousands of Venurian troops that had set up camp around the village.

When Jacen awoke, he felt very sluggish and tired. Then he remembered the battle. Coming fully awake he looked around trolls but only saw the villagers. Guessing what may have happened, he started to rise. As a wave of nausea swept over him, he collapsed back down. Trying again, he managed to get up, fighting of another wave of disorientation. Seeing his staff on the ground he grabbed it and used it to prop himself up, never wondering how it got there. Moving among the people he stopped at the edge of the group, facing back the way they had come, pillars of smoke still visible even from this distance.

Raenor stole back to the party, which waited a few hundred feet away in a shallow bowl in the rolling plains, concealing them from unfriendly eyes. Elmric had been calmed by the collective efforts of Durin and Darren. Aieris stood a little ways up the hill, her keen elven senses searching for any danger. Aieris nearly jumped in surprise when Raenor stood about twenty feet from her. Keeping careful control of herself, she nevertheless allowed a tight smile. "Not bad for a human," she whispered when he drew near. "What did you see?"

"Wistria has been sacked and the Venurian horde is camped in the ruins," Raenor answered. "I must inform the rest of our companions."

Aieris nodded and resumed her watch. Raenor slipped past her position and approached the bulk of the group. "What did you see ranger?" Elmric asked, his voice tight with anger.

"Destruction," Raenor answered. "The land about Wistria has been despoiled, and the village itself is a charred battleground, currently occupied by several thousand Venurian beasts and their camp."

Elmric began to rise, but Durin put a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Ye'll have yer chance lad. Just not today."

"What then should we do?" Darren jumped into the conversation before Elmric could protest. "Our most obvious path is taken and blocked."

"On top of that, we have almost no supplies," Raenor frowned. "If we wish to reach Midgaard, I suppose we could circle east or west and try to skirt the enemy army. My only concern is that our food and water...what little we have, won't last that long."

"So we're stuck between a rock and a hard place without much food or water?" Darren asked.

Raenor smiled in spite of his worry. "Think of it as a challenge."

"We might as well take a chance and attempt the trek to Midgaard. If the Venurian horde keeps growing exponentially like it seems to since we left Gole, we're not going to stand a chance without Midgaard's help." Elmric said, his voice still a fountain of rage, but with a hint of reason sneaking in at the edges.

"If things get too bad off, I can try to contact Avelia again..perhaps I have been forgiven for my...sinful reactions back in the Temple."

Gorn smiled at Elmric. "It would seem the company that attacked Gole was not their true army. It would have been unwise to try and seize all of Kenshuria with a few hundred trolls. Those that attacked Gole separated from the greater army on their path of destruction."

"How do you know that?" Raenor asked.

"Know? I do not know. It is a guess, friend. But I must admit it would be a good one, if there is indeed another Venurian horde. Even this one may be a detachment of the larger pack." He paused as the eyes around him widened slightly. "Do not take my words so seriously. They may not be the truth, but we do not know enough about the Venurians or their country to make rash assumptions. Other than invasion of land, we do not know why they are here in the first place. We do not know why they have arrived without provocation."

"Aye. Elder, ye have been quite silent of late, what do ye think we should do?" Durin pointed out, scratching one quadrant of his beard.

"It would be wise to proceed to Midgaard. It will be the center of this war due to its size and location in Kenshuria. It will also be a likely target for the Venurian army. If they take Midgaard, our nation would be seriously crippled. There will be room for refugees there, and they will need warriors." He paused and looked thoughtfully at the ground for a moment, as if something intriguing were there. "The Lord of Midgaard is a very old friend of mine. Something of a mentor, too..." The elf trailed off as he started walking eastward, towards the blanket of night.

The group had followed Gorn's path with Aieris watching the path ahead and Raenor covering their tracks. For the most part, the group travelled in silence. The few conversations which began ended rather quickly, as though the words themselves formed some real and tangible danger to the small party making their way east across the Kenshurian plains.

The stars wheeled overhead and the moon climbed to its zenith, the strong light bathing the party and transforming the plains before around them into a glowing sea of liquid silver. At about this time, Gorn turned abruptly south. So the long trek continued, but in a new and more hopeful direction: south.

As the moon began it's slow descent towards the horizon, a gentle night breeze blew up, rippling through the grass and sending the tranquil sea into motion. Waves of silver ran along the plains, passing through the party and continuing on, only to be lost on the horizon. Even as Raenor scanned the unearthly surroundings for trolls and gargoyles, he felt at peace.

The waning moon paralleled the party's lagging steps. As the moon crept towards its bed in the west, Gorn called a halt. "As much ground as I would like to cover, it is necessary for us to rest. We will not stop long. By dawn we should be on our way. Get what sleep you can. Ranger, I would request your eyes for the first watch. The rest of you should bed down as quickly as possible. Aieris and Durin will be woken for the second watch, and Darren and Elmric for the third."

Within minutes the party had laid down to rest. Raenor had crouched in the grass, his bow loosely strung and angled across his knee. As he watched, he was vaguely aware that his side was beginning to ache ever so slightly. A few minutes into his watch, the elder walked over and joined him, kneeling down next to him and scanning the plains with his sharp elven eyes. "You have been watching our trail. Have you seen any signs of the enemy?"

Raenor shook his head. "We have passed unobserved Elder. Though I fear that our lead on our opponents will be slight, even with this stolen march." his gaze focused on the southern horizon. "It will be a long road to Midgaard."