Chapter 101 Leadership
On the second floor.
Captain Pedro had also prepared a trap. The knights and soldiers had advanced almost to the tower. The royal guards blocked the wide corridor with a wall of shields and a formidable array of spears and swords.
Pedro: Quick! Quick!
The line of royal guards quickly retreated. This created a space between the two sides. The knights advanced to enter the tower.
Pedro: Throw! Throw!
From the corners, stairwells, and service corridors, the militia emerged. They hurled small clay containers at the forces of Valero.
When the helmets and steel armor were struck, they shattered. Boiling oil was poured over the men. Men wielding spears stabbed the soldiers in the sides.
Pedro: Charge!
A phalanx of guards advanced, stabbing at the screaming men. The soldiers of Count Valero suffered heavy losses and retreated to their former positions.
On the first floor.
Antonio and Monika went down the stairs to the main hallway. She pointed to a nearby door; he opened it and helped her go inside. The page ran to warn the count of the attack upstairs.
Antonio: Count! There is an attack on an upper floor of the tower.
Esteban: The queen?
Antonio: She is running up to the stone nest. The riders informed her of the attack and that she needed to escape with the Pegasi.
Esteban: What? Is the queen not safe?
Antonio: No. The royal chambers are in danger.
The man understood what happens when a commander abandons his troops.
Esteban: Find Pedro upstairs. Tell him to protect the queen if possible, or to help her escape if it is not.
Antonio ran up the stairs.
The door at the end of the east wing.
Peador observed the torches approaching from three directions. He knew that each torch represented twenty or more armed men. In a few minutes, the two hundred and fifty soldiers under his command would be surrounded by at least a thousand men.
Peador looked at a young page: Boy, do you know who Count Esteban is?
Arturo looked at him: Yes, My Lord.
Peador: Find him and tell him this exactly. The door is broken.
The young man ran down the long corridor. The women had called him a good boy. He wanted to help them. He wanted to do something important.
In the royal stables.
The war Unicorns wore saddles with four spears and a massive sword. The knights wore chainmail and leather armor. They were armed with swords, axes, maces, and daggers. The squires wore leather armor and carried short swords and maces.
The knight of banners stood in front of his commanders.
Rodrigo: Captain Eduardo, take one hundred squires and your company. Seize the stables. Prepare all the horses, all the carriages and the wagons. Captain Jimeno, take your company and the remaining squires. Capture the gate of hunters. Keep the path clear for a possible escape with the queen.
The two men left with many Unicorns and squires.
The young captain looked at his remaining captains: The queen is in the tower or in the east wing. We need to push the soldiers back to the west and create a clear area for her and her forces. After that, we will follow her orders.
Four young captains looked at him with determined eyes: Queen Olivia.
Captain Rodrigo, with his heart full of pride: Queen Olivia.
On the stairs of the tower.
Danilo entered the small hallway to go down the next staircase. The rider Chara unsheathed her dagger and pointed it at him. He stepped back, revealing his face in the dim light.
Chara: Priest! Forgive me!
Danilo: There is an attack coming from the roof. The queen...
Olivia: High Priest, I need your Pegasi. We need to escape through the nest.
The man looked at the collection of faces. His oath was to protect and serve the queen.
Danilo: If we go to the nest and no Pegasus accepts the queen, we will be trapped.
Olivia: The rider is now having visions like Clemente. If she believes the nest is a place where I can escape, I trust her.
Danilo: Very well, my queen. Chara, lead the way. The queen and the duke will follow you. Volker and I will stay a flight of stairs behind you. If we encounter any soldiers, we will fight to delay them.
Wulfhelm: No, my oath to the queen obliges me to defend her. I will fight alongside them with my sword.
Olivia looked at the handsome face and nodded slowly. A group of four women hurried up the stairs, while a duke, a priest, and a rider guarded their escape.
In the main hallway in front of the royal chambers.
Antonio stopped in front of the captain of the royal guards. The man turned around and looked at him with one sword pointing at his face and the other in the opposite direction.
Antonio: By order of the Count of Arms. Protect the queen or her escape, whichever is possible.
Pedro watched the fighting in the tower and in the corridors. No one was free from the battle. His mind quickly analyzed the options.
Pedro: There are two militia boys blocking that door. Bring them to the stairs between the second and third floors.
Antonio: Yes, Captain!
The page ran towards the door, and the captain hurried towards the stairs and the prayer room.
The prayer room.
Victorino slid his sword across the exposed throat of Raul. Mateo fell to the ground with five wounds from swords and axes. The knight looked at seven of his men, dead or dying. The others were finally entering the hall. Killing cowards was easy. But the son of a hero of the kingdom was disturbed by having to kill two brave men.
Victorino: Men, our objective is close. Three men, run to the bell. Ring it three times quickly, count five, and then ring it three more times. Count to ten and repeat. This signal of surrender will confuse the guards.
Three young knights began to ascend the stairs. The others followed their leader down the stairs to the royal chambers.
The second floor.
Pedro was standing at the door that led to the main hallway. His queen was running up the stairs. Many knights in sturdy armor and well-armed stood between him and her. Behind him were three boys with spears and a sword.
Pedro pointed to Marco and Yegor: You, to my right. You, to my left. When a man passes through the entrance, stab him in the side with your spears.
The two young men leaned their shoulders against the wall and prepared their spears to deliver powerful thrusts.
Pedro: Antonio, to my right. My right side is a little slower. If a man raises his arm to attack me, step forward and use your legs to thrust your sword into his armpit. The armor is weak in that area.
Antonio: Yes, Captain.
The sounds of the knights were getting closer. Captain Handsome crossed his swords in front of him.
Pedro shouted loudly: Men, the enemies cannot break through here. The queen cannot escape through the grand staircase. She needs an open door to flee.