The darkness created after the setting sun gave Damon an edge; a shame this advantage was not shared by his allies, with the exception of the lunar moth dred, who rose with the night much like Damon.
His shadow perception was stronger at night thanks to the depth of the shadows and the limited light. It was different from the day since his perception worked best with shadows, and unfortunately, these hills didnât have many shadows.
He squeezed the Staff of carnage in his hand; this would only be useful if he used it right...
A shadow slid back beneath Damonâs feet as he watched the trail of smoke, mingled with the scent of burning spices, rise into the night.
It would take some time before their scent could be properly tracked.
His shadowâGhostâslid beside him. Technically, Ghost was a shadow of a shadow. A mouthful, really. It had been created by Matia, but after that action, she had become weak and unresponsive. So far, Damon couldnât summon her again for combat.
Which meantâfor nowâhe would make do with Ghost.
Still, that was fine. Ghost was an assassin-type. Stealthy. Lethal.
How else had he been able to sneak behind enemy lines and fire the arrow that started the flames?
A shame, reallyâno orc had died in the blast.
That only confirmed it. These ones were high-ranked. Strong enough to shrug off flames reinforced by rune magic.
Damon rode beside the makeshift train. It was meant to be a train, but there were no rails, and it certainly didnât move like one.
If anything, Damon was under pressure. Heavy pressure. The runes he had carved were what kept the machine hovering just slightly above the ground.
It looked like a steel wormârough, unpolished. Some parts were unfinished, others dragged wheels across the dirt.
The "head" was hitched to a team of horses whose hooves shook the earth with every step.
He glanced at the freakish thing, this steel serpent that shouldnât be moving. But credit where it was dueâAleph had turned his vague blueprint into something workable. That in itself was impressive.
He hadnât expected it to actually workâat least not this well.
Riding beside him, Unnoticed Singularity scanned the distant hills.
"Where are we going now?"
Damon nodded. A bad habit of hisânot explaining everything. Maybe it was the paranoid part of him.
He pointed toward the horizon.
"To the tallest hill."
Twilight, riding atop the moving train, overheard him and turned. His eyes widened.
The hill was massive. From here, it might as well have been a small mountain. Walking up would be exhausting on both body and mind. Grass covered the slope thickly, making it slippery and difficult.
He looked down at the hunk of metal he stood on.
"This thing wonât make it up there. Not fast enough."
Unnoticed Singularity agreed, nodding.
"Even if we do get there, the orcs could just follow. Going around the hill seems smarter."
Damonâs hair blew in the wind as his stag galloped beside the train. He didnât disagree.
"Thatâs true," he called over the noise. "But if we go around, we wonât make it in time. Itâll also be harder to defend and protect the civilians."
"Defend?" someone inside the train shouted. "You want us to defend?"
Damon nodded again, gripping the staff in his hand.
"The hill makes it harder to surround us. Gives us the high ground." His gaze turned sharp.
"And if enough of them gather in one placeâwe can wipe them out. That opens the door to the next phase of my plan."
Before they could press further, howls split the air. The beasts the orcs rodeâhyena-like thingsâwere closing in.
Damon narrowed his eyes.
His earlier effort hadnât bought them much time.
Worse still, the hills made terrible terrain for hiding a caravan. Staying at the base only left them exposed. But moving up meant being visible.
The train pushed up the first slope, offering a better view of the land beyond. Damon clicked his tongue as he spotted dark dots racing toward themâfast.
Mounted riders. Shadow perception confirmed it. Hunters.
"Move! Faster! Get this thing over that hill!"
Inside the train, the people scrambled. Wheels were turned harder, reins were whipped. Everything was pushed to its limit.
"Defend?" someone inside the train shouted.
"Turn, turn argh.."
The wheels screeched, churning grass and dirt. Damon rode alongside, issuing commands as best he could.
"Adventurers! Archers and magesâbattle stations!"
He pointed toward the incoming riders.
"Mounted units with me! The metalâs too fragileâwe canât let them reach the train!"
He pulled in closer. Inside the cab, Saint was helping Ilukras keep the train stable.
Damon leaned in through the window.
"Ilukras, itâs up to you. Get this thing to the top."
He turned to another figure nearby.
"Wimpyâgrab your magic guns and show me what youâve got."
They didnât hesitate. Ilukras seized the lever, and Wimpy vanished toward the rear, energy flaring.
Near a wooden panel, Aleph lay half-consciousâhaving built the entire train in just a few hours.
Damon pulled his stag back, listening to the orcsâ guttural screams in their native tongue.
"Catch them! Surround them all!"
"Kill the men. Leave the women and children."
"Theyâll make fine slaves!"
He yanked the reins. Part of him wonderedâagainâhow heâd ended up in this situation. But now wasnât the time for reflection. He had one job buy time.
The world remained dark. Dawn was still a ways off.
But Damon could already tell.
This was going to be a long night.
He dismissed the Staff of Carnage. It slipped back into the shadows.
From that same darkness, he drew two swordsâcold, quiet steel. The reins dropped from his hands, but the stag didnât stop.
It was a war-beast from the Moon Glades. It knew how to fight.
The growls of the approaching beasts grew louder. Hulking silhouettes appearedâmassive orcs on monstrous mounts.
Damonâs first thought?
"Theyâre big... good. Theyâll feed my shadows just fine."
The stag kicked out, slamming its hooves into the jaw of the nearest beast.
Arrows whistled through the air, passing Damon. One struck an orc in the neck.
The high-speed battle began.