Story: Matthew and the Dragons (Part XXVIII)

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Part XXVIII

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The sudden attack of a greater dragon almost caused the soldiers inside the fort to panic. Fortunately, the fort commander is an astute man and calmly ordered everyone to take arms.

Very soon everyone at fort saw dozens of large shadows in the sky.

"Wyverns!" Exclaimed a soldier.

"The lesser dragons are attacking too!" Said another.

"Ballistas!" Ordered the commanders, "Loose!"

As soon as the orders are let out the soldiers manning the ballistas let loose of the levers, and large projectiles rained on the lesser dragons!

But the commander didn't stop there, and ordered the archers to release their arrows,"Archers! Loose!"

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

 

The number of arrows and bolts released are so great that it blotches the sky! Most arrows and bolts hit their marks but some did not. Nonetheless, they numbers more than make up for it, and the enemies suffered great casualties before they could even reach the fort!

The shadow dragon saw this and was shocked at the power and accuracy of these weapons. Unbeknownst to him, Matthew had redesigned the bows and crossbows used by the archers. This is the reason it's so powerful.

But the shadow dragon is a greater dragon at the end of the day and he quickly roar and gave orders.

ROOOAAR!!!

 

The lesser dragons and wyverns hear the roar and quickly separated from their groups, making the projectiles less effective.

The fort commander saw this and frown, but no panic can be seen in his face. Firstly, he knows that arrows and bolts are enough to take down the dragons. Still, he was surprised and pleased at their effectiveness. He'd heard the soldiers and officials praise these weapons before but only manages to see their deadly effectiveness in this battle.

Meanwhile, duke Bernard's troops are watching the battle with grim expression. As season soldiers, they can easily see that the dragons are in a disadvantageous position. If they are the ones facing the rain of arrows and bolts, they would've been routed if not wiped out!

"This fort is just one of several forts that we must pass before we could attack the king's city yet they're already this formidable?" An official exclaimed.

The general frown at this but he too felt helpless. The kingdom is definitely well prepare, and had employ contless contengencies. Not even assassination worked!

"General, why is the shadow dragon just watching? If he attacked he could change the whole situation!" An official asked.

"It's not that simple! Don't forget about the new weapons," said the general! "He's very weary, especially after seeing the effectiveness of those projectiles."

"But you're right, the stalemate cannot remain," he added.

The general then gave the order to march. He put the heavy armored knight at the front to fend off the attacks from the soldiers and archers—putting them in small groups. He then ordered them to keep large distance from one another to reduce the effectiveness of the enemies long range weaponries.

To assist them further, he uses ballistas and catapults to occupy the enemies attentions. Seeing the general's setup, the shadow dragon shows approaval in his eyes.

"These humans have there uses too!" He thought.

He then become more alert and waited for the opportune time to strike!

The fort commander saw the change on the battlefield and knew that the shadow dragon is about to strike!

He ordered his assistant to relay his commands. The time to use the new weapon is nigh!

To be continued...

Previous Chapters:

• Part I
• Part II
• Part III
• Part IV
• Part V
• Part VI
• Part VII
• Part VIII
• Part IX
• Part X
• Part XI
• Part XII
• Part XIII
• Part XIV
• Part XV
• Part XVI
• Part XVII
• Part XVIII
• Part XIX
• Part XX
• Part XXI
• Part XXII
• Part XXIII
• Part XXIV
• Part XXV
• Part XXVI
• Part XXVII