Matáo had just returned from Flatfish Bay. He was tired, but he knew that time was running out. Master Kranthem informed him that the next one of the prison camps lay half a day's march from a Sentinel Tree. Matáo decided to attack this one at night because it was so close to the tree. This time he brought Sam Twiggy, Thom and Master Kranthem only.

  Thom had already scouted it while they were in Flatfish Bay. This encampment was much smaller. There were only a total of a dozen guards and the smiths were forced to work night and day. Thom reported that there were only about five hundred smiths imprisoned there that he could see. There were others located in a mine that he was unable to investigate. The name of the town was Iron Forge.

  It was bigger than Echo and located near a small mountain that was rich with iron ore. There were fifty forges that worked night and day. Matáo suspected that it may have been one of the first towns that was taken by Claremont and his forces. This prison had three watch towers and it was surrounded by a pike wall like Flatfish Bay. It had a gate that led to the mines in the mountain and another that opened to the king's road.

  Thom also noted that the gate to the mine was never closed because ore was constantly being brought in day and night. The main gate leading to the road opened twice a day. A fully loaded wagon left every morning and returned empty before nightfall. Matáo's plan for this attack was to enter with the empty wagon.

  They emerged from the tree and made their way to a spot that Thom had found to ambush the wagon on its return trip. They hoped that they were not late, but after about a half an hour, the wagon came into view. It was empty except for the driver and one other man with a bow. Twiggy shot an arrow at the bowman sitting next to the driver, killing him, while Sam shot the driver in the leg.

  Matáo leapt from a tree and grabbed the reins and pulled the wagon to a stop. He questioned the driver before tying him up. He learned that since the loss of Oaken Meadow, everything was being delivered to a storehouse near a dwarven settlement in the Crescent Mountains where it is traded at the market.

  The other two climbed in the back as Matáo drove the wagon forward. Before sunset they arrived at the gate. It opened when they neared it. Twiggy shot the guard before he sounded an alarm. The group shot every guard they saw as the wagon made its way through the town. The horses had made this trip countless times and Matáo let them lead the way.

  The wagon came to a stop beside one of the forges. Matáo urged the smiths to take up their weapons and turn on the guards. There were only four remaining in the camp, but the smiths informed Matáo that there were another twenty at the mines. He and Sam crept through the town and eliminated the remaining guards.

  Matáo told the smiths about their rescue of the first camp and they agreed to help so they could see their families again. A fresh load of ore arrived and Twiggy took out the driver who was wearing crimson clothing. Matáo and the others, along with nearly fifty smiths carrying hammers and newly forged swords, made their way to the mines.

  Matáo spotted a guard on a nearby cliff. Sam shot him and he fell to the ground below. The sound that it made caused another guard to investigate. Twiggy shot him as well. The road leading to the mines was windy and had sides like a canyon. Matáo would stop and peek around every corner that they came to before continuing forward.

  There were four guards near the entrance to the mines. Matáo and the others charged the guards and slew them before they could draw their swords. One of the smiths told Matáo of an inner chamber in the mine that the Lieutenant used as his quarters. They made their way inward, killing any guard that opposed them before barging into the Lieutenant's chambers.

  He was sitting behind a desk eating from an entire chicken that was on a plate in front of him. Matáo walked over to the desk and raised his sword to the man's neck. He turned to the others and said, "Clear out the rest of the mines. Bring everyone to the town. I have questions for this one." The others left the room and made their way deeper into the mines.

  Matáo closed the door behind him and bolted it shut. "How many prisoners do you have here?" The man was shaking as he silently stared at Matáo. Matáo raised his voice louder and asked him again. The man dropped a piece of chicken that was in his hands and raised them up to cover his face.

  "Five or six hundred. I'm not sure. Many have died in the mines," said the lieutenant. "Are there women and children here?" asked Matáo. The man's voice was shaky as if being uncertain when he replied, "Yes." "Where are they!" shouted Matáo, before slamming his fist onto the table. The man cowarded further away from Matáo's wrath and shyly said, "In the mines."

  Matáo calmed himself and then helped himself to a chicken leg from the plate in front of the man. As he ate it he said, "I don't like what is going on here. I will give you one chance to save your life." "What is it?" asked the man eagerly. "If you tell me that you do not know, or if you lie to me, I will kill you. But," said Matáo as he reached for another piece of the man's dinner, “if you tell me what I want to know, I will spare your life.”

  "Ask me anything," pleaded the man who was now on his knees begging. "Where is Claremont keeping the rest of the prisoners that he took from their homes?" The man crawled on his knees toward Matáo and said, "Up north. At a place called Flatfish." Matáo slapped the man and asked, "What of the other location?"

  The man backed up on his knees and covered the place he was struck. "I do not know where it is," said the man. Matáo placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. The man raised his hands towards Matáo and said, "All I know is that it has a peculiar name. It is a small hovel that no one has ever heard of." Matáo began unsheathing his sword and said, "Give me a name."

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  The man bowed his head and began to cry. "You won't find it. It's not on a map anywhere." Matáo raised his sword as the man cowarded at his feet. "The name," shouted Matáo. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you," pleaded the man. Matáo brought the sword downward, but stopped, and froze when he heard the familiar name.

  The man looked up to see Matáo's half lowered arm holding the sword in his hand. "What did you say?" asked Matáo. The man scrambled backwards towards the desk. Matáo lowered his sword and placed it on the man's throat and slowly began to press it. "What did you say?" asked Matáo, louder this time. The man was breathing hard, but he managed to say, "Echo!"

  *****

  The king was saddened by the loss of his son. This war against Jemot that is led by former Captain Sebastian Claremont has cost him two of his four sons. Ryan, his youngest, was at the Sanctum and away from harm, and Níkōlì, the eldest, was safe behind the walls of the palace. His two daughters and his wife were there as well.

  King Arlos was locked away in his throne room with Prince Níkōlì, Protector Thomas Bridgewater, Lieutenant Commander Jameson Truwood, and General Jeremiah Truheart discussing the forthcoming battle at the city walls. "Captain Claremont is a traitor to the crown, and before this war is over, he will hang from the highest tower of the palace," said King Arlos.

  "He is a disgrace to the kingdom and her people. He has caused countless atrocities upon the people in the name of another would-be king named Jemot. Our men have fought valiantly against overwhelming forces and the enemy forces are dwindling. It was estimated that they began with nearly fifteen thousand men, but at last report, our forces have captured nearly five thousand of those men," continued the king, filled with pride.

  "General Truheart," the king began to ask, "How trustworthy is your friend Matáo?" "I would stake my life and the life of my wife on whatever he says or does," replied Jeremiah. "That is good. It has come to my attention that while you were away, my son K?dú was killed in battle against these Luna Stala. As you all know, K?dú led a significant number of our men."

  The king paused to hide his emotions before saying pridefully, "Your friend Matáo aroused my son's men and led them to capture many enemy men. He also took two of the enemy lieutenants captive and discovered the location of two encampments that Claremont is using to hold his war hostages. He has already freed both of the camps from the brutish savagery that plagued them."

  A feeling of happiness swelled in his chest and a smile came to his lips as the king continued, "I received another report from Master Kranthem this morning that after his last encounter of freeing the smiths that were being held in a place called Iron Forge, he discovered the location of the final camp that is controlled by Claremont's men and is currently on his way to rescue them."

  The king looked at Jeremiah and asked him another question. "We are told that this camp has nearly five hundred guards keeping watch over nearly ten-thousand prisoners, mostly women and children. Matáo has nearly that many men at his command. Do you think that he can succeed, or should we try and send aid?" Jeremiah thought about the king's question and about the first time that he met Matáo in the sparring ring at the Sanctum. He thought about the planning sessions that he had been a part of and the suggestions that he had given.

  He looked at the king and asked, "What is the terrain like?" "The place is surrounded by cliffs and cut off by a lake," replied the king. "What is the name of the town in which you speak?" asked Jeremiah. The king's answer was drawn out as he rifled through the reports looking for the name, "It's a small hovel in the northern part of the kingdom. Truthfully I wasn't even aware of it until recently."

  Jeremiah waited patiently for the king to find the page he was looking for, "Ah. Here it is," said the king as he lifted a parchment from a stack of many. "Well," asked several men who were in attendance. "Echo. That doesn't seem right," said the king without confidence. The king looked puzzled as he searched through the papers again. Jeremiah smiled and said, "No. That is right."

  Jeremiah stood in front of the king and others before him and said with as much confidence that he had in him, "If the final camp is in Echo, then Matáo could take it with less than half the men that he has. There is no need to send anyone else." The king turned to Jeremiah and asked, "What makes you think that he can win with half the men he has?"

  Jeremiah had a proud smile on his face when he told the king, "He was born there. The people there looked after he and his siblings when they were orphaned. The people there are more than friends to him and he will give anything to rescue them. I have sparred against him and between you and me, they don't stand a chance in hell if his family is at stake."

  Jeremiah set back down and the planning session continued. Reports were given regarding their own war prisoners that were being held at Oaken Meadow and other such normalities before they moved on to discuss the battle preparations that have been made to the city walls. After Bridgewater finished explaining the fortifications that had been made, the group began discussing their forces.

  It was estimated that in all the skirmishes, they had lost nearly a third of their men, but had either killed or captured twice as many as they had lost. With Matáo leading five hundred of the men elsewhere, and Prince Erík losing nearly fifteen -hundred men in his battle at the crossroads, their forces had taken heavy losses, but they remained hopeful that they could win.

  On the morning of the day before the solstice was to happen, several scouts returned with the news of the enemy approach. By mid-day the enemy soldiers had surrendered the city walls on the northern face. The city itself was protected on the south by the sea and the eastern side by the Quoe river. The enemy army spread out along the wall far enough away that the archers' arrows could not reach them.

  By nightfall, the two remaining catapults had been placed on each side of the road that led to the city gates, with Claremont's command tent being placed directly behind them. The men in crimson armor began gathering large stones, logs, and whatever they could fit into the catapults. At sunset they began launching everything at the walls. The walls had been reinforced with a magical barrier to protect them from taking much damage, but no one knew for how long the magic would hold.