The Crown's Entrapment

Gideon held his breath as he led his army towards the neutral area between the borders of Cordon and Ebodia. Being tasked to track down both Helion's armies as well as both Calypso and Aurelia, their search had led them towards a rather particular direction.

Currently, they were standing on a hill overlooking a particular patch of the forest right in the middle of the two kingdoms. Looking out at the landscape, Gideon couldn't help but note the cloud of dust being thrown up in the middle of the trees.

"That's not natural, is it?" Gideon remarked towards one of his men standing beside him. He was one of his more experienced trackers, one that the lord had sent to task in finding where exactly this Helion detachment was currently running amok.

"It isn't, milord. Such a sight means that there's a significant amount of activity happening within that space," his tracker replied, his tone denoting one of anger and stress. "It means that there are enough people or creatures there to kick up a dust storm just from their footfalls."

"And just how many are we talking about here?"

Gideon held his tongue as he heard Freya enter the conversation. While he knew that the war needed all able-bodied men and women out in the field, he still couldn't help but feel apprehensive about a select few wanting to come and help the kingdom with this urgent issue.

Of course, he was specifically thinking about Freya somehow barging her way into joining him on this expedition.

"Judging by the size of the dust cloud, I'd say they're currently numbering in the upper hundreds… possibly lower thousands," the tracker frowned. "There's still a small chance that this can only be a spooked herd of animals, but I sincerely doubt that would be the case."

"And taking into account our own numbers, I don't suppose we can take them, can we?" Freya asked. "Assuming that they're not animals, of course."

"No, we can't," Gideon sighed, his concerns growing ever so higher the more he assessed the situation. "We only number in around nine hundred strong right now. I'm not confident in running us against the odds."

While Cordon's armies had been larger when they first set off, Gideon had decided to split his army in two in an attempt to ease the search. They were racing against time, and the added effort into searching for the two would be worth their reduced marching size.

"Still, at least we have our most probable location right in front of us," Gideon sighed. "Is there any word coming from our westward contingent?"

"None so far," his tracker replied. "They've done a full sweep of the area west of us, and they're currently on their way to search further west."

"Call them off," Gideon ordered. "Have them meet us here. We might need them soon enough."

The tracker nodded, and Gideon could only frown in deep thought as he kept his sights on the forest. While there could be a chance that this dust cloud was nothing more than a false alarm, he had an inkling suspicion that they've already found what they were looking for.

"So you're sure that they're here then?" Freya asked, scooting herself closer beside him. "Aurelia and Calypso are here?"

"I sure hope they would be," Gideon narrowed his eyes. "If not, then we'll just have to continue our sweep east."

That was the plan, after all. Splitting the army in two, the westward contingent would start searching along the border going west, while his eastward contingent would search the border going east, making for a faster and more efficient method as opposed to hoping that they'd find what they were looking for as one massive army.

Still, the risk that splitting their mighty army had given them made his fears flare up again, his gaze turning to Freya as he clicked his tongue.

"You really shouldn't be here, you know," Gideon casually remarked to his mate. "I can understand that you've trained how to fight, but this isn't the place where you can wet your blade."

"So if not here, then where exactly would it be then?" Freya answered back. "Right when the enemy is at our doorstep? By then, it would already be too late, don't you think?"

Gideon sighed once more. Unfortunately for him, she was right. It would be better for her to gain battle experience here in an offensive operation rather than for her to gain it in a defensive fight for survival. That way, she still had a modicum of security in the form of still having the option of retreating if things got too bad.

"I concede to your point," Gideon chuckled in resignation. "Still, this might be dangerous even for our veterans. Stick close to me, alright?"

"Of course. I know that much," Freya scoffed. "Don't worry too much about me. Focus on leading the army, alright? I'll be with you every step of the way."

Gideon smiled. "Thank you."

Taking a deep breath, Gideon gave the forest one last look before turning around to address the legions under his command. Taking a quick glance at them, he then shouted, "Alright, men! We have a strong suspicion that the enemy is currently rampaging through the nearby forest! Since we don't have the numbers to take them head on at the moment, we'll be engaging in guerilla warfare while we wait for the westward contingent to return to us! Is that clear?!"

"Yes, sire!"

As one, the army barked out their response. Nodding, Gideon turned to Freya, gesturing for her to follow him as he got on their shared wolf. Letting her ride in front of him, he wrapped his arms around her before spurring his wolf forward.

"I really hope that they're here," Freya mumbled.

"I hope so too," Gideon murmured into her ear. "Even if we have to fight, we'll get Calypso and Aurelia out of there."

With the army sprinting through the grassy plains leading up to the forest, Gideon couldn't help but feel apprehensive about this approach. He had instructed his men to keep their distance, skirting around the forest in an attempt to minimize clashes, but he had a feeling that it wouldn't be enough. That they would still somehow get into a battle that they couldn't afford.