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WITH THE COLLAPSE OF the golems, the Ochloroc inside the walls suddenly found themselves outnumbered. The defenders stopped yielding ground and the Ochloroc were pushed back wherever the Manhir gathered. One step at a time, the Ochloroc were driven back to the breaches in the walls. In the press against the wall, as many Ochloroc died by being crushed by their comrades in the push to flee the city as were struck down by the defenders of Gilgin.
The defenders streamed out after the Ochloroc soldiers. The troops outside the walls were taken completely by surprise. They were preparing to loot and burn Gilgin, not to have to fight for their lives. The flight of the Ochloroc out of Gilgin became a rout. Here and there throughout the countryside around Gilgin, pockets of Ochloroc gathered, trying to fight their way free. The defenders of Gilgin exterminated them one at a time. The fighting lasted the rest of the day, and by the time the sun neared the horizon, no Ochloroc remained alive within sight of the walls of Gilgin.
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THE NEXT DAY, AFTER a late breakfast, Finn and Elina sat on one of the upper terraces of the Inquisitional Palace. A watery sun shone down on the damaged city, and a breeze rippled the flags that flew over the gates. Groups of people were busy gathering the dead for burial and clearing the streets. Outside the city walls, their soldiers, his soldiers, were securing the Ochloroc camp. The enemy had left everything behind in their flight, and the city could use their supplies.
"Do you think they'll be back?" Elina asked.
Finn enjoyed the warmth of the autumn sun on his face, and took a moment before he answered. "I think we won a great and unexpected victory yesterday. I think the few returning Ochloroc will tell some amazing tales about their defeat here."
"That's not an answer to my question."
Finn sighed. He turned to Elina. "They'll be back. They'll need time to recover, but they will come."
"And then what?"
"Then we'll be ready for them. We know they're coming, and we've evened the odds."
They fell quiet. Finn enjoyed the peace, the first he'd experienced since finding Henge all those months ago in the quarry. A cloud drifted across the sun, and he pulled his cloak tight. Elina spoke up when the sun came out again. "What will you do next? Will you remain in Gilgin?"
Finn gave a slow nod. "Someone needs to steer the council in the right direction and make sure we're ready when the Ochloroc return. What about you? What are your plans?"
"I guess I'm heading back to Avros. Our struggle against the Inquisition is over, and there's plenty of work remaining there."
"You could stay. I could use a friendly voice on the council. Someone sensible who knows what's at stake."
"As long as you don't expect me to always agree with you."
Finn laughed. "I'm counting on that."
Here ends The Defender of Gilgin
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I HOPE YOU ENJOYED the read. While I’m hard at work on the next story I would love it if you left a review for this novel. Feedback from readers is why I write these stories and I would love to read yours.
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NEWSLETTER
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IF YOU WANT TO KEEP informed about upcoming works and get extra’s related to current works, you can subscribe to my newsletter on https://www.roderickdonatus.com/newsletter/. The current extra for The Defender of Gilgin is the short story Henge the Manhir, which formed the basis for this novel. Many elements in that story will be recognizable, but there are some big differences as well. For starters, in the short story Finn is a dwarf. On my website you can also find other extra’s related to my writing, news related to upcoming novels and a couple of short stories.