The Zulani Empire: The New Chronicles of Elemental Magic Read Online Free PDF Page B

soldier was bringing back to her.
    The man bowed his head before he spoke. "My lady, they have refused your most generous offer," he said before being waved away. Dalia sighed; she had so hoped to avoid killing her fellow countrymen. The soldiers before her were not her real enemy, that title was reserved for the people of Corlan and Besemia.
    Never one to wallow to long in disappointment, she waved a hand towards her young commander. "Send in the archers. Target the defensive lines," she added. The man bowed his head, catching her gaze as he did. Dalia afforded a smile, as she once more recalled the hours she had spent with the man making passionate love. Their time since removing the bracelet was not as intense as it had been, but she still enjoyed his company none the less.
    A hundred bowmen lined up in four ranks, one behind the other. An order was shouted and a plethora of black feathered arrows went arcing skyward. Their target, just a few hundred yards away, was a group of defenders, probably no more than fifty strong. The town was clearly too large for the small number given the task of shielding it from attack. The man in charge of defence had clearly positioned his men well; splitting them up too try and block attack from any direction.
    The defenders raised their shields, as the arrows rained down above them. These were not the same as the longbows used by Corlan, and carried neither the range nor the potency of that weapon. Many of the arrows were simply deflected harmlessly away, but one or two did find gaps amongst the shield barriers. A couple of men cried out as the razor sharp steel-tipped shafts pierced the flesh of their bodies.
    The defenders were clearly not going to let Dalia and her soldiers have everything their own way, as a much smaller barrage of arrows was sent back towards her archers. Luckily, for her, and her men, the number of arrows fired at them was much less. Her archers who had moved forward to be in range found themselves open to the attack. Not having any infantry with them to deflect the shafts away, several found their mark.
    Dalia stamped her foot to the floor in her anger. She was stood here watching Darekian kill Darekian, and it was apparent another tactic was needed. "Call your archers back out of their range," she snapped at her commander. She had thought of a better way to demonstrate her power. Dalia realised it was not the number in her army that would make people fear her, but the powers she could wield.
    She stepped forward to the front of her ranks with her staff in hand. She looked for a suitable target that would show off her abilities, but still minimise the number of casualties. Along the road were two overturned wagons, with a handful of men taking shelter behind them. This she thought would make an ideal target. Without any further ado, she thrust her staff forward in the direction of the wagons. A large ball of fire emerged from the tip and flew through the air, before smashing down into her target. The wooden carts almost exploded as the fire struck them. Splinters of burning wood flew upward and back down to the ground. Those defenders unfortunate enough to be taking cover there were caught up in the fire and blast.
    Dalia took a few steps backwards, before resuming her position amongst her own men. She hoped she had shown the others just how powerful she was. Perhaps now the defenders would come over to her side without the loss of any further life.
    It was late afternoon before any sign of anything happening came to her notice. Her own men reported a few small skirmishes in the town, "I believe they are fighting each other My Lady," her young commander said letting her have his opinion on the matter. Silas her Orlac, grunted his agreement. Dalia cursed again, and was about to order all her men forward to take the town by force when another shout came.
    She moved to the front of her ranks, her commander and Orlac flanking her. Emerging from the town was a short