Beau glanced at the sky.

Come on, come on, we can't let it get too light, else we are all undone.

In that moment came Ruar's signal: Ta-rah, ta-rah, ta-rah, ta-rah…

And in the shadow-wrapped vale, the stone behind the enemy came to life and silently crept down the slope and toward the unaware foe.

Ta-rah, ta-rah, ta-rah…

His back to the rise of the mountain, Tipperton lowered his stone-grey blanket and peered through the dawning dark, then stood and started forward along with the others, creeping down toward the wagons of the Horde, while in the vale, with horns ablare, Daelsmen and Baeron and Elves thundered back and forth and called out challenges and held the eye of the foe.

Now the Dwarves quickened the pace and Tipperton ran silently with them.

The moment the battle begins is the moment all goes Rrraaawww!

A bellowing roar wrauled out above the thunder of hooves and blare of horns and shouts and jeers of foe and foe, as one of the hulking Trolls turned to see a stone-grey-blanketed Dwarven army with clay vessels on ropes awhirl and rushing down upon the wains at the unprotected rear of the Horde.

And at this thunderous howl a number of Ghuls looked behind and toward the mountain to see the onrushing foe, and they yowled and pointed and raised horns to lips and blew blasts, and spurred their Helsteeds into their own ranks, fighting to get through.

Among the Horde confusion reined, for wasn't the foe before them and not to the rear?

Again the Troll bellowed, and other of the great Ogrus turned to see the Dwarves. And the behemoths lunged through Rucks and Hloks and bashed them aside in their rush to head off the assault.

Yet there were nine hundred Chakka and only six of the massive Trolls.

Amid the assailing Dwarves, Tipperton ran down and hurled a clay pot to smash upon a wain, and a volatile yellowish liquid splashed outward. And he hurled another and then his last, each to crash upon the wain. And all up and down the line, Dwarves did the same. And as they did so, yet other Dwarves hurled hot clay vessels to crash upon the wains, smoldering firecoke shattering outward.

Ph-phoom! Fire bloomed upward as wain upon wain exploded in flames, lighting the vale a garish red.

And then the Trolls were among the Dwarves, their great war bars smashing to and fro even as the Chakka withdrew. But two of the Trolls came between the Dwarves and the distant side postern into the mineholt, and the scurrying retreat was cut off.

Dwarves fell back and formed into Troll-squads to attack the monstrous foe. And Tipperton loosed arrows at the Ogrus, only to see his shafts shatter against the stone-like hides.

Yet now the western flank of the Horde turned and, howling, hurled themselves at the Chakka, the segment of Rucks and Hloks and Ghuls on Helsteeds also to come between the Dwarves and their sanctuary and prevent their escape. And scimitar and tulwar and cudgel met axe and hammer and flail in a great clang of steel, howls and shouts and war cries bellowing forth.

With the roaring fires raging behind, those in the fore of the Horde could hear and see the fighting at the wains and with foe before them and foe behind many milled about in disarray, even as Ghuls on Helsteeds blew horns and yawled orders and Hloks flailed about with whips. Confused elements of the Horde turned and struggled toward the rear, while others behind attempted to reach the fore.

And then the Baeron on heavy horses slammed into the line, their maces and hammers and morning stars smashing and shattering, while Dylvana loosed arrows in among the foe, black-shafted arrows flying in return, shrieks and screams and roars and the clangor of metal filling the air.

With Loden in the lead and Brandt right after and belling the bugle, the Daelsmen thundered down the line to circle 'round and come to the aid of the Dwarves, to help them break past the Trolls to reach the mineholt side postern.

And even as they were smashed down, Dwarves hurled clay pots at Ogrus, the vessels to shatter on three of the stonelike hides and spew yellowish liquid out. Now a Dwarf with a firecoke vessel hurled his clay pot -Yaaaahhh…! -and that monster caught fire, and he whirled about like a living torch and shrieked in agony.

But there were no more fire-coke vessels, and so the other two Ogrus who had been drenched with the yellowish liquid were yet roaring and crunching their great war bars into the warriors of the Dwarven Troll-squads, and, along with the remaining three Ogrus and the Rucks and Hloks and Ghflls on Helsteeds, they extracted a dreadful toll on the desperate Chakka.

His arrows ineffective against the Trolls, Tipperton was driven aside, and he fled toward a burning wagon. Upon reaching his goal, he snatched out one of his red-fletched arrows-a signal arrow, a Rynna arrow-and set it to string and jabbed the head into the flames.

Fsss- the scarlet collar caught fire, and he turned and loosed-ssss…-a long crimson streak to flash through the air and fade behind as the arrow flew -to strike the foe -a Troll Ph-phoom! flames to explode on the monster.

And atop the hill at the hospital wain, as the burning arrow scored a crimson line through the gloom, Beau cried out, "Oh Lor', that was Tipperton's arrow. He shouldn't be there. It's all gone wrong!" and he leapt from the wain and hurled himself onto the back of his pony and spurred downslope, Melor calling out, "Wait, Beau!" but the buc-can was down and away.

Tipperton jerked a second red-feathered arrow from the quiver at his hip, and as he lit it he heard -a shriek of rage -a shout: " 'Ware, Tipperton!" -and the thunder of hooves, and bearing down on him came a Ghul, Helsteed in full gallop, cruel barbed spear aimed at the buccan's breast. Yet the buccan drew his bow to the full and loosed again, a second crimson streak to fly through the shaded air and strike Phoom!

– the other soaked Ogru -yet the Ghul came on and -Tipperton dropped to the stony ground and rolled under the burning wagon and out the far side -as Bekki, howling, hurtled down the slope and leaped through the air to crash into the Ghul -while Tipperton, scrambling, ran onward, his wee form lost down among the enemy -Bekki and the corpse-foe to smash down into the bed of the furiously burning wain As Beau galloped down the hill and toward the distant melee, a second crimson streak flashed through the air. "Hang on, Tip!" he shouted, fumbling at his waist to open the pouch and extract his sling while racing downslope. And as he sped down, a lone rider thundered up the hill toward him, running the opposite way. As they hammered past one another, Beau saw the white hair and white beard of Counsellor Tain as that man fled from the field of combat, his eyes wide with fright.

And onward raced Beau, down toward the mighty struggle, his sling now in hand as he fumbled in his pouch for a bullet.

And he saw combat directly before him, an Elf 'gainst a Ghul, barbed spear 'gainst flashing blade, though a bow-bearing Ruck ran nigh. Down galloped Beau as the Elf closed on the Helsteed rider ere he could bring his spear to bear. Firelight flashed from the sword as it swung forward to take off the corpse-foe's head, yet ere it clove, a black-shafted arrow slammed into the Elf, and just as Beau hammered past she crashed to the ground -It was Phais, pierced through.

As three of the Ogrus burned shrieking, two of their kindred scrambled up the slopes of the mountain and away, the monsters howling in fear of red-streaking arrows which caused Ogrus to burst into flame. The sole remaining Troll yet battled Chakka, and Grg closed in to aid him, just as shouting Prince Loden and the yawling Daelsmen rounded the flank of the Horde and thundered in among the foe, swords reaving and lances piercing, to be met by blade in kind.

And at the fore of the Horde, the Baeron had bludgeoned in among the Spawn and now were completely surrounded, while Dylvana strove to break through the entrapping ring.