Kyanges
07-12-2004, 02:12
On a balcony in the White Sand Fortress, General Aristophanes stared out into endless rolling sand dunes that stretched out as far as the eye could see.
"So today it begins..." he thought.
The General had been through countless engagements in the past, but none were quite like this. It wasn't truely the most dangerous, but none knew what they would encounter.
It was yet another sweltering day in Kyanges's Great Western Desert. The Kyanges Army had been preparing for weeks for the coming expedition. Now, the expedition was to begin in only half an hour.
An small expeditionary force of some 60,000 troops had been assembled.
The force contained some:
5,000 Skirmishers
15,000 Heavy Archers (Archers used like artillery with large bows, and arrows that require a two man team)
6,000 Mounted Archers
5,000 Light Cavalry
10,000 Heavy cavalry
10,000 Spearmans
5,000 Long Swordsman
4,000 Talon Elite Guard (Not the MT/FT guys I've used before, these are the originals, where the later Talon force got its name. These are cream of the army, and are equiped for everything, but not so much that they are weighed down.)
The land that they were setting off to conquer had not been claimed by any known empire, and was free land up for the taking. There had been previous attempts to settle the land, but all settlers mysteriously disappear. The Expeditionary Force was meant not only to take the land, but also eliminate whatever had been causing the disappearances. The last attempt included some 500 settlers. However all were lost, and the town found abandonded. Rumors began to spread, talk went about from fantastic monsters to simple primitive tribes fighting to keep their land. The problem was that nobody knew anything for sure. Even the government, which had always lead in times such as this, was at a loss, trust in the leadership began to waver. The public outcry to do something about the mounting disappearances was too great to ignore, so here they were. All ready to "pacify" the land, and restore some confidence in the government.
Aristophanes continued to look out at the rolling dunes, trying to imagine what he would encounter. But like the rest of his people, he himself did not know what to expect.
Suddenly drums began to sound, shaking Aristophanes out of his thoughts. The time had come to embark.
As the sun shown down with merciless intensity, the troops one by one quickly filled in formation. The drum roll was joined by deep horns, and Kyanges flags were raised. The General looked at his troops, all were seasoned fighters from recent wars by which the Kyanges Empire was founded, so he had no doubts that they knew what was implied by their journey into what had been called "The Land of the Ghosts" would be one that they might not return from. He knew that they were prepared to sacrifice everything for their country, he himself was ready to do the same, and nothing needed to be said. Aristophanes mounted his horse, took one more glance at his troops, and faced the forbidding desert before him. He raised his hand, and the horns sounded once again, and with that the troops marched out.
"So today it begins..." he thought.
The General had been through countless engagements in the past, but none were quite like this. It wasn't truely the most dangerous, but none knew what they would encounter.
It was yet another sweltering day in Kyanges's Great Western Desert. The Kyanges Army had been preparing for weeks for the coming expedition. Now, the expedition was to begin in only half an hour.
An small expeditionary force of some 60,000 troops had been assembled.
The force contained some:
5,000 Skirmishers
15,000 Heavy Archers (Archers used like artillery with large bows, and arrows that require a two man team)
6,000 Mounted Archers
5,000 Light Cavalry
10,000 Heavy cavalry
10,000 Spearmans
5,000 Long Swordsman
4,000 Talon Elite Guard (Not the MT/FT guys I've used before, these are the originals, where the later Talon force got its name. These are cream of the army, and are equiped for everything, but not so much that they are weighed down.)
The land that they were setting off to conquer had not been claimed by any known empire, and was free land up for the taking. There had been previous attempts to settle the land, but all settlers mysteriously disappear. The Expeditionary Force was meant not only to take the land, but also eliminate whatever had been causing the disappearances. The last attempt included some 500 settlers. However all were lost, and the town found abandonded. Rumors began to spread, talk went about from fantastic monsters to simple primitive tribes fighting to keep their land. The problem was that nobody knew anything for sure. Even the government, which had always lead in times such as this, was at a loss, trust in the leadership began to waver. The public outcry to do something about the mounting disappearances was too great to ignore, so here they were. All ready to "pacify" the land, and restore some confidence in the government.
Aristophanes continued to look out at the rolling dunes, trying to imagine what he would encounter. But like the rest of his people, he himself did not know what to expect.
Suddenly drums began to sound, shaking Aristophanes out of his thoughts. The time had come to embark.
As the sun shown down with merciless intensity, the troops one by one quickly filled in formation. The drum roll was joined by deep horns, and Kyanges flags were raised. The General looked at his troops, all were seasoned fighters from recent wars by which the Kyanges Empire was founded, so he had no doubts that they knew what was implied by their journey into what had been called "The Land of the Ghosts" would be one that they might not return from. He knew that they were prepared to sacrifice everything for their country, he himself was ready to do the same, and nothing needed to be said. Aristophanes mounted his horse, took one more glance at his troops, and faced the forbidding desert before him. He raised his hand, and the horns sounded once again, and with that the troops marched out.