Back in the Upper Glen, King Darian looked about the hillside, his handsome face now tired and drawn, almost haggard. He had not taken the death of his youngest son too well and now his oldest son, Prince Talban, had not reported in.

He was watching the men forming up below him, hoping to see that his overdue son had arrived. His men looked weary. They had all engaged the enemy and each squad had suffered losses.

Four of the five villages at the foot of Timber Lake Mountains had been destroyed and the people were now missing. He could only assume that the fifth village, Sev, had met the same fate. That is where Lord Prince Talban had gone.

Lord Naysha and Lord Graves’ patrols had not reported in, and were not expected to. Several wounded yules from their patrols had been found by other squads, wandering aimlessly, and covered in red and green blood. It appeared as if those brave souls had met their fates.

The losses suffered by the remaining squad leaders numbered from one man to half their squads. Several lords had fallen, to include two more of his patrol leaders, Lord Felix and Lord Davis.

Many of the men and yules that had returned were wounded. Yet, his troops still had a resolute, determined look on their faces, that came with experience and loss. They were a tough group, and he was proud of their spirit.

The good news was that his middle son, Lord Prince Nehi, had safely guided the people of Camp City behind the sturdy wooden walls of Frontier Fortress. Nehi had reported that the women, children, and elderly would travel from there to Port Turin and then to the safety of Castle Krodall.

Darian was glad to learn that High King Tronin was already making preparations. Gilead Castle and Trader Town had also been alerted and were hopefully preparing their defenses. They needed to hold the goblin tribes back, while the civilians were being safely evacuated.

Lord Partom had arrived earlier in the day and had reported an encounter with the Gorilla Raiders the day before. The bald lord told him that one of the four ape Raider Patrols had been destroyed. It had been led by Tig, a young alpha male that he had never met.

No matter, I tried to warn the Gorilla King. Gorin is going to have to take care of himself; I have my own issues to deal with. Foremost on his mind was his missing eldest son.

King Darian approached his remaining squad leaders and was about to speak, when he was distracted by a large cloud of dust approaching from the north. A group of mounts were coming in fast, yet it appeared to be too many riders for one patrol, and what was the giant black mass on the horizon that followed them?

“Incoming! . . . Men . . . and gorillas!” the sentry positioned furthest north bellowed out.

When the group drew closer, King Darian could make out at least a hundred apes astride their horses, riding along with his son Talban’s patrol. They were riding hard, with the horses matching the top speed of the slower yules. They closed the distance to the camp quickly.

“Father!” Lord Prince Talban cried out breathlessly as he jumped off his panting yule, taking a moment to catch his breath before continuing, “Skull Crushers . . . several thousand . . . moving fast . . . we ran into them as we crossed the Central Rim . . . I don’t know how they managed to pace us this far on foot.”

King Darian looked to the horizon. He could now barely make out the sound of goblin boo gah drums in the far distance. They were trotting in formation, row after row, as far as the eye could see. They would cover the distance in an hour, maybe two.

The Skull Crushers had very thick skulls that they used to headbutt their enemies with, earning them their name. This gave them a distinct look with their huge foreheads that were lined with small bony ridges.

“Son, can you fight?” King Darian asked. “We ride out to meet them!”

“Of course, my king, you know my sword is yours!” his eldest son responded, his answer refuted only by his appearance, because he was covered from head to toe in dust and looked like he would drop from exhaustion at any moment.

“Tuggle City is gone!” the nearest ape could no longer hold his tongue.

It was Raider Patrol Leader Togris, an ape that Darian had met once before. He had forgotten about them in his excitement to see that his oldest son was alive. It looked like the three remaining Raider Patrols were with Togris.

“Gone? How?” King Darian asked, unsure of what the ape was talking about.

“We went to worn King Gorin. When ape return, we find several hundred Bloody Thrasher marching around with ape king’s head on a pole,” Alpha Togris growled out.

“Then you can ride with us to protect the Glen,” King Darian offered, still shocked by the news.

“We will ride with you, but not to protect. We ride for revenge!” the large black silverback shouted, raising his spear towards his fellow apes who responded with howls and growls towards the ever-advancing goblin army. Once the gorillas fell silent, the men continued talking.

“Lord Tobias, you’ll retain control over Prince Nye’s patrol,” a hint of pain flashed across the king’s face, causing him to hesitate before continuing, “Lord Biv, you take Lord Davis’ squad. Lord Brickor take command of Lord Felix’s squad. Assign the new recruits to the lighter squads. Training is over.”

Lord Brickor was a tough short and squat old warrior, in his mid-fifties, yet stout. As the lord with the most years on the Yule Riders, he ran the training unit for new riders who volunteered from the southern kingdoms and villages to join the yule patrols. He grunted his acknowledgement and joined his new men.

“The Upper Glen is our responsibility, and we shall defend it. Now mount up and form battle lines!” King Darian shouted.

Men began to run towards their mounts and within minutes, the disorganized group formed into three well-organized ranks of mounted warriors.

“Father, you should know that we saw about the same amount of Bone Breakers dropping from the mountains into Sev Village,” Talban advised. “These Skull Crushers are only the beginning.”

King Darian gave him a weary nod and then began riding up and down the front rank, addressing various men. He made his way to the center, and was preparing to address them as a whole when a shout came up from the back rank.

“Horse rider approaching from the rear!” someone yelled.

While King Darian waited for the approaching horseman, he noticed a white sash hanging from the man’s waist, denoting the significance of his arrival. High King Tronin’s messenger rode straight up to King Darian, bowed from horseback, and handed him a sealed letter.

“From High King Tronin’s hand to your hand defender of the Upper Glen,” the horseman said, then turned and sped off the way he had come, back towards Kaylor Pass, the rocky trail that eventually led up to Frontier Fortress.

King Darian quickly broke the seal and read the letter, then addressed his men, “We have new orders. The Upper Glen is surrendered to the enemy. We’re to fall back into the Lower Glen and patrol Frontier Road from Frontier Fortress to the sorcerer’s keep at Keyorlock. We’ll let the goblin armies throw themselves at the three kingdoms of Hogarth Hills. Gilead, Frontier Fortress and Trader Town will take the brunt of the enemy’s fury.”

King Darian paused for a moment to reread part of the letter, then continued, “I need three patrols to stay in the Upper Glen for harassment purposes. You’ll engage in ‘hit and run’ tactics, destroying and delaying the enemy wherever you can. Do I have any volunteers?”

“Aye, my men and I will give them a taste of steel!” Lord Borlan said, his rippling muscles bulging in the late sun.

“Ape need revenge against green mans. My patrol has no taste for the Lower Glen,” Raider Leader Tobin spoke up, his tone fierce and his words punctuated by a snarl on his dark black face.

Tobin was one tough looking ape. He was the largest of the three raider leaders and most experienced. He would most likely be the gorilla’s next king, if their would be any apes left needing a king.

Lord Prince Nehi and Lord Grey also volunteered their patrols at the same time, looking to take the last spot.

King Darian tugged at his beard, then spoke, “It’s decided then. Raider Tobin will take the Central Rim and seek vengeance. Lord Borlan you take the Western Rim. Lord Grey, you and your men head for the Eastern Rim. Lord Prince Nehi, I need you at my side. You three patrols that are remaining still have time to outflank the advancing goblin army and to get clear. Fight as long as you can and if you take heavy casualties, fall back to Frontier Road and join us. Let’s ride!”

Lord Prince Nehi frowned in disappointment. When will I get a chance to fight? I want to engage the enemy now and prove myself.

Lord Borlan, Lord Grey, and Raider Tobin took their patrols and headed north. King Darian and the remaining patrols started south for Kaylor Pass. All of them moved fast while the sounds of the huge goblin army drew nearer, the rhythmic “boo gah boo gah boo gah” of the goblin drums grew louder and louder.

On their way up the pass, they encountered King Quaid’s oldest son, Lord Prince Benhurst, with a squad of over a hundred archers and warriors from Frontier Fortress, heading to the bottom of Kaylor Pass to set up an ambush for the goblins. The men from the Yule Patrols and Frontier Fortress exchanged shouts of encouragement and clasped wrists.

King Darian greeted each passing soldier, wondering which, if any, would live to climb back out of the canyon. His men must have looked a rugged dirty mess to all these fresh-faced inexperienced troops.

At the top of Kaylor Pass they encountered an even larger group of men, led by King Quaid’s youngest son, Lord Prince Jayden. These men were already in position to ambush the goblins, just before the canyon topped out onto the rolling hills of Hogarth.

These nervous young men were the last line of defense before the goblins would reach the wooden walls of Kaylor the Frontier Fortress. It was good to see that their fellow brothers were prepared to fight.

King Darian knew how difficult it must have been for King Quaid to send his only two sons out to defend the pass. He liked both princes, the taller mature Benhurst, and the brown curly haired, always jovial, Jayden.

Nearly all of the troops they had passed were young and inexperienced. Most of them had never seen a goblin, let alone fought one. King Darian sighed with the realization that casualties would be a lot higher now that the goblins were marching on Hogarth Hills.

He could hear the sound of the goblin’s boo gah drums wafting up from the bottom of Kaylor Pass as he topped out of it. It was the first time that he has set foot out of the Upper Glen in over a year. He had always thought that he would die in the grassy flatlands of his home, but now he wasn’t so sure.