The attack came without warning for the Easterlings escorting the prisoners. The Easterling captain Allen had killed with his very first arrow might have died without ever understanding why enemies had attacked him at that time, in that place.
It had been far too sudden, and the mounted scouts he had sent out had brought back no warning whatsoever.
For the Twilight Knights, however, the battle ended far too quickly to offer any thrill of combat. After eliminating the eyes around the column, they closed rapidly on the enemy under Allen's command and loosed just two devastatingly accurate volleys, killing every member of the enemy's mobile forces.
Then the Twilight Knights drew their Noldorin Rune-swords and Enchanted Shields and charged at full speed, shattering the Easterling infantry who had barely managed to gather together.
Though few in number, their unstoppable force crushed any hope the enemy had of continued resistance. The battle swiftly devolved into a tedious pursuit. It was nothing more than a one-sided slaughter.
Had anyone been watching from the sidelines, they would have been astonished to discover that Allen and his eleven Personal Guards had killed more than half the Easterling soldiers escorting the Dwarves in their first clash.
That was destructive power enough to intimidate anyone in a small-scale battle.
Only after a brief moment of bewilderment did the Easterlings lucky enough to survive realize how terrifying a disaster had befallen them. Fear overwhelming enough to break a person instantly seized their hearts, driving the survivors to actions both rational and irrational.
Some threw down their weapons in sheer terror and ran screaming across the wasteland, never considering that their two legs could not possibly outrun four.
Others tightened their fingers around their strangely shaped iron spears and shouted meaningless words, challenging the silver-armored knights prowling