| Steadily, it began to dawn on the blonde Hylian the danger that they were in. If they did not help the village soon, it would fall and while @solveig may be able to divert some tactics to stall, the sheer amount of monsters that would diverge toward them - combined with the fact the Hylian army backup would be defeated - would be far too much for even the Gorons to handle. The village needed to stand tall, or all would be lost. Solveig knew this, it seemed, and he would turn to the Hylian, sending him down to the village with a Goron platoon.
"I'll find a way to get you some help! A bowman, hopefully!" Josh would promise as he would nod toward the Goron platoon that Solveig had placed under his command, and begin to trek back down to the village. The climb down the mountain was much faster than the climb up it, which would explain why the ones attacking the Mountain now were the ones that were native to the area and were already on the mountain to begin with prior to the assault. If they had already been organized and mobilized here long before this... He wasn't sure, but there was no time to think about it. This was a topic for a Goron leader to consider, and Josh was neither Hylian leader nor Goron leader. He was a soldier, a fighter. And fight, he would do.
Knowing they still had to be faster despite that, Josh had to think on his feet. They needed to get down the mountain soon, or there would be no village left to defend, but the Gorons were too slow. It wasn't their fault, of course, they were bulky and pretty much rock people. Their movement speeds weren't the best... Then it hit him. Perhaps it was just part of his former training as Guard Captain in a land far away, but it hit him like a ton of bricks.
"ROLL, NOW!"
The Gorons, a bit confused at the sudden instruction, would comply and roll into balls, before barrelling down the mountain at breakneck speeds. Now that he no longer had to lead them down the mountain, Josh would take off full speed, trying to catch up. When he would reach the mountain base, the Gorons would already be there, waiting for him.
"That was a good call, Brother Dragon. How did you know?" One of the Gorons in the platoon would inquire as the Hylian would move toward the village, the platoon following behind.
"I've commanded Gorons before" Josh would admit as he would draw Dragelix then. They didn't know who he'd once been. Nobody did. And he was okay with that.
The village was being overrun, the Hyrulian Army wasn't faring as well without leaders. Even the Knights were being pushed back by the overwhelming force of the monsters. There was just so many of them this time, and the Hyrule Army lacked leadership...
Stopping one of the Knights, Josh would take them aside as he would motion for the Gorons to join the battle while he was briefed.
"Where is the Prince?"
"We don't know. He went missing soon after leading the army to the village."
"And the Captain?"
"He's still recovering from his injuries from the battle at the Domain. The Prince was supposed to lead us."
Josh let out a growl, then. This wasn't looking good whatsoever. In that moment, Josh knew what needed to be done. Perhaps he was outstepping his boundaries, but...
"Fine. I'm taking command."
"What?"
The Hylian would step forward and call toward a group of Hyrulian Soldiers.
"Oi! Split into teams of three! Two melee, one archer! Split the attention of the monsters, have the melee warriors hold them off and give the archers an opening! The archers should aim for vitals that will disable the monsters, and give an opening for the warriors to finish them off!"
Josh then looked toward Dresari Loche who didn't appear to be amongst the army, but appeared to be of rather considerable skill.
"You!" He called to Dresari, the more he spoke, the more the voice of the old Guard Captain began to return in his tone... "They need a skilled bowman on the mountain to pierce the dodongos! They won't survive without one, take my place at the side of Chief Solveig, tell him Brother Josh has sent you! I need you to pierce the tails of the Dodongos, piercing blows do more than blunt shots on their tails, which are their weak spots!"
He would take out his Clawshot from his pouch, and toss it to Dresari.
"Use this to get up the mountain and into the battle quickly! Send it back to me with a liason once you're up the mountain! If it's a Goron, tell him I said to use his rolling capabilities to get to the village as soon as he can! GO, NOW! THEY NEED YOU! GO!"
Josh would continue to issue orders amongst the soldiers, though while some obeyed, some, mainly knights, just gave him weird looks... The Knight would grab his shoulder and turn him around. "What the hell do you think you're doing? Ordering us around? You're not a Knight, and you're not the Captain!"
"Do you see a leader on this battlefield?"
"I outrank you, so I will not take orders from a lowly soldier like you!"
Josh paused then, then nodded his head.
"Alright. You know what? You're right! You're in charge! You think you can handle the pressures of all of these men's lives on your shoulders, during a battle that we are already sorely losing, and are very likely to lose? Knowing that in said losing battle, if you don't do your job right, all these men will die? The people of Kakariko will die?"
"Uhhh...."
"The Gorons of Death Mountain will die, and the survivors will inevitably be furious with the Hyrulian Army because they let you be in charge and led them to failure? That you could be responsible for the destruction of the alliance?"
"Uhhhhhhhh..."
"Is that a burden you can bear... Sir Knight?"
"... No."
"I'm willing to."
"What?"
"I'm willing to bear that burden."
"But you're just a-"
"My rank means nothing right now. This is a battle of life and death. If we fall here, I will take the blame. I will accept that."
"... They'll never listen to you. Even if you mean well, they'll never listen. They're too proud. They need someone they respect."
"Then it seems I need to earn that respect."
"What-"
Brandishing his blade, Josh would begin to walk into the melee alone. No guards, no backup, he was about to walk into a horde of the enemies alone.
"What are you doing!?" The Knight would call. "You can't just go out there without being part of a squad! You'll die!"
Josh didn't listen, and he would slowly allow for the magic to make itself work, as Dragelix would be engulfed in flames.
"That's an order from your superior, DragonsFlame! I-Out-Rank-You, get it through your head! Get back here!"
Ignoring him, Josh would gaze about the battlefield as the fire from Dragelix almost seemed to be reflected in his eyes. Many of the monsters who were razing the village and not presently fighting the soldiers would take notice of the lone Hylian walking toward them without any backup whatsoever. One of the Bokoblins would nudge another, and point at the lone Hylian, and the lot would begin to draw their weapons as they advanced upon him... Hyrulean Soldiers would begin to take notice, taking a moment to gawk at the idiot who would rush a large group of monsters alone. He had a death wish, didn't he?
But Josh paid it no heed, instead he gazed about until his eyes met that of Selene Merrows and with that... He smiled. He gave her a look almost as if to say "Watch this" before he would hoist Dragelix up as the monsters would draw near, the fire around Dragelix beginning to intensify as Josh waited for his opportune moment...
And just as they lined up right, he would bring his plan into action...
Dragelix would be hurled like a lance, it's power and velocity augmented by Josh shooting a fireball at it at the last moment. The blade would be protected from the effects of the fireball thanks to the augmenting magic of Imbue Weapon, and the force of the fireball would maximize the speed. The speed, velocity, and the fire effects would cause the fireball sword to burn right through the skulls of one of the monsters, then continue to soar and go through the head of the next, and the next, and one more before finally sticking on a stump of a felled tree and setting it and it's felled tree aflame. The motion surprised the monsters, and they would back away from the sword as though it were cursed. Others would back away from the swordsman as he approached, as though he too were overtaken by some sort of demon. Steadily, Josh would pull his sword from the stump, noting the fire on the tree. There was little he could do unfortunately, and the monsters would have set it aflame regardless just as they did the buildings. It could be put out when the battle was over, if there was anything left of it. The tree was chopped regardless, to his regret.
Before the monsters would recover from the initial shock and terror, Josh would take action quickly, letting out a cry as he would plunge Dragelix into the gut of one of the nearby Moblins. The Moblin let out a piercing cry, and the suddenness, and the brutality of the blow as the Hylian would bring the blade upward and cut off the Moblin's head, would stun the horde further, allowing for Josh to quickly dash forward and slash through the side of a Bokoblin and then plunge Dragelix square into the forehead of another. The monsters would begin to recover and hesitantly try to attack, but their hesitation from his mind games was all he needed as Josh would parry a blow from a Moblin's spear striking from behind him and ram the pommel of Dragelix - his hands protected by the magic of the fire around the blade not harming the wielder - into their chest before flipping Dragelix around and stabbing through the chest. Pulling the sword out in rough and intentionally messy fashion, the Hylian would quickly sheathe Dragelix as the flames would go out, and take off at a run as he would draw his bow. Taking off at a run, he would string the bow and leap off the body of one of the Bokoblins he'd felled, quickly turning around and firing an arrow into the skull of another. The confusion amongst the horde would allow for the Hylian to take off at a run, returning to safe grounds amongst the Hyrulian Army.
The army was silent as he would step amongst them, unable to form a word or even a thought at what they'd just seen. Josh paid it no heed, instead looking toward them, and repeating his order. "Split into teams of three! Two melee, one archer! Split the attention of the monsters, have the melee warriors hold them off and give the archers an opening! The archers should aim for vitals that will disable the monsters, and give an opening for the warriors to finish them off!" He repeated, and while some of the soldiers still looked like they'd seen him jump out of the looney bin, they still began to abide by his command, either due to respect or just not wanting to piss off the nutcase that had willingly jumped into a horde of monsters and survived. "If you are on melee... Do not waste time going for spots too heavily armored! Go right for the vitals, you need to make each blow count and you need to enact each kill quickly! We are outnumbered here, we cannot afford to waste too much time weakening or wounding our foes right now! We NEED each blow to be lethal!"
He was in command now. Even the Knights began to form up with his plan, but he would stop them.
"Pair up with your fellow Knights instead" He would command. "Pair up, there's a reason you are operatives and not foot soldiers. But there's too many to handle as solo operatives. Pair up, two per Knight pair. Not too little, not too many. Spread out to cover as much of the battlefield as you can. Cut a swath through them as a team with your more advanced capabilities. I've seen how the Knights can fight, you'll be fine. I want the Knights picking off the stronger enemies, such as the Moblins. Leave the Bokoblins and Bulbins to the soldiers unless absolutely necessary. The strategy I have given them will ensure they can cut through them while also protecting one another" Josh would command toward the Knights, as he would look then toward the Kokiri, @viche who had shown up at some point and had been firing Slingshot shots toward the monsters, though not dealing much damage.
"While I'd rather a child not fight, I can see in your eyes I'm not changing your mind" He spoke then as he stopped near Viche. "If you wish to fight, pair up with a group of Hylians and use your slingshot to act as a diversionary tactic. Catch their attention and free up openings for the soldiers to get in shots at the vitals. Stay at a distance, smaller bodies won't last long against monsters up close."
With his orders heard loud and clear across the battlefield, from the ones fighting to the ones recuperating, to the ones trying to find openings... It was time to let the battle truly begin. Josh would draw Dragelix, the blade setting aflame as he would hold it into the air... Those instincts began to return in full as the Hylian would stand and begin to yell in a bold, rousing, commanding tone. Despite having been a Guard Captain in a life long ago, this would be the first time he would truly give any kind of speech...
"ARMY OF HYRULE! WE STAND AT DEATH'S DOOR, BUT WE WILL NOT GO QUIETLY INTO THE ABYSS!" Josh would cry, catching the attention of the army around him...
"THESE MONSTERS WANT TO BURN OUR HOMES, KILL OUR LOVED ONES AND TAKE AWAY THE PLACE WE CALL HOME! IT IS TIME WE PROVE WHY WE HAVE STOOD TALL FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS! HOLD YOUR HEADS HIGH, FOR YOU ARE SOLDIERS OF HYRULE, AND DEFEND YOUR KINGDOM!"
Josh would point the burning Dragelix toward the enemy army...
"FOR THE ROYAL FAMILY! FOR HYRULE!"
The soldiers and knights of Hyrule would let out a cry as they would begin to get into the formations he had commanded... His words bolstering their confidence and strengthening morale in a time where morale was low and could make the difference between victory and death. Josh knew full well just how much he was risking by doing this. If he didn't have the capability to lead them to victory, this village, and later he himself... Would pay the price .
That was a risk he was willing to take to protect this Kingdom. And for that, he would fight with everything he had. A leader led by example... And even if just temporarily... He was their leader today. So he would be right there, front and center in that fight to spur on the others.
Josh let out a cry as he would join his comrades in arms, and with adrenaline coursing through his body, rush back into the fight...
No fear. No hesitation. Only courage. He needed to be strong, and hold courage, for himself, and for those around him to know they should approach with that same courage...
OOC: Taking command of Hyrule's army in the absence of Oron El Hyrule Tags: |