>>5933584With Avitus on the ground, the tide is quickly turned as the enemy soldiers finally panic, their morale broken and their ranks nonexistent. Every man scrambles to save himself. The chimeric creatures bound over the walls and escape into the wild, concerned only with their own three-headed lives. As the fortress falls into ruin, our army spreads out as the enemy soldiers get run down, and Avitus and Alacris chase down groups of survivors and scorch them from the earth.
When the smoke clears in the early evening, the Rex stands tall amidst the ruins of the fortress. There are many wounded and many dead; this was a costly battle. Velox, the dragon, will live, but may be out of the fight for the remainder of this conflict; his wing was severely damaged from the fall, and although the wyvern toxin was countered by restoration magic, he is very weak. Priests are tending to the wounded.
One of the younger dragons, Iuvenalis, flies southwest to deliver a message from the capital. The diviners have been hard at work discerning the nature of the enemy. Taking their information, the Rex orders Avitus to perform reconnaissance, and to not engage any wyverns the enemy may still have in reserve. Avitus takes off with his directions.
Once the great dragon returns, having confirmed the words of the diviners, a clearer picture of the enemy is starting to form. They have three villages in the west; their capital, and one each in the northeast and southeast direction from it. Each village is situated fairly strategically alongside rivers, and in addition to this, a number of forts have been constructed in various regions, also adjacent to rivers, including one not far to the southwest of our current forward position.
However, although Avitus' recon was quick, he suspects that the enemy gambled the bulk of their forces upon this battle. The other forts he saw did not seem nearly as heavily manned, and although a good number of soldiers retreated from this area and likely made it southwest, they too would be in bad fighting condition.
Observe the map attached to this post. The blue circle in the southwest indicates our current army's position, where the battle just took place. Note the placement of the forts and villages belonging to the enemy.
Our army is weak; currently only 40% of the initial force remains combat capable. With time, that percentage may improve, but time will give the enemy a chance to improve as well.
They may be exhausted on troops, as Avitus suspects, but who is to say if they have another trick up their sleeve?
We could retreat back to our lands, or fortify this position with supplies carried in by dragons, or advance upon their territory, or something else you suggest. Perhaps Avitus and Alacris could be sent to attack the forts or even one of their villages, but that could be risky if they have more wyverns or other unseen advantages. Perhaps divination could tell us more about our foes beyond their homes?
What do we do?
