Forest Kingdom Trilogy 1 - Blue Moon Rising

happened next wasn't important. The dark had tried to break him and his men, and the dark had failed, and in the end that was all that really mattered. Rupert looked out at the watching blood-red eyes, and laughed. For all their vast weight of numbers, the demons were still scared to come into the lamplight. They preferred to wait until the light ran out before attacking again. And then Rupert's laughter broke off short as an idea struck him, an idea so obvious he could have kicked himself for not thinking of it earlier.
    'The lamps!' he yelled joyously, whirling on the startled Champion. 'The bloody oil lamps! That's our way out! Guards, take the oil canisters and spread a circle of oil around us. Use the reserves first, but if that's not enough start emptying lamps until it is. Well don't just stand there, move it! We're in with a chance after all!'
    The guards jumped to obey. Beyond the lamplight the demons stirred restlessly, and Rupert grinned so hard his jaws hurt.
    'Get the idea, sir Champion? All we have to do is wait for the demons to attack, and then set light to the oil. The Darkwood trees might not burn, but the demons will. It won't stop them for long, but it should hold them back while we cut our way out of here. We can't be that far from the boundary.'
    'It's not much of a chance,' said the Champion carefully.
    'I know,' Rupert admitted cheerfully, 'but at least it's a fighting chance.'
    And then the demons surged forward out of the dark. Rupert yelled to the guards, and a dozen torches dipped into the oil. Bright yellow flames roared up, throwing back the dark. The first demons to reach the blazing oil plunged straight into the flames and were consumed in a moment, and behind them came more demons, throwing themselves at the leaping flames like moths at a lantern. They began to smother the fire by the sheer number of their bodies, and more creatures of the dark used the charred bodies of the fallen as stepping stones from which to hurl themselves at Prince Rupert and his company. A nice try, thought Rupert resignedly as he cut down the first demon to reach him, but not good enough. He realised he was going to die, and was surprised to find he felt more annoyed than anything. There were so many things he'd intended to do, and now never would. He'd never even told Julia that he loved her. He could feel her favour beneath his jerkin, pressing lightly against his heart.
    The demons came swarming out of the darkness, and Rupert raised his sword and stepped forward to meet them.
    But even as the demons pressed eagerly forward, the flames leaped suddenly higher. The oil had reached the surrounding trees which caught alight and blazed like torches. Rupert backed away from the searing heat, and his men moved back with him. The demons slowed to a halt, confused and uncertain.
    Rupert stepped back another pace, and a blinding light filled his eyes. For a moment he thought the flames had overtaken him, but all around him he could hear his men crying out in joy and relief. Rupert knuckled at his watering eyes and laughed breathlessly. They were safe. They'd reached the boundary of the Darkwood.
    His sight quickly returned. It was late afternoon, shading into evening. Rupert looked blankly at the sinking sun. When he'd led his company into the Darkwood, it had been barely midday.
    Time moves differently in the Darkwood.
    Rupert swallowed dryly, and watched the last of his guards stumble out of the darkness and into the light. The demons didn't follow. Rupert couldn't see past the Darkwood boundary, but he knew the demons were there, watching. He turned his back on them and grinned at his men, and only then did he realise how small his company of guards had become. He counted them slowly. Twenty-five.
    Twenty-five men out of fifty. Rupert looked away. He felt sick.
    'Don't take it so hard,' said the Champion.
    'Why not?' said Rupert bitterly. 'Half my men are dead. Some leader I turned out to be.'
    'You've not done so badly. Given the odds we faced, it's a wonder any of us survived. If it hadn't been for your quick thinking, we'd all have been dead long before we could reach the boundary. All right, you lost half your men, but you saved the other half. No man could have done more. All in all, I'm quite pleased with you, Rupert. I'll make a Prince of you yet.'
    Rupert looked at the Champion warily. 'I'm just a second son, remember?'
    'I remember,' said the Champion. He turned away to stare at the Darkwood boundary.