"BROTHER!!!" Prince Birch immediately bearhugged Prince Willow, lifted him off of the ground and held him aloft, "I HAVE MISSED YOU SO!!!"

Willow audibly gasped from Birch's bearhug of love and squeaked, "And I have...missed you too...brother. Can you please...set me down so I...can breathe?"

"Of course, brother, of course," Birch release Willow who landed on his feet catching his breath, "I simply must compose a poem for this occassion! I shall call it, 'The Return Of The Lost Brother'!"

Alyson's eyes went wide in sheer disbelief in how Prince Birch was definitely not all there but he was family, so he must have some influence. She was about to say something but decided not to as her attention shifted to the eldest brother, the crown prince, Ash. Following behind him was Lazheros and Irzen having been escorted so to speak.

Captain Lion came over and stood next to the elementalist turning in her direction, "Alas, I heard you returned to Asylum, young lady. It is good to see here helping the elves of Northaven."

She smiled, "Yeah, sorry I didn't have a chance to stop by and see how you were doing, Captain Lion."

"That young lady is for another time," he nodded to her with his hands behind his back, "Now we shall focus on defeating the horde for it is vast and terrible."

The Royal Guards looked at each other and stepped for none of them have the skill set to challenge Prince Ash in combat. Upon entering the throne room, the Crown Prince entered first and bowed to his father, "Hail, Sunrider, Tenth of his line, Father and King of Northaven! I have heard your summons and came as quickly as I could!"

"BROTHER!!!" Prince Birch strode over to Crown Prince Ash and gave him a warm hug before their father could respond, "As always, it is good to see you again!" Birch released his brother, clapped him upon his back and announced to the entire assembly, "Gaze upon us, one and all, our enemy has much to fear! For the Sons of Sunrider are coming home! Let those who oppose us despair!"

Prince Ash raised an eye brow at his wayward brother, "Birch, how are things of late in East Port? Still regaling epic tales of high adventure?"

"Things go well in East Port, Ash!" Birch grinned from ear to ear, "The war has not come to our corner of the Realm yet. And my wife does a SPECTACULAR job of running the place while I am at sea."

Princess Cauladra blushed as she took her husband's hand and stood by him.

"And I have adventure after adventure after adventure while I am abroad," Birch added with great relish, "I tell you, brother, once this mess is all sorted and we emerge from this war victorious. I shall regale all of us with tales of my travels and my deeds both brave and noble! Oh! The things I have seen, the people I have heard, and the stories I will tell! They will simply take your breath away, brother, once you hear them. I promise you that!"

Irzen gave the Elven King a curt bow out of respect though he was surprised to find that Captain Mandur, Willow and Alyson had arrived at the palace before they did. And then, out of the corner of his eye, Irzen spotted a sight that filled him with complete dread.

Leaning against a pillar not more than a few feet from The Oaken Throne itself stood a tall, blonde Elf Maiden with braided hair donned in the long flowing robes of a Noblewoman or Bardess. While she studiously recorded all that was happening in a giant tome within the crux of her right arm, the She-Elf gave The Swordsman and The Cleric a seductive yet friendly wink of the eye.

"Gi shuu!" Irzen hissed to Lazheros, "Lu'usstan ssiggrin ussta tangi gumash naut inbau jala wruuty."

Translation: "Oh crap!" Irzen hissed to Lazheros, "And I thought our day could not get any worse."

The bronze man just stood there quietly knowing if the Chronicler were to do anything rash it would be bad not just for her but for everyone else here. He could sense the tension in the throne room. The ranger's people were taken nearly off guard by the invading Horde and now everyone is taking up a defensive position within the capital itself.

King Sunrider approached his eldest son and embraced him, the look of worry upon his wizened face for Prince Yew troubled him deeply. "Amin eldest utinu has tul a eska."

Translation: My eldest son has come home.

"Atar, sii' tanya most en' lye nosse naa sinome, along yassen niasa, lye will drive sina goth tuulo' lye lands!" Ash replied confidently.

Translation:: Father, now that most of our family are here, along with allies, we will drive this enemy from our lands!::

Sunrider narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the Drow Swordsman, "How is it that one of the fallen have come to be in my presence? Willow, do you know this drow, and can he be trusted?"

Irzen said nothing. He merely stood stock still at a parade rest.

"I do, sire," Prince Willow approached The Swordsman and stood by his side, "King Sunrider, Tenth of His Name, I would like to introduce you to Lord Dy'var Irzen, Captain of the Shadow Riders, First Lord of Shadows-By-The-Lake or Shadow Haven to use the Common tongue. Captain Irzen is not only an ally but also my friend. Through my many travels and adventures, he has saved my life as often as I have saved his. I have no truer friend than this Drow."

"In addition to his friendship, sire," Prince Willow continued unabated, "Before he turned upon The Dark Lord, Captain Irzen once served in Gruummasht's army acting as scouts for his forces. He knows the tactics and strategy of the enemy we fight and he knows them well. His military insights will prove invaluable to us if we ever hope to defeat this terrible enemy."

"Finally, Captain Irzen has offered to assist us and asks for nothing in return other than safe passage from our lands when our war is won," Willow concluded, "He wants neither fame nor glory nor fortune for the assistance he is giving us. He is helping us because he is my friend and because I need his help now more than ever."

After carefully listening to all of Willow's testimony and defense of the drow swordsman, and noticed how his eldest defended Irzen, Sunrider surmised that having someone of that kind of intelligence and cunning would be a great asset to the cause. "Very well, my sons. I will hear what this Drow Swordsman has to say for the enemy draws ever nearer as we speak."

The Drow Swordsman came out of his parade rest and spoke in the Common tongue, "Sunrider Elven King, I will tell you and the assembly gathered here what I told your daughter-in-law, Princess Liliandra, back in Westfall. You can expect ash and death if Gruumasht emerges victorious."

Irzen continued simply, "Gruumasht believes in total war. He asks for no quarter and he gives none. If he succeeds in conquering your people, he will take every scrap of food and water you have to feed his army. Then he will put your forests, your fields and your farmlands to the torch until they become a smoldering cinder. And to make sure no living soul ever occupies the land again, he will order his troops to pour salt into the earth to make sure nothing grows again."

The Swordsman added, "And then he will start on your cities, your towns and your villages. He will loot, sack and burn them one-by-one until they are a smoldering ruin. He will kill your males and your children in front of your eyes. And he will spare your females only so he can enjoy their lamentations before he gives each and every last one of them over to his Orcs as his playthings."

The elven king pondered what Irzen told him weighing the pros and cons of his knowledge of Gruumasht knowing what kind of orcs he was dealing with, the worst of Venger's rejects apparently.

Irzen concluded, "Heed my words, Sunrider Elven King, you cannot make peace with Gruumasht! He cannot be bargained with, he cannot be reasoned with, he neither feels pity nor remorse nor fear. And he absolutely will not stop. Ever. Until you and your people are dead!"

"Do you take me for a fool? There will be no quarter for that swine who dared traverse and defile my kingdom!" King Sunrider proclaimed with a clenched fist.

The Dark Elf concluded, "These are the stakes, Sunrider Elven King, I know strategies and tactics that we can use to defeat Gruumasht's horde and gladly will I share them with you. But I only ask one thing of you in return: I want your word of honor as king that when this war is over and we stand victorious, I will be given safe passage when I depart your lands. I ask for neither gold nor glory nor honor but this I do ask. What say you, Sunrider Elven King?"

"Drow tactics?" Sunrider questioned him abruptly, "Very well, Captain Irzen, let us discuss what you're capable of in the war room. Ash, Birch, Willow and company, you may join us as well."

"Where did you find this Drow, brother?" Birch needled Willow for an answer, "He is quite eloquent in his speech. Are all of his ilk like him?"

"We ran across each other during my travels beyond the city of Storm Haven." Willow honestly replied, "And though he is quite good with his words, I doubt all of his ilk are like him. I have only allied myself with two Dark Elves in all my travels. Captain Irzen is one of them and the other, well, she's more of a pest than a friend."

"I see," Birch nodded, "So the female of their species are pests while the male of their species are not. INTERESTING!"

The elementalist tried her hardest to stifle a giggle but it slipped out at Prince Birch's reply to the ranger, "Hehehe!"

"Something amuses you, my lady?" Princess Cauladra turned towards the Elementalist.

The king strode forward away from his throne and lead the party to another room with a large table made of the hardest black oak anyone had seen. On its surface was the complete map of his domain. Red flags indicated where the horde was in relation to the capital.

Irzen studied the map for a quiet minute before he began, "In my long years of combat Sunrider, Elven King, I have learned that you Surface Elves know only how to fight symmetrically. You typically attack your enemies in the Stag battle formation lining up your armies against your opponents in an effort to either out-flank them or break their ranks through a direct assault. Gruummasht knows this and will expect such an attack. What I propose is that you strike at his forces asymmetrically or fight them as we Drow would by striking at them not only from the front but also from the rear, above and below."

"Based upon the size of the Horde and the current placement and number of our troops, I see only four options before us: Encirclement, Press Attack, Siege and Retreat," The Swordsman began as he addressed everyone while occassionally pointing at the table to reinforce every point he would make, "Option one: Encirclement. There is an open plain that leads to the capitol city. That plain is big enough to house a horde as large as Grummasht's army. However, that plain also sits on a valley floor with at least five different mountain passes leading into it. We know Grummasht's forces are marching up from the Southern Valley. What I propose is that you take your infantry, line them up a mile outside of the city make them two rows deep and as wide as the valley walls themselves. The horde will come directly at them. When they do, move your cavalry through the passes and encircle them on their flanks. As they press forward towards the city, the infantry will give a little ground to them but not fully break ranks. By doing so, you will create a circle of death which you will close with your cavalry and infantry. And then the fun will begin! You can strafe them from the air with dragon fire while your Hill Dwarven and Gnomish allies act as sappers and dig holes in the ground beneath the horde. And while that is going in, the Archers from the capitol will rain arrows down upon them in wave after wave after wave. The good news is that if you employ this strategy you will avoid civilian casualties and Grummasht will be unable to offensively use the bulk of his army which will be bottled up inside the circle. Another bit of good news is that he will not expect this attack because he has probably planned for a siege instead. The bad news is that your military casualties are going to be very high. Even if we win, our victory might be a Phyrric one at best."

"Option two: Press Attack," Irzen continued unabated, "You keep half the infantry and all of the archers behind the city walls. The other half of the infantry and the entire calvary will flank the horde from the mountain passes. By getting behind the horde and along its sides, your forces will press and drive the attack against the Orcs until their backs are up against the city walls itself. You will still strafe them from the air with dragon fire. And you still let your sappers do their work. But the focus of your attack will be to break their ranks against the walls of the city like waves crashing against the rocks of a reef. The good news is that this strategy will reduce the number of military casualties we will suffer. The bad news is that everything will depend upon the strength of the city's defenses. If the horde has siege engines and they breach the gates or the wall, the battle will be over and you will lose everything. Another downside to this strategy is that civilian casualties will be high."

"Option three: Siege," The Swordsman added, "You pull all of your forces back to the capitol, lock the gates, man the walls and force Grummasht to lay siege to you. You can still strafe his horde from the air with dragon fire and have your sappers lay traps throughout the plain. But this strategy is nothing fancy or new. You will wait Grummasht out until he gives up or retreats. The good news is that this strategy offers a maximum level of protection for the denizens of the capitol. The bad news is that Gruummasht is expecting this strategy and both civilian and military casualties will be high, we have no idea how long a siege would last and if the wall is breached then we could lose everything. It's an all or nothing strategy."

"Option four: Retreat," Irzen confessed, "We empty the capitol and let Grummasht take the city. We have all civilians go north while your military takes the mountain passes and double back on the Orcs. When Grummasht's forces have taken the city, you have your sappers set traps throughout the capitol and set them off when he and his Orcs arrive. As they are dealing with your traps, we can have our dragons strafe the entire city until not a single stone stands. Then our forces will attack Grummasht's guys on their flanks and rears and sweep up those who survive the destruction of the capitol. The good news is that we would avoid any civilian casualties. The bad news is that our military casualties could be high and Northaven would lose its capitol. Sustained dragonfire on the order of what we would need to cook Grummasht's forces inside of the city would turn the capitol into a smoldering ruin."

"Retreat?!" Sunrider stared at the swordsman in sheer disbelief, "Surely, you over-estimate their chances of victory at my people's annihilation?"

"It is merely an option to consider, Sunrider Elven King," Irzen held up his hands, "Nothing more and nothing less than that."

"We can win with any of the strategies that I have just mentioned," Irzen concluded, "Or you can come up with one of your own. But you have to select a strategy that you feel comfortable employing and I leave that decision up to you, Sunrider Elven King."

"Lord Drow, your assessment of our military situation is BRILLIANT!" Birch strode up to Irzen, shook his hand and clapped him on the shoulder, "You, my noble sir, are a credit to your race!"

"Gee, thanks." Irzen replied sarcastically as he gave a look at Willow.

Finally Lazheros stepped forward and as he did the Alter self spell he cast earlier to lead help with Captain Andaerean and his company faded in full view of everyone. No longer was there an elf but the bronze man. "My apologies for the deception but it was necessary to remain untouched by the Huorns wrath against the skirmish with horde. Captain Irzen had come up with a similar strategy back in Westfall with some minor changes there were very few causalities. The end result drove the enemy back and the return of Prince Yew but more importantly the warlord, Gruumasht is NOT alone, under his command is a half-orc, Barakas. Once a mere torturer, now turned warlock-necromancer, so even if you slay the forces of the enemy, make very sure that fiend cannot raise an army of undead to throw at any of you."

"YOU?! ARE THE BRONZE MAN OF LEGEND!?!" Prince Birch clapped his hands against his forehead in pure disbelief, "NO WAY! OUTSTANDING!!!" The wayward prince immediately seized Lazheros hand and shook it so vigorously that the Cleric thought his arm might fall off, "It is an honor to meet you, noble dragon! AN HONOR INDEED!!!"

Sunrider and Ash let an audible gasp in the presence of the Cleric of Bahamut. The king had heard many a tale of the Bronze Man and his travels with the legendary champion, Madeous Khyng . "Well, it would seem that my sons have made many allies in their journeys through the long years. Your aid is most welcome!"

The crown prince stepped forward, "Somehow I knew there was more than meets the eye with you, amandil. None of our people serve, the platinum dragon here, at least not to my knowledge but there are dragonborn that have been seen to the north of Winter Marsh, mostly silver I believe but they won't engage unless given a true reason to."

"Ah, just like their draconic ancestry, silver dragonborn are noble and true, however, I think I can persuade them to come to your aid and it would give Gruumasht and Barakas pause just enough for us to gain the advantage." The bronze man surmised.

"The more our allies grow in number," Irzen added, "The more I like our chances for victory."