One hundred miles from the capital, Aldrath tried one final time.
He positioned the combined force across the Blackwater Ford, the last major river crossing between the Horde's column and the capital's approaches. The ford was wide, the current strong, the terrain on both banks open and unfavorable for the kind of bypassing maneuvers that had defeated every previous blocking position.
Khao'khen halted the column one mile south of the ford and studied the position.
The combined force held both banks. The ford itself was staked and trenched. The cavalry screened the flanking approaches for five miles in each direction. The mage corps, its replacement practitioners now numbering sixty, held the elevated positions behind the ford where their spells could cover the crossing.
"He has learned from every previous interception," Sakh'arran said. "The flanking approaches are covered. The bypass routes are scouted. The blocking position is supplied for a sustained defense."
