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Chapter 280. General Giv.

The next morning the army lined up once more, led by Tus, who was still somewhat in shock that he’d not only escaped punishment, but somehow gotten his job back. Continue reading Chapter 280. General Giv.

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Chapter 279. General Tus.

Bright and early the next morning, there was a thumping on the palace gate. “Hello!” said Rostam cheerily. “Your crown, throne, and signet ring are all happy to have such a noble bearer!” “What do you want,” sighed Kay Khosrow. Continue reading Chapter 279. General Tus.

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Chapter 278. Please, Rostam.

Rostam was, indeed, a terrifying figure, but at this point he was quietly at home, perhaps watching football or even making himself a sandwich. He didn’t even notice as the army marched towards Kay Khosrow in his palace, growing more nervous with every step. The king was not going to be pleased. By the time they reached the palace, every man was in tears, and it didn’t help when Kay Khosrow…

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Chapter 277. Rostam's Been Awfully Quiet.

Giv and Bizhan trudged sadly back to the army, only to find all their comrades weeping and for similar reasons. Everyone had lost a brother, a father, an uncle, or at minimum a BFF. “This sucks,” said the soldiers. “And your leadership sucks,” said someone in the crowd, and all eyes turned to Fariborz. Continue reading Chapter 277. Rostam’s Been Awfully Quiet.

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Chapter 276. Where's Bahram?

“Something’s wrong,” said Giv, squinting in the direction of the battlefield the next morning. “Bahram isn’t back yet.” Continue reading Chapter 276. Where’s Bahram?

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Chapter 275. Tazhav Again.

Flinching from Bahram’s arrows, the salvage party moved back towards the main Turanian army, where Piran was setting things in order. “Someone’s on the field shooting arrows at us,” reported one of them. Continue reading Chapter 275. Tazhav Again.

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Chapter 274. Bahram Is An Idiot.

Bahram suddenly stopped short. “Oh, shit.” “Well might you say ‘Oh, shit,’” said his father grimly. “I lost my whip,” said Bahram. “When I went to retrieve Rivniz’s crown, I dropped it.” Continue reading Chapter 274. Bahram Is An Idiot.

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Chapter 273. Um, Fariborz?

Exactly one month later, the two armies lined up once again. Trumpets blared, drums thundered, captains rode up and down bellowing encouragement, and in the middle of the din, Fariborz attempted to make an inspiring speech. “Sure, we might have had some setbacks recently. But now, we fight like lions! If we don’t win, even our weapons and armour will laugh at us!” Continue reading Chapter 273.…

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Chapter 272. Roham.

Fariborz pinched the bridge of his nose. “This is a mess.” “Tell me about it,” said Gudarz. “I actually don’t think we can keep fighting.” “Not in the state we’re in, no,” admitted Gudarz. Continue reading Chapter 272. Roham.

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Chapter 271. Fariborz.

“Tus did what?” said Kay Khosrow, flatly disbelieving. “Got drunk-” “No, rewind. Before that.” Continue reading Chapter 271. Fariborz.

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Chapter 270. A Soldier.

Thirty thousand horsemen broke off from the giant horde, moving towards the Persians under cover of darkness. Moving as silently as possible, they first captured and drove away all the herds the Persians had recently captured, killing the herders before they could raise the alarm. Continue reading Chapter 270. A Soldier.

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Chapter 269. Nice Job, Piran.

Still weeping many hours and miles later, Tazhav burst into Afrasyab’s throne room and told him everything. Afrasyab just nodded grimly. “Piran, didn’t I tell you to muster an army from all the provinces?” “I’ll get right on that,” said Piran. Continue reading Chapter 269. Nice Job, Piran.

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Chapter 268. Tazhav.

The Persian scouts waved and yelled frantically. “The Turanian army’s coming! They’re led by a massive crocodile!” Continue reading Chapter 268. Tazhav.

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Chapter 267. Kabuda.

Tus marched his army onwards, onwards, deeper into Turan, into the territory of Afrasyab’s commander Tazhav, who was rather busy at the moment. The herds wouldn’t take care of themselves. Continue reading Chapter 267. Kabuda.

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Chapter 266. Giv's Quest.

Of course, this was all small stuff – the Persians had been lucky that they caught Turan relatively unprepared, but Afrasyab wasn’t sitting idly. “I told you so,” he said to Piran. “Kay Khosrow’s revenge.” Piran just nodded and swallowed. Continue reading Chapter 266. Giv’s Quest.

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Chapter 265. Palashan.

After a few days of mourning and picking through the rubble for whatever hadn’t burned or melted, the Persian army moved on. The early Turanian resistance was scattered at best, since the only real advance army had died at Kalat. Moving unopposed, the Persians went deep into the Turanian countryside, trampling or eating crops and brushing aside any small bands of warriors that tried to stop…

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Chapter 264. Who Are We?

As the cheerleaders trooped away, and howls and thuds started in the distance, and Farud’s face turned from pale to ashen, Jarireh stood up straighter.  “They might take the castle,” she said to her son’s corpse, “but they are getting nothing out of it.” Continue reading Chapter 264. Who Are We?