*on top of the gate*
{JUN'S POV}
I stand in a line of armored knights, my anxiety building as the enemy army charges closer. The metal feels heavy against my skin compared to the leather armor I wore for months. It offers much-needed extra protection, so I shake off my qualms.

When the other side hesitated, I thought they might actually pull back. Unfortunately, it seems that the rumors are true. Cojacans never retreat.

Since my dominant eye is my right, I'm holding my bow in my left hand. This leaves my right hand free to grab the woven hilt of my sword for comfort.

I hope that I'll never need to use it, because that would mean that the gate has been breached and we've entered close combat.

Considering that we're still outnumbered and most of our fighting force is sick—thus not able to react as quickly or fight as well—close combat is basically a death sentence. The gate cannot fall.

Still, I find comfort in the solidity of the sword. Then I grab an arrow from quiver on my right hip.

"We're prepared for this!" General Ito yells. "Archers, into position! Save your arrows, lads! Don't fire until you can see the whites of their eyes!"

Ren's dad exudes an aura of calm confidence. I feel assured just by listening to him.

I knock the arrow and hold up my bow, not drawing the string back yet because it takes a lot of strength. I narrow my eyes.

The enemy draws closer with ladders and a battering ram. Wait for it...

I can hear the war cries down below. I pull back the string and aim. Wait for it...

It seems like the entire Clarines army is holding its breath, waiting desperately for something to break the almost peaceful stillness in the air.

General Ito's voice cuts through the air like a catapult hitting the wall. "Now!"

A rain of arrows befalls the charging army, downing several and wounding several more. I knock another arrow, pulling the string taunt once more.

"Fire at will!" General Ito shouts.

I fire again, concentrating my aim at the troops carrying the battering ram. For every man I shoot, another takes their place. We're whittling them down, but not fast enough. They continue to advance.

The enemy splashes oil against the iron and wood gate, with the intention of setting it ablaze again to weaken it so the battering ram will do more damage.

I spot the person with the torch and my aim is true. They fall, now dead, but there's a second person with a torch who makes it to the gate and throws it at the oil-soaked wood. The gate ignites.

The battering ram is brought forth. I reach for my quiver. I'm out of arrows.

I curse, grabbing an arrow out of my neighbors quiver. I fell one of the six people carrying the battering ram, and someone else snipes a second.

With one-third of the carriers lost, the momentum of the battering decreases significantly. They hit a spot where the wood is black from fire damage and break through the ash, but the rest of the gate doesn't even shudder. Two new people take their place.

This time, the gate shudders a bit. I grit my teeth.

I pull back from the edge, handing my bow to a knight waiting in the back with a full quiver. They take my place and immediately begin firing.

"Make way for the bucket brigade!" General Ito commands. I grab a bucket and join the procession, ferrying sand to the fiery gate.

Since the fire starter is oil, water will only make it spread. After they began to us this strategy more, we've kept stockpiles of sand from the mountain quarries to use as an emergency fire extinguisher.

I dump my bucket of sand over the edge, where it piles in front of the gate and stiffles the oil fire.

This has the added benefit of preventing the enemies carrying the battering ram from finding good purchase on the ground or building up speed.

The ladders have finally made it to the wall.

They've learned to lean them against the wall at an angle that makes them difficult to push off the wall.

Fortunately for us, they can only climb the ladders one at a time. This makes for easy pickings, and no one has ever made it to the top before we've managed to knock the ladder down.

I ferry one more bucket of sand before the fire is completely out and the battering ram is effectively nullified. Then I run to the nearest ladder, determined to make myself useful.

I can't snipe the people climbing the ladder, but I can help another knight to push it off the parapets.

It's heavy. I push and strain, but over a dozen men weigh it down. General Ito notices this and makes his way over. He singlehandedly shoves the ladders back. It holds in the upright position for one second... two... three... before falling in the other direction.

I swallow bile, ignoring the screams and squishing sounds as those who were on the ladder hit the ground at a high velocity.

"Get to that one, lad." General Ito points me towards one of the two remaining ladders still propped against the gate. "I'm needed over there."

He gestures to the other ladder, where people are struggling to get it to budge.

I go where he instructed me. Several men are pushing on it, and they're making significant progress. All it'll take is one more solid push. The enemies on the ladder have almost reached the top.

I weasel under a big man's arm and push against a metal cross beam, right as the first person on the ladder draws near. She tries to grab me, but an arrow is shot into her eye from close range.

Blood sprays on me. Her mouth forms an O as her grip slackens and she falls backwards.

I shove. The ladder moves away from the wall. A shriek from above draws my attention.

The big burly guy was so focused on pushing, he didn't notice that a strap of his armor had gotten wrapped around one of the bars of the ladder. As the ladder is pulled away from the wall, so is he.

"Help me!" He begins to fall, grabbing at the raised parapet desperately. He succeeds, but his grip is too strong. He ends up breaking away parts of the stonework in his large hands.

"Hold on!" I shout.

He grasps for new purchase as I reach for him. He looks up with fearful tears shining in his eyes.

I grab his forearm, but I'm not strong enough by myself. Someone else grabs him. Unfortunately, she has the same lean physique I do. He's too heavy, and his armor is still tangled with the ladder.

The burly knight grabs her hand as a last resort. It's not enough. He falls with the ladder, his screech high-pitched and particularly sharp.

The female knight gets dragged over the edge with him. She's pulled forward with a surprised wail. I'm not fast enough to grab her legs.

I stay frozen in that position, hanging halfway off the wall with my hands outstretched.

I can see their bodies, mangled and contorted in unnatural positions at the bottom of the gate. I can see the whites of their still-open eyes.