The Tomb of the Tagosa Kings

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Hazel

Raiders descend from a ridge above a dig site, igniting panic across a sun-baked camp. A young lieutenant, Elraes, struggles to impose order as soldiers scramble for weapons and form a thin line against a vastly larger force. The Nacatori horsemen advance with mismatched arms, while Elraes directs a strategic retreat toward nearby cliffs and a cave linked to the ongoing excavation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryStory & Novel

FormatPDF

Pages17

Reading Time26 min

AccessFree to download

Raiders Attack

Formation and Duel

Rifle Shot and Volley

Retreat to the Cliffs

The Tomb of the Tagosa Kings By Andrew Warwick “Raiders! Raiders!” The bellowed cry echoed through the camp and the dig site from the ridge above, from the three soldiers on picket duty. They appeared tumbling over the ridge, holding their shakos tight to their head as canteens, bayonets and flintlock muskets jangled during their scrambled decent down the slope, dislodging dry earth and stone as they ran. The jackets they wore were of rusty brown, blending in with the colours of the barren hills around. “Raiders!” In a cloud of chocking dust they reached the foot of the slope, sprinting back across a dried out riverbed, the earth parched and cracked beneath a blazing sun. Commotion gripped the camp as the three guards raced towards it, men spilling from tents, grabbing for weapons and pulling on muskets and shakos, while workers scattered, running for cover. A slender young officer in an elegantly tailored uniform stepped forward, slim bladed sword in hand. While his jacket was of the same rusty brown as the soldiers around, his was neither patched nor faded like so many of those of the soldiers, and was tightly buttoned to the throat, despite the overbearing heat. His face was red beneath his bicorne and pale hair. “What did you see, corporal?” he asked of one of the trio of guards who had come to a sudden halt upon reaching the camp. The man, his dusty jacket unbuttoned and chest heaving as he sucked down air, pointed back towards the ridge. “Nacatori,” he gasped out as he breathed heavily. “Raiders. Must be a hundred strong, coming right for us.” The officer nodded before calling out commands, attempting to impose some order on the chaos around. “Form on me Queen’s Own!” A tall, raw-boned corporal came to his side, jacket half un-buttoned and head bare, his hair cut roughly short and the colour of dry straw. A short and stocky sergeant took up the commands, bellowing and harrying the soldiers into two ranks near the young officer, facing across the riverbed towards the ridge. There they stood, a mere forty men stoically waiting for the coming foe. It was not long until they did, a mass of horsemen appearing atop the ridge, silhouetted against the washed out blue of the cloudless sky, made hazy by the overwhelming heat. They wore the loose fitting and brightly coloured robes and headscarves of the Nacatori, dozens of men wielding a wide assortment and variety of weapons. There were swords and sabres and lances, ready for the mad plunging charged down the hill and into the camp, as well as muskets and bows should the need arise, mismatched and archaic, but deadly none the less in the numbers present. Lieutenant Elraes glanced nervously around the campsite, his palms sweaty ashe gripped tight at the hilt of his sword. He wished he could loosen his jacket as many of the men had to get some relief from the heat, but he was meant to be setting the example for the men to follow, even if most did not do so. They were in a long dried out riverbed, a cluster of robust grey trees and shrubs along its banks all but the only indication of its existence. Hills rose up towards the west, hardy stone-grass and rocks littering the red earth of their slopes. Behind him, along the eastern side of the riverbed, the ground rose up steeply, almost cliff like in nature, some ten metres in height. Long ago a cave had burrowed back into the cliffs, but fallen rocks now blocked the entrance. It was that cave that had brought them to this place, and where workers had been busy digging out the fallen rocks and earth under the commands of a wiry, grey-haired professor. Elraes’ glance took in the tall corporal at his side, Harry Ban, a fearsome looking man. At one stage his nose had been broken and reset at an angle, while his face was scarred by pock marks and weathered. Harry gave the lieutenant a broad, reassuring grim as his pulled back the flint on his rifle. Elraes looked back to the raiders who were still lined up along t

FAQs

Who attacks the camp, and how do they arrive?

Three picket soldiers cry out that raiders are coming, and a large mass tumbles over the ridge toward the camp, kicking up dust and causing immediate chaos.

What forces does Elraes command, and what is their situation?

Elraes leads a small band of roughly forty men formed near a dried riverbed, facing a much larger Nacatori force approaching from the ridge.

How does Elraes respond to the raiders’ first engagement?

After observing the advance and witnessing an opening shot, he orders the soldiers to fall back toward the cliffs, recognizing they cannot hold the attackers in open ground.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Hazel