The Tsǫt'aan would quickly glance at them and speak in a confident tone.
Tsǫt'aan Xanaaq̇ut: "The Igemi won't defeat us, stay here"
Quickly mounting his steed and marching to the frontlines with a unit of Dze rangers towards the river.
Battle of the Kǫǫluj River
17th of Virdis 1611
Tsǫt'aan Xanaaq̇ut and a unit of rangers would be hiding in the tall grass as they gazed at the enemy army near the river, around sixty thousand by their estimates, and would the leader of the Dze think. As he made up his mind he signaled to the rangers to go back to where his army was. Human allies and auxiliaries were hiding in nearby woods and shrubbery and the main force of Dze cavalry marched towards the river, mounted archers in front and melee in the back. The drums announced a volley of arrows as they drew the humans to attack and cross the river, raining down upon them as a storm strikes at the shore, striking those in the vanguard as they slowly retreated, feigning shock at the size of the human force, they would leave unscathed as the river crossing ended, teasing their enemy to march forward and meet them.
As the Dze cavalry retreated, with horse archers at the back to continue firing at their enemy, drums would be heard again. As the enemy began to divide itself due to the distance, the cavalry would then turn back and encircle their foe in the tall grass. The igem vanguard would stop the chase and before they knew it, they had been trapped. Human warriors sprang from the bushes, bearing swords, maces and axes and cut down their foe, crushing it in complete silence as the cavalry overtook them in the woods, awaiting for the main body of enemies as mounted archers went even further back towards the river. By the time the main army knew the fate of the vanguard, they were beset upon by the Dze cavalry, heavily armoured both rider and mount alike, their wild screams deafened men and broke those of weaker will, and the trampling of their steeds and their dagger-like limbs impaired and maimed foes as they crashed into the igemi lines.
The vanguard and main body would be individually defeated and crushed, with the human auxiliaries then marching upon the rearguard as the Tsǫt'aan slew the enemy commanders one by one and carved bloody canyons in enemy lines as he dismounted in a rage the likes none of his foes would have seen until then, decapitating one and slashing the other in equal parts. After an hour of combat the main body would be completely crushed as the Dze had left a gap in the encirclement upon which foes would retreat, only to face the auxiliaries and horse archers. A massacre had just been finished and the rearguard, seeing the survivors of the engagement, attempted to flee across the river, some drowning, some being shot at and others crushed under thundering hoofs and shields as the cavalry and its auxiliaries catched up to them. Few would survive the battle, even fewer lived long enough to tell the tale; for in the night the Dze had crossed the river and, one by one, hunted the survivors. For only one was needed to tell the tale.
