The once proud and mighty warriors staggered through the unfamiliar land, bloody and beaten, but not yet defeated.

Just over 130 warriors of the original landing party now remained, all of them carrying wounds of one sort or another. They barely managed to keep ahead of the following horde that had chased them for two days and two nights, ever since the battle at Bajhin. Cut off from their ships by the surprise arrival of a large force of soldiers from a neighboring city, Clan Chieftain Lashki and what was left of his followers had been driven inland by the larger army.

The relentless pursuit, the countless small battles and numerous skirmishes over the past two days had left Lashki and his warriors depleted and exhausted. Many of his comrades had already died and not a few more were near death's doorway by the morning of the third day. Without food or water, save for what they could scavenge during their flight, the men were all close to the end of their rope. They had tried to swing back toward the safety of the coast several times, where their ships could hopefully pick them up, but were always driven back inland by the pursing soldiers, almost as if the army at their heels was herding them toward a specific goal.

Lashki and his clan of warriors from the Northern Islands had been raiding up and down this section of coast near Bajhin for a number of years and had never before come up against any structured resistance. This time, however, their progress down the coast must have been watched from recently established lookout positions and warnings had gone out ahead of their ships, allowing the local army to be ready for their landing.

Surprised and outnumbered on the open plain after nearly three hours of siege fighting outside the walls of Bajhin and cut off from the sea by the unexpected arrival of enemy forces, Lashki had no choice but to retreat into the thick, surrounding forest, where he had hoped to lose his pursuers. The leader of the local army, however, knowing the reputation of his opponent, had orders to bring back the head of Lashki, no matter how long it took. Nearly 100 of Lashki's forces had already been killed or captured during the battle and retreat from Bajhin, with even more falling during the past two days of forced march and the pursuit would continue until all of the invaders were captured, or preferably killed.

On the afternoon of the third day of pursuit, Lashki and his band entered a wide valley. Mountains began to rise on either side of them as they were driven forward and they all knew that somewhere within this valleywas where they would make their final stand.