I watched with fear and nervousness as my king’s army crested the hill and were greeted by the sight of an opposing force resting maybe one hundred yards away. Although this was the king’s army he was too ill to lead, instead one of his generals was in charge. The man was a politician and had no place on the battlefield but if anyone deserted we would be hanged for treason. I took a few big breaths to calm my nerves so I could think straight. I’m positioned in the middle of the forces in the back of my unit of infantry, in front of me is our cavalry armed with lances, shields and swords. The opposing army is armed with the same as our infantry, archers and cavalry. They had positioned themselves on a hill, this gave them a downward charge on us, we’re at a disadvantage.
    Our forces stopped at the base of the hill where the enemy lay atop. We had the superior numbers two to one but half of us were farmers given a sword and told to fight. I was growing anxious until the enemy horn sounded as they sent their cavalry towards us. They charged with long wooden lances with a sharp and deadly looking metal point joined to the end. They carried metal shields with family crests ranging from lions to gods on the front. The stomp of metal bound hooves slamming into the earth was almost rhythmic as if they were calling for our deaths. Before I could really think our commander commanded our cavalry to meet them. We had more cavalry than they did but we only carried wooden shields with poorly made lances. Using the extra momentum the enemy had from the downward charge they slammed into our forces. I watched with horror as our men were torn and thrown from their saddles, you could hear cries of pain and agony from both man and beast as they were slaughtered. I looked up in shock and dread as the enemy began to charge toward us. With our cavalry demolished and our archers not able to penetrate the knight's thick armor we had almost no defense except for a few pikeman. The pikeman took their long spears and rammed them into the ground forming a strong base. As the the cavalry made their way to our front lines they angled the spears towards them using the ground as an anchor and pivot point. The cavalry slammed into the pikeman, some of them were thrown from their horses as the metal point of the pike rammed through the metal protecting them. Most were unscathed and continued through our forces with no sign of slowing.
    Once the cavalry were through the front lines they rode straight through or forces ripping us apart. Although, only a few cavalry made it all the way through us. In some places enough men would group around a knight slowing him to a stop. I watched this unfold until I heard the thump of the hooves as they met earth, the sound was coming closer. I instinctively threw my shield up to protect myself but was met with nothing, as the first few lines of the men had stopped his charge in front of me. I took the opportunity to help. I ran over and cut the stirrups on the saddle letting the man's feet free, I grabbed his leg in a hug and ripped him from his saddle and threw him to the ground. The man now on the ground and stunned pulled his sword free and stood up to face me. This was a knight trained far longer than I and much more skilled in just about every weapon. I would not be fighting him fairly, that would mean suicide. Taking advantage of his surprise I did a fake jab with my sword and as he went to block I struck with all my force using the bottom of my shield. The hit had dented his helmet, blocked some of his vision, and threw him off balance. I took the opportunity to eye for weaknesses in his armor, there was a slit in the armpit used to offer better movement. This was a perfect target as the armpit has many veins, he would surely bleed out if it was cut. I jabbed out and heard an almost animal like howl in return. Stunned, wounded and dazed the rest of the infantry grabbed hold of him and finished him off.
    I hadn’t realized but while I was having my skirmish the enemy had begun to charge us with their infantry. By the time our army had recovered from the cavalry charge we were met with a wall of flesh and steel. I watched as the enemy men chopped and slashed their way through our front lines working their way closer to me. We were losing, their infantry was forming a circle around us, blocking our escape and any chance of flanking them. The infantry had finally worked their way in far enough to meet me. I desperately blocked swords and jabbed around shields but it was of no use. I downed a few but more just took their place. The battle looked hopeless, suddenly I heard another familiar call. I heard the rhythmic sound of the cavalry. My heart sank as we could not hold off against another charge. To my surprise when they came into view they were not enemy cavalry but our own.
    About twenty of our cavalry had swerved off to the side during the first charge and had been waiting for the precise moment to return and flank the enemy. By now we were completely surrounded, the cavalry that we had although little in number was all that we needed. They rode around us picking off the enemy men one at a time from the circle surrounding us as they opened up places for us to break through the enemy line. Once we broke threw the line it was quick work dispatching them as we had worked our way around them.
    I watched what I believed to be their last man killed and immediately all the anger and hatred for the other army was drained and I was filled with only exhaustion. The ones that remained from the battle were finishing off the enemy wounded and capturing some of them for ransom. The land was red and brown and littered with the weapons, armor and bodies of the dead. Vultures flew overhead waiting for us to leave so they could feast. I sat down to catch my breath and relax, and gaze over the horizon to calm myself. I saw what looked to be a cloud of dirt and dust shifting on the tree tops, it’s a windy day so I make no note of it. I stand up as I hear the commander calling for us to move back to camp. While everyone gathers together I see the severity of our casualties. We’ve gone from two thousand men to roughly sixty. I paused as I heard the cavalry mount their horses and begin to ride but it sounded strange, different than normal. The sound is emanating not only from their horses but the woods. I look in the direction of the woods and notice the dirt in the air was moving closer. The dirt was not shifted by the wind but caused by hundreds of men and horses. I thought these very words and as I predicted, a large wave of armored horses and men with long and spiked lances ahead of them rushed from the treeline. They ripped through us with no opposition, just the dull thud and the scrape of metal as each lance came into contact with a chest. I stood back not even trying to fight, I only watched with hopelessness as one spotted me. He lowered the lance at me, it was dripping in blood from another man. He kicked his horse urging it forward. I heard the yearning sound of metal on earth, and all was calm. The time was brief before he reached me. I took one last breath, gazed over the horizon and then closed my eyes.