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Battle of Mort
The
Epic Wolf Men of Mount Wor gathered in a tight pack, spearmen bracing for the charge coming from overhead. As the
Gorthmaugs circled ever closer, their chant descended with them:
We're the Gorthmaugs and we're here to say
That our wolf-man rivalry is here to stay
And unless you bash us up but good
You'll wish you'd just been boys so good
And kept out of our deadly lands
We now proceed to eat your hands!
"Omg, what is that?" Mordichai stammered, keeping his jingle close at hand.
"That is the ancient war-tongue of the Gorthmaugs--what they call the Phon'q," said Silvermane said between grit teeth. "It means they are three steps ahead of us." He raised his blade. "I can say only this: there's going to be rotary tillers of Gorthmaugs coming this way."
- The Elemenstor Cycle, Book 12 : End of the Hierarch Wars
One of the major combats of Book 11 and later Book 12. The grand combat between the Epic Wolf Men of Mount Wor and their rivals, the Gorthmaugs, to determine whether the Gorthmaugs would side with Char Reyarteb or the desparate Elemenstors out to defeat him. The brutal combat took up an entire chapter, as the tactical genius of the mighty tree-dwellers clashed with the off-the-cuff ingenuity and their compliment of Elemenstors. Though they fought hard, the Wolf Men seemed destined to lose, as evidenced particularly by the extended flashback sequences from the point of view of seven different Wolf Men soldiers, describing in painful detail their life from the moment they were born to this battle where they met their end. The implied meaning was that all the Wolf Men would come to a similar fate and that their unique culture and way of life would be lost forever. The meaning switched from "implied" to "oblique" when the author began adding footnotes all over the chapter denouncing British imperialism in Africa and the arbitrary borders drawn up that led to misunderstanding between cultures. Abrubtly, though, the book came into focus once again.
Then, to try and get his bravery up, Mordichai jingled his jingle, and found that the Gorthmaugs were beginning to make missteps. After measuring their beat, Mordichai countered it with one of his own, and soon their foes were rushing in a confused mass, disoriented; the Wolf Men easily sprang back and took the day. Out of respect for their bravery, their brilliant catch-up, and an ancient oath, the Gorthmaugs joined the company in battle against the returning Char Reyarteb.
Some have wondered why the battle between the two was called the Battle of Mort. In truth, Mort was the name of one of the Epic Wolf Men, and had his name drawn out of the helmet while the two opposing generals debated where the Epic-est place to fight would be. Thus was the battle named in his honor because they didn't have the standard prize for a Wolf Man pre-battle drawing: a new hat.
The Battle of Mort was continued in Book 12, as the Gorthmaugs stormed the hordes of Lizardmen tearing up from the earth. The resulting combat was set to a beat so phon'q-laden it would be known forever as Phon'q Battle 23: Bring On The Noise, Bring On The Phon'q among the Gorthmaugs.
In the text, it is stated in a footnote that 3,895,074 Gorthmaugs were slaughtered in this battle.
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