The first battle

Artemis stood atop the knoll, waiting. He had never experienced war before. He wished he had the faith in his abilities that Orion did. Orion had sent him, and he would not let his mentor down – if he could help it.
The humans were out to kill them all. Artemis knew this. His heart longed to be home with Calliope, their first child soon to enter the world. He looked up to the sun, repeating his oath.
The other warriors should be in place now. It was the only way the plan would work. The humans had superior weapons. He and his comrades had only the element of surprise. He thumped his brass breast plate with his hand, steadying his resolve.
An odd silence fell over the valley. Artemis could hear nothing but his own breathing. The birds had stopped their idle chatter. Then an eagle screamed in the distance. The rumble started low, but soon Artemis could feel it in his hooves. A small cloud came around the corner. He stepped back into the alcove and laid his forehead on the cool of the cave wall. It was time. He took a deep breath. The eagle cried again, followed by the howl of a wolf. One sign, from each side of the valley.
Artemis counted slowly to three and spun to meet his foe. As if all connected, his fellow warriors revealed themselves at the same instance. The whoosh of arrows filled the air. He heard screams from below. More arrows. More screams. Artemis could see nothing through the dust. He heard a loud crack. A rifle, he thought. Humans were firing back. Screams filtered through the dust. One more crack of a rifle rang out. Then silence.
Artemis was positioned higher than his comrades, a location chosen specifically by Orion. He felt as though a heavy blanket was thrown over him, creating a silence more unsettling than he had ever felt. He hunkered down and waited. The wind slowly swept away the cloud of dust. Little by little he could see glints of armor across the valley. Looking left and right, he saw more armor as the dust cleared.
“Ayooooo!” A far away voice trumpeted.
“Ayooooo!” the answer came from the far end.
Soon the chorus of centaurs echoed off the walls down to the floor of the valley and up to the heavens. Artemis joined in the mele, rejoicing with his fellow warriors.
He had survived his first battle. They had thwarted the attempts of the humans to breach their borders.
He would soon be home with Calliope, and soon a father for the first time.

Word Count 439