The siege

My whelps and I travelled fast, our company was light so it was easy to make it to the designated fort quickly and without delay. We scouted and surveyed the area carefully, taking in all the necessary details we needed before we started our attack on the fort. The front was heavily guarded and what looked like archers were posted on the battlements above, all around the fort. Half a mile behind us were siege weapons, ready for use, they had been brought with us by a subsidiary group of wolvir.

I gave the order of where to place the siege weapons, then fired them upon the fort.

Chaos soon ensued as the fort was attacked, orcs manned their stations as they braced for the siege weapons that made contact with the ammo that was launched.

The sound of trebuchets firing echoed through the air, followed by the crushing thud of boulders slamming into the fort's walls. My whelps watched with excitement as the projectiles soared overhead, their eyes fixed on the impact zones. I watched with a calculating gaze, analysing the damage and ready to adjust our strategy if needed. The first few shots had struck true, breaching the outer wall in two places, but the orcs were quick to respond, their archers unleashing a hail of arrows towards our siege engines.

The orcs' barrage **** our siege crews to scramble for cover, shouting warnings to each other as they dodged the incoming arrows.

“Shields!” I yelled to my warriors. They hefted their shields above their heads to block any incoming attacks. An arrow flew towards me, but I was too quick and lifted my shield to protect myself against it.

I growled, baring my teeth in frustration, as I watched one of the trebuchet's wooden wheels splinter under the impact of a particularly well-placed shot. Lucky bastards, I thought. The catapults, however, were more resilient, their thicker timbers absorbing the arrow strikes with a series of hollow thuds. Our crews quickly regrouped, adjusting their aim to compensate for the orcs' defenses. I raised a clawed hand, then ordered the next wave of projectiles to be launched.

The next round of projectiles hurtled and flew towards the fort, making contact with the walls. The trebuchet wheel was hastily and crudely repaired with leather straps and wooden pegs, it was ready to continue with the ****, but how long it could keep up was unknown. It launched a massive boulder that struck the already breached section of the outer wall with a deafening crash. The impact sent shards of stone flying in all directions, and the sound of crumbling masonry echoed around us as a section of the wall collapsed, creating a ragged opening just large enough for a a few men to squeeze through.

As the dust and debris from the collapsing wall settled, I let out a low, rumbling growl, my ears perked up in anticipation. The orcs, realising their defence's had been breached, scrambled to respond. A series of snarls and barked orders erupted from within the fort, a ruckus of orcs scrambling around inside could be heard. My whelps, sensing victory within their grasp, let out a chorus of excited yips and howls, their eyes fixed intently on the small opening.

I raised a clawed hand, palm facing my troops, and the pack fell silent, awaiting my next command. The orcs, meanwhile, were hastily mustering a response.

I let my gaze linger on the opening, my eyes narrowing as I calculated the best course of action. The orcs, predictably, were mustering a response, archers posted above the walls waiting for any wolvir to advance. My whelps we’re ready to attack, I could feel their excitement, their eagerness to burst into the fray, but I held them back with a firm hand.

“Wait.” I growled. “Let them come to us.”

The orcs, however, were not inclined to oblige.

Instead, they chose to attempt to plug the breach with a hastily assembled barricade, a ramshackle collection of splintered wooden beams and rusty shields that seemed to tremble and shake as the orcs hastily assembled it. I watched with a vigilant eye as they laboured, my mind racing with the variables and vulnerabilities of their makeshift defence.

The barricade, once erected, seemed precarious at best, a flimsy barrier against the might of my pack.

As I watched the orcs' barricade take shape, I could sense my whelps' growing impatience. Their muscles quivered with suppressed energy, their claws flexing in anticipation of the order to charge. I stared at the makeshift barrier, my mind working to identify its weaknesses. The wooden beams were rough-hewn and unsecured, held together by tangled lengths of rusty wire and frayed rope. The shields, battered and dented, offered little more than a token defense against the ferocity of my pack.

Zandor approached me, a look of concern on his face.

“Commander, our ammo is running low. We've got a few stones left for the catapults, but the trebuchet's out. We need to end this soon, or we'll be throwing rocks by hand.”

I growled, my mind racing with the implications. We had expected to breach the walls quickly, but the orcs' defence's had proven more resilient than anticipated, they had chosen a strong fort to accommodate.

“Break more rocks." I growled, my voice low and even. “We'll shatter that barricade.”

Zandor nodded curtly, his face a mask of grim determination, and turned to relay the order to the siege crews. His voice carried across the chaos of the battlefield. The orcs, meanwhile, continued to reinforce their barricade, their movements swift and frantic as they worked to bolster their defence's.

A particularly massive stone was leveraged into place on the catapult's throwing arm, its surface etched with crude, jagged scars from previous impacts.

As I watched, the catapult's throwing arm, groaning beneath the weight of the massive stone, slowly began to rise, the wooden frame creaking in protest. The orcs, their faces set in determined snarls, continued to scurry about the barricade, their movements a blur of frantic energy as they worked to shore up the defenses. Zandor's voice, a low, gravelly growl, carried across the battlefield once more, his order to ready the weapon for another sling towards the fort walls.

The throwing arm of the catapult reached its zenith, the massive stone balanced precariously on its edge. The orcs, sensing the imminent danger, redoubled their efforts to fortify the barricade, their snarls and grunts of exertion audible even over the din of battle. My whelps, their anticipation reaching a fever pitch, were practically quivering with excitement.

With a sudden, violent lurch, the throwing arm released its payload, the massive stone hurtling through the air towards the orcs' makeshift barrier.

The stone struck the barricade with a deafening crash, the wooden beams and shields splintering and shattering under the impact. The orcs, caught off guard, were sent sprawling into the dirt, their bodies flailing as they scrambled to regain their footing.

“Loose arrows!” My archers understood that they were to fire upon the orcs on the battlements above, covering us as I made my next command to charge. “Charge! Kill the bastards!”

My whelps and I surged forward with a snarling howl, weapons held firmly and at the ready to engage in battle.

As my whelps charged forward, their snarls and growls reaching into a deafening cacophony, the orcs still alive from the siege weapons impact, stumbled to their feet, their eyes wide with panic as they scrambled to reestablish a defensive line. The air was heavy with the acrid scent of splintered wood and the metallic tang of blood as the two forces clashed in a frenzy of claws, teeth and weapons. The barricade, now reduced to a splintered, jagged mess, offered little resistance to the momentum of my warriors, and the orcs were swiftly overwhelmed, their bodies pinioned beneath the onslaught.

My great-axe, its blade etched with the scars of countless battles, struck deep through the shoulder of the first orc to stand in my way, the **** of the blow sending him crashing to the ground. I dug my weapon out of the heavily bleeding orc, a spray of its blood splattered onto my black fur. The sound of the orcs **** screams was music to my ears as I waded into the fray, my axe rising and falling in deadly swings, each strike finding its mark with precision and fury. The orcs, and their clumsy attempts at defence were no match for my skill and ferocity, they fell before me with like insects. The power I felt was unbelievable, I had never felt this surge before, except one time when I blacked out with the war for king Harold.

The orcs' futile attempts at resistance crumbled beneath our onslaught, their bodies piling up in a tangled heap of twisted limbs and shattered shields. My great-axe, its blade slick with the ichor of the fallen, rose and fell with deadly precision, cleaving through the orc fodder with ease. To my left, Zandor killed an orc by piercing The tip of his blade and ran it through into the exposed throat of the now dead orc . His hot breath billowed out of his muzzle as he panted heavily, his chest heaving beneath his armour. His eyes gleamed with feral intensity, unforgiving and unyielding as he dispatched another orc with a swift slash across its chest.

As the last orc fell before me, its lifeless body crashing to the ground with a dull thud, a deafening roar erupted from my victorious whelps. The sound was like thunder, shaking the very foundations of the breached fort walls as my warriors celebrated their triumph. I raised my gore-slicked great-axe aloft, its blade glinting in the fading light of day, and let out a triumphant howl of my own. The noise reverberated through the fort, a primal declaration of our dominance.

Zandor approached me, his chest still heaving from the battle, and bowed before me.

Zandor's eyes shone with a fierce light as he gazed up at me, his muzzle split wide in a triumphant grin.

“Hail, Commander!” He bellowed, his voice echoing off the battered walls of the fort. “Your strategy has proven flawless, as always. The orcs were no match for our ferocity!” He pounded his chest with a massive fist, the impact causing his armour to shake. “I have never seen a breaching like that, so swift and merciless. You have outdone yourself, Commander!”

As Zandor spoke, the other wolvir gathered around, their faces twisted with excitement and admiration.

“Hail to Fen!” They all cheered.