Assault On The Fort

The first explosion of magic from Sabina sent bandits flying in all directions. They had been tasked with guarding the fort but with no real resistance from the village they were not expecting to be catapulted through the air by magic.

Jarel and Halen were on the surviving guards before they had a chance to regroup, their blades slashing through light armour and flesh. The last of the guards were rendered pincushions by a number of well placed arrows from Sari who ran behind the two melee fighters.

A horn within the fort cried out and more bandits streamed out through the ruined gatehouse of the fort.

“Push forward!” Halen yelled to the others, waving them towards the fort entrance. Jarel brought his shield down on the head of a fallen bandit and broke into a sprint following Halen towards the gatehouse.

Sabina and Sari, came up behind, the archer taking out stragglers and stopping the melee focus members of the group from getting surrounded.

Halen’s charge into the base was blocked by a pair of hulking urkans, one armed with a flail, the other with a falchion, both bearing shields. The urkan with the flail stepped forward bringing his weapon down in an overhead swing. Halen stepped lightly to the right out of harm's way and putting the flail armed urkan between himself and the blade wielding one.

The urkan with the falchion audibly protested as Halen worked to keep the urkan’s compatriot between them.

“Come ‘ere you little shit!”

Jarel noticed the little game between the bandits and Sabina’s father and moved swiftly around the back of the bandits coming up on their flank. Halen winked at Jarel as the Starling’s fighter drove his sword into the back of the blade armed urkan.

The bandit gurgled his last breath and as his compatriot turned towards the sound he was jumped by Halen. Halen shouldered the shield out of the way and drove one of his short blades into his neck over and over again. The urkan toppled over backwards and Halen stepped over him ready for his next opponent.

Jarel followed behind, glancing over his shoulder to see how the two girls were going. The stamina of the group was flagging a little with Kamelia missing but Sabina and Sari were still fighting hard to make sure that Jarel and Halen were not overwhelmed.

“I’m running low here!” Sari yelled, “And I don’t think Sabina can keep this up much longer!”

“If you need to fall back, fall back!” Halen yelled back as he made it through the entrance of the gatehouse. An aeln bandit jumped down from the battlement, axe in hand behind Halen but did not notice Jarel who barrelled into him and crushed him against the slide of the wall. The bandit was disorientated by the hit and Jarel finished him off before he could regain his senses.

“Come on lad!” Halen called. In the darkness of the gatehouse he was just a shadow silhouette by the bright light of day streaming in from the other side of the building. Jarel sighed and broke into a slow jog following Halen who was waving his dagger over his head and gesturing further into the fort.

Jarel made it out into the fort’s courtyard and looked about the place. The area of broken stonework was packed tightly with tents and small fires, lines cast from battlements with drying meats and drying clothes.

As he looked for Halen he was suddenly and violently thrown off his feet.

“The Machine moves!” A bandit yelled somewhere close by.

Jarel clambered to his feet using the wall to brace himself when the world seemed to shift again. He held on to the wall for dear life watching as the world outside the fort on the other side of the gatehouse revolved away. The surface of the Machine was shifting and the fort sat right on the edge of a plate.

Jarel let out a yelp of surprise as Halen slammed into the wall besides him.

“Hold on lad. It won’t be much longer.” Halen yelled over the deafening sound of the Machine shifting.

The two aeln sheltered against the wall as crates, tents and bandits tumbled past them till the cacophony died. It was like all the sounds died in an instant as the plate settled and everything in motion suddenly fell to the ground.

Jarel groaned and pulled himself off the wall. He and Halen had sustained a number of cuts and bruises from loose debris but otherwise were unharmed. The same could not be said for the camp which was now in ruins. Only a few of the makeshift structures that the bandits had put up were still intact and everywhere bandits were pulling themselves to their feet or lying prone on the ground.

“We are trapped in the fort.” Halen whispered looking back the way they had come. The gatehouse entrance was now blocked by a wall of granite, “We have lost Sabina and Sari as well. Machine shit!”

“Hopefully the girls are ok.”Jarel replied, “I don't think they entered the fort before the Machine changed.”

“I’m sure they are fine.” Halen replied. “I’m more worried about us. We have to grab the captives and find a way out.”

“We better move quickly, Uncle Halen! This is our only chance.” Jarel reached for his sword and took a step out into the camp. He turned fully expecting to see Halen following but the older man was still on his knees. His head was tilted back awkwardly and his eyes focused on the blade of a broadsword that rested against his neck.

“This is not your chance, kiddo.” Ungonius grinned, holding Halen in his place as his bandits, back on their feet, began to converge on the two men of Meadowfort.