The Battle For Dras Leona

[Nandon]

William kneeled down, placing a hand on his forehead to cover his eyes from the light as he looked at the Fortress before him, The entire area had a abundance of water, And William knew once they entered the city, The streets would quickly get slippery with the combination of Blood, Water, And sweat. Shrugging mentally to himself he felt the gaze of Helgrind fall across his back and he felt a shiver of Uncomforting fill him as he turned and stared at the mountain.

After a moment he shifted his gaze to the east and to Leona lake, Then finally he cast his gaze on the city once more, This time specifically the defenses, There was the gate he knew the yes, As well as the walls, Both would no doubt be heavily enchanted, But Williams plan could help save thousands of the Vardens lives as it required no men to be pounding away at the walls like beggars, hoping for entrance. Then there was the smoke William noticed wafting from the walls at regular interavals,
“Fire Cauldrons and pitch No doubt.” William muttered to himself,

Those would take a toll on lives, But they could only effect the Varden once before the empire would be forced to abandon the walls. And once the empire abandoned the walls, Only a miracle could save them. Standing up he brushed off his knees and walked back to the Varden camp, Almost all the tents lay abandoned at this point, as all the women and children had been lift behind in Beltona. And all of Williams warriors stood at the ready. During the war council, Due to the need to take Aroughs from the empire, William had been placed as head of a expeditionary force, And his Goal? Take Dras Leona, And that he would do.

Moving over to his artillery section William found his Artillery commander, A youngish Dwarf around 350 years of age, William struggled to recall his name for a moment before it returned to him. “Neirder.” William acknowledged. “Are you ready to proceed with part A of our plan? Do we need to move a bit closer?”
“No Sir William, We are fine at this range, It is a bit extreme, For human made catapults at least, But our Dwarven made ones, though few in number should be able to strike the gate easily enough, Even the human made ones should be ok.” The Dwarf Responded.

William nodded appreciatively before speaking again. “Alright, Go ahead and load the catapults, When I blow the rams horn I want you to begin your Bombardment of the gate. I want that thing down by the time we arrive!” William said with a bit of a smirk before moving off towards the wall of men that was now forming.

William moved to the center of the formation and got everyone’s attention, It was time for the encouraging speech.

“Men! Today! We will fight for our families! Our brothers! And our loved ones back in beltona! Today! We fight to see the end of the kings oppression of us! Today! We will take back the city that rightfully belongs to us! Citizens of the empire! And today we shall send a message to the vile king! That shall reverberate throughout history!” William shouted, As he tried to get his voice above the loud applause, He smiled a bit to himself before letting the column reform, Before ordering a march

[Aelodil]

Anurin was anxious. His hand rested on Andlat's hilt. He was used to having Nasuada ask him to raze or capter a city. He and Vanilor would gladly comply. But now he had burdens. However anxious he was he did not show it..His features showed confidence. It would not be good for the Varden to see any of their Riders being anxious. He walked back to the bulk of the Varden when he heard the horn sound. Vanilor finally flew out to the Varden. A massive sheet of white covering the sky. Anurin ran to the leader of this section of the Varden, William.

As Anurin neared, he saw a brief glimpse of the dwarf talking to William before he ran off in the direction of the catapult Deciding he was more of use as morale, he called for Vanilor and climbed onto his saddle. He raised Andlat for all to see and shouted, magically enhancing his voice,"Today the Empire shall fall and the Varden shall take what is rightfully theirs! Today we fight for our freedom! We share our blood, our strength. But no matter what, we shall purge the Empire!"" gladly noting the chorus of cheers after William's speech.

[Quetzal]

The day had finally arrived.

Ri'Shei stood behind the walls of Dras-Leona, standing among her fellow Empire warriors. As she had proven strength in her few months within the Empire's ranks, she had been placed among a group of weaker soldiers as a sub-leader and to improve their overall chances of succeeding. More experienced soldiers were around in groups too, strategically placed so that as few deaths as possible would occur. Wherever a weaker soldier might struggle, a more experienced one would be around to save them. Of course, many of them would be sacrificed. She doubted many of the people she was standing with at this instant would survive. She herself was aware that this could be the last day she ever saw. A group of heavily armoured soldiers were hurriedly feeding a nearby catapult with flames and others were readying boiling oil. Spellcasters were positioned along the walls, ready to fend off anything the Varden threw at them as well as try and help deter their dragons.

A vast white mass launched itself into the sky, and the spartan heard a number of feet shuffling uncomfortably around her. Was that a dragon? It was huge. There had been rumours from spies about a huge ancient dragon, but it was unknown until this point it the rumours were true. Clearly they were. Something that size would be incredibly tricky for the Empire's Riders to keep at bay, even if they managed to outnumber the Varden's Riders. She shivered as a thought came over her; if things with this dragon got bad, there was every chance Galbatorix would pay the battle a personal visit on Shruikan. It was rare anyone saw the black dragon, but he was huge as the King had used magic to increase his growth, so perhaps he would be able to best this white dragon.

There were Riders dotted every now and then within the Empire's ranks, but most were further back. Many people had been evacuated or had fled, so the city had been eerily empty until today. Soldiers now flooded the streets, covering the various entrances through tunnels besides the walls as well as providing backup if the walls were taken. The Riders were somewhere there, probably, ready to mount their dragons and take to the skies when the battle kicked off. She knew most of them as they were around a lot, but was not the sort of person was impressed simply by a person's circumstances. She had only met one of the Empire's Riders, Ragdar, who had surprised her with his skill and how he had matched her stubbornness, making her take a liking to him. She hoped he and the other soldiers she knew would not be injured badly or killed. The Varden were too far to fire at just yet, so it was all she could do to wait and watch for any change.

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Aelodil]

Ragdar had it confirmed that he was insane. He had just saw the huge dragon appear. And yet he did not fear it yet was glad there was no rain. Huh. Funny how much past events can have an effect on you. He was glad his father had put him as the leader of the group his friend Ri'Shei was in. She was assigned to a small battalion and he had specifically asked to be assigned as that full force's leader. He and Lenora flew out. A proud crimson menace. He landed near the front, his polished chain clear and visible.

He enhanced his voice and yelled at the enemy, wide and clear,"This city is under our protection! Not a single one of you lack-witted dogs will see the light of day if they threaten it! We give you a chance to run! Run back to your scabby little caves and pray we don't chase you!". At his last word, Lenora let out a fierce roar and he heard his troops yell. Reaching out with his mind, he located Ri'Shei's mind and said,"Wanna bet? The one to get the most kills out of me, you, and Lenora wins. Good hunting."[/i]

[Nandon]

William marched out towards the city, The catapults being pulled behind the main body, The closer he could get the better his plan would work. Stopping just outside arrow range William stared at the city, He waited until everyone had stopped, Including the catapults, They had around 15 and plenty of ammunition, Enough for at least 4 volleys, Hopefully this was enough to breach the walls and then some.

He brought the ram horn to his lips again, Waited a moment then blew two long mournful notes across the field of battle, Cutting like a whip across the silence , The catapults, Already preloaded before they had even begun moving was prepared, It then took several moments to target the gate, And surrounding walls. Before with a loud BANG The large stones where released into the air, 10 of which flew straight towards the gate. 2 of the remaining 5 then flew past the gate, Most likely crushing any soldiers behind it, Then the remaining three flew towards the walls, One of which clipped right over the battlements clearing that area and smashing down onto the street below, While the other two smashed into the walls and held.

William then waited to see the results of his plan.

[Quetzal]

Ri'Shei smiled at the sight of Ragdar and his dragon, Lenora. They could able leaders and confident soldiers today in their gleaming armour, ready to take on the full force of the Varden. She let out a battle cry along with the troops of men around her, adrenalin surging through her. Feeling the touch of Ragdar's mind, she allowed him to speak to her and smiled. "You're on,"

[/i] she replied. Making a game out of what was set to be a bloody and terrible battle would help her cope with it, and she enjoyed the friendly rivalry with the Rider and dragon.

A horn sounded from somewhere within the Varden's forces, and somewhere further back, it was answered with a rich, ringing call from somewhere high up in a building within the city. An intense silence followed. Not one Empire soldier make a sound, as though doing so would spoil some age-old ritual of battle. There was not even the sound of any animal or bird, all creatures having sensed the oncoming battle or fled in fright at the sight of so many people bearing fire and dragons. There was a fumbling among the catapults of the Empire as they readied them to fire, and a strained squeal of the Varden's own machines advancing. Spellcasters readied themselves to deflect attacks and protect troops. Silence fell completely. Ri'Shei could hear no sound but the fast beating of her own heart forcing blood to rush through her ears. A excited sort of fear was thick in the air, laced with anticipation of what was to come.

The whoosh of air created what sounded to be almost a negative silence. Boom! a huge boulder collided with the wall Ri'Shei was standing on, shaking the stone structure. The wall held strong. The city gates some way off were stuck heavily, bending and twisting but not breaking. They were impossible now to open by hand, and so would require only further force to break. Soldiers fled as two stones flew past the gate. Ri'Shei grimaced and looked away as one landed among them, another being shattered by a spellcaster and raining down on the soldiers, causing bruises rather than death. Another boulder struck the wall some way off, while still another collided with a tall but shabby house nearby, spraying nearby soldiers with splinters and brick dust. The first deaths had occurred, and they had been from the Empire.

Not to be outdone, the finely crafted catapults lining the city walls were readied to fire. A small group manned each one, with one member shouting instructions for aiming by peering out over the walls at the enemy. These leaders of the catapult groups each nodded to one another along the wall. As one, the catapults released pitch and burning masses onto the enemy. There were flaming lumps of rock amid regular boulders, these set alight by coating with oil and coal. Eleven were aiming for the Varden's catapults, but four were shot directly into the forefront of their army. The catapultists wasted no time in starting to reload. Ri'Shei could clearly see that the gates were almost destroyed; any battering ram or dragon could easily break it down now. The Varden would enter the city soon. She gripped her swords tightly and adjusted her chain mail, waiting for the enemy to enter and the worst of the battle to begin.[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Nandon]

William watched the damage to the gate and growled, he knew the main army was well within range of the empire catapults, But the vardens Own catapults where out of range of threes,
“Reload Reload Reload!!!” William screamed turning as he saw the flaming rocks fly towards them, As the first hit the ranks of the Varden He sighed before calling out a new command to the catapults. “Fire again! Aim at the gate! I want that Damn thing down by the time we reach it! ” William yelled before rushing back to the main battle line, Where havoc had been reeked by the empire catapults.

William sighed as he saw all the dead but then he pulled himself together and called out. “We will now rush the city! FOLLOW ME BOYS!” William screamed to his soldiers as the Varden catapults fired off, this time 11 of 15 striking the gate, 2 Hiting the walls, Very close by to where one of the catapults had earlier hit, Most likely sending anyone on the wall falling. And the last one flew way over the city, landing behind the gate.

[Aelodil]

Vanilor let out a seething and deafening roar of challenge as William finished his declare of war. Anurin quickly cast a spell to protectt the Varden from the sound, already almost draining the gem in Andlat's hilt. Sighing, he climbed down and gestured for Vanilor. Plopping up a claw, Vanilor slammed it into the already damaged gate."After you."[/b] he said. Grimacing, Anurin stepped into the city. Every step he took made a dull soun on the stone. Suddenly, a soldier lunged at him. Parrying the attack, Anurin swiftly decapitated the man and his head fell.

Silence followed the thud of the sound of the man's head. Anurin's eyes darted around, threatening anyone to attack him. Suddenly the whole army was on him. But before they could take a step, one of Vanilor's hands were set around Anurin in protection. Then all was confusion and chaos as troops hacked at Anurin as he danced around, evading this, parrying, wards protecting. He hacked and slashed towards the Rider's battalion. He thought it would be the strongest and therefore sought to destroy it. But he soon found himself breathing hard. Vanilor kept destroying defenses and killing spell-casters.

Anurin felt his energy be sapped as his wards continously protected him. Then the sound of a metallic clang and he found himself surrounded. Was this his end? He felt he was supposed to die fighting Galbatorix, not his puppets. He closed his eyes and cast a complex spell to make a protected sphere around him as he fought his way out of the city, and reached the Varden's bulk. He and Vanilor then marched with the Varden, Anurin sitting on the clouds as Vanilor was very tall.

(Bad post. Not my fault. Post from phone.)

[Quetzal]

Cheers went up on the walls as those with a view saw the Varden somewhat damaged by the catapults. Ri'Shei was unable to see, but could hear the great clamour as iron twisted and wood splintered under the force of the boulders hurled at the gates by the Varden. Broken by the rebel army, the pathetic remains that clung desperately to the huge iron hinges were swept aside by a single sweep of the mountainous white dragon's claw. She watched its movements closely, not wanting to be in the way of its attacks. From some way off, she heard the sound of leathery skin sliding against itself as wings unfurled, launching the few dragons of the Empire into the sky. There were few Empire Riders, but from spies' reports, they outnumbered the Varden Riders. Of course, that was not including the monstrosity that had presented itself today, which would offer more of a problem.

The Rider of the huge dragon had entered the city, and naturally a swarm of soldiers surrounded him. They attempted to outnumber him, and although his wards were sound they knew that just hitting the wards would weaken him. Spellcasters saved their energy, knowing they would not overcome his wards, instead allowing the relentless attacks from the swarms of soldiers to do the work in weakening him. Sapping his energy would be important and would eventually cause his wards to break, or, if he were foolish (which was doubtful), the effort of keeping them up would kill him or weaken him enough to be easily slain.

As Anurin and Valinor headed the Varden army in the approach to Dras-Leona's walls, Empire archers readied themselves. The top of the walls had a coating in archers, and below the surface of the walls, arrowheads poked out slits in the walls from rooms below. Archers inside the walls were safer from attack, but archers on top could flee easier and had no risk of becoming trapped. Once the Varden's army reached a distance in range of the archers, there was a pause. Signals were exchanged, and finally, almost at the same time the arrows were let loose. They would not be aiming at anyone in particular, but since every single one of those hundreds of arrows was aimed at the Varden's forces, some were bound to hit. Many archers had aimed at Anurin and Valinor, a separate miniature cloud of arrows heading towards them. The Empire had the best position here, being able to shoot and pick off the Varden from above, but they all knew that would change once the opposing army came flooding into the city. A number of spellcasters began murmuring in the Ancient Language, weaving spells carefully. A number of different forms of offensive magic were sent exclusively at Valinor; bolts of electricity, spears of ice, ribbons of fire, and orbs of energy of a host of different colours. It would be hard to miss such a large target, but they were aware his scales protected him well, and that he would have wards.

[Nandon]

William ran towards the city as fast as his legs would carry him, Continuing the charge even as arrows whistled around him, William himself had no wards, he felt if he let magic protect him all it would accomplish was the dulling of his own skills, Besides, In his mind there was no better teacher than pain.

William reached the gate and charged through, Slashing at the disorganized warriors that was the result of Anurin’s attack on the front gates. At a quick couple of commands he sent several groups to Secure the walls, Before breaking up the large group of soldiers he had and sending them off in all different direction through the cities side streets, They would clear this city Building by Building.

A group of several weaker soldiers suronded William and he prepared to move off when he noticed a tall figure off to the side, A group of empire soldiers surrounding them. William quickly guessed that figure would be trouble later on in the battle and order his squad to charge over, They caught the womans squad by surprise and quickly surrounded them.

[Aelodil]

Ragdar loved it. It was like an all you-can-kill buffet."21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30!" he yepped tallying his kills. Then sudden mayhem broke up as the Varden clashed with the Empire. He ignored it but then looked towards Ri'Shei for a precautious second. He found her and her small battalian eaily surrounded by the leader and a contingent of what seemed to be veterans. Rushing over, he and Lenora lent a hand. Swiping her tail, 5 soldiers flew out of the gates. Then Ragdar was upon them.

Hack and slash. Allwas mayhem as Arucane seemed to simmer with pleasure. He threw a fireball at a soldier who gave an ominous screech before dying."35,36,37,38,39,40...41..42,43.." Ragdar continued as Lenora mumbled,"40...43.....45..47....50.."[/b]. He darted to Ri'Shei's side and continued hacking. He felt great. His blood was pumping so fast. Arucane felt natural to him as he swiped at another 3 troops who got too close. Would they ever end?! he wondered to himself. They just kept coming. As he glimpsed William, he lunged at him inhumanly fast, being the effect of his father's help. Arucane came in from the right where it would be harder to block.




Anurin was sick.
First he held off the Empire's army, and now he had to block hundreds of arrows coming for him and Vanilor? And soon after that, spell-casters had sent bolts flying towards them. All this he caught using wards from Andlat's gem. He was glad he had stored it a lot. As swords met swords and shields met shields, Anurin quickly cast a ward on William. He then continued to seek out spell-casters' minds and crush them. As he finishe off the one nearest to him, he slipped his attention back as a soldier lunged at him.

Anurin went back to routine. Parry, dodge, slash, stab. Vanilor walked into the city casually as if entering his own home and continued taking out soldiers, getting in a bite of snack or two here and there. At least this battle was turning worth-while. Anurin followed a battalion heading for the center of the city. As they got a good distance away, another Empire squadron confronted them. Many of them seeming to be veteran soldiers. Anurin continued to help then went back to the main force and was dragged away in the mass of people. He continued to fight, sending out an ocasional lightning bolt.

[Quetzal]

The Varden were finally here. Ri'Shei checked her group before swiftly lashing out, displaying her elf-like reflexes as her twin blades danced, sending sparkling droplets of blood out in parabolic arcs from their every movement. It was not in her upbringing to kill and she did not enjoy taking the life of another person, but the enemy knew the risk in attacking the Empire just as she had known the risk of entering this battle. They had accepted the possibility of death. Keeping the tally helped dehumanize the act, enabling her to cope with watching so many crumble under a powerful flick of her wrist. She was not used to battles, and while she was a toughened person, it was not easy. She would never show any signs of being bothered by the fight, but she knew that she would be seeing these men in nightmares for weeks to come.

Her small squadron were startled at being surrounded, having expected a more experienced group to be the main target. She could see the commander guy Nasuada had allegedly replaced her while she was sorting things out in Aroughs - Sir William, wasn't it? That was judging by the style of his armour showing more status and the way he was commanding the Varden around, anyway. She swung her swords in a lazy manner, taunting the soldiers. If she were to attack one soldier, they would all close in on her squadron, something they would likely not be able to cope with. She was a skilled soldier, but she did not think she could match the likes of Sir William, from what she had heard. She was hardly about to put that to the test, anyway; she preferred her limbs attached to her body, thank you very much.

It was a relief then to find Ragdar at her side, Lenora swiping away the soldiers. They were still keeping a tally, too, although they were at a higher point than her count of twenty-one. She stood with her back to the Rider so that they were able to defend against oncoming soldiers from all ends. "Twenty-two... twenty-three... twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty- oh, no, wait," there was a quick slash, "There we go, twenty-six," she said as the man crumpled. Ragdar moved to fight the knight, but she decided it would be best to stay with her squadron for now to protect them. "Come on, we can't let these scum get a hold of the walls. Each and every one of you is a valuable protector of the Empire, and it is time we showed the Varden once and for all that violent rebels will not be tolerated," she spoke words of encouragement, for they were somewhat shaken by the encounter. The group hurried further along the wall, shouting fiercely and hacking at the Varden as the tried to progress along the walls. There was a fearsome resistance on the Empire's part on the walls more than anywhere else.

At least the great dragon had gone off further into the city. While he and his Rider isolated themselves within the city, the Empire's forces were able to surround the Varden as they entered, the swarm of soldiers having more confidence now the dragon had apparently gone off on a mission of its own. It might be fighting for the Varden, but he had left the army unprotected. Spellcasters were either still as they tried to force Anurin's mind away, or hurled magical projectiles at the Varden. Cobblestones cracked and bricks flew from the rubble on the ground at the rebel army. As a few were able to trickle through the thick smothering force of the Empire's army, some made their way through the streets. Valinor would have to be very careful about his every movement, since he was so large one wrong move could kill not only Empire soldiers, but Varden soldiers too. The archers from the walls were more careful, aiming at individual Varden soldiers. Valinor was targeted, arrows only aiming for his wings, as a dragon's wings were not covered in scales. The wards would have to run out sometime, and the dragon was the primary target for the Empire.

[/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Aelodil]

Anurin didn't think there were soldiers dumber than this. He left the mind of an archer. Now that he knew they all aimed at Vanilor he would let Vanilor crush them as he picked off the individuals. Being informed, Vanilor came charging back to the gates same as Anurin did and slammed his claws into the walls, causing archers to fall. As a few ran away, Anurin chased them and killed them. As he saw the debris, he continued searching for enemy magicians. As he found a large amount all in a chain, he easily crushed their weak minds turning them into blaberrig fools.

Opening his eyes, Anurin spotted the elf-like woman he remembered to be a Spartan. Side by her was the crazed form of the Rider. Shaking his head, he continue to pick off archers as they began aiming at him. As he continued fighting his eyes grew sad. All this death. All this carnage..what for? To what extent? Fr countries? For freedom? No. He already hadhis freedom. For the people. He raised his head and continued fighting. Andlat swinging like Death himself. As he spoke Andlat's true name, the soul within the blade reached out and began draining the soldiers' energy though he directed it away from the Varden.

[Nandon]

William eyed his opponent cautiously as she swung her swords, The fact that he was facing a woman, Possibly highly skilled in combat brought a revulsion to him, Women like this could be fighting anywhere. Then his thoughts turned to his sister and he instantly felt nauseas as he though of her, Dead somewhere, Murder, Or killed in a skirmish. Finally yanking his thoughts away he felt the whoosh of a tail over his head and yelped, Realizing he was instantly alone.

Then the elf woman with her remaining soldiers left, leaving William to fight this strange creature alone. Twisting his body sideways he let the blow skate past him, Then brought his elbow back with a resounding force that would most likely break the mans nose if it hit, And also most likely stun him, Due to his heavy armor. Regardless then William backed away cautiously, Seeing where the woman had ran off to William followed, Bounding up the steps to the walls two at a time, A anger gripped him as he watched his men be slain repeatedly by her force, Before he charged. Quietly of course, He brought his sword down on the closest soldier to him, hacking the head from his shoulders and sending it spinning away, Then in the same motion he kicked another man, Sending him flying from the walls.

Then backing away he readied himself as his men on the walls recovered and presented a wall infront of them, He prepared himself Presenting a wall behind her and her remaining forces. “Surrender, And you along with your men will be spared…” He said Hoping that the stunned magical man didn’t follow him.

[Aelodil]

CRACK!!

Ragdar heard his nose break in several different places. Next thing he felt was the stream of blood after it. Dazed, he stagerred before bringing himself to heal his nose and stop the bleeding. Still, he blinked rapidly as reflex tears obscurred his vision. Whiping them away, he looked around for his battalion only to find it surrounded. By the same man who broke his nose. Wasn't this his lucky day?

Walking swiftly, he cut down the soldiers in his way and cut a hole through the squadron."50,51... 53.... 56..... 59..... 63..67" he continued tallying same as Lenora reached 68 kills. Moving back to the front of his battalion, he heard the knight demand a surrender. Oh boy..this was going to be a hell of an arguement."Why should we when both me and you know we have the advantage noe. I am a Rider, you are not. Your Rider is injured, I am not. I have two willing Eldunari, you do not. We shall never SURRENDER! Am I right boys?!" he said in a bored tone and was rewarded by a hoarse cheer.

Almost immediately, Lenora swiped at the troops and Ragdar leaped into action, charging straight at William. He swung Arucane, catching another two soldiers on the crossguard and completed it into a savage swing at William, the red blade refusing to be denied as it screamed through the air.

[Nandon]

William heard the magical man behind him and groaned, Slowly beginning to fume as he heard his soldiers and men begin to be cut down, AS the man reached him he swiftly spun around, Slanting the surface of his shield parallel to the riders blade, letting it run along the surface before pushing up with all the strength in his body, most likely sending the sword flying from Radgars grip, but at the least staggering him.

Then capitalizing on whatever advantage he made he swung his sword flat blades towards the riders temple, Aiming for a knock out blow, If the empire saw one of the riders fall, it would only Quicken there surrender.

[Quetzal]

The cloud of Empire arrows raining down on the Varden was gradually waning in size as Anurin and various other Varden soldiers picked them off. For the most part, they were none too skilled in close combat, making them easy targets when their safe havens within hidden walls and buildings were raided by the enemy. While they would run from attack, none would flee the battle. However terrified, however wounded, however certain it was the creeping hand of death would grasp them and pull them struggling into darkness, the could not leave. Their vows to Galbatorix, forced or otherwise, forced them to fight or stand and die as they were bound to follow the command of him and his generals until their last breath. On occasion, this could reduce men, especially young boys forcefully taken from their homes to 'prove themselves' or 'serve the country', mostly those who had not wanted to serve the Empire, to hysterics. As they saw Anurin approaching, trail of dead or dying men behind him, the a younger archer bravely faced him with tears running down his face, defending his friend behind who had broken down in panic. They did not want to fight. But they had to. They did not want to kill, to murder, to see such bloodshed and witness men's eyes dim under the force of their own bows at this young age. But they were bound by the Ancient Language, so had to. They did not want to die. But they had to. The battle was truly shaping up to be one of the worst and bloodiest in all of Alagaesia's history.

The sound of rough leathery skin sliding against itself announced the unfurling of a scarce few pairs of large wings. Ri'Shei could see the Empire Riders launched into the sky on the back of their dragons, but she was too preoccupied to notice who they were or what they were doing. They were on the Empire's side and had boosted morale, raising a wave of cheers as they flew, and that was all that mattered. Right now there was her own life to worry about. She snarled at Sir William, standing to her full height to emphasize how much taller she was than him. Being the size of a Kull, she towered over the man. She gave a savage laugh at his demand in spite of being surrounded. "Sorry, mate, but I'm not exactly the surrendering type," she spat tauntingly, icicles dripping from her words and shattering into glittering icy specks on a snowy ground.

This was a risky thing to say and she knew it, but Ragdar and Lenora's minds were close by so she had no fear. As the Rider spoke, she stabbed the weakest looking soldier she could see, not wanting to be around this man who seemed so intent on capturing her, most likely because she stuck out like... well, like a woman well over seven foot tall in sea of male soldiers all shorter than her. Not many people knew about the spartans, and so she was bound to spark some interest. She shook her head at Ragdar's little speech; she was never one for the fancy words. What good was trying to come up with some powerful-sounding phrase when a quick stab was all you needed? Words would not intimidate someone like a captain of the Varden. Or general. Whatever rank William was. "I'd advice against openly revealing what power we have,"

[/i] she spoke into Ragdar's mind as he openly declared how many Eldunari he had, although she did not know what an Eldunari was.

Ri'Shei disappeared into a crowd of soldiers, guiding her now diminished group deeper within the crowd, the harsh sounds of steel meeting steel all around them. As she did so, she kept a close eye on her group, cutting down any of the Varden who tried to attack them. Her tally at the moment was forty-seven, not that it mattered too much. "Sam. Sam, are you all right?" she asked in concern as she noticed one of her group was doing his best to blink back the tears. He looked over and shook his head slowly, arm clutched to his side. Despite his best efforts to appear brave, a small sob escaped him.

"I'm so sorry... Ri'Shei, I've failed the Empire..." he said in a weak voice, blood seeping through his fingers. "No. You gave the Empire everything," she reassured him as she stabbed another Varden soldier through the stomach. He offered a weak smile as he fell to the floor and moved no more. Screaming with newfound rage, Ri'Shei became like a whirlwind as she came close to losing control. Varden dropped like flies around her. How could they not see what was happening around them? The Empire they so loathed were just as human as they were. They had hearts, families, loves. How could they be so heartless as to charge in and self-righteously declare war, slaying so many? If no war had been waged, Galbatorix would never have sought to increase his army by this much, people would be safe from capture by the Empire, the forces would be voluntary rather than forced...

Around her the fight was heating up. The generals had known the archers and spellcasters on the walls would be the first to go, but their best spellcasters were tucked away safely further in the city. The Varden could not destroy the city, both as it would be pointless to take a destroyed ruin and because they would need to use it to house people later, and so the most competent fighters and mages were waiting within the well protected castle and halls in the centre of of the city, where the only soldiers to reach them would be the best but also very tired, while they were well-rested. The Varden were starting to gain ground over the walls, the Empire's force a mixture of courage, determination, madness, bloodlust, and desperate men blinded with terror. Some were to be feared, others were to be pitied. All were to be overcome.[/size][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[Aelodil]

He heard metal on metal as Arucane slipped from his grip. All around them the soldiers stopped and turned to watch their leaders, giving them a respectable sized circle. Ragdar spread out his arms."Bravo, bravo. Now the question is: will you allow me to fight with a sword like man..or make me fight with my fists like a coward?" he said, though he already darted and grabbed Arucane, moving too fast for a human to track.

Sword back in hand, Ragdar eyed his opponent. He had a shield while Ragdar didn't. He shrugged and gripped Arucane with two hands. He circled William. His soldiers seemed horrible. He could not tell where Ri'Shei was. He did not mind. She could take care of herself. Lunging, he slashed at William from the right, boh hands surging it forward.


Anurin was fed up. All this carnage, the trail of dead bodies he left behind him. He saw the tall woman scream as a comrade fell next to her. As he realized the man still was alive, he kneeled next to him and healed him. The color seemed to come back to his face. Anurin stood up tired. He would heal both Varden and Empire. A man lunged at him. He caught it on the crossguard and stabbed him. He continued to hack and slash as Vanilor continued deeper into the city.

He felt magicians' minds near him. Vanilor turned to a group of houses. He ignored them and continued stepping on the soldiers. Vanilor continued to devestate the leaders, eating one while throwing another out of the city. Anurin continued to Ri'Shei and slashed at her from the right heavily.

(Haty Post!!)

[Nandon]

William gestured with his shield for his opponent to retrieve his sword, not that it mattered because within a flash it was back in his hand. But William knew it would go a long way with both the Varden and the Empire to be a honorable combatant.

As the sword flew towards him he held his shield out as far as it would go, Then slammed it down on the sword, Hopefully pinning it to the ground long enough for William to bring his swords guard across his opponents face, unless he let go of his sword that is.

[Aelodil]

Ragdar refused to let go of Arucane a second time. He kicked William and danced sidewayz thinking of how to get rid of that shield. Feinting to his right, he then threw a fire ball large enough that in his current armor William would be hard-pressed to dodge. Also, if he dodged it would slam into the Varden causing heavy casualitys.

Quick as a snake, he swung Arucane right and left seven times in rapid succesion. Thanks to his chain armor he wouldn't tire as quickly as William. He then entered a finishing touch as he threw his elbow towards William's nose in payback. His nose still throbbed from the impact before.

(HASTY NOT MY FAULT)