"Hm...you want to know about that old legend again? Well, alright! Lets see...where did we leave off last time?"

"Oh, oh, just after the king finished his training!"

"Right right..." His father cleared his throat, motioning with his hands as he'd start speaking, the warmth of the campfire warming the cold Albion night as his mother began cooking dinner. "Well. After the Wise Sage saw to the kings training and teaching, and that he was fit for ruler ship...he gifted the King with a blade. A very, very special blade. A gleaming gold hilt, with a blade that shone with moonlight and could repel the lands curse...but in doing so, the sage left, their job done."

"Now that he was trained and possessed a blade that repels evil - he had to make the land itself recognize him." The woman responded with a kind tone as she'd hand her son and husband freshly cooked meat. "He first ventured to Mt. Sliabh, to earn the blessings of the Tuatha and to seek out some clue from our druids as to what he should, or could do."

"So they told him, "The land already recognizes thee. It is the 'demons within peoples hearts which does not'". So they sent with him their youngest druid, and the king went out into the land - determined to make people recognize him. Along the way, many, many knights would eventually flock under him. Sigurd, the dragon slayer. Gerainth the valiant, the saint of the sword...many other would come and go from his side in these years, but eventually, after gaining the respect, admiration, and acknowledgement of the people - they built a massive castle of gleaming white."

"Alright, alright, that's enough. Your foods going to get cold you two..."

---

@A Lowly Wretch@VitaVitaAR@Crimson Paladin@Guy0fV4lor@Pyromania99


Slowly, the sun rose over the sea, its glistening early morning rays bringing light upon the coastal village, nay, the now coastal town of Airedale. The bustle and sounds of humans waking and starting their day was slowly starting to build. Hammer on steel as the blacksmith set about working. The shouts of woodcutters and loggers as they got to work just outside the towns new walls, cutting trees and carrying them to the sawmill for further expansion. Farmers, land now untouched by the lingering curse of the Betrayed God, getting to work to provide. Guards, recently trained by her majesty starting their patrol of the quickly growing town and the outskirts of it.

The village, this same time last year, was barely getting by. When the Fomorians ransacked it under the command of a terrible half humanoid, half equine beast? There were only a handful of survivors. If it had not been for the queens timely intervention, it'd have been quite literally, wiped off the face of the map. Many people in the northern and eastern lands of Albion, hearing of this, soon came flocking and seeking protection.

Another king might have turned them away, but the Queen? She refused none that sought sanctuary.

Of course, keeping the village safe was no easy task. While within the walls were safe...the outside of it? Well...bandits, Fomorians, Unseelie that sought to be actively malicious. The recently trained militia and knights however, did their best to ensure safety and people were kept alive. Didn't stop an occasional Unseelie from slipping past the cracks, though...

"...so this is the the city that queen's supposed to be in, huh? Looks like a pile of dirt to me, ahaha!" Skirting around the edges of the town, was one such troublemaker. Really, this was probably bad. A single Unseelie by themselves could cause some pretty devastating trouble if they put their minds to it. Usually they didn't go near extremely active towns, but...there were some exceptions.

"Heheheh, lets see...what dumbass can I mess with today." The fey, small as they could be were oft difficult to see unless they themselves wanted to be seen, and this troublemaker was no exception. Flitting behind houses, away from people, across the ground and garden, she was doing a good job of being unseen. For a few seconds, her eyes would linger on what was obviously the largest building - a recent construction. A wooden and stone castle - not the most defensive or glamorous construction, but the queen had demanded it be as such.

She could go there, but something was telling her that it would be a very bad idea.

"Jeez, what in the feywildes are that place-weh!" Just as she had let her attention wander, a feline made an attempt to pounce on what it thought was a flying little pest, causing the fey to spiral off her flight path and slam into the bottom of a lookout tower. "HEY YOU DUMB FELINE! YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHO I AM!? Guh, whatever I don't have time for you. Laters stupid!" The fairy would instead, focus on the lookout tower and the lookout stationed there. She'd quietly fly up, peering over the wall of the lookout tower.

A single human was standing watch, lazily gazing out over the northern plains for any signs of trouble.

"Heheh, a lone human. Peeerfect. Lets see...what curse am I gonna give you. You're life's gonna be miserable from, kehehehe!" Raising her hand, the Fairy would start chanting in an otherworldly, long forgotten language speaking in words that were incomprehensible to human ears. Eyes, glowing emerald. An ominous breeze would blow.

The human's face would scrunch, as if uncomfortable. He'd wiggle his nose, rubbing it a bit as if trying to scratch some invisible itch.

"Ah...AH-CHOO!"

"...wait that's not right-Yeeeek!" Before the fairy could attempt further shenanigans other than giving someone a mildly uncomfortable sneeze, something whizzed through the air, right where the humans head had just been and embedded itself into one of the walls, right where the Fairy's head had just been. A sharp, extremely deadly, arrow. "Nope nope dangerous I'm out not happening bye village of deaaaaaath!"

The man, was similarly sweating bullets.

If he hadn't just sneezed, his head would have been the recipient of that arrow. His face would contort into a frown, scanning the area it had come from. Whoever had done it, must have been an extremely good shot - wait...there! Just over the northern fields!

"...bandits!" He'd shout. His hand would immediately go towards the bell that had been installed on the tower. Almost instantly the other lookout towers situated within the town and on its walls would take up the alarm, too. The militia moved instantly upon hearing the bells and receiving confirmation from one of the Knights that were on duty. Civilians would all rush out of the streets, towards the large keep as the Militia directed them. Shouts of urgency would fill the air as warning beacons were lit with fire.

A white haired young man would calmly walk up the ramparts along with a Tuatha child. In all, the response had gone as well as they could have hoped. It had barely taken five minutes to get the major streets clean of civilians, the western gate closed and the northern gate secured. Some were being stubborn and remaining in their homes, but there was little they could do about that for now.

"How many?" He'd ask simply, eyes scanning the horizon.

"H-hard to say, sir!" A nearby soldier would shakily respond. "We counted at least twenty, but they're moving fast and there's more of them coming over the hills and out of the forests!"

"Hm..." The silver haired boy would narrow his eyes. "...fifty. Fifty and whoever leading them. A simple raiding party? Or organized assault?" He'd exhale, a small smile appearing on his face. "Well, we can figure that out later. The peoples and village's safety comes first. Lugh!"

"Y-yes?!" The Tuatha youth would stand at attention.

"The other knights should have heard that - go make sure they have. Tell them to Assemble at the North Gate quickly if they're not on their way here already. We only have a few minutes before the bandits make their likely assault. Also, tell Lady Fio or lady Lightsword to check on the Queen. I've not seen her up this morning. I get the feeling she'll want to be here for this."

"R-right! On it Vyrell!" The young Tuatha would bolt off, electing not to take the stairs but to vault off the ramparts with surprising skill and dexterity as he'd run through to the most visible spot in the street, hoping to catch the other Knights if they still needed direction and to catch Lunalel or Fio before they headed there themselves.

---

@Rune_Alchemist

Reinhardt let out a quiet sigh as he made his patrol about the southern rampart. He'd been been at Airedale a bit over a month at this point and the most action he'd seen was dealing with a single case of petty theft. It was much more peaceful here than it was back home. Though it was admittedly rather boring at times... It wasn't bad. The knight paused his patrol, closing his eyes as he inhaled the cool breeze that drifted over the side of the wall; the barest smile playing at the edges of his lips.

The frantic ring of a bell shattered the silence.

It took Reinhardt only a moment to identify the source of the sound. "North gate, eh?" he muttered, unhooking his helm from his waist and affixed it neatly atop his head as he jumped down onto the streets below. With all haste, the man would quickly arrive at the North gate, sword drawn and chestplate alight with a dim orange glow. Taking quick note of his surroundings, Reinhardt stepped out the gate and stealthily lowered himself into the tall grasses that bordered the Northern wall. To face an enemy you could see coming was one thing, but to but set upon suddenly by a foe strong enough to cleave grown men in half? That kind of thing had the power to make most men turn tail and flee the moment organs started flying.

And thus Reinhardt would wait, creeping forward ever so slowly-- eagerly waiting to receive the first of the bandits' assault force.

"Doesn't it feel like something's about to happen? Doesn't it!? Doesn't it?!"

The doll's pale hair bounced as she jumped up and down in place.

"... I suppose, but I'm not sure why you're so excited," commented the blonde doll, glancing over her shoulder, "Just because something's going to happen doesn't mean it's going to be good. We should be on guard."

Before the first doll could reply, the other, sitting opposite on the desk, faced away from the blonde doll, spoke up, brushing her white hair back.

"On guard? Perhaps that's a good idea for someone as pathetic as you, but I am always ready to pierce any target that Mistress requires me to," she commented with a chuckle, a smirk on her lips.

"Hmph."

The blonde doll glared over her shoulder.

"Sitting there and bragging doesn't help, either."

The first doll's shoulders sagged.

This was no good at all...

---

The girl took a deep breath.

The timing was crucial.

Magic was not simply a matter of desiring something. It was a matter of knowing how to go about obtaining that desire. Only a fool would think you could practice magic with wishful thinking. Knowledge, too, was required.

Knowledge of conditions, of one's own limits, of one's surroundings, of the manner in which a given spell was cast.

She brushed her hair lengthy purple hair back, pointing the sword skywards. Her appearance was almost like that of a child. Indeed, there were few who would be able to tell the difference, given her short stature and youthful looks, even on close inspection.

But she was Fio Fan Fallise, the Sword Witch. And she was going to ensure her practice went off without a hitch. Was it important in the grand scheme of things? Perhaps not.

But timing this spell to the first rays of sunlight was important. It was utility-based, but involved specific locations of the stars and the sun. Not her usual forte, perhaps, but in terms of battlefield analysis it could allow much longer-ranged attacks.

Launching an attack from across an entire battlefield would become possible. Even without being able to see the enemy, if she could target them using this spell then she wouldn't need to see them.

But why was she doing this in the first place?

To assist the Queen?

Fio wasn't completely certain. She wasn't even completely certain she was even who she claimed she was. But at the same time, there was nothing wrong with expanding her repertoire. If she practiced this spell enough, she wouldn't necessarily require this specific timeframe as long as she had enough awareness of the locations of certain celestial bodies...

Now it was time to begin.

She pointed the blade skywards, taking a deep breath. She would begin casting-

"Mistress!"

Only for the voice of one of her dolls to completely break her focus.

"..."

Fio lowered the sword with a heavy sigh.

"... What."

It wasn't a question so much as a statement. A rather flat one.

"Er..." Tirani hesitated, "Mieka and Kukkuro are fighting again..."

Fio brought her palm to her face. Seriously? Tirani interrupted her for this!? They were always fighting! They never got along even once! What did she expect?!

"You seriously-"

And then there was another interruption. A far more important one.

The ringing of bells.

The city was under attack.

"... Go back home, Tirani, and tell Mieka and Kukkuro."

She had to get to the walls. Even if she wasn't certain about the Queen's identity, she was certain that she wouldn't let a single attacker through.

The tavern had a number of customers despite the time of day. Early morning before the first rays of the morning sun shone upon the land. A small group was gathered around a table with mead in their hand. "Another quiet night. Good job, everyone!" A female voice cheered, Lady Lunalel Lightsword. "I believe they won't fault us for a round." There was a small cheer from all the others that came with her as they raised their drink high with a nice cheer. "Three cheers for Her Majesty!" Luna cheered, leading to the cheers before everyone took their drink.

Luna was out drinking with the soldiers a lot. Perhaps a little too much, truthfully, though she didn't have much issue with the typical effect of drinking alcohol. As everyone finished their first drink, most decided one was enough, just incase. But not Luna of course. "Another round for me!" She called out to the bartender who had already started preparing a second round for her. A waitress, or, perhaps, the only one that was working at such a time, came around quickly with a second one. She took a little bit longer to drink this second one so she could actually savor the flavor of the mead. The city made a wonderful mead that she could only really hope to get back home by traveling merchants. "Another!" She called out.

One of the soldiers with her looked on in disbelief. "She's going for another?"

"She can hold her drink pretty damn well." Another said with a shrug. "She's also fine after she wakes back up, no hang over or anything."

"I told you, House Lightsword has the blood of Giants. It's what lets me drink as much as I want!" Lunalel smiled as her third drink arrived, "My, do I need to regale you on the story of House Lightsword?" She asked with a wide smile.

"Lady Luna, I think we heard it at least twice through out the night. You can enjoy the drink." Said one of the soldiers that had heard it more than that since the Lady of House Lightsword had come to the city.

Luna sighed, "Fine, fine." She took the new drink in her hand and took a gulp. The conversation went on for a while until they heard a worrying sound. "Bells?"

One of the soldiers hopped up, "Y-yes! Warning bells!" He just confirmed Luna's thoughts as they all looked at each other, nodded, and stood. They gathered their arms and headed out of the pub. The soldier looked at the barkeep and gave a small shout, "Put it on the tab of Lady Luna here!"

The barkeep gave a small smile and nodded. "Hey! You better pay your own!" Luna exclaimed as they all piled out the door and started to head towards the north gate where the noise was coming from.

Soon they were stopped by a familiar face. A Tuatha youth, Lugh, who informed them where to head to. Then Luna. She needed to head to collect the Queen. She nodded and agreed. Of course the Queen would want to be here for this. After telling the soldiers not to get hurt, she turned and headed towards where the Queen should be if no one had seen her this morning, her chambers. It wasn't too difficult to get there as she soon found herself in front of Her Majesty's room and gave a knock. "Your Majesty!" She didn't hear a reply in a quick enough time, that is to say, in the matter of two seconds. She threw open the doors and entered. She didn't mind if the Queen punished her for this action but she was needed at the ramparts. "Queen Sorcha, you're need at the gates. The town is under attack."

Od

She sat at the barracks dining room, a simple wooden bowl of porridge before here. Looking down at the spoonful of creamy oat substance it brought to mind just how far along this land had come. Before it would of been impossible for the land to bear enough crops to make such a dish possible. The ability to make the land fertile once again was truly wondrous for it meant that everyone could eat, not just the few brave enough to hunt and lucky enough to survive. Just as her blood was able to heal the injured it seemed the queen was able to heal the land itself, "Ridding it of the curse" as they say.

It had been at least three seasons since she had pledged her service to the queen. The death of her last king still hung heavy in her mind. She could not help the conflict brought about as her honor demanded she carry out his last wishes, even if that made her the enemy of those she had once considered something akin to family. With the only choice that didn't end with her killing those closest to her being to flee her lands she hoped that with her and the sword now absent there would be no more reason to fight amongst one another. But that was the past. This was her life now. She was a knight of the queen, her loyalty and obedience to her will was all she needed to consider now.

_
The sound of bells cut through the air, followed by the noise of panic as the populace evacuated their homes and into safety within the walls. Luckily for Od she was already armored, having spent most of her day already either working or training in order to keep her skills sharp for the next battle. Sliding on her kettle hat and unsheathing her sword she stood up from the table and immediately leapt through the window. It was closer than the door and got her where she needed to be faster.

Given how tireless she was just naturally she maintained an all out sprint as she dashed for the north gate which is where others appeared to be heading towards. As lightly armored as she was she was able to maintain an extremely quick pace, well accustomed to sprinting at top speed over long distances. She wasn't a horse but there were few bipeds who could keep up with her. Before anyone who wasn't already at the gate she immediately sprinted out into the open before stopping.

She peered out at the forest borders, looking for enemies to rush down. She didn't know where her fellow knights were but surely they wouldn't be far behind. The last thing she wanted was to put the city at risk by hesitating due to the difference in their numbers.

All she needed was to see her target.

Outside of the castle walls, sitting upon a rock overlooking the shore, Ethelred sat with a book in his hand. His horse stood nearby, its reins held firmly in Ethelred's other hand. The knight's lance and shield lay nearby, ready to be used if he found himself facing peril. The horse seemed to be sniffing something in the air, but the knight paid no heed, his attention completely given to the book he was reading. While it was true that some found his found his appearance, being unable to remove his strange, crystalline armor, and it was true that the stable keepers were somewhat relieved when they didn't have to watch his strange, cursed horse, he had a much simpler reason for his isolation out here. He simply wanted better light to read by, with no shadows to obscure the rays of the early morning sun.

The book told a tale, written after he had been frozen, of the struggles and conflicts of a village somewhere in the northern part of Albion. It was a rather quaint matter compared to the tales of the Betrayed God or the great king of Albion, but it was nonetheless a piece of history that Ethelred had missed while he was trapped in ice. Since being freed, he had sought to catch up on everything that had transpired in the century that had passed during his imprisonment. Sometimes he listened to the tales of bards in taverns, while other times, such as this one he sought out books from the town's humble library. From what he could surmise from the stories, things had gotten steadily worse over the last century. However, with this queen showing up and gathering the greatest knights of the land, it seemed like there was finally hope to make things better...

Suddenly, Ethelred heard the bells from the town. He jumped to his feet, dropped the book, and grabbed his weapons. He made it a habit to always be prepared for trouble when venturing outside the walls. His armor, cold powers, and animal companion would normally be more than enough to handle most troublemakers, but the knight knew from experience that he might need his lance. He climbed atop his horse and rode off towards the town, the mount's excitement causing it to create a trail of frozen footprints and icy fog behind it. He wasn't sure what the commotion was about, but whatever it was, he needed to get there as quickly as possible.

It sounds like it's coming from the north gate, he assessed as he drew close enough to the town to distinguish the direction. He cantered off, heading in the direction in the north gate, unsure what he'd find there. There were several possibilities he could think of. There were many greedy people out there who would seek to take advantage of the honest people of the town, and many supernatural beings that'd take delight in tormenting them. Furthermore, there were those, both mundane and mystical, that likely saw the Queen and her aspirations as a threat, and would seek to bring her down before her goals could be realized. Whatever the case, whoever they were, whatever their aims were, they needed to be stopped.

Or perhaps a sentry simply saw a large animal lumbering about in the distance and mistook it for an Elder Beast...

Location:
Airedale
Mid-morning

---

Just inside the forest

Amidst the foliage in an otherwise quiet forest, a small group of men had gathered. Most were rather rough looking, armored in leathers and simple armors indicating likely someone not of actual knightly origin, but rather someone that had simply taken up a weapon and set out to cause either trouble or look for fortune elsewhere.

Normally, one of them would have been chatting up a storm.

Now though, there was dead silence.

"He dodged..."

"It missed..."

"She missed..."

"...Ugh man, I don't need the chorus of failure, thanks!" The woman in question would click her tongue in a bit of annoyance, a look of mild exasperation and resignation forming as bells from the town indicating that their little ambush to take out the watchers quietly failed. "And I just wanted to lay down at the hot springs today and drink the fancy wine we got from the dwarves...guess we'll go meetup with the boss man..."

---

@Crimson Paladin@A Lowly Wretch@VitaVitaAR@Guy0fV4lor

By the time Fio had made it back into the city proper, the streets had been emptied. The only ones left were the Militia manning the walls and running to their positions. Vyrell had taught them well, it seemed. The only one that wasn't a militia - was the familiar face of Lugh.

"Lady Fio!" He'd wave the small girl over. "Bandits! North gate! Others should be there already!" He was speaking quickly, and more or less what was only needed to get the immediate point across in his opinion. "Lady Luna's informing the Queen!" well, that was that then. What were presumably bandits were attacking the city. Before Fio could ask for further clarification, the young Tuatha would bolt off back towards the ramparts himself.

Following him, Fio would be greeted by the sight of the towns Militia standing atop the wall, Vyrell shouting orders. Really, none of them were trained soldiers. Most were just people that felt like they had to do something to protect the city they now called home. They only took volunteers, of course and the queen at least ensured they had satisfactory compensation.

"Steady men," He'd say to one of the militia near him atop the ramparts. "Just focus on sniping any that come close to the walls." Noticing the young mage approaching, Vyrell would shout the situation to her from his vantage point.

"Lady Fio! Bandits. About fifty of them from what I can tell!" He'd turn his head towards the outside of the walls. "No time to talk, they're almost here! The other knights have already gathered!"

Reinhardt would be the first on the scene, not long followed by Od showing herself. The Unbreakable took the time to position himself for an ambush, using the tall grass of the plains to his advantage. Od, would take a much more defensive stance, peering towards the trees of the nearby forested area to the west, though it would seem most of the bandits were simply attacking from the plains.

Armed with swords, spears, axes, shields...it didn't seem like they favored any type of weapon, nor did it seem they had any specific formation in mind as they'd rush towards the city. No doubt they simply thought a small city like this would be easily taken - not having taken much stock of the rumors it could be assumed.

Reinhardt would get his opportunity. It seemed they were too busy focused on their target, and most weren't bothered with checking the tall grass for traps. No doubt as soon as he'd ambush them, they'd quickly catch on, so he should hopefully make it count.

Running past him, about five would instead seemingly turn their attention to Od, weapons drawn and prepared for a fight. They didn't seem to think she'd be putting up much of a fight. The others, would seemingly be heading for the gate in an attempt to breach it. No doubt letting them in would be ill-advised.

This, would be the scene Fio and Ethelred both find themselves arriving upon.

Fifty decently equipped bandits that didn't seem like surrendering, versus four well armed and skilled knights.

---

@Pyromania99
The Queens Chambers

The queens chambers, were indeed where the queen currently was. Everyone had some idea of where it was, within the wood and stone fortress. Getting through the mass of people it was currently sheltering though, proved to slow her down just a bit longer than she'd have likely liked. Her room, was located above the throne room, up some stairs and across a large balcony that she could use to address a large number of people gathered there, if she needed to.

Normally, it was off limits to anyone but the knights.

There was no response upon her initial knock, and the large wooden double doors would open fairly easily. The queens room was surprisingly extravagant when you took her insistence to go for practicality on most other matters. A large, canopy bed with red and gold colored covers, a similarly plush carpet woven from the finest of silks. A few hunting trophies as well as a fire place.

...it would have looked better if her armor, a few clean plates of food, books, and some other articles of clothing hadn't been haphazardly left laying on the floor.

The sight of the queen herself that greeted Luna within, though, was definitely something...excessively unqueenly to say the least.

"Nnnhn?" The queen, was splayed out on the bed in a show if rather incredibly bad sleeping posture. She'd give a yawn in response, lazily waving at Luna as she'd sit up, half asleep. "Vyrell...five more minutes...or bring some mead..." She'd yawn, some of the covers slipping off her body, revealing in fact, she was completely unclothed under them.

Od

Upon spotting the attackers she didn't hold position so much as charge headlong into the fray, not giving the five who were immediately in front of her the luxury of choosing who they'd engage. With light armor her muscular legs carried her fast into their ranks and she was already on the attack.

Without even so much as slowing she cut through the head a spear attempting to pierce her, the blade encountering no resistance as it passed through the wood. With a flick of the wrist she angled the blade, still sprinting as he plunged the blade through the man's ribcage. She rent through the side of the man's torso with the same ease one would have dragging the tip of their blade across the surface of a lake, leather, bone and muscle parting like water as she swung her blade clear from the first man she slew and cleaved her next victim in two, the bandit falling in half across the horizontal slash.

It had been only a couple of seconds and now two of them were dead. One which held an axe had only just enough time to swing. With a clang the axe struck off her left shoulder plate. The force of the blow wasn't concentrated due to how close she had already come to the axe man. Still following back through from the motion of her horizontal slash she swung her blade back across in a low arc, cleaving through both the axe man's thighs. Her last target's body didn't even have time to fall before she was already running down her forth enemy.

_
A man with a sword and shield had stopped, hiding behind his shield after witnessing three people die in less time than it took for him to come to a halt. Neither his shield nor his sword offered any more resistance than the others. Od cut him in an upward looping cross cut, the first cut bisecting both the shield and the arm holding it. The man couldn't even fall to his back in time before the follow-up slash cut both him and the sword he attempted to block with in two. The ringing of the shorn metal mingled with the simultaneous screams of the man as their halves separated.

The last person had only just enough time to pivot and turn to start running as it was clear than anyone in her blade's path was as good as dead. Though retreating he wasn't faster than Od as she quickly approached from behind. She stopped in a lunge, her sword piercing through the man's side only slightly above the hip bone. Given that it was on the bandit's right side there was a chance he might live if he went and sought the skills of a surgeon or healer in time. She didn't stop for this last bandit however, the stab only really coming to her as an afterthought.

_
The reason she stopped was simply due to the fact that she noticed how the rest of the bandits were making their way towards the gate. This made her angry.

Instead of facing me and the other knights on the field of battle they would choose to rush for the city gates instead!?

With that thought she pivoted and started sprinting immediately towards the front line of the enemy forces, clumps of dirt and grass kicked up from the force of her feet striking the earth.

"Stand and fight me, cowards!" She howled with a fervent rage as she reached the front-most bandits, rapidly slashing left and right as enemy after enemy were sliced apart without so much as even slowing her down. The way she saw it the faster she killed the bandits the sooner all the bandits would be dead. The sooner all the bandits were dead the less danger they posed to her fellow troops. If even a single soldier was wounded or even killed it would be because she couldn't kill them all in time.

She wouldn't let that happen.

She would kill them all.

"Hmph," huffed the small girl, "Who do they think they are?"

And that was that.

Bandits.

Fio had zero tolerance for people like this. It was one thing finding yourself struggling in life and believing you had to take drastic measures. It was another thing entirely to band together for the express purpose of preying upon others.

The purple-haired girl brushed her hair back as she strode up the wall, then adjusted her hat. Her sword gleamed in the morning sunlight.

Indeed, the bandit forces seemed remarkably organized for their nature as a rabble of predators, but that was hardly a problem. They were still clad largely in leather armor, still wielding whatever scavenged weapons the had likely stolen from others who they had slaughtered in their pursuit of wealth. The Sword Witch had zero doubt in her own abilities.

All she needed was a clear line of sight.

Finding a suitable spot on the city wall, the child-like girl raised her catalyst, pointing the blade's tip towards the raiders. As she did, the familiar, electric feeling of magical energy coursing through her body began to run its way down through her arm.

The edge of the sword began to glow faintly.

"Sura," she began, eyes narrowed, "Ghost Blades."

The glow on the edge of the sword grew brighter.

"Prepare to cut down my enemies. Manifest five phantom swords in arc formation."

As Fio spoke her command, there was a thrumming sound from above her. Blue circles of light flashed in the air, spiraling constructs of interlaced symbols and geometric patterns from which the shape of a blade emerged. They were themselves similar in nature to the circles they had emerged from, seemingly composed of interwoven light. And yet, the edge they possessed seemed no less keen then their steel counterparts.

"Each one of them must be destroyed. Repeat this process once."

The thrumming grew louder, as another arc of five phantom swords manifest above the first, spaced more widely then the originals.

"Twice."

And again.

"Three times."

Fifteen phantom swords, in increasingly wide arcs, spun gently over Fio's head. The edge of her own, far more solid sword gleamed brilliantly with blue light.

It was time to teach this bandits a lesson.

"Strike them down. Release!"

There was a sound something like the crack of a whip, as each circle tightened for a moment before abruptly expanding until they vanished with a flash of light. Immediately, every single phantom blade manifested was released, slicing through the air as a blur of blue light and hurtling towards the attackers!

@Rune_Alchemist

Luna looked on at the Queen's incredibly Unqueenly posture with a small sigh. "Come now, your majesty. I'm quite sure I don't even look like a Vyrell. Even less the person himself." The Knightess mentioned as she moved closer to her liege. "And there is no time for more rest or mead, we..." The woman was cut off as she caught the sight of bare skin on such a beautiful woman such as Queen Sorcha and her words were stuck in her throat. It took some seconds for her to avert her gaze from embarrassment. Perhaps it was her lack of female company but she felt much too happy to look at... No. No, no. This was to be thought about later.

She averted her gaze to the armor strewn across the floor. "Queen Sorcha, please wake up. You are needed on the ramparts. The town is under attack." She mentioned as she picked up the garments. "We can be off after you are dressed. She added, happy to not look directly at the sun that she shared a room with at present.

Ethelred assessed the foe as they came into view and he brought his horse down to a trot. It was a band of brigands, perhaps fifty in number. Their goal was probably to break down the gate and sack the town, and their current objective appeared to be to break down the gate.

I can't be sure how good their odds of success would ordinarily be against such fortifications, but in these very un-ordinary circumstances, I can be sure that they have no chance of success. While Ethelred had aided people against bandits before, he had never actually taken part in a siege, and knew very little of the field of siege engineering.

The prevalence of banditry was a sad reality of the current state of Albion. This was this dark age, without law and without order. Men lived in fear of one another, and for strong preyed upon the weak. Even before being frozen, Ethelred had sought to undo these injustices, to fight against those who would selfishly darken Albion even further, but there was only so much that a single knight-errant could hope to accomplish on his own. But with the Queen and her fellow knights, they could do more than just fight bandits. They could lay the groundwork of a society where people can live without fear of being preyed upon by bandits, and make Albion a place where banditry is a much less attractive career choice than it currently seems to be.

For now, however, working towards that lofty goal meant repelling this horde of brigands. The knights needed to convey the message that Airedale is off-limits to bandits, that depredations upon the good people of the town would not be allowed to happen.

Ethelred was not the first one to have engaged the bandits. Someone was fighting them up close, and what looked like Fio's sword magic was being cast upon them from the walls. He couldn't see who it was that had drawn first blood, but it'd make a good distraction for his own attack. The knight rode closer, his mount increasing its speed to a canter, then a gallop. As he drew closer, he couched his lance under his arm and aimed for the first unlucky bandit in his way.

Ethelred made no war cry as he closed the distance, for he needed no war cry. His appearance- an icy knight upon a frightening steed- and the effects of his powers would speak more loudly than any words he could shout. Prior to being cursed, his family's motto was his war cry, but with his family line wiped out, he no longer had a desire to speak it.

The mounted knight plowed into the bandits' ranks. Anyone unfortunate enough to be in the path of his crystalline lance would likely be knocked off their feet, bearing a grisly, flash-frozen wound where its struck them. His horse was fighting equally aggressive, using its horns to ram any bandit unfortunate enough to be in its direct path, and trampling beneath its icy hooves any who were not thrown clear by the blows of the horse or its rider. It was fortunate that despite the horse's newfound aggression and surprising mastery of its new state (in fact, it seemed to have been a quicker learner than Ethelred when it came to getting used to their new forms), its obedience to its rider had never wavered, because Ethelred would not want to find himself on the receiving end of its horns or hooves.

---

@Rune_Alchemist@Crimson Paladin@VitaVitaAR@A Lowly Wretch

As the other members of the queen's retinue tore into the ranks of oncoming bandits, Reinhardt remained stealthily concealed within the tall grasses; awaiting any would-be stragglers that thought they'd make it all the way to the gate. Despite the utter slaughter happening around the bandits-- the few that survived the onslaught; rather than breaking and fleeing for their lives, seemed to almost believe reaching the gate would make them safe...

Such narrow thinking was almost pitiable, but as a Knight, Reinhardt was duty-bound to cut down the would-be raiders without hesitation.

He did not hesitate.

The first of the bandits to draw near Reinhardt's position would see only the glow of something like molten iron-- before flashing steel would cleave through his side and splatter viscera across his knavish fellows. The second had barely a moment to scream before the Knight's fist connected with his chest, his ribs buckling and breaking under the sheer force of the blow as he was thrown across the plain like a child discarding a doll. The third froze in terror as his helmet split beneath the force of Reinhardt's blade; splitting the poop bastard straight down the center.

A child of the Dragonslayer stood before the gate, his chest blazing like a blacksmith's furnace, and his armor coated in gore. His cold and focused eyes watched for those who would dare to approach the settlement still.

Location:
Airedale
Mid-morning
Airedale Fields

---

@Crimson Paladin@A Lowly Wretch@VitaVitaAR@Guy0fV4lor

The bandits, were understandably unprepared completely for such a complete and utterly outmatched assault. Od was the first to engage. The five that had decided to attack what initially appeared to be the only one defending the gate, were soon dispatched in such a quick and efficient method they barely had time to even register what had happened.

Those that had used their number to push past Od, did not fare much better. Fio's blades, fifteen of them would aim for those that had gotten near the gate. Shouts of surprise came as ethereal blades would rip through them, though not all found their targets and not all immediately went down. Those with shields had managed to block a few, and more quick footed among them managed to evade - but what they were not expected was what initially appeared the grass at their feet to simply attack them. Those that were left, would find themselves quickly falling before one bearing the blood of a dragon slayer.

Those that hadn't quite made it yet were not quite safe either. While those at the front were being slaughtered by the combined might of the three knights, a fourth smashed into their flank. A Steed of rime frost tramped into the bandits, most men falling beneath his lance, a few more fortunate ones had the cries of their comrades to warn them of impending danger, dodging out of the way just in time.

In all, of the fifty bandits that had started, barely twenty remained. Those that did, were the furthest back. The ones that hadn't been close enough to fully engage. Of course, the bandits had something to say about the utter defeat they had just faced.

"Kings blood! what sort of monster is that thing!?" One would shout, getting to his feet shakily after just barely managing to avoid Ethelred's horse.

"Forget the demon horse, swords came out of nowhere! Some sort of fey-magic!?"

"That girl with the sword cleaved right through their armor!"

"Bloody stones, I don't think even boss could beat that guy in a fist fight...!"

"We had fifty men, how in the damned gods name did we just lose over half in five seconds to four people!?"

Atop the ramparts near Fio, Vyrell observed the field quietly, narrowing his eyes across the field. Well, no doubt this rabble would swiftly disperse if they didn't decide to suicide themselves against the knights...still, something didn't quite seem right about this. Surely someone wouldn't have attacked a fortified town like this without some sort of further plan? Or was this merely a test for their defenses for another assault later?

Then what about that archer that had almost taken out that sentry?

He'd turn his head towards the forest. There, a subtle movement!

"Knights! Archers in the forest! Someone go take them out!" Vyrell shouted. "Militia, take cover!"

On cue, a number of arrows would home in on the knights position, well aimed shots fired at quick intervals, at each of the knights directly. They would soon be followed by a volley of arrows fired in the general direction of the knights. From the number of arrows, there likely weren't many of them. Just enough to pose a threat if left to keep firing. One among them seemed to have almost pinpoint precision accuracy, however.

"...hit them while the archers have them pinned!" The bandits shouted, starting to run towards the gate and the knights again, emboldened by their perceived ambush.

---

@Pyromania99
The Queens Chambers

"...nnhn? Under attack? Who would be so foolish to attack-" Another yawn, and the woman on the bed would stretch, suddenly blinking as she'd realize she was in fact, no, not talking to Vyrell. "Gah! Lady Luna!?" She would sit up, stumbling out of her bed, tripping in a rather spectacular fashion, and fall right on the floor. Not that she'd wait too long before she'd scramble to her feet.

"Ahem," A color of red would color her cheeks as she'd sheepishly laugh. "Sorry, sorry, I was having a really nice dream, mhm." Her gaze would linger on Luna - a fact that was probably not helping Luna as the queen was indeed, still completely naked and didn't seem to mind one bit. Slowly, her gaze would turn harsher as she'd register Luna's words. "Who would be so foolish to attack my city? Luna, thank you." She'd grab the clothes from the night, and start pushing Luna out of her room. "But I should get dressed. Now go help the knights. I swear Vyrell doesn't trust me..." She'd grumble, not giving Luna time to get a word in edge wise as she'd be hastily shoved out of the Queens chambers.

"Oh, and," She'd quietly speak, a somewhat sultry tone. "If you mention annnnything you saw here, the Lightsword family will carry responsibility, yes?~ toodles and good luck, you can do it~!" The door would slam shut behind Luna, though she could hear the queen grumbling about the audacity of bandits attacking this early in the morning and ruining her beauty sleep. She should probably go join the other knights at the North Gate now.

Od

"Knights! Archers in the forest! Someone go take them out!"

She was right in the thick of battle, cutting through the heel of a man who thought he could run past her into the fortress proper with a lunging sweep of her blade when Vyrell's message echoed from atop the walls. She turned to peer out into the forest and see what it was he was speaking about. It was only but for a second but in that moment arrows flew out from beyond her view.

While these shots upon her were fired with pin-point accuracy arrows could only fly so fast. The milliseconds it took to hit her gave her enough time to tilt her head. With a sharp ting the arrow grazed the brim of her helm, deflecting the arrow down into her right eye. While initially it was en-route to burrow into her eye straight on due to the deflection it hit her eye at an angle, catching a bit on the edge of her socket bone and only digging into the eye itself.

_
While having an arrow plunge into her eye was no cause for celebration this was at least good because it failed to penetrate into her brain. She hated it whenever things messed around inside her skull, it was the worst just due to how badly it robbed her of control over her own body. The agony was just something that was a part of living, at least back when these problems were part of her daily life. As for the arrow itself it would have penetrated deeper but due to both how tough her flesh was and the angle it hit her at the eye was able to absorb any and all force from it before it could dig any deeper.

Of course she reeled from the hit, letting out a sharp cry of pain. No matter how often these things happened to her her pain nerves would never dull, coming back just as sharp as always. She was simply used to it. As she reached up to pull the arrow out from her eye socket one of the bandits had decided to try and capitalize on her moment of weakness.

_
It was a large hairy man who hefted a heavy two handed axe. Just as she straightened up, her free hand on the arrow's shaft, he swung his axe with the aim of decapitating her in one solid blow. Unexpectedly however the axe only thunked into the side of her neck, stopping as though he were trying to chop through the trunk of a mighty tree. She needed to broaden her footing to not get thrown off her feet from the force of the blow but she was still standing nonetheless.

The bandit's eyes widened, his grin fading into a terrified grimace as she, with a furious scowl, swept her blade up vertically through his handle and consequently his fingers. The large man staggered back, an expression of pure shock frozen upon his face whilst blood quickly flowed from his missing digits. Pulling the arrow from her eye the others could see a slow stream of thick, semi-transparent, yellowish green liquid oozing down along her cheek like syrup. She tossed the ichor-soaked arrow aside and gripped the head of the axe still imbedded in her neck. With a sickening slorp she pulled the weapon loose from her neck and tossed it to the man's feet where it landed with an unpleasant splat.

"S-She's!- She's not human! SHE'S A MONSTER!" He started to scream as he watched this woman step forward with both her eye and a chunk of her neck missing, her expression unchanged. The unnatural elements at play here took a heavy toll on the man's sanity as he started to point with his stumps whilst screaming:

"YOU'RE A MONSTER!"

Just as he turned to flee she thrust her sword low into his back, her blade going right through the spine with the tip poking out from his bladder. The bandit's frantic screaming turned into incoherent screeches of agony as she swept her blade down, cleaving his spine, pelvis and manhood in half. He landed on his belly before curling into the fetal position whilst trying to keep his insides from spilling out.

She brought the blade back to her side, turning to face the next unlucky fool she'd slaughter for their cruel opportunism. Despite having been deep inside so many people her sword did not have so much as a single spot of blood on it. It was as though the weapon were so sharp that even blood could not cling to it. It'd be cut away for simply even touching it.

She would leave alone only those who were fleeing after witnessing this display of hers. Any who still continued for the gate and threaten her allies were who she'd turn her attention to next. She ignored the arrows which peppered the grounds around her, one hitting her back armor whilst another struck into her shoulder, only able to draw a pin-prick of blood from it's point of impact. Her attention was turned to the next fool still trying for the gate. The archers were little more than a nuisance for her. She couldn't abandon the gate while there were enemies still trying to threaten those protected within.

She sprinted forth at her next victim, ready to dice him into gore and then the next.

Until they were all dead.

Luna was shocked about how fast she was kicked out of the room, really. That was a rather frightening threat the queen had given her. Well, she suppose she should keep her mouth shut then. She scratched the back of her head before shrugging and making for the North Gate. As she ran, she made sure no one was standing around the streets, though it looked like it was mostly fine. Soon enough, she made it to the gate where the fighting was going on and made her way up onto the wall. She managed to catch the tail end of whatever slaughter was going on to Vyrell's announcement of archers.

Luna narrowed her eyes as she looked on at the volleys of arrows. She wouldn't be able to help everyone, especially poor Od who, according to what she had heard, would probably recover just fine. She held her hands out and focused. While some of her knightly allies would be able to protect themselves easily, a few would find a bit more difficulty in such a feat. Notable Od that had just taken a few hits and likely Ethelred who didn't have a good defense for his horse. A golden barrier appeared in front of Ethelred and his horse and Elias Reinhardt to block any of the arrows aimed at them for a short period. She had a feeling that Fio could handle herself just fine.

After she blocked the volley, she released the spells and switched to casting a new one, creating a golden spear of light in her hand. The proud knightess aimed towards the forest line where she saw the arrows coming from. She didn't need to hit any of the archers, she just needed to hit close to them. Using a bit of magic to power up how far the javelin would go and she launched it. It soared through the air and landed inside the forest... Before causing a blast of light! Hopefully, it would catch the archers off guard and give her allies a bit of cover to make it to them. After, Luna created some platforms with her magic, that disappeared after she stepped to the next, to safely reach ground level to assist her fellow knights with honorable combat.

Just as the bandits seemed to break from the knights' combined efforts, arrows started flying from within the forest. One arrow struck Ethelred square on the faceplate, but failed to penetrate the crystalline armor.

That was either a very lucky shot or a very precise one, he considered as more, less accurate arrows began flying, with one glancing off his horse's flank. This could be a problem. The surviving bandits were now regrouping, their morale seemingly restored by the unseen archers' ambush, and now the knights had to deal with two groups of enemies, all while being completely exposed and out in the open.

When this is over, we need to speak to the queen about having those trees cleared. Ethelred wasn't too concerned about himself- his shield and armor should be enough to stop these arrows- but his horse was another story. Its tough, ice-like flesh was tougher than that of an ordinary stallion, but wasn't rigid, unyielding crystal like his armor, and a direct hit from an arrow could wound it.

Fortunately, aid came at just the most opportune moment. A golden barrier rose up in front of both mount and rider, shielding them from further arrows. It seemed that Lunalel had joined the battle. Ethelred had always considered her a reliable one, with her useful array of elder beast granted powers. This respite gave him an opportunity to assess where the arrows were coming from, and what to do next.

Od and Reinhardt probably could handle the remaining bandits close by, thus Ethelred opted to focus on dealing with the archers. After seeing where the arrows were coming from, he spurred his horse on. With his shield raised, he drove his horse at an angle towards the forest some distance from where the arrows were emerging, all the while leaving a trail of frigid fog behind them. He didn't want to charge them head-on into a potential trap, or give them an easy, direct target, rather he'd want to get a good look at what he was up against, and flank them from within the forest.

He'd have to proceed with caution once he reached the cover of the trees. The rapid speed of his movement would leave him at a considerable distance from the other knights even if any of them also opted to approach the archers before cutting down the remaining brigand foot-soldiers, but he wasn't entirely sure what he would be facing.

The blades vanished moments after they struck their targets or buried themselves in the ground. Only momentarily was the woven light stained with blood before it vanished into drifting motes, leaving nothing behind but the destruction as a sign of its presence.

Archers.

"Panzerschild!"

With a swing of her sword, a thrumming sound filled the air. As the arrows hurtled towards Fio, a small light ignited in the air just ahead of her before birthing a circle much like the ones her phantom blades had originated from. The arrows hurtling towards her bounced harmlessly off her barrier, and any of the defenders in range of her barrier had nothing to fear from the projectiles.

"As if that would be enough," commented Fio, eyes narrowed. There was no chance even an entire army of archers would touch her, let alone this handful!

Of course, given they were in cover, she couldn't get an accurate line of sight on them. But that didn't mean she couldn't disrupt their formation...

"Let's show them how the Sword Witch responds to that! Great Ghost Blade!"

As Fio's barrier dissipated, another circle formed above her. This time, the weight of mana use flowing through her body was a little heavier, but not too burdensome to bear.

As the interwoven blade of light emerged, it was clear it was at least twice as long as she was tall, if not more so. The air around it seemed to shimmer, as if waves on the surface of some invisible body of water had suddenly been disturbed.

"Release!"

With that, the hefty phantom sword was sent hurtling through the air, a whistling sound accompanying it as it careened towards the origin of the arrows.

@Rune_Alchemist

Location:
Airedale
Mid-morning
Airedale Fields

---

@A Lowly Wretch@VitaVitaAR@Guy0fV4lor@Pyromania99

Od tore into the approaching bandits once more, the arrows impacting her flesh but otherwise not being too harmful considering her vitality and the fey blood that seemed to run through her veins. Needless to say, her opponents were both intimidated and completely shocked by the sight of a madwoman with an arrow stuck in her eye tearing them to shreds with ease.

More arrows would lob themselves at the knights and the Militia on the wall as the Bandits still made their advance - only saved by the combined efforts of Lunalel and Fio whose shields would block the volley and who would both launch a massive sword of magic and spear of light towards the trees. In cover as they were, they weren't likely to do much damage - ah.

Fio could sense it before she could see it. A burst of magical power as an arrow sailed through the air, cloaked in a shroud of quick moving air. Once it reached the same height as the spear of light it'd burst open, creating a vortex, sucking in the spear of light and knocking it off course along with her blade. It was hard to tell what exactly magic was used from this distance, but it felt like something similar to a spirit.

thud

The ground shook - causing the entire row of militia atop the wall to stumble, the bandits backing off slightly as they'd too feel the disturbance.

"Fall back! Don't get in the bosses' way!" One of them would shout.

thud

Across the plains was the sound of heavy footfalls, slamming into the ground faster and faster, as if whatever it was, was picking up speed - after a few seconds the knights could see it, coming into view just out of sight from the nearby forest. A massive beast, at least eleven feet tall, a long trunk and a set of four bony tusks protruding from the front of it ready to impale anything it ran into. Its body was covered in a thick, white and blue-streaked fur, and its legs were covered in thick armor while the upper part of its face was covered in what seemed to be hard, crystalline and icy growth. And atop it? A Tuatha man sat in a saddle. Long braided red hair, a cloak of fur being all he wore on his upper torso and in his hands, was a large axe seemed to be made primarily from steel and decorated with some sort of bone.

"Ahaha, you guys put up a pretty good fight!" He'd shout, the gargantuan beast not slowing down. It was making a beeline for the gate! "Means you probably got some pretty good loot in there, huh! Alright break down that gate of theirs, Shabbi!"

It...was a Tuatha man, riding an Elder Beast, that seemed to be leading these brigands.

---

Airedale Forest
@Crimson Paladin

Breaking away from the field, Ethelred would find himself thankfully mostly left alone by the arrows, whoever was doing the firing being more focused on seemingly preventing either of the spears or the ethereal sword from reaching their intended targets. Upon reaching the treeline, he'd find his targets. About five archers. Initially, they hadn't seen him approach from their flanks. All of them were focused on the job at hand - focused on suppressing the knights and giving them trouble from the sidelines. Didn't seem like they had a trap ready.

One among them, seemed like she might have been the source of the magic from before. a woman, dressed as though she was someone from some noble family. Blond hair tied up, a pointed hat with a feather in it on her head with a darker skin tone. In her hands was a green bow whose string seemed to shimmer lightly.

"Haa, there he goes." He'd hear her grumble. "If he was just gonna do that anyways we could've stayed at home and get pampered...nnhn? Seshaeal?" Her head would immediately turn in Ethelred's direction, immediately knocking an arrow and firing it in his direction - for such a hastily fired projectile it was fired with nearly uncanny precision and power, tearing some leaves off nearby branches as it whistled through the air.

"Guh, of course we get the scary looking knight guy too!" She'd shout.

The rest of the other archers would immediately turned towards Ethelred, some dropping their bows for axes or a sword.

"Don't suppose I could ask ya to leave nicely and we'll do the same, huh?" The woman would ask with a rather cavalier attitude.

Od

She withdrew her blade from the body of a man, blood slaking the blades of grass, before looking up to see what had become of the battlefield. Ever fewer bandits remained on the field, most of the remaining kills being hers with the horseman having departed to confront the archers who laid in the woods. It was risky of him to go at it alone given what she already had seen but her worries would have to wait as an even greater foe approached. A tuathan man riding atop some sort of elder beast approached and at speed.

The mammoth beast's were armored and thickly too. She worried that her blade wouldn't pierce deep enough to disable the legs if she tried to slash through and trading a non-lethal cut for an opportunity for it to trample her wasn't going to weigh in her favor. Instead she looked to considering her means of taking out the beast from the top. While it's head may have been armored by some form of crystalline protection the same might not be true for it's back. It was also being directed by it's rider. If she could take him out that might leave the beast aimless which would make it easier to goad away from the castle walls.

In any which case she needed to get on top somehow. There was one way immediately available to her if his impressive strength continued to hold true.

"Throw me!" She shouted back to Reinhardt, pointing up at the rider upon the great beast's back. She quickly sprinted to his side then pivoted, facing the beast rider as he charged for the gates and, consequently, them. Her focus was steeled, her muscles tight like a well wound spring. If the missing eye or chunk of her neck was bothering her any then it wasn't visibly clear to anyone onlooking. Her sense of duty superseded feelings of pain or fear for her own safety.

In the name of the queen no threat to her lands would stand, no matter how tall.

_
@Guy0fV4lor@Rune_Alchemist

Ethelred raised his shield, narrowly deflecting the arrow fired by the woman. There was considerable force the arrow as evidenced by the impact he could feel through the shield and the loud clang it made when it struck. If he had to guess, this markswoman was probably the one who shot him before with such precision, and the one calling the shots (literally) for this band of archers. She might pose a challenge, but the other bandits were as good as dead if the knight chose to attack.

He needed to get this fight over with quickly, because something had just entered the battle in the field, something that Ethelred had not caught a glimpse of. He had been able to hear it and feel the rumbling, though. Whatever it was, it sounded like a formidable foe.

Curiously, the woman before him didn't look like an ordinary brigand. She was well-dressed in fine, expensive-looking clothing, nothing like any of the other bandits that Ethelred had seen. Her bow, in addition to being of higher quality than the other bandits' bows, looked like it was magical.

Quite an unusual person to be mingling with brigands. She certainly isn't hurting for wealth. Perhaps she was a commander, but her words were those of a subordinate, not a leader. A lieutenant, perhaps.

Her words to him sounded more like a resignation to the imminent fight, rather than a serious attempt to parlay. At the same time, however, she didn't sound pleased, and judging by what Ethelred had overhead prior, she didn't want to be here. It might be dangerous to allow her to walk away, but if he could resolve this without violence, it'd leave more time to help the other knights with whatever he had felt and heard rumbling out into the field.

"You'd be surprised," Ethelred replied to the woman. "Contrary to my appearance, I am not cold-hearted. Thus I offer you and your friends a deal- run along. Depart from this battle. Go home and get pampered. Live to see another sunset." Ethelred stared at each of the other bandits, as if to emphasize this last part to them. To further drive home of how unwise it'd be to fight him, he channeled his powers of frost, causing a small layer of ice to form on the nearby leave, branches, and brush. If any of the bandits got closer, they'd notice the temperature had dropped measurably around the knight.

"The Queen is carrying out a great work here," he continued. "We are restoring order and driving back the curse. Those who become her subjects will prosper under her protection. Those who oppose her will fall. And when the battle is concluded, I strongly suggest that you reassess your choice in occupation, and consider the benefits of being the Queen's friend rather than her enemy."

Ethelred stared in the woman's direction, ready to charge if she reached for another arrow.

@Rune_Alchemist