[IC] Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

[Muttonhawk]

Over at the command centre, the three commanders stood in various settings. A table had been set up with a map of the area unfurled and weighed down by a few stones. Gro-Tagnud stood rod straight beside the table with his hands behind his back. Teroiah had set up a metre-high standing litter topped with cushions upon which she sat cross-legged with a stemmed glass of water and three potions to restore her magicka. From their views upon the plateau with Ri'vashi, they observed the devastation Meesei's pack wrought.

"We have maintained our momentum," Teroiah said. "It is time we sought an objective while our artillery is brought to bear."

"Don't get cocky," Gro-Tagnud rumbled without taking his eyes off the field.

Teroiah laughed condescendingly. "I shall draw upon my own experience, Legate-General. How about you hold the flank like we discussed and my soldiers will make for the towers. Ri'vashi? I trust you have retained the strength to keep the Daedra scattered?"

She did not wait before sending a magical signal light up from her litter. It was all in their battleplan anyway. Enough Dominion troops had emerged from the portal that they were ready and poised to emerge from the gaps in the Legion lines like fluid gold. The frontline had conjured bound spears and shields, behind them were mages bringing forth more conjured Daedrea skirmishers and destructive spells, and at the rear were archers set to clear the way. They advanced down the plateau in an assertive formation, heading towards the towers to take them before the chaos below could fully resolve.

[EliteCommander]

The sheer aggression of Meesei’s pack was followed up upon by the soldiers behind them, and it definitely served its purpose to keep pressure away from the portal. Meesei herself had bolted as a streak of lightning deep into the Daedra’s ranks, then surrounded herself in a lightning form spell. It was as if she was a being of pure lightning, and even being near her was enough to receive a wounding shock. When even so much as approaching her was a risk, being surrounded on all sides could feel more like an advantage than not.

In any case, keeping the Daedra from closing in on the portal allowed them to bring through enough reinforcements to confidently repel this first attack. The Daedra had failed to reach the plateau, so they were steadily being overwhelmed by their growing opposition. However, this initial Daedric force was relatively small, in the grand scheme of the battle ahead. They were a first response, and while they had been driven back, there was far more fighting ahead.

Ri’vashi returned a nod towards Teroiah. “Yes, the bulk of my warriors will join the main force in the valley below. Once we are off this hill and down into the valley, there will be more space for them to operate as shock troops, and fill the role of cavalry. We can also send in more waves of lycan spirits ahead of us as skirmishers. The Champion’s pack, and some of my more elite teams, will be joining your soldiers through the mountain pass to take out the watchtowers, and reach…that.” She said, pointing a finger off into the distance, towards the massive tower at the other end of the valley.

At that point, a section of their reinforcements came through the portal that drew gazes, and some looks of disgust, from many of their own forces. It was Hal-Neesa, leading a formation of undead soldiers behind her. They were all in varying states of decay, with some being somewhat fresh animated corpses, and others that were nothing but bones magically bound together. The bodies were everything from Humans and Elves, to Falmer and even werewolf corpses. Hal-Neesa herself hardly even looked to be equipped for battle. The best that could be said about her was that her bright red dress did not look quite as expensive as her usual attire. She stepped through without so much as even acknowledging the looks she was receiving. She did give a quick glance up to the sun above them, but despite her vampiric nature, she did not look to be bothered by it.

Hal-Neesa went directly for the three commanders as soon as she arrived, speaking up as soon as she was close without any care for who she might have interrupted. “Is everything proceeding as planned, or do you have any fires I need to extinguish?”

[Muttonhawk]

Gro-Tagnud breathed in and Teroiah interrupted. "Acceptable losses, less resistance than expected," she reported, her nose wrinkling.

"There's still that titan flying around here somewhere," Gro-Tagnud added. "The advance towards the watch towers proceeds. A more solid defence should show up any minute now."

With the battle going on, neither the Legion nor the Dominion commander quite wanted to engage the word games required to order Hal-Neesa to do exactly what they wanted.

"Any insight for us, Hal-Neesa?" Gro-Tagnud asked without looking directly at her.

Teroiah took a slow sip from her drink.

A few bright flashes lit up the valley below as Sabine conjured up what appeared to be a rain of speeding stone meteors from destructive magic to rain down on the enemy Daedra.

[EliteCommander]

Hal-Neesa hummed to herself for a moment. “A titan? I suppose I would expect Vile to have some more powerful Daedra guarding his…” Neesa began as she looked out towards the tall tower at the far end of the valley. The twisting pillars of light around it made it even more of a beacon than it would have been otherwise. “…I do wonder exactly what that is? It does look like this realm’s version of Crystal-Like-Law. I did wonder if the counterparts in other realms would collapse as well when Summerset’s tower was destroyed. It seems they did not. Or perhaps Vile just rebuilt it? No matter, it does not change the plan. I will join the diversion force advancing through the valley. Now that I am here, Vile will see me as his primary threat.”

Neesa turned away from the table and mentally signaled for her force of undead soldiers to start advancing down the hill into the valley. Though, a grin soon came across her face. “You all should feel quite fortunate, you know? You and your soldiers are about to have the honor of experiencing something that few mortals ever witness me do: try.”

At the front of the battlefield, the effect Meesei’s pack had was quite pronounced. Not only had they stalled the Daedra’s advance, but the lines of legionnaires were now advancing down the path to finish off an enemy that had been…somewhat routed. Despite the fact that Meesei’s pack had helped open up a split in the enemy ranks, which their allies quickly took advantage of, there was no surrender for the Daedra. As beings that could not truly die, they did not stop fighting until their bodies were destroyed, no matter how hopeless the battle. For mortal armies, one could expect retreat or surrender when a fight was lost, but this was to be an exhausting battle against relentless foes.

Meesei bolted back to the front lines of their own forces just before Sabine unleashed what was essentially a meteor shower on the remaining Daedra. It was a rather spectacular display that lit up the battlefield with an orange glow of flames, and certainly rallied their own troops. What was left of the Daedra in this wave were little more than stragglers, but as tempting as it was to celebrate, they could not afford to lose their momentum. The initial wave that the Skaafin had managed to pull together was only the beginning. There would be far more ahead of them in the valley beyond, and they would be ready this time.

Of course, Meesei’s pack would not be advancing through the front line of the battlefield. They would be moving north, through the mountain pass, and taking out watchtowers as they went. They would be supporting the Dominion soldiers that Teroiah was sending up through the mountain pass and, as well, would be joined by a few teams hand-picked by Ri’vashi. Among them were a Khajiit cavalry unit led by Ri’kalesh, though instead of horses, they were mounted on the great “battlecats”, Senche-raht. Cavalry traditionally did not perform well in more restrictive, mountainous terrain, but the Senche-raht’s intelligence and physical prowess would allow them to navigate the battlefield with surprising effectiveness. Another team had formed a silent reunion between Saras and Hjergir Steel-Heart of the Riften clan, bringing with them both warriors, and some of Saras’ most accomplished agents. As well, the team of mages formed by Fendros’ father had also been assigned to the northern flank, and a few werevultures to serve as messengers.

As the bulk of their forces were advancing deeper into the valley, Meesei’s pack split off and reconvened just to the north. The fighting in the mountain pass would likely be more small-scale battles, but every bit as important. The watchtowers were valuable positions from which the Skaafin could coordinate their troops and artillery, though in a way, it was almost fortunate that they were there. They provided a convenient excuse for them to send forces to escort the Rueful Axe through the mountains towards Vile, without giving away the fact that Hal-Neesa was not his true threat.

“We need to hurry.” Meesei remarked as she turned her gaze towards the mountains. “It looks like Teroiah is already sending her forces to the pass. We need to regroup with the Dominion commander and help lead the way.”

Ahnasha walked up alongside Fendros and Sabine, guiding Leaps with her. “Do either of you want to be the one to ride Leaps into battle? I might be more useful fighting on foot.” She asked. Her first instinct was to pose the question to members of her own pack, though there was also Yerig, or any of the members of Sabine’s pack who could take up his reins.

[Muttonhawk]

Sabine exchanged a glance with Fendros, catching her breath. "I should stay with my pack," she said firmly. "You go, Fendros."

"I could use the mobility," Fendros said under his helmet. He skipped up to grab Ahnasha's hand and pull himself up in barely a moment. Unlike Sabine, he could take advantage of quick repositioning on Leaps to angle his shots and survey the battlefield. All the same, he smiled and gave Ahnasha a quick hug around her torso before letting her on her way.

"Feeling better yet, Lorag!?" Janius roared as they started towards the Dominion advance. He was covered in Daedric ichor and sprung for action.

Up in the command post, Legate General Gro-Tagnud commented once he was confident Hal-Neesa was occupied. "That vampire had better be all Marod puffed her up to be or this is all about to take a real bad turn."

"With respect, Gro-Tagnud," Teroiah responded. "Focus on the enemy's next move."

Gro-Tagnud grunted. "General Ri'vashi. You got better eyes than I do, your werevultures might signal a flare from further out than we thought. Eyes peeled, everyone."

[EliteCommander]

There was something of a rush to catch up to their forces moving up the mountain pass, but as a relatively small group, they could move more quickly than formations of soldiers, even with some of their slower members like Kaleeth. Do’rhajul was, notably, sticking quite close to Sabine all the way up the path, alert and with Spellbreaker in hand. Despite the fact that she was perhaps the most capable person in their whole army of protecting herself, he could not shake the feeling of responsibility he had to keep his leader safe and unharmed.

The pack had managed to catch up to their forces moving up to the northern flank and started to lead from the very front of the formation, which was split on the left and right between the Dominion unit, and Hjergir’s frontline forces. Although, Meesei made sure to insert her pack in between the two, as she definitely sensed some…tension from one of the sides. Hjergir had once been a Stormcloak commander during Ulfric’s uprising, and some of his men may have once been loyal to him as well, so having to march alongside Thalmor soldiers had him perpetually sneering. Meesei was sure that the only reason there was not more tension among them was because the Dominion soldiers had no knowledge of Hjergir’s prior allegiance, though she did still expect some judgmental glares, at minimum. Although Hjergir himself, and many of his soldiers, used Dwemer metal in their armor, they were still adorned in traditional Nordic styles. Furs and pelts were common, and Hjergir himself wore, over his helmet, a bear’s head. They did have the look of the “savage men” the Thalmor tended to look down upon.

The first of the watchtowers was close to the beginning of the mountain path, so they did not encounter any meaningful resistance before they started to close in on the first tower. Meesei’s pack did not even need to lift a finger to deal with the small scouting parties they ran into along the way, but she stopped them all short of being in range of the tower. This was the first of four towers they would need to deal with, and would likely be the easiest. The tower was a fortified outpost, but not for the kind of military invasion this realm was currently experiencing. The Daedra had not yet received reinforcements, so the tower would likely just have its normal contingent. Based on its size there probably would not be more than twenty-five to thirty Daedra, against a whole unit of Dominion troops, Hjergir’s warriors, Khajiit cavalry, Rossarm’s mages, and both Meesei and Sabine’s packs. If they wanted to, they could simply charge straight in with their combined forces, but Meesei was not sure that was the best approach.

“We need to decide quickly how we intend to attack, before they can be reinforced.” Meesei said to the others. They did have the advantage of numbers here, but the tower was quite a defensible position, even against a larger force. It was a large, stone structure with quite a few floors worth of stairs to climb within, a fortified door they would have to break down, and some light barricades around its base. If they were to simply charge straight in, there would be some losses. They would not likely lose too many soldiers, but they did need to keep up a fast pace through the mountain pass for the next three towers. If, at any point, they needed to wait for reinforcements, then the enemy would have more time to fortify, and further fights would become even more difficult. They needed to mix caution and aggression to take each tower efficiently. For this tower, they would need to decide if they wanted to destroy it, or to capture it, and how they wanted to attack. They would need to move uphill while under fire from arrows and spells, but the defenders did not have the forces available to actually slow them down on approach. They would need to deal with any Daedra that might be manning the barricades outside, then either break through the door, or destroy the tower entirely.

Near the gate, at the commanders’ table, a werevulture messenger soon landed. In addition to their scouting abilities, flying lycanthropes serves as far more effective messengers than any form of cavalry, especially for messages more complicated than what could be communicated by simple signals. Ri’vashi read the message quickly before relaying it to the others. “Our main force is proceeding into the valley, but they are being harassed by skirmishers and are facing frequent, suicidal attacks from small groups. The Daedra are trying to slow us down, give time for them to collect their army into a unified force. Our forces are having to move carefully to prevent excessive casualties. But, if we have to face the Daedric army all at once, we will be significantly outnumbered.”

[Muttonhawk]

Fendros had Leaps slide to a stop beside Meesei. Even atop the wamasu, he was barely level with Meesei's eyeline while she was hunched over. He pointed one end of his bow towards the tower's top. "You or Sabine could take us to the top. A few units beseige the base. We work our way downstairs with height on our side. The rest of the force can start moving on the next tower."

"A portal!" Sabine realised.

Over at the command centre, Gro-Tagnud's stern face did not betray any disappointment or elation. "We have to draw their attention, make them commit too early if possible," he advised. "Our fastest troops need to split away forward and goad the enemy into wasting time and energy. It'll take pressure off our front line and put pressure on them."

"You underestimate the enemy's patience and endurance," Teroiah said over her glass.

"It's not bait," Gro-Tagnud retorted. "It's buying time. If they're suicidal, they'll give chase for long enough."

[EliteCommander]

“Hmm, a clever plan. The staff will make it easy enough to create one.” Meesei remarked. Hjergir and the Dominion commander were gathered as well, though the Nord was not particularly keen on getting any closer to the Thalmor than he had to. The others might have heard of the power of Meesei’s pack, but they were not as familiar with their magical capabilities and would require some explanation.

Lorag gave a look up towards the top of the tower. “We should still make sure to time this right. If we let everyone else attack from the bottom first, then we can drag their attention down from the top and we’ll get more of an element of surprise.”

Meesei nodded, then turned to Hjergir and the Dominion commander. “Have your men attack as you normally would from the base of the tower. Once you have their attention, my pack will use a portal to get to the top and fight our way down to the bottom at the same time. We will be able to crush them between us.”

Standing next to Sabine, Meesei turned her gaze up towards the top of the tower, then placed her massive hand onto Sabine’s back. “You should create the portal. You will need to do it by eye, so…just make sure to judge the distance correctly.”

Ri’vashi gave a look at their map, as well as the markers they had placed to denote the progress of their troops, and sightings of the enemy. “Perhaps a bait may not be a bad idea?” She remarked. “This one can send her warriors ahead of our lines to force the enemy into battle, but without your support, we will still be limited in how many we can fight at once. We might try, instead, to trick the enemy into committing to battle early, of their own volition. These Daedra are more soldier than beast, but they are still prideful. Impulsive. If we show what seems to be a weakness they could exploit, some of their more ambitious commanders may see it as an opportunity to earn glory.”

[Muttonhawk]

Sabine was determined. She lowered her brow and nodded. Ahead of them, the twin forces of Dominion and lycan soldiers spread their formations to approach the tower.

Either by professional focus or by indifference, the Dominion commander and his subordinates failed to so much as recognise the looks and attire of Hjergir and his men, though they did not hesitate by telling Hjergir of their approach. The conjurers in the unit summoned a number of fast-running clannfear Daedra to rush the lines with their bony, crested heads while more destructive mages lobbed magicks designed not to kill so much as force the enemy behind their barricades. The main line of infantry thumped forward at double time with shields, wards, and spears forward to meet the enemy. The few archers with angles on enemies they could see shot to kill. They were especially interested in airborne foes, against whom they could show off their many decades or even centuries honing their aim.

Sabine focussed as narrowly as she could on the highest platform of the tower. She took her time while the enemy was engaged at the base of the tower to line her entire body up in just the exact way to help her precision. The magic gathered slowly at first, and then grew into the familiar overwhelming power required to open a portal. It opened after a while at both ends at once. Something the pack had not seen before and somehow made the experience all the more strange.

Gro-Tagnud narrowed one eye. "Risky, but you know your troops," he said.

"Let us see them show their courage," Teroiah agreed. "I wish to see these Daedra forced by a feint their arms commit to despite their minds' knowledge."

[EliteCommander]

For Hjergir and his warriors, the approach to attacking the tower was far more straightforward compared to the Dominion troops. Without hesitation, they charged in to deal with the Daedra holding the outside of the tower head-on. At least from what they could see from the outside, it seemed like the tower’s garrison was entirely Skaafin, so the fighting would be more familiar than when the Daedra had larger beasts among them. Still, Hjergir’s charge was not disorganized. They moved forward in ranks, overlapping their shields to protect against arrows from the top of the tower. The Khajiit cavalry, meanwhile, moved to the flanks. The tower was set in between jagged rocks on three sides, but they could still search for opportunities to deal some damage.

As planned, Sabine’s portal came well after the rest of their forces had started their assault, and the pack had to move quickly to take advantage of their element of surprise. Meesei was the first through, though the rest of he pack did not delay in following through after her. It was a short fall from the portal to the top of the tower. Meesei was prepared for it, though the sound of her feet hitting the stone, and the clanging of her dragonbone armor immediately grabbed the attention of the Skaafin at the top of the tower.

The top of the tower was a circular, mostly empty space, apart from the entrance to the stairway leading down, and a pedestal with a slightly glowing orb on top of it on the side of the tower closest to the valley. As for the Skaafin, all that remained at top once the attack had began below were the archers firing down through the arrow slits. There were eight of them, all lightly armed and lightly armored, who were clearly alarmed by the sudden arrival of a werewolf pack in close range.

Ri’vashi nodded. “Very well, Ri’vashi will send a detachment forward, have them engage the enemy, then be ‘routed’ back to a seemingly weakened portion of our lines. It will be close enough to the center, so…Khajiit supposes we shall see if Hal-Neesa truly has the power she claims to wield.”

[Muttonhawk]

Meesei's pack went through armour-first. Lorag, Janius, and then Kaleeth poured in and went straight for the nearest threats. The few Skaafin that levelled their arrows or took out weapons were hard-pressed to find anywhere to wound their foes before they were engaged.

Janius made an example of one Skaafin by thrusting his axe-bearing arm into its middle and sent it flying over the edge of the tower.

Fendros leapt through upon Leaps-On-Elves with a more slithering landing and put an arrow in another Skaafin's neck in short order. He knew Ahnasha would not give him the chance to pick his targets carefully before the rest of them dropped. Besides, there would be plenty of arrows to replenish his quiver here.

Sabine was the last of their group through, needing to keep the portal open for everyone else. By the time she landed and gained her bearings, the present Skaafin were already overwhelmed. She spared an inquisitive look at the orb above the pedestal at the centre of the platform they stood upon. It could not have been a sigil stone unless it was reserved for a portal made later.

Back at the command post, the commanders watched on after Ri'vashi gave the signal to skirmish the enemy's main force.

Teroiah gave a moment to regard the position they sat in. "It would appear our fortifications are nearly complete. By my estimations, if your feint succeeds, we may be ready to bring artillery to bear. Most efficient."

[EliteCommander]

Considering how close the Skaafin archers were to the portal, it did not take long to clear the top of the watchtower. Kaleeth was one of the first to drop down out of the portal, and her size alone was usually enough to draw the focus of her enemies. Three of the archers loosed their arrows at her as she rushed towards one of them, and all three simply deflected or even broke against her armor. The Skaafin in front of her tried to run, but being trappup on the top of the watchtower, there was simply nowhere to go. She clenched her hand around the Daedra’s midsection, and with one arm, simply threw him over the edge of the tower.

Being that it was close quarters, Ahnasha had dropped down with blades drawn instead of a bow. There were plenty of creatures she could summon that would be useful in this sort of situation, but for a surprise attack like this, she decided on the simpler, much more direct approach of just running at the enemy before they could effectively react. She followed Kaleeth, and upon seeing three of the archers dedicate their arrows to her, she took the opportunity. She picked one that was trying to nock another arrow and dashed ahead, thrusting the dagger in her off hand towards his neck while also slicing her Daedric sword across the stomach. The Skaafin had only a bow to parry with, and while he did stop the dagger, her sword still spilled his guts in the most literal sense. Kaleeth had already thrown her target from the tower by that point, and the last of the three had managed to draw his shortsword by that point. However, Ahnasha was still just as quick and decisive. She shoved her bleeding foe back into the other Skaafin and followed through while he was staggered, sinking both of her blades into his torso.

Lorag, despite the protection his armor provided, still found it prudent to dash and evade while charging an archer to reduce the chance of a well-aimed shot finding its mark. But, inevitably, he still reached his target and simply used his overpowering strength to smash the Daedra’s head into the stonework.

Meesei, who had dropped through first, had not bothered to move from the spot she landed. Instead, she charged lightning through her hands and waited to see who her best targets would be. The two Skaafin closest to the stairway had decided to make a run for it to regroup with the others inside the tower, so they made for an obvious choice. The two streams of lightning Meesei shot forth found their targets immediately, and with nothing to resist her power, they dropped to the floor just as quickly. She sustained the spells until the scent of burned Daedric flesh reached her snout.

It was easy enough for the pack to surprise a group of unprepared archers. Storming down the stairway into the tower would have been the next part of the plan, but from the vantage point they now had, Meesei spotted a complication. Daedric reinforcements from deeper in the mountain pass were advancing on them more quickly than expected. The frontlines were made up of Skaafin, while more bestial Daedra were dispersed among the ranks behind them, along with some winged twilights flying above like a swarm of bats. It was a larger force than what they had brought with them into the pass, so soon enough, their soldiers down below would be both outflanked and outnumbered.

Meesei was not at all hesitant to make a decision. “Sabine, stay with me here. We need to signal the enemy advance, then we can assist from above. Everyone else, clear the tower as quickly as you can, then rejoin our soldiers below.”

[Muttonhawk]

Sabine followed Meesei's eyes and spotted the oncoming enemy reinforcements. She nodded in full agreement by the time Meesei finished. It was a simple matter to edge over to the parapets and wave around a bright magical light at the end of her staff to get attention from below. The hard part was to pick out either of the commanders. the Dominion commander was leading from the front but not without clear protection from bodyguards. However, Hjergir would be stuck right into the front line with his rushing warriors.

"We shall make it fast!" Fendros answered Meesei's order. He slid down from Leaps' back and gestured everyone to the staircase. Everyone knew the order to proceed.

While the others scurried below, Sabine cut out her hesitation and sent a bright red magical flare arcing out towards the reinforcements.

[EliteCommander]

Going down into the tower provided a different sort of battlefield for the pack. Although it was a large watchtower, the stairway was still constricting to the amount of people who could fight side-by-side at once. Two of them could move alongside one another comfortably, perhaps three human-sized individuals. Though, it would be hard to justify not sending in Kaleeth in the very front of their advance. In tight quarters where she could not be surrounded, and the enemy had few options for escape, a behemoth like her could thrive.

Following Fendros’ order, Kaleeth moved down into the stairway alongside him, with the others following behind. Ahnasha decided to allow Janius and Lorag to move in the middle, with herself at the rear. Unlike the others, she could actually meaningfully help without being at the front. The top floor, below the roof, was empty of resistance, though as they passed by, they would be able to see several tables with maps, scrolls, and some other objects. Once the tower was clear and the reinforcements defeated, they could potentially gain some useful information from it, as long as there was someone present who could read the Daedric language.

While they had been able to surprise the archers, those below had, of course, heard the fighting above them. As they started to head down to the next floor, they finally encountered resistance on the stairs, and as it seemed, the Skaafin were putting their strongest warriors in the front. The three up front were in in heavy, Daedric armor, with shields and either swords or axes, while the two behind them used spears from over the shoulders of their front rank.

Outside, on the ground, Sabine’s magical flare illuminated the area deeper into the pass. There was a hill blocking the line-of-sight to the advancing Daedric reinforcements, but Do’rhajul immediately recognized the meaning of Sabine’s signal. He and the rest of Sabine’s pack had stayed on the ground, given how restrictive the indoor fighting within the tower would be. Whether or not the other commanders recognized Sabine’s signal, he was the first to respond to it.

“Enemy reinforcements! On our flank, up the path!” Do’rhajul shouted, moving into position to meet the enemy charge at the very front. Despite having no real authority over anyone else present, Do’rhajul was a hard man to ignore. He had been a general for Vile for many years, and a legionnaire for even longer before that. Everything from his tone to the confidence of his movements spoke to his experience as a veteran in battle, and made it easy to want to follow his lead.

[Muttonhawk]

The pack's rush down the stairs left little room for Janius to help behind Kaleeth. When he saw the shields of the enemy Skaafin ahead, he turned himself to press his back to the wall. Ahnasha and Fendros were best suited for working around Kaleeth's influence.

Fendros already had an arrow drawn. While he aimed, the back of his mind made a note to get Ahnasha on to the Daedric writing at the top story of the tower. Her study of conjuration exposed her to such text all the time. She, Sabine, or Meesei could decipher it with any luck.

Fendros waited patiently for Kaleeth's arm to fall on a shield or a weapon to open up a more exposed joint in the Skaafin armour. His fingers let loose at just the right moment to catch one under the arm.

Outside, the more patient Dominion forces had their attention drawn to Do'rhajul's warning. The section leaders had to defer to the field officer in charge of their formation, though he quickly waved a dismissive hand and ordered two sergeants to 'keep them assailed' while the rest took the tower. His next order was to send a message to the leader of the Senche-raht cavalry over the short distance. They would need their mobility.

Another message was almost sent to Rossarm's mages, though a quick glance back showed that the Dunmer was already repositioning his formation to face the reinforcements. They had an odd layout and were charging a peculiar spell. Rossarm himself had an arm held up while he waited for the reinforcements to crest the landscape into sight. He shouted the signal and his mages collectively sent a large streak of orange fire forward. At its zenith, the fireball split into many smaller magical projectiles and showered over the top of the oncoming charge.

[EliteCommander]

As difficult as it would have been for the average archer to use a bow in such tight quarters, Fendros was not the average archer, and the pack was more than coordinated enough to enable him. Since Lorag could not move forward, he stayed back just behind Fendros to support him in case the enemy slipped past Kaleeth. Though, the werecrocodile took up more than half of the stairway by herself, and certainly, she had no trouble creating opportunities for Fendros. The axe-wielding Skaafin were aggressive, going straight for Kaleeth’s head, though she demonstrated a surprising amount of control in response, even for her. Her beast spirit was not normally one to fight strategically, but this time, she tilted her head to let the blows deflect at an angle off of her helmet, while at the same time pressing through the Skaafin’s defense with sheer force. She charged forward into the one on the right, allowing her body weight to barrel through him, and the row behind him. Just after, she took a swipe at the Skaafin on her left. Her claws might not have been able to get through Daedric armor directly, but she could still break his arm if he tried to block her. Though, the Daedra behind them were not without the means to fight back. Spearmen who were not being crushed under the weight of those in front of them were trying to find gaps in Kaleeth’s armor, and a mage let loose a stream of lightning straight into Kaleeth’s head.

At the same time, Ahnasha took the chance to conjure a creature while the enemy was distracted. In the spot she could just barely see behing the ranks of Daedra, she summoned forth a daedroth. There might have been more Skaafin farther down the tower, but at least for this group, she could trap them between two imposing, powerful reptiles.

On the ground, the two sergeants that the Dominion officer dedicated to the reinforcements did not command nearly enough troops to effectively resist them, as would be evident once they crested the hill. Hjergir, however, trusted in the Champion. If she and her pack saw fit to break with the plan, then it must have been for a good reason. He pulled every single one of his warriors into support of Do’rhajul. By this point, the Daedra garrisoning the tower had been pushed back entirely inside and were much less of an immediate threat.

With their allies gathering, Yerig stood beside Do’rhajul, calming his mind and taking in a deep breath. He focused, then let out a shout that echoed through the mountains: “MID VUR SHAAN!” The magic of the shout imbued seemed to stir up the wind around each and every one of his allies, allowing them to move and attack with much greater agility.

“By Talos, the Thu’um!” Hjergir shouted as he raised his axe in the air. “Brothers and sisters, the winds of Kyne guide our blades! Charge!”

With various shouts and battle cries, the largely Nordic force charged ahead to meet the much larger Daedric force head-on. Despite their numeric disadvantage, they seemed nearly as fearless as the immortal Daedra they were attacking.

No matter their enemy’s courage, however, the Daedra were not a force to be underestimated. The rain of fire from Rossarm’s mages was undoubtedly effective. From front to back, their ranks were thinning under the magical onslaught, but they did have mages of their own, and the wide area of the spell meant that each individual fireball could still be blocked by a well-placed ward. Even before the armies had reached one another, Skaafin, Dremora, and Winged Twilights flying above shot fireballs, spikes of ice, and lightning bolts into the advancing Nords, against which simple shields provided only limited defense.

[Muttonhawk]

The Dominion commander appeared to take his time reallocating sections of his force to repel the counterattack. The tower was well and truly secured from the outside by the time the Dominion manned the barricades they had just captured. Meanwhile, the token force sent to keep the reinforcements at bay were at once awed and goaded by Hjergir's charge.

"Do not be dishonoured by heretics, Altmer!" One sergeant shouted in a rage, holding up a bound sword in signal. "Slay the Daedra before us!"

A renewed wave of morale in anger drove the Dominion's arms forward. Spells flew up to the airborne Daedra to drop them out of the skies. Blocks of spears and shields advanced to methodically cut down the forestalled enemy. But they were still outnumbered. The little burst of energy would only last so long.

Sabine could see it all too clearly from where she stood. Until this point she was nervous about attracting too much attention to their flanking force. But, she reasoned, if this is what they faced here, Hal-Neesa would undoubtedly be making a deific impression in the main clash. Sabine lowered her stance with the Staff of Magnus gripped tightly in both hands. She brought about a destructive magical technique that was imprecise but still immensely powerful as it gathered at the front of the staff.

She launched it forth in a beam like a shooting star. It leapt clean over both forces of Daedra and aligned Nirnian troops in an apparent miss, before blasting outward in a freezing white cloud immense enough to encompass almost the entire pass. The effect had no impact on the Daedra except to make them feel a chill on their skin until the second effect triggered. Above the tower, Sabine let out the second half of the spell's energy in an equally large blast of heat. Heat that was sucked through the air towards the cold cloud in a sudden field-encompassing gale of wind that made her stumble atop the tower, even after bracing for it. The daedra in the air had no such leverage and were forcefully spun out of control in the turbulence, spiralling onto the battlefield in a rain of blunt bodies.

The forced on the ground had a reprieve for now.

Rossarm lowered his brow at the display. He took the opportunity to bark an order back at his mages. The formation sounded a disciplined confirmation in unison and split into groups of four. The groups spread amongst Hjergir's warriors and kept their eyes up and forward behind the shield wall. Wards sprang up the moment the recovering Winged Twilights and other magical Daedra renewed their volleys.

[EliteCommander]

The use of wards from the likes of Rossarm’s mages and Dominion soldiers did help to reduce casualties among Hjergir’s forces through their charge, but it was Sabine that truly gave them their opportunity. Even Meesei had not been sure what to expect when Sabine started to call forth her spell, but she ended up in almost as much awe as their soldiers on the ground. The Staff provided the power for the scale of the spell, true, but Sabine still had to be the one to give the magic shape and form. It was no spell that Meesei had taught her, but rather a combination of her own making. But, Meesei’s pride aside, she still had to focus on her own contributions.

Meesei, from atop the tower, did not opt for a complex spell, nor even an original one. Indeed, the spell she charged was the same, straightforward torrent of lightning that she had attempted to use against the Daedric Titan. Though, this time, her target could not simply fly away. Mages like Sabine and Rossarm had ample ability to cast their spells over large groups, so Meesei decided to focus more concentrated power on specific targets. Daedric spellcasters were the greatest threat to their frontline, but from above, the sources of the spells were easy to see. Once she was surrounded in a storm of lightning, Meesei pushed both hands forward and, with them, sent a stream of lightning into the Daedric lines. She did not aim too close to the front, so as to avoid friendly fire. Her spell was like a knife, cutting a narrow path from mage to mage through the Daedra, with such power as to completely overwhelm any attempt at a ward or other defense.

When the Twilights were knocked from the air, it removed a majority of the incoming spellfire and allowed their warriors to focus purely on the Daedra in front of them. And with the Thu’um empowering them, they hit the Daedric lines like a charging mammoth. Hjergir’s force consisted of skilled warriors, each one an experienced veteran. Granted, the same could be said of the immortal Daedra, but the Nords were not ones to squander the advantage they had been given. If one watched any individual duel, they would see Nordic blades, axes, and werewolf claws dancing with impossible speed around their Daedric opposition, the winds flowing around and guiding their weapons. The Senche were moving along the sides of the battlefield, climbing through rocks and other terrain that would normally be impossible for cavalry. Hjergir himself picked out the largest, most intimidating Dremora he could see and made him into his prey. While the Daedra was rearing back his cruel, barbed blade for a swing, Hjergir hooked his axe around the Dremora’s shield and yanked it downwards with such force that he nearly broke the Dremora’s hand before he could drop it. The Dremora was experienced enough to keep his swing on course for Hjergir’s neck, but his agility at the moment was nothing short of supernatural. He parried the flat of the Daedric blade with the edge of his shield, then slammed it into the Dremora’s head. From there, he reversed his grip on his axe and delivered a furious assault of repeated blows against the Daedra’s helmet with the spike on the axe’s head. Even Hjergir’s strength and speed could not pierce Daedric metal, but it hardly mattered. The sheer force of the blows were enough to kill the being within.

However, despite the heavy casualties the Daedra were already facing, the tides of battle could still turn in an instant. From within the Daedric formation came a hidden threat, crawling around their feet. Spiderlings, the spawn of Spider Daedra, started to swarm into the allied forces. Their bites carried a form of magic paralysis that threatened to halt their charge in its tracks, and to give the Daedra a chance for a deadly counter-attack.

[Muttonhawk]

After the brief jetstream Sabine conjured with the use of her frost magic, she gave herself a moment to refocus beyond the pounding of her heart. She had to check her amazement at the spell working more or less as intended. Following Meesei's lead, she carefully aimed and fired smaller explosive spells at valuable enemies. Even if they were not brought low by such measures, they were slowed, distracted, and otherwise made vulnerable.

The spiderlings were far beyond the view of the tower. They were the problem of the people on the ground.

As if trained this very scenario, one word barked out with magical volume from Rossarm's mouth that every one of his mages (and a few of the Dominion soldiers) tensed at immediately.

"SPIDERLINGS!"

The teams of warding mages, already spread from Rossarm's formation to protect the lines, switched roles. The two up front of each team remained warding while the other two worked together to take a deep steaming frost magic between their hands and spread it upon the ground in front of them. A number of Dominion troops reformed their charge to perform a similar magic. The effect started as a chill at the charging warriors' feet, but rapidly grew into a low carpet of white cloud that encrusted the grass and dirt in a layer of crunching rimefrost. It would not stop all of the spiderlings, but the small bodied creatures were hard pressed to not freeze at the joints and find themselves in the path of many rapidly advancing armoured boots.

It was a pivotal moment, then, with the allied mages occupied, that the combined attackers began to see their fierce momentum slow.

[EliteCommander]

Along the left and right flanks of the Daedric force, the Senche-raht and their riders were in position. The riders tended to wield lances, bows, or spells, though especially compared to horses, the battlecats themselves were also particularly fearsome. Cavalry generally relied entirely on their maneuverability and could not fight head-on, but the might and intelligence of Senche could allow them to break that rule. They were effectively another frontline force that was surrounding and constricting the Daedra, but the advantage they provided would not matter in the end if their actual frontline were to break.

The spiderlings had already begun to move in by the time their presence was made known. Across the front, both the Nords and Dominion would find some of their soldiers dropping from paralytic bites, weakening the cohesion of their attack. Some of the more ravenous and opportunistic Daedra, like scamps and clannfear, pounced on the opportunity to execute their helpless foes before they could be defended. The efforts of Rossarm and his mages did provide a quick and effective defense. The Nords in particular were resistant to the chilling cloud of frost at their feet, but for the spiderlings, it was like a blizzard. Those that were not killed became sluggish, especially compared to the mortal warriors who were now aware of their presence. The frail creatures were easily crushed, but their intervention had halted the momentum of the mortal forces. Casualties were still far greater among the Daedra, but the chaos had broken up formations and caused the front to devolve into effectively a brawl. It was a fight that would still have favored the mortals empowered by the Thu’um, but with less pressure on the Daedra’s mages, some of them began to empower their own warriors as well with enhanced speed and strength. Restoration may not have been the strongest skill among Daedric mages, and they were not as effective as Yerig’s Thu’um, but it meant the Daedric warriors were not entirely outmatched.

Meesei and Sabine, too, were encountering more resistance. The Daedric mages near the rear of their force, too far to assist the frontline, could still easily attack the top of the tower from afar all at once. They were met with a barrage of fireballs and spikes of ice that forced Meesei to halt her attack just to protect herself. Given the range they were attacking from, the incoming spells did not have pinpoint precision, and they could not overwhelm either Meesei or Sabine’s wards, but they did force the pair to split their attention between offense and defense. Meesei still launched exploding fireballs from above while maintaining her ward, but she was not as effective as she wished to be.

“We can do more on the ground.” Meesei said with a slight, frustrated growl. Not only were they more limited in the kind of attacks they could launch, but from their position, neither of them could help defend their allies from enemy magic. “Could you get us down there again? Right to the front. You might be able to use him.” She remarked, tilting her head back towards Leaps. Fendros had to leave him on the roof to fight in the tower, so the agitated Wamasu was currently just waiting and hiding away from the incoming fireballs.