Private Tales Especially Sharp Rock

[Elias]

Cortos
The Roaring Brother, Baal-Asha River

It was a particularly cloudy late morning. Elias and his two other squadmates sat huddled in dense foliage just before the river bank opposite to their objective, an old Cortosi fortress and one of many major crossing points of the Baal-Asha's eastern distributary. The squad's momentary resting point was at the very tip of the bend. To their right, a bridge led from an abandoned checkpoint to the fortress itself, which had become occupied by a rather formidable band of mercenaries. The fort's drawbridge was up, which had left them with a daunting challenge to tackle.

"You know, Portimao is only a tenday's ride from here," said the normally quiet Route, who had become a bit more talkative as they'd gotten closer to his birthplace. He was an exceptional pathfinder, navigator, and guide on the road. Though they hadn't faced any such obstacles, the others said that nobody else had a nose for sniffing out ambushes quite like he did. Elias learned that prior to joining the squad, the man spent the early years of his career as a Ranger and was scouted for the Black Guard, where he served only briefly before joining the Dragonsbane squad.

"D'you miss home?" Eli asked.

"Vel Anir is home. Er, well, I guess Vel Castere now."

What Elias and most others didn't know was that as a child, Route was present in Portimao when it was besieged in a naval operation carried out by Vel Anir. It left him without any relatives to speak of, and Captain Holstag was responsible for rehoming him in an Anirian orphanage. What nobody knew was that Route used his leave to visit the orphanage whenever he could. Helping out there was how he met Vivien.

Their remaining squadmates were lying in wait by the bridge for them to drop the drawbridge. The plan was simple. Cross the river, scale the wall, drop the bridge and open the gate.

"We're ready on your signal, Black." Route said.

 

[Samantha Black]

Swimming, while one of Sam's more enjoyable hobbies, was not high on her list of desired outdoor activities when she was fully plated for battle. Though never one to complain, this was probably one of her least favorite plans thus far. There was nothing for it - few in the squadron had the strength required to do what needed to be done on their own. That was the downside to being a Dreadlord; people relied on you to do the impossible.

At the very least it would be nice to get out of their place of hiding. They'd been there for long enough and they were waiting on the evening shift changeover before moving in. This band of mercs, whoever they were, did not maintain a very tight schedule and had not made their shifts regularly for several days.

Route reported they typically switched out around high noon. Sam's gaze shifted skyward, bright blues slitting behind winced eyes as she looked at the blanket of cloud cover overhead. It was hard to tell exactly, but if she had to guess they were getting pretty close.

A trilling song of a local finch filled the air from the bridge. Sam looked back to the ramparts of the fortress and watched as the lookout began to retreat back inside the adjoining tower.

"They're switching," she said to Elias and Route, "move now."

The bank was steep and slick after a long bout of rain. Sam's boots sunk down as she carefully slid along the grading until she plunged into the water with a big gulp of air. Swimming in armor would have been a death sentence for the uninitiated, but the Academy had prepared its students with all manner of torturous practice. How many times Ralene Banick had come close to drowning she couldn't say, but Samantha Black sure as hell wasn't going to.

Sam allowed the slow current of the river to pull at her as she drifted further toward the middle, boots tapping along the bottom until they found purchase on the flat of the riverbed floor. Drifting, she looked around for the shadows of her partners, bubbles methodically fluttering from her lips, and upon seeing the leaner silhouette of Route higher above nearly across, shoved her feet against the riverbed with a powerful kick and propelled herself after him.

She resurfaced a dozen feet out from the opposite bank, sucking in a lungful of air and reaching for the outstretched hand before her to help bring her bulk up a long the shoreline.

 

[Elias]

First in, first out. Unburdened by any armor, Eli's powerful strokes carry him through the water like a fish. Route isn't far behind, and as he emerges, Eli pulls his comrade up and waits for Sam as Route rushes towards the base of the wall ahead of them. A head of slick, raven black hair breaks the river's surface and Eli wades in to fetch Sam, strongly pulling her in until her feet finds purchase and the pair of them hurried to rejoin their third, who had already secured his hook and rope to the ramparts.​

​

The rope is a constant topic of lighthearted bickering between Elias, who thinks that such an absurdly cumbersome length of rope isn't worth packing, and Route, who simply eagerly awaited the opportunity to use it.​

​

The lean Cortosi Knight wears a smug expression.​

​

"Fuck you," Elias hisses as he's the first to begin the climb. He approaches the wall with a single, powerful step and leaps off the ground. He kicks off the wall to push himself up, grabs hold of the rope, and swiftly ascends Route's treasured grappling hook.​

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Reaching the top, he mantles the wall and lands on the walkway in a low stance. Without waiting for the others he rushes towards the tower opposite to where the guard had entered.​

​

He had grown accustomed to his role as the squad's spearhead. With speed and power matched only by Sam, but holding a lower rank, he was assigned and trusted to lead any advances. Paired with his Lieutenant? There was no line they couldn't break.​

​

Elias slips through the doorless entryway into the narrow tower with light feet and spots a lightly armored woman in a chair with her feet kicked up on a crate. He draws a dagger from his belt in a swift motion and pounces on her, clamping on her mouth with his hand as he guides the blade precisely in under her chin. He pulls it out with a twist and moves to the opposite doorway, pausing to let his comrades catch up. The only thing between them and the barbican was a lengthy, open walkway.​

 

[Samantha Black]

Sloughing off the water of her wardrobe gave her the chance to see the entire interaction. Like an ongoing joke within the group, Route never went on any mission without his overly cumbersome length of rope and accompanying grappling hook - perfectly content to wait for the perfect time to put it to use. Of all the missions, this had to be the one.

Sam wiped her face clear one last time, shook her head at the triumphant, shit-eating grin on Route's face, and waited for Elias to near the top and give the all clear before hoisting herself up after him and scaling the wall like she were going on a leisurely jaunt about town. Her boots touched the stone walkway of the outer wall soon after, one hand reaching over to help Route up the last few feet.

No words were spoken as the Lieutenant signed to the other two for their orders.

Elias was to set a fire at the far side of the fortress as a distraction and take out any enemies along the way, quiet-like.

Herself and Route were headed for the gatehouse to open the way for the remainder of the assembled squadron to join the foray.

They had the element of surprise on their side and it needed to stay that way.

 

[Elias]

Elias borrows the dagger off of the lifeless mercenary to fill his free hand. He nods to acknowledge the Lieutenant's order and Route gives him an encouraging pat on the back before he sets off to cause disarray.

He makes for the doorway and immediately turns out and away to drop from the wall. Like a billow to a forge, a surge of power is stoked within him and his veins begin pumping searing-hot blood to reinforce his body. He hits the ground far beneath the wall with a dull thud and like a specter, silently cuts a careful path through the shadows between the fort's inner buildings.

It was at these times that Elias recalled the cloak and dagger tactics taught to him by Aura Ventress. He did his best to avoid groups of two or larger, and any isolated enemies were quickly dispatched of and laid to rest in the shadows.

He stops and crouches across from an unguarded storehouse. He sheathes his dagger and channels his magic into the other. The air around the glowing red-hot blade crackles and hisses. Then, he could hear a distant commotion. It was his signal, and he flips the dagger to hold it by his blade, adjusting his grip to pinch the blade near its point, and throws it at the storehouse. The blade sticks in the wall, and a moment passes before the dagger erupts with a raging white and gold energy. The explosion shakes the ground and leaves the storehouse engulfed in fire. Elias steps out from the shadows clad in a resplendent flame, leaving the earth scorched by his footfalls.

The Dreadlord inhales and marches up the path towards the gatehouse, and to meet the oncoming force of mercenaries.

 

[Samantha Black]

By her estimation, this force was little more than hired mercs. She'd yet to see an official Cortosian insignia or sigil anywhere and she didn't recognize the coat of arms she had seen: a swordfish crossed by a longsword. Nor were those that she and Route met on the way of any calibre warranting the need for a unit of Anirian Knights. Something felt off about this - where was the threat that a company of Guards couldn't handle?

When they breached the gatehouse they were met by a snoozing soldier who quickly roused themselves only to be knocked out again with the Lieutenant's fist. Sam paused in the door and looked around for others, finding none, then looked to Route.

Route looked equally unimpressed and seemed to be on the same train of thought as herself, "This is shit."

"Yeah," Sam agreed, "it is. Get the other crank."

Working the separate cogs together, the gate of the fort slowly began to rise, drawing confused shouts from those remaining within. Once it was locked open, she turned to peer out through an arrow slit to the drawbridge which still remained fixed against the fort walls. The mechanism to open it wasn't in the gatehouse and now with the lower level suddenly flooded by mercenaries and flames, she didn't think she'd be able to get to it.

Not quickly enough, anyway.

Sam yanked open the interior entry to step out onto the wall overtop of the gate and leaned over the side to check the chains on the bridge. Sure enough, they lead down into an underground chamber. That would take too long.

"Route," she said, righting herself and narrowly missing being speared through the eye with a flying arrow. Her eyes bugged.

"Spicy swordfish," Route commented as he pulled a crossbox off a hook on his back and loaded it, "what's the plan for the bridge?"

"I'm going to take out the pulleys," Sam replied, "cover me."

And over the the wall she went.