Scroll: Fort Zayes - 5th Battle

From FiranMUX

Summary

This scroll was written by Centurion Kelarik Cylisti during the Campaign for Ellish in 42 A.U.

Scroll Text

Fort Zayes

The fort loomed on the horizon, nearly crying out with history. And we marched forward to seek that history, to reclaim our place and to bring it out of Shamibelian hands.

Archers were on the walls, aerial forces circling above. The goats were utilizing their resources now - there were many Firan faces among the Shamibelian archers and fighters that we could see, and while we watched, one who tried to rebel was dispatched without the goats even batting an eye. And they sat there on those walls, staring down at us tauntingly. They did not believe that we would be able to overcome their defenses. And initially, at the very least, they were correct.

Our siege towers began rolling forward, but the walls of Fort Zayes are steeper than the height that our towers could offer. Surrounding the base of the walls was a moat, approximately twenty feet across and filled with spikes and murky liquid. Our goal was to put a long plank up from the top of each siege tower, and then to navigate that treacherous path in the fashion that we had handled Fort Triumph.

However, initially, it was a trap. And after the siege towers began to roll, hails of arrows began to rain from the sky. Brave men and women died like a tailor's pincushion, skewered with arrows through and through.

Our archers valiantly fought back, and those of us like myself who had bows on the field added our aid to the ground troops. The skies that day were black with deathly bolts flying in all directions.

We pulled back, at Donos' order, and reassessed the situation. Our tactics were changed slightly while our priests looked to the dead, and we prepared yet again for further conflict within a matter of days.

When we returned, it was as a stronger, more prepared, more focused and unified force. I say this as though we were not unified to begin with, although we were; we merely became moreso, and this time, we were prepared for nothing short of our intent. This time, we heard the goats crying out for our blood before we even began our march, and they were crying out for a duel. And so we gave them a duel in the body of Lord Zafir Junik, who went out to meet one of their warlords on the field and neatly dispatched him without even taking a single strike. The goats showed their cowardice, and launched a hail of arrows at him, and he returned to the body of the army.

We marched then, moving in on the fort. As we approached, their airforce circled, and we utilized one of our prepared amendments to our attack. A small herd of horses were released to run, our griffons not in the air to be tempted by them, and one of the Shamibelian pilots lost control and his griffon swooped. There was little left of either mount or pilot when our archers were through with him.

Only then did our airforce take flight once more, and they began aerial combat while our siege towers again rolled in on the walls of Zayes. The scream of the giant eagle sounded, and many of their griffons fled in the face of Garissa's majesty. I can say, as a member of the Eagle Clan, that there is nothing that will strengthen my heart as much as hearing that shrieking call echoing above my head when the sky is filled with the enemy. To have that Eagle with us... it dealt with the anxiety many of us felt, quite effectively. Eagles soar, they surge forth and meet the enemy. And Garissa flew forth bravely to meet her prey. So too did the Republic army.

The planks slammed down on the walls, the sound of the crack-scrape of their impact against Zayes something which I shall never forget. And our fighters began to surge across, straight into the mouth of danger, swords swinging and spears thrusting in an effort to take each and every one down. I tore in after Lord Tyrsun, who was sword to my spear, and I defended General Alexa and her bow behind me when she finally made entrance.

I cannot define the battle from that point, as I was among those who slid across the planks which the goats poured oil on in an attempt to stop our passing, and it became chaos from there onward. But I can say this: through our archers taking down their forces, and our warriors' brave struggle against the goats, we began to make headway. Fine fighters fell that day in the effort to reclaim Fort Zayes, which the goats had called Fort Obala.

During it, we knew that inside that fort was a Firan noblewoman. We not only knew it, but on our advance, we'd seen it - she was being raped atop the walls to taunt our princes, to try to destroy our morale. All it succeeded in doing was to fuel the fires in our hearts and make us fight all the harder to take that fort.

And take it we did. The air forces dispatched their targets and moved on to begin taking out the Shamibelian archers. Our infantry tore a swath through the goats, killing warlords and spears and swords alike. The slaves who had been forced to fight assessed the situation, then turned on their former masters, tearing into them with ferocity as they too attacked the archers who tried to riddle our forces with their arrows. And we reclaimed Zayes as our own.

I recall standing there on the walls of the fort, looking around after the battle at the fallen, Firan and Shamibelian alike, while the healers began treating our injured, and I could only think that we had done what no other Firan army has done in nigh on twenty years. We had reclaimed a piece of our history.

Then it was time for the cleanup. I was one of many who waded into that spike-filled, filthy moat, and my goal was to regain the unconscious form of Prince Lianos, which I achieved. I took him back to medical, but he was gravely injured by his fall from the walls there. He survived, thank the Gods, and as I write this, I believe he has returned to Anarinuell to hold the reins for the Eagle Clan until we can regain Her Honor Ania.

The cleanup, in and of itself, is a wholly and completely different battle. But Zayes was ours again, and the ranks of the Republic forces stood proudly that day.

{Signature} The signature of Kelarik.

{Date} Dated Oct 13, in the year 42 A.U.