LoR - Walls Fall Before Them by Erathor Pridenar of Loreos, on Flickr
Story:
Dalmanutha loomed in the near distance as Erathor and his army approached. He had visited the city twice before, but never had it looked ominous, always regal and joyous. Ominous, however, was the best word to describe it now. The false Queen’s ugly Dragon sigil flew high above each tower, and the very sight was enough to anger the Loreesi lord.
“Remind me, Dag; why did you advise me to launch our attack against this particular section of wall?” Erathor asked, removing his helmet for a moment to wipe away the sweat on his brow. The bannerman on his left pointed ahead of the advancing army.
“That dune will give us sufficient cover to prepare for the attack. They will not be able to see us whilst we hide there and so they cannot harm us. They will know we’re there, in fact they've almost certainly seen us, but we’ll be out of range of their arrows and it would be folly for them to leave the city to meet us on open ground.”
The dune did indeed provide adequate cover. Large trees and planks of wood, dragged by horses at the rear of the force, were built into a sturdy wall consisting of different sections, as well as multiple ladders. Erathor was quietly confident, feeling that his plan would be unlikely to fail, but at the same time he knew that he could potentially lose many of his loyal soldiers.
“Erathor, we should move out.” Allaeus placed a hand on his friend’s armoured shoulder. Another knight stood next to him.
“My lord, let me be the first up your ladder. It would be an honour,” the knight said. Erathor smiled gratefully.
“If that is your wish, let it be so. You know the dangers.” Allaeus spoke again.
“It’s time. Send out the archers.”
“Archers, forward!” Erathor cried, and the men swiftly climbed the dune, notching arrows as they went. When they reached the top, they fired a volley that forced the opposing men, waiting on top of the wall, to hide themselves. At this point, the rest of the Loreesi were up on their feet and holding the sections of wall in groups.
“Forward!” Erathor himself ran up the dune, fighting against the loose sand that fell away as he went. The archers fired a second volley, keeping the enemy down, and the rest of the army pushed the wood they carried into the ground, forming a long, protective wall. It only took a minute or two for the wall to be secure, with just a few arrows actually being fired from the city. The archers continued to stand, waiting for any sign of movement.
“This is it, men! This Glorious city, capital or our Glorious land, cannot have those banners flown above it for any longer! If any man takes one down, he shall be forever honoured!” The men cheered at Erathor’s words. “Now, let us move forward, without fear, and take back what is rightfully ours. ONWARDS TO VICTORY!” Picking up the ladders, the army poured out of the few gaps in the wooden wall, pushing the ladders against the stone. At this point the Dragons rose up, not heeding the arrows, and attempted to force the attackers back. Some fell in the charge, as the defenders' arrows rained down upon them. The knight Erathor had spoken to reached the top of the wall and, rather surprisingly, wasn’t killed instantly. Allaeus, just ahead of the lord, speared a man at the top, and Erathor himself cut down a soldier as soon as he left the ladder behind. The fighting quickly became fiercer, with the Loreesi archers pinpointing Dragons to take down.
“Allaeus!” Erathor called to his friend as soon as they were left relatively alone. “Take as many men as you think you need and move onto the higher wall, across the courtyards. Good luck, old friend.” Allaeus nodded and clasped Erathor’s hand.
“You too.” He ran off towards the southern part of the city, red plume flying, spear tip flashing, crying out the battle cry of Loreos.
