Flogir

Flogir felt a sense of pride in his men as their organized retreat was flowing nicely. The front lines were holding off the brunt of the attackers while the rest were retreating with order and speed.

Flogir stood relatively in the middle of both actions, hoping to orchestrate both endeavors at the same time. It was then that he noticed Karn striding into view. By the fact that the Dunmer started heading directly to him once eye contact was made, Flogir knew that the assassin wanted to speak with him.

"I don't really have time to talk to you, Karn," Flogir said coldly before Karn could open his mouth, "I'm sorta in the middle of a retreat."

Dan

Dan grit his teeth as he felt the bones in his leg returning to their original position. Any man would have screamed because of the pain, or at least whimpered, but not Dan. The fact that he didn't have a tongue to scream with helped. After the short process was over, Dan gave a nod to Constantine.

"My name is Dan and I give thanks, Jonathan son of Algren for you have my gratitude from now on. Hopefully, my leg will heal in time for me to help if the enemy tries to take the breach once more. My blade yearns to sing once more. Now, where is that priest you mentioned? I need to know when I can fight once more." Dan said telepathically, smiling as he did.

Karn

He ignored the cold tone and replied. "I'm curious, where exactly do you want to retreat to? The Imperial City is unlikely to be where this war will ultimately be decided."

Aerona

Aerona's jaw dropped as she witnessed a Narza'Tai mage methodically laying to rest many of the injured. Even more amazing was Issac and Flogir's obvious approval. When Flogir stopped noticing that she was there, she realized that a half-starved vampire girl had no say in this battle unless someone wanted her to. As Karn approached, Aerona ran back towards the injured.

She arrived just as the fourth line did, and she assisted in helping to move the wounded. If anyone made a move towards an injured man, though, Aerona swore that she would stop it.

Rann

"We really should be going back," Rann commented. He was becoming uneasy, as the sounds of battle had gotten progressively louder since they'd been standing there.

Rahvin

Rahvin broke from the group to also assist fourth line in their task. He slung one injured dunmer over his shoulder and began following the rest of the army for retreat/

Dan

As Dan struggled to stay on his feet he noticed that Rann was getting more and more nervous as time passed. Despite he still felt an ammount of pain in his leg, he had bandaged his head to prevent any further bleeding and he almost felt no pain coming from his head. Grasping his crutch, he prepared to leave. Despite the near perfect silence around them, Dan could slightly hear the sounds of battle nearby. Steel clashing with steel, men screaming and blood being spilled, things Dan was all too used to. This time however, he had friends on his side. Friends who could hold their own just as well as he could, or even better. In the past, Dan would have to rely on only himself when working as a mercenary for either merchant caravans or the bandits attacking them.

"Judging by the sounds coming from all around us, it seems that our enemies haven't waited for us before charging the breach once more. We should return to our friends and help them with whatever they may deem useful, be it sword or spell." Dan said telepathically, trying to say what everyone was probably thinking.

OOC: I'm too lazy to checkup the setup of all the districts of the Imperial City, so I'm just winging this, the bridge is destroyed right? So that leaves the Northwest as the only "true" exit. Maybe we should just break down a wall in one of the others and flee through that when we need to?

Flogir

"We're retreating to the next Northern district. The walls are still in good condition there and hopefully we can reestablish a defense. If not, we're going to need to find a way out..." he trailed off as the thought dawned on him. He returned to focusing on the retreat.


Amrita

Amrita finished brushing the last speck of dust off her clothing. "Well, let's not keep them waiting them brother. We got enemies to kill."

Jonathan Constantine

"I'm a lover, not a fighter.." Jonathan mumbled in response to the call to rejoin the battle. He began creeping towards the sounds of battle, and stealing a peek before rushing in.

Rann

Rann led the way, being the first to walk back the way they came. When they got back to the Green Emperor Way, it was not the safe haven they had left. Soldiers ran to and fro, some carrying wounded, some carrying supplies, and some carrying nothing but messages. It was obvious that they were all preparing for retreat. The soldiers at the breach were performing well, but it was only a matter of time before the tsaeci started pouring into the district. Rann spotted Flogir and headed in his direction.

"We killed that thing," he reported, "Any orders for us?" he asked, wanting to know what the plan was and where he fit in.

Altair

Altair kept looking to Flogir for some sort of signal or message, but none came. It seemed that the nord had become engrossed in the troubles surrounding the breach that he'd forgotten about Altair's men at the wall. He decided to go speak with his co-commander in person.

"You," he said, pulling the leading archer from the rest of his men, "Are in command until I return. Don't you dare let these men down."

With a salute and an enthusiastic "Yes, Sir!" the soldier immediately took charge.

"Hold...hold...NOW!" he shouted, giving the signal to fire and watching as dozens of snake-men were mowed down.

Altair was satisfied with the soldier's commanding abilities and left the wall to speak with Flogir.

"Flogir!" he called, ignoring Rann's presence in light of the seriousness of the situation, "I don't have enough men at the wall to hold it for much longer. I've ordered all but two of my lines to aid in the retreat. If we want those two lines alive, we need to hurry and abandon this district."

Karn

He glanced at Rann and Altair for a few moments then said. "Before the siege, the Narza'Tai made rafts, they should be of sufficient size to carry twenty men each as well as supplies. As for the others, some of my mages can teleport them to the safety of the Northern shore of Lake Rumare."

"What I'm more interest in is where we go after evacuating." He met Flogir's gaze. "These men are well-trained, but they will take time to move from location to location. If we come up with a destination later it will be too late and the army will have to move and fight all the way north or west."

Ian

The vampire approached the group; he heard the question of where to go after leaving the city. As Kirana didn't have to bother with mundane tasks assosiated with having a body, she was able to think faster than her vampire host. "Cloud Ruler Temple would be a good option, it's the most well-fortified structure in all of Cyrodiil."

"Agreed, if we can get there," Ian replied. "We could head north, Cloud Ruler Temple isn't far from Bruma. It also has only one entrance, and I don't think Akavir are very adept at climbing fifty feet of ladder required to scale the walls."
"The problem lies only in getting there before the Akaviri overtake us." The vampire glanced at the men gathered around.

Flint Ironwood.

Flint shot off his first arrow, only to see that he was still too far away to strike at the Akaviri.
,,Well, that's what you get when you're used to the good ole telekinetic barrage. Physical projectiles are just too gravitationally challenged." He muttered and jumped down the roof he was on. He was not going to just stand back and wait. The Breton figured there was still time for him to reach the first wall and fire a shot or two from there.

He ran past Flogir, who seemed to be in a heavy debate with a couple of people. Flint skidded to a halt and glanced over his shoulder.
,,Well, I'll be. It's the annoying duplicating guy." He thought as he turned and jogged over to Flogir. He now noticed other familiar faces as well. Altair, Rann, Ian, Amrita...his eyes rested on what appeared to be a filthy drunk for a while. He looked familiar, but Flint couldn't put his finger on it right now. He shrugged. It could wait.

He kept himself quiet and listened to the conversation first before formulating his opinion as well.
,,Ok, a temple near Skyrim? I don't know any temples that can withstand a siege, but I'll trust your judgement on this on. So basically, the problem lies in making sure the killerhappy snakes don't take us in the back before we get settled." He spoke and fell silent again.
,,How about...the more destructively inclined among us topple every single tree we can find in our wake. You said they have trouble climbing, what with no legs and their tail not being flexible enough for any really delicate stuff. They'd either have to get over the logs, or around them, either of which costs them time. while mister duplicate here gets his...well, duplicates, to run around and cause general distractions." He added after a second.
,,But well, that's my idea. I'll leave it up to you guys. I'm off to shoot a few of the scaly ones. See ya." He ran off again.


Sinyaramen Fenasim, Cloud Ruler.

Sin gazed at the pile of books he'd stacked on the table.
,,If I try to get away with that, those Blades will hack my head off and turn it into a cup. Lousy barbarians." He scoffed and took off his glasses. He mulled over his dilemma while cleaning the optical tools with his handkerchief.
,,Two days. I wonder how many books I could throw down the toilet in those two days? Sure they'd get awfully dirty and stinky, but no one ever bothers to check the pile of dung outside at the end of the tunnel." He mumbled, placed his glasses back on his nose and ran a finger across the topmost book.
,,Hmmh, the toilet exit is rather small, barely large enough to stick a hand through. This won't fit. I need something else, something quick....something disastrous." He began to grin.
,,What if a storm came out of nowhere, ripped away the roof with a convenient thunderbolt, then whisked away a few books? Heh, brilliant! I am a genius!" His grin turned sour.
,,Oh no, the rain would ruin the pages. Ah, blast it!"

Dan

Dan had been following the group in a rather painful manner. It was hard to keep up with the rest of his comrades who had suffered little to no wounds after the building had collapsed. Dan however gritted his teeth and went on, trying to follow. When they all eventually stopped, their group had reached Green Emperor Way. The once beautiful gardens were now teeming with activity, supplies being carried, barricades being erected, weapons being passed around, wounded being cared for. Dan could barely have recognized the old Imperial Gardens of Green Emperor Way for they had been turned into one great military encampment.

Close by, Dan could notice that Rann and his sister were arguing with a group of people, some of which Dan could slightly remember. One of them was the commander of the host, to whom Dan had gone when he enlisted in the army to protect the city. He could also recognize the old Breton mage who had aided him in his first fight with the alien beast. Warily, Dan approached the group which, in his eyes at least, appeared to be the senior officers of the army. He listened closely and watched as they tried to decide what their choices were. Some proposed evacuating the city and retreating North or West. Some advised against it. After a while of fierce arguing, the name Cloud Ruler Temple was proposed. It seemed that many of the leaders agreed. The Breton mage even proposed a method to hamper the progress of the enemy host.

In his sell-sword days, Dan had spent many a week in the wilderness near Cloud Ruler Temple, either protecting merchants or hunting them. He knew that the old fortress was as impregnable as could be yet he had doubts that it could support an army as big as the one stationed in the Imperial City. Trying to help in the argument, Dan lent his own voice to the already growing crowd of voices. His voice had the advantage that it could be heard in the heads of all the people arguing.

"My lords...my lords, if you are so kind as to listen to my own humble words. I have been near Cloud Ruler before. It is truly an impressive example of masonry, yet I doubt that it could feed an army the size of ours. If we could truly get our whole force to Cloud Ruler with little losses, then the enemy could starve us out before actually throwing themselves upon the walls. I would advise splitting our forces, my lords. We could station our lighter troops and skirmishers in and around Bruma. They could harass our foes as they make their way towards Cloud Ruler. That could also lend us more time to properly set up defences. Then, when the enemy realize that the skirmishers are only trying to delay them, they would surely come to Cloud Ruler. There, we will show them that we people of Tamriel don't wield words where swords speak truer." Dan said in a grand manner, trying to match his style of speech to the one he thought his so called 'lords' would use.

Plys'Iea, breaking out

The pile of rumble did not stir for half an hour, but suddenly a staff shot through the surface. The weapon retreated and then smashed outward again, shattering a large piece of masonry. Through the cloud of dust a large four-fingered hand grabbed another large piece of rubble.

The hunter hauled himself from the so-called "tomb," he let out a defiant shriek that echoed throughout the city. He favored a thin gash running along the back of his neck, a minor wound and annoyance. In the distance he could see the Morrowind Army hurrying about their retreat.
During the last half hour he'd rested to recover his strength from the earlier days of fighting. Now that he was free and believed to be dead, none of the enemy would be prepared for his reemergence. Silently, the hunter stalked off, aiming to flank the army to the north.

Flogir

Flogir stuck his hands out in front of him, warding off the bombardment of questions and theories. "One at a time people, I can't take a sudden rush like this," he said in an annoyed fashion.

"Altair," he bega, turning to his co-commander, "I'm moving our troops to the district north of us, we're going to be fighting the whole way back so in order to get the very last men through I'm going to need basically all your archers to ward off the enemy and get those men through the gates. I suggest you move those last two lines soon then."

"Rann, it's good to hear that beast will no longer hamper us. I want you and those with you to help with the retreat in whatever way possible. I intend to make a small stand there while we get the evacuation set up."

"Karn, I would've appreciated such information sooner, but I still believe we have enough time to work with this. Get those rafts to the district we're going to. I have a feeling we might need to tear down a wall to get to the lake, but we'll see once we get there."

He nodded to the mute. "You bring sound advice about Cloud Ruler. With some of our forces in Bruma, they'll have a hard time sacking the city. If we get lucky, we might be able to sandwich their army in the pass."

"I just have one last question though. How are we going to defeat the Silhouette itself? Nothing appears to hurt it. I have a feeling that even without the army, the Silhouette itself could very well destroy us..."

OCC: Would Dan be able to notice Kirana's presence in Ian's mind?

Karn

"I'll leave finding out how to kill the Silhoutte to you all," the Dunmer muttered as he departed. From the steadily growing shadows, several Narza'Tai assassins appeared and flanked their leader.

Ian

He glanced at Karn as the dunmer left to marshal his followers. "While he hasn't said so yet, I'm sure Karn will have many Narza'Tai helping provide cover for us on our way to Cloud Ruler. Hit and run is more their area of expertise and preference."

The vampire didn't seem surprised that the newcomer had been able to speak directly to his mind. Having the constant mind-to-mind intimacy with Kirana made him used to the experience. The latter stirred slightly, "I wonder if this man can detect me......"
"I don't know, but I don't think it should be bothersome whether or not he can."

OOC: Dan can't read minds but he can feel the presence of other telepaths, if slightly.

Dan

After Dan gave his own oppinion, the commander, Flogir, started replying to everything that had just been said. He was obviously trying to find a solution. What interested Dan the most was what was said to his comrade Rann. Since he was one of the few who Dan knew, Dan considered him some kind of a friend, if not a leader. When the commander told Rann that he and those following him should assist in the retreat, Dan grasped the hilt of his sword, as if to prepare for what was to come. After bandying some more petty words with the other commanders, the commander seemed to appreciate Dan's advice. Afterwards however, the commander raised the problem of the enemy leader. To this question, none truly had an answer. A shady Dunmer left after a few moments of tense silence.

Hm, there's something odd about that fellow. I don't quite feel that he's to be trusted. And that other one, the one with a wolfish look about him who proposed that we head to Cloud Ruler, there's something not quite right about him either. Oh well, I guess that's what you get when you meddle in the affairs of lords.

"If there is nothing amiss I shall take my leave, lords. In any further duties I shall follow Lord Rann, for he has proved courageous beyond measure when faced with great perils. Farewell." Dan said with a slight bow as he took a few steps back and slowly went to Rann, struggling with his broken leg.

Rann was listening intently to the questions and words being thrown about by the men present in the group and he didn't seem really atentive when Dan slowly came behind him.

"What now?" Dan asked as he looked intently at the Dunmer.

This post has been edited by Agent Griff: Dec 20 2007, 12:09 PM

Altair

"As for the matter of the Silhouette," Altair said, acknowledging Dan with a nod instead of words, "I think there is something we should consider."

"As some of you may know, I used to serve Ocato (god rest his soul) as his chief advisor in the realm of magic. As such, I had access to a large part of the Imperial Library. Once, my assistant Voltar and I came across a tome that described a spell that I think could prove useful in ridding this continent of the Silhouette. If you have no objections, Flogir, I'd like to take a few hours leave to find the tome and perfect the spell. Afterwards, I'll need a few volunteers to go with me into enemy lines and fight against its leader. If I do that though, I will need someone to take my place on the wall."

Rann

"Let's go," he answered Dan vaguely, "I'm sure we'll find something to do."

Rann was discouraged by the fact that Dan was a telepath, since there was no chance that anyone missed the 'Lord Rann' comment, and he figured it would be some time before he lived that one down. He was slightly embarrassed by the comment, not only because he wasn't a Lord of any kind, but because it reminded him of what happened a few months ago, when the others wanted him to be some sort of leader. Now, just like then, he wanted nothing to do with responsibility.

After they'd walked a short distance away, Rann brought it up to Dan, "I'm no Lord, you know. Just 'Rann' is fine."

This post has been edited by Dantrag: Dec 20 2007, 04:24 PM

Dan

After leaving the group which resumed discussing other matters, both petty and great, Dan strived to follow Rann but his broken leg was making matters rather difficult. Hopefully, he could now find a proper healer that could use a more suitable healing spell that could mend his broken bones fully. Afterwards, he could be free to resume fighting. By the way things were going, it seemed that Dan would most likely resume fighting at the side of his new companion, Rann. After a few minutes of silence, Rann spoke. He seemed not to like the 'lord' title that Dan had given him earlier. After a few more moments of silence, Dan responded.

"I understand. I myself am no great fan of such hierarchy, but I knew not how to adress the people gathered there. In my previous encounters with military factions, they all adressed each other in very formal fashion so I supposed these men would enjoy the same of me. I shall not call you that way ever again, from now on you shall only be 'Rann'. Since you seemed to know those men however, who exactly are they? Generals? Captains? It is not in my nature to ask such questions, but in this case it would be useful." Dan asked, focusing his telepathic message on Rann and Rann alone.

Hm, a man who dislikes stiff, formal hierarchy. A man truly to my heart. Hopefully, he will enlighten me regarding those two odd fellows, the shadowy Dunmer and the wolfish-looking Imperial. I sense we will deal with them in the future.

Flint Ironwood.

There were still two lines of archers holding up the walls. Seeing no need to present himself as a solitary target, Flint slipped in between them and stopped at the first open spot. He pulled back the string, took aim and released the arrow with a bit of a frown. The sharp projectile arced down at one of the Akaviri, who merely swung his sword and batted it away like a fly.
,,Damn it! These critters are fast with their hands!" He cursed.

When he reached back into his quiver for another arrow, the Breton noticed his arm was shaking. He sighed but still drew another arrow and tried again. The shaking intensified when he pulled back the string, to the point that the arrow went wide off and landed a stonesthrow from the snakemen's left flank.
,,I don't have enough strength in my arms to wield this thing. Dammit!"

Satyana

"Ok, then" she took Issac´s hand and followed him,
What will happen to us? Will we really survive this?



Brianna

Looking at the injured and noticing Rahvin´s actions, Brianna sighed and stood motionless for a second. Then she spotted a young dunmer, not more than a child really, who obviously was in pain. She decided it was no time for a healing-process so she took a deep breath and did like Rahvin...flung him over his shoulder. The young dunmer was a bit heavier than she expected, her knees bent but with a groan she stumbled after Rahvin....

I can do this,.....I can...I can

Flogir

Flogir's disposition brightened at his co-commander's news. "A spell you say? Well it's at least worth a try, might be the only one we get but it's the only thing we got. You have my full endorsement to go seek the spell," Flogir said enthusiastically.

"As for your replacement..." he started as he began to scan across the group. Flint would've made a good given his perchance with range combat, but he was off all ready fighting. The rest, he wasn't sure about. Just then, Amrita stepped forward, a ploy to further the group's trust forming in her head.

"I'll be Altair's replacement," she said and revealed her crossbows, "I know a thing or two about archery and I've been around Altair long enough to know how to command and issue orders. It'll look like he never left, trust me," she finished, flashing a dark grin.

Flogir sighed, he didn't know the third sibling well but she provided good credentials. "Fine, the position is yours. Get up there. As for the rest of you, see to it that you stay alive and get this retreat moving smoothly."

With that Flogir nodded to the group and returned to ordering the troops.