《Viscount's Rise》Chapter 30: Blood on the Walls
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Since there would be no more talk, Braydon saw Baron Monrow back off from the battlements. Not a few seconds later he could hear the man shouting followed by dozens of archers appearing from the crenulations. It was obvious to both sides that if he made it onto the walls there was not much stopping his army, he had just over double the men on hand.
“Shields!” The arrows could be heard impacting the shields of his men. It would seem as though only the front of his forces were in range, though that would soon change, taking a town required being in it rather than looking at it.
“Get those ladders on the walls!” Braydon started to command his own forces, though he would leave most of it to Rhydian when he entered the battle for himself. He could hear the command being relayed to the specific squads by their leaders. The quads that carried the ladders started to march forwards, the rest of his men staying back.
The majority of his men were mercenary swordsmen with a couple dozen archers mixed in. And it would be these swordsmen who were to go at the front, being backed up by his archers. Though they would not be much help to start with, walls were unsurprisingly good at blocking arrows. The rest of his army consisted of spearmen, the ones that had been trained over the past month, who were about as numerous as his mercenary archers. They would be going up the ladders after the swordsmen, close quarters combat could be quite deadly for spearmen. And it was these men that he would have to rely on to keep the territories he won.
While it was the case that he did not have to worry as much about losing the mercenaries as his regular troops, it still hurt to see tens of men dead before one could even set foot on the walls. Whilst shields were good, they were not omnipotent. As the fallen men with arrows sticking out of their bodies showed.
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“It looks like all of the ladders have gone up.” Rhydian commented.
“Then it is time for the rest of the swordsmen to go forward.”
“Remember to be in the middle of the group if you actually want to fight.” Rhydian said when he saw Braydon was raring to go. He would have preferred for his liege to go with the spearmen. But Braydon was smart enough to know that most of the fighting would be over by the time they got to the walls, and that would defeat the purpose of him joining the battle in the first place.
“Then I better get into position now. I leave commanding the troops in your hands.” Braydon said quickly, before promptly disappearing into the crowd of mercenaries. Rhydian shook his head before turning to speak to Gerald, who had disappeared at some point.
“Not him too…” Rhydian knew exactly where Gerald had gone and it was not too dissimilar to Braydon. ‘Just when did I teach those two to be so battle hungry?’
It had taken about an hour since the battle had started but Braydon finally found himself on the walls of Mapjess. There were pools of blood everywhere, but no corpses. He presumed that they were either below the ladders or had been pushed off into the town to make room, both equally grim ends.
He got to look around, there were no enemies in the immediate vicinity, the mercenaries had already claimed this portion of the walls. He could see some fighting down below but not much, most combatants would be on the walls or defending the manor of Baron Monrow. Braydon guessed that was where his adversary was too. He decided to make his way to a different section of the walls, where there was more fighting happening. There would be time to go to the Baron’s manor later. And it was not long before he got himself into the thick of battle.
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Braydon found himself squeezed between several mercenaries as they tried to dismantle the wall of shields in front of them. Their enemies chose to forego their spears for the more maneuverable shortswords they had as side arms. It was a fight over the guardhouse, if they could take control of this then Braydon’s remaining troops could walk through the front entrance.
The mercenary next to him took a swipe at one of the enemies, only to be blocked by their shield. This happened again for the man on his other side. It was at this moment of stalemate that a slight gap opened up in the shield wall. Perhaps it was carelessness, perhaps over confidence. Braydon did not let it go to waste. He stuck his sword through before it could close.
“Argh!”
One of the enemies pulled back, breaking formation. This was all that was needed. There was not enough time to rebuild formation. Braydon and his men pushed into the guardhouse, the mercenaries behind him dealing with the rest of the shield wall.
*Bang*
Not a moment sooner, he had to raise his shield. The man he had stabbed was out for blood. Braydon swung his sword in a counter attack but it was pushed to the side by his opponent’s sword. The man wanted to follow up with an attack of his own but Braydon had different ideas.
By the time his swing had been nullified, Braydon slammed the man with his shield. This gave no time to react, leaving the man dazed. Now pressed against a wall he tried to swing at Braydon again but was disarmed for his trouble. Now without a weapon and against a wall, Braydon had no trouble putting the man out of his misery. He quickly pulled back and swung at the man’s neck, giving no time for him to raise his shield.
*Clang*
Upon hearing the sound directly behind him Braydon nearly had a heart failure. He turned to see a sword clearly swung at his head being blocked by an outstretched sword from the side.
“You should really look around you more in a fight, this isn’t a duel you know.” Gerald commented before turning to face the man who he had blocked.
“Noted.” Braydon noncommittal responded before doing to an enemy what had just been done to him. But this time there was no one to block his strike. His sword hit the man’s helmet, the force knocking him out cold.
There was not much more to do in the guardhouse, the defenders having quickly been overrun. Once the shield wall had been crushed, nothing had stopped his men from rushing in. Braydon saw Gerald finish his opponent with a sword through the gut, the last enemy in the guard house.
“Quickly open the gate, I am sure Rhydian will be thrilled to join us.” Braydon told the mercenaries. They were more than happy to get more reinforcements from Braydon’s army.
“Yes, he’ll really be thrilled to learn that you were almost out cold after beating one man.” Gerald could not help but quip as the two of them moved on to their next battle.
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The Devil King
This story is a Frame Story (story within a story), and as such will contain two summaries to denote both. A man was summoned from his home world to another to serve as a Hero for the desperate Human race. Where, in between the worlds, he is tortured whist obtaining specialised abilities and a Class. However, just as he enters this new world, he is slain by way of dragon fire. Afterwards, his soul is picked up by a Goddess called Azazel and strikes a bargain with her. For a new life upon her world, he will give her entertainment. Unbeknownst to himself, she has more plans for him than simple “entertainment”. Ah, but the Universe has its own plans for the man who was summoned. Be it for good or for ill, the worlds will note the rise of something more. ***** Sarah, the Goddess of Iridescent Colours, is the Goddess Queen of the Terran Pantheon after marrying a being called the Ageless who is the God King of said Pantheon. However, after many a century of being together, and giving birth to their only child, she has come to suspect her husband of breaking the oldest laws set aside within the Universe. Tampering or re-writing a being's Story. Of which contains a being's everything; from birth to death, everything is written within their Story. Tampering with such books would not only mark the being, but cause the Librarians who take care of such items to fly into a rage and slay the perpetrator. However, with the Ageless being the fifth strongest being within the Universe, she doubts if she could find a Librarian strong enough to slay her husband for the crimes he has committed. How did she come to suspect him? Her own story contains many pages which were re-written, and the one who has access to it is both herself and her husband. Therefore, she searches for answers, and has been given the story titled The Devil King in order to find that which she desires. Even if the cost is to read the whole book before she could act fully. Special thanks to Hot-Gothics/Agelyn Starr for the cover art. If you would like to view the full artwork, click here. This can also be found on a website run by a good friend and fan of my work. One that I've both bought and given my blessing to run. https://terranlibrary.com/
8 155Mark of the Mountain [formally : the masked queen (drottingr)]
Lyssia - the masked Drottine of Ilvana - has to discover the strength of her own voice and uncover the dark secrets that threaten to undermine the safety of her people while maintaining her own secret, a struggle that may force her to choose between her kingdom and her life. * * * * * * * * * * Participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge! * * * * * * * * * * Armed with an uncontrollable talent for premonition and a dangerous secret that could cost her her life, Lyssia - the masked Drottine of Ilvana - has to learn to survive in a land designed to weed out the weak. Lyssia always thought her survival at court depended upon her identity as the greatest pretender of all. But when Magnor - the newly crowned King of Dunival - arrives unannounced and threatens the tenuous peace between their two kingdoms, Lyssia soon realizes that he carries secrets even more dangerous than her own. As Lyssia struggles to discover the true intentions behind Magnor's visit, she is faced with an impossible choice: Sacrifice her secret - her freedom - her life to save a dying land... or allow Ilvana to be overcome by what lies hidden in the shadows. Can Lyssia find the strength to stand and fight for her people, or will the lies she has hidden behind her entire life prove too strong to be overcome? * * * * * * * * * * A kongdomr of warriors, though rusted their swords A kongdomr of voices, raised in hopeful song A kongdomr of drakuns, forsaken, forgotten A kongdomr of masks, neither young nor old A kongdomr of faces, expectantly raised To this new chance, a new age A new Drottingr Ilvana of legend Rise, Warriors, Rise * * * * * * * * * * CAST, DEFENITIONS, PLAYLIST CAST Ilvanian (the three-pointed mountain) Lyssia (Lys) - Drottine of Ilvana, heir, present day 22YO Dizean - Kongr of Ilvana, Lyssia's father Azerian (Az) - Lyssia's maternal cousin, present day 22YO Carryn - Lyssia maternal aunt, Azerian's mother Roakev (Ro) - Lyssia's paternal cousin, present day 24YO Eindre - Lyssia's paternal uncle, Roakev's father and Drengr Nimeah - Eindre's wife, Roakev's mother Seaka - old Lach and Lyssia's former caretaker Bjarke - Master Skald, employed the Kongr of Ilvana Aturnel (the guardian) - highest mountain point on Ilvania-Listoria border Thivness (the wildness) – dangerous, impassable cliff between eastern forest and sea Vatn – Lesser mountain named after the lake found at its feet Arvid – Lyssia’s Dubkir horse, named after her great grandfather Sikurd – Roakev’s Dubkir horse, named after an old hero from a Lay Isi - girl Lyssia meets on road to Steiner Mart Diyana - Lyssia's songbird, also Rilken's wife Ofrid - Lyssia's maternal cousin, close to Roakev's age Reeza - Lyssia's older maternal cousin, has a oat named OdilHoney - good natured mare rode by Lyssia Hanne – village representative’s niece celebrating her wedding Ardbon - Karl involved in Steiner Mart fight Liefer - Karl involved in Steiner Mart fight, his son’s name is Nurik Rilken - the last Drakun Kongr of Ilvana Steiner Mart - Eda-Yute Mart held every year in Steiner Field, also called the crossroads Gavin Brinson – young western Jarl, not allied with Halvor, his family crest is a raven Sidne – Gavin’s wife, very pregnant and very helpful Halvor - outspoken jarl from western stead Sorev – Halvor’s son, family crest is a bear in mid-maul, one of eight Jarlsons present, but the only one hailing from the west Fulrik – sonless western Jarl allied with Halvor Calvin – one of the Jarlsons atttending the peacemeet, the oldest and tallest of the lot Angar – eastern Jarl in possession of the Dubkir herd, family crest is a shield painted with bright green and yellow stripes Dubkir heir – Angar’s son…when will Lyssia learn his name? Ingar – former Kongr of Ilvana and Lyssia’s grandfather Scyftan River – the unofficial divide between eastern and western Ilvana Listorian (the five-pointed flower) Andev - Kongr of Listoria Igone (of the green thumb) - Andev's wife, Drottingr of Listoria Thisska - Listorian Drakun, bonded to Igone Linea - Drottine of Listoria, Murel's twin, heir, present day 20YO Murel - Drottine of Listoria, Linea's twin, heir, present day 20YO Ansev - Kongre of Listoria, twin's younger brother Sundric - Kongre of Listoria, twin's younger brother Giall - Jarl that travels to Ilvana with royal party Dunival (the spinning dustdevil) Magnor - recently crowned Kongr of Dunival, present day 25YO Tirne - Kongre-Slad of Dunival, younger son of Rijek, present day 22YO V???? - Magnor’s self-proclaimed “second”…another name Lyssia can’t seem to learn! Deceased Erina - Lyssia's mother, deceased Rijek – former Kongr of Dunival, deceased Anitra – former Drottingr of Dunival, Magnor and Tirne’s mother, deceased The Five Kongdomren - Ilvana, Dunival, Listoria, Sinnet, Nukrevn Aonta...Definition and Cast to be discovered DEFINITIONS Kongr/Kongre - King/Prince Drottingr/Drottine - Queen/Princess Kongdomr (Kongdomren) - Kingdom (Kingdoms) Jarl/Karl - landowner/non-landowner, may be beholden one particular Jarl Lach – healer Fyr/Slad - heir/none Middig/Dreg - master/apprentice Skald - historian and musician Drengr – champion Drakuns - Dragons, the Ancient Ones Bjurn – bear Elke(Elken) – gigantic, majestic elk, native to Ilvana Ban-maudr – “executioner thorns”, found in the eastern forest, very painful and hard to remove Yute - Thanks yearly celebration between cold and growing seasons Urd/Eda/Aon(-Yute) - past/present/future, two weeks each Lay - Ilvanian historical songs Laikari - Listorian historical plays Ridineig - fast-paced dancing tune Drigneig – type of song, a dirge, “opposite” of ridineig Lur - long trumpet like instrument Bowed lyra – larger version of hand lyra, played with a bowed stick Jorki – similar to a pan flute, jokingly called “child’s flute” Drakuns - Dragons, the Ancient Ones Diyana - songbird Wulv – wolf, native to Dunival Wulvken – umm…we’re still not sure Volvstot/wulvstot – “witchbrew/wolfbrew”, dark beer that Magnor brings from Dunival Fovk - fox Vas Morginnen - Good Morning Vas Heill - Good Health Vas Daginnen – Good Day Adhuil - prosperous, prosperity Ami - genderless term of endearment Dunga - insulting way of saying someone is stupid Saedas - sweetness, another way of saying happinessSaedhirte- sweetheart Hviss - an (improper) oath Slegrl – sly Standa – stop An-rivic – be still! Brudpar – “bridal pair”, bride and groom Dubkir – famous Ilvanian horses, half-wild and bred for the hunt * * * * * * * * * * Playlists: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcaiTcdQkK6nXrjYq29srJ7GMsebdd-Sp https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLcaiTcdQkK6msFQiYhbaYhZ0VqFJ0mROi Lyssia character portrait by @soretoothproductions!
8 355This world is strange
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8 222Deviant's Masquerade: The Huntsman's Quest (Old Version)
Camp Bet looks like a regular every day summer camp. Then you realize the owner is a witch, the quartermaster is probably a serial killer, and the whole place is surrounded by a mystical forest. All of that is just part of the reason why Jon Whitaker considers Camp Bet home. So, when things from both the city and the forest start to threaten his home... Well, he's going to do something about that. --- (A Quest set in the world of Deviant's Masquerade.) Please Note: This story has undergone a soft reboot and can now be found here.
8 97Lonely But Homely
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