The use of "just in time" may have been slightly misleading, as they had rounded the main bend leading out of the hills to the west of city while it was still dark out. They hadn't been able to make out the swarm until shortly before the battle between Ethan and the monster had begun, when they were much closer to the city, their intended destination for Terri had felt it would be easier to battle the swarm from a defensible position. Since they weren't sure the exact location of the swarm at the very least they could use the town as a forward base.

Much like the forces from Ravenspire those from Cloudcrest stood in stunned silence as the sky above grew ugly with the amassing of dark clouds. While most flinched some actually took several steps back when the cyclone formed and erupted toward the heavens. The front of the force had just made it to the main gate when the monsters began to "land" around them. The shouts and yells of alert quickly spread among the adventurers and guards and soon the sounds of battle echoed off the western walls of Coppershear.

"If you are a guard make for the town! Everyone else group up as needed and slay these beasts!"

Terri yelled out her commands and as they were relayed by various individuals between her and the back of the group of fighters the guards began to pour into the town as instructed. The guards, composed of the Coppershear survivors who could still manage to fight, as well as approximately three quarters of Cloudcrest's, split into two units. One began moving about the town calling out for survivors and rescuing those that could be saved, while the second moved toward the southern wall to begin what repairs they could while also securing the parameter.

Despite the immense amount of armor covering her body she moved throughout the battle with grace and measured steps. While most would have been fine on their own she didn't want to lose a single second more than they needed to and thus her massive shield, similar in shape to a coffin lid, blocked blows as needed where her two handed broadsword, being wielded with just one, cut down monsters.

She had just cleaved a smaller monster in half after spinning away from a blocked blow by a second. As the separated halves fell to the ground the one that had its attack blocked suddenly slumped forward after its body was relieved of its head. After sticking her sword into the ground she used her free hand to raise the visor on her helmet so she could look toward the east and at the top of the cliffs.

She assumed the bombardment they had seen earlier had been from Ravenspire, however, it stopped shortly after the cyclone reached the cliffs edge. At first they weren't sure why, but once they saw the magnitude of the vortex, and started dodging falling monsters, everyone were basically able to determine the answer. Hopefully they would be able to restart their attack so that the swarm would split itself between the two forces.

"Get a messenger to the top of the cliffs! Tell them to be careful for any far flung monsters!"

A confirmation was called back before she flipped her visor back down and moved off to assist anyone else who needed. In truth it was taking all of her willpower not to go running off toward the base of the cliff where the unnatural weather originated. She didn't have a doubt in her mind that was where she would find Ethan, but her sense of duty prevented her from shaming herself or her order. Of course that didn't mean she wasn't frustrated by the situation and she certainly took her anger out on the monsters that were unlucky enough to get in her way.

The forces from Cloudcrest finished their small skirmish and had secured Coppershear about two hours or so before the bombardment from the cliffs above began once again. It came not a moment too soon as the fighting in and around the town had drawn the attention of the monsters located in the rear of the swarm. As the smell of death grew so did the number of monsters interested in a meal, and so a growing portion of the swarm had begun making it's way back toward Coppershear.

With the few survivors who hadn't made it out before now on their way to the refugee camp the first group of guards moved to help secure the parameter with the second group. What makeshift repairs that could be done were completed as the fighters, a mixture of adventurers, knights, and other Nel' Ina wielders, moved out from the wall in a wedge shape to drive into the oncoming horde of monsters. The edges of the wedge had the strongest of the fighters, while those with less experience, and those not as strong, moved in and out of the front line to make what attacks they could get away with.

About an hour after the bombardment restarted Terri's resolve was tested for a second time as the messenger returned with news from the Ravenspire forces. It was then she learned of what their scouts had seen, or perhaps it was more accurate to say hadn't seen, and the subsequent assumptions made. She whispered a silent prayer to the Keepers, if they still existed, and moved back to the point of the wedge. She couldn't... she wouldn't... leave her mission, nor abandon those she had been given command over, despite the tears now flowing down her cheeks, a physical manifestation of the breaking heart in her chest. Thankfully her drawn visor hid her emotions, though the ever present and observant Selena could sense some sort of dilemma emitting from her commander. However, she couldn't allow herself to be careless in such a situation and quickly redirected her attention toward the monsters before.

Meanwhile, back at the base the mountain, in the center of a ruined crater that was slowly, but gradually, filling with water from the waterfall that had once fed the smaller pool that no longer existed, floated the motionless form of a boy, one leg missing from right below the knee, circular gouges deep enough to expose bone covering his body, and his one arm, from the elbow down, covered by what looked like a melted monster of some sort. His breathing was so shallow had someone seen him, even with the closest of looks, they would be hard pressed to say he was still alive. Though, he wasn't out of the woods yet, at least figuratively since he wasn't in actual woods, but a field... or the ruins of a field, and whether he could hold out long enough to be rescued had yet to be determined.