Surface- Lost Islands Region

Empire of Night- Island of Ordstead

Port

Jacob took deep breaths as he tried to focus and control the headache that threatened to crack open his skull, at least it felt like it Jacob thought. The salty air and the quiet helped, but Jacob knew the quiet would be broken sooner rather than later. "You know you could always go home." Rose pointed out.

"I could also meditate for some time and control the headaches as well. The quiet is needed for meditation though." Jacob told the Angel.

"Or you could go back to Earth," Darren replied.

Jacob opened his eyes and glared at the Rogue. "I am fine right where I am thank you very much. Since you people are not going to let me meditate, what's on the agenda today?" Jacob replied as he poured a cup of water and downed it.

"The prisoners have all been transported to Andport Island and are under guard. One pirate named Bricksby has requested an audience. He was a former advisor of the Pirate Lord and holds power in many pirate circles and I wouldn't be surprised if he is the reason why so many surrendered.' Stacy reported before continuing, 'You have a strategy session with Generals Brox and Ironbreak about the siege of the Fortress of Vremburn. You wanted to visit the Healing Halls to see the wounded. The Shipwrights want to see you as well and see if you have any interest in employing them long term or not." Stacy finished.

Jacob rubbed his temples as he nodded, "So we have a ton of Admin bullshit to deal with. Any chance at infiltrating the island of Yhedgan Darren?" Jacob asked the rogue.

"Not a chance in hell, place is locked up tighter than a frogs asshole," Darren replied quickly.

"So...all out assault if they do not surrender. Awesome. Any word on if we can get a Portal Pad to work on connecting us to the mainland?" Jacob asked all around and none of them had an answer.

"An Archmage maybe could do it given time. It would cost a lot of money and who knows what materials the mage would require." Darren pointed out.

"What about a Portal Stone between Anchorhead and here. Could an Archmage do that?" Jacob asked Darren who considered the question before shrugging his shoulders.

"I am not the best person to ask about that, I would suggest you ask the Archmage back at Eternal Night, he might be able to answer that," Darren replied.

Jacob pinched the bridge of his nose as he started donning his armor. Darren raised an eyebrow in confusion, "This is technically a war zone, so Thorgron requires that I wear armor and weapons whenever I am outside my personal quarters." Jacob told the Rogue who nodded his head in agreement. "We have locked down the water approaches around the fortress and we control the land-based approaches as well. They are sending out patrols occasionally, but we have captured or killed every man they have sent out so they are no longer challenging control of the island outside their fortress." General Brox reported as the tactical map displayed the Fortress of Vremburn and the surrounding area.

"Good, I am glad they won't be resupplied by ship or receive any reinforcements. I also don't want them running away either. We can confirm the Pirate Lord Sebastion Jenkins, is located at the fortress. After their losses from the battle and dissertation, they have just over six thousand left inside." Jacob told the two Generals.

"Good thing they don't have subs on this world." Darren pointed out the confusion of the two Orcs.

"On our world, we have vessels that go under the ocean as well as on top of it. I don't think subs would be a real advantage through Darren. We have Merfolk and all the other sea monsters, they wouldn't just allow an underwater craft to go through their territories unopposed. It does not matter, such vessels don't exist here that I am aware of and do not matter for this discussion. Siege Weapons, how long until they get in position and we can start bombarding the fort?" Jacob asked getting the meeting back on track.

"The Siege Weapons have been unloaded from the transports and are being transported on carts under escort. The War Engineers said they will have them assembled by midnight. We can start bombarding soon after, we have only six Ballista and four Catapolts though. It will take time to wear down the fortress walls." Ironbark responded.

Jacob dismissed the concern, "That is fine, it gives the Second Legion time to rest and recover from the battle. How are the Legion recovering?" Jacob asked the Generals.

"They are fine, they have been trained well and have suffered much before coming here. They miss the mainland and the amenities there, that's about it. Once this Region is fully under the Empires control, things will change around here. Commerce will pick up with the pirates' control of these islands being broken." General Brox stated and Ironbark head was bobbing in agreement.

"Well, as soon as this Region is in our control, the Ninth Legion will be taking over garrison duty, the First and Second Legions will be shipping back to the mainland where you will receive replacements and resupply. Your Legions will be spearheading another operation that is crucial to the Empire. However, that is a discussion when we get back to the mainland. Are the Teleport Pads up and running at least?" Jacob asked around and Stacy responded immediately.

"Yes, the Teleport Pads between Andport and Ordstead islands are working. Since the island of Yhedgan is outside our control, we cannot link with the Teleport Pad there. It has allowed us to shift supplies between the islands without using transport ships. However, anything big like a cart, wagon, or siege weapon has to be moved by either Cargo Portals or by ships between the islands. We might not be able to connect to the mainland with portals, we can still jump between islands though." Stacy finished leaving Jacob considering this new option.

"Do you know any Mages willing to open a Cargo Portal too the island of Yhedgan?" Jacob asked her. The former pirate frowned then smiled.

"These are the Lost Islands, for the right price you can almost get anything. Give me a day to ask around to see if anyone can and is willing to do it." Stacy replied with a chuckle. The meeting quickly wrapped up and broke up, everyone had responsibilities and duties that required their attention.

Surface- Lost Islands Region

Free Lands- Island of Ordstead

Fortress of Vremburn

An explosion and screams woke Sebastion. He quickly grabbed his cutlass as he scrambled into some clothing as he ran out of his quarters and outside. Part of the outer wall was on fire, wounded were being dragged away, but more boulders and Ballista Bolts landed on the wall and within the courtyard. The Bolts exploded and the boulders shattered on impact scathing down Sebastion's men and women. "Get the wounded inside. Leave only a small handfull to keep watch. This is just a bombardment, not an assault. MOVE!!" the Pirate Lord screamed out at those wandering around.

One of his personal guards grabbed him and forced him back into the Keep. "You need to stay inside. Let the captains get people organized." the man said before dashing off to help. Sebastion grimaced before heading to the control room. The Strategic Map was already lit up and showing the current situation. Two Captains were looking at what was going on and shaking their heads in frustration.

"How are they bombarding us? None of the ships have moved into range." Sebastion asked and the Captains pointed at the map and enhanced it to a view outside the fortress walls.

"The brought Siege Engines and deployed them on some of the hills surrounding the fortress extending their range. These Legionnaires have fortified each of these hills so even if we leave the safety of the fort, we would have to fight through a small army to get to the Siege Engines. We estimate it will take them forty-eight hours at most to crack the outer walls." one of the Captains reported.

"Suggestions?" Sebastion called out.

"Surrender as Bricksby suggested. We are in an indefensible position. We cannot hold this fortress if they are content to leave us here to rot or just bombard us till we are buried in the rubble." One of the Captains suggested earning a sharp glare from Sebastion. The Captain shrugged his shoulders in response and gestured to the display.

Sebastion looked at the assembled Captains, if he didn't figure out how to get them out of this mess soon they would mutiny or simply kill him in his sleep. Either way, he would die...Sebastion very much liked living and had no wish to die any time soon.

Surface- Lost Islands Region

Contested Area- Island of Ordstead

Outside the Fortress of Vremburn

Jacob watched as the Siege Engines continued to bombard the walls and courtyard of the Keep. The fortress was taking a pounding and the initial waves of the bombardment had cost the pirates in blood, but most of their troops had been withdrawn into the fortress proper. It didn't matter to Jacob and those working the siege engines, they just continued to bombard the outer walls of the Keep and occasionally the Keep itself. Cracks were already appearing all over the walls due to the pounding, but the War Engineers were sure it would take them at least a day to bring them down.

"Have they tried to flee or sortie from the keep?" Jacob asked Ironbreak.

"No SIr, they have as you Immortals say 'turtled' and are staying in the main Keep. Its the only structure within that Fortress that will be able to withstand the bombardment for any length of time. Even it will eventually fall to the bombardment though. The Engineers think it will take between twenty-four and forty-eight hours to make it crumble once they take down the outer walls. So in three to four days, the whole fortress will be gone." General Ironbark reported.

"You have enough men to keep them pinned in?" Jacob asked the Orc.

"Yes, we have twelve Cohorts deployed around the fortress. More than enough to keep them pinned and blunt an attack long enough for other nearby forces to assist in case of an attack." The General responded quickly. Jacob nodded his head in acknowledgment as he watched a boulder sail over his head and come crashing down on an archer tower.

"Remind me to build a Stronghold here, it will take a lot of money and resources, but considering how long the pirates held these islands...This place should have been a Stonghold already." Jacob lamented causing the Orc to snicker.

"I am heading back to the Port, please let me know of any new developments," Jacob told the Orc before he turned and left, the Century of Dawn Guard keeping pace as Jacob continued to rub his temples.