her.
The conversation broke into another argument and Anna sighed, resting her head in her hands. It was going to be a long four months.
Chapter Seven
The interior courtyard of the Iron castle was large enough that two hundred men could practice arms maneuvers and leave room for the servants to move around them. Most of the men were on the walls, while only a few ran through the courtyard to send requests for more ammunition or to relay information from the front. General Wrach had started sieging the castle anew, this time using his catapults to hurl clusters of smaller rocks, raining fist-sized stones haphazardly along the walls.
A large well in the corner of the courtyard was drawn upon, independent of the city's water supply. Opposite the corner of the well, close to the inner castle walls, was the grate leading to the sewers. Heavy iron bars crossed in a filth covered lattice that weighed hundreds of pounds.
The sewage grate had gone for days ignored as a point of attack. The only way to get to the castle through them was to travel the sewers through the city, climb a ten foot vertical shaft, and navigate a small maze of tunnels. Getting a large enough force to take the castle through the sewer system would be impossible for any normal military force.
However, Balator didn't have anything resembling an ordinary military force. Bridget looked back down the passage to the small cluster of warriors and wolves that were crammed tight behind her.
"All right, just like we planned." she said.
Four warriors moved in around her, with their weapons stowed. They dropped to a knee around her and reached out with their hands, interlocking them. The sewage welled up around their thighs, but their feet could brace against the walls and their interlocking arms made the four into a somewhat sturdy platform. Four wolves climbed up on the backs of those warriors, so their hands could reach the grate. Gripping the grate with one hand, the four incanted some kind of quiet spell, exhaling on the bars set into the stone.
Their breath came out in a thick fog which rolled over the bars and clung to them. Flakes of rust rained down on them as the grate slowly sank into the pit, dragged down with a barely audible squeal by the weight of the four wolves and the rapid weakening of the metal.
The four wolves hopped down, and with a word from Bridget the four warriors released their grip and stood, catching the grate before the bars fully gave out. A tug was all that was needed to snap the metal, and they set it aside. Using the now vertical grate as a foothold, the four wolves surged up and out of the sewage pit, securing the immediate environs.
"Go." Bridget said, looking at the remaining fighters. Paired groups climbed up, one wolf and one warrior. Bridget's head snapped up as she heard the sound of a muffled scream and steel biting into flesh. She was able to step aside as a corpse dropped down beside her, splashing into the refuse.
The rest of the warriors and wolfmen climbed up, leaving Bridget alone in the tunnel. She sighed, drew her short cleaver, and started climbing up. In the few seconds it took her to get to the top, her invasion group had been discovered, and the fight had started in the courtyard.
Bridget ducked on reflex as she thought she saw something moving towards her, and was rewarded with the sight of a hastily shot arrow glancing off her armor. With a growl that would match her wolfmen comrades, she pulled her large blade free and pointed it towards the outer walls.
"Push forward!" She cried. "Take down archers! Kill the mages!"
The soldiers that had rushed out to stop them were too few. Bridget had more to fear from catching an enemy arrow than from one getting close to her in the melee. Her warriors made short work of the foot soldiers, many falling with broken swords or shattered shields.
By the time most of the archers knew to turn around, the wolfmen had already scaled the walls with leaps and bounds,
The conversation broke into another argument and Anna sighed, resting her head in her hands. It was going to be a long four months.
Chapter Seven
The interior courtyard of the Iron castle was large enough that two hundred men could practice arms maneuvers and leave room for the servants to move around them. Most of the men were on the walls, while only a few ran through the courtyard to send requests for more ammunition or to relay information from the front. General Wrach had started sieging the castle anew, this time using his catapults to hurl clusters of smaller rocks, raining fist-sized stones haphazardly along the walls.
A large well in the corner of the courtyard was drawn upon, independent of the city's water supply. Opposite the corner of the well, close to the inner castle walls, was the grate leading to the sewers. Heavy iron bars crossed in a filth covered lattice that weighed hundreds of pounds.
The sewage grate had gone for days ignored as a point of attack. The only way to get to the castle through them was to travel the sewers through the city, climb a ten foot vertical shaft, and navigate a small maze of tunnels. Getting a large enough force to take the castle through the sewer system would be impossible for any normal military force.
However, Balator didn't have anything resembling an ordinary military force. Bridget looked back down the passage to the small cluster of warriors and wolves that were crammed tight behind her.
"All right, just like we planned." she said.
Four warriors moved in around her, with their weapons stowed. They dropped to a knee around her and reached out with their hands, interlocking them. The sewage welled up around their thighs, but their feet could brace against the walls and their interlocking arms made the four into a somewhat sturdy platform. Four wolves climbed up on the backs of those warriors, so their hands could reach the grate. Gripping the grate with one hand, the four incanted some kind of quiet spell, exhaling on the bars set into the stone.
Their breath came out in a thick fog which rolled over the bars and clung to them. Flakes of rust rained down on them as the grate slowly sank into the pit, dragged down with a barely audible squeal by the weight of the four wolves and the rapid weakening of the metal.
The four wolves hopped down, and with a word from Bridget the four warriors released their grip and stood, catching the grate before the bars fully gave out. A tug was all that was needed to snap the metal, and they set it aside. Using the now vertical grate as a foothold, the four wolves surged up and out of the sewage pit, securing the immediate environs.
"Go." Bridget said, looking at the remaining fighters. Paired groups climbed up, one wolf and one warrior. Bridget's head snapped up as she heard the sound of a muffled scream and steel biting into flesh. She was able to step aside as a corpse dropped down beside her, splashing into the refuse.
The rest of the warriors and wolfmen climbed up, leaving Bridget alone in the tunnel. She sighed, drew her short cleaver, and started climbing up. In the few seconds it took her to get to the top, her invasion group had been discovered, and the fight had started in the courtyard.
Bridget ducked on reflex as she thought she saw something moving towards her, and was rewarded with the sight of a hastily shot arrow glancing off her armor. With a growl that would match her wolfmen comrades, she pulled her large blade free and pointed it towards the outer walls.
"Push forward!" She cried. "Take down archers! Kill the mages!"
The soldiers that had rushed out to stop them were too few. Bridget had more to fear from catching an enemy arrow than from one getting close to her in the melee. Her warriors made short work of the foot soldiers, many falling with broken swords or shattered shields.
By the time most of the archers knew to turn around, the wolfmen had already scaled the walls with leaps and bounds,
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