Vale of Swallows pt 3 has started at Outside Arx - Lyceum near Saikland Greens - The Vale of Swallows.

On the border of Saikland Green a new stretch of trade road has been growing up to link a popular trade destination with the great road. Rumors of banditry along this stretch of road, just outside of Saikland Green, where it passes through an area known as the vale of swallows, have drawn the party into the area. Their investigations along the road soon led to an encounter with a group of merchants who were attacked, whilst the party was present, by a number of bandits. The bandit force was quickly routed and a number of prisoners taken and given to the merchants to return for future Saik justice.

The morning after the attack the group tracked the bandit force into the forested vale and encountered a trio of huntsmen/bandits who made a deal with Lucita to exchange a life sworn to Saik for information on the bandit stronghold. Lucita agreed to this and the 'leader' of the group, a man called Archer, led the group further into the vale. At the end of a journey that neatly bypassed any patrols and suggests Archer may actually be trustworthy the group had an opportunity to view the bandit fortress from a safe vantage point. The fort consists of three buildings and an old ruined watchtower positioned inside ditch and pallisade fortifications.
The group retreated to a safe distance, gathered a mixture of Saik, Magnotta and Crimson Blade troop and returned to set a cordon about the bandit fort. It takes little time to get your small force into place thanks to the lack of enemy harassment. If there are any bandits hiding in the nearby woods you havent seen them.

Having no authority with any of the armies present, Ian's not especially involved with the setting up of the siege. He does take a long, slow stroll around the palisade (out of arrowshot, of course), to get a good sense of what the place is like and what the terrain is like around it, and that probably takes him a while, keeping him busy while the siege is being set up and maybe even after.

Haakon carries a round shield slung across his back, a bow in his right hand, and a wickedly barbed harpoon in the left as he tilts his helmed head to peer at the distant palisade. "Will want stay in bowshot of their best path to the water," he mutters, gauging the distances involved.

Wrangled into what promises to be either a battle or a handy bit of sabotage at the last moment, Neilda Saik, fresh from the sea, looks out from her vantage point near the trees and furrows her brows at the sight of the bandit camp from a distance. "Well, this'll either be bloody, interesting, or both," she murmurs, eyes like bottled lightning sliding towards her brother-in-law and flashing him an impish grin. "If nothing else, I can just hide behind you, yes?"

Filthy lies. She's never hid behind anything, unless she was *really* in trouble and at the moment it's too soon to tell if she is. A gloved hand inches backwards to draw the hood of her cloak up her head in an effort to further camouflage her in their current environs.

A few arrows are shot at Ian from manned platforms along the inner side of the pallisade despite him being out of range.

After a couple of arrows hit the dirt well short of his position, Ian stops and turns towards the wall. "DO YOU WANT TO WASTE YOUR ARROWS THIS WAY?" He's a fair distance away, so has to shout to be sure he's going to be heard, but even while shouting, his voice has a note of disapproval.

Haakon's scarred lip curls in a knowing half-smile as he glances sidelong at Neilda. "Course you can. Poor scared little thing that you are," he quips, nearly managing to keep a straight face at the deadpan jest. A short exhale as he looks back to the fort. "But I'd guess either bloody AND interesting, or clean and fucking dull. Sieges are fucking dull." Idly, he drives the harpoon into the ground beside him, and draws out a gull-fletched arrow, nocking it to the string, but not drawing as he sees a few arrows shot from the walls. "They're wasting arrowheads, like that." When Ian shouts much the same, Haakon barks a short laugh.

The retort from the fort is unprintable.

After making sure that Baroness Lucita is safe and with a solid escort of troops Domonico switches into his 'warfare' mode. With his small entourage of former Malvici/Southport veterans, now sworn to Magnotta, he begins overseeing plans to set up for a siege. The Saik troops are a known quality and he has trained alongside and led them into battle in the past and therefore knows what to expect from them. The Crimson Blades? Less so but he gives them the benefit of the doubt due to their reputation.

"We'll need to move some of our troops fast to quickly threaten or cut off their access to the stream before they can make too many trips to it to stock up," he says in a clear, authoritive tone. "Work out their bow range from those shots and prepare to set up camp beyond that. We'll need some basic palisades of our own for cover too." With that he sets to the task of preparing the nitty gritty of the siege, checking supplies and positions and getting a rough sketched map of the area prepared in his command tent.

Ian laughs at the reply he gets and continues on his stroll, further working out the defenders' bow range if anyone else is reckless enough to shoot at him.

"I'm quivering in my boots," Neilda says to Haakon lightly even as she slides in a smooth, almost serpentine manner behind his shadow, though also slightly to the side so she can see what's going on. "But yes, agree. I don't suppose we can't just find a way to swing through the boundary? But then we'll be shot down before-- wait." Ian's call seems to have inspired her, lifting herself up slightly to cup her hands around her mouth to call out, in the sweetest tone she can muster: "WHAT HE MEANS IS YES. WASTE YOUR ARROWS THIS WAY! WE'RE NOTHING BUT SUPPORTIVE!"

She would probably say more, but then she pauses as she glances at Domonico, inclining her head at the more experienced campaigner.

Haakon drawls idly to Domonico, "Any troops you send to cut them off on foot will be in arrowshot. Put a dozen archers with me, we'll feather any fucker makes a run for it." His lip curls in humor again with Neilda's shouted quip.

Not long after the troops have finished filing into the area and started up the tedious tasks of setting up camps trouble raises its ugly head. Not far from the creek three groups of (your) troops are engaged in a steadily escalating argument. Right now they are merely arguing but its clearly one of those arguments that will soon lead to brawling (or worse) if at least one officer doesn't step in.

Haakon wields common bow.

Neilda checks perception and investigation at easy. Neilda is successful.

Ian is coming up on the creek and the escalating argument as it breaks out, but he's not going to get there in time to intervene.

Oh no. This shit is *NOT* going to fly with Domonico at all, who strides towards the argument with a face like absolute thunder.

"Stand down now!" he barks, with the full authoritative tone of one used to command. "How dare you act like this when Baroness Lucita has charged us with this task! You think we'll be able to get *them* to surrender when they believe we would rather fight amongst ourselves? What is the meaning of this?"

Domonico checks command and leadership at easy. Domonico is successful.

Haakon sniffs sharply and shakes his head as soldiers start bickering. He comments to Neilda dryly, "This sort of shit is why Mourning Islanders set up a cross at the start of a standoff. Stays empty long as the warriors keep their lines and tempers."

"Not that I would ever profess to be practiced in military tactics, but since Haakon's one of the best killers I know, I would go with what he says," Neilda says, so pragmatic! Leaning against a tree to ensure that it stays between her *and* whatever archers may be lurking around the bandit camp, there's a tilt of her dark-haired head towards the argument as Domonico swiftly moves in an attempt to establish order. "Really? They're arguing about that *now*?" she mutters with a sigh. "They're arguing about how they deserve our campsite, what is this, a resort?"

Haakon's mutter tilts that same lackadaisical smile over to him, mischief prevalent within the blazing curve of brilliant white past pink lips and sunkissed skin. "Maybe we ought to take a page from your ruthless books, yes? Would certainly keep the discipline." She scans the fortress again and nods. "Looks like there's a postern gate for the river, but it'll probably be sealed. Maybe cause a distraction on one end while some of us try it? Or is it too risky?"

The arguing troops fall into various levels of silence. Some ashamed and some sullen. Looks are cast between each other from mercenary to Saik sworn to magnotta and all the combinations inbetween before the Magnotta (sergeant?) speaks up. "We claimed this spot first Count General Magnotta but now these mercenaries, and the Saik men, are demanding we give it up." So that is the problem then, as Neilda so poetically described - Every force wants to be the one that gets this prime spot.

Ian is still not quite at the group, and doesn't seem to be in a hurry, since it's clear Domonico has this problem handled. He's still taking in the defenses and the terrain behind where the camp would be.

Domonico listens to the grievances before he rests his hand on the pommel of Warspite, not in a threatening manner mind, more like a natural place to rest his hand. "Very well done Sergeant Elio on finding this place as an excellent place to set camp. However... given the fact that we are in fact in the territory of our allies in Saik, and they are committing a larger force than us, I think it only prudent that we allow them to pitch here correct?" He uses every bit of authority he has here as Minister of War for Malvici as well as the Count Magnotta. To the Crimson Blades he says, "Given that Baroness Lucita is hiring your Company for this I believe that you had better let her troops at this spot correct?"

To his own men afterwards he says, "We can find another spot for us. There are less of us and of course we aren't afraid of a little hardship no?"

Domonico checks charm and war at easy. Domonico is successful.

Haakon sniffs with flat humor to Neilda at the cross suggestion. "Mainlanders are too soft for our ways." When she mentions the postern gate, he narrows his stare on that stretch of palisade. "Good eye," he mutters in congratulation. "Too risky to storm, but mayhap if they open it to go for water, we might take it in a rush."

After the conflict is resolved by clear, reasonable and concise orders the non-soldiers soldiers drift off to displace other members of their own forces instead. The camp settles into evening. Then eating. Then sleeping. And general tedium all around. Occasionally a burst of arrow fire or insults will be traded between the fort and the soldiers, or the soldiers and the fort, but sieges never were exciting. Which is kind of the point of course. Two days later, at roughly noon, a signal goes up from the fort asking for a parlay and a little later a middle-aged man, running to fat, turns up atop the gatehouse to talk (or shout anyway). "What do you want?"

On the first night, Ian spends some time writing out a letter in his tiny, cramped handwriting (just something updating someone back home as to his location and what he's up to), and sends it by messenger back to civilization. After that, it's time to wait. A lifetime crammed into tiny ships with way too many people, at sea with nothing to do for weeks at a time, has made him capable of withstanding boredom quite well. Every day, he takes a turn around the palisade, which takes him through all of the camps and gives him a chance to touch base with the soldiers. He's getting back from that by the time someone indicates they want to talk, but he doesn't look like he's going to step forward.

Haakon had occupied his boredom with hunting in the intervening days. No game worth note, but smaller animals sharpened his aim more, anyhow. When the appeal came from the fort, his lip had curled, and he muttered to Neilda, "Fucking finally." Turning steps and eye toward the gate, and stands near the edge of bowshot to holler back, "Open your gates, throw down your arms, and yield to the Saik and live." His near-smile digs deeper. "Or refuse, and we do this fun way."

"I'm here to help," Neilda replies cheerily, her grin an unwavering one and winking towards her brother-in-law, before she exhales a breath. "If nothing else, at least I'll have someone to commiserate with for however long this siege lasts. You're right though." She pushes away from the tree, and walks back to the heart of the camp. "Sieges *are* boring."

With two days having passed, the remarks from the fort finally has her perking up; a military camp doesn't really enable her much to perform her usual tricks and mischief but activity in *any* angle at this point is promising. Quick booted steps take her towards the Admiral of Southport, walking alongside him and sliding her hands in her pockets; her strides are as easy as her smiles, despite tension strung like a livewire across the field. "Looks like it's time for negotiations, unless they want to do this the *fun* way like my dear brother-in-law says."

Haakon checks command and intimidation at easy. Haakon is successful.

After making sure his armour was secured and Warspite was ready to be drawn, Count Magnotta, accompanied by a pair of his soldiers and whoever else from the champions wishes to join him and moves next to Haakon as the Eswynd bellows his terms. For now, Domonico is quiet, allowing his presence to reinforce Haakon's, his red cloak fluttering a little in the breeze.

"You'll just let us walk away?" The chubby spokesmen calls back. "Or is this one of those offers that ends in us being hung?"

"Walk away?" Haakon echoes with an abrupt laugh. "Fuck no! You'll still face justice, but the Saik is of a kind mind: a spell of labor or some penance and THEN you walk free. But this *is* one of those offers where if you keep us waiting too long, the Saik lets the likes of me settle you. And I'm not so kind. Force us to storm you or rot you out, and the lot of you are dead. Yield now, turn over your shit bows and shit arrows, and you'll live."

Domonico speaks up, "We have already defeated one of your raiding parties and took prisoners. They are being well treated despite their attempted crimes against Saikland Green. If you surrender, I personally guarantee your safety unless you attempt any form of subterfuge or aggression. Then... like Lord Eswynd says... there will be little mercy."

A small smile directed to Haakon, before Neilda adds from her spot: "House Saik will try to be kind in our sentencing," she remarks. "And we'll even be kinder if you group up among yourselves and do the work for us by surrendering your leader." Is there truly any honor amongst thieves? She's certainly willing to find out!

The man inside the fort calls back "Stay in here or die. Come out there or die. I'll take my..." That falls off as Domonico offers to guarantee safe passage. "Let me and my men walk free, with our arms, and you can have this poxy fort. Thats the least I'll accept!"

Ian runs a hand through his hair. He's not talking loud enough for his voice to carry all the way over to the bandits. "If you let them go free, with or without their weapons, they're going to go right back to what they were doing before. Bows and spears aren't hard to make."

Neilda checks charm and manipulation at normal. Neilda is successful.

Haakon snorts loudly. "Fuck off. Are you deaf or daft, Fat man?" A rude laugh. "The only way any body in those walls lives is if you yield. Either way, your days of living like a swordhawk are done. Live after this as a good serf, or keep your arms and be slaughtered. THAT'S the least you'll accept."

Domonico hmms and nods in agreement with Ian, "We take them prisoner and then sort of what to do with them. We give his people the right incentives and support and we might have a good start on a new outpost for Saikland Green... properly managed and oversaw by Saik of course."

The parlay ends when the cap'n spits over the side of the pallisade and returns somewhere inside. A seed has been planted though. Time starts to pass again. Tick-tock. Tick-tock. Are you holding the siege or attacking before darkness falls?

Haakon looks aside to the other nobles as the captain withdraws. "That went well, aye? What say you: give them another day to turn on him?"

"I'm willing to wait," Neilda replies simply as she settles next to her brother-in-law, arms folding behind her head and smiling blithely. "Besides, I'm curious to see how this plays out."

"Assuming he doesn't have enough loyalists to keep the rest in line," Ian remarks. "Look, let's tonight see if we can't get at least any kids in there out. Their captain won't negotiate, but I'm willing to wager at least one of the guards on the wall at night has a family he'd like to protect from what's coming."

Domonico nods and moves back to check over the watch and patrol patterns around the siegeworks before speaking to Neilda, "Good thinking with what you said. We might be able to do this with no loss of life hopefully." He gestures at the fort. "Also... this should make a good outpost for Saik to secure this area if we take it intact." Ian's comment gets a nod, "Indeed. Let's hope they see sense anyway. Our foragers and hunters are having to go further afield currently to supplement our supplies."

Night falls and the commanders have the unenviable task of trying to keep their troops alert and engaged. At least one sentry is found catnapping and kicked awake by his comrades during the evening. Nobody expects much. The camp slumbers but for the sentries only to be woken into sharp alertness as the postern gate opens and a group of bandits try to break out! With the activity from your own men it is hard to determine just what is happening inside the fort. This escaping group is only four strong but look as if they might be the strongest "troops" the keep contains. Sadly the Cap'n is not amongst them.

You can kick some soldiers out of their blankets and hope they catch them (war checks) or take them on yourself (combat).

Domonico checks command and war at normal. Domonico is successful.

Domonico's remarks earns him a winsome smile that would rival the sun in its ebullience - but really, everyone knows that it's a trap so it's best not to fall for it. "I'm helping," she tells him in her light, chipperly manner. "I don't know whether it'll work, but it's not a bad plan, is i-- oh, something's happening." Sharp eyes catch the gates opening, before her expression falls visibly. "What, only *four*?" She looks over her shoulder in an attempt to get a glimpse of her rear. "And I wore the *nice* leather pants today."

Ian checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Ian is successful.

Neilda checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Neilda is successful.

Haakon checks strength and medium wpn at normal. Haakon is successful.

Ian knows that whatever is going to happen, it's probably going to come out of that postern gate, which is why that's where he usually camps. Tonight, he's not asleep yet, still looking for a good chance to try and talk a guard into letting the women and children out so they're not in the middle of what's coming, and thus he's looking right at the wall when the gate opens. He swears under his breath and closes, drawing his alaricite sword out of his cane as two bandits push towards him and slashes one deep across his shoulder and down his chest before either of them even get the chance to attack. "Lay down your weapons, and this doesn't end with me killing you."

"Finally some action," Haakon grunts as he Don's his helm and takes up harpoon and shield. He had chosen a spot overlooking the path from gate to stream as was his habit, and was bear Ian when the quartet had slipped out. "Lay em down quick," he scoffs, falling upon the bandits swift and pitiless.

As blase as she normally is in intense situations where barely anything works out and relationships among comrades can fail if not careful, Neilda is surprisingly light, and fast on her feet - some would say it is an inordinate talent groomed out of the necessity to run away from trouble, but tonight finds her turning it the other way when she barrels towards it. And really, these days, that's par for the course when she flits in and out of the continent like a chaos butterfly. Drawing Diligence with a clear ring of steel, she sets upon one of the escaping bandits by suddenly jumping out of cover. "OH GODS WHAT IS THAT ON YOUR FACE?" she cries, before plowing the butt of her sword into the man's nose once he's well and truly distracted by befuddlement, if not surprise - after all what IS that on his face? Her pommel, that's what.

Domonico had prepared for this with his plans and contingencies and as the attempted break out begins sergeants begin marshalling their troops to cut of routes of escape as well as leaving a sizable force with eyes on the main gate still. Domonico strides through the camp, directing the soldiers and archers into the best possible positions. Satisfied by the army's response, he marches towards the small knot of fighting, focused primarily on how Neilda fares, feeling responsible for his former protege.

Neilda checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Neilda is successful.

Ian checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Ian is successful.

Ian checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Ian is successful.

Domonico checks perception at normal. Domonico is successful.

Ian parries a return slash sent his way, directing the other man's sword with his own blade in a way designed to open up his guard and make him easier to finish off, while a single, calculated step (and a slight lean) puts him out of the way of the other fighter's blade entirely. The other fighter who he wasn't even directly facing. "Lay down your weapons." He'd be a lot more intimidating if he didn't sound so casual while making the command. To see his expression or hear him talk, you wouldn't even really know that he was in a fight.

Haakon checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Haakon is successful.

She's too flighty, and canny, to stay in one place too long, and while Neilda can't be said to be anything like the Swords presently accompanying her in the fight, she can at least hold her own. Agile footwork takes her away from her attacker as he attempts to recover, reaching within her pockets to grasp for something, anything, in an attempt to pile on the distractions and keep all of her limbs. What she *does* manage to draw from her relic hunter pouch is something that Haakon would find familiar; it's a favor bag from his wedding. "What the-- how do I still have this?" she mutters, before simply *throwing* it at the man's injured face before sidestepping away. She'll have to apologize to her sister later, but at least her brother-in-law would appreciate using it as a weapon.

With the breakout attempt cut off and being dealt with by the Swords and Neilda Saik (which would do great for her standing amongst the Saik troops too to see her fighting), Domonico turns back towards the fort after noting some changes there and he moves to a vantage point, making sure the potential routes out are still covered as he watches and waits.

The two men facing off against Ian have the hard looks of hard men and the scars to back that impression up. One of them sneers when Ian talks about them surrendering before taking a swing at the surprisingly effective Kennex Sword.
Neilda's foe yells when his nose is so rudely broken and tries to smash her to bits with furious wrathful swings of his mace. Only one or two steps short of being lost in rage.
Haakon's opponent on the other hand is a very tall, and wiry, woman who uses a pair of long knives with catlike grace. She ducks and weaves a lot, making it difficult to track her at times, but proves to be rather vulnerable in those moments between attack and recovery.

As Domonico arranges troop movements he becomes aware that something is happening in the fort. Torches move in unusual numbers and in one place the number of archers manning the pallisade actually begins to thin.

Ian checks dexterity and medium wpn at hard. Ian marginally fails.

Haakon checks strength and medium wpn at normal. Haakon is successful.

Neilda checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Neilda marginally fails.

Domonico checks command and war at normal. Domonico is successful.

Ian checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Ian is successful.

Haakon checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Haakon is successful.

Neilda checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Neilda is successful.

Ian bats aside the two blades coming at him, using the wooden part of his cane as a makeshift parrying dagger. With his attention divided, his own strike is parried by the surprisingly fast bandit. He shows no signs of being pressed or otherwise in trouble, however.

Haakon deflects a desperate dagger thrust with a swat of his shield, following up with a vicious thrust of the barbed spear at the tall woman's midsection. She dodges back enough to avoid being impaled, but sti suffers a second bloody wound. The reaver doesn't repeat his call for surrender.

A swing and a miss. Neilda attempts to press her advantage with a wide arc of her sword - but the bandit seems wise to *this* trick at least. She nearly stumbles, but manages to keep to her feet like a cat, but when the tables are turned and the wicked head of his mace bears down on her, she twists sideways and takes a few steps back. "I'm only trying to help," she tells him in the most innocent voice she can muster in an effort to distract him further with his growing rage. "*Trust* me this is an improvement!"

Domonico moves to his vantage point to oversee the situation, directing troops and barking orders, secure in the knowledge that the others have the breakout under control. His attention is drawn to what appears to be fighting inside the fort and he begins rallying a number of troops ready to take advantage of this.

The soil underfoot is churned into mud as the seven of you fight back and forth looking for advantages, trying to create them, and defending where necessary. The soldiers who have not yet been given instructions otherwise start to crowd around, watching, cheering and in one particular case setting up an impromtu and rather energetic gambling book.

To Domonico's watching eyes the patterns of moving torches and archers start to form a pattern that makes sense. There are a number of small skirmishes going on inside the keep. The watchtower itself seems to be central to the largest.

A snarl from Neilda's opponent suggests that he doesn't agree with her assessment of his nose.

Haakon checks strength and medium wpn at normal. Haakon is successful.

Ian checks dexterity and medium wpn at hard. Ian is successful.

Ian checks dexterity and dodge at hard. Ian marginally fails.

Neilda checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Neilda marginally fails.

Neilda checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Neilda marginally fails.

Haakon checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Critical Success! Haakon is spectacularly successful.

Domonico checks command and war at normal. Critical Success! Domonico is inhumanly successful in a way that defies expectations.

After a short exchange, Ian drives his blade into the abdomen of the man he's fighting, but while this does a lot of damage, it also ties up his blade such that when the other bandit goes to take a swing at him, he's in the position of trying to deflect with his armor... until a harpoon interposes itself. "Good timing," Ian says to Haakon as he pulls his sword free. There might be a little bit of warmth in his tone, and a hint of a smile around his mouth.

Getting an opponent angry is often a double-edged blade; Neilda learns that the hard way when fury enables her opponent to fight harder, move faster, and generally be a gigantic pain in the arse with a mace. Silver whiffs in a wide arc that doesn't even come close to center mass as she hopes, and there's a yelp when she manages to roll away from her opponent before he opens up more important parts of her. Crimson wells from the shallow cut somewhere on her ribs, though she finds her feet quickly enough, crossing her blade defensively in front of her.

Haakon takes out the throat of his first foe with a deft thrust, before hurling the harpoon toward Ian's second opponent, fouling their attack on the beleaguered Kennex. Hauling back on the chain to recover his weapon, he quips to Ian, "You looked bored," before calling toward Nielda, "Stop playing with your mouse and finish the fucker, Nell. Fuck, I thought cats were just your blazon." Ha ha.

"Don't tell me what to do, Haakon!" cries Neilda somewhere in the dark. "I'm a peacock, you have to let me fly!"

"Peacocks are the male birds, and NONE OF THEM FLY, NELL."

The tall wiry woman crumples when Haakon hits her that final time. Dead, dying or at least out of the fight for the forseeable future.

The two fighting Ian find their pattern as they start working together more and more with each passing moment. The one on the right creates an opening and the one on the left lunges into it only to have his strike stopped by the surprise arrival of Haakon. He scowls at the arrival of the Eswynd and steps away and behind his brother in arms to gain enough space to both fight this new threat and protect his comrade.

The soldiers make quick work of the distraction, flowing towards the gate and smashing it in with axes in a rare vision of perfect organisation.

Haakon checks strength and medium wpn at normal. Critical Success! Haakon is spectacularly successful.

Ian checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Ian is successful.

Neilda checks dexterity and medium wpn at normal. Neilda is successful.

Neilda checks dexterity and dodge at normal. Neilda is successful.

While everything was going on at the postern gate breakout, Domonico saw the possible moment that he could take advantage of. With a band of Saik and Crimson Blade troops, spearheaded by his small knot of Southport veterans, Domonico rushes the main gate during the distraction. Everything just works perfectly this one time, the three forces now working together as one. Crimson Blade axemen hack at the main gates, smashing them open and then the Saik troops storm in, with the speartip of Magnotta veterans leading with well drilled efficiency. Not a single allied life is lost, and none are injured or even bruised.

One soldier, wearing Saik colours, helps a mother who fell while fleeing one of the Cap'ns loyalists, getting her to her feet before running the attacker through with a spear. The Crimson Blades follow in, forming a perimeter while those troops surrounding the Count quickly subdue any threat as he heads towards the main tower where the group of bandits before it surrender immediately.

The door to the tower opens and one of the bandits steps out, covered in blood with the Cap'n's head in his hands. Throwing it down at Domonico's feet the man eyes the allied forces.

"We surrender!"

A last slice is enough to take out Ian's now very hurt opponent. Hopefully the poor guy is dead because if he's not, that gut wound is going to kill him slow. He turns just in time to watch Haakon dispatch his opponent with efficiency. "Nicely done." He's aware of what's going on in the fortress (or at least that SOMETHING is going on), but until the last of the four hardened fighters is taken down, it's going to have to be a lesser consideration.

Despite, or perhaps because of, the ridiculous banter between herself and her brother-in-law, Neilda manages to recover; light laughter spills into the air amidst clashing steel and the copper-tang of blood thickening the air with its metallic, tinny notes. She manages to dodge another brutal swing from the mace, before angling her blade in a slicing cut along the man's ribs as she goes low, taking several more steps back and keeping her distance in an effort to plant herself away from the other man's more significant reach. "Did you hear that? They said they surrender, so surrender already!"

She takes a few more steps back, before she angles an eye over her shoulder, and blinks when the captain's head is offered to Domonico. Her expression flattens visibly. "...what, they couldn't have done that earlier?"

Haakon faces down the bandit who turns from Ian to meet him. A nimble feint to get his foe to drop their guard, and Haakon lunges in, the cruelly barbed head and haft piercing rubs, lungs and emerging from the back as his foe dies and falls to the ground like a puppet with cut strings. Leaving the weapon lodged in the corpse (ugh, he'll need to cut it free later), Haakon draws his broadsword, nods once to Ian, and turns to look after Neilda and her opponent. "You ah... flying alright there, peacock?"

Offered a reprieve in the moments following his companions death the final bandit in the fight outside the sally gate tosses his mace down and attempts to surrender.

With the mace thrown aside, Neilda beams, for she is a magnanimous peacock. "There, that's not so hard, was it? Move along now." She points her sword to where the other bandits are surrendering, before she angles her smiling face towards Haakon. "Just fine. I'm bleeding, but I've had worse. I'll live to flap - but not get very far - another day." Wiping Diligence with a bandanna that has found a permanent home in one of her pockets, she slides it back into her scabbard.

Domonico accepts the surrender, directing the troops to round up the bandits and make sure they are disarmed before moving to secure the fort and it's occupants.

"Make sure their wounded are tended to. Bring food supplies and start bringing water from the stream for them."

Neilda is overheard praising Domonico.

Ian goes to join Neilda, presumably along with Haakon. "Let me have a look at that." Ian is not a doctor. He doesn't look like a doctor. But he knows how to stop bleeding (mostly) and dump liquor on injuries and tell people to walk it off, so that's almost like being a doctor.

With Domonico taking command, and with Haakon and Ian approaching her, Neilda smiles gratefully towards the Sword of Stormward as she peels off her cloak just so he can glimpse the injury; it's not too grievous a wound, a thin slice that has opened up her tunic and nicked flesh underneath. "It's not so bad, but it stings," she tells him, holding onto her side in an attempt to keep pressure on it. "But thank you, Lord Ian, I appreciate it."

Domonico spotted an opportunity and ran a flawless assault on the pallisade gates, pushing inside and gaining a surrender inspired by an earlier offer of Neilda's moments later. Domonico accepted the Captain's head in exchange for surrender and now there is water and healing being offered to those who remain inside under the hope that the promise of generous treatment is real.

A group of four bandits tried to break out just before Domonico's attack and were met by Neilda, Haakon and Ian. Three of them are dead but the fourth, a man with a broken nose, is kneeling in the dirt before Neilda.