The Serdian War IC

[Diachronos]

"What? No, of course not!"

[NeoSeraphi]

"I'm sorry, Shana. I didn't mean to ruin your prospects."

[Diachronos]

She shakes her head. "You didn't. It's okay, Nazier."

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier nods and continues the trek to Hoax.

[Diachronos]

After several days on the road, they come to Hoax. Up close, they can see that the place isn't so much a fort as a very heavily (and recently) fortified town, situated at the end of a valley. Judging by the appearance of the valley, any Sandoran forces attempting to enter Basil through this region would have to either come through the valley past Hoax or attempt to navigate the dense forest to the west.

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier looks around. "Why would the Sandorans even want to attack a place like this?"

[Diachronos]

"To secure a path to Bale for their army."

[NeoSeraphi]

"Well, there's no way in hell they're bringing a dragon through the forest, let alone cannons, trebuchets, or any other weapons that they would need to break through our defenses. Best thing we can do is put some archers on the west walls to pick off any stragglers who might try to flank us, and position our phalanx at the valley entrance. We need every shieldbearer we have to stand together and form a wall, with a few healers behind them to keep them standing while our mages take out as many of their front line as they can."

[Diachronos]

"Unless the dragon can fly..."

[NeoSeraphi]

"If the dragon can fly, we'll see it coming and we can adapt the situation as necessary," Nazier points out. "Let's find out who is in charge here and talk to them about the defenses."

[Diachronos]

They head into the village. From inside, it's clear that it wasn't always so heavily guarded; the place looks like an ordinary town aside from the fortifications that have been set up. Lavitz leads them to the inn, where a middle-aged man is leaning over a map with two other soldiers.

"Kaiser! Long time no see!"

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier walks over with Lavitz. "Hello. My name is Nazier Pentagast, and I have come to help protect Hoax from invasion along with Lavitz. A pleasure to meet you."

[Diachronos]

Kaiser nods and holds out his hands. "Nice to meet you, Nazier. I'm Kaiser, head of the Eighth Knighthood. We can always use more allies, and if you're with Lavitz then I don't doubt you've got a lot to offer. Gods know you've got some great potential if you marched into Hellena and lived to tell about it."

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier shakes his hand. "So, what's the plan then?"

[Diachronos]

He points to the map, which shows their setup. "The forest will make it difficult for the Sandorans to get a suitable force through this area, so they have to come through the valley and pass Hoax. Right now we've got our forces stationed across the valley just to the north and to the east, where they won't be seen by the enemy until it's too late for them to pull back and avoid us. We don't have much in the way of artillery, though... just a handful of mages. The queen's devoted most of our specialists toward the areas that are more open to attack, where there's more risk of facing a large enemy force and where our men are less likely to get caught in the crossfire once spells start flying."

[NeoSeraphi]

"This is good. Do you have any scouts in the field right now? Do we have any information on the enemy?" Nazier asks.

[Diachronos]

Kaiser shakes his head. "Our scouts returned not long before you all got here, and they didn't see any sign of the enemy in the surrounding area."

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier frowns. "Hopefully that means there isn't too large a force. I already dealt with one of their officers myself. He showed up at Seles."

The warrior turns to his friend. "Shana, can you find a vantage point and ready your arrows? If you see any approaching Sandorans, let us know and open fire."

[Diachronos]

Shana nods and heads off.

"I was actually hoping to ask your group to help with the night watch. We can always use extra eyes in the dark."

[NeoSeraphi]

"Of course. Trinia and I will take care of that," Nazier replies with a nod.

[Diachronos]

Emily heads off to join Shana, while Nazier and Lavitz settle in to rest before their shift. Come nightfall, the two of them take up watch at the south gate.

"Stay alert, the Sandorans are likely to try a night raid if they're planning to attack."

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier nods and draws his sword and shield.

Spoiler

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Perception (1d20)[16]

[Diachronos]

Nazier doesn't see anything approaching, and the only sounds he hears are the calls of animals coming from the forest. Lavitz leans on the ramparts of the wall. "It's a good thing the forest is so close. If the Sandorans try to approach too close to that side of the valley, they'll spook the animals and we'll notice."

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier nods in agreement and approaches the valley entrance. He gazes out into the darkness. Nothing would distract him from his watch.

[Diachronos]

A few hours pass without any sign of trouble. Lavitz yawns and looks back toward the inn that had been commandeered as the soldiers' headquarters. "Did you ever find out anything about why the Sandorans would want to capture Shana?"

[NeoSeraphi]

"You saw what she did to the Guardian. That strange blue light...that's probably what they were after. Whatever her power is, they want it," Nazier answers.

[Diachronos]

Lavitz nods slowly. "I'm curious as to how they know about it when she says she's never experienced it before..."

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier crosses his arms. "I don't know how it happened. It's all very suspicious. To be honest, I don't know much about who Shana really is or where she came from. Maybe whoever ordered the attack on her knew her parents?"

[Diachronos]

"Maybe. I imagine it was someone higher up in the military, though, so they're probably stationed near the Sandoran capital. If it comes down to it, though, I'll do whatever I can to help you find out the truth of this matter."

[NeoSeraphi]

Nazier looks over at him with surprise. "...Thanks, Lavitz. That means a lot to me."