The Sacking of stonewall city

Chapter one The Defending retreat

Eleanor had taken Gregor behind one of the barricades made to defend the streets. The orcs had broken through the gate like it was paper and one of their ballistas had dealt a mortal blow to his mount Sirena. John took command of the surviving troops and with Derolth led a counter charge against the orcs. They had regrouped in the center courtyard and were attempting to get into a formation when they arrived. " A wagon of loot to whoever kills the most humans!" Bellowed a fairly large Orc the others roared in response filled with bloodlust and primitive rage. The men shimmed in their place visibly intimidated. John and Derolth approached the front of the battalion he stopped and turned to the men and told them. " now listen up you lot you may be scared and feel like running but know this if you run if you throw down your weapons and flee if the orcs don't kill you so help me I'll find you and do it for them, so let's fight them off save this city and protect the capital!" The men cheered and banged their weapons in their shields. "Now who's with me!?" " We are!!" They yelled and they charged towards the orc lines Derolth bellowed and leaped into the air landing on a nearby roof digging his talons into the masonry to keep himself upright, snarling He spread out his wings and unleashed a torrent of flames four feet in diameter burning the orcs it hit instantly while the other scrambled to get away from it. Swords and axes clashed as battle broke out John joined them in the front and cut down any orc that came near, a spear came from somewhere to the left of him he ducked under it and stabbed the owner turning just in time to parry a blow from a war axe he pushed it away and thrust his blade in an orcs gut he then spun around slashing its gut as he went. The man beside him screamed and keeled over blood pouring from his chest. John picked up his spear and stabbed the goblin that killed him in the head another cut him along the calf he countered with a slash to its stomach . They were taking casualties but winning this engagement Derolth joined them in the melee crushing the orcs underfoot and swiping them away with his tail ,bellowing he pushed pack the rest of them. John assisted him and together they rallied the troops and pushed to orcs back outside of the city. When there were finally no more orcs to kill John stopped and screamed at them. "And stay out of our cities you rancid sacks of dung!" Derolth crouched over his kills hungry He began to feast on their flesh. "Derolth!" John  scolded him. When he was done they made sure the orcs weren't coming back then went back to check on Gregor.

Gregor sat on a barrel saddened by the loss of Sirena Eleanor was close by keeping the observers at a distance while holding onto his sword and dagger. Even from this distance he had heard the clash from the central courtyard The inner gates slowly opened as John,Derolth and a contingent of troops returned from the fighting eager to find out how the battle was going he started off towards. Them Eleanor noticed and followed suit. John didn't notice them until they were right next to him and Derolth. When he saw them he dismissed some pages and turned to talk with them. "Gregor we are so sorry for your loss but are you fit to fight we need every available sword right now." " I can fight and i'm eager for revenge." He replied. Eleanor gave him his blades and then discussed the best way to manage the defense and rations of the city Gregor walked towards the main gate were the men were piling up any rocks and rubble they could find. Gregor decided to help them and sheathed his sword walking towards them he grabbed an sharp pieces of wood he could find. With his arms full he helped the soldiers build a makeshift wall and set up wooden stakes on the other side anything that ran into those wouldn't escape unscathed. The archers were gathering any non broken arrows for reuse they would need them to win this fight. Hours passed before there was no more work to do Gregor retired to the inner city were all non able bodied people were residing. He went to the quartermaster and purchased a bedroll then found a spot to set it up taking off his armor and helm. unbuckling his sword belt he put it with the rest of his belongings then settled down and drifted off to the world of dreaming.

Eleanor talked with John and General Neal for hours on end until they all agreed that holding out until some kind of reinforcements came was the best option. They all retired from the tent but She went on a night patrol to clear her head. Her sword was in her tent but she did not require it her daggers and bow were enough to kill any opponent save for a wyvern. She did her rounds and saw no orcs or goblins. When she was confident there was nothing close enough to launch an assault she retired for the night. to be ready for the skirmishes tomorrow would bring she'd need to be at full energy. She took off her belt and scabbards setting them down next to her sword she unstrung her bow and set her quiver down next to her cot then she took off her armor and changed into a tunic and leather leggings. Lying down she succumbed to her exhaustion and closed her eyes she was soon fast asleep dreaming of what life would've been without the orcish hordes terrorizing the kingdoms of men dwarves and even her own race.

The next day was bursting with activity carpenters and masons alike were busy repairing and refitting the machines of war the army had left. the others were training the able bodied citizens how to fight and were searching for any volunteers who wanted to take the fight to the orcs over half the trainees accepted the offer whether to avenge their fallen friends and family or for other reasons. the armorers gave them basic equipment depending on their fighting style for most he gave swords or maces but more than a few got spears halberds and three were even given double bladed staffs those three were given nothing but leather armor and throwing knives John had asked where they came from but no one could answer him eventually he asked them himself when he finally met them face to face he noticed three things. the first is that all three of them were women, the second was that they shared the same size weight and armor as Eleanor and the final thing he saw was that each of them had amber eyes and pointed ears. He realized instantly that they were elves they would not share their names but they told him that Eleanor found them and asked if they wanted to fight back for their people they accepted without hesitation and trained with every weapon that was given to them but they all took a liking the the double bladed staffs which were dubbed"peacekeepers". When he asked them as to why they were inside stonewall they simply replied. " Master Jonathan we have given you much information about ourselves and we will reveal no more other than this we are some of the most skilled assassins in the realm and if you ever have need of us just say like grass to a hare we are there." with that they disappeared into the crowd. Confused John sought out Eleanor he found her asleep in her tent as soon as he entered she jolted awake and threw the blankets over his head when he could finally see again she was gone from the cot and he felt the touch of cold steel pressing against his neck "Relax it's me." He told her. soon after she released her grip. " I must apologize i thought you were an assassin."She explained. "It's alright you were just defending yourself i understand." He told her. When things died down he asked her about the three elves he met and she said "Would you so lightly reveal the secrets of your army and nation? please don't ask me about those three again but they will be valuable assets." "Are you sure we need all the help we can get but i don't really see the need for assassins right now." "I'm sure John now come we have other duties to attend to now get out so i can put on my armor." With that she pushed him out of the tent and bade him farewell.

John then went on to asses the situation and check the condition of the fortifications. He first went to their weakest flank the west flank the barricades there were flimsy and made in a hurry to prevent the enemy from flanking the main body of their forces. He saw a few flaws but all in all they seemed to be decent defenses at least for the time being thought he told the captain stationed here that he should pile any rubble he could find over manholes as they were the weakest part of the city. He then climbed onto Derolth's back and strapped himself in the saddle. Outstretching his wings Derolth leaped into the air rapidly beating his wings to gain altitude. When they reached a good height Derloth leveled out and circled the city at a leisurely pace. John reached into the saddlebags and took out his spyglass looking through it he studied the movement of the enemy and began coming up with a strategy to fight them off most required more men or resources than they had at their disposal. The one that seemed to work the most was to try their luck and evacuate the city fleeing the the nearby city of elm wood he had already sent them a message to muster their forces in the events that stonewall was overrun and the orcish hordes rampaged across the kingdom. It was their best bet for survival but it also meant abandoning the city to the orcs. John thought long and hard but alas he could find no alternative he told Derolth to land for the night so they could get some rest for there was work to be done in the morning and a lot of it at that. Derolth went into a slowdive circling casually above the city as he prepped for landing. When he was within a hundred feet of the ground he fully outstretched his wings and legs and slammed into the ground "Careful you almost knocked me off!" John said. Derolth made a sound of amusement and sunk to the ground closing his eyes and drifting off into the world of dreaming. John unbuckled the straps and jumped off of him his knees failing him when he hit the ground causing him to land face first in the dirt. Recovering he slowly got up it felt like his legs were burning and like someone had taken a mallet to them  slowly the feeling subsided and he got up and walked inside his tent as soon as he saw the warm covers of his bed he couldn't resist anymore his exhaustion overcame him and he sank into the bed tired and sore he fell asleep almost instantly.