1st Hematite, 563
One’s always remind of how slow fortresses run some years, when the spring projects last until Fall. Some I think we’ll be working on until the end of time, but I digress. Hopefully the butchers will get to the task of getting rid of the troll faces soon.
2nd Hematite, 563
Gamer ambush. Seems right about on time to me. All military men are ordered to the top side fortress. All forumites ordered inside. We’ll see how bad this gets this year.
3rd Hematite, 563
As I wait for the rest of the military to arrive at the surface fort, I’m coming to the opinion that we need a way to easily collect items off the surface. A way to collect the loose bolts, laptop parts, and coins from fallen enemies, and funnel them into the smelters quickly and safely. This gives me an idea, and an excuse for not smoothing down Apiks’ throne room, or making the parts he requests.
4rd Hematite, 563
The fighting started in a predictable manner. Namely, with Highmax leading. Kosoth Gurdoren, Kumil Zonninur, and Doren were the only ones able to keep up with him. And Eden Vabokkulin it seems.
Events
“HIGHMAX GET THE HELL BACK HERE!” Rogue yelled out across the bridge. Rogue knew it’d be of little use, but he wanted to minimize casualties as much as possible. Even the legendary fall.
“Don’t worry, Rogue, we’re fine!” yelled back Doren, who seemed to be enjoying the fighting. Rogue though.
“It’s not worry, it’s fucking discipline.” Rogue fumed but, was satisfied to seem them walking back. There were worse things that could occur like-
“WHERE’S ROGUE?! I NEED ROGUE!” Like that. That was probably most definitely worse.
“Scout! Over here!” he called out to the panicked looking recruit. The forumite rushed over, tripping twice, catching himself once, the first time getting aid from Red Hammer who steadied him before he rushed past.
“Sir I-” he began hastily.
“Hold,” Rogue said, and shoved his extra canteen at him. “Drink.” The forumite was breathing heavily, and looked on the verge of collapse. It reminded him of a training exercise that ended up in a battle in another life. “When you stop hyperventilating, then tell me what you have to say.”
The forumite nodded sheepishly, and alternated between drinking and trying to slow his breathing. Eventually, his ragged breathing was replaced with even, if deep, breaths.
“So, the trouble on the horizon you were about to inform me of?” he said casually as he put the stopper back into the waterskin. He looked up expectantly when he had it firmly stowed at his waist.
The Forumite took a final breath, and then began. “Politician siege, sir. Dozens of them coming from the East. The Gamer squads are still over there, but who knows how long they’ll delay, if at all, sir.”
“Figures,” Rogue muttered. “Well, at least we have the civilians inside already. It’d be nice if these morons learned to piss off, wouldn’t it?”
“Indeed,” the forumite offered a weak smile in return.
“Well, maybe when I mail back their leader’s head this time, they’ll listen.”
“That would be nice, sir.”
“No need for the ‘sir.’ You’re Stodir, right?”
“Yep. One of the hammermen.”
“Good, leave nothing for the necrothreaders to take.” Rogue stuck out his gauntletted fist, and Stodir matched. “Best of luck out there.” Rogue smiled.
“You as well, sir,” Stodir returned.
“Highmax! Doren! Kumil! Kosoth! Eden! Siege incoming. Hurry your asses up!” Rogue returned to yelling. Stodir, stood at his side, waiting patiently for the too eager line to return to positions, hopefully before he had to give the orders to move forward.
“Look another one!” shouted Kumil, the spearmaster, barely at the bridge.
“Bloody hell. Alright, rally, across the bridge! Stay together, we will advance!” The force didn’t really listen to the first part, but they took interest in the second.
The quickest mounted, the hill, and shouted “There they are!” before unsheathing weapons and charging forward. Rogue tried to keep up, but he’d be more than happy to watch the violence from the back this time around. He had enough bad encounters with the politicians and he didn’t expect this to be any better. Up and over the rise, he saw the madness that had consumed those before him.
A Bernie Sanders, chanting “death is all around us, death is all around us, death is all around us!” The fire from the gamer breath raged above the forumites, lighting the regrown trees with the ferocity that they had hoped had reached on end, but alas.
Entering into the melee himself, Rogue didn’t bother with Sosbankut, instead using the crutch and shield to batter his opponents down, leaving each riddled with injuries that stacked, stuck, and burned with pain. The others would deal the killing blows.
Around him, Apiks and Highmax danced, Highmax far exceeding Apiks. Highmax gracefully, blocked, parried and dodged his opponent's, landing decisive blows, while Apiks struggled to force air into and out of his mouth.
BattleApiks.png
BattleHighMax.png
Rogue spent quite a bit of time, watching how Apiks was fighting now, a bit to his detriment, but the Politicians were sloppy and poor fighters. Apiks looked as if he could barely stand, and while each time he, fell, he stood back up, just as quickly he’d fall again.
Then though, the tide turned. Rogue of course, didn’t realize the extent of the detriment he was taking at this point. A silver dollar flew out of a corner of the battlefield, and as he brawled with a Rubio, striking him in the upper leg. Rogue fell over, and was able to mutter, “fuck,” before it ended.
Carefulrogue was quite angry at this point. He stood there, arms crossed, looking down at the corpse of the poor woman he had taken over, and just growled. He glanced up, and saw Apiks still fighting. Red Hammer was doing well over in his part of the battlefield, and Highmax was… somewhere. It looked like he’d taken a beating.
Of course, though, none of them had taken so much as a beating as he had. Especially given he was dead now. Again. Well it could--
“Highmax has fallen!” Carefulrogue heard out of one section of the battlefield.
“Oh for Armok’s sake!” Rogue yelled into the void. “Pick another damn people to harass, will you!” The void of course didn’t answer back. The cries of the battle were not pierced with any new sounds.
With a sigh, Rogue started walking over the battlefield, and found the other souls that stared disconnected down at themselves.
“What the hell… I though, I though we’d be able to take them,” muttered Stodir, the hammerman he’d talked to prior to the engagement.
“As did I, but here I am again,” Carefulrogue said, moving past. Stodir glanced up, confusion in his eyes as he watched Carefulrogue make his way to the resting place of others of the fallen. Kosoth Gurdoren, the fool that had charged out ahead of the rest to kill the trolls lurking out front. Now he was muttering, “no, no, no” insistently under breath. Sodel Betanezum, kneeling over her own corpse, hands together praying for her own final salvation.
Off in the distance, Doren Nazomatis, still as the corpse he was below, looking at the carnage wrought. The sword in his body’s hand, the blade he referred to as the cursed blade Rosywander, collecting ash and dust.
And alone by himself, Highmax, looking not down at his body, but around him, at the other souls in various states of acceptance of what was happening, of the battle coming to a close as the survivors of the military eliminated the remaining forces, and the cursed King attacked his enemy like a madman.
Rogue stopped a ways behind him. Rogue had no clue what Highmax remembered, from their confrontation in the throne room a few months back. He doubted that whatever spell Apiks had spun would bar the dead from remembering the wrongs done, and the acts committed.
“I’m sorry,” he called out. “I failed, and did harm to save my own neck. Little good it did. I would hope this would redeem me in some way, but I know that’s not for me to decide.”
Rogue saw Highmax glance over, but turned away. He did not know how to face the leader he’d betrayed. He could pin it on Apiks, but he had been the one that lacked the courage to step down when that opportunity was there. And now, he had paid for his mistakes again. In blood.
Always the damned politicians. I had not expected this battle to go south so quickly for legendary soldiers.
Highmax, pikachu17, what sort of characters do you want?
