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Episode: Darkwater Rising

Posted by Story on 09/14/17
The rain just doesn't let up over Maelstrom - darkness clouds the sky and the open plain beyond the Eastern Gates is a muddy mess. The trebuchets fire as the attackers march closer, and the closer they get, the easier it is to see - these aren't standard soldiers at all. Some are bloated, others thin, but all are encrusted with barnacles and liberally scattered seaweed hangs from them. Their skin glistens from more than the rain and they walk together in a quiet formation, moving as a unit without truly being united. "Queen take my soul," says one soldier in a hushed and horrified voice. "That's... not possible." Whatever he means no onlooker can - or at least will - say, at least not to anyone who wasn't there.

Tobias orders the archers to fire, Reese commands the shield wall, and Sparte, Clara, and Luna flank her. Preston comes down from the battlements - the work of the trebuchets will continue throughout, but now it is time for him to join the fray. Time passes, and the fight rages on. Preston is gravely injured and Reese leaps in front of him to protect him. Sparte wields his staff with uncanny accuracy and Luca is swift to answer any threats to his wife. Even Clara fights furiously, but the battle rages on, far longer than it should. They defeat the first charge at last, and begin the exhausting process of pushing them back.

"We were made for this," says Tobias grimly, "but it's going to be a grind." Indeed, the shield wall holds but as the rain keeps falling and the creatures keep coming, they settle into a weary sort of stalemate. Soldiers switch out to keep the shield wall standing firm, but eventually they're going to need some relief. "Hold the line," comes the call. "We'll get reinforcements soon!" But when?