The Hire 152.

The Kingdom Of Nastell. The Duchy Of Phelm. The City Of Almaic...

Just to the north of the city of Almaic, in a fortification just off to one side of the road that leads up to the city gates.
The young field commander Tamric Drubine yawns as he's sitting upon an archers platform. Watching the continued attack on the north wall of Almaic this night.
The magical attack, which has been going for quite some time. Has only slacked off in the last little while. As the spellcasters in the armies led by the two field commanders Drubine and Leivyn, are finally getting tired.
As are those amongst the enemy who are maintaining the wards along the north wall of the city that's the capital of the duchy of Phelm.
The nobleborn teenager who is originally from the kingdom of Sarcrin, scoots over as Mira Reinholt the mage climbs the ladder to the top of the archers platform, and sits down next to the young field commander.
"Well?" quietly asks Tamric Drubine in the elven language "We've agreed to it" is the quiet reply from Mira Reinholt the mage.
The youngest of the trio of field commanders in the Farqian mercenary army nods his head. As he knows that both Mira Reinholt, and his fellow council member, the cavalry commander Darid Parsen.
Have quickly negotiated a deal with the robber baron Gergus for after the battle is won here at Almaic. And duke Hargen of Phelm is finally defeated.
Only the field commanders Drubine and Leivyn. Along with the two council members Reinholt and Parsen. As well as the messenger Lisell Maera.
Know of the new deal with just one of the robber barons of the unruled lands in the southern reaches of the Colevar Mountains, once the war for the duchy of Phelm is finally over.
"All we have to do is take the city and defeat the duke" quietly says Tamric Drubine, or Tam as he's more commonly called by those who know him well.
"Which isn't proving difficult" adds the young field commander in a slightly dry tone of voice as he watches a wave of blue and green energy, ripple against the section of the north wall of the city that's under magical attack.
With a shake of his hooded head, and with a slight smile upon his face, the mage Reinholt quietly says "The young, always wanting everything right now".
Looking sideways at the once powerful mage, the nobleborn teenager says "You're not exactly old Mira".
"I'm nearly thirty five years old" says the mage who is in exile from his homeland, the city-state of Vexil "I'm feeling all those years tonight" mutters the spellcaster who is also a highly skilled swordmaster.
As he's basically out of power, only having whats within him. As he's used everything he had stored in the spell gems he has on him.
And the fact the wood of the archers platform he's sitting on, is hard on his rear end, and is slowly numbing his butt.
The spellcaster who was once the most powerful mage of his generation to be found anywhere in the Southlands, then tells the young field commander "Besides the night isn't over yet, we could make a break through any moment now".
"Dorc and those goblins of his?" asks the nobleborn teenager who is a former heir of a previous knight of castle Drubine in the north of the feudal kingdom of Sarcrin.
"If anyone is going to succeed, it's that lot" says the swordmaster Reinholt who then silently adds, especially with that fat, fucking, crazy idiot leading them.
After looking through his brass, cylindrical eyepiece at the gates in the north wall of the city, Tam quietly asks the Vexilian mage in exile "What was that we heard earlier?" he then adds "Anyone figure out what it was?".
"That second warship they had in the palace crashed somewhere over the western side of the city" says the once powerful mage, who continues with "Well, we can't hear any magetubes firing over that way, so that's the most obvious thing that's happened".
The young field commander nods, then quietly says "Talbot might be making some real progress over there tonight" he follows that with "They might be in the city already".
"Let's hope so" murmurs Mira Reinholt, who shifts around to get more comfortable on the hard wooden platform the two of them are sitting on as they continue to observe the magical attack upon a section of the north wall of Almaic, just to the west of the city gates.
And though a large section of the north wall of the city that's the provincial capital is continually lit up as spells repeatedly hit it.
The bulk of the north wall of the city remains in darkness, or near darkness as now two of the moons are up in the sky tonight. Offering a little bit more illumination.
The mage Reinholt with his own brass, cylindrical eyepiece, which is wrapped in leather. Looks along the top of the wall. Seeing mainly the silhouettes of the enemy on the walkway that goes along the top of the north wall of Almaic.
The spellcaster who is also a highly skilled swordmaster then looks down at the base of the wall. Going from east to west, briefly looking at the various sally ports in the wall. Which can be identified as you can just make out the outlines of them in the stonework.
The exiled Vexilian mage briefly looks at the main gates of the north wall. Before continuing to look along the base of the longest wall in the city that's the capital of the duchy of Phelm.
Taking the eyepiece away from his face, Mira Reinholt, whose family owns one of the largest trading companies not just in Vexil, but all of the Southlands.
Quietly says to the nobleborn teenager from the kingdom of Sarcrin "If we can't make a breakthrough sometime tonight, we'll have to resume the full on assault upon the wall at dawn tomorrow".
"I know" quietly says the young field commander as the two of them converse in the elven language.
"I've spoken to Leivyn about it already" adds Tamric Drubine who continues with "And we're in agreement with the resumption of the assault by our forces".
The swordmaster Reinholt nods his hooded head, then stops what he was about to say, as someone is climbing the ladder to the platform the two of them are sitting on.
It's the messenger Lisell Maera, who once she's on the platform, takes off her cloak. Scrunches it up, and sits on it.
"Darid get sick of you?" asks Tam "Something like that" replies Lisell Maera who is more commonly called Lis by those who know her well.
"Thought I'd annoy you two, since there's not much for me to do at the moment" adds the attractive young woman who is originally from the city-state of Brattonbury.
Infact, Lis wanted to get away from where the robber barons are observing the magical attack upon the north wall of Almaic. Especially after the proposition that the robber baron Gergus came to her with.
Looking sideways at the mage Reinholt beside her, Lisell Maera quietly asks the member of lord Farque's personal council "Did you come to agreement with him?".
Knowing who and what Lis is referring to, the once powerful mage slightly nods his hooded head, then quietly says "We have".
There's a few moments of silence from the three of them sitting upon the archers platform, then the messenger in the armies of Farque quietly asks "How will it be done?".
"Might be a bit messy to instantly fight another battle after we've just won here" quietly says the Vexilian mage in exile, who ignores Tam muttering "That's if we'll ever win here" and tells the attractive young woman from the coastal city-state of Brattonbury "Probably best if we just eliminate those out of the five who, shall we say, are surplus to requirement".
Lisell Maera nods her head in understanding, then looks to the north wall of the city of Almaic, to the section of it that's been under magical attack since just after nightfall.
The three of them look away to the right along the top of the wall, as one of the magetubes the enemy have up there, fires a shot that reverberates through the night.
"That's the first one in a while" says Lis as they watch the fourteen foot wide ball of pure energy streak through the night sky, heading towards the battlelines and part of the camp, that the army led by field commander Leivyn are in.
"They're low on power" says Mira Reinholt, who then dryly adds "Just like me".
Both Tam and Lis slightly grin at that, then the spellcaster who is originally from the city-state of Vexil, who is now a member of the personal council of the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, says "They need to top them up with power again" he continues with "Which they won't do until the morning, after they've rested".
The once powerful mage gestures to the section of the north wall of Almaic that's been under continued magical attack since earlier in the night, and he says "Takes a lot of effort and power to maintain wards that are continually bombarded, wether by magic or other methods".
Both the young woman from Brattonbury, and the nobleborn teenager from Sarcrin who have known one another for eight years now, who met when Tam was nine, and Lis was eleven years old. Nod in understanding as they both have an inkling that spellcasters need to rest after expending a lot of their power.
"It's why our attacks aren't as frequent as they were earlier in the night" adds the mage Reinholt, just as an energyball cast by one of the sorcerers in the army led by field commander Drubine, slams into the enemy wards just to the west of the gates in the north wall of Almaic, and explodes in a cascade of red energy and sparks.
"Wonder how long they can hold out for?" muses Lisell Maera, the answer from councillor Reinholt is interrupted by one of the lookouts on the next archers platform along which subcommander Waiamin is on.
"Movement along the top of the wall" calls out the lookout in the elven language.
"Where?" asks Tamric Drubine as both he and Mira Reinholt look through their brass, cylindrical eyepieces.
"On our half of the wall field commander" says the lookout on the next archers platform referring to the eastern half of the north wall of Almaic.
"About three quarters of the way from the gates" continues the lookout.
"Something's happening there" adds subcommander Waiamin from the other archers platform.
"There" murmurs Tam as he spots the enemy movement along the top of the north wall of the city that's the capital of the duchy of Phelm.
Next to him, the swordmaster Reinholt nods his hooded head as he looks through his leather wrapped, brass, cylindrical eyepiece, and sees some of the enemy hurrying along a section of the wall, then disappearing from view.
"They're heading down off the wall there" quietly says the mage Reinholt, both Tam and Lis look at the once powerfull mage, then the young field commander asks the council member "You think?".
"Could be" is the reply from the highly skilled swordmaster, who after watching some of the enemy disappear from view as they hurry down off the top of the wall.
He looks down at the base of the wall, going back along it towards the city gates. Next to him, the nobleborn teenager is doing the same thing.
Then after Lisell Maera quietly says "You hear that?" as she thinks she hears a slight thud from the north wall of Almaic.
Subcommander Waiamin calls out from the next platform along "Further to the left, in the direction of the river". The subcommander without waiting for his field commander, starts issuing orders.
"Well, would you look at that" murmurs Mira Reinholt as he spots it, a moment later Tamric Drubine spots it too, and grins.
"There's your breakthrough you've been waiting for" says the member of the lord Farque's personal council, as he continues to look through his brass, cylindrical eyepiece.
To the base of the north wall of Almaic, about a quarter of the way from the eastern end, where there's a hole in the wall, where one of the sally ports was.
Just outside of the hole in the wall, stands a goblin from the battalion of goblins in the Farqian mercenary army. It's one of the goblin officers, by the name of Youdead. Who is jumping up and down, and waving as he grins. Until he stumbles, and trips over his own feet, and falls flat on his face.

Author's Note - Here ends "The Hire". The main storyline will return in "Aftermath".