[coronatiger]

The Loyalist quarter stood outside the city walls, and had its own docks. On the pier stood two men wearing the uniforms of the city guards. Nujan informed us that this was odd, for the Loyalists handled their own security; the city guards had no business being there. Something was wrong. Xipil slid into the water, swimming under their pier to listen. He returned, saying that these men seemed like genuine city guards, so we rowed closer, allowing them to spot us. They pointed crossbows at us and told us to stop. We let Nujan ashore so he could identify us as friendlies, but he disappeared into the darkness.

I told Grogg to call out to the guards that we were surrendering, but he refused, so Lunari did it instead. The guards told us to light a lantern and approach. We had no light source, we told them, but rowed closer. The guards were tense, but then Nujan arrived with Sergeant Markus, who vouched for us. I told Markus we had come because they seemed to need help, and he explained what was going on.

Markus had rallied city guards when he discovered foul play, and had assaulted the tower. While they had fought their way inside and taken control of most of the ground floor, the defense was too tight for them to continue the assault up the stairs. Some city guards still held the front door, and controlled the two adjoining buildings. Other guards had barricaded the streets leading to the tower.

This part of the city seemed deserted except for city guards hiding behind cover from archers and crossbowmen in the tower. Lady Isa saw more with her mystical sight. Witnessing “souls without a home” at the dark tower, she wailed and sank deeper into despair. She held out her hands and sent Kraa to hide, whereupon the spirit raven sought refuge inside Grogg. Xipil said we needed to take the tower, as soon as possible.

Nujan and Xipil planned to enter stealthily through one of the high windows, hoping a frontal assault from the city guards, now reinforced by Grogg and me, could draw attention while they climbed. An ambush from above would hopefully overcome the defenses. The two of them took a trip around the tower to scout where they best could climb it. Lunari asked Lady Isa to remain with him while the rest of us attacked; we wouldn’t want her to get hurt. Lost in thoughts, she paid him no attention at all, so I had to make contact before I could repeat Lunari’s words and convince her to wait outside until we had control inside.

Several lanterns hung about the tower, lighting up its exterior. The climbers requested that the city guards shoot them out, so they wouldn’t be seen scaling the building. An exchange of bolts and arrows ensued, as the defenders responded when our team started shooting. A city guard staggered inside the building where our party had taken cover, a crossbow bolt through his limp arm. I set to work. I removed the bolt, bandaged the wounds and massaged the arm back to a usable condition. The guard returned to his position outside. “I’m gonna get that …” The guard’s expletive drowned when a nearby window shattered.

Nujan and Xipil left once the spilled oil from the broken lanterns had burned out, and I prepared my knives with poison, ritually biting each blade before returning it to its sheath. Lunari cast a haste spell on Grogg, and the troll charged the tower. Four city guards and I followed as fast as we could. The guards wore armor and carried shields, so I made sure to stay hidden behind them as arrows and bolts pelted us from the tower. Grogg had removed a door from another house, and used that for a shield.

Inside the tower, stone stairs led to a walled balcony, and on that balcony stood the defenders, shooting down. Grogg held his door above him as he made for the stairs. City guards emerged from the two adjoining buildings and aimed their crossbows at the defenders above. One of the guards in front of me went down. A body tumbled over the railing above when our crossbowmen returned fire.

I aimed at one of the elven archers above us, who aimed back. The shield bearer in front of me fell to his arrow, and I hurled my knife at the archer, planting it in his throat. The other archer fired at Grogg, but he dodged. I drew another throwing knife and dashed after Grogg, who had reached the top of the stairs and was chasing the archer.

Grogg threw the door at the archer, but it fell short, crashing to the floor below. The elf returned the favor; his arrow missed, too. The two guards remaining from those I had entered with, rushed up the stairs, and I followed. The remaining defenders upstairs had retreated up a ladder and through a hatch in the ceiling, leaving the elven archer alone with Grogg. The massive troll crashed into the puny elf, somehow managing to slam him over the railing. If there was life left in him after the seven-meter fall, our crossbowmen downstairs would deal with him once they reloaded.

The hatch in the ceiling was about three meters above the balcony floor, but that was no hindrance for Grogg, who nearly scraped the ceiling with the top of his head. He punched the hatch, and on the second attempt, it blew off its hinges. The enemy stood ready above, and rained arrows and bolt at him. Grogg dodged heroically, but one arrow struck his skull, and he fell to the floor.

I reached the top of the stairs, having passed the slower guards, and saw that Lady Isa was making her way up. I picked up my knife from the archer’s throat and sheathed it. Grogg started to rise, but got a bolt through his thigh. An arrow also struck the shield of one of the guards.

Grogg stuck his hand up through the hatch, grabbing a leg. Two melee fighters took the place of the crossbowmen above us while they reloaded, and tried to help the archer Grogg had grabbed. Suddenly, a dense fog appeared, covering the hatch and the swordsman I was aiming at. Grogg tried to pull down the archer, but his friends must have been holding on tight, for that elf shouldn’t be able to win a tug-of-war with an angry troll.

Grogg yanked again, and the elf slammed into the floor in front of me. I drew a long knife. A ball of lightning appeared in the air between the elf and Grogg, and a bolt struck out at the troll. I could hear a commotion above me, it sounded like they were covering the hole with something heavy. I kicked at the elf, but missed. The lightning ball increased in size and fried Grogg again. Grogg smacked the elf into the ceiling and back into the floor. I drew my throwing knife again and whipped it at the prone enemy in a single motion, striking his throat and making him finally lose consciousness. Maybe some poison was left on the blade.