Japhet's Folly Assault pt. 2

Rictus watched on as the second wave of his little coalition landed. The first one had already established a beachhead and taken control of the docks on the island. The pirates had easily given it up and decided to make their stand farther back in the settlement. At first it didn't seem like the best of plans, but there was some logic to it. If they stayed and tried to fight near the docks, the East Empire Company's ships would bombard them easily and accurately. By retreating farther up where there were more buildings obscuring them, the pirates limited the ships to only guess at the pirates' true positions and not fire as much for fear of hitting their own people.

It was a little sad that Rictus could not just fly over and signal the ships where to concentrate fire. If he did, someone would likely report him for the infraction once this fight was all over. He did not need the empire breathing down his neck and declaring him an outlaw or anything like that. The EEC ships now would only lob their attacks farther in the settlement softening up the defenses further along.

Rictus would be going along with the third wave of troops. He was basically fully recovered from his earlier spell. If he had been anyone else, that spell probably would have worn him out completely. Thankfully, because of who he was and his bonuses to alteration magic the spell cost half what it normally should plus all his enchanted gear had greatly reduced the require energy. He couldn't help but smirk as he rubbed his side and pulled out the dragonpriest mask which had been hidden there. Turns out as long as the mask was touching you, then its beneficial effects would happen. He had been hiding it along his side for a while now since apparently it was quite intimidating when casually walking around town. For this battle though, he would wear it as it was intended though.

There was an unintentional benefit for his magical display with the weather. The fighters and mercenaries of the East Empire Company were originally wary of joining in on the ground battle because of their fear of Haldyn. Originally, after finding out more mages had joined him, the fighters did not want any part of the assault. Their thoughts had changed after seeing Rictus work his magic. Knowing a mage powerful enough to counter Haldyn was on their side relieved their worries. They had no problems fighting against normal pirates. The bribe Rictus gave the commanding officers definitely helped as well.

He could already hear the sounds of people fighting and dying as his boat docked with the shore. As soon as he landed, a group of 10 heavily armed and armored warriors led by Roluth formed up around him. These were some of the best warriors the Restored could offer. Each had been fully armored in thick steel armor and carried a large metal shield. Their weapons may have differed, but the rest was identical. Hawk was also slinking around them and keeping a wary eye out for any enemies.

Rictus could feel fear and trepidation building within him. He had already been in fights and even killed already, but this was different. This was his first true battle. The difference in scale made a huge difference. In his previous fights, he could pretty much see and account for everyone and thing on the battlefield. That was no longer the case here with so many people fighting in such a space. It was chaos. An organized chaos, but still chaos. There were no clear battle lines where shield wall met shield wall and mages would battle it out in their own little worlds. There were enough buildings and hiding places that a pirate could pop out at any moment, or a trap could be sprung on any unwary warrior. Death was waiting around every corner.

Yet, there was a prevailing calm which overcame his doubts. The unfazed look in his soldiers' eyes, the confidence they held in their stances, and their steady hands gave him confidence. Many had already seen the horrors of war against a magically superior foe. Fighting pirates who were used to surprise attacks and fighting those weaker than them, did not faze the veteran members of the Restored. These people provided courage greater than any spell could to those who were unused to battle.

Rictus was pulled from his thoughts as a Winterhold guard came running towards him.

"We have reached the first wall my Thane. Mage Faralda and Commander Ken are massing our forces for when they decide to breach the gate. Fighting is ongoing in a few of the warehouses and a couple of the housing structures closer to the wall, but it is dying down. Jarl Korir has a secondary rallying point where the guardsmen are coordinating the clearing of the buildings. He sent me to update you and let you know most of the guard will be moving towards the wall seeing as how some of the EEC mercs are joining the battle. The Jarl figured they would be more than happy raiding the warehouses and houses."

Rictus nodded in agreement. The EEC would be more than capable of clearing the remaining pockets of resistance near the docks. He thanked the messenger as he started making his way towards the wall.

The wall was not very impressive, but it served its purpose of stopping their assault. It was just tall enough a person could not climb over without some kind of assistance. There were a couple platforms on either side of the gate where pirate archers would pop up and take a shot ever so often. Other than that, it was an unassuming wooden wall.

He quickly learned his friends and leaders of the attack behind one of the warehouses near the wall organizing the soldiers before attacking the wall. As Rictus was nearing them, he had a wary feeling about the calm they were experiencing. The fight had been too easy so far.

There were 6 ships docked here which could account for a huge number of pirates. While their attack was a surprise, there should have been more resistance so far. They had practically been able to walk up to the gates. Haldyn would most likely still be in the keep, but what about the other spell casters and fighters?

A sudden thought hit him. The pirates were collecting black soul gems. He hadn't had a lot of time for research, but his knowledge of the Elder Scroll games filled in some knowledge. Strong enchantments were the common usage of Black soul gems. Instead of having to go fight and kill something like a mammoth, you could get a grand level soul gem from killing a sleeping homeless person or a too trusting traveler. Most people never considered them for anything more than that since they could make extremely strong enchantments without risking their lives fighting a strong monster.

([AN]: This may not be totally accurate, but just play along with it for now)

There was another less known usage for the black soul gems though. They could act as a currency. There were beings called the Ideal Masters which resided over the Soul Cairn, the realm of the souls trapped by black soul gems and one of the many planes of Oblivion. They are an enigma to the inhabitants of Tamriel, and very few know of them. They have a hunger for pure souls, and it is this hunger which gives mages a bargaining tool. Rictus had known a bit about them from his prior knowledge, but he had been able to find a book in the College's library written by a necromancer who was granted the ability to conjure powerful undead similarly to how one would conjure an Atronach. That ability removed one of the biggest weaknesses of necromancy, the need for a corpse.

This was just a singular exchange with the Ideal Masters. There was no telling what other powers or abilities these mysterious beings could grant those willing to satiate their hunger.

A buildup of magical energy behind the wall drew his attention. Using his detect life and mana spells, revealed a buildup of forces directly behind the gate. The different sight spells painted an ominous picture. His detect life spell did not pick up as many signatures as his detect mana spell did, and quickly using his detect undead spell confirmed his thoughts. There was a large number of undead and pirates waiting right behind the gate. More undead seemed to appear out of nowhere which confirmed the pirates had dealings with the Ideal Masters.

Seven signatures burned brightly in his sight. Two had very high levels of magic and were the ones responsible for summoning the undead hordes. The other five burned brightly from his detect life skill. He was not certain, but he feared these could be Minions or direct disciples to one of the Skilled. Not wasting another moment, Rictus confronted the other leaders. Faralda, Korir, Ken, and Dante all looked up at his hurried approach.

"There is a large group of enemies directly behind the wall. There are numerous pirates as well as undead just waiting for us there. More undead are joining them every moment we are waiting. We should attack now instead of letting them build their forces up more."

The leaders all looked intently at his information. Faralda, Korir, and Ken fully trusted him and his information. Dante had a stoic expression but had tightened his grip on his sword at the mention of undead. Rictus continued talking before anyone could voice an opinion.

"We still outnumber those behind the wall right now. Delaying further only gives them an advantage. We will charge the wall with our forces. Don't worry about the gate. I will handle that. Dante, you and the Vigilantes will be instrumental in fighting the undead. They are massed towards the right side of the gate so that is where we will need you all. The Restored will back you up. The forces of Winterhold will focus on the pirates grouped to the left. There are 5 targets there which we need to be wary of. I do not know the specifics, but they will put up a fight. Now, let's get going."

No one questioned him on his information or the plan, not that they were given the opportunity. Rictus had already turned away and started giving orders for charging the gate. His protection detail quickly crowded near him with Roluth front and center as Rictus made his way towards the gate.

"Shields up lads. I need a moment to work my magic."

The warriors let out a grunt of acknowledgement at the command as they tightened their formation up more. Rictus was surrounded by armored bodies and raised shields as they drew near the gate.

Some archers tried to take shots at them. The platforms they were shooting from did not provide enough space for more than a couple people which combined with the return archer fire, made the pirate archers totally ineffective.

The Restored and Winterhold Guards quickly made their way towards the gate following behind their leader and Thane as he started his spell.

Bringing down the gate and the wall was surprisingly easy. The ground was mostly stone, and Rictus had quite a bit of power and experience with that. It took hardly any magic for the ground supporting the wall to become ineffective at its job. The wall began to unsteadily sway after just a couple seconds. Another quick spell causing the stone to push the foundation of the wall, and a large section came crumbling down towards the pirates. The cries of the pirates in the watchtowers and those standing too close to the wall were drowned out by the roar of Rictus's charging soldiers.

The falling wall had crushed a fair number of their opponents. Seems they were expecting some kind of pushing match or battering ram and had grouped behind the gate for support. They were not prepared for it to fall right on top of them. A quick look by Rictus revealed it had even snuffed out one of the Minion's signatures which was a happy bonus.

Regardless of the advantage, the fighting was intense and brutal. The clashing of blades rang out loudly. The cries of the dying were being drowned out by the roar of battle. The injured of the attackers were being transported back towards a designated first aide center. The injured of the pirates were left to their own devices as most were quickly put out of their misery, by both friend and foe.

The pirates would have been beaten quickly, if not for 4 men. Pirates rallied around them for safety and support as they created 4 islands of defenders in the crushing wave of attackers. Each of them carried a weapon in each hand as they seemingly danced across the battlefield. There were already several bodies lying in their wake, easily repelling all their attackers despite being outnumbered. They were each encased in bone armor with bone helmets stylized based off different creatures. Their armor oozed intimidation and made them seem like death incarnate. Unlike normal bone armor, theirs seemed as strong as steel as it repelled the attacks which slipped through their guard.

Despite their leaders' prowess, the pirates around them were being overrun and steadily defeated. The guardsmen would pay dearly for it though if things continued like they were. A crack of lightning signaled a change.

Faralda had made her presence known on the battlefield. Lightning was dancing around her right hand as she cast another bolt at one of the pirate leaders who already had a dark scorch mark on his bone armor. The Winterhold fighters moved away from the group of pirates as another bolt of lightning impacted the pirate. Once they had moved, fire began pouring out of Faralda's left hand and engulfing that group of pirates. The disorganized pirates in that group began being cut down as they tried to escape the mage's attack.

Surprisingly, the pirate in bone armor was still standing despite the magical assault. His armor was battered, and his stance unsteady, but he was still up. Ice spears were launched at him. The pirate deflected or dodged a few, but eventually a large ice spear drove itself into the already damaged portion of his armor which had been receiving sustained hits from the lightning bolts. The men cheered at his defeat and turned their attention to the remaining groups of pirates. This time, the mages which had accompanied Faralda joined her in the assault on the other pirate leaders.

Meanwhile, the Restored along with the Vigilantes of Stendarr were bulldozing their way through the undead horde.

Most of the undead were not the normal type people expected. There were a few zombies and raised undead among the horde, but it was the other type which were different than most had seen before. They appeared as black skeletons with mist pouring off them and pooling at their feet, these were the bonemen. Most only wielded a sword as the fearlessly charged into battle. The more dangerous type was a Wrathman and appeared as a large purplish draugr. They were covered in ancient looking armor and wielded giant battleaxes or greatswords.

Brilliant flashes of white light pulsed from the hands of the Vigilantes as they carved a path through the horde and straight towards the two necromancers. The mages of the Restored were concentrating their spells at the necromancers keeping them busy as Dante carved a path right towards them. One of the necromancers couldn't help but spare a worried look towards Dante which resulted in an ice spike stabbing into his shoulder.

The other necromancer noticed how close Dante and his group had gotten and made an unexpected move. He jumped behind his wounded comrade and quickly stabbed a ceremonious looking black dagger right into his heart. Leaving the dagger stuck there, the necromancer turned and began running away from the combat.

Wisps of black smoke darker than midnight began pouring out of the dead necromancer's flesh. The smoke billowed upwards to a height as tall as a giant. Two rounded purple orbs appeared near the top of the growing pillar of black smoke. A large hulking figure stepped out of the smoke. It was roughly the size of a giant and completely covered in a heavy armor made of what had to be dragon's bone. It was wielding a giant shield in its left hand while its right had a mace the size of a warhammer, covered in dragon's teeth, and shining blue with some kind of frost enchantment. This was a Keeper. One of the mightiest creatures in the Soul Cairn. The monstrous undead then focused its unwavering purple orbs onto the nearest opponents.

Dante motioned his followers to continue fighting the horde of undead around them while he would occupy the giant undead. While the undead was still stationary, he unleashed a couple of the weaker turn undead spells to see what would happen. Instead of fleeing, the monster started rapidly closing the gap towards him. A brilliant white light infused Dante's sword while his body was covered in a golden glow with small wisps of golden energy flowing around him. He then charged right back at the giant undead.

The collision of the two opposing forces was magnificent to behold. Darkness and cold chased after the warmth and light trying to snuff it out. While the light and warmth attempted to banish the cold and darkness.

The Keeper used large sweeping swings targeting its smaller opponent. Dante used his speed and agility to dodge attacks and land small jabs and slices against his much larger opponent. He would not win a battle of strength. Dodging was his only option because a single hit from the monster could take him out of the fight. Their deadly dance continued back and forth with no one side taking the advantage. The Keeper had not landed an attack, but its insane amounts of armor and prodigious amounts of lifeforce invalidated most of Dante's attacks.

Dante took a moment to survey how the rest of the battle was progressing. It wouldn't be long till the undead horde was no more, and then he would have some more assistance fighting the monster. His lapse in focus on the fight almost spelled his doom. The Keeper put on a burst of speed and swung its giant mace. Dante attempted a dodge but could not get fully out of the way. The mace smashed into his left arm and threw him across the battlefield. The golden light around him diminished as his wounds healed nearly instantly. He had to quickly roll out of the way as the mace impacted the ground he was just laying on.

While the monster was off balance from the downward attack, Dante stabbed his light infused sword into the gap in the armor around its knee. The Keeper buckled at the attack to its joint. With the sword still stabbed into the Keeper, Dante began casting a spell while using his sword as a conduit for his magic. Bright purifying golden light began pulsing from the sword as the monster lifted its shadowy head towards the sky in a silent scream. The pulsing of light quickened as it turned into a continuous outpouring of magic. The shadowy nature of the monster started flickering as it lifted its mace towards the man causing it harm. As the mace was brought down towards his head, Dante removed his sword and cast a golden ward from his left hand which deflected the mace. With the monster now bending down from its failed attack, Dante stabbed his sword into the shadow of its head right between the purple orbs. Golden light began spewing from his sword again.

A screeching noise was heard as the shadowy darkness of the Keeper's head was banished away. The giant body came crashing to the ground in defeat. Dante stood up and released a victorious war cry which was echoed by all those who witnessed his fight. With the defeat of the monster and no more necromancers to continue the fight, this side of the battle was as good as won.

Ken had witnessed the defeat of the Keeper as well as the final pirate leader. He had been doing his best to coordinate the fighting and sending some of the reserve fighters where they could do the most good. With all the main leaders dead or retreating, they had won the fight for this section.

Based off his estimates, they had defeated the main force of the pirates. There were bound to be some more mages and probably some more elite warriors, but they had defeated many of the rank-and-file pirates. It would still be tough clearing out the remaining pockets of resistance in this tier of the base, but there shouldn't be any more groups this large. There would be more resistance at the next gate and probably inside the Keep, but it would most likely not be as wide scale as this battle was.

He could tell everyone was getting tired. Large battles were always fiercer and felt like they lasted a lot longer than people expected. He didn't want to think of the damage the necromancers could have done if Dante and the other Vigilantes hadn't been with them, or how many would have fallen to those monstrously skilled pirate leaders without Faralda and her apprentices helping take them down.

He was able to quickly organize the troops in reserve wearing lighter armor as a pursing force and sent them towards the enemy fleeing towards the keep. If they were lucky, they would make it before the next gate closed. Ken didn't want to give the pirates a chance to recover and get organized again.

---

The fighting had been fierce, but they had almost done it. They had fought their way all the way up to the keep. The fighting had gotten intense at the gates, but Ken's pursuit forces had been able to blitz past the defenders and keep the gates open long enough for the main force to follow. The pursuit force had taken horrible losses, but they had done their job of keeping the gates open long enough.

All that remained for them to do was storm the keep, and they would be done with this cursed island. Ken really was grateful for Faralda, Dante, and all the mages. There was no way they would have been able to make it this far without them providing support and keeping the enemy mages busy. There had been a few more necromancers, but thankfully none conjured any more Keepers nor did they already have a large horde of undead.

Ken had set up a staging area for the upcoming assault. The upcoming fighting would not be nearly as spread out as it had been. They would be in tight quarters with unknown amounts of enemies and traps. He was separating the fighters into small groups to better assault the base while the rest would either rest or continue hunting down the remaining pirates hiding in warehouses or homes.

All the leaders had started making their way towards him as the fighting was dying down. Ken could even see Ashtemius leading a small group of the East Empire Company's fighters this way from the lower areas. Ken had been impressed by the man and their willingness to secure the areas left behind while the combined forces of Winterhold and the Restored continued pressing forward and taking out the main pirate forces.

Everyone eventually grouped around him and began giving status reports. Despite some losses, especially among the Winterhold guards, they were almost done. Which was a good thing in his mind since they were exhausted.

Ken had a few cuts and bruises despite staying in the back most the fighting. He was feeling every bit of his age after all the fighting.

Faralda was slumped over from using so much mana for such a long period of time.

Korir was breathing heavy and covered in blood. The fire in his eyes and the blood dripping from his axes said there was more fight left in him.

Dante seemed tired despite there being no visible wounds on him.

Ashtemius was not very tired since he had missed most the larger scale fighting and been directing his people in cleaning out the small pockets of resistance. His dented armor showed he had not been totally out of the fighting though.

Still, Ken had a nagging feeling he was missing something. He wasn't sure what it was, but something was definitely off.

Ashtemius was the first to point it out.

"I am surprised Rictus is not here with you all. He seemed to be the leader behind your group. I thought him to be the type to lead from the front, but I guess he is more like the typical ruler type."

Rictus. Ken froze as he listened to the imperial's words. Where was Rictus at? He had last seen him still standing where he had taken down the wall and staring intently at the one of the towers of the Keep. Ken had been surprised Rictus had not entered the battle but figured he was waiting till further along to make an entrance. Looking around at the confused faces around him, it seemed no one could account for the leader of the Restored.

A loud boom of thunder sounded in their ears. The rain which had been at a light drizzle, started falling harder. Lightning crackled across the darkening sky and struck down towards the keep.

BOOOM!!!

The top part of the tallest tower of the keep exploded apart in a shower of stone. Everyone's gaze was drawn towards the partially destroyed tower. Two figures could be seen facing off against each other. One stood calmly as his robes were whipped in the increasingly violent wind and a giant executioner's ax casually resting on his shoulder.

The other figure was more noteworthy. It was at least twice the size of its opponent and was than even the Keeper Dante had defeated. If the Keeper was a bone giant, this was a bone Goliath. It appeared as a massive skeletal warrior with think bones acting as amor and a deathly pale green light seeping around the slight openings between its ribs. Spikes abounded as it seemed every inch of the creature was made to kill even without a weapon. The skull was even studded with spikes in such a way it gave the appearance of royalty. Dark magical energies coursed along its body in a deadly looking aura, while a brilliantly bright sword which seemed to have been forged from lightning was held in its right.

A huge bolt of lightning split the sky. Magical energies clashed as the two foes began battling it out. The people could not tear their eyes away from the battle of titans. The spectacle seemed like something right out of the story books. Good verse evil. A lone man fighting a monster as the storm rages around them. The resulting fight would leave a lasting impression on any who witnessed it and cement the legacy of the victor.