Kvatch's Fall
Part One
Savlian Matius was enjoying his dinner for once. The often gruff guard was sinking his teeth into a tasty apple and some stale bread this late afternoon. He had just been promoted to guard captain. Finally, I get what I deserve. He thought smugly. The count, Ormellius Goldwine of Kvatch had finally seen Savlian's skills firsthand as he deftly brought justice to a petty thief that morning. Justice had never felt so good for Savlian, since he had aspired his whole life to reside at this lofty position. He was in the barracks of Kvatch, sitting at his new table next to his new bed. All of his twenty fellow guards would now have to answer to him. So, in his dismal little chair, he felt as if he could take on any problem. He would soon have that feeling tested.
Meanwhile, A Dremora Markynaz named Giel-Harkep prepared his soldiers. A Dremora Markynaz was a sort of Duke in Mehrunes Dagon's realm. Every Markynaz was entitled to some sort of lesser territory. Giel-Harkep's territory just so happened to be the county of Kvatch. Giel-Harkep knew because of their Imperial ways that the people of Kvatch likely wouldn't give up their land willingly, explaining why he was scheming with a Kynmarcher (Higher ranked officer.) named Orthim to take Kvatch and its territories by force. Orthim and Giel-Harkep went through all possible plans, since they had all the time they needed on top of Giel-Harkep's ashen main tower in the Sigillum Sanguis chamber, residing on a small island dubbed 'Giel-Harkep Isle' in Mehrunes Dagon's realm of Oblivion. The army would be strictly made up of Dremora that were recruited six months previously. There was only one Xivilai berserker who's sole purpose was to guard his Markynaz master. Every Daedra that would take place in the battle was stationed on Giel-Harkep Isle. The master Markynaz and his Kynmarcher assistant made sure this would be an easy victory. It was the first foothold Mehrunes Dagon would take in Cyrodiil. If they were successfull their Lord Dagon would take Bruma a week later, and subsequently Leyawiin if the battle of Bruma was won. Finally, Mehrunes Dagon would take on the Imperial City itself using the power generated from the three earlier battles. Giel-Harkep would make sure it was an easy victory, because if he failed, his god would certainly expend him. This would be made worse by the fact that all daedra reincarnate. Angering a god, especially this one, would be foolish.
"Sir, are you going with plan Ayem?" Orthim humbly asked.
Giel-Harkep nodded. "Set up the gate after you give each soldier their job. Use a churl as the messenger. Then deploy. With fifty soldiers, not counting us two and the Xivilai, Kvatch won't have time to send someone for help." This would be an easy battle indeed.
Savlian was finishing his meal when Merandil rushed in, panting from a sprint across town from his post at the gate. He was attempting to catch his breath and get Savlian's attention. He certainly achieved the latter.
"Foolish recruit, don't you know better than to disrupt my dinner? Or abandone your post? What's gotten into you?" Savlian muttered quite gruffly, hoping that the High Elf would have a good reason to come here.
After catching his breath, the Altmer replied, "I'm sorry sir, but I came as soon as I could. There is something seriously wrong in front of the gates. The citizens have already been notified and told to stay in their homes. Come, you have to see this!" The Imperial guard captain was slightly interested, but he didn't like that his authority was defied on telling the citizens to stay in their homes.
"What is the meaning of this? You can't just-" Savlian began, but was cut off by Merandil.
"With all respect, sir, but this is urgent! Throw on your armor and come with me at once! Innocent lives are at stake!" Was the panicked reply. Savlian accepted this small defeat, and threw on his cuirass and began to jog towards the front gate with a frantic Merandil.
"Sir, the sky has started to redden and thunder is resounding throughout the heavens! This all started when a gate of some sort popped out from the ground. It was in the shape of a sort of rectangle but then suddenly a thin sheet of fire spread inside this portal. I ran to get you to see what is to be done about it." Merandil said hurriedly. Savlian was paying attention to what he said while also proccessing the sights and sounds from the sky. It smelled like ash, although none was visible. Once they had arrived on top of the wall, the Imperial saw that everything Merandil had described was true. The ground around this gate to hell itself was black and burnt. The gate itself looked the same way, but the fire didn't appear to be giving off any heat. Suddenly, an exact copy of the first gate sprung from the ground to the original's right. Two?! All of Savlian's men were up here, shaking in their armor, hoping they wouldn't pass out. Although Savlian Matius felt the same way, he kept his composure and his stoic expression never faltered. Suddenly, an evil humanoid...thing... stepped out from the blaze. The race it looked like most was a Dark Elf, with blue-gray ashen skin with some red scattered around. It had two devlish horns protruding form the scariest places on its forheard. It had what looked like daedric armor and a mace to match, and this demonic creature was marching toward's Kvatch's gates. That's when it hit Savlian, and what one of his fellow guards said confirmed it.
"Gods blood... This is a Dremora! What will we do?!" Screeched Jesan Rilian, until then a respected man known to be fearless. Menian Goneld, the second in command, stepped up beside Savlian, studying every detail about the scene unfolding before them. The churl stopped at the gate, and demanded to be let in and to speak to the leader of county Kvatch.
Menien piped up, "Orders, captian?"
Part Two
The plan was going well for Giel-Harkep. The churl messenger had been sent out and commanded to gain entrance to the city and demand to forfeit its territory. This was a total suicide mission. The humankind would slaughter the lowly dremora after learning what its purpose in the realm of Mundus was. If the messenger did not arrive by the time the third gate was up, (The Markynaz sensed it would be about an hour in Tamriel's time,) all rank and file soldiers would charge, followed by their close-guarded leader who would come to make sure everything unfolded properly. Giel-Harkep knew that the churl would not come back.
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Giel-Harkep would be right, of course. Savlian had ordered to let the daedra in, where he was questioned in the prison. The dremora protested, saying that in an hour's time his fellow would charge. As soon as he demanded Kvatch's land, he was executed. The sickening splatter could be heard throughout the castle. Savlian promptly knew this was a mistake when Merandil rushed in once more, saying that a third gate had materialized to the left of the original, worsening the affects on the atmosphere. His worse fears being realized, the captain of the guard ordered two soldiers to protect the count in the castle, and headed with Merandil to the remaining seventeen to the wall atop the gate.
When they arrived, they witnessed the end of fifty daedric soldiers and what looked like two officers marching into the space between the gateways and the city walls. Ten archers readied their weapons, and a blue creature in the back near one officer roared.
The more hellish looking officer yelled up to the guards in an inhuman accent, "You have rejected my demands and killed my soldier, knowing the consequences. You will now have a small taste of the wrath of Lord Dagon!" At this, one archer from the crowd released his arrow, sending it to a guard. The arrow pierced the soldier's neck, five feet from Savlian. This otherworldly weapon stopped after going clean through this poor guard's neck. He fell forward, landing in front of Oblivion's army.
"Tierra, go and make sure the people are safe." Savlian Matius ordered to the only female member of the guard. She was a redguard, with a stronger heart than many of Kvatch's soldiers. She obeyed and ran for the chapel. With just eighteen battle ready men including himself, how could Savlian hope to hold back this army more than twice their size and three times as deadly?
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Giel-Harkep was confident that Kvatch would be completely sacked. He said something in a tongue forgotten by mankind, and two churl mages shot fire spells at the gate of the city, which started to burn quickly. Then all ten archers fired a shot, which halved Kvatch's guard! The gates then toppled, leaving the city of Kvatch quite vulnerable. With more confidence, Giel-Harkep sent the archers and mages to kill all of the citizenry. The Markynaz then commanded 35 dremora churl footsoldiers to kill every last guard. The five remaining dremora where Caitiffs. They were more elite soldiers. Quickly, all Caitiffs sprinted past the other marching soldiers to the castle to murder anybody inside.
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Savlian watched all of this in horror. The archers began to expertly break into each locked home and shoot all inside. The Caitiffs were already halfway to the castle. Before Savlian told his seventeen men to get off of the wall, soldiers from Oblivion began to pour through the towers and then onto the wall. The city of Kvatch was beginning to fall. Without Savlian, Resan, and Menien, who were the three best fighters from Kvatch and Anvil, the count had no chance. Neither did the citizens, because the very people that had sworn to protect their lives were trapped and facing their own deaths from thirty five demons. Savlian knew there was a possibility of the three elite fighters escaping this, and perhaps even Merandil or two other promising men. The rest of the Kvatch soldiers had little or no experience, and were doomed. Yes, Savlian might survive this ordeal, but he knew that Kvatch County was forfeit whether he lived or died.
Part Three
Menien Goneld was having a bad day. The daedric soldiers were closing in on the nine surviving guards, and he, along with a recruit he'd never met, were first in line for the slaughter. His old and brittle bones couldn't quite take the punishment that even running to the wall dished out, now he was facing down thirty-five dremora. He turned to the man on his right.
"What's your name, son?" Menien figured that if he was going to die by this man, he would know what to call him.
The recruit turned to him, "I'm Resan. My name's a lot like Jesan Rilian's, I know. Savlian said I was a very promising sold-" The young guard stopped his speech when he saw that a churl was upon him. Menien watched as he blocked the demon's mace and deftly stabbed through a gap in it's armor that he must have found. The daedra fell to its knees in agony, and Resan pushed him off of the wall. An unearthly smell exploded as the dremora died. There was no time to celebrate as two more dremora churls replaced the one that Resan dispatched. Menien tried to copy Resan's move but failed miserably. The dremora's mace slammed into Menien's iron cuirass, partly crumpling it. Fighting back the pain, the Imperial made a few desperate swipes before it fell from his grip. His wind was knocked out of him, making him an easy kill for the churl. Menien Goneld's death would be in vain.
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Savlian Matius was on the other end of the small line. It would take the dremora army half a minute to reach his end of the line. He saw that already the churls had reached the end that held Resan and Menien had been reached. Their poor excuse for a formation was now compromised. Savlian watched Menien's downfall. The poor man. Savlian never realized that Menien's years were catching up to him. Now, he was gone forever. The daedra were close to Savlian's end of the line now. He was next to Ilend Vonius.
"Listen son, we need to get down to the ground and avoid these daedra. We have to options. The Needle Threading technique, or we jump. What's your choice?" Savlian asked the guard.
Illend weighed the options, and answered, "You and I jump, and the rest of the men attempt the technique. We can send our two best men- you and I- to save the count, and the rest of them will have to take their chances." Savlian nodded. There was no time. He yelled to his soldiers what to do, and then jumped into a dying tree with Illend.
The tree crackled, shifting to hold the weight of the two great warriors. They both jumped down and began to sprint towards the castle. Along the way they met two archers. Illend sent one back to Oblivion using his superior longsword skills, while Savlian lodged his dagger into the throat of the other one, before either had the chance to arm their bows. Quickly, they resumed running to the castle, leaving the bloody daedra behind to struggle for air.
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Resan Bratio was familiar with the Needle Threading technique. He would be in the front of the line. He gave his shield to the man behind him, and that man gave Resan his sword. Resan then charged in the middle of the double file daedric army, pushing through with his swords, while the man behind him followed, pushing dremora off of the walls with his shields. It wasn't the best tactic, but Resan figured that Savlian had suggested it. Savlian Matius, the captain of the guard, was one of the best battle strategists in Cyrodiil. If Savlian suggested a formation, soldiers would do their part double time. Some churls managed to stay on the wall. A drop from it in full armor would certainly incapacitate someone not conditioned for it. The four remaining guards ran close behind Resan and the man behind him, Berich Inian, stabbing and slashing at any enemies still on the wall.
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Merandil had come a long way in life. When he had awoken that morning and went for his regular jog around the city walls, he had never suspected that it would end this way. Raised from birth in Kvatch, Kvatch and the friendly citizens therein were all he cared about. It was logical that he become a guard and protect what he loved, especially when his father was murdered while trying to drive a thief off from their home. Lying here on what would be his deathbed, he could hardly imagine that his mother would be killed by these demons. He couldn't bear to imagine her scream as they blew open her door.
Merandil had been standing stoicly next to Menien and his captain, prepared for anything, except the barrage of nine arrows, all aimed for the neck of Kvatch guards. All nine of those arrows hit their mark, except for the one with Merandil's name on it. His arrow hit just above his heart. Merandil's arrow pierced a major blood vein, and his pectoral muscles. He instantly collapsed from the pain and blood loss and the fact that he couldn't move his right arm. He heard the crackle of thunder, the rattling of armor, and the clash of weapons. As the blood gushed out from his chest, he began to drift away.
"Father... Is that you?"
Part Four
Illend Vonius and Savlian Matius had arrived at the castle of Kvatch, taking in the city in its new, dying state. Oblivion's armies had done an efficient job at wiping the population out. A couple of houses that they ran by were on fire. Illend, an adamant follower of Akatosh, prayed that the fires wouldn't spread.
Savlian opened the doors while Illend readied his weapon for anything that may be inside. There were no immediate threats. Quickly they ran to the Count's Quarters, but found they were too late. Count Goldwine lay dead, surrounded my the squad of Caitiffs. While the guards struggled to grasp this sad news, the Caitiffs disappeared, summoned back to hell to be celebrated by their fellows for a job well done.
"Well... Kvatch is decidedly lost now.." Savlian conceded, fighting back his forming tears. Illend put a hand on his fellow guardsmen and true friend.
"Savlian.. It is said that a captain must go down with their ship. I say that we give Oblivion a taste of its own medicine and go down swinging. What do you say, captain?" After a brief moment, Savlian nodded and unsheathed his sword.
"Let's show them human nature in its most raw form, my friend."
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Resan and Berich had done well. Twenty of the enemy were slain, including what the scholarly Berich called a Kynmarcher. Unfortunately, Misters Bratio and Inian had reached the end of their path. They were back to back, surrounded by roughly ten churls, being observed by their leader.
Berich piped up, "So we're the only living ones left here? Well, if we have to go, let us go down swinging."
With his trademark half-grin on his face, Resan replied, "If my body is claimed, then at my funeral my family will say, 'He would have wanted it this way.'" With that, Berich made a devastating suicide charge. The effects were devasting for both sides of this small dispute, both sides losing half of their men. Now an army of one, Resan braced for the onslaught of six dremora. His skills, now instinct, weren't even thought of as he fought fiercely for the only thing he had left... His life.
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The captain of the guard and his subordinate had walked from the castle, on the prowl for any daedra still in their realm. They saw the Markynaz along with his pet walking towards them, likely to verify the death of the Count.
"Their leader... Impressive. I say we kill him. Nobody will forget us. Nobody will forget Kvatch. Not today, not ever!" Illend said as he charged. When the blue beast saw Illend approaching, he let out a primal roar and initiated a desperate struggle with the guard who refused to lose. Savlian decided to fight against the enemy leader. His battle cry could be heard in the ports of Anvil to the mountains north of Chorrol, legend says. All he received for his bravery was a mace in the face. Seeing his last compratriot ended in such a brutal way triggered an inhuman shriek as he fought yet harder, and directed his attention to Giel-Harkep.
A feral mess, the guard wildly swiped for the face of Giel-Harkep, and miraculously hit, killing the Markynaz even more brutally than Savlian Matius. Triumph turned to defeat after the Xivilai crippled his leg with a brutal attack of his own. Vonius now lay face up, unable to get up or fight back, since he dropped his weapon. Staring up at the blood-red sky, he would not accept defeat. Even when the Xivilai stooped down to gloatfully snarl inches from him, Illend Vonius, the bravest of all, defiantly spat in the face of his aggressor.
Nobody knows what happened to Illend Vonius after that, but even the desperate Resan Bratio heard his scream, which was sharply cut off.
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Resan Bratio dextrously finished off his last opponent with a backhanded slam with his silver sword into the churl's lower torso. The only human left in Kvatch then fled for the exit to Kvatch. He would escape to find a legionnaire to give the bad news to. Resan Bratio would get many awards for surviving Kvatch's decimation, but would have to live with the shame of abandoning the post that he was supposed to hold with his life.
He wouldn't live with the shame for long, since a week later he gave his life fighting alongside the future Hero of Cyrodiil.
Kvatch was lost to Oblivion, a painful reminder forever that guardsmen must be better trained, or whatever a shameless politician would say about it to gain favor. Meanwhile, a man known only by his first name of Martin, was found living in a farm outside of Kvatch's walls, the lone refugee. There was hope for Cyrodiil yet, but the brave souls who gave their lives in hopeless defense would never be forgotten.
End! Feel free to review on the talk page! -Ninja Hinder