The Empire of Tamriel: Battle of Cheydinhal 13th Evening Star, 4E 203

BOOM BOOM BOOM! The gates of Cheydinhal creak under the smiting of the ram of Akavir. On the walls archers fire at the enemy below. They are met with magical hail and arrows returned from below ceasing their volleys. The ram itself is well housed and immune to arrow fire and continues pounding against the northern gate. Cassandra and Tizona mount the walls with their mage units to provide the archers with magic protection and stave off the enemy attempts to establish ladders on the wall.

Akavir's forces are totally massed, writhing, pressed against the northern wall. Their elite Kamal mages guard the ram heavily and shield the ram from magic. Against the wider section of the wall the ground troops led by the Tsaesci are attempting to snake their way up the walls. Echoing for miles the colossal ram at the center of the grim scene continues its assault upon the gates of Cheydinhal, they are starting to give way. Tang Mo hordes pack in tighter anticipating the rush when the gates fall.

A horn blasts and a bright flash of the blessing of the The Emperor of Tamriel appears. Sir Mazog's cavalry along with the volunteers of Canulusia, and some of the knights of Nadd which had been stranded outside harassing the enemy for weeks, turn the sharpest corner near the gate. Coming into view the host of horsemen comes charging towards the vastly larger army. The Elder Councilor with Sir Jaquavis and Sir Plutarch riding at his flanks barrel into the bulk of the enemy around the ram trying to dislodge them from the gates. Many of their light Tang Mo soldiers go flying from the collision of the cavalry charge. The Kamal are disrupted from casting their enchantments allowing the Thalmor's devastating lightning spells from above to begin to strike the Akaviri lines.

Another thunderous crack and a frightful groan silences the din of the battle just as it seems the Tamrielites are peeling back the enemy. The gate buckles inwards and the sound of the braces snapping inside is heard. A small sliver of the gate opens, both sides press at the gate stabbing outwards and inwards fighting for the door. Sir Mazog and the most elite knights cry out rallying their troops and fight their way to the ram. Sir Plutarch with the mightiest swing of his great hammer smashes into the side of the ram. The infernal machine delivers another crushing blow to the gate, its braces break, but the soldiers inside and their makeshift barricades hold it shut as they hasten to try to repair the braces. The Imperials storm the ram's housing cutting down the Tang Mo slaves operating the machine. Lighting some torches Sir Plutarch and the knights set fire to the ram.

Sir Mazog begins pulling his men back, fighting fiercely and killing many Akaviri as he tries to extract his troops safely after disabling the ram. All ready he has lost half his force in the brave effort, though the enemy have lost tens of thousands of men in this assault and the previous days of battle. The remainder of the Kamal mages focus their magic on the ram, seeming to put out the blaze, they freeze it several times over in ice. Tizona and the Thalmor see the opportunity here to cast a massive lightning storm to finish off the Kamal. Just as the lightning bolts strike the last of the Kamal mages they give out a great cry and cast a group reflect spell. A counter flash suddenly blinds the scene for a few moments.

A deafening crash is heard as the frozen over ram is electrified and shoots out like a rocket and shatters, blowing apart not just the gate of Cheydinhal, but even the whole massive section of the wall which housed it. Below the Kamal and the front line of the Akavir are killed by the falling debris. Most of the Thalmor and Imperial mages are killed or badly injured as they are thrown from the wall by the force of the explosion. Cassandra is knocked unconscious from the fall. Tizona gets up bloodily but with electric resolve. She despairs seeing most of her High Elf comrades whom have been with her since the Battle of Leyawin laying dead or wounded around her. Tizona grabs Cassandra from the ground and commands the surviving mages to fall back to the south gate and evacuate the wounded from the city.

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As their sight returns from the flash at the reflecting of the lightning spell Sir Mazog and the knights see the terrible scene just as they had slipped out of the fray to safety. The wall of Cheydinhal has been blasted open. The dazed Akaviri likewise have come to their senses and are pouring straight into the city. Sir Mazog curses under his breath at the ill turn and shouts out to his cavalrymen to wheel around. With another blast of his horn they make another charge into the very thick of the Akavir army, driving into its heart as Sir Mazog calls upon the blessing of the Emperor one more time. The two armies are at about equal numbers at this point in the battle.

Inside the city the infantry and archers which had been guarding Cheydinhal rush to defend the gap that has been made in the wall. Trollz gives out a mighty trollroar and slams into the frontline of Tang Mo sending them reeling. The Imperials come up and dig in defending the position making a shieldwall. Trollz and some of the light infantry hastily dig through the debris, saving a few of the badly wounded that survived the fall of the wall. When the wounded are securely removed from the vicinity of the wall, Trollz rejoins the infantry whom are slowly and bloodily pushing the Akavir back.

Pressure mounts against the defenders as they push against a mass of flesh. Soldiers fall on both sides and replace each other. With great effort Trollz and the city defenders repel the Akavir from the wall and push out of the city. Fighting intensifies as the two forces and their dwindling soldiers fight outside the city. Though there is some relief as the Imperials initially reclaim the gap it is soon replaced by the problem of fighting the Akaviri in the open. Seeing Sir Mazog and the cavalry fighting bravely in the midst of the Akavir, keeping their army from launching its full might at the city, the Imperials rush to aid the Elder Councilor. Trollz helps a handful of the defenders lift and move debris and try to form a makeshift barricade and line in the gap to defend the injured and the townspeople inside as the fate of the battle still hangs in the balance.

In the middle of the battlefield Sir Mazog and his knights are making a great slaughter of the enemy's core, but to their own expense. The lone rider still mounted upon his horse, Sir Mazog, runs through the enemy slashing down at opponents and trying to defend his troops from being totally overwhelmed as they are surrounded on all sides. Sir Jaquavis and Sir Plutarch are on foot fighting their hearts out. Their regiment was cut down around them and the two friends fight back to back for hours killing hundreds of enemies by themselves. Sunset goes down with the Elder Councilor and a few hundred knights fighting in the midst of the Akaviri.

Both sides grind eachother down to their last thousands of troops. The Imperials fight hard trying to make their way to Sir Mazog as the last handful of his knights make their last stand with tens of thousands of bodies laying around them. Akavir's last remaining bulk fights all the harder to push the Tamrielites back to the wall, killing many of the stubborn defenders. With only a few hundred able-bodied troops left the defenders fall back resignedly to the wall of Cheydinhal. Akavir's army has been cut down to their last two thousand. The enemy divide their last forces sending a thousand to break into Cheydinhal and the remainder to finish off Sir Mazog.

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The gleeful Tsaesci captains and few remaining Tang Mo along with one lone Kamal mage surround Sir Mazog and his handful of knights. Sir Jaquavis charges forward slicing one Tang Mo in half, and juking from the one before him, stabbing into an unsuspecting Tsaesci. He leaves his sword behind in the snakeman and fights with his grafted on sword arm against the baying horde. The Kamal mage come to the fore of the enemy and blasts many of the knights to death with his magic. Sir Jaquavis focuses on this mage and Sir Plutarch catching sight of his friend dispatches the foes before him and turns to aid him. Tang Mo rush forward to duel the duo, but between the two they are no match. The Kamal mage sees the duo coming upon him and pierces Sir Plutarch's armor with a deadly ice spear. Sir Jaquavis leaps upon the eemy mage, catching a stream of frost damage as he slays the last Kamal. A Tsaesci to his side stabs the Redguard knight and the Tang Mo attendant of the mage strikes him with his staff, breaking it over his back. Sir Plutarch wounded badly bashes his way through the enemy screaming abuse at them and slays the Tsaesci before it can kill Sir Jaquavis. Sir Jaquavis avoids the dagger of the Tang Mo attendant and dispatches it with a reckless slash that doesn't quite cut the enemy soldier in half.

"Well Jaq, this looks like the end of me, get out of here." Sir Plutarch heaves out from his wounds as he pulls back from bashing the enemy to death, the ice spear still sticking out of him at a sick angle.

"Pluto, it was an honor serving at your side." Sir Jaquavis gives a weak smile and limps towards Sir Plutarch, his good hand covering the wound to his torso. "I don't think I can run anymore either. I am done too good friend."

"Then I suppose we shall leave Nirn as friends together." Sir Plutarch laughs and turns to coughing up some blood and picks his hammer back up.

Sir Jaquavis laughs also and the two friends staggeringly charge at the leering and taunting enemy. They kill at least a score more a piece before they are overwhelmed. Bravely the two knights that were friends in life are slain by eachother's side in death at the Battle of Cheydinhal. Succumbing to many wounds the enemy takes their bodies as trophies, proudly parading them about and rallying their troops to attack the city with vigor.

Sir Mazog's last few knights are overwhelmed and cut down. The Elder Councilor's blade flashes back and forth as he alone remains staving off the enemy. Sir Mazog receives some arrows and then some wounds from melee weapons but buoyed by the blessing of the Emperor, he fights on. Beset by Tsaesci, a few blows from a mace from behind knock the young orc to the ground. Battered he lifts himself and receives a kick to the face swelling his left eye shut. Hands grab him roughly from all around and lift him up, taking his weapons from him. Akavir rejoices loudly as they bind Sir Mazog's hands behind his back.

"We have taken one of their Elder Councilorssss! Victory to Akaviri!" A large and well armed Tsaesci general slithers forward and gloats.

"You might kill me, but you have lost." Sir Mazog spits out bitterly being force to look at the enemy general with his good eye.

"Behold, you have lossst!" Gesturing his hand forward the Tsaesci general shows what remains of his troops rushing to help their brethren at the walls of Cheydinhal.

"No, you have lost. Even though you might kill us all you only have less than a thousand men left after this. Our sacrifice was not in vain. Your army can go no further than this and the The Empire of Tamriel is saved." Sir Mazog lifts his voice up defiantly to his captors.

"Before I kill you I will let you watch everyone in this city die!" The Tsaesci general rages back realizing that indeed, though they might have won the battle his army can go no further.

From the distance Trollz and the last defenders are seen still fighting, but pushed back inside the city as the Akaviri simply in superior number, though down to their last thousand men break into the city and begin to ravage and massacre Cheydinhal. Punching Sir Mazog in the gut the Tsaesci general turns his attention back to himself. The Tang Mo host carry up to Sir Mazog's face the bloody bodies of Sir Plutarch and Sir Jaquavis and begin making a mockery of them and desecrating them before him. Sir Mazog breaks down and weeps seeing his friends bodies treated so horribly. The Tsaesci general satisfied with this takes Sir Mazog alive into the city to watch as Cheydinhal is massacred by the last remnant of Akavir.