A well-aimed crossbow bolt nearly ends Kaven life as he heads towards the tower. Fired from one of the gate-house defenders, it is sheer dumb luck that sees the Baron turn at the last moment to shout encouragements to the men behind him. The steel-tipped missile zips past mere inches from his face to burrow itself in one of the men behind him.
Further up the foe was trying to drag the portal to the tower shut, before the Diemeans closed the distance. The door, a thick slab of oak with dark iron bands, was being kept open by one of their own wounded – his armour slick with the blood spilling from his cleaved cervic as he lay on the ground trying to drag himself into safety and the comrades inside with the strength of the desperate.
A heavy blow from a poleaxe ends his pleading moans, and a mix of arms, legs and weapons wedge themselves into the space left open by the closing door. Cries of pain as the defenders stab and slash at exposed limbs prevail for several moments, but then the Diemeans manage to push the oaken door open and spill inside.
As the sounds of battle are renewed in the tight interior of the small tower, Kaven uses the brief lull in his own fights to get his breath, before heading into the gate house himself. A fierce melee raged inside as Diemean armsmen eschew their traditional weapons in lieu of the long daggers, axes and short stabbing swords that favour the cramped conditions.
Something roars towards him, and the Baron deftly evades a brutal stab to his midsection by an Ilienese soldier with a forked beard. Returning the gesture with a grim blow to the man’s forehead using the pommel of his sword he watches the man’s eyes roll back in his sockets, as the Ilienese sinks to the ground without a word, blood seeping from his temple.
Kaven starts up the curving tower stairs towards the roof. In seconds a bolt flash downwards, ricocheting from the wall, and the Baron press himself to the wall as another crossbowman fires down the spiral stair.
Clearing the last few steps Kaven lets out a defiant shout as he pushes the standard in front of him and twists as a third crossbow is fired, the billowing banner confusing the man, so the bolt goes wide.
More men follow him up, and the crossbowmen watches with dread as dead hard veterans of many battles clad in full-plate and brandishing bloody weapons close on them. One of them decides to try his chances with gravity rather than the Diemean and quickly jump off of the tower, aiming for the walkways leading to the tower on the side still held by the Ilienese and landing among his fellow men with a cry of pain as bones break. The others fare somewhat worse.
With the top floor of the gatehouse cleared and the forces pushing onwards and downwards to open the gate, Kaven orders the men to gather up the discarded missile weapons, and soon the Ilienese have a new threat to deal with, as their own weapons are turned inwards and bolt and arrows rain at the city defenders from above.
The baron glances around to get his bearing and assess the situation, then he steps to the crenellations, facing the Diemean forces outside and raises Archduke Carvaelon Diem’s banner high.
