(OOC: Numbers multiplied by 10 ? )
The Battle of the Worthless Crossing
1st of the Grand Harvest, 1735
Geordie Brawm and Austin Labdacus, leaving Renatus, watched by crowds of fearful citizens, 1735
War would come to the lands of Arcas. Two realms of Elvenkind had taken up arms against the humans. From the walls of Irrinor, the men and women of Fenn and Irrinor would closely watch a massive Orenian host appear from the horizon; banners of black and purple flew brushed against the wind as they marched. But the elves would not stand alone, for the word of war would spread quickly. And quickly it would, reaching the ears of eager men. For it was in the Badlands of Ruswick, the men would laugh and dance.
Donning their armor, they would appear to any outsider an unlikely band of brothers: House Labdacus, a house from the far seas, donning cloth and steel. Alongside them was the notorious house Brawm, men thoroughly steeled through war. House Pertinax followed suit, while the southrons of House Rük cleaned their blades. On a tree stump, three men stood and argued on the course of action. Austin Labdacus, the duellist, Geordie Brawm, of the notorious house of Brawm, and finally, Hannibal Pertinax, the mad dragon. Finally, when they reached a decision, they would march to the land of the elves with a pep in their step, enthusiastic for the clash of steel to come.
But much to their dismay, there would be no Battle of Irrinor. The Orenian forces routed against an invisible enemy, yet the men of Ruswick would not let the day go against bloodshed. Though the elves were happy to sit behind their walls afterwards, Geordie Brawm turned to his men—of Ruswick, and two brave elves—enthusiastically walking into the Orenian heartlands to set up camp before the Renatian bridge. Two of them would slaughter an Orenian on the road, but an Orenian scout ran past them in an act of cowardice. Geordie checked on Helena, and saw a great band of Orenian men amassing, no doubt warned by the scout.
While the rest caught up, Ralf Brawm and Austin Labdacus ran into the capital’s square, and watched the Imperials squabble among themselves. After an embarrassing minute, the Imperials finally ran together in a formation and chased the two out of the city. As the armored retinue chased the two bandits onto the bridge, they stopped, seeing four more beside them. The men of Oren charged before the Wickermen were prepared, a method barred by the skygods. Nevertheless the men of Ruswick persisted. One of the Wickers was slain in the sudden charge but this only empowered them. Several skirmishes took place on the road and eventually a few of their party was injured, brought to their knees by madmen charging into the crowd and running out. The Orenian men attempted to drag back their injured soldiers to safety, but Geordie decided to capitalize off of this. Over and over, the band of Wickermen charged into the much larger crowd of Orenian men, slowly diminishing them in a hammer and anvil maneuver. After the third charge, several other Orenians were injured, sullying the roads with their blood. The cruel Orenians abandoned their comrades and moved back to the edge of Helena’s bridge, standing their ground. As ordered by Hannibal and Geordie, pressure would be unrelenting on the Imperials, as volleys of arrows forced them further back onto the bridge.
Austin Labdacus roared with his blade raised, prompting a charge that would prove fatal to the defenders. Several—eighty to ninety—of their men were slain whereas the Wickermen suffered only minor injuries. The remaining humans ran back into their city, and the Wickermen soon took chase. The Orenian men got into their city, and fearing someone was manning the gates, the Ruswick men halted their pursuit just at the gate’s perimeter. But the Wickermen had with them a man of great knowledge: Robin of Nottingham. From past experiences in combat he knew that there was an alternate entrance into the city, and he and twenty other men swam across the moat and made their way to the side entrance. Hannibal and Geordie, two mighty six-star generals, and leaders of their respective houses, continued to hold their position on the bridge. The flanking force consisting of Robin, Austin, and an Irrinorian warrior along with their bands of nameless men charged towards the gate and plowed into the remaining forty men, slaughtering them inside their own city. Denizens cowered and ran into their homes as the Wickermen walked across the bridge to safety, carrying with them the spoils of war.
- Hannibal Pertinax