The Massacre of Alumelith

[Cho'Gall]

As the count neared the gates of Alumelith, it became abundantly clear that the massacre was still taking place. Realizing this, the count unsheathed his pistol. His loyal servant Rodger was standing behind him, ready at any moment. The baron's lackey stood at the other side, brandishing a white revolver with a sheep carved into the barrel. Sparse gunfire rang out.

It was then that the count signaled to the three men to hook around the left side and take cover behind an old guard post, Rodger understood, but it took Tyen a second longer. They rushed forward and to the left as planned. The three slapped their backs against the wall of the guard tower.

"You two, cover me. I'm going to go check if the guard up there is still alive," Cho'gall said, signaling to Rodger who then promptly cocked his rifle. Like most Shirithians, Tyen had never seen an Ohl'tar before, and was fascinated by how Rodger's legs moved and bent almost automatically, to position himself in behind the meter high wall. Rodger rested his rifle on the top of the wall and aimed down the sight, surveying the terrain. The count climbed up the ladder.

The count pulled himself up into the guard box only to see a human and an Ohl'tar hiding in the tower. The count asked them who they were, and what business they had in this tower. The Ohl'tar responded: "I am Derick and this is my friend Jim, we hid up here to escape the rebels."
"Can you shoot a rifle?" asked the count.
"Yes sir," said Jim.

The count then grabbed two Kar98k rifles which lay resting on the side of the guard box. He handed one to each of them along with some extra clips.
"Come with me," the count said, "we're going to go find survivors."
With that the count began to climb down the ladder, and was followed by the two. Tyen said to the count, "The first place to check should be the Butter church. If there are survivors there, then the new duke would want us to help them."

"New duke?" the count asked.

"Yes, Nathan of Natopia has been named as the successor to Allot, who died because of what I have been told is a mishap happened somewhere involving spirits and whatnot. Its all here in this pamphlet," Tyen said.

"Well alrighty," said the count, "The butter church is right across the street anyhow. Rodger, you stay here and cover us. We're going to run across there and take cover along the side of the Butter church. Once we're all there, I'll signal you to come over."

"Yes sir!" replied Rodger, aiming his rifle again.
"Okay lets go," said the count, and rushed forward followed by the three others.

[Aurangzeb Khan]

Vijayanagara (Alumelith), Agnesia

Two Apache assault helicopters from the Luftjägarkompani "Kapav Dawn" began their pass over the burning city.

"Damn, it looks like carnage down there." Muttered Captain Navid, the flight commander, as he surveyed the scene of utter devastation. "Any sign of human survivors?" He spoke this into his headpiece, comms open.

"Negative. But there was supposed to have been an evacuation. Never heard anything more about the ships but it is possible they've fled to the docks regardless." That was the voice of Lieutenant Sepehr, who was the pilot of the other Apache.

"Ok. Take your bird down to the quayside. Assess the situation and radio back. I'l make a sweep of the town for hostiles."

"Affirmative. Happy bug-hunting"

"Roger."

With that Sepehr's helicopter peeled away towards the docklands. Navid's gunship circled around, passing over the incongruous butter temple and heading in the direction of the city walls, aiming at a guard tower as a landmark. It did not take them long to identify a contact.

"Sir. Five bugs, advancing up the street - they're heading towards the butter temple." The voice was that of Sergeant Malik, his gunner.

"Roger that. Taking up station." With that the Apache began to hoover, immediately above and to the front of it's newly found prey. "Shred the fuckers."

"My pleasure Captain."

The helicopter's M230 Chain Gun opened up. The lead Ohl'tar dissolved into a cloud of exploding blood, puss and gore. Three fled with the nimbleness and dexterity that can be expected of an eight-limbed giant arachnid. The sole remnant, suicidally brave - no doubt flushed with genocidal fury - unslung his bolt-action rifle and fired off a round which ricochetted off the helicopter's reinforced perspex canopy, disconcertingly close to the Captain's head.

"Fuck! They've been under the ice for forty thousand years, how the fuck did they surface as crack marksmen?"

"How did they surface speaking English, albeit with an inability to pronounce the letter 'w'?"

"Why the fuck are we talking? Kill the bastard!"

The defiant Ohl'tar lost its monstrous shape as it was lacerated by a hail of bullets. The hunt was then on to find the three who had fled. Activating the thermal imaging infrared camera, Sgt Malik soon identified which alleyway they had scurried down and quickly locked on with the Target Acquisition and Designation System.

"Target acquired Sir!"

"Engage target."

"Hellfire away!"

The AGM-114 Hellfire, a potent antitank missile, left a fiery arc as it slammed home on the laser illuminated dark recess down which the three enemies had fled.

The Apache moved on down the street in search of more Ohl'tar to eradicate.

"Sir. New target acquired. There's an Ohl'tar moving down the street."

"Hit it with the Hydra 70. There may be more. Let's flush them out."

"Firing Sir.!" The Hydra pod carried 19 proximity-airburst white-phosphorus warheads, of which four were salvo fired in the direction of the oncoming Ohl'tar. "Shit!" The Sergeant suddenly cried out. "Two non-bugs with it, one's a... its a fucking werewolf..."

"Werewolf? Damn it that's Häxatrupperna. Blue-on-Blue. Abort! Abort!"

"Can't sir. These are dumb rockets."

Fortunately however the rockets overshot the four who were out in the open, proximity fuses seemingly malfunctioning. However the rockets slammed home not ten yards from where another Ohl'tar had been crouching, as best an Ohl'tar can, giving covering fire to the main party.

"Zurvan be merciful. Still, the dead tell no tales. Lets get out of here." With that the helicopter banked sharply away and, opening the turboshaft engine's throttle out to maximum, the helicopter roared away at 158 knots and was soon back out on the open countryside of unyielding tundra.

"This is hopeless. The lower part of the city has been overrun. We'll have to call in Flygflottilj air support - have them napalm the place."

[Leo Fenrir]

Damn that was close. Tyen struggled to maintain his composure. A last minute flick of the mind had barley saved them their lives. He was not cut out for field work and the stress of being in battle. The job description had described a sheep loving fellow who held peace above all else. Now he found himself in a city, under siege. The great sheep was cruel at times. His profession was cooking magic for the sake of the gods!

He felt two more lives wink out of existence as the the missiles exploded. It was a nuisance of an affinity, soul magic was. In big cities it could flood the senses and make it hard to stay focused. It was however turning out to be quite useful in this situation. "Four behind the carts on the left!" He barked, and the Ohl'Tar soldiers immediately opened fired. Tyen felt a sting on one of his ears and a sound like wire snapping followed right after. His anger flared up uncontrollably and before he could stop himself he lashed out with his mind sending the nearest building up in flames.

Cho'Gall and the two Ohl'Tar jumped in surprise rounding to face the building obviously thinking it was a threat. Slightly embarrassed, Tyen didn't attempt to explain. Instead he reined in his thoughts and addressed the Count. "Cho'Gall may I enquire as to what we are doing here? We have no militaristic support, and are surrounded by potential enemies which, I mean no offense Rodger, we can barley tell apart but for the fact that some shoot at us and others don't. And the air support cant distinguish us either." He paused to let the thoughts sink in. All the while they were moving from cover to cover attempting to reach an ally or a corner for a more tactical position. "Lord Dine informed me that we could call for an airlift from the city with this flare. I recommend that we retreat to the outskirts where we can, at the very least, organize the Brigade." He handed the flare to Cho'Gall during the brief pause and waited for his choice.

-----

Castle Eliria

"Adrashir, are you sure that there is no way to get a visual of the location? This is slightly ridiculous. I mean those Natopians have colonies on Tarsica and we don't even have a single satellite at our disposal. No point in dwelling on that though." Leo was pacing back and forth nervously while the Khan watched calmly from a chair politely following him with his head. Leo paused when he noticed this a brief questioning thought pilfering through for a moment. I wonder how much of his putting up with me is an act? He shook his head. Not important right now.

"The situation is becoming serious. Well its not like that isn't obvious or anything, but we have to act soon. If I understand you correctly, the count just barged right on into the city? I hope Tyen will keep them safe for the time being. Also the regiment you dispatched doesn't even have a goal beyond 'shoot the bugs'. Its not funny Khan! There good Ohl'Tar among them too.

The first order of business, however, should be ensuring that this fighting spreads no further. If these rebel Ohl'Tar land in the Iles we will have twice the problem we do now. Also we have to discover who their true leader is, seeing as the one we met was obviously just a decoy. I still can't believe that they never even planed to negotiate. Have they no honor?"

Leo seemed to notice the Khan looking at him with what might pass for a weary smile. "Ah. Yes. You are the expert in these matters, what is your opinion?"

[Aurangzeb Khan]

"The Panopticon Horus is moving into position to provide coverage of the theatre, we should have a good idea of the situation on the ground shortly. The trouble is that there is no clear front line, and no ready way of distinguishing the friendly bugs from the rest... we should ideally seek to engage the rebel Ohl'tar in the relatively open countryside or else identify their nests and tunnel networks for counter-attacks that will draw off their forces from Vijayanagara."

[Cho'Gall]

Rodger slowly rose from his cover. "I'm fine by the way," he said, "Don't worry about me." As he rose a giant shard of shrapnel showed stuck in his back, centimeters away from harm. Rodger pulled out flask and took a long drink from it. He then looked at the four people shooting at him. He shrugged, lifted up his rifle, and shot one in the head. The three other now distracted by this new threat. Cho'gall responded by shooting another one, leaving two remaining. "Quiet please," said the count, "I'm trying not to die."

The two more Ohl'tar realizing they were outnumbered, began to retreat.

Handing of the flare back to Tyen the count said, "Look, if you want to leave I'm not stopping you, but I wont stand by and watch these extremists and Ardashir murder my kinsman. You can do whatever you want, but I wont have the blood of these people on my hands. Now shut your muzzle, or get back to your shepherd, Woof Woof."

With that the count signaled Rodger to come out of cover. Rodger sprinted forward to the group and took another sip from his flask. The count then turned the corned and opened up the door to the Butter Church. He waved for his entourage to follow, and all complied, all but Tyen.

[Leo Fenrir]

Woof Woof! The nerve! It took every ounce of self control that Tyen possessed to keep himself from incinerating the man on the spot. Cho'Gall waited for a moment to see his reaction when he noticed the werewolf go distant for a moment, almost as if listening to a far off voice. "Count Agnesia. I understand your position but let me try one last time to save your miserable arse. The Panopticon is reaching its position and should become visible within a few moments. The southern part of the city, where we are presently, has been declared forsaken and as soon as that ship is in place Leo has ordered that the entire area be bombarded. This is your last chance to get out."

Cho'Gall was obviously not pleased with this news. "And how in the world do you know all that?"

"Fido just told me of course."

"Fido?" Said the Count with a look of incredulity.

"Yes Fido. The Baron's Wraith? Now I leave you this." He handed the flare back. "And I will be taking my leave. If you need me I shall have communications open aboard the Panopticon." With that Tyen vanished leaving the Count and the Ohl'Tar behind.

[Cho'Gall]

"Fucking mutt," the count mumbled as he shot the flare skywards.
"Sir, we're leaving?" Rodger asked.

"Well Rodger, it appears the Baron needs some sense slapped into him, and I'm going to have to do it," the count said, reluctantly grabbing the ladder to the giant overhead zepplin. "You folks come aboard, I can tell that you're not keen on finding more survivors, this stupid bubble will fly you out of the city," the count said. Derick and Jim were happy to comply, but Rodger was more resentful.

As soon as they were all aboard, a soldier was quick to greet them, "Welcome sir to the Pan-" said the soldier before he was interrupted.
"Where's the comsat?" the count asked, obviously enraged.
"Sir if you'd just comply with the protocol-" the soldier started again.
The count grabbed him from the collar and slammed him on the wall.
"I give a shit about your protocol?" the count said, making no attempt to be subtle or comply with the law, "WHERE IS THE COMSAT!?"
The soldier gestured towards a hallway, upon doing so the count dropped him and quickly rushed down that hallway. At the end of the hallway there was a large television screen with several computer terminals. The count promptly pressed the number for Leo Dine.

[Leo Fenrir]

The war room in castle Eliria was empty for all but two people. Leo and a commander of the Elwynn Brigade stood looking at a large screen that was currently displaying the live feed from the Panopticon. The city was a mess. That was an understatement to say the least, but finding the right word to describe what he was seeing was proving difficult for Leo.

"Are you sure there is no other way commander?"

"No Lord Dine. For whatever reason they seem to be focusing solely on the city."

"Can we not mass-sedate them or something?"

The commander sighed. "That would be impossible Lord Dine."

"And your positive that we can't wait for the Khan to get back to give the order?"

"Are you willing to let the situation get any further out of hand then it already is? Sir if we do not move now there will be more death reported by the time the sun sets."

The Baron looking slightly dejected, sighed. "Very well. Give the order."

At the same moment the tely-com buzzed. The commander picked up the receiver and immediately pulled it away as he was bombarded by a stream of colorful insults that made the hair on the backs of both men stand on end. "Its the Count Agnesia Lord Dine. He doesn't sound none to pleased."

"Yes I heard, thank you." The receiver passed hands and Leo set it to his ear and prepared himself.

[Cho'Gall]

Leo braced himself for a verbal torrent, but was surprised when the count began to speak calmly.

"Tell me Leo, for someone who claims to abhor war and violence, you seem to be handling this genocide with such efficiency that the Fuhrer should be proud."

"Count-" Leo said before he was interrupted by the seemingly gentle voice of the count. His voice played through the speaker gentle, yet it was but a facade, for the pent up rage began to seep into the counts voice.

"Leo, I should ask that you refrain from interrupting me, lest I should lose my temper and cauou deafness. Now I'm going to ask you to stop this bombing before you kill several hundred living Ohl'tar in their homes."

Leo prepared to voice his rebuttal, as if he knew the count would say this, "Count, I understand that there will be some collateral damage, but there is simply no other way to remove these Ohl'tar from the overrun lower half of the city."

"Leo, do you know the sound a sheep makes when you shear off its skin? They say you can hear every single piece of tissue tear from the body. Then you hear one final Baaaah, and the sheep collapses on the ground," the count said, again in a eerily gentle tone that frightened everyone in the comsat room.

Leo responded hastily and angrily, "Count of Agnesia, you would do well to stop mentioning these destructive thoughts, I will pardon you this time, as I can understand-"

"Understand?" the Count responded, "perhaps if your prized flock of sheep were in Alumelith, and you would have to order their destruction, then you might 'understand,' but don't you ever attempt to calm me down with your lies and your false guilt for destroying these people, as you let Ardashir do whatever the FUCK he pleases," the count's voice began to get louder, "and you and the men in Elira continue to go about when he-" but the count stopped, because a hand was placed on his shoulder.

Rodger took the phone from the counts hands and spoke humbly to the Baron.
"Mr. Baron, I have seen to multitude of soldiers that you face in the lower city, and I know that a burden such as this should not be placed upon the shoulders of men or Ohl'tar alike. I feel obliged to tell you, that I have served Elwynn for as long as I have lived, and I have never done anything to harm or kill sheep, but my wife and my child are in that city, and if you destroy them, I can no longer call Nordland my home. That is all."

And Rodger handed the phone back to the count.

OOC: Because I just graduated high school and exams are beginning very soon, I may be inactive for longer periods at a time.

[Leo Fenrir]

The Baron was experiencing a barrage of mixed emotions. "Count, I acknowledge my hypocrisy on the matter but in situations such as these logic must take precedence over all else." The whine of metal being bent out of shape was audible as, presumably, the com piece acted as the recipient for Cho'Gall's anger. "It is not my wish to lose loyal subjects such as the Ohl'Tar who remain true to Nordland, but the city must be dealt with. Now before you lose your temper with me I offer you a solution.

The city is forsaken, that cannot be rectified. And forces have been called upon to deal with the threat that will arrive in a few days. The Elwynn Brigade is rallying to the meet the rebel fronts in the plains and Cora is currently en-rout to the central spawning ground. The pieces on the board which will be key to defeating the rebels are moving into place. Time is the last restraint."

The count who had done an astounding job at retaining himself to this point interjected angrily. "You self-righteous bastard! The world is not a board to be played on! The people are not pawns in your game! You condemn a populous for what? The number of legs they have? The size of their abdomen? That city is still full of innocents!"

"Silence!" Leo roared. And there was silence. "I warn you Count that my tolerance for your obvious lack of respect for position draws thin. Now you shall let me finish. Time is the last barrier for the decisive attack. It is this time that I accord to you." The was a confused silence that replaced the silence. There is an important distinction to draw here seeing that a confused silence is a relative thing, usually distinguished by the whispers, which is again a relative term seeing as everyone one in the room can usually hear it, of 'whatthefuckdidhesay?'. "In two days time with the arrival of the YMS Kaiser Mors V I will order the final assault on all fronts which will be spearheaded by the launch of the Ikol. You have two days time to evacuate as many Ohl'Tar as you can, via the Horus Panopticon or by boat, to Wolfraven."

I will contact the Horus two hours prior to the launch of the Ikol so that it will not be caught in the explosion by which time I strongly suggest that you be on board a vessel getting as far from that place as possible. I will order a stop on the air strikes for now but anything that tries to leave the city without displaying the flags that will be provided to you by the crew of the Horus will be shot on sight.

I wish you the best of luck Count. May the great sheep guide you." With that the Baron set down the receiver.

[Cho'Gall]

Almost in shock, the count dropped his receiver to the floor. He quickly turned towards Rodger and gave a quick nod followed by both of them rushing out of the room and down the hall.

The count came upon a soldier making a patrol. "Is there any armored vehicle on this ship soldier?" the count asked.
The soldier replied; "I believe there is a APC in the-"

"That'll do," the count said, "Could you take us to it? Please hurry, it's urgent."
Without response the soldier walked down the hallway towards the motor pool. The hallway opened up into a large hanger. Metal walls surrounded a enormously high ceiling. Armored cars, tanks and planes were parked into specially designed places. Oil stained floors continued uninterrupted until lowering plates adorned the middle of the hanger.

Looking at a armored car, the count decided on the one with the best capacity. "Can you pilot one of these?" the count asked the soldier who replied affirmatively. "Okay, we're going to drop this into Alumelith to look for survivors," the count said. The soldier signaled for Rodger and the count to get into the vehicle. The pilot climbed in after the two and brought up his radio. He uttered a few words, and then began to drive the armored vehicle onto the platform. The platform lowered the APC down to city.

"We have forty-eight hours," the count dryly stated, "After that they blow up the southern section. Also radio the remaining units in the Horus, tell them to deploy and form up at the butter church. We're going to meet them there"

The platform lowered to the ground and the soldier began to drive towards the large Church complimented by ornaments of cow utters.

The count and Rodger exited the vehicle.

[Aurangzeb Khan]

(OOC: Is an infantry company complete with armoured personnel carriers (or armoured cars, tanks and planes) likely to be kept on what is in effect a bloody Zeppelin albeit one filled with all manner of fancy electronics? As the "owner" of the Panopticon I can assure you that the answer is no. Reconsider where you find your search party and its relative strength.)

[Leo Fenrir]

The last two days had gone by excruciatingly slowly for Leo as the anticipated call crept closer and closer. Reports of groups of Ohl'Tar carrying Cho'Gall's flags leaving the city had been coming in hourly. The Count had apparently taken his words to heart. According to the reports, the number of Ohl'Tar escaping was reaching the thousands. The Baron cringed as he thought of how many of those would have died had he called the strike earlier. The Khan wouldn't have hesitated though...

Someone tapped his shoulder, disrupting his musings. Setting down the paper Leo rose and followed the man who announced that his presence was required. When they reached the war room the men snapped to attention to greet him. The captain who had previously perusing the map was the first to speak. "Lord Dine the YMS Kaiser Mors V has just reported that it is in position."

"What of Cora?"

"The Khan was the one who handled the mission, at least his subordinates were, so he will have the details."

"Speaking of which. Where in the Great Sheep's name is that man!"

"Right here I would hope!" Said the Khan as he made a dramatic entrance. "The trip from Echo took a slight bit longer then I had hoped."

Leo smiled as one smiles when they meet death. A warm smile that welcomes an old friend who will inevitably be the one to take your life. "Ardashir your timing is impeccable! Would you be so kind as to give the order to launch the Ikol?"

In some perverse way this alternative suited Leo's conscience just fine. I hope the Count has made it out though.

[Aurangzeb Khan]

"Leo, I shall do so on the morrow. We await now the opportune moment. Pansarkompani Janavasper has crossed the border from Wintergleam into Agnesia and the Fältkompani is at sea, having left Wolfraven embarked upon the Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellahand the Nave Grado. I cannot begin to tell you the difficulties I had commandeering those.

You have received I trust the overview of the plan for Operation Tyrannos? Have your forces ready to move by first light. I am confident that we have the forces now to end this war in an emphatic victory."

Leo looked at him in the doubtful manner that could only be obtained by one whose height of theological speculation was the acclamation of a one supreme deity that was of the nature ovine.

"Of course if the plan miscarries - not that it will - we have the Theatre Reserve... I trust you don't object to your Manor becoming the Forward Operations Base for the campaign?"

[Cho'Gall]

The count was busy evacuating the city when he received a phone call.

"Count, this is Tyen."

Oh great, thought the count, "What do you want, and this better be pretty fucking important."

"Oh nothing, seems that the Baron will be leveling the city in-" and the phone cut off, for the count hung up, because he was calling the baron.

"Hello?" the baron picked up.

"If the city goes down, I will come over to your house, grab your sheep by the neck and SHOW YOU, the sound that I told you about," the count said, clearly angry.

"Count calm down-"

"Don't tell me to calm down you IDIOT. I swear to you every drop of innocent Ohl'tar blood you shed, will be repaid, by sheep blood or by your kin," and he hung up breaking the small screen on the outside of his phone. It then occurred to him. He went to his contact list and found the entry marked

Ardashir >:(((((((

Dialing...

[Aurangzeb Khan]

"I'm sorry but the number you are dialling is currently not available. Please try again later. We are experiencing a high volume of calls at this time. Please try again later. If you are in the Vijayanagra District please note that network coverage may be adversely effected by the impending destruction of all urban infrastructure in a square mile radius. We hope you have a pleasant day. Please try again later."

[Leo Fenrir]

Almost moments after the phone in Leo's hand had gone silent a second ring tone sounded in the room. The Khan looked momentarily surprised. Not many people had his personal number. "It must be him..." Ardshir took out the phone and looked at the caller ID. The block letters spelt out 'The Fool From Up North'. "I'll just forward this to the 'unwanted aracnopheilica hotline' made for the occasion."

The planning continued.

[Andreas the Wise]

"If you can pull this off, you will be a hero."
"How much time do I have to work with? Magic is not a solution to everything, and I cannot guarantee I will get everyone out if I've only got an hour or two."
"You have twenty three hours."
"Where do ..." Andreas began to ask, but the phone had already clicked dead. Cho'Gall must be going to organise the evacuation already. Well, he would be with him shortly.

Despite his own personal hopes, Andreas knew that magic was not the solution to all the worlds problems. Though magic could make war a lot more non-violent, it could equally be more destructive - it did not, in itself, make you a good person. And magic could not determine guilt or innocence, nor make thgs fair, nor fulfil a number of other crucial parts of life. But what it could do was get people from A to B in a hurry, if they didn't mind arriving with no possessions and indeed no clothes on, and if they didn't mind traipsing halfway across a city by whatever means possible because only the most powerful mages could do what Andreas was about to do. That meant, at the moment, two possible mages in Shireroth. Him and Willow. At least she was happy to do it. It wouldn't be much good without her ...

Andreas had ignored the conflicts in Elwynn after dealing with the possession of Duke Allot. He did not like to be a position where the Khan legally had the power to question him, or give him orders. But then all the news on EBR had been about the impending Ohl'Tar genocide, and even if Andreas believed they were probably sadly mistaken when they thought themselves 47000 years old, he couldn't turn a blind eye to another Khan-inspired genocide in Elwynn. And so, when he had heard that Count Cho'Gall had been given time to evacuate but that there were still many people to be evacuated and time was almost run out ... well ... he felt morally obliged to offer his services. He hadn't realised quite how many people there were (a quarter of a million, by some counts!) but he and Willow would at least make a difference, if they couldn't save everyone. They were both powerful enough mages to shift willing people instantly - and with the number of people they had to shift, it would need to be instantaneous. If he'd had warning, he could have produced the necessary items to allow others to shift faster (as he had to all citizens in Novatainia, as a matter of course), but so be it. He and Willow would have to be the heroes ... again. At least this time all possible Khan operatives in the city would be far away by now, and he and Willow would be back in Kildare before the missile struck. He had made that clear to Cho'Gall - these were not people he was responsible for, and he would not sacrifice the life of his mages to get them out. When the missile was launched, they would leave, no matter how many more people were left. But until then ...

And so, several minutes after the phone had hung up, he and Willow, along with Cla'Udi, Lucinda, David and Mel'Kat, were in the town in question, ready to evacuate Ohl'Tar. The four other mages had the power to teleport themselves out instantly, if not others, and would be useful support in organising the approaching evacuees. Andreas and Willow would have their attention fully occupied with recasting a difficult spell as many times over as they could ...

Cho'Gall had nominated two points in the city which the Ohl'Tar would assemble at. Andreas and Willow each made their way to one of them - she with Lucinda and David, he with the Melangians. Then they prepared to pull off what was probably one of the most difficult bits of spell casting in recent Shirithian history - the evacuation of the Ohl'Tar before the genocide. But they still needed a destination, and the Ohl'Tar to actually make their way to where the mages were. Andreas and Willow were ready - now they waited for Cho'Gall to deliver ...

[Aurangzeb Khan]

(OOC: Irritated sigh and mutterings about the Deus ex Machina interventions of "magic"... )

The readings on the Panopticon Horus' paranormal anomaly scanners spiked dramatically with the arrival of the four witches in Vijayanagara. The findings were passed up the chain of command to the Brigadgeneral in Eliria who found himself wondering what form of implausible intervention he would have to contend with this time.

As a precaution, and being determined to make their lives "interesting" he brought forward the launch of the Ikol. (OOC: No it hasn't launched yet though).

[Andreas the Wise]

OOC: It only looks like a Deus ex Machina because you're treating it as such. NCM (indeed, any magic charter) has more rules dealing with magic and its use in war alone than any of the traditional recwar charters has dealing with the whole of war. In that vein, I would have serious doubts that the panopticon would have the abilities to detect magic that was specifically bound in Gralus and has only been in use (in that bound form) for six months, especially considering that within that time its use in Shireroth has been restricted to five outposts in Kildare, and Elwynn within the last couple weeks. (Oh, and the fact that all the magic occurs on the Astral Plane, which is insensible to non-magical people ...) Even in Gralus, the detecting of magic by non-magical technology on the Material Plane is only contemplated as advanced futuristic technology (and I don´t think anyone´s invested in it yet, even so). But we´re not doing this as any sort of proper war thing, so I won´t hold you to treating magic in any realistic manner. Besides, if I tried to you´d only make some sort of dithering, dismissive comment and probably will anyway

[Aurangzeb Khan]

OOC: In lieu of having you burnt at the stake along with every copy of the NCM that can be found... dismissive comments will have to suffice. Oh and I can assure you that the Panopticons paranormal detection equipment was finely calibrated by a virtual army of budding lay-line enthusiasts... keen as mustard the lot of them... mad as hatters too but for the sake of argument we'll let that pass

[Aurangzeb Khan]

Anyway...

"Leo!"

"What now? I'm trying to eat this lovingly crafted bacon sandwich..."

"Yes I'm sure it's delectable. We've got Kildarean Mages on the ground in Vijayanagara..."

"What? How could you possibly know that..."

"Well the paranormal detectors on the Panopticon..."

"Great Sheep preserve us in His Flock. These would be the same sensors which told you yesterday that a boiling kettle was in fact poltergeist activity?"

"Hey - the jury is still out on that..."

"Sure. Anything else?"

"Well, there was that and the fact I've just had an out of body experience arguing with the shade of one of the mages..."

"Could be something in it then."

"Could be. Have the Häxatrupperna investigate..."

K/K1/H Häxatrupperna
1 x High Mage Wraith (Fido) (1780)
1 x High Mage Angel (Cora) (1890)
1 x High Mage Werewolf (Tyen)(1970)
(1,128 erb / 5,640pts)

"Grand.. what about the missile?"

"Hmm?"

"The missile? The one that's going to slam into the city at some point in the next 24 hours...."

"Oh... well that's not going to harm Fido is it..."

"Point taken..."

[Cho'Gall]

The mages were congregating when a man drenched in sweat and blood began walking towards them. Andreas thought, "What could this hobo be doing here?" However he soon figured out that this was the count of Agnesia. The count stopped in front of them.

"I thank you ladies and gentlemen for coming. This is how the situation is," saying this, the count withdrew a pen from his pocket and began to scrawl a crude map of the city on his hand, "Because I was told that Ardashir and Leo were only intent on bombing the lower half of the city, most of the citizens from the southern district have been evacuated. There only remains a population of 1,200 people. They should be evacuated within the hour. The problem being the northern half of the city," the count began to point to the upper half of the diagram,"you see, the upper half contains most of the newer structures, such as the Cedrist church and the Sheeps church. These structures are built stronger and contain most of the civilian population. The towns militia has been able to keep the rebels at bay in this northern half, mainly because the northern half is the non residential secto. However if the missile should drop, I fear Every Ohl'tar to the north will perish."

"So what are we to do?" David asked.

"Well," the count began to reply as he made two dots across the upper part of the city,"The militia has been ordered to move the civilians to these points. These points on the wall are the furthest from the front as possible. The rebels should be too distracted with our militia that they should not notice the mass evacuations. This plan is to put as little Kildareans in danger as possible. The last thing I want to do is put you near the front line. These points are equidistant from each other, with about a mile between each of them. There are about 248,000 Ohl'tar remaining in the upper half of the city. If spread evenly across you mages, it comes out roughly to 124,000 Ohl'tar per point. Time is of the essence, and I fear as soon as Ardashir gets wind of this he will attempt to stop it."

"Your plan is a bold one count, I should hope I will see you again on better circumstances," Andreas said.

"I do to, now if you will excuse me I need to keep evacuating the southern half, Good luck to you all," the count said, and he was off again.

[Leo Fenrir]

Leo had returned to his quarters to rest before the launch, not having slept in a day and a bit. A small pop accompanied by the appearance of a scrap of paper interrupted him half way through brushing his teeth. He picked up the letter which a compressed scrawl of black ink claimed was from Andreas.

It was a short letter, it outlined the theory behind instantaneous shifting and the requirements to work the magic. Aparently Cora, Tyen, and Fido, being rank 12 mages and all, were inherently capable of working the magic, though they may not know it yet. The implications were clear. They could help with the evacuation. There was one thing though that worried him. Leo was surprised by the implications that he may respond to the letter in a less then amicable fashion. Had he left that bad an impression on the mage?

It seemed that he would be denied his repose for the time being. He found his coat which had been tossed into a corner of the room and pulled out a whistle. He had had it crafted by a mage so that it existed on both planes and could produce sound on both. He blew it and waited. Seconds later Fido popped into existence and Leo explained the situation. He was to find Tyen and both were to report to Andreas in the city. Anything they could do to help before the launch. Fido disappeared leaving behind an exhausted man.

-----

Andrea's 'scry self' spell detected the two entities moments before they arrived. The figure of a man with disturbingly golden eyes and a glowing sphere of energy came into existence. "Ah Tyen and Fido I presume. Is Cora with you as well?"

Tyen was the one to answer the mage. "She is currently working another front of the war so you will have to make do with the two of us. The Baron wishes that I impart a message to you. You are to direct the two of us in any way you see fit to aid the escaping Ohl'Tar and that we must be out of the city at a minimum of thirty minutes before the launch. Leo also wishes that I offer his most humble apologies for anything that may have led you to believe that he regarded you as nothing less then an esteemed friend and hopes that you will come for tea after this is over."

It was at that moment that a group of rebel Ohl'Tar broke cover and began firing on the group. Almost instantly the group burst into flames of vibrant colors as the multiple defensive spells stuck simultaneously. Completely unfazed Andreas then addressed the two mages.

[Andreas the Wise]

Andrea's 'scry self' spell detected the two entities moments before they arrived. The figure of a man with disturbingly golden eyes and a glowing sphere of energy came into existence. "Ah Tyen and Fido I presume. Is Cora with you as well?"

Tyen was the one to answer the mage. "She is currently working another front of the war so you will have to make do with the two of us. The Baron wishes that I impart a message to you. You are to direct the two of us in any way you see fit to aid the escaping Ohl'Tar and that we must be out of the city at a minimum of thirty minutes before the launch. Leo also wishes that I offer his most humble apologies for anything that may have led you to believe that he regarded you as nothing less then an esteemed friend and hopes that you will come for tea after this is over."

It was at that moment that a group of rebel Ohl'Tar broke cover and began firing on the group. Almost instantly the group burst into flames of vibrant colors as the multiple defensive spells stuck simultaneously. Completely unfazed Andreas then addressed the two mages.
[quote]
"Mel´Kat, ensure thbels do not get up here again. It would delay the evacuations too much."
Mel´Kat nodded, and made his way off. Andreas turned back to the mages.
"Someone up there must like your master," Andreas said, jovially. "Here was me worrying that he was about to condemn his soul to Balgurd by invoking this Khanage on the Ohl´Tar´s, and it turns out he´s happy to help. Not to mention that it was the Khan himself who sent you here. Now, what rank are you?"
"Rank?" Tyen asked, slightly confused.
"You were trained at an ANOVA, surely? They must have explained ranks ... you know, DC and all that?"
"Ah," Tyen said, understanding. "We´re both Rank 12."
"Capital!" Andreas said. "You´ll be fair more helpful than I could have hoped. You both have the potential to instantaneously shift people. We can set up four points the Ohl´Tar can congregate at, instead of two! We can have them evacuated in half the time." He glanced at his watch. "And it looks like we´ll need it, if your reports of the Khan´s intentions in bringing it forward are true. Now, you should both be familiar with the concept of shifting someone to the Astral Plane? I´m going to teach you something they wouldn´t have taught you at the ANOVA. At your rank, you can do it instantaneously."
He spent a short time teaching them the necessary incantations and actions, while Cla´Udi organised the Ohl´Tar who were beginning to arrive into a form in which Andreas could easily teleport them away, and explaining what would happen.
"You two find the Count," Andreas told Tyen and Fido, "and inform him of your services. He´ll know where best to use you. If you can travel to spots the Ohl´Tar are already congregating at, that would probably help speed things up."
"Of course, we are at your service," Fido said, bowing. "But you have neglected to inform us of a destination."
"So has the count ..." Andreas muttered.
"I heard something about Cimmll island?" Andreas said. "Sending half a million people there will surely be too much for it to handle."
"If I may, my Baron," Cla´Udi interjected. "The forests of Vervollkomung, apart from being forests, are a relatively `empty´ area. There are room for many, many more creatures in them than those that currently occupy it."
"That´s what I like about you, Cla´Udi," Andreas replied, grinning. "A wise and historically-precedented proposal. Contact Willow via scrying. Fido and Tyen will send their Ohl´Tar to Cimmeria, and she and I will send ours to Vervollkomung. We can always move them to somewhere more suitable after this incident is over, but for now, I think keeping them outside of the Khan´s reach is a good thing."
"Agreed," Tyen and Fido said. Then they made their way off to find the Count.

Andreas, meanwhile, turned to the assembled Ohl´Tar. "Ready to go?"
"If you can pull this off as you say, mage, you will be a hero, and your praise will be sung for all time," the lead one replied. But others looked wary.
"What´s your name?" Andreas asked.
"Cha´Lam," came the reply.
"Well, Cha´Lam, I´ll send you through first, while my friend here sets up a magical viewing window so that everyone can see where you go. You can give them the all clear, and then we´ll be off."
Cha´Lam nodded at this, and Cla´Udi set up a scrying spell on a clearing in the forests of Vervollkomung.
"Now, when you´re there, you need to move away from where you landed as quick as possible, because I will soon be sending a lot of people to the clearing very quickly. Can you handle moving them out from it and into the nearby woods? As long as they´re out of the clearing, they won´t inhibit further evacuation," Andreas said. Cha´Lam nodded again. "Brave man ... Ohl´Tar," Andreas corrected. "Well, have fun." And then Cha´Lam suddenly disappeared from view. There was a gasp from the crowd.
"Note to self," Andreas mut not hear - they were looking at the spell Cla´Udi had set up, and saw Cha´Lam scuttle away from where he had landed, and then make a signal with his front leg, the Ohl´Tar equivalent of a thumbs up.
"We´re away then," Andreas said. He held out his arms and pointed them at the Ohl´Tar. "Today, everyone lives!" And the evacuation commenced.

[Aurangzeb Khan]

R1/Pk1 Pansarkompani "Janavasper"* Forward Operating Base, The Agnesian-Wintergleam Border

"I hope you gentlemen realise that this will be the last mutton we are likely to enjoy in this war, what with the sheep having the wit to talk long enough to stay the butcher´s knife."

A wry appreciative laugh reverberated softly round the table where four Lieutenants, a Captain and a Major of the Elwynnbrigaden sat. All present were casting greedy eyes over shoulders of mutton set on a bed of couscous, each sumptuous delight being set on an individual silver tray placed before the wolfishly hungry officers. The atmosphere in the marquee was ripe with the salivating of six sets of mouths keen with anticipation at the feast to follow.

In the centre of the table was a wood burner and beside it the sandalwood fuel and the frankincense which would give the smoke its rich aroma. Beside each tray of mutton and couscous there were also plates of more modest fare; eggs, bread, coconut, dried fruit and halva. Also each officer had by his right hand a gold goblet containing a luscious ruby red liquid, the finest Shiraz wine from the old country, and by their left hand a silver bowl containing sherbet.

It had been the Major, Hosnik Rai, who had spoken, enjoying the role of good host that events had pressed upon him. It was always going to be something of a challenge, replicating the dignity and opulence of an Elwynnbrigaden High Officer´s Mess out in the field, but he felt that he had risen adequately to the task. Or rather his sahayak (orderly) had. The marquee was hung with fine Babkhan tapestries depicting reproductions of the works of the Old Masters of Vey who dealt exclusively with episodes of verified history such as the `Humiliation of Diga by Babak the Benevolent before the Walls of Morovia´ & `The Apmvari, ascending into Ameretat in Glory (We Are All Namvari)´. The dirt floor was covered by looping knot long-weave carpets of the Zjandarian fashion, which showed in ornate detail, tending towards abstraction, certain noteworthy episodes from Elwynnese history such as `The White Stag, Lulled by the Maiden, at Bay before the Spear of Baron Osmani´ amongst others.

Everyone however seemed to pay little heed to the fine furnishings, being instead more intent on devouring the equally fine, indeed perhaps finer, meal that had been laid out before them. The Major however, as host, had first to sanctify the meal before the serial gluttony could begin.

"Lord Zurvan, by whose grace we are all Namvari, I commend this humble meal so that all here present might enjoy this repast in peace and ease.
Order our lives by your wisdom, and care for our needs by your bounty.
Enable us to live in peace with one another, so that we can help each other in our work.
Take from us all threat of war and famine.
Make our animals fat and healthy, and make our crops grow abundantly.
In each village set a man of honesty as chief, and let every person respect his authority.
Above all, make us holy in all our thoughts and words and deeds.
Ashem-Vohu."

"Ashem-Vohu" replied all present, and at that very instant myriad hands reached forward with greedy abandon and began to tear lumps of greasy roasted flesh from the platters before them.

It was certainly a spectacle to behold. The servants who circled the table with refills of wine and sherbet could only look on in mute despair as the officers seemed intent upon devouring everything in sight, leaving nothing for them to scavenge as they cleared away afterwards.

At length the sustained bout of gluttony, which was in itself quite an energetic exercise, began to subside - the thoughts of the officers turning towards their `field wives´, female secretaries and auxiliaries who had found themselves engaged in anotheten enough quite against their inclination but which they were nonetheless sternly informed was covered by the phrase `and any other duties commensurate with their rank or grade´ in their terms of service - and never had service seemed so onerous. In any event, with those thoughts in mind, the officers began to make their feeble excuses to quit the Major´s company. Not that the Major minded, he had matters to attend to of his own, though they were not a similar base nature to the others.

With the last of the Lieutenants departed the Captain, who served as the Major´s executive officer, also rose from the table, having the good manners to burp first in gratitude for what had, in all honesty, been a fine meal, before making to leave.

The Major bid him to sit again.

"So, Kouros," for that was the Captain´s name "are we ready for the off tomorrow?"

"Indeed, very much Sir. More wine." The last part being addressed to a servant rather than the commanding officer. "The technical problems experienced at Novaya Sorensk have given us additional time to prepare. The Panzers will lead out the company in column tomorrow."

"And reconnaissance? What scouts will we have?"

"I am assured that the Flygkompani will provide a couple of Hueys to act as a screen for the column as it heads north."

"No Apaches?"

"Unfortunately no. Eliria informed us that the Luftjägarkompani will be needed up at Vijayanagara."

"A shame, but that is understandable - there will be quite an `aftermath´ to contend with once that blasted rocket gets off the ground, should it ever manage the feat."

"Oh they assure me it will, Sir."

"Very good. Make a tour of the stockade, make sure the guard is turned out and vigilant, then you may retird the Captain without an ounce of conviction, rising as he did so from the table to leave just as the servant returned with a fresh goblet brimming with wine.

Nonplussed, the servant turned around to take the wine away when the Major clicked his fingers and in a rapid motion held out his hand for the cup to be handed to him instead.

"Well there is no point being wasteful" he said to no one in particular as he brought the cup up to his lips.

*R1/Pk1 Pansarkompani "Janavasper", Eliria Brigade Depot
x40 OAH Zadari Light Tank (1,400)
x400 Light Infantry (400)
x15 OAH Zor Armoured Anti-Air (300)
x10 OAH Musharref APC (100)
x10 OAH Jinnah Light Gun (100)
x10 Gentlemen-at-Cudgels (Mediaeval) (10)

[Leo Fenrir]

"Things are moving smoothly Överste Dine." Leo nodded to the captan. He still wasn't quite sure what half the words the Khan had implemented as titles meant but he had yet to let on to that fact, having memorized which of the alien phrases directly applied to him. "The SDI has announced that the launch will not be delayed any longer."

"Ah, some good news at last. Thank you Capten." The Baron dismissed him and looked back at the giant map of the Vijayanagara area. Despite the impending launch there was still much to do to secure their position on the field. His first priority was to mobilize the forces. Already groups of rebel Ohl'Tar had begun to make breaks for the relative safety of the fields. Word of the launch was spreading through the city just as fast as the fire that was consuming it, stirring up fear and turmoil.

"Ok." He addressed the men in the room who were the captains that led were in charge of the Elwwehr division. "Our objective is to fence in the city until the Ikol arrives. A defensive cordon if you wish. Since the populous is being evacuated via the mages we can no safely give the order to shoot on sight. It is estimated from data collected from the Horus that there remain many thousands of rebels in the city. Should they learn of the fate of the city and try to storm out a one massive force we have the Theater Reserve to back us up. But whatever happens, we can not break ranks. This barricade," at this point Leo picked up a pen and drew a solid line around the perimeter of the city, "must a solid wall upon which the Ohl'Tar will break. We must withstand the tides of war and be steadfast. Now is our time to fight the currents and turn this war around-" There was a polite cough and Leo stopped, slightly startled. "I'm sorry I got a bit carried away. It seems to be a bad habit."

The Baron took the silence as his cue to continue. "Once the cordon is in place we play the waiting game with time. The war wont end with the missile though. I should dissuade you of that notion immediately. Yes Vijayanagara had the largest concentration of Ohl'Tar, but there still exist small factions scattered across the fields of Agnesia. I was also to task your forces with the preliminary screening of the escaped Ohl'Tar to ensure that none are masquerading rebels, but Tyen has informed that the destination for the loyalists has been changed to the forests of Vervollkomung. Since the forces will not be required to undertake this process anymore you shall remain in Agnesia for a short period to aid with the location and elimination of any remaining rebels."

His briefing finished, the captains began drawing on the map and discussing amongst themselves the best positioning of the forces in relation to the exits to the city. Leo walked over to a screen that was displaying a live feed from the Horus and watched little columns of fire blossom in the city as, presumably, grenades were going off. A brief moment was spent wondering about the fates of Tyen and Fido before his thoughts returned to the Ikol. This had gone on for far too long. Politics and science was where his strengths lay not in war. He picked up the nearest phone and dialed the Khan. It was not Ardashir who responded but a subordinate. The baron asked him to relay the message. "The Elwwehr will be mobilizing within the hour and the evacuation is going smoothly. As soon as we hear of Cho'Gall's situation I think it be best that we not postpone the launch any further." He offered a brief thanks and hung up the phone.

The screen all the while playing out a symphony of reds.

[Cho'Gall]

The patrol was walking through the outskirts of Alumelith, near a forest. Sergeant Derikan was tasked with preventing Ohl'tar from breaking through the line. They were told that reinforcements would be arriving on the morrow. "It's been quiet," the Sergeant Derikan muttered, which seemed to be code for 'be on your guard.' His five men all clutched their rifles.

A shot rang out. The sergeant dropped to a prone position. Jenkins fell towards the ground, with a slug in his head. A series of automatic and rifle fire continued, with the sergeant attempting to push back the rebel forces. Tom was the next to go down, with two shots piercing his gut and his right chest. He gave out a loud scream as his blood soaked the soil, and then he was dead.

A metal grenade landed about 3 feet from the sergeant. Realizing this, dove backwards and clutched the back of his neck, as to minimize the damage. The grenade blew his leg of and the shrapnel killed Buargene. The pain where his leg used to be dulled his senses to the point where he could not see what happened to the other two. The last thing he saw was a spider dressed in green camouflage peering at his comrades corpses.

His phone rang. It was the C.O checking in with the patrol. A black hand reached into the Sergeant's front pocket and withdrew the phone.

"Sergeant Derikan? Sergeant Derikan report!" the Captain said.

"If you vant your friend to hear you, your going to have to speak a little louder," a voice said, followed by a gunshot.

-------------------

The count continuously paced through the streets with Rodger behind him. He had heard that Andreas had nominated Vervollkomung as the refugee camp. Anywhere is better than here, he thought, whilst checking buildings with Rodger to find the remaining survivors. He thought that maybe Echo manor, or better yet Ardashirshahr would be even better, but nevertheless he had to find some way to express gratitude to Andreas afterward. As Rodger broke down the door, the count stormed in with his Eagle pistol, checking any place a rebel could be hiding. Two children stepped forward, and the count signaled for them to come with him. He looked at their backs to make sure they weren't rebels. One could tell because of red lines moving across the back, that was a sign of hyper reproduction.

The children exited the house when they were greeted by the presence of as spectre.

"Hello there children," the children heard telepathically.

"I take it you must be fido, as long as you're not a figment right?"

[Aurangzeb Khan]

The Command Bunker, Castle Eliria

An aide notified the Khan the moment that the Ikol was airborne, launched skywards from its silo down in Lunaris.

Now the tide of the war turns. The Khan smiled bitterly as he thought this. Hardly a moment later the Eliria Ground Radar reported it was tracking the fearsome projectile and Ardashir gave his MoMA authorisation code for the transfer of control of the weapon over to the Elwynnbrigaden for its terminal phase.

"SDI, this is Eliria Ground Control. Uploading Khan Authentication Protocol."
"Eliria Ground Control, authentication confirmed. Congratulation, she's live, she's dangerous and she's yours."

Telemetry remained unbroken after the transfer and a little bit of 'drift' had been deftly corrected.

"Descending 650. Condition S"

Now the risky part - the firing of the solid fuel rockets, effectively marking the point of no return for the Ikol and its warhead.

To those who saw it - it were as though a flaming sword of Damocles had at last broken free of its delicate thread and descended in a sudden rush of wrath and fury upon the hapless city of Vijayanagara.

Alas it subsequently transpired that the telemetry was a little off and the trajectory of the ikol placed its descent somewhere in the Northern Quarter of the city - towards the Butter Church.

The Khan spared a thought for Leo's otherworldly familia, but it was only a passing thought - as far as he was concerned they were weird enough to be perfectly capable of taking care of themselves.

[Andreas the Wise]

The mages had worked all day and long into the night, so long that it was now almost early morning. 'The Night of the Arcane Saviours', the Ohl'Tar were calling it. Those four not directly concerned with teleportational evacuation had checked in regularly both with the Ohl'Tar now in Vervollkomung, and those sent by Fido and Tyen to Cimmeria. Cha'Lam had been a saviour in his own right, coordinating those Ohl'Tar in the forests of Vervollkomung with immense efficiency.

At the height of the evacuation, ranging from an hour after they had arrived, to an hour prior to the current time, they had been evacuating up to five hundred Ohl'Tar each minute, between the four of them - the Ohl'Tar literally running towards them and finding themselves suddenly in a different area. Despite the warnings that items could not be carried with them, many still came clutching personal possessions, or weapons, having fended off rebels on their way there. Such items streamed to the ground as the Ohl'Tar were transported; the other mages, who had the skill to do items instantaneously, if not people, transported these on every so often, in the great piles they had been left in. They could be sorted later. The priority now was lives.

But the evacuation had now slowed to a trickle. Accurate head counts were impossible, but Cla'Udi estimated that Andreas, who he had been with the whole time, had transported over eighty thousand Ohl'Tar alone - hopefully the others had achieved similiar numbers, and the evacuations were ready. Mel'Kat was rather nervously checking the skies, and a permanent light and sound scry had been set up in the air above the launch site at Lunaris. Theoretically, Leo was to warn Tyen and Fido half an hour before the launch, but Andreas had his doubts Leo would be giving such warning. As Andreas had just teleported the last of this group of Ohl'Tar when they heard a boom, and a flash of light came from the rather large scry spell Mel'Kat had set up. A glance was enough. The Ikol was launched, and they had not been warned.

Instantly, mental communications were sent off, and all the mages teleported away. Andreas did not know where Fido and Tyen went, but he and his mages had discussed this and decided that they couldn't, in all fairness, leave now back to Kildare, saving their own skins. Though they might have saved 247, 980 Ohl'Tar, it would be those last twenty (and the dog or cat - you always had to go back for the dog or cat) that people would remember. Well, there was a reasonable chance that anyone who had not received word and evacuated themselves would be hiding somewhere that was very fortified - that would be why they had not received word. But it would probably be another day before conventional forces could get in to dig them out of the rubble. So Andreas and his mages teleported, not back to Kildare, but to Port Illumination. They arrived in time to see the streak of light across the night sky as the Ikol plunged into the city. They imagined they could hear the explosion from Port Illumination, but they could not. They could see the fires though, lighting up the horizon like a second sun, rudely arriving when the first was only due in another half an hour. They would wait until the light of dawn - and take this opportunity to rest for a moment, and eat and drink something - then they would return to the city to search for survivors. Andreas prayed that the Count had finished the evacuation of the southern part and got himself well clear of the city before the missile landed.