A/N Sorry for the slight delay, took a bit longer than expected. Hope it's worth the wait guys, God bless.

A Bard's Inspiration

Being a bard is never all sunshine and rainbows, just like anything else in life I suspect. You always hear about how they lit up taverns with high spirits and songs of honor, how they receive standing ovations from kings and lords alike, changing hearts and minds with nothing more than a song and a smile. What you don't hear about is the things most of us would like to forget. A dying child asking for his favorite song one last time, or a grieving widow begging you to make a song out of her late husband's unfinished poem. They never tell you about the hard days.

Certainly, they would never tell of the cold, cramped chambers that I played in now. The dark wooden chamber seemed almost like a mockery of a venue, the flickering torch light dimming time and time again as the cold winds blew through the open doors. All around me, packed almost shoulder to shoulder were the old, the sick, children, and any others who were either untrained or unable to fight. The fact that we were only one of several storehouses only seemed to make matters worse. For one, it had robbed me of any calming presence from Nala, who had opted to stay at another safe haven, trying to keep them calm. Second, it only made the occasional echo of banging steel and distant screaming more unsettling. I honestly wasn't sure if it would be worse to die first, or hear the other safe haven fall beforeus, knowing we were next.

I almost couldn't even muster up what little motivation I had to play to begin with. Most of the people I'd been roomed up with weren't even paying attention to me, not that I could hardly blame them. Even now I could see that most of them seemed distant, as if lost in some other world or vision, probably hoping they'd never come back to this one. What few who were conscious saw more fit to converse quietly amongst one another, holding loved ones close or messing with cards and dice, anything to get their minds off what was actually happening. If I had to guess, I'd say only four or five people were actually listening to me strum my lute.

Still, those four or five had turned to me to give them peace. When I first started as a bard, I'd be lucky to get ten people paying attention to me. Back in those days, you learned to just focus on those who did show up, rather than the masses that ignored you. The situations obviously weren't the same, but the mindset was just as applicable. So I didn't focus on the twenty some people who paid me no mind. No, instead, I focused on the people in front of me.

The elderly woman with the braid across her chest, smiling as she gently swayed with the music. The young woman who had her eyes shut tight, gently tapping her hand on her lap with each chorus. The man holding protective arms over a familiar looking boy, clinging tightly to his father as he stared blankly at me. Easily my smallest crowd in years, possibly my entire career, and yet to me they mattered all the same. Maybe it was only because this was my way of keeping my mind off what was happening, and maybe it wasn't. I honestly couldn't tell at this point. Heck, if it was, it didn't even really seem to be working. I was still scared to high Heaven of what was coming.

Inevitably, my mind drifted to the events that led me here,. Getting stuck in Morrowgale, desperately trying to find even one person who looked remotely trustworthy. Signing on with some dumb Warden on an honor quest to get his friend back. Getting stabbed by said Warden's old friend, then being abandoned by him once he'd dumped me off at some random castle he'd found. Scared as I was, I couldn't help but smile at that. I suppose it wasn't really fair to blame it all on that dumb Warden. After all, if he was dumb to leave me behind, I was the bigger idiot for chasing after him.

Happier memories played in my mind as I gently shifted songs, thinking back to that first night, playing a song for him by the campfire. I remembered trouncing him in chess, watching him get more and more frustrated with each and every loss. I remembered our kiss, him holding me so tight… Yeah, maybe he'd led me here, but I didn't regret following him. Before long I'd found myself playing that old song yet again, so many nights ago. A song older than Ashfeld, older than Heathmoor, heck, maybe older than the idea of knights itself as far as I knew. But that old song reminded me of Liam, reminded me of his promise. I needed to test him now, and had to trust he would get us out of this.

"Miss?" A soft, young voice asked. Couldn't have been much older than ten, I realized with a smile. Looking back up to my little crowd, I saw the father slowly look down to his boy. Call me dumb for not noticing sooner, but yeah, I did recognize that familiar looking boy. He was the exact same one that had interrupted my practice so many nights ago. With a gentle smile, I pulled my hand away from the strings and rested it atop my instrument, then carefully rested my chin along my hand.

"Yes, Adam?" I asked sweetly. The boy's face lit up as he fidgeted in his fathers arms, no doubt excited that I'd recognized him. Likewise, his father seemed to smile at his boy as he held him right, all while Adam pulled and yanked at him.

"I was wondering if you, you could play that song from the night before? When you were practicing?" He asked. Both of the women seemed amused by the boy's energy, the elder women even laughed a bit. Well, far be it from me to ever deny a request from a patron, even little ones like Adam. I gave the boy a soft chuckle as I lifted my head and looked back down to my lute, smiling as I began to play those first few notes.

Immediately I was transported back to my old home, dad by the fireplace, mom cooking dinner, me resting as I watched the fire crackle. This time, however, the vision didn't seem to last. Continuing to strum, my thoughts seemed to shift to more recent ones. I saw myself playing in front of that big Herongale crowd, Stone and Liam watching from afar, I saw Nala hugging me tight as we laughed together. And again, I saw Liam, leaning in close, taking me in as we held one another.

"You know, Adam…" I said softly, closing my eyes as I let my head sway to the music.

"You asked me once if this was a special song. And the truth is, yeah, it is a special song." I half sang, allowing the images to flow through my mind.

"Is it your special song, miss?" I heard a new, deeper voice ask. The boy's father, no doubt. For a minute, I didn't really answer. Daddy always said it was the song he made especially for our family. I guess that was why I was so puzzled why thinking of the Warden brought back all those memories. I couldn't help but chuckle at that, I guess I knew why now, even if I hadn't really figured it out yet. Crazy, to think it had gone that far back, when I'd hardly even known him. Still, I don't think I'd have it any other way. So, letting my thoughts wander through my various memories of Liam, I softly nodded and said;

"As a matter of fact, it is."

—-

It was only a sliver that remained by the time Stone and I carried Berrat through those gates. The chanting and cheering of Blackstone's vanguard followed us even as the grinding ceased and the doors slammed shut, refusing us even a moment of peace. All around us were our allies, but far fewer than I could have hoped for. I could only count five of the militia, and what few of those I could count seemed to be clutching at injuries and wounds I could not perceive. Only two seemed uninjured, and even then, they looked absolutely terrified. Of my own legion, only six remained on horseback, the seventh limping as she sat against the wall and held her leg with gritted teeth. The eighth was being dragged beside her, one of Berrat's rangers straining to drag him to cover as he mumbled incoherently. His helmet seemed to have been lost, leaving the entire left side of his head coated in a quickly growing crimson.

With great effort, Stone and I lowered Berrat against the wall, sighing with relief as I felt his weight fall way. His gaze still remained empty, unchanged from the moment we had taken him. Had it not been for the continued color in his skin, or the gentle hints of tears forming in his eyes, I might have feared we'd lost him. Though, considering his state, I suppose it was the unfortunate truth that at least for the time at hand, we had. Beside me, I could see Stone slamming his fist into the wood, and for a brief moment I thought I heard something splintering.

"Blast it all!" He screamed looking towards me with his fist still clenched. "That was our best chance to hold them back and we accomplished nothing! What the heck are we supposed to do now?!" Again I had no answer for him. With so many injured and so few able to fight, I could not order another charge. Our traps had bought us time to retreat, but they would surely be beyond them now. Our only hope was to keep those rams from the wall, but even then, how long could we hold them back? Forget it, I thought to myself. It was our only option, unlikely as it may be. And we had to take it.

"Tend to Berrat's injuries, then gather what few can still wield bows or javelins and meet me on the wall! We have to keep those rams from reaching our doors!" I ordered, rising off of my knees with a pained grunt. I did not wait for Stone's response as I turned and ran towards the stairs leading up. Out of the corner of my vision, I could just see the Ranger aiding one of my legion, and I rushed towards them.

"Ranger! What happened here?" I asked, panting as I looked down at them. The Ranger, who I now recognized as the one Berrat called Adelaide, grunted with effort as she tore a piece of her cloak and began to wrap it around the warrior's head.

"One of their conquerors knocked the horses' legs out! I landed fine but the rider split his head open in the fall!" She yelled in response, only just loud enough to drown out the yells around us. The rider continued to mumble incoherently as his eyes seemed to spin, unable to focus on anything. I would need to ensure he was properly cared for when this was over.

"Finish tending to him, then meet me on the wall! We need to stop their rams!" I ordered, turning to make my way to the stairs.

"Wait!" She yelled. Turning my attention towards her, I saw her look towards Berrat, still being tended to by Stone. When she turned back towards me, I could read worry on her features as she continued to subconsciously bandage the rider.

"What happened to the Captain? He looks near catatonic." She questioned. For a moment I wasn't sure how to answer her. Kharion didn't seem to be the most beloved leader, but he was their leader all the same. If they knew that he had died, and I had failed to save him, would they still follow me? No, I couldn't think that way. Regardless of what happened, it was not my place to hide it, this was their home, their people. They deserved to know. With a deep breath, I spoke as concisely as I could.

"One of their lieutenants gravely injured him. Kharion died saving his life." The look on Adelaide's face quickly turned to shock as she ceased her bandaging. My heart sank as she turned back to Berrat, his head dipping as his eyes closed. Turning back, I saw her teeth grit as she clenched her fist. Carefully, she began to tie the cloth around the wounded rider as she took a deep breath, then exhaled.

"They will answer for this." She said, only just audible over the chaos surrounding us. It seemed at least for a time, I would not need to worry about a divided front. Trying to focus, I turned back to the stairs and quickly made my way up. Four rangers remained on the thin walkway, three of them ducking below the wall as the dull thud of enemy arrows slammed into the outside of the fortress. The fourth sat with his back to the wall, longbow cast aside as he held an arrow that had lodged itself into his shoulder. Immediately I rushed to him, carefully ducking my head as an arrow flew overhead.

Before anything, I inspected him, try to discern if he was alright. Although he was growling in anger and in pain, the arrow did not appear to have dug too deeply into the brown haired and bearded Ranger's shoulder. Much of the arrow was still exposed, and only a small ring of blood had formed around the shaft. Unfortunately, his clear agony was an all too clear sign that he would be unable to keep up the fire, lest he continue to further injure himself. We were down an archer.

"Warden…" He muttered through gritted teeth, I could not tell if the edge in his voice was due to pain, or his disdain. I tried not to linger on such thoughts, and instead placed a reassuring hand on his good shoulder.

"Not now, soldier. You need to-" I tried to say, only to be interrupted when the Ranger spoke up again, speaking over me as he did.

"My bow… can you fire my bow?" He asked. I was incredulous at his question. The man had just been shot, and his first instinct was to find someone to replace him. I knew not who trained these warriors, but they had trained them to be noble. Looking back to the longbow, I considered it a moment, noting its construction and draw. It was well made, that was okay to see, but still seemed simple enough that even a mildly capable archer could make use of it.

"I am only a middling shot, but I know how to use it, yes." I confirmed, looking back towards him. The Ranger's expression seemed to ease a bit, exhaling as he inched his hood hand towards the bow. With pained grunts he took hold of it, his fingers wrapping around it tightly as he held it slightly aloft.

"Don't stay up too long, Blackstone's aim is improving quickly." He said as I took hold of the bow. With a nod, I gently pulled it in and observed it as he released the weapon. The Ranger's hand moved to his quiver of arrows, undoing the straps holding it in place as I pulled against the drawstring. The string was tight, and somewhat hard to pull back, surely made more difficult by my arms already aching. Still, I knew I could manage it. I was no master, but archery was one aspect of my training, and if nothing else, I could fire straight. When the Ranger had finished releasing his quiver, he set it beside him, I counted elven arrows remaining in the quiver. Far from enough to wipe out the vanguard, but a careful shot could slow down the ram.

Moving beside the Ranger, I breathed steadily as I grabbed an arrow and peaked over the edge of the wall. The scene before me was more terrifying than I had first thought. Behind the vanguard of the ram, another force of shield-bearing warriors had moved forward from the treeline. Worse, the archers had marched behind them, utilizing their companions' kite shields as makeshift cover as they slowly marched alongside their companions.

At the forefront of the rams was a small formation of lieutenants, all led by the hooded Warden, Helia, and beside her, a Peacekeeper, Mercy, I realized, each slowly marching in tandem with the chants of their warriors. In front of them, I could see Cross leading two lieutenants himself, with yet another formation of shield-toting warriors, carefully positioned around the edges of the ram, ready to protect them from incoming arrows. Between every formation, there had to be more than eighty soldiers marching towards us, possibly still in the ranges of a hundred. Dread welled up within me as my hands shook, and my breath grew even heavier than before.

Trying to calm down, I rose and drew back my first shot, my hands continuing to tremble as I aimed towards the ram. Whether it was my nerves or the strain on my body, I could not steady my aim long enough to fire a straight shot. Instead, my arrow flew far to the side and well over the line of approaching enemies. Blast it all, our enemy was at the gate and now my own body was fighting against me? Just as quickly as I had risen, I ducked behind cover as I shakily reached for another arrow.

As I prepared my next shot, I could see a bustle of activity from the stairs. The first figure I could see was Stone, two javelins clenched tightly at his side as he practically ran up the stairs. Behind him was the Ranger Adelaide, bow ready and already nocked as she gracefully leapt, then slid beside me, holding her head down as she let out a breath. The injured ranger, seeing her, groaned as he shifted away, making space for his uninjured companion. Behind them, I could see a steady flow of Iron Legion steadily climbing the steps, each wielding javelins of their own. It was far from a dedicated line of archers, but even this would help.

Stepping beside Adelaide, I drew the bow again as I held my breath, willing my hand to steady as I aimed again towards the front of the ram. This time, my aim held long enough for me to fire at the foremost warrior on the right. Even so, my arrow was blocked as one of the shield bearers stepped in front of the ram, the arrow slamming into the wooden construction. I groaned as I ducked again, only just avoiding another arrow sailing over my head.

Beside me, Adelaide fired off two shots in rapid succession before ducking down, and I could see Stone peering over the edge, javelin ready. Unsure of what to do, I peered back over the wall. I had hoped to see what, if anything, increased fire had done to the enemy formation. When I lifted my head over, however, the first thing I saw was the line of archers, each drawing back.

"Enemy volley! Everyone take cover!" Throwing a hand over my head. I could almost hear the distressing crack of released bowstrings as Blackstone fired, a cavalcade of arrows launching towards us rapidly. The sound was like something out of a nightmare, deep, resonant thuds as arrows struck wood, punctuated by ear piercing whistling as arrow after arrow whizzed overhead. Even in the darkness, I could see an assembly of arrows gathering within the fort, forcing our injured to desperately cling to certain danger by the door. Was that our enemy's plan? Force the injured to the door so they could finish them by forcing it open? No, I could not let them.

Soon after the volley had ended, Stone rose from his crouched position, rearing back with his javelin as he prepared a mighty throw… only to immediately be struck himself by a sudden shot piercing his shoulder. Immediately my friend was ripped backward by the sudden force, the javelin flying from his hand as he yelled out and clasped at his shoulder, crumbling to his knees as he did. Even amidst all my training, panic erupted.

"STONE!" I yelled, forcing myself forward as I rushed to my friend, standing and running as quickly as I could. I did not care if the enemy had a shot on me, I had to reach him, I would not lose him. More fire rained down, one arrow slamming into the wall directly in front of me, forcing me to pause and duck down as I stopped just short of my brother. Stone, true to himself, seemed more annoyed with the injury than anything. With a furious yell, he took the back half of the shaft, and violently pulled down, snapping off most of the shaft before angrily throwing it away from him.

"Cheap pricks!" He yelled, looking up from the wall for a moment.

"Stone! Are you alright?!" I yelled out. Stone, in response, seemed to wave me off as he kept looking over the wall.

"Yeah yeah, I'm fine!" He yelled back. Looking back, I could see Adelaide still ducking down for cover. However, it was her expression, abject horror and fear that caught my attention. What was so terrifying that she could face down Blackstone, but this was enough to petrify her?

"Adelaide, what is it?" I asked, still keeping my head down.

"Reinforcements…" She said, almost as though in a stupor. Reinforcements? No, that couldn't be possible, when had Blackstone had time to order for reinforcements? Feeling a slowly dawning sense of doom, I followed the Ranger's sight and looked to the treeline towards our right, and my heart sank. In between the gaps of the trees, dark shapes and shadows shifted and morphed, forming into a long line that extended well beyond my sight. I tried to tell myself that it was nothing, a trick of the light or the aftermath of a delirious and exhausted mind. But Adelaide had seen it too, she had even been the one to see it first. That was no illusion.

This was impossible… how could they have arrived so quickly? Castle Blackstone was a several days long march, and there had been so sign of these warriors until this very moment. When would Blackstone have sent the orders to march? The surprise of their arrival only worsened my fears as I pondered it, how had the rangers been unable to detect them? This was their home, they'd seen Blackstone's and even my arrival coming, how had they missed this one? How skilled at evasion were these soldiers?

"Oh you've gotta be kidding me!" I heard Stone shout, breaking me from my thoughts. With his good hand he slammed his fist into the wall before yelling out in frustration.

"They already had us cornered and outnumbered! These sick monsters need a blasted cavalry too?!" He shouted. With a huff and a grim demeanor, he took hold of his last remaining javelin and groaned as he sat up straighter against the wall.

"Well I'm not going out without a fight, if Blackstone wants us dead so badly, I am not making it easy for them." He growled. While I admired his will to keep fighting, I could not bring myself to give in to despair. There had to be a solution to escaping this fight, I could not fail Herongale, Ashfeld, Deborah. I just needed to think, I had been part of cavalry charges from Blackstone, if I could just figure out how to utilize that, I could… no, no, something was not right here. I had served in Blackstone for a full year, never once did a major force try to sneak around and ambush their enemy, even as a set of reinforcements. Besides, hiding from sight in the forest accomplished nothing, I realized. They had already pushed us back and had us trapped within the fortress, why would they need to conceal themselves?

To say I was baffled by the enemy's tactics was an understatement by far, what were they trying to achieve? Hoping to find answers among their own, I peered again over the edge of the wall, first looking to Cross. To my surprise, he seemed fully unaware of the approaching reinforcements, marching slowly onward with the ram. Mercy, likewise seemed fully unaware, or unconcerned with the approaching vanguard. Only Captain Helia seemed to notice it, and her reaction was the most tell of all. There was no victorious cry, no boisterous yell or taunts, instead, she simply turned towards the lieutenants at her side, and nodded slowly. They, in turn, reached up and pulled what looked to be hoods from behind their helmets. In the dim torchlight of the fortress, I could just make out the colors upon their hoods, and they were not Blackstone colors. No, these were softer colors, a deep blue and a somewhat subdued grey. What was this?

"I don't think those are Blackstone…" I said as I continued to watch the newly hooded warriors march to the sides of the rams, each slowly nodding to the five or so shield bearers on either side. They, much like the lieutenants themselves had to Captain Helia, nodded and carefully raised their own hoods, each that same checker patterned blue and grey. I knew these colors… and it was only as Helia herself slowly approached Cross from behind that I realized what was happening.

"Everyone stand down! Hold your fire!" I yelled, casting aside the bow and grabbing hold of the wall tightly. Beside me, I could see Stone giving me a puzzled, somewhat frustrated glare as he held tightly to his javelin. On the other side, I could make out Adelaide giving an equally confused look as she slowly eased the pressure on her bowstring.

"Hold fire? The heck has gotten into you?" Stone barked. I did not turn to him, instead watching as the hooded shield bearers turned to face the carriers of the ram, all while the hooded lieutenants snuck behind the two lieutenants at Holden's side, slowly drawing their blades.

"Those reinforcements are not Blackstone…" I said, finally turning to face my friend.

"It is the Midnight Howls." As I said those words, I could hear a sudden, startling cry that drove my attention back to the front. In one well executed attack, the Midnight Howls had surrounded the rams, and Blackstone's command. The shield bearers had stabbed at the ram carriers, each one striking several times as the startled carriers had not even the chance to scream, the rams falling to the ground with resonant thuds as they then turned to face the rest of Blackstone's vanguard.

Cross and his lieutenants turned in surprise as they heard the commotion, only for the lieutenants to be cut down by Helia's lieutenants. The first stabbed through the chest by the Howls' sword, the second knocked unconscious by a powerful blow from the Howl's hilt before his head was bashed in by two more ferocious blows. Cross himself was accosted by Helia, who slammed her hilt into his chest before rushing behind him. In one swift move she pulled and held his arms behind him, all while the lieutenant raised and held their swords, one at his chest, the other by his neck. Only Mercy avoided the ambush, as I watched her fade into the crowd of Blackstone warriors, vanishing from sight.

"What the… I thought Nov Domas told us to screw off?!" Stone shouted as he hoisted himself up, using his good arm to pull himself as he too peered over the wall. Amazed and grateful as I was for their sudden intervention, I too was confused. Lord Jotham had made it clear he would not risk his forces, and yet here was a band of them capturing Cross, all while a cavalry awaited in the forest… what had changed? I was left to ponder this question silently as I turned back to the treeline, where as I slowly stood as a deep horn sounded, Blackstone falling into chaos as half turned to face the sudden captors of their commander. The other half desperately scrambled as they turned to the sound of the horn, as each of them saw a line of armored horses and riders yell out, revealing themselves as they held their weapons forward…

…And charged.