Sybil Alderfay and Cadet Jason Greener hid, in spite of an urge to fight, behind the barricaded door of the Commander's office. Okabe had long died upon his desk, and the battlements were overrun with the biomancer's vegetable army.

It wasn't long before a muffled sound of surrender came from the little remaining garrison.

The two Elves could hear the opening of both gates and the steady beat of the Centaur hoofs. As the invaders took the Fort, Alderfay and Greener could just barely make out an exchange between a Digger commander and the Centaur chiefs.

Only one thing could be heard with a definite certainty, "He will be here soon."

"Then we'll send him a message."

A few minuted passed before there was another sound of gunfire—voiced by multiple rifles fired in unison.

"They're killing the captured men!" moaned Greener in a whispered tone.

"Shush.." retorted Alderfay, not wanting to give up there position. But she knew it would only be a matter of time before a full sweep of the Fort compromised their little room. "Greener, I want you to go through the tunnel. It's important that a proper report of all this reaches Ilfindium, and besides you've already almost died once this season—it goes against the Fates for you to survive last month to die here."

"Won't you come with?" he asked.

"Somebody needs to set the cabinet back in place from this side. Tread carefully. Use your hands to guide you, there's no twists or turns, but the tunnel runs long and deep, without a torch it may take up to a day to reach the far side. Have faith. Now go!" Staying low, she slid open the passage, and after Greener made his way through the dark, she replaced the cabinet one final time, breaking the mechanism to ensure that it was never opened again.

The agonizing wait for death didn't bother Alderfay. She had nerves of steel that would not break over something so trifling as her own imminent demise. She could hear them now. The Diggers were atop the battlement making an assessment of the damage. First she could hear their voices, then their footsteps.

Alderfay readied her blunderbuss and dagger. They were at the door, trying to pry their way inside, when someone below started to to shout orders to retreat. "Back to the tunnel! The enemy approaches!"

The Dwarves backed away from the door and she could hear the chaotic, disorganized maneuvering of the invaders—the distant sound of the tunnel train beginning to rumble away. The Centaurs beat their hoofs in a stampeding racket, which was soon met with the sound of gunfire.

"What the hell is going on out there," thought Alderfay to herself.

She was puzzled at this new development, until she heard the distinct sound of Ilfindi fife and drum.

"The Legion?" She was astonished. Under the terms of the Consortium, the Ilfindi Legion was barred from operating on the continent—all matters of regional security were to be jointly conducted under the banner of the Sanctum Guard. How had they made it all the way to Siger on such short notice?

She peeped through a gap in the door left by the Digger men. In the yard she could see the Centaurs running in circles—like chickens with their heads cut off. Only a few Diggers remained, most likely there because they were unable to make it to the train in time for the tunnel retreat. The Dwarves readied their weapons, but looked unsure of what to do.

Then dense, square formations of infantry started coming into the yard. The Centaurs rained arrows about and tried to use their superior mobility to some small advantage, but the attacking companies kept tight and made good use of their muskets and pistols. Alderfay noticed that these men were too short to be Elves. A flash of green skin clued her in to their actual background.

"A Goblin Legion? What the heck is going on here?"

The biomancer was nowhere to be seen. "Perhaps she retreated into the tunnel with the Diggers," speculated Alderfay.

The companies of Goblin marksmen continued to amass in the yard despite all efforts from the Centaurs, until after an hour of heavy fighting there were no Centaurs left to resist.

Alderfay was unsure of what to do next. She wished she hadn't scuttled the mechanism to the secret passage, but knew that it would be a poor choice to leave the tiny mountain hamlet vulnerable to a Goblin attack.

From the slit in the door she could see a cavalry brigade enter the Fort. The klucklucks were all armored in the Ilfindi fashion and their riders were Elves. She could recognize the leader of their entourage as none other than Lord Bowhen himself. Alderfay was baffled by this development. What have I missed?

She disassembled the barricade at the door and slowly opened the way to the battlement.

"Lord Bowhen," she cried. The hundreds of Goblins took aim at the Sub-Commander, but the Lord Bowhen called them to stand down.

"It's alright, men. She's one of ours," he Said. "Is that you, Alderfay? It's safe for you to come down now."

The Sub-Commander pushed her way through the wreckage of the battlement, stepping over debris and carnage, to carefully climb down the rubble which was once the stairs, to meet Lord Bowhen in the yard. Standing close to him was the detestable Sebastian Klugwyn.

The hundreds of dead made walking without bumping into a body a nigh-impossible task.

"I'm afraid our call to action came too late," said Lord Bowhen to Sub-Commander Alderfay with an air of feigned regret.

"I never thought I'd be happy to see you two," mumbled Alderfay under her breath.

"What was that, Sub-Commander?" returned Klugwyn.

"Oh, nothing. Never mind me," said Alderfay.

"Can you tell us what happened here, Sub-Commander?" asked Lord Bowhen.

"Right," said Alderfay coming to her wits, "Last week we went to Burchard to assess the situation up north. We learned from a survivor that the Centaurs who destroyed the outpost had enlisted the help of biomancer. On our return trip, we were ambushed, but able to escape. I was able to see the biomancer though—a Frognari woman. Six days ago that same party began an assault here."

"That explains the heaps of vines. But what about the Diggers?" asked Klugwyn.

"We had achieved a stalemate with the Centaurs, but then the Diggers came through the tunnel. They claimed that Grandmaster Zek had been named the Ur-Hor. They shot Okabe, and had us flanked—Diggers at our backs and the minions of the biomancer multiplying at our front... How'd you know we needed help?"

"We didn't," said Klugwyn.

"What Mr. Klugwyn means to say," said Lord Bowhen, "is that we didn't know about the battle until just yesterday... The Ilfindi have freed the Goblins and formed a Continental Legion from their ranks. We came here to offer ourselves in the effort to secure the frontier, but did not expect to see battle so soon."

"These men were pressed into service?" said Alderfay, looking around at the masses of Goblin infantry.

"No, they all chose to join our cause of their own free will as you once did," said Lord Bowhen, "Now if you'll excuse me, we've captured a few of the Diggers. Their proper interrogation will require my full attention." He took his leave of the two and walked to the far end of the yard where six Diggers were currently chained to the closed tunnel gate.

"Where's the girl?" asked Klugwyn.

"Redrock?" replied the Sub-Commander, "She left before the fighting started. Returned to the Sanctum on birdback, I got the idea that she wanted to see something of the country before returning to the Ashvale."

"You're lying," said Klugwyn, "She was scrambling to get Water for her dying mother. Why would she suddenly be taking a pleasure tour of the continent?"

"Honesty to the Fates, Klugwyn, she left here with her Elf friend six days ago," lied Alderfay, "Maybe something of the North inspired her, I just don't know."

"What of the plans? I've promised them to Lord Bowhen. In exchange he's pledged to protect the Crafters in the coming war. The lives of my people depend on it."

"She took them with."

"Well, then you and I are going to find her."

"Maybe, we don't have to. Some of the men had prototypes on them when we were attacked. Search the bodies and you'll find the prototypes."

"Haruphm," grumbled Klugwyn.

From the far edges of her peripheral vision, Alderfay could see Lord Bowhen's interrogations playing out. It seemed as though was lecturing the prisoners on matters of ethics, chastising them for their lack of honor and decorum. When one of them spit on the Lord, he responded by pouncing on the man and tearing open his throat with his teeth.

"What the hell is he doing," rasped Alderfay.

"I believe it's part of a new fear tactic," said Klugwyn.

"He's eating the viscera." Alderfay thought she might puke.

"Yes, it is strange, but it is not our place to question the infinite wisdom of the nobles."