The Raid

[Suhaib]

(I pmed to you about this thread Saeren, but you didn`t answer so I thought I just posted to get your attention... I can delete this if the raid isn`t fine with you, but the outcome can be whatever you want... Legolas and Lebennen are welcome too... and others too, if they are at the town. If I should have posted this on your former threads then let me know...)

At first it seemed like a very peaceful night upon Port Dar, the guards standing on their places with utterly bored faces and hopes of receiving some sleep before tommorrows duties. Civilians sleeping in their homes and all the light was provided by the moon, stars and torches of the port. Yet there were things in the night that didn`t sleep, but waited and hunted.

A heavy crack came out as a guard fell to the ground knocked out, behind him a smirking figure that wore black clothes and then grabbed the guard dragging him aside. He placed the guard behind supplies at the docks where he was not seen and tied him up, the figure was soon joined by other. A hesitant and silent conversation emerged, then looks and quiet nods were exhanged. One stayed as the rest procceeded deeper into the dark alley`s to prey upon the guards and few climbed the roof tops with bows at hand to lay ambush. The man left at the docks pulled out a red flag that he began wawing and soon the response came in the form of two ships. The other of corsair work, of far more lighter and manouverable work than the other ship of gondorian work.

They silently came towards the dock and even before that long shaped figures came out of the night, Basil climbed the dock with a satisfied smile as the corsair main force procceeded to take positions at the dock. Meanwhile more guards fell to silent attacks on the streets as soon a large group of the pirates ventured forth towards the residence of the city`s leader, which certainly offered much to plunder as the few remaining guards at the docks packed up every valuable they found in their ships.

[Saeren]

(( ooc: Don't worry about posting threads, this is partly what free-form role playing is about, besides, I don't rule Harad, just this city-state ))

Lights still burned in some of the upper rooms in the palace, as Saeren scattered sand over a signed trade agreement, - he had always held to the view '' Under the eye of the master ''. That a ruler should know more than any of his councillers or advisors what happened in his city.
He glanced up, feeling something, in his mind and called for Lebennen.

[Suhaib]

Meanwhile the corsairs were at full work, ambushing guards and silently moving removing any oppositing that might become a threat later on. Finally as they were ready with phase one, which was taking out the guards they began the most pleasant part of them all, looting. They took anything valuable they could out of the city, few citizen came out in shock to see their city being looted by corsairs that quickly drove the civilians back to their homes. Yet that was not all the corsairs and the main troop of them marched towards the city heart with their red banner swirling in the air, Basil arrived to the palace of Saeren with a smirk on his face.

"Any ideas captain?" His first mate asked.

"Smoke them out, we should be able to take enough quickly before he whole palace will be in flames..."

The order was given and arrows light, soon a small swarm flew towards the windows and light anything that burned.

[Saeren]

The tramp of feet at quick march sounded as the Bloodguard and the palace guards turned out. Saeren was not concerned with the palace itself , which was marble and stone, and would not easily burn. Warriors raised their shields, the long spears snapping down, the tread of their nailed sandals sharp on the ground their shields interlocked.

Saeren jumped from the balcony , flowiing up onto the great domed roofs of the palace like a cat. His senses swept out seeking what he needed. Long ago, when his father had built Barad Dur, it had been known that Sauron could control the weather around his land, since Saeren was not sauron, he could not create something but he could use something that was already there.
He touched the edge of the great depression of air south west which, if left to itself, would slowly, over the warm seas, increase in power and begin to turn across Belegaer, becoming a hurricane. As yet, it was simply a great mass of grey cloud, stretching from the bellakar coast out into the ocean. His physical form frayed, and disappeared as he set himself within it. Became it. In the core of it his mind began to command, shifting that great mass. His mind screamed with the sheer white fire of his will. His atoms were scattered across the air and cloud, as he began to turn it himself, until he was it, an oddly beautiful and terrible freak of nature, as all hurricanes were.
The coast dwellers of course feared such storms, and most people thought of hurricanes as wind-storms, but those who dwelled on the coasts knew better, it was the sea that wreaked the worst damage, the storm surge. Of course Saeren was moving this storm very fast. Electrical storms began to rip the sky, rain fell in torrents, but the huge drowned valley, or reis, with Dar at its head, funneled water , the storm surge raced up it like a bore on a tidal river. The palace, perched above the city would not be affected, but the corsair ships would be.

As he did this, recking not of time, he trusted Lebennen and the Bloodguard to, as it were , hold the fort. he drew himself slowly, from the heart of the storm, which of itself would spin off harmlessly into the ocean, having done with it what he intended to do. For a moment , blazing like a red star, he hung in the airs, then plummeted back down to the palace.

[Suhaib]

The corsair ships were torn and sailors surprised by the sudden storm, many were thrown into the water all tough they made their way back to their ships to start repairing the ship for swift escape. Basil looked back in worry, but grinned as he looked at the bloodguard as his troops stopped to look at them. The corsair archers opened their fire from the roof tops at the bloodguards as the corsairs threw small vertisale spears and light throwing axes hurling death into the ranks of the bloodguards.

As they ran out of range weaponry they drew their weapons and charged, Basil had his rapier and dagger at hand as he attacked the enemies. Basil spinned around sidestepping a bloodguard and thrusting his dagger into the apparently young man`s throat as he had to use his rapier to keep away another until he could pull the dagger off to concentrate on the other foes. The corsairs were far more savage and disorganized than the bloodguard yet they proved themselves battle hardened and more of the cunning sort like orcs. Basil ran up the palace stairs alone as the fight raged on, he dropped a guard on the way whom first tried to keep him away with a spear, but as Basil was able to hit the spearhead away he quickly sunk his rapier into the man`s stomach.

Basil climbed the last steps and entered the palace, he saw a somewhat better clothed man perhaps and knew this was no guard, but their leader perhaps. Basil approached the man with his weapons ready.

[Legolas]

Two warriors had dumped a whicker container of arrows beside Legolas before running to their stations, for although training as a Bloodguard, he would not join the sheild wall below, he needed space.
He looked down, through rain and lightning flashes, as he sighted. Training for so many years, his skill with a bow was not mere fame, perhaps since Beleg Cuthalion lived no elf had been a greater bowman. His bow had a draw weight of just over one hundred pounds, he could fire forty arrows per minute, and he had never missed since an elfling. But in the melee down below, one could hardly miss anyway.

[Saeren]

Saeren spun, he fought like an eagle flew, a wild stallion ran, thousands of years of war and of pushing himself and training, harder and harder, to the limits, it was like a dance to him.
rains sheeted down as heavy as iron rods, '' can I help you? '' he called gaily above the storm.

[Suhaib]

"I believe not and nor would you be willing to..."

Basil said before he was intercepted by few guards, he quickly spinned around the back of the other after parrying few strikes and stabbing the guard in the spine, then twisting his dagger and pushing the man to the floor to die. The other guard wielded two swords and Basil began with a series of thrust, then he suddenly threw himself under the swords of his opponent and tackled him. Basil quickly sat up stabbing his opponent to death before getting up, his face stained by blood and he looked outside where the fighting raged on.

Both sides had archers on the roof tops and men in the centre, no side made a significant proggress it seemed and a stalemate was born all tough now a small group of corsairs that had been plundering the city were sneaking into the palace, throwing their hooks up and climbing inside to take whatever was worth gold. Basil took few steps towards Saeren with a confident face.

"Yes, ye can help me king or whatever you claim yourself to be Saeren son of Sauron. Tell your men to stand down and my crew will simply take what we need, then be on our merry way."

He said with confident smile.

[Saeren]

Saeren laughed, '' I don't think the tide is with you, pirate, '' he said, his eyes briefly going past, towards the docks, where the storm surge of the hurricane, filling th reis, was raising the water-levels - it was not a dramatic sight, it was simply unstoppable, water rose and overflowed , across the quays, funneling through low lying houses, carrying people and debris with it, lifting the ships, corsair, trade, triremes and smaller craft. There were crashes as the ships impacted with buildings. Through the rain, Saerens golden eyes were filled with a hectic amusement.
'' Oh what fun ''

[Suhaib]

Basil watched the sight with mixed feelings amazement, anger and horror, but then he concentrated on the anger as he turned once again to face Saeren. Basil`s eyes narrowed as he began to approach.

"You do realise that losing my ship won`t prevent me from killing you or escaping?"

He asked with an angered voice as he prepared to attack Saeren, he took quick steps towards him and thrusted with his rapier towards the stomach of Saeren then tried to continue with a slash by his dagger towards the throat of Saeren.