The next few weeks were silent. No news came from the front lines along the Easulan. Orc movements seemed to have ceased. The 9th, 10th, 15th, and 21st Knighthoods, some 2000 men, were moved out into the foothills South of Tharkas, to make a defensive front against any Orc onslaughts. To reinforce them the Tower Guard sent their 29th Regiment, 300 Knights on horseback, and a dozen mobile catapults. It was the King's hope that this would be enough to hold off any form of attack.

Leading the 21st Knighthood was Tharkas' "Prodigal Son". A young warrior who was born 1 year, to the day, before the Bandit Campaign. He grew up all through it, and who's family was caught in a battle on the plains outside the rural town of Bylet, some 40 miles from Tharkas Castle. His name was Phaygil, but he was still a captain of a youthful Knighthood. Only the age of 16, he weilded a gladius and a Kite Shield against his foes. People spoke of him as a Little Demon, for his malice and unrelenting combat style and warfare tactics when leading his troops.

He would lead the 4 Knighthoods in the defense of Tharkas, which could be seen pale black against the setting sun, which gave it an aura as if it were aflame. The lake that was adjacent to Tharkas, sharing one of its borders with a towering white wall, was as black as the darkening sky, with a luminescent ring of blue surrounding it, as if it were enchanted by the magiks of the Cethindol.

In the North things were going very well. Tharkas' industrial titan the Iron Crag stood strong in the narrow straight that lead into Tharkas' northern plains. Everything there was going well. The fortress was armed to the teeth with the latest weaponry. Instead of catapults, they were the first to have new weapons from Rionolianthu, frankly called Blowers because of their explosive properties when they make firm contact with a surface. These were iron chambers that were hollowed out and open on one end. A giant, sensitive orb the size of a man's torso made of metal and full of a black dust is loaded into the open end. It then rolls carefully to the butt of the chamber where more of this powder is filtered in through a hole in the top of the chamber. The open end of the iron chamber is then aimed at the desired target, give or take a few feet in any direction, and then a flame is dropped into the hole atop the chamber where the black dust was loaded, and a giant explosion errupts from the metal casing. The ball, via the explosion, is propelled out the open end and at the desired target. When the ball collides with the ground, it explodes, which then sends enemies flying off in all directions and tears up the earth.

These, along with 8,000 Knights, 1000 Archers and support workers (such as the resident religious figures and surgeons), and 1000 civilians defend the fortress. The walls are high and thick, made of metal. They'd yet to see any action or Orcs slip through their region, for that they were glad.

A day later, according to the Marshal of the Mountain's diaries, they saw the first signs of an attack. Along the horizons in the East they could see forces being gathered. Every night it seemed like more and more camp fires cropped up, and the roaring and hideous screams grew ever louder. This continued on for nearly 10 days.

In the Meantime (after about 6 of the 10 days of noise near the Crag had passed), word came to Tharkas Castle from the Cethindol Tower via Eagle that the enemy was sending a hoard of trolls, nearly 1,500 of them, South across the Vieth Plains from the Gate. Whether they were to attack Easulan or if they were going to cross the river to bolster their forces in Tharkas, the message didn't say. But either way it was sad news.

About a week after that message was recieved, another message came to the King in his sacred pearl halls: the Iron Crag was under siege.

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Unfortunately for the attacking army, it would take much more than what they had to break through into the fortress. The 3000 Orcs, 2000 Goblins, and 200 Trolls they sent to attack the Crag were utterly destroyed. Between the arrow volleys which fell like a curtain on their ranks and the heavy explosions that eminated from little portholes on the outer walls of the Crag, which caused the enemy infantry to be sent into the air with fierce blasts, and their sheer inability to break through the iron-reinforced gates, they had no chance. It was an easy victory for Tharkas, and nearly the entire force was defeated, only a fraction of them turned tail and retreated to Unluthio.

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Summer was coming to a close, and Winter was just around the corner. Though, historically speaking, Winter was always a slow time for war. From October through January, not a lot happened. This was a good opportunity for Tharkas to bolster its forces some. The Knights in the South were forced to stay there all through winter, and every few weeks recieved a few new troops fresh out of training in the Castle.

Many of the Knights couldn't help but wonder, while sitting out there on the lines, if the enemy was bolstering its own forces during this pause in the war. Though they were sure they would find out come Spring, even if they didn't really want to.

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As winter faded away and the spring sun began to burn off the mists and thick, cool fog that laid heavy over Avalon, life seemed to spring back into the war. Messengers on horseback returned from the Shadow Pass saying that 4000 Rangers had been sent from Fornilingoth and that they would arrive in a month at the latest. This was indeed good news. Now aid was sought from the West, in the lands of Lienthala and Gallioth and the Clerist Tower. More messengers were sent out to Region-Au-Ruter to ask for help from the Elves and Dwarves. They wouldn't return for a few weeks, though they would rather not see them for another month, because a swift return means either no aid, or a meager reinforcement from afar.

Without notice, a slew of Orcs came across the foothills one morning as the mist just began to break. The Tharkan troops were barely readying for the day's defense when the Orcs broke their ranks. A hideous battle began. 2000 men and 12 catapults versus 5000 Orcs and a few hundred Goblins.

Victory for the Orcs was nearly assured from the battle's outset. In the first hour 4 catapults were destroyed and the Knights were taking heavy casualties in comparison to their savage foes. The 29th Regiment, part of the Tower Guard, was sent out on horseback to notify Tharkas Castle that an assault force was marching on the city. They wouldn't reach the city until nightfall.

After the Knights realized they couldn't hold the defenses Phaygil ordered a full retreat and the remaining 600 knights turned and fled, leaving their camps, artillery, and supplies to the enemy. Though many of them were slain in the retreat, any reinforcement for the castle was better than none.

Late the following afternoon 483 knights of many different companies passed through the gates to Tharkas Castle. The King reinforced them to a full 500 and reformed them into the 21st once again. The bolstered 21st was to take up defenses along the outer walls with the Tower Guard, who was still at a full 1500 men.

Luckily the 4th, 6th, 7th, 13th 18th and the newly formed 24th Knighthoods still resided in the castle walls and would serve to hold off the enemy, bringing the Tharkan army in defense of the Castle to a strong 5,000 men and two dozen catapults. Many of the cilivians were given bows and arrows and conscripted into the army as archers to stand upon the walls and launch volleys out into the attacking troops. This was futile, and would have made little difference, however. The only eligible citizens were 15 and older, and had to be male. That accounted for about 350 people who hadn't fled the city for a safer haven in the winter.

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While chaos had errupted in the South, trouble was brewing at the Easulan River. Instead of being attacked from the Eastern Gates, Asura and his forces were now being hit from boats in the river, attempting to cross and reinforce their allies in preparation for an attack on Tharkas Castle.

While that happened, and their attention was diverted, the scouts called out off the wall that a force of trolls was charging at the Eastern gates. They had to divert forces to hold them off as this was the greater of two threats. They assumed that Tharkas could hold its own.

The trolls posed a serious problem for the 8th and 3rd Knighthoods under Asura. But eventually they were beaten back into submission, and when the knights returned to the riverside, they found all the boats on the Western shores unloading troops and supplies. It was time to close the Western gate, as well. Asura and his troops were boxed in.

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Meanwhile, an army was growing on the W. Vieth Plains in Tharkas, and their dark shadow could be seen spreading across the lands over the horizon from the highest points of Tharkas Castle's towers.

An attack was imminent.