Chapter 9: Thump, THUNK, Thump

Alelip leads the troops up the ladder to the walls. Once everyone is up on the ledge, he takes a quick look at each of the six, clears his throat, and begins.

"Cademon and Marin, you take the front corners overlooking the gate. Leo and Rives, you take the corners in the rear. Ken, you and I patrol the walls in between. Keep your eyes sharp, and holler if you see any movement."

"Yes Sir!" Said Marin taking one of the torches that were with them and going to her assigned place

"Good luck Caedmon, I hope this night is a calm one" she commented to her squad-made before going separate ways.

There ws some moonlight tonight, so the torches weren't really vital, but as she's not elf any light will be very helpful

"Heres hoping your right Marin, I dont think i got enough sleep for a battle" leo says before heading off to his post. Taking his position, the young man occupies himself by going through the mental discipline exercises of his art.

"Yes Sir!" Caedmon replied to corporal Alelip, before striding off towards his post.

Responding to Marin and Leo, "Agreed" Caedmon said with a smile, looking rather dapper after the shave and a hair cut that Rufus had given him. Once at his post he breathed in the night air and took a quick scan of the entire view, both within the watchtower and without.

Withers stands silently disregarded as the others make their way to their stations. He absentmindedly flicks at the hilt of his spear as he tries to decide what he should do with his given predicament. It wasn't the first time someone had forgotten him, the old man used to fall asleep mid-conversation sometimes when they were together.

Rufus looked towards the makeshift stables where the horses were currently moving about. He longed to simply skirt his duties and hang out with them, possibly stealing away Rives to join him. But he knew that would only result in punishment, a punishment that he wouldn't deserve.

Once the others had dispersed, the youth collected his wits about him and moved towards the watchtower unit. It was probably best for another set of eyes to be on the gate than anywhere else.

Seeing Withers climb up to the rails of the watchtower, Marin looks at him confused before waving to him

"Hey Rufus, going to join us?" Marin asks joining him over the gate. Then she notices that she's practically alone with the young man who she has started to know in the last weeks. In her time with the 7th the times she has been more or less alone with someone not her girls or her brother have been very few, mostly on the battle and in the inmediate aftermath, so she's not really used to more or less strange company in these situations. Realizing that she had spent the last few seconds just looking at him, she blushes and looks to the outside of the tower, searching the darkness, because let's face it, the young man is handsome, even she can't deny that.

"Uhh... well um.. another pair of eyes would be helpful" she says regaining her composture

spot:
Dice Roll: 1d20+7
d20 Results: 8 (Total = 15)

Alelip sees Rufus standing by himself, and mentally curses himself for failing to account for him.

"Sorry, Rufus, didn't mean to exclude you. You get position over the gate."

The squad disperses along the long stone walkways formed by the tops of the four walls. It's a long look down to the courtyard within and the grassy motte without. The nearly full moon is rising early, outlining in shadows and ghostly white the transformation that the environs have undergone in the past few days. Per Caedmon's suggestion, additional trees have been cut down and converted into defensive mechanisms--long logs with spike-like branches bristling in all directions, set at random intervals to stop a charge. The best branches were saved for use in making additional bows; being primarily an infantry unit, the 7th arrived largely ill-equipped to be defending a fortress, but with training most of the men had become passable shots.

All is quiet as the sun slips beneath the horizon and the watchers' eyes become accustomed to the darkness that surrounds them. Somewhere in the distance, a hyena howl echoes its grim reminder that the company is not alone in the woods. Alelip and Ken circle at a measured pace, passing by each of the five stations about once every ten minutes.

As darkness fell, Caedmon took out the extra layer of clothing he had brought and wrapped it about him in order to keep warm. As he continued to peer out in the moonlit night he began to pace about his station in order to keep the blood flowing and his senses sharp.

Not wanting to alarm everyone if it turned out to be nothing, Leo taps, checks, and tries to lift the stone.....