Miranor did have a good point. That much showed in Gallus' expression when he gave the look to Meesei. "That sounds like a way in," he said. Although, the papers that Ri'vashi inspected had also caught his attention. "Still, it's no guarantee that the crank can be broken. You are correct there, Ri'vashi. Perhaps there is some other way to exploit a stealthy approach like that."

Although he felt like they were coming up with good ideas, some worry came over Gallus' brow. "While we think about that, I've just had a thought. We should be careful that none of these approaches are to be expected from the enemy." Gallus looked to each of the war leaders present. "None of us can speak for all tricks the enemy may have up their sleeve, but perhaps we might gain some insight by putting ourselves into their shoes."

Gallus looked to Ri'vashi in particular. "Clan leader, you have arguably had the most experience in these matters." Gallus swept a hand over all of their gathered intelligence. "How would you organise the defence of this place? With silver and suppression gas all?"

---

There was a pregnant pause after Ahnasha answered in which she might have elaborated. After a few seconds it became clear that she had no interest in doing so. Fendros put his hand to his chest and picked up the conversation instead. "I was taught to shoot by my father and had practice hunting, but I was not particularly skilled until I joined the pack and Ahnasha taught me. Everything else was a mix of the fighters guild, Lorag, my father again, and things picked up in passing."

Fendros left his own loaded pause as he considered whether his answer was adequate. He instead continued the stilted exchange as it was. "What about you? Where did you learn to heal?"

Gently running his hand down Ahnasha's arm, Fendros slowly motioned for them all to sit together. Hopefully their chat wouldn't stretch on too long.

Ri'vashi took another look over the map, hesitating only briefly before she reasoned out her answer. "In this one's opinion...well, she would of course have archers positioned along the walls. That is a given. Against lycans, though, she would also employ crossbowmen. One strategy lycan hunters sometimes use against us is to tie barbed bolts to something sturdy by a length of rope and fire them into their prey. If the bolts are silver, it can hold us down for a time, and force us to maim ourselves trying to pull them out. Of course, with this suppression gas, they may not need such measures. They will surely have it close at hand at the walls. We should be sure to make only limited use of our beast forms. Beyond that, this one would make sure that the initial defenders are skilled, but she would hold her best soldiers in reserve, as a first response. Once they know from where we are attacking, they will be free to focus the best of their soldiers on us. Ri'vashi would give silver to her soldiers based on their aptitude, since it is likely too expensive to outfit the entirety of the stronghold with silver weapons. It is at least something of a boon to our kind that the material which serves as our bane is so rare."

Giving a glance to Miranor, Ri'vashi actually looked to be mildly uncertain. "As for werevultures...Ri'vashi is not sure how much of a focus she would place on defending against them. As Miranor pointed out, they are among the least physically imposing of Tamriel's werebeasts. They do not have our strength or durability, and are ill-suited for frontline combat. They are exceptional scouts, and are excellent at harassing an enemy force's back lines, but to lead an assault with them would be unconventional, to say the least."

---

Irenya listened closely, ignoring the brevity of Ahnasha's answer. Although, she almost seemed surprised when Fendros asked about her own past, as if she had not expected the conversation to turn towards herself. "Oh, well, my story is nothing unique. I learned at first from my parents, as do many mages. My mother was a member of the Narsis Mages' Guild. My father was a clerk in House Hlaalu's headquarters in the city, though they both practiced magic. I joined the guild as well, as soon as I was old enough. Sadly, I was not able to be a part of the guild for nearly as long as I would have liked. I was fairly young when the Oblivion Crisis began, only around fifty or so. Narsis, and much of Morrowind, was overrun by Daedra. I hardly even recall how many times we had to flee, and relocate. But, it gave me direction for my magical studies. As refugees, healers were in great demand, and I had the skills to fill that role. My mother, and some of the other healers from time to time, mentored me. Through the Oblivion Crisis, and the Red Year a few years after, my healing was honed through necessity."

"Unconventional is what we need. All good thoughts." Gallus clicked his fingers in Meesei's direction. "Didn't you mention something about an alchemical solution to resist the gas? Anyone going for the crank will need that." Gallus seemed to speed up, trying to get through all the information in his mind at once. "I have a feeling that everyone else will be best served avoiding their beast forms altogether until the keep is breached so that they can still hold their shields. As for a reserve force..." Gallus put his hand over his mouth and wiped to the side, "...tricky...sabotaging the gate will play our hand in that direction, but if we pose an attack against the opposite walls they'll have the opportunity to close the gate..."

Gallus looked up and seemed to realise himself. "Right, tangents, apologies." He turned his attention back to the map. "Say we were able to jam the gate open. How would an assault on that position go from the ground?"

---

For a moment, Fendros' suspicion was softened by Irenya's story. "Is that so?" he asked, "It just so happens that the red year displaced my own family. It was the reason we moved to Cheydinhal. Well, I was only born right before we arrived in Cheydinhal. They had been living in eastern Skyrim before that. It was...not welcoming, from all accounts."

Lorag pointed to the courtyard on the map, next to the main gate. "Well, for one, we're going to want to fan out as soon as we get in. Maybe try to take control of the walls on either side. We do that, and we can put up some ladders to bring in everyone else. If we don't, then we'll only have one way into the fortress, and that's a weakness I know that cat will exploit."

"Agreed." Ri'vashi responded. "And if we spread out into groups, we can assault the keep from different angles. Of the entrances we have observed, one is on the ground level, accessible through the courtyard, while there are two more above that can be reached by bridges from the walls. Trying to fight our way into the keep will inevitably create bottlenecks, so we will want to attack from as many directions at once as we can to maximize the number of our warriors who can be fighting at once. From there...well, we do not know what to expect once we are in the keep."

Meesei's response to Gallus' questions was less certain. "As for resisting the suppression gas...I do not know if I can guarantee that is possible. The person who created the suppression gas, and has the greatest understanding of it, is currently in Black Marsh. She shared that knowledge with Sabine, but I am uncertain if we have the proper ingredients to create a countermeasure. As well, we do not know if that potion will work against this new gas. Vile's forces likely spent the last few years working to recreate the gas after we destroyed their supply in Morrowind. From my understanding of alchemy, there are often multiple formulas that can create the same effects, so this gas may have a different make up. The same countermeasure may not work against it. We can still attempt it, of course, but we cannot count on it working."

---

Irenya gave a somewhat solemn nod. "Yes, the Red Year displaced many Dunmer. Living in the south, my family did not have to worry about fleeing Red Mountain; it was the invasion that displaced us. The Argonians focused most of their efforts on attacking Telvanni lands, since they were the ones who practiced slavery on the largest scale. But, my family had moved from Narsis by that point, so we were on the borders of Telvanni holdings. When the Argonian armies stormed in from the south, some of the former slaves in the area learned of the approaching force. They had been freed a few years earlier, when King Helseth outlawed slavery, but they were still resentful towards us. They took up arms, and with most of the village's soldiers away to fight the Argonians, there were few left to defend us. They captured everyone they could, tortured former slaveowners, and publicly executed others, especially our leaders. My mother and I barely escaped with our lives. My father...did not."

"So the keep is something of an unknown. Got it." Gallus answered. "And if the gas is an unknown as well, then the werevultures that go in first are going to be in a lot more danger. If they can't fly out as quickly as they arrived they'll be in the middle of the enemy before we can rescue them."

Gallus took a deep breath through his nose and let it out with a bit of stress. "Perhaps there is another way. We will keep it in mind as we go." Gallus rubbed an eye, "Back to the assault. I'm a little uneasy about running people through the gate without support. There may still be boiling oil and water coming down and as soon as they're in the courtyard they'll be under fire from all directions. If that gate is sabotaged, it's going to become a focal point, and I'm thinking it would be wise to divert some forced to attack from other directions." Gallus gestured with a flat hand to the other side of the stronghold. "Ladders around the back, maybe?"

---

Fendros' voice became solemn as well. "I see. I'm sorry for your loss. It's hard to even imagine one of my parents dying."

It was at that moment that Fendros became a bit conflicted on whether he should be giving sympathy to a possible former slave-owner. Then again, its not as if he could tell, and the fact that Argonians and possibly Khajiit slaves were responsible for her father's death was telling. Fendros decided to keep that in mind for later.

"So, how did you end up in Cyrodiil?" Fendros asked.

Miranor, though she shared Gallus' worries about their current plan of infiltration, she was not yet ready to abandon it. "It will be dangerous, yes, but there are still ways we can mitigate it. Even if there is no way to resist the gas, we could use magic to our advantage. Provided we can sabotage the crank, we would just need a few spells to give us an opening to escape. We will be right next to the gate at that point, after all. We could tie some scrolls around our necks before we fly in, something to make us faster and give us protection from their arrows as we flee. It is not perfect, but...I volunteer to lead the infiltration."

Meesei's expression was severe, but without alternatives, she could not outright deny the plan. "If we find no other points of entry, we can consider this plan. As for the ladders, it would be easier to get onto the walls elsewhere while the enemy is distracted at the main gate. We just have to make sure the ladders are neither too close, nor too far from the main gate. If they are too close, the defenders may notice them, while too far, and our warriors will be too distant to support our primary entry point."

---

Ahnasha was still silent, though now, not entirely out of resentment. Irenya's mention of the execution of her father made her uncomfortable. She had always considered the Argonian invasion of Morrowind to have been a form of justice that had been a long time coming. As Irenya had said, the Argonians had focused their efforts onto a Great House of slavers, the Telvanni. But, it would be naive of her to think that no innocents were caught in the carnage. If, of course, her father was innocent. A lowly clerk did not sound like the kind of person who would even be able to own slaves, but she supposed she could not be sure.

Regardless of Ahnasha's silence, Irenya continued. "Oh, that happened almost two centuries later, during the Great War. Modern Morrowind reviles the Empire for their failure to give sufficient aid during the Oblivion Crisis, and the Red Year, but my mother still supported them, even after all that time. Our House, House Hlaalu, had been prosperous in the Third Era because of the Empire, and she never forgot us. After the Red Year, House Hlaalu...fell out of favor, far enough that it was stripped of its Great House status, so we did not have much of a place in Morrowind. Mother knew that the Imperial soldiers would need the aid of talented healers, so she convinced me to join her and move to Cyrodiil. I did not care for the Empire near as much as her, but I did not despise it, and it was not as if we would actually be joining their armies, so I agreed. I gave myself many reasons to join at the time, but I believe the largest among them was that I simply did not want to allow my own mother to go into danger alone."

"Now, Miranor," Gallus said, trying to defuse the werevulture's fervour, "That's noble of you, but let's not volunteer to dance with danger unless we know we have to. Our planning is not over yet."

Gallus returned his attention to the map. "If we want to try and bring the ladders closer for support, I'm not sure that it will be a matter of them noticing. We could not guarantee that either way. No, I would rather it be a matter of forcing them to split their forces into unequal portions so that either the gate assault or the ladder assault has an easier time taking the walls. It seems to me that keeping the ladders away from the gatehouse -- at least obscured by the keep from the gatehouse -- would sow the most discord amongst their command. As well, the fewer archers focussing on the gatehouse will be positioned to fire upon a ladder assault." Gallus pointed to the point at the walls where the ladders might be raised, "Of course, we can reduce the distance appropriately as you say."

---

Fendros continued to listen with interest. He had gone from being uncomfortable with Irenya's presence to fully curious about her story at this point. Perhaps it was a connection with his Dunmer heritage or perhaps it was him no longer worrying about ulterior motives from Irenya.

He was cautious when asking his next question, given that the loss of Irenya's father must have been sore. "And your mother? What became of her?" Fendros asked.

Lorag stood with his arms crossed, shaking his head. "Boy, you're not goin' to sow any 'discord' into Do'rhajul. Guess you learned from your father; that sounds like a plan an Imperial commander would use. Break up the enemy ranks, flank them from multiple angles, it's a basic combat tactic. And, that's why it won't work, it makes too much sense. He'll see it comin' as soon as he sees the ladders. Oblivion, I'd bet on him guessin' it before then. That cat'll have his men positioned exactly where they need to be. You want to beat him, you can't think that conventional at any stage of this attack."

Through the entire discussion, Ri'vashi was becoming increasingly frustrated at her inability to find some kind of solution. She was not accustomed to such difficulties in military matters. But, with Lorag's response, an idea came to her mind. "If he is as skilled as you say, he may predict us attempting to surround him, but...what if we find a way to fake it?"

---

The longer the conversation went on, the more relaxed Irenya became. Even Ahnasha started to appear less frustrated, though she was still far from being accepting of Irenya. "I...cannot say for sure." Irenya answered. "We both survived the war, thank Hircine. We were close to the fighting at times, but neither side made targets of the enemy's wounded. There was at least that much honor among them. We had originally planned to return to Morrowind after the war, but as I mentioned, we had no real home there either. A few months before the end of the war, we were living in a small town named Aleswell, north of the Imperial city. With nowhere else to go, it is where we stayed. The people were friendly, and as healers, we were certainly valued. I was turned by a rouge werewolf about fifteen years later, while I was fishing by Lake Rumare. I never returned to Aleswell after that, so I do not know if my mother stayed, or moved on in my absence."

Gallus did not look up from the map as Lorag rebutted his suggestion. He curled his lips, but only gave conceding nods. Lorag was blunt, but he was correct. Ri'vashi's idea, on the other hand, held more water. Gallus at first glanced to her sceptically, but as he breathed in to respond, he stopped and furrowed his brow. "Oh...that could work, actually," he said in a low, anticipating voice. "Yes..."

Gallus stepped back from the table and extended an arm. "If we position troops on the edge of the tree line with ladders, feinting with a token force using the terrain, the defenders may be redirected to repel them from the walls." He glanced to the others, "But what if the ladder teams simply...stand there? What is the commander to do? If he redirects to the gate, the ladders might advance and take the walls. If he doesn't, his forces are displaced." Gallus looked to Ri'vashi for confirmation, "Was that what you were thinking?" Gallus also gave Lorag a look to see if he thought it would work.

---

"Hm," Fendros stopped to try and remember something. "I remember seeing that village on signs and maps, but I'm not sure if we ever visited it. I think we've passed by it through the woods on our way between Bruma and the Imperial City, perhaps."

There was a pause where Fendros found one detail curious. Irenya seemed still very much a Dunmer in beliefs, with ties to ancestors and such. However, if she didn't know about what her mother was doing now..."Have you ever thought about trying to visit your mother?" Fendros asked.

Fendros mildly acknowledged how funny it was that Irenya had told much more about herself than he or Ahnasha had revealed to her. Still, at least Irenya seemed open and honest. Perhaps the conversation would turn around again.

"Perhaps." Ri'vashi answered with some uncertainty in her tone, though even now, she was examining the map to pick out the shortest distances from the tree line to the walls. "Do you believe that would work on Do'rhajul, Lorag?" She asked.

Lorag unfolded his arms and leaned forward onto the table. "Now you're startin' to think. But...I don't know. I could see it working at first, but it don't take long for Do'rhajul to pick up on these things. Very observant. Biggest problem I see is how wide the clearing is around the fortress. Only way to keep our numbers hidden is to keep them behind the treeline, but from there, it would take time for them to make the run to the walls and set up the ladders. I can guarantee, Do'rhajul will know exactly how long that would take. He might realize that he can just keep most of his forces focused on the main gate, and just order them to move if he sees the others advancing with the ladders."

"That is an issue, but...perhaps we can find a way to obscure our forces even in the clearing." Ri'vashi suggested, turning her attention to Meesei. "You mentioned that it is possible to create a mist around the area. We could follow Gallus' suggestion and set up decoy forces to surround the stronghold. From there, if we cover the area in mist as we start our charge, we can obscure our numbers while making it seem as if we are just trying to obscure our warriors from their archers."

"Yeah, and as a side effect, it'll obscure our warriors from their archers." Lorag chuckled.

A smile crept onto Gallus' face as Ri'vashi fused the previous ideas into something that would be very unlikely to expect. "I like it. Their archers' power will be diminished, as well as the mages slinging spells from the walls, they'll have no idea of our numbers, the infiltrators will have less distance to cover to get out safely, they'll be spread out, werevultures can harass the walls without exposing themselves overmuch..." Gallus stopped to breathe, clapped his hands, and laughed triumphantly. "This will be grand if we can execute it!" He then looked to Meesei, "I guess the question there would be how long it would take to set up a mist like that."

Gallus dipped his head to one side, slightly diminishing his mirth. "Of course, we ought to consider...contingency plans as well. For the sabotage and such. I am not sure if there is any way to improve that approach, or if there is a better way to get in."

Meesei shared Gallus' concerns about the sabotage. Their current plan hinged on being able to infiltrate and sabotage the main gate. Without that, their advance would be halted by the formidable defenses along the walls. "The sabotage is the fastest way in, without a doubt. If it fails, we could perhaps attempt other options, like targeting the grate above the front gate to see if we can eliminate their oil pots. From there, we could use our lycan forms, or perhaps a ram, on the gate itself. But, that would not proceed nearly as quickly, and we would lose the advantage a fast attack provides. We do not have the time for an extended siege."

Though Meesei wished she could find a safer approach, using werevultures for sabotage seemed to be their fastest way into the stronghold. Hopefully, further scouting upon arrival would reveal more options. "Now, to create a cloud of mist of that scale, as I mentioned, will not be a simple task. We merely need it to conceal, which does make the task somewhat easier. It is possible to create a mist with other magical properties, but the magical power required for that is significantly higher. Even so, it will still require a significant dedication of our magical resources. We will need to spread out soul gems at key locations around the area to help provide energy for the ritual. As well, I will need mages to supply their own magicka to help power the spell. It will draw far more magicka than one mage can provide alone. The soul gems will ensure that we do not drain ourselves completely, and provide links to one another to help coordinate the ritual. We can use potions to help rejuvenate ourselves afterwards, but again, those will be potions we will not have for the fight itself."

---

Irenya shook her head. "Oh, no, that would create more problems than it would solve. If I could go back to the moment I was turned and do it again, I do admit that I would do something differently. Instead of simply disappearing, I would find some way to justify my leaving. Perhaps tell her I found an opportunity to start a career elsewhere, or a husband in a far away land. I did stay with my mother far longer than most children would have started their own lives. But, it is far too late for that. I cannot think of a good explanation for leaving suddenly without a trace that would not either offend her, or worry her. And certainly, it is best that she not know I am a lycan. She is far more traditional than myself. If I could think of a sufficient explanation, however...I may consider it."

Not wanting to continue on the topic of speaking to her mother, Irenya quickly attempted to move to something else. "Ah, but, what of yourselves? I know you are both from Cyrodiil, but what brought you together?"

Gallus nodded. "We'll have to fall back on a ram if the sabotage fails, it would seem. I do not like our chances of just using ladders or relying on our beast forms."

After a moment of deliberation, Gallus spoke regarding Meesei's words. "As far as I can see it, the advantage gained from the mist will wear the cost of having less magic on the field for the fight. Using the mages directly will make them targets for archers that would otherwise not be able to see with the mist in place anyway."

"I wonder..." Gallus rubbed his chin, "If so much hangs on the sabotage, is there a way to improve our chances? How many werevultures can we make invisible? Is it possible to have a hit-and-run force elsewhere in the stronghold at the time? Is there any method for destroying the mechanism beyond just using strength to break it?" Gallus looked to everyone for ideas.

---

Fendros knew as well as Irenya did why the topic was uncomfortable for her, so he didn't mind changing the subject. He exchanged a glance with Ahnasha and smiled, wondering how much to reveal. Fendros had one word to give to Irenya when he turned to face her. "Necessity. At first, anyway." Fendros continued before it sounded like something it wasn't, even though he did not intend to include Rhazii's conception, "Meesei found me outside of Cheydinhal the day after I was turned. I was...resistant, but Ahnasha mentored me and helped me to embrace a different mindset. She taught me real archery, fine points. We ended up spending a lot of time together and we...grew very close."

Ahnasha may or may not have wanted to add to the story, but at least all of it was more or less truth.

Ra'jorr shook his head. "Without knowing what mechanism the gate uses, it is difficult to say. Though, we could, perhaps, find a general solution. Champion, this one is familiar with spells that can paralyze a person, as if they were stone. Is it possible for a spell to do the same to something non-living?"

Initially, Meesei's response was not encouraging. "Unfortunately, paralysis is not a spell that works on objects. I know there is other magic that can achieve that effect, but those are enchantments, not spells. You would need a soul gem, and the knowledge to apply it. But...there may be another way for us to attain the same effect. We could simply freeze the mechanism. We would likely only need a quick, concentrated burst of frost magic on the mechanism to render it immobile, for a time, at least. It would not last too long, but we do not need it to. As long as it lasts until we can get our warriors through the gate, it will be sufficient. We can give several scrolls to the werevultures to ensure they can sabotage it. As for our werevultures themselves, we could make all of them invisible if we needed to. However, if there are too many flying together, even invisibility may not keep them hidden. The sound of their wings could give them away."

---

Ahnasha's skepticism of Irenya had not diminished, and with Fendros' description of their own past, Ahnasha saw a way to give her a sort of test. She was being kind and polite, but Ahnasha was curious to see if that would hold true once she learned that they were not so perfect. "That is...mostly what happened, except for the part where we were both very drunk and he impregnated me essentially on the day we met. That inspired pretty well to get to know each other, I think."

Irenya's expression was, as Ahnasha expected, obviously surprised. However, she returned to normal fairly quickly. "Oh, well, I would imagine so. I think there is a reason I do not tend to drink. Regardless, it is good everything is still going well now."

"If you are confident with freezing it, I'll trust you," Gallus answered. "I'm sure we can strike a balance with the numbers in a group. Now, I can't advocate for werevultures colliding into each other in the sky if they are invisible, but would it perhaps be possible to have more than one invisible group strike at the walls while the sabotage is taking place? Aside from the distraction it could provide, if archers on the walls could be threatened down, the sabotaging party would be under less risk. It needn't be a full attack, just a skirmish while the gate is dealt with." Gallus looked to Miranor in particular, "You would know best how to organise the werevultures, what do you think?"

---

Fendros wished he was less embarrassed than he was about Ahnasha's honesty, but he should have expected nothing less. He tried to laugh it off softly. "That was a lot of unlikely circumstances bundled into one, but yes," Fendros said, "it turned into something more."

The dark flush that had crept onto Fendros' face faded and he seemed to only then realise that Irenya's reaction was far removed from what he expected. He angled his head curiously at Irenya at this. Perhaps it was time to get to the point. "You know, Irenya, I feel like we're dancing around something here." Fendros took a moment to try and find the right words, holding his breath uncomfortably. "When you spoke to me in the clanhome a while ago, it was almost hard to believe that you had changed as you said. The way you're acting now, even, it's...not what I expected." Fendros' brow curved to worry, "But you did say some hurtful things to myself and Ahnasha in the past, so...this is strange for us. Has anything developed since we last spoke?"

"It would not be too difficult to organize, no...if it is the best course of action." Miranor answered, turning her attention to the others for confirmation.

Ri'vashi did not seem entirely certain, though she did not necessarily see it as a bad idea. "Ri'vashi does see how it could be helpful, but timing would be everything. If the other group attacks early, or is detected early, it would give more time for the enemy to respond. Such a diversion could tie up some of their forces, but there is no question that the majority of the enemy's focus will be on the group sabotaging the gate. They will realize fairly quickly what we are doing. It may provide some help to our saboteurs, but this one would not expect it to be drastic. All of them will be in considerable danger, so we will have to decide if the benefit is worth the risk to their lives. Ri'vashi suggests we ask the werevultures themselves. They will be the ones taking the risk, and if not enough of them agree to it, this one will not order them to."

---

Irenya sighed, breaking eye contact with the pair. "Nothing that I have not already told you. All of this has given me...perspective. I have experienced a lot of things that made no sense to me, with the way I saw the world. I kept making excuses for them, but that could not go on forever. This place is nothing like I expected, and I could not just be blind to the reality of it. I know you have forgiven me Fendros, but..." Irenya began, finally looking back directly to Ahnasha. "I did not want to just leave everything as it was. Like he said, I said some hurtful things. As much as I do not like to admit it, I was wrong." She explained, but even so, Ahnasha remained sitting with her arms crossed in what was, to Irenya, agonizing silence.

After a quick pause looking at Ri'vashi, Gallus stuck out his lower lip, glanced away, and turned his hand slightly. "A fair thought, to be sure. Could you propose that after this meeting, Miranor?" Gallus turned to the werevulture present, "I trust you'll be needing volunteers for your team in the first place. If more than you can use step forward, we might still make use of them if they think they can do it."

Gallus turned his head to the map and let out a breath through thin lips. "Right then. What does that leave?" Gallus recapped, gesturing to the map. "The saboteurs fly in and jam the gate open, give a signal, then the mist can come in-" Gallus swept his hand over the map, "-cover the area. We advance and surround the walls with ladder teams. A vanguard rushes the gates, werevultures run harassment. If they get the gate closed we bring a ram forward, but that would cause a lot of losses. We take the gatehouse, then the walls. We advance the rest into the walls and the courtyard, and then try to assault the keep." Gallus took a slow breath in. "The last thing I want to do is overcomplicate a plan, but this does not feel complete."

---

After it was made clear in her silence that Ahnasha was not convinced, Fendros spoke up once more. "Irenya," Fendros said severely, but not threateningly. Irenya's seniority appeared to no longer hold him back. "If you don't want to leave things how they were, you know what needs to be said."

"Without more knowledge of the enemy or their stronghold, there is little else we can do as far as our overall strategy." Meesei said. "The keep will be an unknown until we are physically inside. Our goal will be to capture or kill the General, and secure any information, or other items of value, that may be inside. The only detail that left to discuss for this meeting is our command structure for the attack itself. If we can get into the courtyard, we will need to split our forces into split our forces into three groups to attack the keep from its three entryways. Ri'vashi, as the commander of our largest force, I believe you should lead the assault on the main gate. Ra'jorr and I can lead the attacks on the upper entrances. I will need some of your warriors to comprise my force."

Ri'vashi nodded. "Without question, Champion. Ri'vashi thinks there will be many eager to follow your lead. We have our strategy, for now. Let us just take heed to avoid dedicating ourselves to it too completely. It is rare that a tactic survives contact with the enemy fully intact."

---

Fendros' words only seemed to confuse Irenya. "I...don't understand. I know that I was wrong; I'm telling you that I was wrong. With how I lived before, with where I'm from, I never understood. I couldn't understand. All I ever saw were beasts that paraded my father out into the middle of the street and cut off his head, or animals that drove me from the only home I ever knew while we were too weak to fight back. Without coming here, how could I understand? I am sorry for all of it."

Ahnasha's anger and skepticism seemed to be unwavering. Her expression did not change at all, though this time, she did at least respond. "Why should I believe you? You've been insufferable towards me since the day we met, but now, all of the sudden, now that you're surrounded by Khajiit, you've had a change of heart? What reason do I have to trust you? Maybe all of the Khajiit make you feel threatened, so you just want to put on an act until we're back in Cyrodiil? Maybe you just want to put on a show to fit in until you're 'safe?' I don't know your motivations, but I know not to trust them." She responded. Ahnasha, quite obviously, did not trust Irenya's words...perhaps unreasonably so.

Satisfied enough with the outcome, Gallus pushed off the table. "Hopefully we can get more insight as we approach." Gallus sniffed, "Let's just hope they don't have an escape tunnel we don't know about."

Gallus tried to shake off his apprehension about this plan, given what had been said about the enemy commander. He attempted to play it off with a smile. "Right, so, that's the strategy. Is there anything else to discuss?"

---

All Fendros was looking for was an apology from Irenya. She provided it in the end, but Fendros was surprised to hear how Ahnasha reacted.

A few tense seconds passed after Ahnasha finished before Fendros placed a hand on her shoulder. "Ahna," Fendros said quietly in an attempt to calm her down, "Irenya's just trying to apologise. It doesn't have to be anything more than that, okay? You remember the words I used for you and Meesei when I first joined the pack?"

Meesei shook her head. "No, I do not believe there is any more we can do for now. We will need to divide up our forces and deal with personnel assignments, but those will be discussions between the warriors and their commanders. This meeting is dismissed. Once you finish what you can for the night, you should all be sure to get some rest. I have some experience in overworking myself, and I can say with confidence that it does not help one's judgment."

With the meeting over, the warband's leaders began to disperse and head for their own tasks, or in Lorag's case, his bedroll. As they were leaving the tent, Ri'vashi caught up with Gallus and walked alongside him. "It is not the most...confident this one has been in a plan, but she supposes we do not have much choice. No one claimed this assault would be easy. Anyway, what role do you think you'll be serving in the attack? Who will your pack be following?"

---

Though Fendros' opinions held a lot of weight with Ahnasha, her innate stubbornness was also showing through quite clearly. Overall, she was not an easy person to persuade. "So you trust her too? With all that happened, I could believe your change, but this just seems like too much for me. I've never known anyone to change so much for no apparent reason. Why would you think she is being honest?" Ahnasha asked. Meanwhile, Irenya had broken eye contact once more and was looking down, rubbing her arm lightly.