Given the grandiose way in which the messenger had arrived, Tiral had been on his guard ever since the Knights set forth to check out the Fort. If the last two excursions they had set out were any indication, what was waiting for them at their destination was certainly not going to be very welcoming.

Granted, the one who had delivered the message had been riddled with wounds, so it wasn't anywhere near as subtle this time around, but that didn't stop the mage from worrying in the first place. At this point, he considered using the clairvoyance spell he had been messing around with the past few days or so after it was discovered that the lightning wards were a bust for the moment, but trying to set that up on a horse was a level of inefficient that he wouldn't even [i]try[/i] such a thing without a lot more experimentation.

That wasn't something he had the time for right now.

The vanguard seemed to have things under control, luckily enough, so Tiral was free to simply ride along, unhindered by any worry the rest of them might have. Thankfully, he wasn't in any sort of position of authority, so this time he was free to just prepare countermeasures for any incidents that came up. No worrying about tactics or anything; just simple measures and countermeasures for what might be a giant mess waiting for them.

He didn't have much faith in the people remaining in the fort, assuming that any were left.