[color=fff200]”Oh. Yessir!”[/color] Annabeth merely smiled as she was given the orders to rally Captain Cassius’s troops. Taking his sword she rushed off towards the leatherworker shop. Annabeth remembered working there once, not the most enjoyable job she’s ever done. Stinked more than the fens. Soon she’d arrive to a makeshift camp and saw a red haired man there. Annabeth let her thou serous voice awaken them. [color=fff200]”Wake up! Prepare for battle! Your captain has commanded you to rally to the walls!”[/color]

Of course the men were sluggish and cautious of this random woman giving them orders, so she flashed the sword towards them in the torch light. [color=fff200]”Surely you heard the war horns? The city is under attack. Captain Cassius has ordered us to be ready to defend the walls!”[/color] Annabeth would wait for them to get ready properly before she’d leave them. Presumably they know what they’re suppose to do. 

Meanwhile the mercenary army was finally able to put out most of the fires. Without those boats harassing them the mercs could focus on gearing up for battle. While thy lost some supplies the overall damage to the forces weren’t too bad, though there was a lot of deserters. However Commander Diclonii didn’t care to pursue them; he had more than enough troops here to deal with the city and the orcs. [b]”Set up palings at our rear! Those orcs don’t have the numbers to try and attack us directly, so all we need is cover from their arrows. Keep the crossbowmen watching the forest when they return. The rest of you, prepare the catapults and the towers. There will be no more mercy now!”[/b]

The catapults were constructed first, and soon they would launch their payload barely an hour after the attack. They first launched over sacks of plague-infected manure and waste, to demoralize the enemy and spread disease through the town. Archers were also shooting at the top of the walls to try and kill any sentries or guards who might try and shoot back at them. All the while footsoldiers were making the siege tower to breech the walls. A few men were also hacking away at the town gate with axes, hammers, and rams. One way or another the mercenaries were going to get in.