[center][h1][b][color=c4df9b]Tayla[/color][/b][/h1][/center]

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"There!" Smit shouted. He Passed his spyglass over to the nearby catapult operator and then pointed into the distance. There, beyond the southern side of the wall, an isolated group of soldiers were lagging behind the main charge against the southern wall. The catapult's operator nodded, rotated the catapult and launched it's payload into the air. 

The payload landed just ahead the group of soldiers, hitting the ground and releasing a cloud of Dust sand into the air. Immediately three  siege ladders surrounded by soldiers with towering shields, vanished into thin air. While soldiers on the wall cheered, Tayla simply click her tongue. Looking on, dissatisfied. 

[b][color=c4df9b]"How much dust sand did we just waste in order to take out three illusions?"[/color][/b] She asked disapprovingly. 

Smit ignored the question. He'd been ignoring her comments through much of the day. The only time he spoke to her was when he needed to give her orders.

"Seems wasteful, yes," One of the nearby soldiers started, "but far less wasteful than the lives we might lose if we spend our time trying to take out fake siege ladders."

That had been the wall's strategy from the moment they realized General Frost, The Mirage, was loosing his illusions upon them. Sightless Syella had been right about the siege towers. They were all fake. The shadow metal arrows had proven that. However many of the soldiers advancing on the wall were real. 

Despite Syella wanting the soldiers to focus their attention on the eastern gate, Sightless Nieffar had decided otherwise. He had come to the southern wall himself to help soldiers pick out the illusions. It worked for a time, however somehow the aggressors seemed to have caught on. Several soldiers had begun to light torches to envelop their illusions and comrades in light and conceal what was real from the all the Sightless. 

As the soldiers adjusted their tactics to focus on finding the magician's casting the illusions, Nieffar had taken to trying to identify what had tipped the soldiers off to there being a sightless on the wall. It wasn't long before they discovered that some of the birds flying overhead were familiars. 

This had then lead to them pulling aside archers with shadow metal arrows. These archers watched the skies firing their shadow metal arrows at any bird that appeared to be acting unnatural or any familiar that Nieffar had been able to identify. They figured it was best to use these special arrows on spies rather than waste them trying to fire through the gaps in-between the shields protecting the real and fake siege ladders.

Tayla folded her arms beneath her chest. [b][color=c4df9b]"Why not just wait till they approach and then plunge a shadow metal arrow into every ladder?"[/color][/b]

"Because, Tayla," Smit said unable to keep the irritation out of his voice. "if we do that, then the enemy is already here!" He looked back through his spy glass attempting to spot another caster. "Besides, this is the tactic that we were ordered to do. Are you going to help the family, our clan, or are you going to go off doing your own thing again and put all of us at risk?"

Tayla's eye twitched ever so slightly. [b][color=c4df9b]"Well, well. Look who's become quite the prick."[/color][/b]

Smit's back stiffened. Shooting a glance at Tayla, opened his mouth to speak- only to stop himself. Releasing a sigh, he looked back through his spyglass. 

"I'm sorry." He said "That was out of line."

His apology caught her off guard. A brief sense of shame washed over her, which she quickly pushed aside. 

[b][color=c4df9b]"Cowering to a subordinate? Pitiful."[/color][/b] More shame. It had been a forced retort.

Smit said nothing. Ignoring Tayla as he had done for much of the day. Tayla tsked, stalking off to find some place where she could be alone until they needed her. Unfortunately, being at the top of a wall there wasn't any real location which one could even consider to be private. So instead, Tayla settled for a spot on the wall which was not too far away. One with less people running amok. 

[b][color=c4df9b][i]Why did you say that?[/i][/color][/b] She wondered. [b][color=c4df9b][i]Why do you always have to say stupid things like that?![/i][/color][/b]

This had been the reason Tayla had been demoted. It was her rash behavior. Her inability to not have to feel like she came out on top of fight. All she ever wanted was to be in control of her own life, yet how could she ever do that if she wasn't even in control of her own emotions?

"Tayla, oh Tayla. Ever, always so glum." Said a gravelly voice.

Tayla raised her head to find the newly appointed Sightless De'laire standing before her. 

[b][color=c4df9b]"Sightless De'laire."[/color][/b] Tayla said, bowwing her head quickly, if only to look away from those newly scratched out eyes of De'laire's. The sight of the orange goop dipping from De'laire's wounds sickened Tayla. She only hoped it wouldn't take much longer for De'laire's transformation to be complete. Perhaps by then her injuries would heal up properly and Tayla would then be able to look De'laire in the face without heaving out her lunch.

De'laire began muttering to herself. "She looks away? She looks away! Why? Oh, she's disturbed. Of what? Me? Oh yes, yes of course its me. Perhaps wiping my wounds now and then wouldn't hurt. Or... well, yes it would but-"

[b][color=c4df9b]"Sightless De'laire,"[/color][/b] Tayla interjected, [b][color=c4df9b]"Did you wish to speak w-"[/color][/b] 

Tayla never got the words out. Instead, she found herself sprawling on the floor. Her face stinging from a well placed slap.

"DID YOU NOT SEE THAT I WAS SPEAKING?!" De'laire screamed. 

Damn, becoming a sightless had not cured her mental instability from being a Crazed. [b][color=c4df9b]"My apologies, Sightless."[/color][/b] Tayla said, picking her self off the ground.

"Sightless? Oh right, right. Yes, once I become sightless I'll be able to think straight again. Oh, what a wonderful day that will be! Wouldn't you agree?"

[b][color=c4df9b]"-Yes.... Sightless?"[/color][/b] Tayla was feeling more confused then ever now, but she decide it was best to go with De'laire's insanity rather than against it. De'laire simply smiled. 

A soldier suddenly pushed past them. "Sightless Nieffar! Sightless-"

De'laire caught the man by the throat. "Sightless Nieffar is busy at the moment. Please bring all complaints to me." 

She release the poor man, letting him drop to the ground.

"We- we have intruders." The man said in-between coughs. "They wield magic. Tempraision, illusions and ice!" 

Tayla felt her blood go cold. Ice? It was her! 

"They're heading for the gatehouse! If we don't stop them, they'll open the gate, or worse, let the rioters in!"

Tayla looked towards the Eastern Gatehouse. If she ran there now, then perhaps she could cut little Ms. Perfect off!

"Tayla!" Smit shouted in the distance. "We need you!"

Tayla look back towards Smit. Some of the real soldiers had made it to the wall and set up their ladders.

"Yes, yes..." Sightless De'laire was saying. "Sounds bad. Sounds bad. I should kill them myself, yes?"

No! The white haired woman was hers! Tayla looked back to the gatehouse longingly. 

"Tayla, what are you doing?! We need you, now!" Smit cried.

Tayla, took off, ignoring the cries from Smit. He didn't need her right now, and senses knows she didn't need his condescending attitude. She ran like the wind. All the while, a plan of attack began to form in her head.
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