The squad spent their time in their various ways, from the posh soiree of the blue palace to a quiet (or in some cases, rather rowdy) pint in the fine establishments of Solitude. Sejanus had gone to the temple of Talos, trying his best to pray out loud in a rather odd rendition of Old Nord. Nobody truly knew where Telleno went, a fact that would be used later for speculation and accusation that he was a spy for the Thalmor. Ballistarii Portexe and Ganelon had chatted each other up, Ryjko nonchalantly noting they went to bed in the same room later, for they had gone to spend the night in the same inn he lulled himself to sleep in a rocking chair. Hakim and Rashid had apparently won many a gold piece wrestling, only to lose them all and be back where they had started in some other wager. Mukbolg had gone to the Bard’s college hoping to find kin spirits, where instead he was turned away as an unwashed grunt of the Legion. Dallio had apparently waited politely in the Imperial barracks until a spot in one of the beds was freed and spent the remaining few hours getting what little sleep he could for the night.

But ultimately, day would come and the Legate would await his muster at the city gates. Word would spread that he most certainly kept true to his promise of prosecution for deserters, ordering Penitus Oculatus agents to track them down on suspicion of many crimes from spying to nondescript treason. Once all were assembled and orderly, a march would be declared Westwards. Edward and Tylmaesa would be the only two people below the rank of Captain in the Legion to know of their first destination. It was the Kilkreath ruins beneath the statue of Meridia, the vampires having desecrated the statue and the ruins beneath, a fact that was of no particular care to the Empire at large for the lack of apparent strategic value to the war, but had provoked enough concern among the Dunmer that the ambassador had - upon hearing of this - politely suggested to the Imperial forces that they should consider focusing on that area. At their leisure, of course! Regardless, once the site was liberated it would be a camp from which to erase the vampires in the area. 

The snow had started to melt, but thankfully not enough to turn the roads and all around them into mud to sink a man to his waist. Unfortunately, it was not yet warm enough that the marching ranks would be free from gales to chill to the very bone. Small encampments and outposts along the road would be passed, but they would be stopped at for mere minutes to receive any news they might have and provide little respite. Other groups would march along the road, be they the blue paramilitaries of the local Nords or the Dawnguard trailing the column. Marching songs of course boomed throughout the ranks at the order of the Legate, the man using his voice to begin refrains that were in turn echoed by the officers, and yet further in turn the common soldiery. 

The lines were organized such that Hastatii would be organized on the outer edges of the column, such that in event of an ambush they could shield their comrades from the first volleys of fire whilst the ballistarii and mages returned all that they could. The Ballistarii with their pavise shields were next in line, followed by auxilia, then mages, then the bards, and at last officers — the most treasured of the force. 

The strictness of adherence to the formation could by many have been seen to have been foreboding what was to come; it was at the crossroads from wherein a turn right would bring the Legion’s march to the statue of Meridia. It was as they began the right angle turn to go North that the first arrows flew. The appearance of the Thalmor was as sudden as it was violent, hundreds of conjurers dropping their illusions to spring the ambush. It was a true combined arms strike with archers positioned behind hills knowing exactly where the Legionnaires were hailing arrows from above. Destructive mages closer to the the Legion rained a far more direct fire with bolts of lightning and streaks of flame smashing into the massed ranks in a great burst to take advantage of the shield wall; the cessation of their volleys by virtue of an exhaustion of magicka coincided with the charge of Altmer footmen started some moments ago bringing them to a mere stone’s throw away from the Legionnaires.

For their part, the warriors of the Empire had a mixed reaction. Many a man followed protocol forming ranks with their shields to protect the mages and ballistarii whilst they returned fire, and many of such men were scorched alive within their plate. Others were far more disorderly for better or worse. Many a man fled as a coward, screaming for mother only to be mercilessly brought down by an Elven arrow to their neck. Just as many showed bravery, initiative, and possibly insanity by breaking rank and bringing forth their own counter-charge into the elven swordsmen, a most gruesome melee beginning as a result with gore spraying across the field. The Legate himself entered the fray, his shout tearing to pieces a cluster of Elves that sought to slay him. Dallio attempted to bring the squad to order, though before he even finished his command an arrow punctured his armpit and another the eye of Rashid, held by his screaming brother. Mukbolg sounded his horn as loudly as he could, this rousing Sejanus to charge the approaching Thalmor. Ryjko dropped to heal the wounded Redguard, the whistling of crossbow bolts from the ballistarii echoing in his ears whilst Telleno tried to protect the Redguard Brothers and the Nord restorationist from molestation by yet more arrows. 

A leader, or at least a subcommander of the Thalmor entered battle himself, his telekinetics bringing individual men airborne only for them to implode into messy clumps of flesh and steel. After just a minute hundreds already lay dead, for it seemed the Thalmor sought here to destroy the Legion in one fell swoop, and the battle had far more twists and turns to take as the Altmer archers previously behind hills now ascended to stand upon them to fire directly at individual Legionnaires and officers. If the Imperials won the engagement, it would certainly be a close deal.