The Tale of the Blue Knight
Northern Pendor, The Kingdom of Ravenstern, City of Ravenstern
"Sally Forth! Count Farstor will lead the assault as Marshal, do as he says and we shall have a new hall to dine in by the end of the week!" - King Gregory IV
So, the men rode forth, kissing their wives and children goodbye. Count Farstor was new in the Kingdom of Ravenstern vassaldom, but he had worked as a Mercenary for months. He watched from the side as a great host of at least one thousand men poured from the gates of the city, readying themselves for glorious battle, just like in the stories. Count Farstor had other ideas of what was to happen however, he knew the target and he knew it well. Castle Falcondark, a Ravenstern Fortress taken almost two years ago by the Fierdsvain.
The first scout reports had arrived a week ago, two years was long enough for the Fierdsvain who seemed to anticipate an attack, 700 men stood vigil in that small castle, and they were fearsome. They were led by Jarl Othon, an Imperial Traitor, indicted for treason by Marius Imperator. Count Farstor made a note to send him back to his old liege-lord, let Marius deal with his traitor. He drew up his plans and presented them to the King, a traditional affair up in the north, something that the Count, an imperial by birth wasn't used to.
North-Central Pendor, The Neutral Lands, Falcondark Castle
It took almost three days to move the entire army from Ravenstern to Falcondark Castle. Different Lords left and returned to chase after bandits or complete some unknown and possibly shady business elsewhere. One lord even stopped off at a village just to burn it and kill the peasants.
This isn't warfare, this is shameful.
It was a full week before the siege was ready, not a single Fierdsvain Lord had come to aid the castle, it came down to a straight 1,200 Men throwing themselves at walls consisting of only 700 men. A horrible event but it had to be done, for the good of the nation.
The night before the battle was a tense one in both camps. Count Farstor knew that death was a stern possibility here, as did his opponent, Jarl Othon. Both donned new sets of armour, fashioned with their Kingdom and their colours in mind. Count Farstor, a Blue and White Set of Plate armour, it shone beautifully in the flickering torches of his tent. Jarl Othon had chosen Green and Red on a Knightly Surcoat, rounded off beautifully with a Sallet helmet. The Count refused to wear his helmet for this battle. A mail coif would suffice.
As battles comes and go, this was not the most exciting. Hundreds fell at the breach, one of the bloodiest breaches Count Farstor had the displeasure to climb, he had to climb over at least sixty of his own soldiers just so he could repay the debt and kill sixty of theirs. Jarl Othon had fought for some time now and was tiring, he made his eye contact with Count Farstor and both of them knew what to do. Soldiers split around them, ceasing their petty fight to watch the two commanders duel. Jarl Othon ripped off his helmet, claiming to want to do this face to face, the Count only shrugged and raised his shield and his sword.
The Jarl made the first move, diving straight in with an overhead blow and a side swipe, the Count could do naught but step backwards and try to block the powerful swings, he was an anointed Knight, but he wasn't used to fighting foes almost twice his size and wielding Great Swords. He struck back, shunting the Jarl with his shield and thrusting at his gut with his Bastard sword, he missed by a fraction of a second and the Jarls next blow took his shield clean off his arm. The Count winced in pain, standing up from his kneeling position, he brought his sword up to block the next flurry of blows from the Jarl, eventually succumbing to the pure strength the Jarl gave, he blacked out, falling unconscious before his might.
The fighting ended there for that day. The Count was dragged away, alive. The dead were piled and burned, three days were given for funeral rights by the Jarl, in the hope that reinforcements would come, none did as the Lords of Ravenstern assaulted the wall twice more, taking it on their third attempt. Count Farstor stood atop the breach as it was taken, waving the flag of King Gregory IV.
The Blue Knight was his nickname, if not for the fact that he wore a white and blue suit of armour, but for the fact he was blue n the face when Jarl Othon removed his shield from him and knocked him down. His humiliation would of course be furthered, when the King refused his request for Falcondark Castle. The Count renounced his alleigance and holed himself up inside it with 47 of his best men. A fools errand, as six days later four hundred men of the Kingdom of Sarleon brutally swept north, Falcondark their first target fell in only two hours, they did not stop until Senderfall was theirs.
