Chapter 89: Assault on the Heart
The western Viridian commander did not wait for the rest of the army to reach the center. From the intersection overlooking Eastwatch’s government compound, he could see defenders still dragging wagons into place, carrying timber toward the gates, and moving crossbowmen between rooftops and wall positions. The compound was strong compared with the surrounding administrative buildings, but it was not ready. Its defenders had expected time to gather survivors from the collapsing sectors before making a final stand. Instead, the western goblins had arrived first, and every minute spent watching would give General Cedric Halvern exactly what he needed: more soldiers, stronger barricades, and a chance to organize the chaos behind the walls.
The commander turned toward his officers and ordered the assault to begin immediately. The western entrance would receive the main attack, northern companies would strike the smaller gate, and southern formations would put ladders against the wall while crossbowmen suppressed every visible firing position. They did not need to capture every building at once. They needed the compound broken open before the surviving Caldris forces could reach it.
Orders moved through the western formation. Shield-bearing infantry gathered in dense ranks along the broad avenue facing the main gate. Axe crews formed behind them with chopping tools, hooks, and ropes. Smaller groups dragged ladders through adjoining streets toward the southern wall, while another force disappeared north between government buildings. Viridian crossbowmen climbed into upper windows and onto rooftops surrounding the compound. The position that had once served as the center of Eastwatch’s authority was now overlooked by enemy shooters from several directions.
Inside the compound, Halvern saw the formations taking shape and understood the goblins were not intending to wait. He stood near the western gate while guards continued piling timber behind the entrance. Lord Governor Marcellan Rusk remained nearby, surrounded by officers, clerks, and wounded soldiers still capable of holding weapons. Rusk demanded to know where the western troops retreating toward the center had gone, but Halvern could only answer that some had been pushed south, some had never reached the district, and others might still be fighting their way inward. He then ordered professional infantry to the western gate, crossbowmen to the walls and upper floors, militia to the north, and every available fighter to reinforce whichever position began failing first.
Viridian horns sounded before the command finished spreading. Crossbow bolts immediately crossed the avenue. Human shooters fired from the compound wall, striking shields and dropping several goblins in the front ranks, while Viridian crossbowmen answered from nearby buildings. The compound wall offered protection, but the surrounding district gave the goblins firing positions nearly level with parts of the perimeter. Caldris crossbowmen who expected to dominate the streets from above suddenly found bolts entering from windows opposite them.
The western assault advanced beneath that exchange. Shield-bearers approached the main entrance while axe troops remained close behind. The gate itself had been reinforced, and the defenders had built another obstacle outside it from wagons, barrels, benches, timber, and stones carried from the courtyard. Human spearmen waited behind the obstruction, their longer weapons angled toward every gap.
The first Viridian rank hit the barricade and stopped hard. Spears thrust between carts. One goblin collapsed after a spear pierced his upper chest, while another was dragged backward with a wounded thigh. Axe troops tried to reach the timber but found too little room to swing properly. Caldris soldiers pushed through narrow openings, struck at the attackers, and withdrew behind the barricade before the goblins could surround them. The western commander refused to let soldiers pile uselessly into the obstacle, ordering exhausted ranks rotated out while fresh shields maintained pressure.
The northern assault began moments later. The smaller gate there lacked the heavy approach defenses of the western entrance. Caldris militia had reinforced it with timber and furniture, but they had been given little time. Viridian shield-bearers reached the doors under crossbow fire and immediately brought axe crews forward. When a runner reported the northern entrance under heavy attack, Halvern was forced to transfer a professional platoon away from the western reserve despite an officer warning that the main gate already lacked enough men.
The western commander saw the movement and immediately intensified his own assault. Hooks flew over the barricade, ropes tightened, and several dozen goblins pulled while shield-bearers protected them from spears. The first wagon shifted only slightly before professional Caldris infantry surged through an opening and launched a short counterattack. Their heavier shields threw several goblins backward and briefly recovered space in front of the gate, but fresh Viridian soldiers struck them before they could exploit the gain. Once the human momentum slowed, goblins began closing around the edges of the formation, forcing the Caldris troops to withdraw behind the barricade.
At the southern wall, ladders rose at nearly the same time. The defenders pushed the first away before more than two goblins could climb, while stones damaged another. A third remained against the parapet. Shield-bearing goblins climbed under crossbow support as human soldiers stabbed downward with spears. Several attackers fell, but one reached the top and survived long enough for another to join him, then a third. The foothold remained tiny, yet Halvern had to send more of his shrinking courtyard reserve south to contain it.
The western barricade began failing soon afterward. Goblins finally dragged the first wagon sideways far enough to expose the timber supporting the center. Axe crews surged into the opening while human spears struck at them. Another hooked rope caught a second cart, and Viridian soldiers pulled as axes splintered the braces. Halvern ordered another counterattack, but this one was visibly smaller because troops had already been sent north and south. The western commander noticed the thinner human line and ordered his shield-bearers forward without pause.
Meanwhile, the southern foothold expanded. Goblins on the parapet attacked low, forcing larger Caldris soldiers away from the ladder long enough for more troops to climb. Another ladder reached the wall several yards away, forcing the humans to split again. Viridian soldiers soon reached the inner steps and began descending toward the courtyard, meaning the compound was no longer threatened only from outside.
Then a heavy crack came from the northern side. The smaller gate had begun to split under repeated axe blows. Caldris reinforcements arrived just in time to prevent the first goblins from forcing through, but the damaged door could not be repaired while the attack continued. Within minutes Halvern received three reports: the western barricade was failing, the northern gate was close to breaking, and goblins had established themselves on the southern wall.
Rusk told him they could no longer hold the perimeter. Halvern did not argue. He looked toward the largest administrative hall in the center of the compound and ordered the defenders to prepare an inward fallback. If the outer line failed, they would defend the courtyards and buildings and force Viridian to fight for every remaining structure.
The order had barely begun spreading when the western barricade collapsed. One of the main braces broke under repeated axe blows and a cart twisted sideways, creating a gap wide enough for shield-bearing goblins to force themselves through. Caldris infantry met them immediately. The first attackers died in the opening, but their bodies did not close it. More goblins stepped over them, pushing the human line backward a little at a time.
At the northern entrance, the damaged door split inward almost simultaneously. Viridian soldiers surged through the narrow opening and collided with the defenders waiting behind it. The breach remained small, but it forced yet another group of Caldris soldiers away from the western side. The western commander recognized the moment and committed his main reserve.
Fresh Viridian troops slammed into the weakened western entrance. Shield-bearers pushed through the shattered barricade while axe crews attacked the remaining gate supports. The defenders attempted one final counterpush, but they no longer had enough soldiers behind the front rank. Hooks pulled loose timber away, axes broke the remaining braces, and the reinforced western doors finally gave way under the combined pressure.
Viridian infantry poured through. The first ranks took casualties from crossbowmen firing across the courtyard, but more followed immediately. Shield-bearers spread left and right to create space. Spearmen came behind them, followed by crossbowmen who began firing toward upper windows and rooftops. At almost the same moment, goblins from the southern wall descended into the compound while the northern breach continued widening.
The outer perimeter ceased to function as a single defense. Caldris troops withdrew across the courtyards in organized groups, abandoning walls and guard rooms that could no longer be held. Halvern personally directed professional infantry toward the approaches of the central administrative hall while Rusk and the remaining officials were moved deeper inside under guard.
The western commander entered through the broken gate only after enough ground had been secured. He stepped over shattered timber and fallen soldiers and looked across the compound. Caldris banners still flew above the largest central building, and human troops were gathering around its entrances. Pointing toward the hall, he ordered his soldiers to keep pressing because that was clearly where the defenders were concentrating.
Viridian horns sounded inside the compound as goblins entered from the west, pushed through the northern breach, and descended from the southern wall. Fighting spread across the courtyards while Caldris soldiers retreated toward their final command buildings. The heart of Eastwatch had not yet fallen, but its outer defenses were broken, and the government compound that had directed the defense of the entire province was now fighting for its own doors.
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