Rushing forward, his first victim had scarcely finished falling by the time his second found steel deep in his throat. He heard a gurgled cry on the other side of the gate, and stilled a momentary surge of panic. There was no turning back now, even as things got sloppy. The third and fourth watchmen turned towards the source of the sound, so he bellowed a battle cry of his own. The nearer brigand was gutted before he could bring his crossbow to bear, and the thunk of the fourth's bolt was wet with the blood of his companion, the tip stopped by Cutter's plated shirt. Shoving the dying man off him, Cutter cut down the final guard as he fumbled for his sword, and took a moment to gain his bearings.

Below him, the mass of banditry roused from their sleep was bottlenecked by the door to their tower, but half a dozen were already outside. Across the gate, Cutter watched Ruby shoulder a man off the wall, and she locked eyes with him as he heard a loud crack and scream from below. Together, they heaved the chains of the gate, and lifted it enough for Kirasa, Zara, and Ruka to slide beneath, well behind the bloodthirsty Man-eater. As soon as the last Shek was through the gate, Ruby and Cutter let it slam shut once more, and Cutter felt his heart drop as he noted Ruby was the only upright figure across from him. Yet, with an underlying pang of guilt, he was glad it was her instead of Krusa.

Running to the end of the wall and down the ramp as he drew his nodachi, by the time Cutter joined the ongoing melee his Shek companions were surrounded—nearly two score marauders circled the massive warriors. Although the defending bandits were outmatched, their numbers were great. Wasting no time, Cutter slashed at the hamstrings of the two nearest raiders, dropping both to their knees where they were quickly dispatched, one of them cursing him as he attempted to avoid the death blow.