>>6287134

It is then that the drawbridge between the castle and the town begins to lower. Your men take the opportunity to catch their breath and address the wounded, of which there are few. Most of those touched by the Hellblades are dead, and the wounded will spend months recovering, if they recover at all. Even so, most of your men have survived. They are dirty, covered in the blood of daemons and heretics, and the purple and yellow colours of the province have been stained dark red, but you can see that they are still ready for combat.

You command that they stay put however, while the reinforcements from the castle spill out and rush to retake their home. Already you can see the fires are beginning to burn low, and though there are skirmishes all over the city, the battle is beginning to die down as the cultists are slaughtered. Such is the consequence of Heresy.

After a few moments, a man surrounded by several riflemen crosses the drawbridge, and strides over to you. He is dressed much like your Greatswords, extravagantly, with a feathered cap, but he is older than them, a large white moustache showing his age extending beyond his cheeks. When he gets close to you he removes his hat and bows.

“Thank you, Stranger, for your aid in liberating our city. I am Albert Zufällig, the Castellan of Castle Lilagelb. We did not think we could retake the city, until you came along. Nor could we risk those daemons breaking through into the castle. We are in your debt.”

“It is nothing. The Witch-Hunters deserve the most credit for assembling this army.”

“Oh? They are here? That is good. We will have great need of them over the coming days. What little news we have is grim, and without the Prince…”

One of the Greatswords near you starts, and raises his head.

“What has happened to the Elector-Count?”

“Nothing, Sigmar willing. He is away, in Altdorf. Graf von Dickermann rules in his absence. Please, come in and rest awhile. The Graf will be most interested to meet you.”

You shake your head.

“There are still cultists in the city, and they hold the northern bank. We must purge them before they regroup.”

But Albert only smiles.

“We will not get them now. Not while Morrslieb still shines. We must wait until morning. My men have already been ordered to hold the bank. But, I can see that I’m in no position to give you orders, so do as you will.”

You thank the man, and let him return to organising his troops.

What will you do?
>Meet with this Graf, the ruler of the city. It will be useful to take the measure of the man.
>Go seek out the Witch-Hunters and aid them in their duties. You must eliminate any taint of chaos that remains on this side.
>Organise the defences on the river. Vigilance must be your shield, and maybe you can identify weaknesses in the enemy.
>Write in.