Taranik House has gotten the word. Taranik House was made to get the word. The house may have more than one entrance, but the windows are arrowslits, every door bars from the inside and the inner keep is solid stone and has only one entrance. Lictor Rouen Stought and her armigers have already geared up for war, armigers in infantry half-armor and Rouen in full hellknight plate, the great horrible glaive she carries is already in her hand.

"We welcome the assistance of Paralictor Rosa in our defense," Rouen says flatly.

Ricard-Blaise Roig and his armigers are mostly doing what Rouen tells him to. He only prepares spells because it's in the rules.

He'll take a frontline role unless they tell him not to. Better him than someone they'd need to pay to resurrect.

Later, but not that much, Tomàs shows up the same way.

Her oaths would let her hide with the abbey. Her honor does not. She also volunteers for the front line, second rank.

Regill has sent one of his armigers out in plainclothes with copies of certain important documents, to go to ground so that even in the event that Taranik House falls their superiors will receive accurate reports. The second he has sent to herd the servants into the cellar, then obscure the cellar's trapdoor as much as possible. The third is sweeping the house for traps that could have been set by a servant with mob sympathies. 

And Rouen Stought can go back to trying to organize the defense of the house. There's the outer wall, which is an outer screen, not a fortress, and then the main house, which is certainly built to hold out but, crucially, was built when they had signifers who could Create Water. It's wood, not brick or stone. And there's the keep. That will hold.

She counts heads. Looks to her like they're up to nineteen combatants. They could hold the keep with two and they'd need fifty for the wall.

"Inside the house," she says. "When they come. Armigers with bows on the roof and the windowslits, to shoot them down when they try to cross the wall. Then two for the front door, two on the back. Rosa, Tomas, the front; Regill, pick your man for the back." Rouen does not, unfortunately, think she should take one of these positions. "Keep buckets of water for small fires; if they spread we fight our way back to the keep."

"Understood. Chain practice would be to attempt to leave most alive and take prisoners, but you are in command and I will neither insist others do so, nor do so myself if you forbid it. It has a minimal but not negligible impact on my effectiveness."

She calculates. "Prisoners are a benefit but ten prisoners are not worth one armiger to guard them. Do so only when they are decisively incapacitated and not when it poses a risk to the life of any knights or armigers."

He nods.

The two armigers that Regill didn't send to ground return and are stationed at the windows with crossbows and orders to preferentially fire on targets carrying torches. 

Tomàs also nods silently and takes position with Rosa at the front door.

As their sole signifer, Ricard-Blaise is left wishing he prepared better spells for this situation. But he has Haste, and Haste makes up for a vast multitude of sins.

Regill commandeers an armiger with a polearm and stations them both at the back door. 

The thing about hellknights is, the thing is.

They're hellknights. It's not very hard to know they're bad guys! They wear spiky black armor! They worship Asmodeus! They go around calling themselves "the Order of the Scourge" and talking about how the whole reason they exist is to fight freedom of speech or "the Order of the Pyre" and existing just to persecute Sarenrites! This isn't secret! Everyone knew it back when they were in power and executed people in vast numbers and stood guard by Asmodeus's priests and lords, and everyone knows it now. They're the bad guys.

The things that are different are, now, nobody wants them alive. They don't have armies any more. They don't have Asmodean priests any more. And we, we have Iomedae's blessing.

So, let's say what we always wanted to say: DEATH TO THE HELLKNIGHTS!

"DEATH TO THE HELLKNIGHTS! DEATH TO THE HELLKNIGHTS! DEATH TO THE HELLKNIGHTS! DOWN WITH THE DEVILS! DEATH TO ASMODEUS! DEATH TO THE DEVILS! DEATH TO THE DEVILS!" There's someone trying to make a speech there.

Disorganized rabble. 

Idiot criminals.

If you ever got rid of us you'd start being sorry real fast.

Lictor Rouen Stought will go out. She is armed. She is very, very armed.

"This is an unlawful assembly."

Chuck a rock at her!

It bounces off her helmet to no particular effect.

"That is an unlawful attack on a subject of Her Majesty," she says. "Cross the fence, and you violate Her Majesty's laws and will suffer punishment -" she smiles behind the helmet "- by the law or by the blade."

Echoing it, a Mage's Decree sweeps across the landscape: Stop rioting. Go home immediately. The primary temple of Abadar offers sanctuary for the night, for anyone injured or caught outside

That sounds like a bluff and an illusionist's trick! "KILL THE HELLKNIGHTS!" A man rushes forwards. "You! HOW MANY ARE IN THE DUNGEONS?"

None - all Regill's prisoners were already transferred. Not that that matters. She turns and walks back into the house.

"Come on," the man says, turning to the crowd. "Empty the dungeons! Empty the pits! Bring the light! BRING THE LIGHT!"

And then he'll try to climb the wall.