By the time the horde reached Niðaróss, it had already taken Þýdal, Gressli, Mebonden, and Stormroost. Refugees crowded behind the walls with townsfolk, warriors, smiths, spellcasters, and children who had already learned the sound of running from fire. Ásgeirr Axelson called the defenders together and named them the shieldwall of the fjordgate.
The first blows fell from the east and northeast. Giants, orcs, goblins, and siege engines came against palisade, longhouses, towers, and traps. The newly built refugee longhouses outside the eastern wall became bait and delaying ground. Shadow Animus scouted from rooftops, Kris Stormblade carried warnings through the mind, and fighters pulled back only when the pressure became too much. On the wall, songs, arrows, spells, stones, and lightning answered the horde.
The battle did not stay on the ground. Thordak Faerdhal, Skythor, Netheril Faerdhal, Kara Stormtongue, Thorin Steinson, Slate Skarnson, and Fluffy fought in the air until Skythor was hit and the craft had to land near the northeastern tower. Elsewhere, Buggy Uwu banished a charging giant long enough for the defenders to destroy it when it returned. Amelia Frodedottir slew a giant with her flame-tongue spear. Sanura Sefu met another with Starspike in the square.
Night brought worse trouble. A fire-weakened breach nearly opened the town, and later the northern wall came close to breaking. Thordak fell to poison before Risar Stormborn cut through the attackers and brought him back. MechaKirby and Netheril revealed a floating shield wall powered by Atlantean work and Aetherstone, catching missiles and helping close the gap. From the fjord, sea elves arrived, with Wavesia and Fireetta recognizing family among them and Tsunami tearing into the enemy flank.
The cost was still real. Torvald Grimstein fell while defending trainees at the eastern wall and passed responsibility to Kori Tabo before the end. The turning point came when Kara identified the hobgoblin commander and the defenders coordinated a strike that killed him. As the horde broke, Skrappe Frappe charged down from the hills with Bitey Boy Brock and a wave of badgers, cutting into the fleeing goblins.
Niðaróss survived. The fjordgate held, and the horde that had seemed unstoppable lost its commander and shattered. The victory did not restore every burned village, but it changed the future: refugees became builders, young defenders became drengr, and the town became the center from which the next expeditions would set out.