Battle at Camp Alteau

The Battle at Camp Alteau was the penultimate battle of the Dragon War that took place in the Alteau Plains between a host of the Dragon Order led by Inver, the remnant forces of the Areksan Loyalists led by Areksa, and the forces at Camp Alteau led by Perir the Dragonslayer and Larear the Anti-Keeper. It was originally intended as a raid by the Dragon Order to put an end to the Dragon War, but that goal was complicated by the arrival of the Areksan Loyalists' appearance, whose primary objective was to stop Inver.

The battle ended with the defeat of the Areksan Loyalists and the Anti-Keepers, though also caused a large number of losses for the Dragon Order. While the battle did result in the extermination of the Areksan Loyalists, a number of Anti-Keepers routed near the conclusion of the battle following the duel between Elutar and Perir that killed the latter. These remnant forces, led by Larear, later marched to Yandasard and ended the war by killing Inver.

Prelude

Anti-Keepers

Coming off of a number of victories against the Dragon Order, a large Anti-Keeper army, led by Perir, had marched into the Alteau Plains, intending to prepare for a siege of the city of Yandasard. A spy embedded within the Dragon Order had previously informed Perir that the city was largely undefended. The city was indeed poorly manned at the time of the settlement of Camp Alteau. Unbeknownst to either party, a Dragon Order host, which had been defeated days prior by a separate Anti-Keeper army, was traveling to the city to recuperate.

Dragon Order

A scout riding ahead of the host accidentally veered off onto an incorrect path, making their way into the Alteau Plains where they incidentally came upon the Anti-Keepers' camp. Following the host's entry into the city, the scout reported their finding to Shatar, who then reported it to Inver. Contrary to the advice of Shatar, who cautioned against leaving the city to mount a better defense, Inver commanded the host to go with him in two days to raid the camp to put an end to Perir, whom he had held a grudge against since evading him during the Freezing of Naderā.

Areksan Loyalists

By the time of the battle, Areksa had been waging a campaign against Inver in the Alteau Plains for some time, with much success but many losses, with all the dragons loyal to her perishing, leaving only Areksa.

The night of the host's arrival in Yandasard, a dragon priest secretly loyal to Areksa, who had overheard Shatar's conversation with Inver, snuck out from the Dragon Temple and made his way to Areksa's camp in the Walara Mountains west of the Plains. Upon being informed of the impending battle, Areksa rallied her forces to finally defeat Inver once and for all at the camp.

Battle

Early in the morning two days after Camp Alteau had been spotted, the Dragon Order host left Yandasard and marched. The trip to the camp took approximately three hours, and the host was spotted long before arriving, first by a scout from the camp, then by the camp members due to Inver's accompaniment. Inver was first to engage the camp, scorching it in flame, killing a large number of the Anti-Keepers. After some time hovering over the camp watching the results of his passover, the Dragon Order host arrived and engaged the remaining forces.

Following much fighting, to the surprise of all involved, the Areksan Loyalists arrived at the battle, engaging the Dragon Order. In the confusion, the Anti-Keepers engaged the Areksan Loyalists too, and Areksa was brought crashing to the ground by Perir using Dragon's Bane. In an ensuing fight, Areksa was slain by Perir. Witnessing the death of Areksa, knowing the reputation of Perir and fearing the death of Inver, Perir was engaged in a prolonged duel by Elutar. Though Perir was a much more experienced fighter, Elutar eventually triumphed and put his sword through Perir's heart. Elutar then took Perir's sword Dragonbane. This was witnessed by Perir's best friend and co-commander of the Anti-Keeper forces Larear.

Following Perir's death, many of the Anti-Keeper soldiers routed, including Larear. A small amount were burned by Inver while fleeing but ultimately around 1,400 of the Anti-Keeper forces were able to escape.

Aftermath

Following the battle, the forces of both the Dragon Order and Anti-Keepers were almost decimated. While the Dragon Order nominally won the battle, they took heavy losses. The bodies of the Areksan Loyalists were buried in a mass grave alongside the rest of the dead, and the body of Areksa herself was burned by Inver, who had suddenly gained the ability to breathe fire upon her death.

The remnant Anti-Keeper forces recuperated for several days before Larear resolved to end the war and take revenge for the death of Perir. The remnant forces marched on Yandasard, and while Larear anticipated a heavy siege or battle, the gates were opened for them and they were welcomed in by the townspeople. Then, the force made its way to the Dragon Temple and ended the war.