Just then I saw a Sarranid army off to the northeast, moving north. I had to make a desicion: Sneak into the castle and join the defense hoping for a miracle, or ride off and find help.
With my garrison of 100, plus the entourage of 30 horsemen I had with me, victory was going to be an impossibility. I raced back to Reindi only to find it surrounded by more than 800 men, many of them heavy knights. Soon the Swadians (sort of like the French -heavy knights and good crossbowmen) declared war on us. Peace was declared with the Nords, and I focused on trading and bandit hunting, while keeping a modest garrison at my castle. Thankfully it was retaken later, and the Sultan decided to give me a second chance and once again made me the Lord of Reindi. It was the farthest northern outpost of our Kingdom, and it must have drawn the ire of the Nords, who declared war on the Sultanate and took the fortress from me while I was away on campaign with the Marshall and the main army of the realm. Working my way into the Sultan's good graces and the esteem of many of the land's Emirs, I was eventually given Reindi Castle and the village it overlooked, as my fief. After spending a good while as a wandering bandit-hunter and mercenary, I found myself in the service of the Sarranid Sultanate (think the 13th century Arab armies).
