Jack, Tamil, and Khelgar headed out of the City Watch district headquarters and wandered around a little bit trying to find Hagen's shop. The district was full of cheaply built wooden buildings. On each side there were rows of residential buildings crammed together somewhat haphazardly. The whole area looked as if it had been thrown up in just a few years rather than carefully developed.
After asking around, the three finally located the small antique shops which turned out to have a prime waterfront location facing the wharf. The three walked in the building and were soon met with a chilly reception from the proprietor's daughter. Hagen, however, expressed his gratitude that the Watch had sent someone to look out for things.
A couple of hours before the shop's closing time, a group of ruffians carrying crude clubs walked into the shop. These did not look at all like customers who might be interested in dealing with antiques. They looked much more like the type to either steal them or smash them. Sometimes looks can be deceiving, but that was not true in this case. The ruffians immediately threatened Hagen if he didn't pay them "protection money" immediately.
Tamil gave the group a glare. "You're all under arrest for extortion."
The group of four thugs laughed and mocked Neverwinter's newest watchman. Jack wasn't quite sure what "hound" meant, but he guessed it was derogatory. He carefully pulled his zat from where it hung from his pack. Tamil issued an ultimatum and then the bloodshed began.
It was a heavily one-sided battle. Khelgar and the dark-haired bard worked their blades with far more grace and skill than the thugs, knocking their opponents' weapons aside with skillful moves followed by thrusts or slashes that opened up bloody wounds on the ruffians. The man who went for Jack got a face full of zat energy and went down with a crash. The last of the thugs tried to get around behind the dwarf, but in doing so allowed Jack to get line of sight on him and another burst later he was also down on the ground. Khelgar's opponent followed, then Tamil's, but neither the dwarf nor bard were as gentle in their attacks. The thugs they fought had been mortally wounded.
Hagen was more than impressed. He had expected perhaps a single watchman who might have run off and gotten reinforcements. Instead, he was delivered from harm by a powerful group blasting lightning into their enemies and clearly outclassing the ruffians.
Marshal Cormick was pleased. He was a bit surprised that the group had managed to bring back two of the assailants alive. Usually they fought to the death rather than risk capture since the gangs all too often killed any gang member coming out of a Neverwinter jail, suspecting them of being an informant. With that threat hanging over their heads, the two thugs quickly divulged that their boss was Caleb, one of Moire's enforcers.
Caleb was even easier to take down. Jack held Tamil and Khelgar up a few yards short of the criminal and the two thugs with him. Tamil announced Caleb was being put under arrest. When Caleb tried to threaten them, Colonel O'Neill simply fired three short bursts with his zat'nik'tel and they were all on the ground. When Caleb came to, he was initially resistant to turning informant, but when Jack suggested they would release him and spread word among the Watch that Caleb had fully cooperated with their investigation and was released to act as a snitch, he panicked and quickly agreed to give information in return for being allowed to leave the city.
Unfortunately, it was this rapid success that set off retribution from Moire's gang. Just as Cormick and Lt. Roe were organizing a "sweep" based on the information Caleb was providing, one of the watchmen rushed into the headquarters. His uniform was torn and there was a panicked look on his face.
"Sirs! There's a riot in the docks. Moire has set her men loose on the docks and they're targeting watchmen!" Screams and the ring of steel on steel could be heard from the outside.
"Lieutenant, you stay here and watch the prisoners. Tamil, come with me. Your friends would be welcome as well, if they want to come." Marshal Cormick grabbed his sword and headed out the door.
Tamil pulled her bow from off her back, opting for a weapon with range. Khelgar followed. Jack shrugged his shoulders and walked out after the other two. This wasn't his fight, but maybe a few shots from a zat would calm things down. In a small place like this, how bad could it be?
Jack was completely unprepared for the chaos. Watchmen ran about with swords drawn or crossbows cocked chasing twice their number of armed thugs. That was something Jack expected, though not with such numbers. It was the men in robes throwing magical blasts from their fingertips or firing arrow-shaped acid missiles that really surprised him.
Jack pulled out his zat and started firing. He tried to keep up with his two native companions, the dwarf and bard, but they were soon in the midst of combat. His zat blasts soon drew the attention of a group of thugs with bows and arrows, and worst of all, one of the robed wizards.
Jack ducked behind a building as several arrows whistled past. A pair of thugs charged at him with swords drawn, but he was able to quickly disable them with the energy weapon when they got close. Jack took aim at the bowmen, but they were wise enough to fire from cover, so he switched to target the wizard. He fired his blast, but to his consternation the energy just disipitated around some sort of shield. "You've got to be kidding me!"
Then the wizard pointed in his direction. Suddenly, the ground around him was covered by a slick oily substance. Jack slipped to the ground. He slowly struggled to his feet. That was when he felt a jolt of electricity course through his body. It felt very much like the feeling of being hit by a zat, which was to say, extremely painful, but without the blacking out that those weapons induced. Arrows flew through the air and Jack attempted to dodge out of the way. One of the arrows grazed right along the side of his neck, causing him to feel a terrible stinging sensation.
The wizard finished muttering something else and Jack saw three vibrant blue dart-shaped objects form next to the wizard. "This can't be good," Jack muttered to himself and he dived back behind the building as the magical blue missiles streaked after him. Jack managed to stay on his feet, but he was literally floored when the three darts followed him around the corner to strike three burning welts onto his back.
"All right. That's it. No more Mister Nice Soldier," Jack yelled out. Holding onto the side of the building, he moved back out of the range of the grease pool. Jack pulled out his P-90, skirted the edge of the magical grease, and came out around the cover of the building.
The wizard was preparing another spell, but Colonel O'Neill let him have a burst of lead in the chest. The bowmen were trying to get a fix on his position, but the former black ops soldier was faster and his submachine gun much more efficient than their bows. The bullets striking them made one them release wildly, but the second got a clear shot at him. Fortunately, Jack was moving as he fired so the arrow merely scraped across his chest rather than impaling him head on.
Jack turned to see how Tamil, Khelgar, and the rest of the City Watch were doing. The answer was not very well. The first thing he saw was the sturdy dwarf, already with blood dripping down his armor from several wounds, get a sword stuck in him through a tear in his armor. Tamil, her black hair drenched in sweat, was standing with a group of uniformed watchmen against several combined gangs of thugs. She was singing loudly and boldly as she took aim with her longbow, the other watchmen apparently responding to her rallying by fighting with greater fervor, but then Jack saw the bard struck by several magical blue missiles and fall to her knees.
Jack made a decision. Rather than try to go John Rambo on the lot of the thugs, wizards, and magically summoned wolves trying to bite his leg (Jack shot it in the head), he'd get reinforcements and come back. He took off for the inn at a run. A group of thugs saw him get to the door, but before they turned on him he had already delivered his message.
"Everybody grab your weapons. There's a war going on out there and we're right in the middle of it!" He turned to fire his P-90 at the incoming thugs. "Khelgar and Tamil are seriously hurt, we need to get back to them."
Elanee was the first one out the door, but Jack stopped her. "We'll need you to do whatever it is you can do to heal people. Stay behind us." Teal'c came out carrying his staff weapon followed by Daniel and Major Carter. Neeshka came out as well, but she slipped into the shadows of the buildings as soon as she was out the door.
With all of SG-1 behind him, plus a woman who could turn into a wolf and heal people and a scary looking devil girl guarding their back, Jack was fully confident they could save their friends and the district. Jack led the squad forward rapidly, turning to fire on a few straggling thugs who were looting and beating non- combatants. They came to where the fighting was most intense with the City Watch grossly outnumbered and being pushed back towards their burning headquarters. Khelgar was lying in a pool of his own blood, surrounded by the bodies of four thugs. Elanee ran to him and started speaking in that strange sort of language again, placing her hands on him. A bright white light flashed around him and seemingly was absorbed into his body. The tough dwarf stirred to Elanee's ministrations.
He looked up into her eyes and groaned. "Never thought I'd be owing me life to skinny, tree huggin elf. But I thank you. I'm owing you for this." He struggled to his feet and pulled a small flask from his belt and brought it to his lips to drink. Immediately, vigor returned to the injured dwarf and several of his wounds closed up.
"Where's Tamil?" Elanee asked with obvious concern.
The group caught sight of the lady bard lying on the cobblestone. She was surrounded by watchmen, some fallen, but most still on their feet, though it did not appear they were likely to stay that way. A group of thugs were pressing them hard and magical arrows of acid were fired through their ranks by wizards.
"Teal'c, go for the wizards. Zats are no good against them because of their shields. Daniel, Sam, take out as many of them as you can." The three nodded their assent.
Teal'c fired his Ma'tok staff weapon while Jack used his P-90 on the wizards while Daniel and Sam methodically zatted the thugs attacking the watchmen. In a matter of seconds, the tide of the battle turned and the watch had the upper hand. Elanee sprinted behind the line of watchmen and urgently began to use her healing magic.
While SG-1's focus was on the largest group of combatants, a pair of thugs with crossbows came around a corner and took aim on the group. One was about to loose a quarrel towards Daniel Jackson, but the thug instead found himself choking on Neeshka's dagger. The thug's partner pulled out his sword and the two began dueling. Without the benefit of the element of surprise, the tiefling found herself evenly matched with her opponent.
Tamil was revived as the fighting ended. Most of the remaining thugs fled, but some were captured, among them the ruffian Neeshka had been fighting. Several of the city watch had perished, as had scores of thugs. Marshal Cormick returned from the fighting to take stock of things.
Neeshka was faster. She was quick to loot the bodies before anyone else claimed them. The thugs were all carrying gold. The wizards had even more, as well as some useful items.
Marshal Cormick looked at the burned-out headquarters. His voice was flushed with anger and emotion. "They burned the place down with the prisoners and watchmen inside. As soon as they drew off most of our patrols with the fighting they set the place on fire. The act of cowards. Lieutenant Roe was a good man."
The marshal gave orders to several men on how to clean up after the mess, including the disposal of the bodies and how to deal with prisoners. "Tamil, I need you to come with me. Your friends, too, all of them." His look changed from stern anger to one of gratitude. "Without your help I'm sure every watchmen on duty would have been slaughtered to a man. I'm going to see to it that Captain Brelaina recognizes your efforts and lets you all into Blacklake without delay."