Saster and the others soon reached the foot of the wall and quickly began riding up in baskets.
The garrison on the battlements fired arrows from bows and heavy crossbows to hold off the pursuing Barbarians.
Unable to break through the garrison's volleys, the Barbarians fired back when they saw their enemies climbing into the baskets, aiming at the soldiers inside.
Fortunately, the baskets were made of fine timber and lined with a thin layer of iron. They were sturdy enough that Barbarian arrows could not pierce them. As long as Saster and his men crouched low inside, the arrows could not hit them.
After two trips up and down, every member of Saster Squad had reached the battlements. No one was hurt, and everything had gone smoothly.
The Barbarians saw that everyone they had pursued had made it onto the wall. Their pursuit had failed, and they had no plans to storm the fortress, so they should have withdrawn.
But the Barbarian officers commanding the force could not bring themselves to leave. Their troops kept shooting at the battlements, more to vent their anger than anything else.
The garrison's detachment commander refused to back down. At his order, the fortress's ranged troops fired back. They had the protection of the walls, while the Barbarians had too few men to win an exchange of arrows.
Saster called on his squad to help defend the fortress. His men were handpicked veterans, many of whom could use bows and heavy crossbows. Once they joined in, the garrison's volleys grew denser still.
The two sides traded shots for a full half hour before the Barbarians finally had enough. They had gained nothing from the exchange and had taken considerable losses.
Before, the Barbarian archers could hide in those courtyards and trade shots with