Crossword Genius

Suddenly pay for attempt to win power around upland areas (2,3,4,5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

at one fell swoop

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'suddenly' is the definition.

'pay for attempt to win power around upland areas' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'pay' could be 'atone' (I've seen this before) and 'atone' is found in the answer.
'win' could be 'w' (abbreviation in sport) and 'w' is found within the answer.
'power' could be 'p' (symbol in physics) and 'p' is found in the answer.
'around' could be 'o' (a round letter) and 'o' is present in the answer.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for at one fell swoop that I've seen before include "all together" , "46 [AT THE SAME TIME]?" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app