Iliyal watched the Allian ship, the ‘Blue Rose’ set off from Nanbasa’s ports. A charity vessel, which had brought food through the Arikan Jungle Relief Fund into Kirinyaa. Now, on its return trip to Rilia, it would be smuggling weapons for what was to be referred to as Operation Speartip.

Kassandora stalked around the Central Requisitions as she made her inspection. Yesterday had been the second time she had done her rounds around the frontline, Ekkerson was pulling through quite well, although he would be. Olephia was on his front, even if she didn’t do anything, then simply the fact she was care would make Zerus and Sceo cautious to attack. Her maids had been disposed of, although Olephia was not at all happy with letting the kitsune shapeshifting spies leave untouched, she had wanted to burn them slowly at first.

Sokolowski’s front had advanced and then stopped. There was no point over-extending, and there was no ground or important locations to secure anyway. It was sand and deserts. Fortia had pulled back too, only keeping a basic skeleton crew of a frontline simply to mark where she had advanced to. It was the mountain range south of his front that was important, Iniri and Anassa were currently working there to clear out secret tunnels and caves, sappers were planting explosives in every tunnel and every bridge. Mountain tops were being rigged to blow, to make avalanches and landslides. Another week, and Sokolowski’s front could be dismantled, the mountains were simply becoming unassailable.

And Zalewski’s front. Fer was there, and Zalewski was no Iliyal, but he wasn’t a bad commander in his own right. It was more a fact that Kassandora’s army had an age gap. Mortals from the age of twenty to sixty, and then Divines in the thousands. Iliyal had more in common with that latter group rather than the former, Zalewski was a good commander, it was simply the arena he had picked also had giants showing off their strength. His front was still on harassment duty, slowly wiping out Maisara’s forces. He was to avoid large battles and the like, give Maisara nothing that would make her panic. And Fer was there too, few people expected much of Fer, her brutal reputation as the Goddess of Beasthood reached far. But Fer had led her beastmen for a thousand years with no support, she had been a good leader during the Great War too, twice now Zalewski had overextended and Fer was there to correct him.

And so, Kassandora ended up in CR. The war was not going well, everyone said it was, but it wasn’t. But then, every war in Kassandora’s book went badly until the day of victory. Kassandora would treat every battle as the first, reinforcements could come at any moment, Allasaria was still missing and Kassandora did not like that woman’s absence. Realistically, Allasaria was off getting the support of the UNN and Guguo, but then the news would have caught wind of her already. The worst case scenario was Great War Two, with Allasaria having disappeared to go off to get the support of Paraideisius and Tartarus to bring them into the war.

That was what Kassandora was planning for. This little prelude of a campaign against the White Pantheon was only serious business for people not in the know. Elassa had not come yet, Arcadia was still holding its force back. The only real losses taken so far had been Melukal, and then the various of the Orders. That wasn’t a war, that was only a disagreement between Divines. Orders had been created in the first place to settle minor quarrels like this.

And now, Kassandora had come to Central Requisitions. It had been a camp, that had then been expanded into a fortress-glade by Iniri at the outbreak of the White Pantheon invasion. Trees grew out of the and curled into each to make buildings, thick canopies of leaves separated made up roofs, branches made bridges and hedges delineated which area was for what. And now CR was being expanded by the natural growth of urban areas again. Heavy vehicles were working on putting up even more warehouses around the base. Three of Anassa’s shield-crystals had been installed, charged up but not turned on yet. Those were simply a precaution, a fall back in case Elassa’s offensive was larger than what they prepared for.

Kassandora was in a room with Kavaa. It was the inside of a gigantic great oak, grown by Iniri, it was the only structure in Kirinyaa that had been built for and by Divines. The doorway were a good size, large enough for Fer and Arascus to walk through, the steps of the stairs were knee height for normal men, although there was a smaller staircase here for the maids too. Fer had sniffed out spies in CR, she had found two more shapeshifters here. “How do you feel?” Kassandora asked Kavaa. Frankly, she did not care how the Goddess of Health was feeling, work had to be regardless of what you thought about it. But the difference between being magnanimity and tyranny was a few words.

“I’m fine.” Kavaa said dryly. She wore her HAUPT suit, as she always did now. Black coat that contrasted against her silver hair and pale eyes. “Thanks for asking.”

“I know it’s not a heroic job.” Kassandora said. That had been one of Kavaa’s qualms with the White Pantheon, the fact she was simply reserved to healing duty. That had been stupid, her Clerics were more than good to deal with the healing, but Kassandora didn’t exactly blame Fortia for assigning Kavaa to the back lines. She was a Divine, so naturally she was stronger than a mortal, but against mages? Sorcerers? Other Divines? The simple fact of the matter was that Kavaa was indeed far too useful to lose, and far too weak to enter the frontlines. “But mine isn’t either.”

“Oh no, it’s fine.” Kavaa said with a light laugh. “Really, I don’t mind it here.”

“That’s good because here is the heart of this army.” That was true, Kavaa wasn’t wasted here. Iliyal would be better of course, as would Arascus, Kassandora could take over leading CR too, but Iliyal had more useful things to do, as did Arascus, as did Kassandora. It wasn’t a hard job, it simply needed a trusted hand to make sure that thievery didn’t set in. Neneria could do it, Fer could too. Not Anassa though, she would run it into the ground in three months.

“No really Kass.” Kavaa said. “I’m fine here.”

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“I just don’t want to feel as if I’m just putting you on the bench again.” Kassandora said. Kavaa had already proved herself as a traitor, she switched sides to Kassandora’s side, true. But it was a switching of sides. Maisara would have never done it, nor would have Fortia. But Kavaa did. At the end of the day, if she did it once, she may do it again. So she had to be made to feel that she was being acknowledged here, even if Kassandora had just sequestered her to being a logistician.

“I see what you do Kass, that’s not heroics either.”

“It never is.” Kassandora said dryly. “But I’m glad you’re here.” Kavaa blushed and looked down at the maps. Kassandora smiled, there, Kavaa’s weekly praise had been done. Another job to check off the list. A knock on the door fully wiped those rosy cheeks of Kavaa. Three heavy thuds, Kassandora did not even have to ask to know who it was. “Come in Iliyal.”

The elf entered. Dark military uniform over, even a little high-pointed cap with Kassandora’s emblem of a sword piercing a skull on it. He saluted and spoke. “General Tremali reports, the rifle shipment to Epa has been sent off.”

Kassandora pulled her own salute to relieve him and motioned for him to come closer. “Good, I wanted to discuss this with both of you.”

“We’re sending rifles to Epa?” Kavaa asked. The woman didn’t have many annoyances, she was certainly easier to deal with than Anassa, Olephia or Fer, but the one thing Kassandora had grown to hate was the questions about everything.

“We are. Operation Speartip.” Kassandora pulled a report from her coat and gave it to Kavaa. “Read through it, but I’m not leaving a copy. Standard procedure, no one but those relevant to it know.” Kavaa would be shut up for a few minutes by the paper, it was simply an outline of Iliyal’s plan to enter the Paladin Headquarters. Kassandora went back to the table that had the map of Epa and a separate map of Arika on it, important locations like the frontlines and Olympiada marked with various symbols. “In general, this will shift the war.”

Kassandora drew a line south of Lubska, to Doschia and then Rilia. “We can assume a new frontline opens up here. Maybe further south if we’re lucky with the other minor Epan nations joining Wissel’s revolt, but we’re working with the worst cases, no one joins.”

Iliyal nodded and looked over the map. “I actually don’t think this is the worst case scenario.”

“You don’t?” Kassandora asked.

“We don’t know what sort of doctrine they use.” Iliyal said. “We know they’ve studied history but steady fronts were only used in the Great War. Worst case would be if they used Hero-doctrine, or some mutation of it through fortifying cities.”

“That’s a good point.” Kassandora said. “But we’re not going to be fighting the war for them. Hero-doctrine would be our best case scenario because Epa would lose.”

“You want them to lose?” Kavaa looked up from the copy of Operation Speartip.

“I want to get into a situation were when the sword and the skull is raised in Epa.” Iliyal readjusted the cap with that emblem on it. “That we enter as saviours and liberators, and not as a conquering army.” Winning wars was an easy thing, the real trouble came in actually securing the land. That was something Arascus was better in than her. Kassandora would have not gone with the risks Speartip brought if he didn’t convince her it was necessary.

“I see.” Kavaa said.

“In that case, we are here to discuss how to lure Elassa down south.” Kassandora said. “Two raptors are to always be stationed by Olephia so that she can move around the country, if Elassa enters from any side but Sokolowski’s or Zalewski’s front, we pull Olephia to wipe them.”

“Why not those two?” Kavaa asked.

“We bog her down in ground warfare.” Kassandora said. “With surgical strikes by the KAF to drain them slowly.” Kavaa nodded.

“Wouldn’t it be better to just…” Kavaa trailed off. “Just kill them? With Olephia?”

“You’ve not read my On War Philosophy, have you?” Kassandora asked and Kavaa shook her head. Kassandora turned to Iliyal. “I think you’ll know why we’re not killing them outright, right?”

Iliyal began immediately, he started reciting in a cold tone as if he was reading directly from her book: “To kill enemy soldiers is to make them into martyrs: instead, it is much better to send them all back home instead. Send them back home. The handsome disfigured. The able crippled. The strong weak. Those who can talk mute, those who can see blind. Send them all back. Martyrdom is a seductive temptress only your own side should enjoy the company of. A heroic death makes legend. A survivor serves warning.”

“That’s basically it.” Kassandora said. “It’s much better to send them back crippled and to have the White Pantheon need to take care of them, rather than to kill them here. A graveyard can be tended by a few gardeners, wounded men need doctors and food, they need places to sleep, they still need to be taken care of.” Kassandora said shrugging as she started making marks on the map. “The goal should be to drag her here, pull her into the jungles and the mountains, and drain her men there. Slowly, each day she’s here, the better our situation gets at large, and the worse it gets for them.”

“I see.” Kavaa said as Kassandora arranged hexagons marked with symbols and letters. Olephia, Zerus and Sceo on the west. Maisara in the north. Fer, Maisara and Alkom in the east. Elassa was set around the mountains, past the lines. That still left Kassandora, Arascus, Kavaa, Iniri, Neneria, Helenna and Anassa on the edge of the table.

A marker for Iliyal was placed where the Divine Armoury had once been built and Kassandora stared at the map. “In the jungle’s it would be best to use Fer’s beastmen. They move faster across that terrain than humans.” Fer was moved away from the frontlines.

“Anassa should take Neneria’s place as rapid-support if its Elassa we’re facing.” Iliyal said and Kassandora nodded.

“Yes, and then Elassa could potentially be eliminated if we manage to drag her into a fight with Fer and Anassa.” Anassa was deployed near Elassa. “Anassa can make good on cutting her numbers down too.” Kavaa’s hexagon was moved to the jungles. “And she will require healing if she’s facing mages.”

“I see.” Kavaa said.

“Iniri could replace Fer on Zalewski’s front. It’s in the woods and Iniri could secure that region, slow them down at least.” Kassandora nodded.

That still left herself, Neneria and Arascus in reserve. Helenna too, but she wasn’t a fighter. It was good to have a reserve, but it still felt like she was wasting her sister’s power, if there was a way…

Wait. Kassandora stared at the map again. Allasaria was missing. Elassa would be in Arika. Zerus and Sceo were in the west. Maisara was there too. Fortia was in charge of the command, so she would most likely be close to the frontlines too. Her eyes went upwards. Iliyal would be in Lubska over there, Operation Speartip would only proceed if he had a clean route with confirmation of all White Pantheon Divines in Kirinyaa.

But if all White Pantheon Divines were in Kirinyaa…

Who was left at the Divine Mountain? “Do you see it? Where Neneria can be deployed?” Kassandora asked.

“See what?” Kavaa replied.

“I don’t see anything Goddess.” Iliyal said.

Kassandora’s finger touched the little mountain on the map that marked Olympiada. She looked up at Kavaa and Iliyal. Two expressions stared up at her in awe at the sheer recklessness of the idea. Iliyal spoke first. “I see it now.”