If there are two Divines I could remove from the Daughter-Goddesses, it would be the two weakest. Irinika, Anassa, Olephia and Baalka are all overpowering and powerful, but that is all they are. They cannot manage empires, nor lead wars. If Arascus merely contained his ambitions to this group, he would form a mighty Pantheon, but it would only be a Pantheon, forever destined to be relegated to a single kingdom until it eventually broke apart. Fer brings about her beastmen, but Fer’s beastmen have been defeated in wars already. Although she is powerful, the lack of innate magic in her contains her to a relatively minor threat.

I would remove Kassandora and Malam. Individually powerful, no doubt minor inventions or weak deities such as Helenna look up at them in awe. But neither are Maisara or Fortia. To compare them to Elassa or to me is farce. We simply exist in different worlds of power.

Kassandora is the reason Arascus has been able to extend his war to all the corners of Arda. It is because of her strategies and her tactics that we are unable to ever lay a trap for any of her stronger sisters. Her conception of scalable war has forced us to militarize our own kingdoms simply to compete. Yet Kassandora herself is not the reason Arascus has seen so much success. Kassandora’s style of warfare is an unsustainable inferno, it burns brilliantly, but it burns out soon. That was Kassandora’s main failure in the past, and whereas every Pantheon wanted her help in times of need, no Pantheon ever wanted to permanently deal with the troubles she brought.

If Kassandora is a vicious vine that resurfaces no matter how many times it is stamped out, Malam is the soil, the nutrients, the sunlight and the roots deep under the ground. Kassandora’s biggest restriction in war is the willingness and morale of her own men to follow her orders. Malam though has been gifted with a serpent’s tongue, the question of whether she will be able to worm her way into one’s heart is not an ‘if’, it is a ‘when’. Kassandora led Arascus’ armies for a century against us, but it was because of Malam that Kassandora had armies to lead. That is nothing to say on the trouble Malam’s interference caused in our own back lines.

Honestly, the biggest question I have is how those two did not befriend each other sooner.

- Excerpt from “My Thoughts On the Daughter Goddesses”, written by Goddess Allasaria, of Light.

Kassandora looked at her map and then at the landscape around her. Apparently some people struggled with reading maps, she had never had any issue with it. An incline was supposed to be to the north-east. She looked up. The ground did indeed get higher over there. Trees towards the south, with a dried-out riverbed. Kassandora turned on the spot, her crimson hair flying around her as red dust burst around her laced black boots. Kavaa stood next to her, looking at the map. “Old.” She said.

Kassandora looked south, then at the map, then south again. “Old indeed.” Kassandora agreed. Iniri stood on her toes to catch sight of the map. “The water’s returned.” Kassandora said as she moved the map lower so the Goddess of Nature could see.

“Thank you.” Iniri whispered quietly as they looked south. The wood was slightly larger, and whereas the map said there was only supposed to be a river basin, there was now fresh running water. These new rivers had started sprouting up everywhere in the Kirinyaan west as the Jungle was slowly being pushed back. Kassandora turned west with the two Goddesses by her side. The map said there was supposed to be one of the rock formations that peppered this environment there. Kassandora looked at the horizon. Fer was close to them, walking about and sniffing the air in odd places, her tail swishing from side to side as her ears jumped up and down.

Indeed, a giant rock sat in the distance. Kassandora smiled as she made a mark on her map and then pulled out the one Fer had highlighted in blue. They should be on one of the spiralling staircases right now. Although where the entrance was a shot in the dark. If it even had an entrance, whether the dwarves had finished it before the Jungle overran it or whether it was simply an uncompleted tunnel was another question that she could only speculate on. Kassandora looked around herself until her eyes settled on Anassa. The Goddess of Sorcery was gone, disappeared somewhere. Knowing her, it was most likely to find fruit. Kassandora rolled her eyes, why bother looking for fruit when Iniri was right here? “Ana’s gone.” Kassandora angrily tutted to Kavaa and Iniri.

“I’m not surprised.” Kavaa said. Of War turned to Of Nature, Iniri stood there, small, with her brown hair and dark earthy-eyes and that green dress with bands of moving bark on it.

“Are you able to start digging now? We’re right above it.” Kassandora asked as she started folding both maps away.

“Here?” Iniri asked.

“Here would be preferable.” Kassandora said and Iniri nodded. She took a few steps back, Kassandora immediately turned away and shouted to her other sister. “FER!”

“WHAT?!” Fer shouted from the distance, she gave the air another sniff.

Kassandora rolled her eyes. Fer would know already what Kassandora wanted. “WHERE IS ANA?”

“GONE!” Fer replied immediately. Kassandora gave no reaction to that stupid answer. If she wanted to know that Ana wasn’t here, she wouldn’t be asking.

“I KNOW THAT! WHERE?!” Kassandora shouted back.

Fer came back immediately with her own reply. “DON’T KNOW!”

“FIND HER!” Kassandora said. She saw Fer turn and give a Kassandora a flat look. The Goddess of War merely raised an eyebrow and Of Beasthood backed down. Fer sighed heavily, her ears fell down on her head as her posture collapsed. And in the next moment, she straightened, ears pointed straight up, swivelling in every direction as if they were a radar. Fer’s eyes started to shine, thick animal fur burst out, she turned on the spot, sniffed the wind, turned, sniffed, turned, made a tiny little half sniff and she jumped.

All that was left was a cloud of red dust behind her. “She’s a monster.” Kavaa said quietly from Kassandora’s side. Kassandora nodded as she turned to Iniri.

“How was training with her?” Of War asked as her eyes fell upon Iniri. The Goddess of Nature was in the air, standing on a thick wooden root. The living bark from her dress had shot downwards into the ground and slowly the red dirt around them was starting to move.

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“I couldn’t even get a finger on her.” Kavaa said.

“She told me you did cut her.” Kassandora replied as a molehill burst out behind Iniri. Another suddenly sprouted to her left. The entire ground started to shift as the roots of her plants start to grind the dirt and bring it to the surface.

“She let me.” Kavaa said quietly. They started taking steps away from Iniri, as the ground became as soft as quicksand. It started to swallow the small stones and rocks strewn about the surface here. “Have you fought her?”

Oh. Kassandora realised the issue. Kavaa was just feeling bad because Fer had utterly dominated her in training. “I can’t match her either.” The Goddess of War replied with total honestly in her voice. “There’s nothing to feel bad about, I don’t know how many people can match her.”

“What about Maisara and Fortia?” Kavaa asked. The ground shifted again, a hole started to open up. Iniri turned her hands, her eyes started to glow green and the sides of that hole suddenly started to sprout thin lines of wood. The wood expanded, it criss-crossed onto itself to make a web, then a net, then started to glow until it was a single layer of bark.

“I don’t know.” Kassandora said. “Fer says she can win but I assume you know what Fortia and Maisara say.”

“They say they’re better than her.” Kavaa replied. The Goddess of War sniffed with some humour. That was absolutely classic, she wouldn’t expect anything less frankly from them. “Can Arascus?”

Kassandora merely shrugged. “I honestly don’t know that one either.” She replied. “They’ve battled against each other but it’s never…” It would be easier to show with an example than trying to explain the utter shit-show that happened when those two needed pulling off each other. “It’s like me and Ana.”

“They fight like that?” Kavaa asked in shock. Kassandora turned to see the Goddess of Health looking up at her with those silver eyes, full of shock. Her mouth slightly ajar.

“Rarely.” Kassandora said. “I’ve seen it happen three times.”

“Oh.” Kavaa said. “And? What happened?”

“Irinika and Anassa were there to stop them.” Kassandora said. “And Olephia. I was there too, but I just stayed away.”

“You just stayed away?” Kavaa asked.

“I wouldn’t stick in my hand into Allasaria’s beam, I’m not going to stick my hand into Fer’s bloodlust either.” Kassandora said easily. “That’s all there is to it.” Kavaa nodded.

“You don’t like to talk about yourself.” Kassandora rolled her eyes. If there was one thing she did not like, it was when people told her what she did like.

“It’s happened, I’m just retelling it.” Kassandora said and Kavaa shook her head as Iniri’s tunnel got deeper. They got even further away from the dirt, as more was being pulled out, as if her branches were the paws of a giant dog madly digging at the red soil.

“But not how people normally re-tell stories.” Kavaa said and Kassandora sighed. She knew exactly what Kavaa meant, there was no emotion there.

“There’s nothing in crafting a narrative here. I just said what happened and that’s it.” Kavaa opened her mouth to say something when a scream came from the south. Iniri stopped her dig, Kassandora and Kavaa both turned. If Fer screamed with terror like that, then Kassandora would have grabbed her sword and her armour would have been on already, but there was none of that.

Fer was screaming through the air, half in annoyance and half in-between laughter as she tumbled above them. Kavaa, Kassandora and Iniri all turned their heads to watch Fer fly above them. “Is that safe?” Kavaa asked.

“I wouldn’t do it.” Kassandora replied.

“She’ll be fine? Right?” Iniri timidly asked. Fer reached the zenith of her launch and started to fall downwards.

“From how high can cats fall?” Kassandora asked.

“Theoretically or practically?” Kavaa asked. Kassandora only gave the woman a surprised look. Was there a difference?

“What?” Kassandora asked.

Kavaa began in a quick tone, the sort she always did when she was about to heal someone. “Theoretically, they hit terminal velocity after about ten to twenty metres. Depends on how fat the cat is. After that, they stop accelerating, and they’ve been known to survive from higher so I assume there isn’t a theoretical limit.” The Goddess of Health shrugged as a pair of branches brought Iniri close them. “But practically, I wouldn’t drop a cat out of a tree, but less several stories.”

Kassandora smiled as she nodded along. “I understand perfectly.” She said.

“No one who says that ever does.” Kavaa replied.

“If a cat is talented, they make it, if it’s not, it doesn’t.” Kavaa sighed and shook her head.

“I suppose so.” She acquiesced immediately.

“Well Fer is the most talented of them all, she’ll be fine.” And as Kassandora finished, they watched Fer crash into a giant pile of dust.

“Will she?” Iniri asked.

“I saw her jump out a plane.” Kavaa replied.

“This isn’t even the worst one.” Kassandora felt the wind behind and turned around. Anassa had appeared, she was looking down at the hole, then at Iniri. The Goddess of War crossed her arms as she looked at her sister. “What did she do you this time?”

“She stole my orange.” Anassa sulked.

“Couldn’t you get another one?” Kassandora asked. Sometimes, she really did feel like she had to corral children. If Arascus told her he had brought her in to be a nanny for these women, then she would believe wholeheartedly.

“It’s the principle of it.” Anassa said. She gave one glance at Iniri, then at the hole. This was Anassa through and through, she wanted something, but she would not ask for it herself. Kassandora tapped Iniri with her elbow and motioned peeling an orange with her hands as Anassa slowly lifted off into the air. And this was one of the reasons Kassandora had picked to escape with Kavaa, Helenna and Iniri, these three may not have power, but they had the intelligence that made them bearable. Iniri understood immediately what Kassandora was getting at, a tree sprouted from next to them. From a seedling to Kassandora’s height in a few seconds, with thick oranges in another few seconds.

“Ana!” Kassandora shouted. “When you do a bit, take one of these!” Anassa saw Iniri’s orange tree, her eyes widened for a moment, and she wiped the excitement off her face in the next. She clicked her fingers, one of the fruit shot off the branch and into her palm.

“Alright.” She said. The skin fell off, and Anassa started picking away at the fruit as she looked down. “Where do you want it?” A crash behind Kassandora told her Fer had returned. Kavaa and Iniri both turned to look, Of War ignored her, frankly, she wanted to get a move with this dig already.

“Anywhere here, it doesn’t matter.” Kassandora said.

Anassa raised one hand and held the piece of fruit with the other as she chewed. There was no sound to her magic, no preparation, nothing. In one instant, there was Anassa, in her silken red dress above her hovering against the backdrop of the cloudless blue sky. In the next, there was a massive sphere of pure-red sorcery above her. It was red and opaque, the edges thick as if Anassa had something managed to bring the outline of an object into reality.

And with just as little fanfare as the summoning, Anassa flicked a piece of fruit into her mouth, chewed, and cast her arm down. The ball followed. It silently… It should have crashed, but that red sphere touched the ground and kept fall, as if something had placed a coin onto custard. It lasted for about a minute, going deeper and deeper and deeper until it burned out from the friction with the dirt.

Kassandora stared into that hole. Iniri settled back down next to her. Kavaa and Fer both leaned to look into it. It went in about as deep as a house, with dirt and rock and stone and soil simply removed. It had not been dug, nor shifted by an explosion. Anassa’s sorcery had simply removed it, in the same fashion her bubble-shields would remove incoming projectiles. Everyone took a step away from the smooth crater as Fer whistled loudly when she looked up at Anassa, still hovering in the air above them. Another huge ball appeared by her side and gently started floating down onto the ground.

Kassandora let the smile stay on her face, this was going to go much faster than she had been expecting. She may even be back in Nanbasa before the siege began.