Most clans and sects had ceremonial rooms for formal meetings of various sorts. Sometimes these rooms were one and the same with formal dining rooms, and sometimes they were separate. Some had pompous thrones for the purpose of intimidation and looking down on those visiting… but the Tenebach clan avoided the latter. Not because displays of power weren’t useful in politics, but because they were a displaced clan. It was better to maintain a different air in the Stone Conglomerate, and more subtle methods were preferred for displaying their power.
Currently John was seated in a comfortable sort of office with a table more suited for speaking across than the dining hall. It would have been rather awkward anyway, with just two people in the hall. John could have brought aides along with him to either location, but they were basically unnecessary. He wasn’t isolated of course- just a few steps away were several guards, including Aydan. But the room contained just John and the older man for a sense of privacy.
At least, they were the only people in the room. There were quite a number of other things crawling all over Elder Risto of the Calamitous Swarm. Long centipedes coiling around his limbs, spiders dangling from his chin, and flies buzzing in a swarm around his head. It didn’t take much to deduce that the movement of the various things crawling over the man were meant to be unsettling, since it would have been simpler for them to remain still. And they couldn’t possible move about as they were at all times or they wouldn’t remain with their host.
John wasn’t one of those who hated bugs. In fact, he could appreciate the value they provided to the world… but he still had to admit it was a fairly effective tactic, especially when combined with the man’s wide smile.
“Our sect head offers her apologies,” the man bowed his head. “She would have come herself, but her movements would be too obvious.”
“Of course,” John said. “It is best to avoid alerting our mutual enemies. It would have likewise been difficult for me to make a trip there myself. I trust your presence means you are open to discussing the alliance?”
“Yes, temporary though it might be. There are simply some details that must be discussed. It is quite obvious that the Tenebach clan has flourished in recent years, but you must know that despite your recent victory the Society of Midnight is strongly entrenched in their position. They have quite a number of Consolidated Soul Phase cultivators.”
“Obviously,” John said. “I’ve killed a few myself, and wrangled with several more. The Tenebach clan has the support of several other powerful clans and sects, as I’m sure you are aware.”
“Certainly,” the man steepled his fingers in front of himself, “It is to our understanding that those alliances include the Golden Tomb Guardians.”
“Is that a problem?” John asked. “I’m certain you know they don’t intend to relocate to the area. It would not suit them.”
“It is simply a matter of prior conflicts between us. And others in the Darklands. They may draw more trouble than they are worth.”
“Another reason we could use the help of the locals to ease our path. I doubt the rest of the Darklands wishes to be drawn into a conflict resulting from the Society of Midnight blatantly raiding into other lands. A large scale war such as that wouldn’t benefit anyone.”
Elder Risto frowned, the movement shaking a beetle off his forehead into his lap. “Things are not so far gone, are they?”
“Not yet,” John said, “But as the matter concerns the survival of the Tenebach clan, we have little choice but to do what we can. Cultivators are always looking for opportunities… but if some free space happened to open up in the Darklands, I’m sure the pressure there would abate somewhat, would it not?”
“We have the intention to take over as much of the Society of Midnight’s holdings as possible. Without competition.”
“That’s exactly why you should be prepared to work with us, and move in quickly. Besides, there is the potential for other areas to open up. The Society of Midnight is quite close to the nearby Shadow Wolf Clan, are they not? It is doubtful you could hold that territory as well. They would prefer to fight against a weakened group instead of one who quickly solidified some new territory, I’m certain. And elsewhere in the region there may be some weaknesses as well.”
“What if the Society of Midnight stands alone?”
“Then you risk almost nothing by joining a sizable army, take your portion of plunder and choose what territory you think you can hold. Or you stay out of the conflict and protect yourselves, missing out on a prime opportunity.”
“And what would you need from us?” Elder Risto asked.
“To fight, of course. Earn your portion and be ready to take over as well. And to make that easier on yourself, keep as many other sects off our back as possible. This isn’t some crusade against the Darklands as a whole, but a conflict that the Society of Midnight themselves have escalated.”
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Though Risto tried to appear reluctant, John knew that the Calamitous Swarm was eager to join them. The Tenebach clan was uninterested in moving back to the Darklands, and the risk to the Calamitous Swarm was minimal with great potential gains. If the Society of Midnight came out the victor they would be in an awkward position, but it really was true that the alliance would likely triumph without them. Even so, having more allies to share the burden would help, and keeping opportunistic clans out of the battle would help as well.
It was unlikely that too many people would attack the combined army along the way- as the army could simply turn on the nearby clan or sect and wipe them out instead of continuing towards their initial goal. They wouldn’t necessarily know of the shards of Ciaritzal that John was eager to retrieve, and they had to consider their own lives. Some might be swayed to join the Society of Midnight, but if possible the plan was to give the enemy minimal time to prepare. It wasn’t exactly possible to march an army to the doorsteps of the Society of Midnight secretly, but giving them only a few weeks to prepare while an army was marching towards them could throw them off. Especially since the Tenebach clan had so far been passively resisting them.
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The route that was planned almost certainly mirrored what the Society of Midnight took to reach Marble County on prior occasions. It curved through less populated areas through terrain that was relatively easy to traverse, at least for cultivators. Nobody weaker than the Foundation Phase was part of their ranks, and they covered the whole spectrum of elements.
First was the Tenebach clan, mainly darkness cultivators. The water element Brandle clan was of course participating as well- though the two clans operated independently, with John and Matayal as the respective clan heads they would obviously help with troubles the other faced. Even if that hadn’t been the case, the Society of Midnight had launched attacks in the Shimmering Islands.
The Order of the Amber Heart marched alongside them, covering earth. Then the Milanovic clan, fire cultivators. The Society had attempted to weaken the latter with their machinations, but they only gave them more reason to participate in this assault. The Mulyani clan led by Kusuma was participating as well, with their air element completing the core elements.
Finally, there were the Golden Tomb Guardians. Unlike the four core elements that had checks and balances, light and darkness had a sort of direct opposition between them. Attacks from either could be particularly deadly to the other as the energies reacted strongly with each other. The Golden Tomb Guardians would have a disadvantage in prolonged battles as their recovery of spiritual energy would be limited, but as part of a larger whole they had a valuable position.
Because they had the whole spectrum of elements, if the alliance was able to control the battlefield and pick their opponents they would have a significant advantage. It was expected that most of their opponents would be darkness cultivators, but they could overcome any strength and take advantage of any weakness. If they fought as a cohesive whole, at least.
It wasn’t the same as a proper cycle of elements, since the individual forces wouldn’t be feeding energy into each other and directly augmenting each other, but they had versatility and power on their side.
Although the forces as a whole hadn’t fought together before, smaller parts had. The Tenebach clan had fought alongside all of them to various extents, though only minimally with the Mulyani clan. The Brandle clan had worked with them more closely due to their previous alliances and closer proximity. Even the Milanovic clan had worked with the Golden Tomb Guardians in the past.
The proportions of each group were related to what they had to spare. It wasn’t possible to just send everyone and assume things would remain fine back home. Things were being kept secure in case of unknown threats. The triplets were currently staying with the Brandle clan, though Matayal was participating in the attack as well. It was somewhat of a risk to have both clan heads participate in the battle, but they were strong and it was important. More significantly, they were stronger together. Netanel was fairly similar to Matayal in strength, though she would surpass him soon enough- but fighting alongside John both of them were significantly more effective.
Beasts of burden carrying supplies marched alongside people. Even with storage bags, it was difficult to carry enough supplies for an army, and though they numbered only in the hundreds that was what they were. The storage bags they did have available at least allowed them to not need large supply wagons, and part of the current arrangement was that they intended to be bringing more with them on the way back. If they won, they would be looting the Society of Midnight, along with the Shadow Wolf clan and anyone else they came into conflict with as long as it didn’t require them to remain in the Darklands for too long. People wouldn’t suddenly drop dead, but unrelated sects and clans would get antsy with them nearby.
Along with the armies, they had several trump cards. John personally held two of them- one being the light element egg from Cuah’arn. The other rested inside his chest, biding his time.
John had been hesitant to bring Ciaritzal along, but the guardian beast had insisted. If they lost and Ciaritzal was recaptured by the Society of Midnight, it would be devastating. Then again, that likely meant John was dead- and they were already committing heavily enough that a loss would ruin at least the Tenebach clan regardless. Only a few trusted individuals knew about Ciaritzal’s presence. At most people would feel that John had grown slightly stronger, while the true power was much more than what they felt.
The other hesitation had been carrying the guardian beast around for weeks. John had previously integrated with Ciaritzal for the length of a battle- and while it had gone more smoothly than could have been hoped, it still took a lot out of him. Their affinity had only grown stronger in recent times, but in an active battle John would have lasted no more than a few hours. As it was, Ciaritzal was more like a passive fount of darkness element. Was that how the Society of Midnight used the shards of him? Perhaps that would be beneficial to individuals, but in truth many of their number were rather uninspiring.
In sum total there were ten Consolidated Soul Phase cultivators among them. Along with John himself, there was Matayal and Kusuma. Then there was the rest of the ‘club’- Renato, Steve, and Yustina. The Golden Tomb Guardians had sent three- Zacharie, Deirdre, and her master Monika Zeman. Finally there was Aydan, filling out the ten. The Society of Midnight should be able to match them in number- they might even have more- but they were hoping that there wouldn’t be too many more, and that not all of them would be present- or that they could fight them staggered over several battles. If not, the number of other cultivators could make up the difference, though their losses would be greater.