The Fireseed Wars

Alkides, a former mercenary captain from Agrys City who had joined Kalvan after the Battle of Fitra, was a tall, thin man with an incongruous pot belly that squeezed out of the bottom of his breastplate like a spare tire. He spoke in a deep voice like that of a radio announcer. "Losing the Royal Foundry team was a serious loss to our artillery-making abilities, but, Dralm be praised, the Nostor artillery team was evacuated safely and they have been working day and night at the new Royal Thagnor Foundry. They have proofed over forty four- and six-pounders, twenty-three eighteen-pounders, including eight rifled cannon, and forty-eight thirty-two-pound ship guns. The new rifled cannons have been fired and tested accurate at eight marches."

Even Kalvan whistled. That means we fire shells at the Grand Host from over four miles away! We're going to drop one in your pipe, Lysandros, and let you choke on it.

Alkides continued with projected figures for new castings and number of shells that could be produced until Kalvan found himself starting to nod off. He quickly cut Alkides, who thought everyone shared his passion for artillery, off. "Thank you for that illuminating briefing. Now, to the next stage: Rylla, would you please lay out the first phase of Our strategy for the upcoming campaign season?"

Rylla rose up, with her thick blonde hair cascading over her silver breastplate, all ablaze in the reflected firelight. She drew her sword blade and used the point to draw their eyes to Nythros City. "Gentlemen, this is where the main force of the Styphoni blackguards holed up. The Grand Host's first step, once the rains cease, will be to take out our neighbors along the Sea of Aesklos."

She raised her sword point to the drawing of Baltor and then Morthron Town on the deerskin map. "The Baltori are ruled by a puppet council called the Council of Seven financed and governed by Nythros. They have a small army, consisting of a few hundred professionals and some fifteen hundred poorly trained Citizen militia, who will offer little or no resistance to the Grand Host. They probably will be coerced to join with them. The Morthroni have a standing army of some three to four thousand and can probably add another ten thousand levy, of indifferent quality, to their numbers before the Styphoni arrive. Previously, their Prince was aware of the Styphoni threat, but was wary of any entanglement or alliance with Nos-Hostigos. Now that King Theovacar has allied himself with Styphon's House, the Morthroni will most likely allow the Grand Host free passage over their territory. If coerced, they may even provide stores and troops."

Several of the generals nodded.

"However, a number of Morthroni nobles and merchants have moved their assets, and in some cases families, to Thagnor City. Their movement was inspired by the tales their exiled Nythrosi brethren brought from Nythros City. It's just as well that Morthron has refused our offer of an alliance. Their town walls are in need of repair and their army has not been tested in the field for several decades. It's doubtful, even with Hostigi help, that the Morthroni could delay the Grand Host for even a quarter moon. An alliance with Morthron would have forced us to fight at the Grand Host's time and place of convenience.

"It is our plan to harass the Grand Host with skirmishers and Trygathi raiders, as they make their way from Nythros to Thagnor. King Chartiphon has pledged to send five thousand light horseman to harry the Styphoni forces and disrupt their supply trains. We will make them pay in blood for every march of territory they cover!" Rylla finished, with a flourish of her blade.

There was a moment of silence, then the banging of goblets on the wooden tabletop, accompanied with shouts of "Hear, hear!" and "Down Styphon!"

After Rylla took her seat, Kalvan rose and pulled out his sword. "The moment the roads dry, I will take the Mobile Force and five thousand cavalry across the lower peninsula here." He paused to draw his sword from Thagnor to Greffa City on the map. "We will skirt Theovacar's Army and hit Greffa City itself! Instead of waiting for Theovacar's Army, we'll kick him right in the breadbasket, where he least expects it."

There were several gasps.

"We are most fortunate that Galzar and Dralm have returned Verkan just when he is needed the most. I am appointing Verkan to be Captain-General of the Mobile Force and second-in-command of the Army of Greffa."

There was a round of applause and shouts of "Long live Captain-General Verkan!"

Baron Tortha nodded for permission to speak.

"Yes, Tortha?"

"Do you realize the immensity of Greffa City, Your Majesty? It is three times larger than Rathon City and its walls are higher and thicker. A hundred nomad hordes have camped outside its steel gates in the past thousand years; but none have ever breached those walls."

Hearing that, Chartiphon took his pipe out of his mouth and whistled.