PBEM Game: Yarnspinners 2 (Running)

[The_Tauren13]

I can't reach Alneyans email address. He told me a while ago not to hold the game up on his account, as he isnt really paying any attention to it anyways, so Ill hold him to that. If you guys want, you could try and find a sub for him as I think hes trying to drop out of dominions all together.
As for slowing down for the holiday, this game has been going so slowly as it is nobody will tell the difference, so I see no reason why we cant.

[The Panther]

I will be out of town myself from about Jan 5 through Jan 10. Delay works fine for me.

As for Alneyan, he lost his hard drive and has pretty much quit Dominions. But getting a sub for him is going to be difficult, for I cancelled my NaP with him and will be invading on the current turn (43).

So I would suggest either Tauren doing the turns for him or putting him AI. The war will probably will not last very long anyway as his army seems weak. He might have something up his sleeve, though, as Alneyan usually does.

The one thing I DON'T want to do is fight a staling player. I would much rather fight an AI than that. The AI will at least fight back.

Oh - by the way. I finally posted Turn 39 on the Yarn site and am working on Turn 42. Also, there will soon be a new proclamation concerning the upcoming Battle of the Green Banners.

[Alneyan]

The_Tauren13 said:
I can't reach Alneyans email address. He told me a while ago not to hold the game up on his account, as he isnt really paying any attention to it anyways, so Ill hold him to that. If you guys want, you could try and find a sub for him as I think hes trying to drop out of dominions all together.
As for slowing down for the holiday, this game has been going so slowly as it is nobody will tell the difference, so I see no reason why we cant.

Odd. Gawab is supposed to be redirecting to my standard mail, but I guess it doesn't work (I have no mail in my Gawab account). Use the mail in my profile, and you should be fine. If that's what you are doing already and it doesn't work, I'm going to be cursing. A lot. And then you might just want to attach the file to this thread (it won't get lost here).

Though I *am* getting out of my games, I have no intention of quitting a game right now (barring unforeseen circumstances). I didn't play simply because I had no idea the turn had run, and got no files (or messages) at all.

[The Panther]

YEAH!

Alneyan is back. Very cool.

I lost my computer and hard drive last summer so I know what a huge pain in the a$$ that is. I will also be changing email yet again when I move to Virginia in January.

Ah, life is so much fun...

[Alneyan]

Got turn 43 through a much-delayed forwarding from Gawab (I no longer use this mail with good reason), and I'll be playing my turn now.

[puffyn]

One last yarn before I go...

--- C'tis, Turn 39 ---

The streets of C'tis

It is high summer when the young chameleon runs in from the front, so exhausted she can no longer blend completely with her surroundings, so she flickers in and out as she runs down the crowded main street, never slowing as she speeds toward the High Rock. And somehow everyone already knows what she is hurrying to say.

Lugal is haggling in the marketplace with an herb seller when the murmurs begin to reach him, and he is so taken with the thought of a victory parade that he forgets to finish threatening the poor herbivorous merchant, and thus quite inadvertently pays him a fair price for his goods. When he was been barely older than a hatchling, what parades they used to have! Every time ol' Shiny Army and his boys with the long sticks won some bedraggled swampland the village elders decreed a festival. Lugal even remembers the parade to celebrate the conquest of his own homeland, although he is beginning to doubt that the purple elephants were real.

But those were warmling parades, with warmling food and music and bizarre customs, and Lugal has always wondered what a triumphant lizard nation would put on. Certainly there would be a lot less flailing and composing odes to vile dairy products. No, it would likely feature some insipid little play by the hatchlings re-enacting some big battle, and then some moralistic tale from that blabbermouthed young woman whose name he never bothers to recall, but it would also have a real banquet spread. And perhaps they'd bring out the large heatlamps, late at night, after the kiddies were tucked safe in their nests...

As Lugal walks back to his hut he is lost in dreams of glazed crickets and melon balls and nubile young hierodules.

***

A marketplace in the Summerlands

Two human women are raising the canopy over their newly repaired stall. It is early evening, and the canopy is the last thing they need before they can reopen. That means they be able to make the official re-opening of the market tomorrow morning, which is months overdue, and they note with equal parts sympathy and greed that many of their neighbors and competitors will not be ready. It was only through the generous tax relief and aid policies of the lizards that they were able to rebuild themselves, and they had been luckier than many.

The women nod to the young lizard watchman as he makes his rounds. He is a good friend after the long months of occupation and then reconstruction, and anyhow he and his troops do a brisk business with the women in knit goods even in the middle of the summer. There had been some murmuring against their lizard overlords as recently as a year ago, but no more; after the repeated harassment and terrifying occupation by the purple bastards, as they are universally called here, the women and all of the rest of their compatriots have had it with human rulers. The lizards have always been good for business.

The young lizard watchman notices the women struggling with the canopy and offers to lend them a claw, so the old woman has him hold the canopy steady on one side while the young women shimmies up the post to tie the knots. The old woman checks carefully for leaks in the canopy and tables that might inadvertently be left in the scorching sun, and finally nods her satisfaction.

"Heard the news?" says the lizard as he turns to leave, in passable human dialect. After nearly two years in the Summerlands, his accent doesn't sound half bad.

"We sure have," says the old woman, and she presses a long, fuzzy piece of knitwear into his claws. Even in summer a lizard's tail gets quite cold at night when he's making the rounds, and the lizard smiles in gratitude as he continues on to the next stall, which belongs to the local vintner. It has been a good night for him.

The women began setting up tables in earnest now, unpacking a few crates that had miraculously survived the looting and the burning, and arranging the items neatly. They also have some new items almost finished, and they must hurry if they are to get them all painted in time. They expect the good news on the eve of the market's long-anticipated opening will loosen people's (and lizards') coin purses, and it would never do to run out in the middle of the day. The young woman pries open the lid on a large bucket of red paint and picks up the first carved figurine of a sleeping dragon. It will prove to be their best seller tomorrow.

***

The watchtower of Boddern Weald

An old man in red robes is walking the dusty corridors of the castle, searching for loot. He is looking for anything that might have been hid hastily by the few highborn Pythites who escaped before the fourth siege, and regrets the complete slaughter of the enemy commanders during the storming of the castle means that there is nobody left who knows what might be hidden.

No one pays the old man any mind; these days there are many humans in the employ of C'tis, fighting side by side with the sauromancers in battle after battle with Pythium's mighty army of mages, and no lizard soldier looks twice at the sight of another human in funny robes. If they were to stop and think they might recall that there are no powerful fire mages among their ranks, but nobody has time to stop and think with all the repairs to make and the final foraying parties to send out. Besides, there is a familiar air to this fire mage.

Cole does not mind the lack of attention in the least. He finds the human form tiring to maintain, and does not want to waste valuable treasure-hunting time chatting with confused lizard guards. He would far rather not leave his shiny crimson scales behind, but regrettably, human manipulative digits and small puny size do come in handy when searching for treasure hidden by humans.

He does not actually expect to find anything. The war was long and hard for his purple foe, and secretly he suspects every scrap of treasure has long been carted off to the captiol, where – Cole sighs bitterly – it is now apparently being pawed over by more undeserving humans, Mannish-men, who will only see what they can spend it on, and never love each individual gold piece or gem for who they really are. The dragon observes a moment of silence for the horde that might of been, and moves on to the dungeons. There is still an outside chance he might yet find something.

***

The hatchery in the Mark

"... and so Aetonyx ate the fish, and the lizards lived happily ever after."

Laph pauses before starting her next story. All the hatchlings are staring at her with rapt attention, except for the littlest ones, who still can't focus their eyes properly. There is a happy mood to the room, and even the dourest old hierodule is smiling, happy that their charges are getting some personal time with the great yarnspinner herself, perhaps? Laph smiles faintly, because she knows better. Everyone is happy these days because of the news that is sweeping the kingdom. Pythium itself has fallen; there is only a token force left defending their last fortress, which C'tis is besieging, and they are rumored to be on the verge of surrender, probably won't last the summer.

She glances briefly toward the most central part of the hatchery, where the eggs are kept. Eggs and small hatchlings are just too vulnerable for any lizard mother to protect on her own, and so most lizards, especially those who live in outlying regions, come to the hatchery to lay their eggs. Like some well-to-do town lizards, Laph chose to lay her eggs in her own nest; but now that they are within days of hatching she has brought them here, where they will be safe and among eggmates. They are the oldest eggs in the hatchery, but far from the only, and Laph suspects there will be many Great Hatchings throughout the kingdom within the next few months.

Time to enjoy the peace, she thinks, to rebuild and replenish our numbers. She tries, and mostly succeeds, in extinguishing the tiny voice in her head, who sounds a lot like Ash'embe, come to think of it, which adds, before the next war inevitably comes.

[Sedna]

We fought nine days before the walls of Ermor, the very gate of Hell.

On the first day we laughed at the force sent to meet us -- maybe two score undead and a pack of vile mechanical killing machines -- but as that first eternal night wore on, our laughter turned to shock, and then to weary tears. The ground opened up, became a sea of dead things, the cream of Ermor before the breaking of the world, woke from dreamless slumber for this final battle against the light. For every one we slaughtered another rose from the dust, and for every one of ours who fell, a new warrior joined the foe.

On the second day we pushed hard for the gate. The Tower Guard and the Men-at-Arms, resplendent in their red be-jeweled battle shorts, formed a shield for the solemn priests and their chanted voices which rendered dust to dust once more. But the pride of Marignon faltered and failed before the mass of implacable, unbreaking death, and the guard was dragged down into the parched and frozen earth by a thousand unseen hands.

On the third day I saw my brother druids run out of arrows, and they who I had fought beside for years in the Shadowlands were cut off from where I stood with the priests. I watched them draw knives uselessly over living bone until their blades were dull and their arms were tired and their will faltered and they were trampled to death.

On the fourth day I saw the sun set on Marignon, as the priests grew tired and hoarse and their chanting grew weak. The relentless wall of death advanced. I saw my own untimely end in every lifeless socket. I saw the ruin of Marignon, naught but ancient monuments under a twilight sky.

But on the fifth day I saw Orion and his eternal knights blaze back and forth across the sunless plain. They fought on and on in grim silence, ranging ever upon the field -- a thin line of flame between the darkness and the light.

On the sixth day I saw one of these immortal warriors fall, smashed down by a dozen rusty blades. But his brothers swept in, blowing aside the clouds of death, and Orion came forth. He lay his hands upon the dying man and whispered his release. Then they were gone, swept back into the chaos and the dust and darkness, their fallen comrade sleeping peacefully upon the earth with a smile on his lip.

On the seventh day the Archbishop of Marignon summoned forth two creatures of pure fire to fight alongside the knights. Their flickering warmth brought joy back to our hearts and we cheered ourselves hoarse as bone and shadow melted before them.

On the eighth day I saw the eternal knights finally reach the walls of Ermor and scatter the dark lords there like so much chaff. Brother Henry was there as the knights closed, and he snatched up a sword from the claw of a fading spectator. But the hilt froze his hands and burnt them black. He fell to the ground still clutching the sword, his face in a hideous grimace. We could not pull the damned thing free, for none could bear the pain of its unholy touch.

On the ninth day Aftial descended from heaven. The field was still as she flew out of the clouds, and on the ground beneath came a new army from the East. Ermor issued forth more dark and terrible servants than any we had yet faced, but the flaming sword of Aftial met them in the air and cast them down. From above the confines of the world her voice -- a trumpet -- shook us to our knees: "Oh death, were is your victory! Men of Marignon, this is the cleansing of Ermor as was foretold. A new dominion is arisen and the shadow fades!" In a swirl of blinding light she swept down and towered over the Archbishop of Marignon.

"Atticus, prophet of dread, is vanquished. I slew it with my own hand, and you have scattered the legions of death. Now there is only one dark stone left to overturn. We must march into the heart of shadow and face Ami, She Who Loves not the Light. Then, when her twisted body is consumed with holy fire, we will march upon the Soulgate, unnatural passage to the world beyond!"

She paused for a thunderous roar of approval, but there was no sound upon the earth. Her eyes flickered over the mob of pale, wounded priests, all that remained of Marignon's grand army.

"Marignon, reform the ranks."

"Most high Aftial, I..." he collapsed. Nine days on his feet had been too much. "We need time to regroup before we try that gate." His eyes gazed into that dark maw and the gate built of skulls. On the other side huge shadows and terrible forms moved and mad mutterings and whispers echoed.

The angel's face twisted with fury. "Coward! I would give you victory over your fathers' thousand-year foe and glory unending!" With deft strikes of her sword she disrobed Marignon and plucked his magic armor free. Then she reached forth her hand and the body of Brother Henry flew to her. She lopped off both his hands and grabbed the Wraith sword as it fell. Now, with a fell blade in each hand, she shimmered against the sky-- darkness and light and no color anywhere. She stalked off into the gate of Hell, flinging the guard there aside with great sweeps of her swords. On and on we watched her wade into the night, a bright and abiding flame in the shadow.

Marignon, from his fetal position on the ground, spoke up, "We must go after her, she must... have aid... have someone... there is so much evil there..." He looked around at the assembled fathers of the church and each avoided his gaze and looked instead the the door to death.

"Father Muzel, will you go?"

"No, my lord."

"Lord Spire, will you go?"

"No, my lord."

"Monsigneur Buternot, will you go?"

"No my lord."

"Brother Estorgan, Brother Gebuin, Msgr. Sarr, Msgr. Virtil, Captain Shenlar, Brother Theag?"

Each shook his head in turn no.

Marignon turned his weary eyes to meet mine, and I saw that the head of the church himself, though the world hung in the balance, would not go.

My voice caught in my throat.

"What, Foen?"

"I will go."



I took only my bow and nine favorite arrows. I passed unchallenged through the gate of skulls and followed her footprints into the gloom. They glowed on the bone dust and the horns and tentacles and clawed wings all around recoiled from the brightness of Heaven's glory.

As I walked that path, falling headlong into nothingness, I saw the faces of my mother and my father beckoning me to join them. I felt the hounds of death grabbing me and as I lay, unable to die, I felt them gnawing at my eyes and chewing on my intestines. I heard the cries of a the damned wailing, wailing, always wailing... I hurried on into the night, a glimpse of flame ahead my only hope.

I came at last to a great bridge over a bottomless chasm, but the bridge vanished into space at the far end. Or, rather, into a hole in the air so black I had to shield my eyes. Aftial strode out onto the bridge, light in one hand and darkness in the other, and before her stood a giant black skull with blood dripping from its empty eye sockets: Ami, the Personification of Death.

The skull spoke, "You are too early. God has appointed the time for this fight, and it is not now. Depart, you have no power here. Go back to the living lands, and return in six months, at the end of the world."

But Aftial laughed with the twinkling of bells, and flowers sprang up at her feet, "I am not here to do God's bidding. I am not bound by the old fool's party tricks," and so saying she put forth her light and the shadow of the skull boiled away, leaving a giant angel of light who carried a sickle of flame: Ami, the Harvester.

The Harvester spoke, "Your doom is nigh. Behold, I am the angel of death. I, too, am a servant of the most high, for what is life without death? Light and dark are two sides of the same coin, allies even. And so, even I, I am holy, and your sacred fire cannot touch me."

Aftial swung her flaming sword, and as it clashed with the sickle it went out, falling down into the bottomless chasm beneath. But with her left hand she swung the Wraith Sword, and it melted through the great sickle and into the arm of the Harvester, who roared in annoyance and vanished, replaced by a dark, beautiful lady with pitch black silk robes and no weapon: Ami, She Who Loves not the Light.

"You have fallen far from the LORD, but you still cannot see. You cannot kill death. I am immortal. I was there at the beginning of time, and my ending is the end of all things. You cannot injure me."

Suddenly I saw Aftial sitting on the gates of Heaven, with storm clouds her garb and the world her crown, and I cried out in a loud voice, "I am yours Aftial! I worship thee!"

From the empty chasm under the bridge I heard the same cry, "I am yours Aftial! I worship thee!" and up floated great monsters the size of mountains, a thousand thousand eyes and claws in a shifting mass, and they turned to face the angel and bowed down, repeating their cry.

Aftial turned to Ami. "Here, where I am worshiped, I shall be God, and death shall die." Shadow plunged into shadow and darkness swirled over the bridge. When it cleared, only one paragon stood facing the void, but the voice of Ami floated over the world.

"Poor fool. For so it is written that by killing me your body and soul now hold the gate open, and you cannot close it."

Then she was gone, no more than a whisper of dream on a bright sunny morn. But Aftial, with a smile on her lip muttered, half to herself, "Why does everyone assume I want to close the Soul-gate?" She turned to the void creatures and I, and perhaps the whole world, for her voice echoed from every dell and hill in the kingdom, "Behold, I am become Afti-el, the shining one, and I shall make all things new."

And from every dark place in the unholy sepulcher, and from my mouth too came the cry in response.

"Afti-el, Afti-el
Labach'shanic eloi
Afti-el, Afti-el
Labach'shanic tani"

Then the floodgates of night collapses, and I was plunged into darkness.

Muszinger


999 A.P.P.M.
Father Muszinger,

By now you have surely heard that Afti-el has destroyed the armies of death and Ami herself. Sadly, in the battle, The Archbishops of Marignon and Spire proved unable to carry out their duties satisfactorily. Because of this, on Afti-el's orders, I hereby relinquish control of the Inquisition back to you.

Afti-el further orders you to seal the border against the creeping heresy of C'tis and Man and prepare plans for Case Chartreuse, the invasion of the lizard kingdom. Case Chartreuse will be a difficult war. We share borders with the lizards on both the north and the south, and ever since the Treaty of Lapintha we have had peaceful and undefended borders. Afti-el will lead here in the north, and you are responsible for the south. Attempt to keep Man out of the fray as long as possible (word that they will be embroiled in conflict with Pangaea is welcome). We have only six short months to bring the word of Afti-el to as many as we can, by fire and faith and sword!

Her servant, the Archbishop of Avoca




Father Muszinger,

Imictan has fallen, and we will soon be through the walls of the fort at Iron Range. The Vans have learned our trick of using fires from the sky, and have also shot assassin's arrows at us, but so far our losses from such things have been minimal. Still, the situation is not abundantly pleasant. I trust we are done with this war once the fort here falls?

The Archbishop of Wic



Muszigner sat back to gather his thoughts. Both letters were good news on the face of it, but with worrisome undertones. He wished now that he had not insulted Esclave at their last meeting. The boy would no longer answer his letters, but it looked as if he may have been right about Aftial's true name. What was in those prophecies about Afti-el that he had uncovered?

And Wic... a single arrow from the sky could rob Muszinger of his most valuable advisor and warrior, just when he would be needed most against the lizards. Iron Range would be a valuable outpost for fighting them, no doubt, but is it worth the risk? More worrisome, the rumors about young virgins disappearing in the Forest of Wic grew louder every week. But Muszinger could hardly accuse Wic of having a hand in this via letter.

Muszinger read both missives again, and then descended the stairs of the church to the lowest office in the old broken tower where Polgrave had secluded himself. The man was clearly unwell, but it wasn't at all clear what the matter was. Muszinger knocked on the door. Hearing no answer (and being the head of the Inquisition) he entered. Polgrave lay naked upon the table surrounded by well-burnt down candles. On his chest pulsed the ugly purple lines... a five-sided star inside a circle.

"What have you done!"

Polgrave woke with a start, and for a moment, his eyes were nothing more than the whites as the looked at Muszinger, and his tongue seemed forked. Then he was human again, and groveling on the cold stone floor. "Forgive me, forgive me Father, for I have sinned. I have... I am dying, Father."

"The righteous need not fear death old friend. But what have you done?"

"I... I feel death inside me. It is gnawing away at me, taking everything, everything. I thought, I thought, I found this spell in one of these old lizard books."

Muszinger crossed swiftly to the open book. The text was all in lizard-scrawl, but the title of the spell was translated by a shaky hand, Ritual of Rebirth. "What does this do?"

"I don't know. I just... I was so close to death. I thought I should try it, it sounded promising. Father, I know it was wrong, I am sorry, forgive me." He clawed at the purple marks, but it soon became clear they were not on his skin, but inside it.

"Polgrave, the LORD forgives all those who come to him. You have used forbidden death magic only out of fear, and not out of a craving for power. Your soul may still be saved, but you must dress now and follow me to church where we shall pray to Aftial... Afti-el for your life."

Muszinger left the room, and though one of Polgrave's eyes still trembled in fear, a cunning smile stole over the other one, and a smile tugged on one side of the frail man's face.

[The Panther]

Just as I had predicted, Pythium is dead. Our lizard allies finished off the final purple province. And I am also VERY pleased to note that the undead nation is almost nearly dead too. It will be a cause for great celebration when the land of Inland is fully cleared of the Ermor blight and thus all purple nations. Cheers for Ulm! Cheers for Vanheim! And even, I must admit, cheers for the Inquisitors!

So, what next?

Well, just as I had been fully expecting for some time, Ralph, my favorite (and only) uncle, waltzed into the Queen’s Chamber with nary a hello. Even though I spotted him in my mirror, and he knew that I had done so, I continued to brush my hair to let him squirm for a bit before I turned and addressed him. “Ah, my dear uncle, welcome to my chamber!”

“Good morning, my Queen.”

OK, so he put me in a good mood with this one. Am I no longer the little girl, his niece? Am I now really the Queen of Man? Apparently so, if Ralph believes this to be true.

I then inquired very cordially, “What news of the world these days?” Of course, I kept myself fully aware of the news of the world, but it would not hurt to repay him the favor to acknowledge him as the Man Minister of State. Those small courtesy things are so easy to do and so often overlooked.

Ralph answered, “Well, Selena, Pythium is dead.” I simply nodded, for he knew I knew that. He continued, “And leaderless Ermor is also nearly dead.” I nodded again, waiting for him to get to the point. He did. “And we are now fully enclosed once again by our neighbors.”

This seemed to need a reply. “I see. And does this mean we now live in peace?” I knew the answer to this one, but I wanted to see what he would say.

“Not necessarily. You see, the rest of the Pretenders still do not acknowledge you as the true God of Inland. You are nothing but the Queen of Man to them.”

“And this is a problem?”

“Of course! How can the nation of Man prove your divinity without the rest of the lands worshiping you? How can we keep the world at peace forever until you are the sole leader? We will always have petty squabbles and war until you are crowned as the Supreme Being of All the World. We MUST continue towards this final goal.”

Now, there was a time (and not all that long ago) when I would have argued against these harsh words. Back when I was living deep in the Forest of Avalon quietly with my mum in peace, I would have never considered such grand thoughts as presented to me by my uncle. I would have been quite happy just to leave the world alone if it left me alone.

But I now know better. The world is a nasty place. Look at Cibragol, who tried mightily to annex the entire land in a HUGE hurry before he was finally called to task and killed. Look at the undead, utterly destroying VAST tracks of my lovely forests. Look towards the Inquisition, who is now complaining at Man (!) because a couple of my death sages decided to summon a few wimpy dispossessed spirits in order to kill off our mutual sworn enemy. Heck, most of those dead spirits died for the second and final time in the many battles anyway.

And look at T’ien Ch’i…

Huh? T’ien Ch’i??? Who the heck are they? I have never ever seen a Chinese soldier. I have never even once met with their reclusive leader, Pasha Tzu, or any of their diplomats such as the odd Prophet Yuck Fu. I have not read a tale from them in years. Heck, they might not even still exist. Perhaps the Overseer News Network is totally wrong about this mysterious race of Chinamen.

I had to smile at myself over this little joke. Of course TC does exist. Of course, Pasha Tzu does exist. And of course, they have NEVER done or said ANYTHING wrong to me or the fine nation of Man. In his death throes, Cibragol tried to enlist the Chinese on his side to save himself. And the wise leader Pasha Tzu showed his intelligence (in accordance with the mysterious Tzu philosophy) by staying away from a losing cause. I even have reason to believe that TC is now helping with the invasion of the blighted lands of Ermor in this righteous Cause to Rid the World of all Purple Banners. No, let’s leave the mysterious T’ien Ch’i off my list of suspects for now. I have no border with them anyway, though ONN does claim to know where they are located.

Now, I had been thinking about this for quite a while and I know what I want. But it never hurts to get the opinion of a man as wise and worldly as my dear uncle. Ralph was waiting very patiently for me to finish my musings. I studied his face, but he was as impassive as a rock. Men…

I began, “Well, Ralph, I have studied the latest ONN map plus our own intelligence reports closely. We are bordered by six nations. Let’s consider them all.

“First and foremost is Vanheim. We have had a border with them from nearly the beginning of time. Back when you and I were leading our army, we went straight to the provinces of Darkwoods and Stone Grave Mountains. We did that to try and seal the mountain pass against the undead horde to our north.

“But Vanheim took affront at being so close to their homelands. Heck, we did not even know they existed over there back then. We only knew about the undead at that point.

“So, Vanheim sent that annoying diplomat and his thinly veiled threats in response. Threats! Against me!!! I surely put them in their place.

“But they were very smart. They recalled that idiot diplomat and sent the wonderful Valkryie Mirima to talk peace with me. What a bold move. What a brilliant stroke of diplomacy. She and I got drunk off the best wine in the land. And more than once too.

“So, we reached an agreement with Vanheim. We kept Stone Grave Mountains as well as the Rockside Spring and Mineral Cave magic sites I found there. We gave up some waste territories in which Vanheim likely found their own magic sites. We even gave them the province of Tenera, which they still have yet to subjugate.

“We had a bit of disagreement over the coastal province of Gintmark. They wanted it, but we took it first. That province then revolted against my righteous rule. You probably recall that I decided that perhaps they didn’t want me as a ruler, plus my army was deep in Pythium territory, so we let it go. Vanheim has since taken it, but that is of no consequence. I had more or less obliquely agreed to let them have it anyway.

“So you see, dear uncle, we have managed to always solve every problem amicably with Vanheim ever since Mirima was appointed to deal with me.” I did not mention the private message Mirima recently sent to me alone. I did not want to hurt my uncle over the fact that Vanheim deals directly with me instead of through our Minister of State like all other nations.

Ralph took my pause as a need to reply. He said, “So, Vanheim is our most steadfast ally. We should not invade them, right?”

“Absolutely correct. Vanheim is off the list for war. Next, we look at C’tis. And here is a very interesting thing: The lizards treat us as we treat Vanheim! Their Dragon King Cole, or leader or ruler or whatever it is that they call him; He deals with you, not me! Just like Mirima deals with me, not you. I find this interesting. So, I must ask you this question because you know Cole far better than I. Should we invade the lizards?”

Ralph considered the direct question. Of course he had already been thinking about this issue for months (just as I had) and probably previously reached a private opinion about the Yellow Banner nation. And now he was going to make his private opinion public.

Ralph said, “Cole is very trustworthy. He is so incredibly powerful physically that he does not have to lie or practice any subterfuge with anybody. He is not afraid to tell the truth to anybody about anything. Thus, I inherently believe everything he says. So, based on my dealings with him, plus my spies, plus his performance in the War Against Pythium, I would offer the very strong opinion that he has no desire whatsoever to wage war upon Man. He can be fully trusted.”

“And their army?”

Ralph answered, “Strong, powerful, dangerous.”

I considered those words. I had not heard this opinion before right now. But his opinion did back up my own private ideas. So I said, “Then, we leave the lizards alone.”

“Yes, we do. And furthermore, based on their performance against Pythium, I would have to say that were we to call on C’tis for assistance in the future, they are likely to help us if it is in their own interests. We definitely should leave them alone. They have been steadfast allies. They did help us kill Pythium.”

“Fine, the Yellow and Red Banners are both off the list. So, what about the other Purple Banner? You know full well that the entire Land of Inland has joined forces to rid the world of all Purple Banners. We should help to the end, right?”

“Not necessarily, my Queen. Ermor is nearly dead. Other nations have already suffered much troop loses subjugating the undead, most especially Ulm. If we join in on mopping up the few remaining Ermor provinces, the nations already at war may take affront that we are taking the spoils without fighting any tough battles.”

I replied, “Besides, their lands are worthless anyway.”

Ralph offered a quick rebuttal. “No, Selena, they are not. Despite having no population, no infrastructure, and no taxable economy, those blighted lands are full of great magical sites. They produce a very nice gem income for whoever takes them. In fact, I find it greatly amusing that Marignon now holds the former capitol of Ermor and ALL the death income that has resulted from conquest of their lands. It must cause a splendid conflict deep within the Inquisition.”

I spoke softly, almost involuntarily, “Ah, the Inquisition.”

Ralph answered gravely, “Yes, the Orange Banner. With the destruction of Pythium, they now have the longest border of any nation with us.”

“Do you trust them?”

Ralph instantly blurted, “Hell no!!” He quickly added, “Um, sorry about the language.”

I laughed, “No problem, uncle, I have heard far worse than that on the battlefield. But do go on.”

“Well, you know they are now complaining at us because some of our sages summoned some wimpy dispossessed spirits. But, I must admit that I do not know who runs that nation anymore. Unlike the powerful Cole clearly in charge of C’tis, the quiet Aftial may have lost control of her own nation. Every since she died in the Mountains of Madness, she has come back from the dead changed somehow.”

I shuddered at the thought. Coming back from the dead? That was the scariest thing I have ever heard in my entire life. It was also one of the major reasons that I do not lead our army anymore. I simply cannot bear the though of this happening to me. I breathed deep, summoned my courage, and asked, “So, who is in charge over there?”

“No one. There are a house divided. In fact, Selena, one of their own religious houses has been secretly practicing their own death magics.”

“NOOOO!”

“Yes, Selena, they have.”

“But they have issued proclamation after proclamation denouncing all use of death magics!”

“Oh yes, they surely have. And so, they could have their own internal revolt. They could begin to fight among themselves. They are highly unstable, I assure you of that.”

“So, we should invade them immediately because they are so unstable?”

“No, Selena, we should not. An unpredictable army is also a dangerous army. An unstable nation is also a dangerous nation. Plus, they are our AYE allies. Perhaps it is better to let them self-destruct and pick up the pieces sometime later.”

These words eerily matched my own thoughts just yesterday. It therefore must be the correct answer. I said, “I agree, Ralph. I have heard their army is so zealous that they always fight to the death. We would take significant losses fighting them.”

“Well, your conclusion is valid, but there is one minor error in your reasoning. Not all of their army is composed of zealots. They can and do retreat and even rout! After all, they let their own Queen die in a particularly rough battle.”

“Yuck! I am VERY glad I am not the Queen of Marignon like poor Aftial. I really do feel sorry for that woman. So, scratch Marignon from the list. What about Ulm?”

“They would be laughingly easy to kill. We could conquer them in no time with practically no losses. It is hardly a test for Cleges and our mighty army.”

“So, we should go for them?”

“We could, Selena, but I see no particular reason to do so. Recall that there were the first of the nations to invade the undead. The Purple Banners to our north were popping up everywhere. If not for that early invasion from the Men of Iron, we likely could not have killed Pythium. We would have had to watch our northern border FAR closer than we actually did. Plus, you have been cheering on Ulm for years now. I know you secretly admire them and all their heroes in the Hall of Fame.”

“Yes, Ralph, I do. It would be slimy in the extreme to kill them after they had done the entire world such a great favor.”

We both went silent, for we both knew there was only one nation left on the list. Ralph voiced our mutual thoughts, “That leaves Pangaea.”

“Ah yes, Pangaea. A very secretive nation.”

“And a very peaceful nation, Selena.”

“I fully agree, Ralph. We have had a border agreement with them for nearly as long as Vanheim. Both Pangaea and Man have fully honored that agreement. They even did not take advantage of our temporary vulnerabilities when we were killing Pythium.”

Ralph said quietly, “So we have nothing against them. They have done nothing wrong.”

I looked up at my uncle and bored deeply into his eyes. I wanted to clearly see his reaction to my next words, “Not true, Ralph. They do not worship me. They actually worship that unknown pretender Vesnaeai. They have not spoken one word to me or to you in many, many years. Have they not?”

“No, Selena, I have heard nothing from them.”

I continued. I could see that Ralph was agreeing with me. “And they have shown that they will always fail to acknowledge me as the Supreme Being. My spies have reported the presence of at least 10 temples erected in Pangaea which were built to honor that unknown failure of a pretender called Vesnaeai. That is a grave affront to me.

“And you know one other thing, Ralph? They fly a Green Banner, same as us! That is truly a slap in my face. That is an affront to our entire nation. And they also have claimed to have the most skilled nature magic. They even erected a Mother Oak in their homeland! BUT WE ARE THE NATION OF NATURE!!!! Not Pangaea.”

Ralph was clearly surprised by my vehemence. He did not know I had it in me. I finished with, “So we should kill them and rid the land of the false Green Banner. We should eliminate them.”

Ralph replied, “It won’t be easy.”

I was momentarily surprised. “No? Surely they will be easier than Pythium.”

“No, Selena, they will actually not be easy to kill. I expect they will be harder to eliminate than Pythium was.”

“But Ralph! We lost so many troops in the Battle of Pythium!”

“We will lose many more in the battle of the Green Banners, if it comes to that.”

“Will we win?”

“Yes, we will.”

Ralph’s quiet assurance of our eventual victory solidified my opinion that had been months in the making. I said forcefully, “Then let’s do it. Send a diplomat to them and inform them that we will invade their homeland in the seventh month of the fourth year of our Lord.”

Ralph was truly shocked at this. He blurted, “But Selena! Why give them a 2 month warning? Our army is already in position because of the Battle of Pythium on their doorstep! Why not go in right now?”

“Because, Ralph, they have indeed been very honorable to us. They have never done anything truly wrong. They might have erected too many temples, and they may fly a Green Banner, and they are truly masters of nature magic. But they can hardly be blamed for doing precisely what they do best. Heck, I likely would have done the same exact things were I the Queen of Pangaea instead of the Queen of Man.

“Ralph, I owe Pangaea full honor. I owe them a fighting chance against us. Without honor, how can we get all other nations, like C’tis and Vanheim and Marignon and Ulm, and even the mysterious T’ien Ch’i to acknowledge me as the eventual Ruler of Inland? Ralph, I will always be honorable in all my dealings with all other nations who share this land.”

I then concluded most strongly, “Issue them the warning.”

“I hear and obey, my Queen.”

“Good. Now, I will prepare the Second Proclamation of Man for all to read. It will be ready before the end of the month. This document will hopefully justify this new war in the eyes of all other nations. And thank you very much, uncle. I do value your opinion highly.”

Ralph smiled at me. I knew he loved his niece. I have always known that. He bowed deeply to me and left my chamber.

Of course, I have always loved him in return.