[centre][i][color=darkred]The Summit of (ಥ益ಥ)
AKA
The Great Summit[/color][/i]

Cyclone, 
Kho, 
Lugubrious 
& 
LokiLeo789[/centre]

[hider=Summary]
[list]
[*] The Summit gets under way
[*] Ryak keeps going on about how amazing Ialu is throughout the meeting and how he will destroy the Cimex single-handedly
[*] Chief Kooku keeps insisting on bringing many rocks and putting them between the Realms of Man and Cimex Territory
[*] Invidia suggests using tactics and stealth to weaken the Cimex
[*] Quay suggests opening up a two-front war with the Cimex. He also suggests attempting a sea-landing with boats.
[*]Zerabil points out that the sea was a very dangerous and unpredictable thing to use.
[*] Zerabil then suggests a combination of stealth and a quick, crushing offensive into Cimex Territories, using the Sanguine Communion as a vanguard to ensure the main force is undetected.
[*] Ryak says Ialu will do no such thing and will just kill all the Cimex his own way.
[*] Invidia whispers to Zerabil that the Strong Tribe should be sent in as a distraction, charging straight into Cimex Territory and wreaking havoc, thus ensuring the Sanguine Communion vanguard does its job even better.
[*] Zerabil proposes the revised plan: open two fronts on the Cimex as Quay suggested, sending the Strong Tribe from the north and the main force from the south, with the Sanguine Communion acting as a vanguard, skirmishing and scouting enemy territory.
[*] Invidia reveals to Zerabil that the Outsiders are being hunted by the Anjus, and he tells him how he can summon Outsiders to him.
[/list]
Strategy Outline:
[img]http://i.imgur.com/YIBhxEg.jpg[/img]

[/hider]

Zerabil had sensed their coming before they barged in, though he had not been entirely prepared for the sudden speech their leader - or he assumed he was their leader - proceeded to give. His face remained calm, however, cold even. He recognised this one - was he not the very same man who had asked him what he wanted when he had visited their village all those years ago? Yes, Zerabil's eyes did not lie to him.
[color=darkred][i]'Please, feel free to seat yoursef down, though you do look rather...tired. Would you not like to escort your guards out and perhaps wash yourself and get a change of clothes? I am certain you will feel much better after cleaning off the dirt and sweat of travel.'[/i][/color] he paused and allowed a small smile to light up his face.
[color=darkred][i]'Otherwise, your men are not needed here, they can leave and some of our attendants can see them to the guest quarters, and we can continue our discussion.'[/i][/color]

Kooku grunted at Zerabil's words and gave the newcomers a suspicious look. He had heard of these dragon-slayers, many of his people had run off seeking refuge with them over the years. It did not please Kooku that they went about thinking they were gods and slaying dragons for no other reason than to slay dragons. Any idiot could slay dragons. If he wanted, he could slay ten. No, twenty. And he would not break a sweat either! Pah.

Ryak looked at Zerabil, his eyes squinting in suspicion. Did this one intend to have them leave so that they could plot behind his back? It was unacceptable. Dismissively he told Zerabil, grimacing as the prophet smiled, "I like these clothes more than any that you have. The guards," he shot them a look before continuing, "...can leave as you ask."

Zerabil bowed his head in aquiescence to the decision of the other. He waved for him to sit down and bean explaining what had been discussed thus far.
[color=darkred][i]'I believe we are all in agreement on the fact that the CimeXeno threat must be eliminated. We are currently discussing how best to go about it. It has been suggested that we...' Zerabil decied then that it would be for the best to pretend that Kooku's suggestion had never existed, 'that we attack quickly and with force before the Xenos have time to prepare fully and march upon us. It has been noted, however, that such would be a nigh on impossible task given the stealth requirement needed to sneak upon these highly territorial creatures. So, what is to be done?'[/i][/color]

Ryak shrugged. Once again, he repeated, "Mighty Ialu will kill them." He added, "Just like he killed the Dyun's boss." 

Zerabil looked at the man for a few seconds.
[color=darkred][i]'Then all out problems are sorted, I believe. We will simply send the Mighty Ialu into the CimeXeno territories and they will simply...annihilate themselves upon seeing him.'[/i][/color] his words carried no venom as such, but he did allow a tinge of mockery to make it through, [color=darkred][i]'I appreciate your great respect for your leader, but we are here to discuss how we all can eliminate this threat once and for all, quickly, efficiently and without incurring the wrath of the Xenos and causing needless deaths for all in our care.'[/i][/color] with that, his gaze turned to the others. The Liaison and the prince had been oddly quiet, he wondered what was going on behind that mask Invidia wore...

[i]"The Dyun were savages, deadly at first to the frightened, but no more than a bother to those at all equipped for war.  They were abandoned by the High One that created them when the Primal Chaos found human savagery tastier."[/i]  Invidia leaned on his cane, affixing all those present with his mask's blank gaze.  [i]"The Cimex have community, organization, and above all, the one gift that has allowed them to survive: evolution.  Whatever doesn't kill them makes them stronger.  When fighting with Uri or men, a few always survive to benefit the whole.  The Sanguine Communion has taken a different approach, one that has not allowed this to occur, sustaining our advantage.  Marching into enemy territory for a straight battle is suicide, for we'll receive no straight battle.  Allowing the foe to come into our lands is foolish, for even if we had every advantage, some of our people would perish."

"My point is this: mere strength is not enough.  We must devise a tactic.  For my part, I suggest sending raiding parties of my monks to start hunting down strays, wiping out smaller hives, and forcing them to play the defensive game.  If you take an axe to a tree, the bark may hold and even break the axe, but if you start pulling out roots, the tree will grow weak."[/i]


For once in his life, Quay felt utterly inferior. He sat surrounded by powerful world leaders, much wiser, and more experienced than he was. He was a cub in the face of full grown lions. Despite that, Quay kept his calm and confident look, keeping his emotions under the surface. He focused on the task at hand, fighting the Cimex. Although he saw the Chiefs as wiser, some did not seem all that wise. One suggested to surround themselves with rock. Unfortunately, it seemed that the Chief had failed to realize that the Cimex could could fly of just jump over them if need be. In an act of respect, and maybe to save the feelings of the man, Chief Tartok suggested it be used as a last resort, and went on with his plan. Strike first and fast, take the offensive. The problem with that plan was the fact it left the Cimex to play the waiting game. Allowing th Cimex to play defense is what they would want, fight on their turf, the Sherima Jungle was a dangerous place, and they most likely understood its ins and outs. Fighting them in such a place would be suicide. Quay's stomach churned, he had been up late the night before thinking of a plan. 

[color=DeepSkyBlue]"Yes. They are very territorial, but we can use that to our advantage."[/color] Quay replied, his eyes hard and calculating. He was about to make his suggestion when he was interrupted by a newcomer. He seemed to be extremely confident in the strength and power of their leader. No doubt that such reverence could not be unfounded. But the monks made a good point, fighting the Cimex on their land, or in the jungle was dangerous, whether they liked it or not, the Cimex had the upper hand. The Monks plan was to send his brethren into Cimexian land to hunt smaller hives, force them into a defensive stance.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]"One cannot regain an advantage, unless risks are taken. Your plan makes sense. But what stops them from Turtling you. The Cimex are very unpredictable. I belive that plan will work if we force them into a 2 front war."[/color] Quay suggested, looking to the eyes of each of the men. [color=DeepSkyBlue]"We attack from the south, utilizing our boats to siege the Hive on the south coast. If we can take that Hive, that's a quarter of their territory gone. If we capture that point, our boats can circle the west coast and hit the Great Hive from behind. They will be busy fighting the war on the other front.[/color] 

Shaking his head, Zerabil pointed out that the sea was a very dangerous and unpredictable thing to use. They could not guarantee the pleasure of Undasis, and their boats would be tiny. To get a reasonable force across they would need many hundreds, if not thousands of boats. Such a number would not got unnoticed by the Xenos even if it did manage to land. A few of the tribal chiefs nodded in agreement. They certainly did not want to be riding the waves, sturdy ground was a safer bet anyday.
'Maybe we can get the Mighty Ialu to lead the boats across, I'm sure HE'LL manage to get them across,' Kooku said giving Ryak a mocking look.

Ryak retorted to those that questioned his master, "If you saw Ialu you'd know. Swords can't kill him. Fire can't. Dragons can't. He'll kill the Cimex." Admittedly the words rang hollow, as he said this half to convince himself after having seen their master collapse in the beginning of their journey. Still, he truly believed that Ialu was invincible.

Zerabil listened in silence as the others spoke their mind. He had to admit he felt a tinge of pity for Ryak, he was so in awe of his leader that he seemed simply unable to think of any scenario where he did not simply march in and sieze victory by pure brute force. If it said anything, it said that this dragon-slayer tribe was almost childishly dependent on their absurdly powerful leader, without him they were simply another tribe. It was undeniable, though, that when it came to pure size there were none larger than the dragon-slayers and their vassals. Other than the worshippers of the Chaotic One in the far north. Zerabil was more than slightly suspicious about the lack of response from them. He did not doubt that they were up to something.

[color=darkred][i]'Yes, my friend, Chief Ialu will most certainly kill the CimeXenos,'[/i][/color] Zerabil assured the half-desperate Ryak, [color=darkred][i]'we are just attempting to devise a plan to ensure his job as made all that much easier. So try to think of ways to aid your leader rather than depend on his strength alone.'[/i][/color] he gave him a warm smile, attempting to show the man that they were all friends here and their interests were one and the same.

[color=darkred][i]'I believe we have, perhaps unwittingly, devised a rather formidable strategy,' Zerabil continued as he turned his head to the others, 'we must attack in a manner that would not alert the territorial Xenos to our presence, and simultaneously, we must be completely aware of their actions. If we, as the honourable Invidia has proposed, send in the monks of the Sanguine Communion as a scouting and skirmishing vanguard, that can act as a cover for our advancing main force.'[/i][/color] he paused and allowed his words to sink in before continuing.

[color=darkred][i]'We must gather up all we have, ready the steeds of war and ensure that there is none but works towards the war effort. Our forces must be supplied constantly, moreso than ever once we enter enemy territory. If the monks carry out their tasks well, the Xenos will not be aware of our presence and none will be in our vicinity in order to raid our supply lines or attack our flanks. It will be a very delicate task. There annihilation will be turned into an art-form and our losses will be kept to an absolute minimum. Like this, we can march from one hive to another, eliminating all those who detect us while completely uprooting their unprepared bases.'[/i][/color] he thought for a bit before adding one final word.

 [color=darkred][i]'The only issue, of course, and I am not sure if we are all aware, but these Xenos have an ability to connect their minds at points, thus becoming one. They usually do not, but should they do so in the midst of this operation, we will be exposed and in unfathomable danger. Vowzra's Victors, however, will not shy away from all out combat if it comes to that. We will carve a path of blood and ruin to the heart of the Xeno enemy, and we will exterminate them from the face of the earth. For the sake of Man and for peace,'[/i][/color] he gave Quay a quick glance, [color=darkred][i]'and for the sake of all peaceful Xenos, of course.'[/i][/color]
 
 "While you all try that," Ryak grunted, obviously not so impressed by the plan to use stealth, "Ialu will be uniting the Mighty One's people. There's some Garakai Kingdom in the north. They call the Mighty One by some other name, because they're stupid. But Ialu will kill their leader, since the Mighty One spoke to him and told him to do that. Then he'll have two armies to squash the bugs with, because the Mighty One promised that the Garakai would follow him if he defeated their king."
 
 After having explained Ialu's plan, Ryak continued, "Ialu probably already killed their king. He doesn't lose fights, their king is good as dead." Once again, Ryak shrugged. "He might already be starting to kill all those...what's that funny name you use? Those Xenies."

Holding a hand to his chest where the envenomed claws of the Anju had wounded him, and trying to keep his breathing steady, Invidia considered what the best course of action might be.  He held his free hand up to signal Zerabil before hobbling his way. Zerabil nodded to the masked man and leaned in as he spoke.
[i]"The Strong Tribesmen are too blinded by their shining leader to see anything else,"[/i] he murmured.  [i]"I propose we let the Tribe do exactly as they want--charge headfirst into enemy territory, reaping destruction in their path, straight for the Great Hive.  If they manage to succeed, good.  If they fail, they've at least caused a mighty distraction, and my vanguard will be able to eliminate supply lines and small hives even easier."[/i] Zerabil leaned back and thought carefully about this suggestion. It was clear that the dragon-slayers were not going to be cooperating or going about this tactically. It would be for the best to allow them to do what they were best at while the main force advances strategically. If anything, the Cimex may be deceived into believing the brutish dragon-slayer assault was the main attack and fail to notice the rest of the force. Zerabil nodded in acceptance of Invidia's suggestion.

Throughout this exchange, most of what was discussed seemed to go over the head of Chief Kooku. Once more he spoke out, frustrated that his idea was being ignored, "But look at how many people we have! We could have hundreds of rocks moving at once. Thousands of rocks. We could stack them up and build a big wall. Keep out all the bugs."

[color=darkred][i]'That is an idea for another time, perhaps after we have purged the Xeno threat into something that can be kept back by a mere barrier. As things are, the Xeno enemy is far too powerful to be held back by mere rocks.'[/i][/color] turning back to the others, he spoke with confidence.

[color=darkred][i]'I believe our dragon-slayer friend may have a point. Ialu and the dragon-slayer tribe are a mighty force, we must rely on their strength to pave the way. Thus, I propose that we send in the mighty Strong Tribe and let them wreak havoc upon our enemy from the northern border, striking downwards into Xeno territory. In the meanwhile, the Sanguine Communion will begin operations along the southern border, scouting and skirmishing, acting as a vanguard for our advancing main force. While the Strong Tribe distracts the Xenos in the north, we will wipe out their hives and breeding grounds before circling round and supporting the Strong Tribe.'[/i][/color] Zerabil looked to the others for opinions.

'This is a good plan. Much better than the first you suggested which put too much emphasis on luck to avoid detection of the main force,' Chief Ilagi said, and Chief Zarkil agreed. Chief Tartok on the other hand vehemently rejected it, he thought that they should all strike from the north along with the Strong Tribe, all this skirmishing and scouting business the Sanguine Communion was for cowards, he insisted. Chief Kooku did not seem to have heard Zerabil's words before and once more insisted on his plan.
'I call it, the Great Rock Plan,' he said seriously. Zerabil sighed and turned to the other three. It seemed that it all depended on them whether the plan went ahead or did not.

Ryak looked satisfied. "Yup! Don't you worry, Ialu will kill them all," he loudly declared, and with that, he threw the doors open and left as crudely as he had walked in. He joined with his other bodyguards. The party then took advantage of the town's hospitality by eating as much food as they could stomach before preparing for the journey home.

A plan agreed upon, Invidia treated the remaining members with a bow. [i]"Then all is settled. The Sanguine Communion will begin the hunt immediately.  There will be no survivors."[/i]  He took a few unsteady steps toward the exit, but turned and hesitantly looked back toward Zerabil. [i]"Sir, might I have a private word?"[/i] Zerabil respectfully saluted the last of the Confederate chiefs to leave the conference room before turning to Invidia.

[color=darkred][i]'Of course,'[/i][/color] he signalled for the guards to close the doors after the chiefs left and offered the clearly struggling man a hand to one of the seats.

The outsider accepted the hand and sat, holding a hand to his chest.  He pointed his head in Zerabil's direction, giving the impression that he'd turned to look at him.  [i]"Doubtless you've been wondering why I've been in such a state.  I was attacked by a monstrous demon, a creature, we suspect, of the Primal Chaos.  The Communion is hunting for them, but they are few, and they lurk in the shadows, sowing discord and killing a select few.  You must alert your followers to this phantom menace.  To know how to find them, you must know their prey."[/i]

Zerabil looked at the other quizzically, whatver could he mean? He had heard of creatures who dwell in the shadows, his father had told him of a race, similar to humans yet not so, who had come into being along with them. He had never seen them, however, and there was very little about them that he did know. Could the monstrosities Invidia referred to be preying on them? Or did he believe them to be monstrosities who preyed on monks? The monk continued.

[i]"You are not alone on this planet.  I'm not talking about Uri, or Cimex, or the now-extinct Dyun, or the night terrors, or animals on land or sea.  I speak of a race born in the same instant as humanity, but on the flipside of these coin.  They exist in cities, towns, villages, and hamlets, trying to fit in among a race they envy but never resent for all that makes us human.  They are outsiders, black of skin and faceless, with great, orange eyes in their torsos.  Masters of disguise, they hide among humans, and it is them that the demons seek to slaughter.  But they will not hesitate to kill any humans that get in their way.  To find outsiders, venture into places populated by humans, find a secluded spot at night, and chant aloud, 'Poor stranger, come in from the darkness and cold' until one appears.  They will serve you, and you will, I hope, protect them."[/i] Zerabil's eyes widened at this revelation. Despite his iron will and stoic ways, he could not help but let his shock reveal itself.

[color=darkred][i]'Could it be that-'[/i][/color] but before he could finish, Invidia pushed himself to his feet and made for the exit.  
[i]"See you on the battlefield."[/i] Zerabil stared after the man...if man he was, and he noticed that his mouth was hanging slightly ajar. He closed it and let out a long sigh. 

He would have to seek out those Outsiders who lived under his protection, the monstrosities of the Chaotic One could not be allowed to harm them. He knew very little about Outsiders, but if there was one thing he did know, it was that they were important to the survival of Man. In fact, were they not also of Mankind? With that final thought, Zerabil left the conference room and set about preparing Orabson for war.