[color=orange]Summary[/color] [hider=Summary] [list] [*]Generalization of Nausk’s stay in Edgk, Soothsayers reluctantly become assets [*]Nausk tries to align with rural nobles, becomes suspicious with how Edgk is run [*]Nausk travels to the court of Edgk’s Duke and is appalled to be constantly dismissed and his new found enemies running rampant [*]Nausk returns to his camp out of spite, but is caught up saving Kara Neskerbaud [*]Kara explains that the Neskerbauds had ordered the arrest of the soothsayers in order to gain insight into the Ok’va campaign, as her father was personally invested [*]Nausk’s supplies comes late, finds out the Duke of Edgk had his soldiers dig up Garlor’s roads to his main camp [*]In spite of orders, the Duke of Edgk continues to defy both Consuls, focuses more on Nausk. [*]Nausk becomes personally involved in Edgk’s issues [*]The Duke of Edgk complains openly of Nausk and Garlor, but is soundly ignored by the other nobility [*]Duke of Edgk tries to send thugs to arrest Nausk’s soothsayer allies, nearly kills one, and infuriates the Consul [*]Nausk and his elite guard try to talk the Duke of Edgk down, but are ambushed by Caizera Venkbaug and Edgk soldiers instead, is saved by Kara due to her father’s connections. [*]Is taken to the soothsayer main temple, and is healed, striking up a philosophical conversation with the temple’s patrons. [*]With some insight, Kara and Nausk leave for his camp, leads a larger force to Nousk Mar. [*]Nausk bribes a number of Edgk Uesbergan to his side, has Edgk forces lay siege to their own capital. Fearful Edgk elites gives Nausk entrance into the city, a vengeful Nausk has traitors hanged and confronts the Duke of Edgk. He is imprisoned for conspiracy, and Nausk’s troops take the city. [*]Nausk still refuses to work with Garlor, Garlor threatens to leave Edgk and the campaign in frustration. [*]Lorgan Burges gets a meeting with Nausk, convinces him to step down and give the city of Garlor and continue the campaign. Nausk reluctantly agrees. [*]Garlor sets up a puppet government, smooths out the campaign, and gains the support and loyalty of Edgk’s people with his reforms. [*]-------------------------------- [*]Tenred terrorizes Ok’va, is called out by some minor clans. [*]Tenred appears before the clan leaders, challenges them to a duel and wins [*]Ok’van scouts and spies begin to disappear [*]There is a sudden departure of elven diplomats from Muha [*]Ok’van leaders brush this aside, focusing on personal traditions and affairs [*]Suspicious, Mungan Flekbatter tries to read up on news from Muoarma, but gets little to nothing due to lack of spies [*]------------------------------ [*]Marsha Penosbaug is confronted by her possible new heir Resan, who wishes to help lead the armies in Edgk [*]Marsha receives news from what happened in Edgk from Lorgan, and considers sending a 3rd relief army to oversee the venture [*]Marsha denies the adventure, puts Resan in charge of overseeing the realm’s local guard instead much to Resan’s spite. [*]While on patrol, Resan is nearly killed through a series of accidents, Marsha expects her estranged son and his family [*]Actual assassins eventually try to poison Resan during a party, which gives Marsha fright. [*]Marsha sends her son away to Edgk with a small elite force to get him away from the capital [*]Marsha calls her son Tesan to the capital, and confronts him on the possible assassinations [*]Tesan refuses to acknowledge the issue, storming off when he is refused to lead Muoarma [/list] [/hider] [h2][color=orange][b]=-=The Gathering Storm, Fall 998 2nd Age=-=[/b][/color][/h2] The first of the leaves turned orange as the sizable Muoarman army settled down into their camps in Edgk. Duke [color=orange]Nausk Gotembaug[/color], Consul of Muoarma, had been pouring over descriptions of the inner country of Ok’va for the upcoming invasion. Despite his personal spite for his co-Consul, Nausk relied heavily on his roads to keep the sizable army comfortable. Nausk’s previous planning had kept his army safe, and his presence has certainly brought a great deal of law and order back into the land, even though this presence is what caused Nausk no end of bitter resentment. The longer Nausk spent swatting at mayflies and mosquitoes, the more he began to miss the hillsides and the inner country, as the land of Edgk and it’s miserable position often forced Nausk to personally deal with the issues. Muoarman patrols were almost a foreign concept to Edgk’s commoners and peasants, who often drove off bandits rather than siding with them. The Zengher and Tannis Uesbergan were better armored and were eager to prove themselves as saviors to a people who often flocked to them for safety, heaping rewards on them for doing simple tasks such as aiding them. What Nausk found often very puzzling was a sizable number of Okan villages and clan which were found all over the place, who’s village elders acted and sounded more like Muoarmans then Okan. Most of these Okan still wore rope collars, but were unofficially owned by no one and many still worshiped the old Okan faith, although one which worshiped a local Horned King who had not been seen in hundreds of years. [color=orange]Yekseen[/color] implied to Nausk that the Horned King of Edgk was a large forest spirit who was hibernating indefinitely after a fatal battle with another ‘god’. Nausk decided against disrupting this odd way of life, assuming these Okan were not loyal to Ok’va, but did decide to recruit some of them into his army to aid his scouts and as laborers. While Nausk was preparing for his campaign, he also became petty about his run in with [color=orange]Caizera Venkbaug[/color] and the Guilds of the Illustrious Magi and Studded Collar. Nausk ordered his soldiers to find and smash up Studded Collar camps, running out their slavers, and looting their supplies. For the Illustrious Magi however, Nausk wrote back to the capital of Aedeth Mar, declaring the guild would no longer be welcome in any land he controlled and condemned the actions of Caizera publically, and that he would dull out harsh punishments for their agents and Magi. Neither guild officially responded, but an envoy from the capital did appear to privately ask Nausk to re-allow the Studded Collar Guild back into Edgk, which Nausk refused. When the Soothsayers did not agree to join Nausk’s army, but instead help them ‘in other ways’, Nausk expected only minimal supplies, but what surprised and pleased him was that the odd group provided a great deal of personal aid to his army and patrols, although passively. Patrols and captains found the soothsayers all over the place, often providing healing the villagers normally, but many times would help in the healing of Nausk’s troops. One Okan druid gave an anti-itching cream to one patrol, a local witch provided magical services in driving off bear otters to another, and two elven sages had set up a lucrative potion shop in Nausk’s camp. The help the soothsayers gave was often not without cost, but it was something Nausk was willing to pay for their healing services and other strange magics. Through the elven sage Yekseen and some prodding of the extremely reluctant Okan druids by her Okan apprentice [color=orange]Forgoia[/color], the soothsayers became more like assets to the army during their stay in Edgk. In return, individual members were given some monetary benefit and protection from Edgk’s guards who considered the group criminals. It was often through the soothsayers that Nausk was able to communicate more efficiently with Edgk’s villages and people, who respected and feared the soothsayers. Yet, speaking to the villagers was only a minor thing to Nausk, which was why he decided to gather Edgk’s nobles to him and gather their support; levies, protection for his supply wagons, Uesbergan, and access to their keeps. Envoys were sent far and wide, but when they returned, they had very troubling news to report on. Many of the keeps and castles that these rural nobles lived in were abandoned, their nobles had almost little to no power, and many looked and lived like peasants. The few envoys sent looked like minor nobles, not regional lords. Nausk personally escorted one envoy to a drowned keep run solely by a sizable Okan clan made up of former castle servants and laborers, taking care of a child-minded elderly old noblewoman to the best care they could, while also using her noble title to secure their gilded freedom. Nausk disliked the anomaly of this, seeing it as a sign of a larger issue, but yet felt sympathy for the plight of the former servants and their attempted care for a mad old woman. Nausk had the old noble woman placed into the care of a distant rural house and the servants relocated to his camp under his own care, but abandoned the castle to the Ok’van marshes. These kind of stories grew as Nausk continued to explore Edgk, and depressed the duke greatly. What Nausk soon discovered in Edgk as he went from castle to castle the disparity and crippled nature of Edgk’s nobles. Many of the castles were abandoned, most fiefdoms were often little more than scattered hamlets and villages which were connected by small paths. Nausk noticed that the only places connected were Uesbergan barracks, and when he confronted commanders of these barracks, most were unkempt, drunk, and acted more like common thugs then experienced Uesbergan soldiers. The only thing Nausk could praise about them was how they knew the lay of the land, but this was only due to the fact as Nausk soon discovered that most were reformed bandits who were conscripted into the Uesbergan. Nausk also noticed that many of the soldiers had poor armor and weapons, but ate like kings and drank very often in their barracks, especially when Nausk nearly tripped on a pile of bottles as he walked into one Barracks. Nausk suspected that the Uesbergan of Edgk were extorting the villagers, but didn’t want to commit too many soldiers to find proof, so he redirected his scout to begin trailing some of the soldiers on their rounds. What the scouts reported to Nausk shocked him, as one group of Edgk and Gaszbam soldiers entered into a village and an incident had happened. An Edgk soldier got into a scuffle, trying to forcefully bring a young woman back to the barracks, and was attacked by the girl’s mother. The soldiers slew the mother, and then hung the village elders for personal entertainment. The gaszbam soldiers, seeing the opportunity, ransacked the homes and killed two more villagers who hid in their homes. Zengher returned to that garrison shortly there after and dragged the Edgk Uesbergan out of their barracks and beheaded them on Nausk’s orders, and imprisoned the Gaszbam soldiers who were turned over to their captain. Nausk angrily wrote letters to Edgk’s nobility in the main city, but not a word returned to him. Nausk got on his horse and rode with Yekseen, [color=orange]Zerban Lulsbera[/color], and [color=orange]Zar’usaga[/color] to Nousk Mar. Nausk entered into Nousk Mar and was appalled by what he saw in that city, the poverty of the lower city was almost nightmarish. Nousk Mar’s artisans and craftsmen lived like slaves, or to Nausk, worse then slaves with run down structures who were watched and guarded by the city’s overly corrupt militia. Yet, when Nausk entered the upper city, it hadn’t been much better. Much of the city’s main apartments were for noble families who owned large estates around the city like in most Muoarman cities, and for the large extended family of Desbaugs. However, unlike other cities, the Desbaugs acted like they were fanatically rich, the Uesbergan guards wore gold tipped helms, and several hundred slaves swept crude off the streets or did day to day tasks. Elven servants greeted Zar and Yekseen as if they knew each other well. Nausk however noticed more and more members and agents of the Illustrious Magi, and the guild of the Studded Collar intermingling in the streets, and the fancy dress and garb of the Edgk elite talking about their summer homes far off in his own home of Zengher and Tannis. When Nausk and his guard entered the court of Duke [color=orange]Gradkarm Olo Desbaug[/color], the fat duke was gorging on a fresh feast, surrounded by Gaszbam captains and representatives of the Illustrious Magi. Gradkarm’s chamberlain invited Nausk to the court, but Gradkarm barely even noticed, let alone cared, his only words were demanding Nausk’s elven companions to leave immediately from his presence. Nausk refused this order entirely, looking down on the fat duke as both got into a heated argument. Nausk refused to relent, in which Gradkarm reluctantly agreed only after Nausk threatened him further. Nausk complained about the depravity in the country, and especially made it clear his spite towards what happened in the summer. Both Gradkarm and the Illustrious Magi representative took jabs at Nausk, and complained that Nausk had openly attacked Uesbergan and Illustrious Magi, and how he associated and employed criminals. Yekseen challenged this, demanding to know why they were criminals to start with, in which Gradkarm went on a tangent of how the soothsayers were crazed zealots and disrupted the ‘good and honest work’ of his Uesbergan. Nausk talked of his actions when it came to arresting and executing corrupt Uesbergan, but was shocked to learn that Gradkarm had little care for their actions. Gradkarm’s advisers and courtiers mocked the Consul, saying that Nausk knew little of Edgk and that their way of handling Edgk was bringing prosperity. The guild representative sneered at the Consul, exclaiming his guild had the right to imprison ‘enemies of Muoarma’, but whe Nausk asked what their connection was to the Guild of the Studded Collar, the representative flinched. Nausk exclaimed the court had no proof, which was then Gradkarm threatened legal action, to get the city’s guild of law involved. Nausk then exclaimed he would counter-sue the local ruler for his corruption. Neither Nausk or Gradkarm budged, and seeing it was pointless to talk to him further, angry that his title of Consul was thrown out in court, Nausk simply stormed out. Cursing the city, the Desbaugs, and riding furiously past the streets, he made an angry speech in front of a crowd of onlookers who were curious why the duke had entered their lord’s keep. Nausk called the Desbaugs fools, corrupt, and mocked them, and reiterated his title of Consul. He made it clear his spite for Gradkarm, and for his allies, and rode off cursing for much of his journey back to camp. On his journey back to his camp, Zar had been scouting up the road and returned to Nausk to say a skirmish had broken out. Several black clad soldiers were dead, fighting some Edgk soldiers. Nausk and his retinue moved forward to survey the situation, seeing a large black haired woman and her remaining guard fighting off several bandits. Nausk rode forward and clashed with the bandits who took flight back into the swamp, but not before a hidden archer had killed the woman’s remaining bodyguard. Nausk looked upon the woman and the crest of her shield, bearing the same symbolry of the strange flag the soothsayer leader had given Nausk. Nausk demanded to know the woman’s identity, which she gave it without question, calling herself [color=orange]Kara Neskerbaud[/color]. Nausk forced Kara to accompany him back to his camp, to grant him some form of explanation. Kara accompanied the group back to their camp, and with Yekseen in attendance, they interrogated her. Kara was actually confused at first, as her father, Baron [color=orange]Tazberd Neskerbaud[/color] had sent her to do the same task, not the court mage Caizera. Yekseen believed that Tazberd, a huge investor into the slaver guild, was likely planning to sell the mages, but Kara corrected Yekseen quickly. Kara revealed that her father was a large investor in general, and had a stake of sorts in the coming campaign against Ok’va. Tazberd apparently wanted the soothsayers to complete a ritual to help him predict future outcomes, something which Yekseen scoffed at. Nausk made it clear to Kara that she would not be collecting the soothsayers, and much to his surprise after considerable disrespect to his title, she agreed. Kara asked however if she could be let go to collect on other bounties and to collect members of her guild, the guild of the Studded Collar, to resume her operations. Nausk agreed she would be let go, but she would be sent back to Tannis, as he had banned the guild’s activities due to their hostility from the summer issues, which a disappointed Kara only nodded to. Yekseen angrily wanted to kill her, believing her to be a threat, but was calmed by Nausk who explained her didn’t wish to do more harm then what was needed and that her group would be safe from Tazberd. _________________________________ A few days later, Nausk received word from his captains that supplies had come late. Nausk ordered his scouts to go find out why this was, and returned shortly there after with troubling news. While Gaszbam work crews had moved onto other infrastructure projects after they completed the road to Nausk’s camp, the soldiers found a number of bridges and roads dugged up, destroyed, or redirected. Nausk rode out with his retinue, finding the roads had truly been dugged up, the scout then pointed out a number of ditched supply wagons and camps, along with the shallow graves of wagon drivers. Infuriated, Nausk ordered his cavalry to ride ahead and protect other drivers. The cavalry that 70 Edgk soldiers were digging up the road and were harassing the wagons under the Edgk Duke’s orders, and discovered several more raided wagons. Having had enough of this foolishness, Nausk ordered his men to immediately attack the Edgk soldiers. Nausk’s elite retinue quickly overwhelmed the Edgk thugs, driving them back into the marsh with harsh casualties. Nausk returned to his camp with fresh wagons. The harassment did not stop there however, as Gaszbam captains soon were coming to Nausk with further news of sabotage. Edgk soldiers were given strange and contradictory orders, and began to dig up the roads but to not attack work crews. Apparently, the undisciplined Edgk Uesbergan were harassing slowed down supply wagons, openly killing them and looting their contents. Nausk ordered some of the laborers to begin repairing the road and to build military outposts to keep those roads safe, but didn’t openly attack the Edgk soldiers yet. Nausk still wanted to prevent his major plans against Ok’va secret, and openly warring in Edgk against a hostile noble would certainly attract their attention. Garlor handled these issues with less subtly then Nausk did, and when his roads and wagons began to be destroyed, Garlor would personally ride out and smash the raiders. When he suspected Edgk’s nobles were behind this, he responded by executing Edgk captains. Seeing Nausk as an easier target, the Edgk soldiers focused more on harassing Nausk and his army. Nausk’s only real defense to these issues was simple, that the Edgk soldiers were cowardly thugs and that they were horribly undisciplined. When the bandits appeared to dig up the road and do their gig as bandits, the appearance of Nausk’s troops sent them running. Nausk ordered many of the barracks near him to be shut down and their captains replaced with his own, forcefully conscripting and imprisoning the Edgk guards. The Edgk guard informed Nausk they were only following orders, which Nausk refused to accept as an excuse, citing the dead wagon drivers, their assistants, and their guards. It was when Nausk began to shut down these barracks and replace them with his own did he receive controversy, as the duke of Edgk began a suit against Nausk. The duke claimed the roads encouraged banditry, and that Nausk and Garlor needed to pay him to use official Edgk transports and supply lines, a feat which both Consuls thought laughable. When Nausk ordered Gradkarm to stop his foolishness, the duke only agreed if Nausk paid him a sizable bribe, which further insulted the troubled Consul. Nausk played along, paying the bribe, but it became clear shortly there after this was only a minor arrangement as little more than a week later, the Edgk soldiers were back to digging up roads again and Edgk continued to call Nausk to his keep to settle the legal dispute. Nausk called a meeting of his captain, exclaiming this; “I’ve frankly had enough, it is clear no noble here respects the office of Consul, the duke here a fool. If he will act like a child, I shall treat him as such.”. Nausk ordered his men to ignore Edgk’s ranks and hierarchies, and sent his soldiers to the villages and towns, taking over the role of the towns as liege lord. Nausk began to break down the Uesbergan ranks, dismissing a large number of them and imprisoning others, and began his own recruitment drive of Edgk’s guards amongst the villages. The dismissed guards were not let go of their service yet, and were instead paid more heavily by Nausk to receive better armor, food, and gear in return for not only loyalty, but performing their original tasks. Nausk took it upon himself to fix the issue with the poverty of the rural nobility, doing the rather controversial act by promoting a number of bandit chiefs, village strongmen, and some of his own captains as new nobility for Edgk. Seeing how the decentralized land lacked a means to oppose Nausk’s reforms, Nausk continued to use his soldiers and funds to turn the extorted state into something far more functional. Nausk freed up craftsmen from being extorted by Edgk’s Uesbergan, encouraged growth and trade between the villages, founded central towns, and even formalized the titles of the new nobility. Of the most notable new nobles was a former Edgk captain and bandit chief known as Gacbard the Bleak, a heavily bearded and old bandit chief and expert vagabond who had control over several northern villages and ruled from a wooden fortress connected to an old elven ruin. Gacbard was skilled in combat and in marshland tactics, and Nausk took a liking to him due to his generally competent style of ruling and spite for the Desbaugs. Gradkarm was furious, and called upon Garlor and his army to deal with Nausk, as Nausk’s actions usurped his rule. Garlor, while agreeing that Nausk had gone too far and would love to humiliate his rival, simply found Gradkarm less agreeable, especially after the issue with his soldiers tearing up his roads. Gradkarm called Garlor a traitor, which the highland duke then called Gradkarm an incompetent. Garlor left the furious and now deeply worried duke of Edgk in a state of dealing with Nausk, and continued to focus more on his own plans, primarily fixing his roads. Garlor’s son, [color=orange]Tanberg Veunbera[/color], did however begin sending letters and warnings to Nausk, stating he was overstepping his bounds, even as Consul. Yet, Nausk’s words to Tanberg when he wrote back had been convincing, and that Nausk viewed Edgk’s duke not as a threat, but as a danger. Tamberg then convinced his father that if Nausk would build up his own nobility underneath Edgk’s corrupt duke, perhaps they should do the same, and Garlor shortly there after began to divide up Edgk amongst loyal followers. Edgk’s urban nobles, shocked by the speed and inability for them to keep control over their part of the country began to soon flock to both Garlor’s and Nausk’s banner, which caused deeper and deeper concerns. Gradkarm saw the writing on the wall, but felt no need to pull back his passive aggressive pursuits as his domain spiraled out of control. Despite Gradkarm’s family begging him to make peace with both Nausk and Garlor, he continued to eat and hunt with abandon, although with noticeably fewer friends and allies. Having had enough, the duke sent his envoys far and wide, declaring the two Consuls having overstepped their boundaries and openly demanded that they left Edgk. Gradkarm had even played with the idea to get foreign help, but his advisers deeply disagreed with the prospect, as it would look bad for their image. The unpopular ruler recieved very little in terms of encouragement, as only the most conservative enemies of the two Consuls raised their voices, but most others including the Grand Duchess fell silent. Nausk had already expected Gradkarm to complain and sent an envoy back to the capital to explain his actions, and despite some vague words by the Grand Duchess to try to mediate the problems via letters, it was clear with her correspondence to both of her Consuls that she would generally support any action to support their campaign against Ok’va and to ignore the complaints of Gradkarm. With neither side willing to bulge, rumors were soon abound within the courts of Edgk on what to proceed with. Taking advice from the Guild of Illustrious Magi representative in his court, who was more interested in knocking down what they believed an asset of their rivals, The Guild of Sorcerers, the duke of Edgk made new orders to give more reign to the Illustrious Magi to hunt, capture, and kill the soothsayers. Gradkarm had known the soothsayers were under the protection of Nausk and his armies, and wanted to do all in his power to make life miserable for the Consul, believing he would leave his territory if he applied enough pressure on him. While Gradkarm’s advisers meekly agreed, egging on the duke and his family to continue these actions, most were secretly transferring themselves over to Garlor or Nausk, begging to be let into their inner circles. The guild, more interested in burying their rival’s assets in the marsh, exaggerated the crimes of the soothsayers, claiming to Gradkarm that once gone, the powerbase of both Nausk and Garlor would also fall. The duke continued to remain ignorant of his own affairs, especially as his own spymaster fell into the personal payroll of Garlor’s army. The only ones who seemed to willingly remain loyal to Edgk’s duke was his remaining and local Uesbergan, who were granted bounties on the soothsayers. The soothsayers had time to go back into hiding, and others fled to Nausk’s camp where their enclave was safe. Yet, one elven member did fall behind and was briefly captured by a patrol who tried to forcefully drag him back to Nousk Mar, but had used his magic to escape. The member had traveled a long distance through miserable mud and being hunted until he arrived at a patrol station of Nausk’s army, who had a standoff with superior Edgk Uesbergan. The Edgk soldiers, fearful of reinforcements, eventually retreated and the injured soothsayer was brought to Nausk. Nausk was furious, and he openly declared he would personally put down Edgk’s nobility and that he was done playing their games. Gathering a meeting to him, and seeing the situation escalating out of his own control, Nausk decided it was high time to deal with Edgk’s near hostile duke and reassert his authority if need be. Nausk left camp with 20 men, and made his attention known that he would speak with Gradkarm Desbaug personally, but the nature of the event Nausk would note was very serious. Nausk demanded he would only see Gradkarm outside his city’s walls on horseback, and they would talk beneath the walls of the city. This was an old Elkadan war custom passed down by the nobles of Zengher, refusal to meet this way was an act of not only disrespect, but of war. Nausk’s letter made this clear, and he demanded of Gradkarm three general demands; to submit to the authority of the Consuls, to lay down his hostilities to the Consuls, and to accept the new nobility he and Garlor had made. Gradkarm never responded as he usually did, but thanks to Nausk’s spies, Nausk now at least knew why. Gradkarm’s most ‘loyal’ advisers often read his messages for him, and twisted their meanings, and often advised him not to respond. Instead, they often encouraged their critics to come to court where they were vulnerable and where Gradkarm had more control over the situation, but the duke was aware of what was being said. As Nausk began to make his way down a road towards one of the last villages before reaching the main outside hamlets of Nousk Mar, a group of three horsemen approached. Edgk soldiers blocked Nausk’s path rather then move aside, and Nausk tried to talk them down. Yet, they refused, and before Nausk could make a more serious threat, he felt a sudden wave of heat and blacked out, as an explosive magic reigned down behind him, killing several men and destroying his horse. Nausk felt pain as he slowly awoke, his blurry eyes making out his last elite soldiers making a final stand around him as Edgk soldiers smashed their way from all sides against him. Amongst them was the rogue mage, Caizera Venkbaug who shouted her magic, witnessing as one soldier’s armor crushed him. Nausk tried to stand to fight, but was far too weak as his soldiers fell one by one to the Edgk ambush. Nausk cursed in his mind as he watched soldiers finish his guard off and approach him menacingly. Yet, as one soldier reached for his halberd to slam down on the Consul, a shot rang out as an arrow pierced the soldier’s face and fell at his side. A rider on a horse galloped beside the duke, notching a bow and aiming it at the soldiers and Nausk noticed some confusion. There was a short and blurred discussion between the rider and the Caizera. Nausk looked surprised, seeing the soldiers retreat rather suddenly at Caizera’s orders, and Kara Neskerbaud saddled the duke onto her horse, riding off fast in an unknown direction. _________________________________ When Nausk awoke, he found himself in a strange place, but on a stone floor. Before him lay a strange grove-like temple, garbled in tree trunks and in all direction was marshland and woods, and to his side was the all too familiar elderly Okan witch, [color=orange]Bun an’ Muck[/color]. Bun congratulated the duke on his survival, and Nausk remained in pain. “Kara. . .Kara Nesk. . .Neskerbaud. Where is. . .why. . .” “Ya took a bad wound, me friend. Rest now as I go get my salves.” was the last thing Nausk heard as he went back into the twilight, and awoke only again to find Bun and some other soothsayers at his side. Nausk spent a day regaining strength, and soon learned he was in the lair of the soothsayers themselves, as they often told him as such. When Nausk had enough energy to walk again, he began to explore, and found Kara talking in a hostile manner to one of the Okan soothsayers. Kara disengaged from the conversation, as Nausk began to ask her a great deal of questions. “When I escaped the custody of your guards and returned to my hunt here, I did not exactly expect to be saving you, so I suppose we can call it even now. Caizera and I don’t exactly like each other, and would have just as likely killed me if I had not lied to her about reinforcements coming. As for why she and those guards attacked you, that's between you and the Desbaugs. . .and the guild of Illustrious Magi. I knew these soothsayers were healers, found one wandering by when he noticed and recognized you, the rest was history.” Nausk felt surprised, although lamented he shouldn’t have been. He had known the Desbaugs to be decadent fools, but not to try to assassinate a Consul. Yet, through Bun he learned the purpose of the assassination attempt. Gradkarm was fearful of confrontation, and knew he could not win against either army in his state, but refusing to back down he decided drastic actions were required. Bun revealed through her divination a frantic meeting between Gradkarm and Caizera, Gradkarm angrily yelling for not bringing Nausk alive to him as a captive, and Caizera proclaiming her life was more valuable. Caizera eventually used teleportation, with Gradkarm begging her to stay. Nausk had nearly felt sorry as the wide eyed duke rushed about, calling for advisers in his private moment, even cursing himself. Yet, Nausk’s anger for the murder of his men was not satiated, but felt far too weak to return to camp. Nausk tried to leave the temple, but Bun had tangled vines bring him back as she warned him his wounds were far too grievous and encouraged him to stay for a bit longer. During his stay with the strange Magi, Nausk began to understand a little more about the soothsayers, many of their non-magical members were Okan clansmen who never left Edgk and worshipers of the god Luraii. Nausk had suspected and even imaged the worshipers would sacrifice humans as he was told, but rather, most were giving rather humble praise to other strange and more moderate ideals. Nausk explored the temple more, and within the depths after following Bun sneakily through the caverns, found a domed cave made of mud, root, and stone. It was there, Nausk found the hibernating [color=orange]Za’kain[/color], Marsh Guardian and once the warrior hero of Edgk. Bun introduced Nausk to her ‘ancestor’, as his once decaying form returned to life and came out of the tree roots with cracking abandon, terrifying Nausk at first. Bun calmed Nausk, and remarked his curiosity with a snide approval. Za’kain however remained silent as ever, only identifying with Nausk as ‘Invader’ and ‘Pink Freak’. These insults fazed Nausk a bit, in which Bun excused her ancestor for ‘being a proud and dead ruler, when stripped of title and rank, is little more than a great guard for a sleeping god’. Za’kain disliked such comments, but did nothing about it. Nausk felt almost tutored as the three discussed things in those caverns below, the slowly healing Nausk becoming more attuned with his surroundings. Nausk felt disgusted by the Okan rituals of turning once proud warriors into obedient warrior liches, but yet felt embarrassed when Za’kain spoke of the embarrassment of dealing with Gradkarm. Za’kain brought up that Nausk had greater rank, but acted like a servant, despite the power and resources around him. Even at a height of Nausk’s aggression against the Desbaugs, he had to be goaded to act, which the once former ruler of Edgk testified was something he found odd about humanity and the Muoarmans in general. Nausk wondered how Za’kain felt about his own situation, in which the Marsh Guardian replied; “I am a ruler, but not by a crown, but by voice. When I call for the people to come, they will, for they know what happens when they do not. I earn respect not by rank, but by action. I rule more of this land in a way then the current ruler does, an illusion it is, the title of duke, consul, grand duke. . .all empty phrases to goad the delusion of respect.” “You say my rank is a delusion?” Bun answered for her ancestor “Aye, in a way, all ranks are such. We grant onto even the gods heaps of empty respect, names which are meaningless. In the end, only action counts, you just need to be the first to act.” Nausk continued to speak with the two, but eventually returned with Bun to the surface of the temple. One final check by the soothsayers confirmed Nausk’s health, before the Consul met back up with Kara where he felt a bit depressed. . .and motivated. Nausk hurried Kara onto her horse beckoned her to take him back to the camp. They two rode back, and was met with many of Nausk’s friends and allies, surprised and relieved he was alive after the discovery of his dead guard. Nausk invited Kara into his camp and then into his war room along with his captains, feeling a bit more insightful and believing he was wrong in his philosophy of dealing with Gradkarm. Nausk motioned his captain to prepare the army, and that they would march on Nousk Mar. _________________________________ Nausk led a 4,000 soldiers from his camps, including heavy cavalry and his elite Uesbergan through the roads, as they moved with infuriated movement as they marched onto Nousk Mar. The city’s gates were closed, and when Gaszbam soldiers asked what Nausk was doing, Nausk only responded with “Dealing with the situation”. The army surrounded the city and blocked entrance in and out of the city, while Nausk called out not for the Desbaugs, but for the captains guarding the city. Nausk gathered soldiers from the surrounding barracks who didn’t flee to the city in time, which was sizable, around 1,500 soldiers. Nausk offered them a choice, take his money and switch sides or be hanged as traitors. The Edgk soldiers readily agreed and joined the siege camp, in which Nausk used to goad the defenders to switch sides and to not fire on his camp from the walls. The Edgk soldiers naturally did start pushing the camp back as they didn’t exactly care for each other, but the sight of Edgk flags in Nausk’s siege broke their resolve to try to go out and meet their enemy. Surprisingly, Nausk was joined by not only a small levy band of the new nobility which rounded 600, but many outlying Edgk villages and barracks. 1,400 militias gathered in Nausk’s camp from many nearby villages. Nausk didn’t offer terms of surrender until a few days into the siege when Garlor finally sent an envoy demanding Nausk break his siege. Nausk had planned an assault on the city till he had received a strange opportunity. A Okan approached him, a shop apprentice from the city, who had been an agent for Za’kain and the soothsayers. He gave Nausk information of sizable Okan tunnel networks beneath the city, partially closed up but still in use by the Okan. The Desbaugs knew little of these tunnels, and were likely patching them up before their discovery. Nausk wasted no time, sending his elven friend Zar and some elite Uesbergan into the tunnels, where they discovered a loose network along with many hiding Okan. The soldiers removed the Okan from the tunnels and were able to breach near a eastern gatehouse of the city, fighting their way to disperse the light guard and claim the section of the city. The Edgk defenders fled to other fortifications. The urban nobles discussed the issue rather quickly as Nausk’s soldiers were preparing to batter down the gates to the upper city. The nobles, fearful of Nausk’s reprieve ordered their commanders to open the gates. Gradkarm was barely aware, as his armor troubled him trying to find proper armor for him, which soon changed to trying to find a disguise. The nobles welcomed Nausk as he personally rode through the open gates, but the Consul seemed disinterested, only demanding to know where Gradkarm was. The nobles directed him to the keep, where Nausk simply told the nobility to return to their homes. As the nobles retreated, Nausk noticed that two soldiers were brought before him, instantly recognizing them as those who tried to assassinate him, promoted to commanders after their deed. Nausk ordered them hang with their rank sealed, and led his forces into the keep. Nausk was approached by a representative of the Guild of Illustrious Magi, a man who troubled him the moment the two met in the court of Gradkarm. The man begged for mercy as Nausk also ordered him hanged for treason. Zerban came to his side, asking Nausk if he intended to hang all the traitors, which reminded far too much of his own situation he had been in. Nausk made it clear he would hang most of the traitors, and had no intention of sparring them, but would not touch their families in order to calm Zerban. Nausk and his guard entered the Desbaug keep, where Gradkarm’s own soldiers dragged him to his court in order to try to get a pardon from Nausk. Nausk agreed, as the ever defiant Gradkarm looked up and sneered at Nausk. “Tyrant! That is what you are! I am the son of the dukes of Edgk, the rightful ruler beneath the cloak of the gods! You have no right to spill Muoarman blood, you elkadan traitor! You, and Garlor, you are fools to think you can depose me! I am a duke, damn you! Your ra---” Nausk drew his sword, interrupting him “You are by rank duke, but not my equal. You have committed crimes against me, against the wishes of the Grand Duchess, and against your fellow Muoarmans. I have not abused my rank, but clearly that idea must end, and by the right of my title as Consul, I declare you and your family incapable of rule and a danger to the people. I should call you a wretched disease, a wrathful idiot. You will live to see your land given to better men. . .I’ll make sure of it.” Nausk slowly sheathed his sword, his retinue watching nervously, expecting him to kill Gradkarm. The soldiers led the duke away to his own dungeons and Nausk sat on the Desbaug throne, exhausted and tired. By the end of the night, the city was fully taken. Nausk’s first act as duke was to collapse the Okan tunnels and to replace the city guard, his second was to meet with Garlor who came with his own army in the defense of Gradkarm. Garlor was shocked, but yet feeling unsurprised, that Nausk would take the city. Garlor met Nausk in the court, with the two quickly devolving into bickering about many of their issues between one another, but the most important of which was the fate of Edgk. Neither Consul trusted one another to deliver a fair verdict, and it wasn’t much an ideological issue as much as it was an issue of personal rivalry. Even when Nausk informed Garlor of Gradkarm’s attempt on his life, the strong duke was unfazed and still argued for Gradkarm’s freedom. Garlor didn’t want to upset the balance of power in Edgk, even if he had to work with an incompetent and hostile duke, and believed wholeheartily that Nausk overstepped his bounds. Nausk accused Garlor of not seeing Gradkarm’s actions as sabotage for his own gain, in which Garlor pointed out the corpses of Nausk’s enemies outside and inside the capital swinging from trees. Garlor left empty handed, but warned he would lay down his title as Consul if he had to work alongside Nausk a moment longer, an idea which Nausk prodded his old enemy with. Neither force seemed willing to continue, but Nausk felt his campaign falling apart as true to his word, Garlor was packing up his camp to return home. Nausk felt confident he could continue the campaign without Garlor’s aid, and began to plan his campaign without his aid. Nausk did not feel powerful, but Garlor likely planned to cause trouble as soon as he returned home, as Garlor’s envoys were caught trying to spread rumors of Nausk’s supposed misdeeds. Nausk’s mission felt empty and confused, as conquest of Ok’va had taken a back seat to dealing with issues and political decay in Edgk. Nausk ruled Edgk much like his own realm, although his poor understanding of Edgk’s people and his dismissive nature soon caused issues, which required more mending. The stalling of the campaign had reached the eyes and ears of the Grand Duchess, who was not pleased. Time passed on up until Nausk was approached by a royal envoy, but as soon as the envoy entered did Nausk saw a one eyed, white wearing elderman, [color=orange]Lorgan Burges[/color]. Lorgan introduced himself as the Marshal of Information for all of Muoarma, and informed Nausk of the general displeased mood of the Grand Duchess. Nausk complained of his woes, which Lorgan understood to some degree. Lorgan asked Nausk to step down, and Nausk at first refused, up until Lorgan began a long winded speech of the shame this whole affair would bring to not only the country, but to his family and army. Lorgan notes that while Nausk was fully justified, he had also noted that Nausk needed to ‘let the issue slide under the marsh of the land, and continue for the grace of the gods, country, and his army’. Nausk still did not want to give his old enemy, Garlor, a chance to further defy him, but after some further talking down by Lorgan, Nausk agreed to step down and return the army to its position, and to leave the situation in the hands of the Grand Duchess. After a short rest and a speech to his army, Nausk and his friends left the city of Nousk Mar, leaving it in the hands of Lorgan and Edgk captains. Lorgan invited Garlor and his captains to the capital, where he tried to explain the situation to Garlor, who was still less then happy that Nausk had gotten away with little more than a talking down by the Grand Duchess, but yet his mood changed when he was offered to settle the disputes of Edgk’s court. Many of Gradkarm’s loyalists flocked to Garlor, hoping to restart their dramatic encounter with Nausk for revenge, but much to their own shock and to no one else’s, Garlor had done things much more differently than what he had claimed when he met Nausk. Garlor pardoned Gradkarm for his role in the attempted assassination on Nausk, dismissing it as ‘little to no proof’, since Nausk had essentially murdered most of his would be murderers. However, Garlor did charge the Duke of Edgk with various other crimes, and tacked on other controversies as reasons for him be deposed. Garlor and Lorgan banished Gradkarm to Olma, and placed a lesser member of the family who had been in Garlor’s camp for awhile since he arrived, a distant relative named Uslan Desbaug, as the new Duke of Edgk. Garlor left Nausk alone whose army began to prepare for the winter months, and began to implant his own reforms. Edgk’s tyrannical state was replaced with Garlor’s own, primarily set on rebuilding roads and infrastructure, and reworking most previous reforms. Most of the new nobility were accepted by Garlor, but only as Lorgan’s insistence on not touching Nausk’s own, although most who had once been firmly in Nausk’s grasp soon switched sides to be more in line with Garlor. While Lorgan wished to restructure the entire social order of Edgk, it’s autonomous villages and distant tribal communities of Okan and tormented villages, Garlor instead wanted to build around them, knowing full well it would take far too long to enforce normality on the region. Through the new Duke, Garlor and Nausk could at least settle the winter without further issues, although both slept uneasy, as their once main focus on Edgk’s vile nobility now turned to spite toward one another. _________________________________ Things were not looking up in Ok’va as the wails and cries of a local Cesavii temple were heard in the distant morning. Okan clansmen reported to guards dead priests and acolytes within the temple grounds of a younger temple built by both Muoarman missionaries and converted clansmen. Guards found a site horrifying to most human eyes, but to the Okan, it was a known occurrence. Bodies of the Okan priests were buried at an angle where tails and legs shot up from the ground, and the blood stained grounds had much of their silver idols looted. Statues of the god Huyii were defaced and defiled, the high priest of the temple, a human, was found in a way that was difficult to describe, but all the same murdered in a way to invoke fear. It was unknown who sacked the temple officially, but all knew it was [color=orange]Tenred[/color], the current Muaj’kadeen of the Baufa’kad. Tenred only wandered the villages outside of his own home in the deeper south marshes, but his Baufa’kad were unhappy with the state of ‘the moral depravity’ of the local Okan. The Okan Cesvii chieftains called out Tenred, knowing full well that the Baufa’kad were involved in the destruction of their temple. They petitioned the local monarchy to drive out Tenred and his fanatics, but the local rulers were still sympathetic to the old ways, and refused. Angry from inaction, religion violence was gripping the south as Tenred continued to poke and prod from his swamps, sending jabbing remarks and ironic gifts to the insulted rulers to goad them into action. The chieftains were further infuriated when Tenred actually appeared and convinced a younger member of a chieftain’s family to join the Baufa’kad, and then tricked a chieftain in killing this member in a fit of rage, only to realize the trickery shortly there after. Having had enough of Tenred’s antics, five Okan chieftains called Tenred out and demanded he show himself and fight them. They sent an envoy, putting the time and place within a grove outside the city which was long ago converted into a cult meeting ground for the Cult of Penaii. The chieftains waited until Tenred showed up with only a few of his followers, playing his flute to a happy tune, and then into a more funerary one. The chieftains at first were not impressed with him, as Tenred often acted arrogant and seemed to slide all around. Tenred asked that the chieftains fought him all at once, saying that surely before the site of their god they would do well fighting him. The chieftains agreed and took out weapons and formed a battle circle as in doing with the old ways. Tenred didn’t take out his weapons at first, still playing his tune, and as his music slowed, claiming the fight will begin once the music stops, he blew into his lute and shot out a poisoned dart at one, and fought the other four with his duel axes. With a mixture of fast action, some poison, and many dishonorable little tricks. The chieftains were dead, and Tenred came out victorious but injured. While Tenred returned to his camp in the deep marsh to celebrate his victory and for his wife to tend to his wounds, Tenred came across a number of odd reports from his captains, primarily, that there were a number of scouts and spies of Ok’va disappearing on the Muoarman's border. The Okan didn’t really pay much attention to their neighbors, but there was a darkness over the information being brought it. Usually, the Okan would spy on Edgk to keep track of slaver parties, but these scouts who worked for various parties simply did not return. Tenred was curious as to why this was, but found a lack of interest from his employer, [color=orange]Bran Gray[/color]. Tenred obeyed, shrugging off the reports so he could focus on internal affairs. Okan intelligence officers were deeply concerned, feeling as if their scouts, agents, and spies were being purposefully hunted. The Okan nobility shrugged this off as unfortunate slaver attacks or raids by marshland beasts, but the handlers were not so certain. However, what was rather shocking was silent leaving of the Muhan ambassador from Ok’va, along with other diplomats. The Muhan ambassador was not a very keen member of the court, and often spent their time in utter misery, deeply missing their homeland. The Okan never cared for these problems, and often most avoided the elf. It wasn’t a shock that the ambassador had left, but rather it had been silent, in that the ambassador and his entire entourage had just taken a ship in the night and left in a strange hurry. The ambassador left in quite a hurry, leaving their main estate empty, with food on the table as local servants tried to enter to investigate. Journals and major diplomatic papers were the only thing missing from the estate as Okan guards seemed a bit concerned at first, believing the entire embassy was attacked in the night. Only a local dockmaster of the Okan capital confirmed that the elves followed another onto a boat headed for Muha. The Okan king and his court were not amused, but not exactly worried either. The spymaster of the realm made it clear he wasn’t worried either, believing that the elves were ‘homesick’ and would return eventually, but secretly the Okan spymaster of Ok’va was more concerned over his faith and was busier overseeing his son’s coming of age ritual. The Okan king, [color=orange]Toag Flekbatter[/color], didn’t really concern himself with such affairs. Despite insistence from family and others to investigate the matter, Toag was more interested in the affairs of a small drama between some rival chieftains which threatened an allied clan’s herbal farms, and a supposed corruption within the alchemist guilds of Ok’va. Toag was often bringing families together through diplomacy, and used their dramas as an excuse to further centralize the realm, removing the rights of nobles in order to personally oversee issues, and diplomacy wasn’t really on his mind. To Toag, the defensive alliance they had with Muha and Olma was to deter the Muoarmans at best, and to break them apart at worst, and Ok’va would be safe in their marshland. Prince [color=orange]Mungan Flekbatter[/color] was suspicious of the happenings in both Ok’va and Muoarma, a idea which he and his father did not share. Mungan began to send for scouts and agents, but only two showed up who were from the northern part of Ok’va who watched the border with the republic. Mungan sent these scouts to look for the missing scouts, finding nothing but smashed up camps and Okan tracks, which caused Mungan to become concerned. Mungan called a general meeting with his spymaster and spies, but they had gotten nowhere, nothing but tidbits of information and some general warnings. Mungan wanted news from Muoarma, but his spymaster scoffed and told Mungan that the Muoarmans were ‘just living like wild animals in there stone and marble houses, as usual’. In order to relieve the Prince’s further suspicions, the spymaster sent out his replacement agents to call back all Ok’van agents and scouts, and to begin the training of new ones if they cannot be found, chalking up their disappearances as ‘unknown attacks’. _________________________________ [color=orange]Marsha Penosbaug[/color] was reviewing the situation with her advisers in private chambers, and new reports from her spymaster Lorgan. Things were smoothing out, but the concerns of what had happened caused Marsha some doubts about the campaign, and that despite the two Consuls now at least having armies on the border and ready to invade Ok’va, their rivalry was now affecting the campaign, and the issues of what happened in Edgk disturbed Marsha. It was one thing to recieve nonsense reports of the depravity of what went on in the court of the Desbaugs, but it was another when one tried to assassinate a Consul. Gradkarm would have been executed by any other lord for his actions, but Marsha was happy the Consuls didn’t escalate the situation and sabotage her campaign. Marsha and her advisers were interrupted with a knock on the door to the chamber, and her son and heir [color=orange]Resan Penosbaug[/color] stepped in. Marsha excused her advisers, all except her gladiator bodyguard and Resan’s, with Resan making a rather odd request, wanting to help lead the armies of Muoarma. Marsha hasn’t even told Resan her plans, and when asked, Resan had only mentioned he had his own spies, a fact which made Marsha secretly proud of her would be heir. Resan wasn’t her firstborn, and wasn’t legally her heir to Muoarma, but his young and intelligent being along with his loyalty and willingness to allow his mother to rule and tutor him had made him a better option than other siblings. Resan argued that if he was to make the conquest of Ok’va truly a Muoarman cause, a Penosbaug had to lead the charge. Marsha agreed with some aspects of such an argument, but also argued that battlefields were dangerous to one’s health, citing an ancestor’s sudden sickness during a march. Resan was undeterred, wanting to improve his standing in the army and to lead the main force into Ok’va for more than just the glory and expansion of Muoarma, but for the Penosbaug family. Marsha had received reports from Lorgan, and Resan’s offer was tempting, but his life was far too valuable to her as a clear heir to her throne. Sending a third army to help coordinate things between Garlor and Nausk would prevent further damage, but of the commanders of Muoarma, known were up to such as task of controlling such Consuls it seemed. Marsha debated her son on common tactics, prying for an excuse to not send him, but Resan seemed more prepared than she was. Resan had his own set of plans, but wasn’t well read on Ok’va or its people. The best experience Resan had with the Okan was through his loyal slave and bodyguard which all Penosbaugs had, and it did show. Marsha wasn’t well versed either in Okan, but knew more of their traditions when she discussed such things in the early phases of her planning. Marsha listened, but ultimately dismissed him to think on it more, but Marsha’s mind was made up. Marsha ordered her son to the royal barracks, where at first treated honorably as a commander, it became increasingly clear his duties was not to lead a new army, but to train and command the local garrisons, which he quickly grew bored with. Unable to admit he was in a situation he didn’t want to be in, he made it clear in passing his displeasement which Marsha brushed aside. Resan began his tenure under the command of fellow generals and commanding the remaining Uesbergan, training and recruiting new recruits, and managing the coming winter logistics. While Resan would continue to insist on going elsewhere, he planned to make the best of his situation, drilling and organizing the garrisons with quick ease. However, as Resan was going about various duties, he began to run into many accidents which annoyed him to no end and terrified his mother. One incident was when during a march to a barracks having a food shortage, a small rockslide nearly crushed him. In another, one of Resan’s scouts crossed a bridge which snapped and fell into a river filled with sharpened stakes, which caused immediate suspicion with inspection, as it was clear it was of Okan design according to Resan’s own Okan bodyguard. Resan ordered an investigation, believing it to be little more then perhaps some vengeful escaped slaves hiding out as bandits in the woods. Marsha felt paranoid without the aid of Lorgan who knew these things better, and decided to change up her son’s schedule to try to find a pattern. Marsha expected her estranged son, [color=orange]Tesan Penosbaug[/color], would try such an action, but had no proof to the matter. When nothing happened the following week, she breathed a sigh of relief and began starting the winter festivities. Resan, with much of the Penosbaug family, arrived in the main palace of Aedeth Mar to attend a major festive party to begin the start of winter. It was also a time where the nobles of the country often liked to boast of their deeds. Missing this year was the Consuls, who both decided to bunker down with their armies and finish up mopping Edgk, and also excluding Tesan and his family who refused to go out of principle. Resan was enjoying himself during an exchange and was making a toast to the audience, as Marsha was explaining her intentions very subtly with worried nobles and curious diplomats during the affair of what the army was doing in Edgk. Officially, the army was cleaning up a bandit mess rather than preparing for the invasion of Ok’va, but Marsha had hinted to both guests of the Grand Duchy and neighbors of her real intentions. Resan was offered a glass of wine and was eager to drink it, but instead offered some to one of his captains whom he peer pressured into drinking instead. The captain readily drank, his face soured, and began to cough. In moments, the jolly mood of the room turned to horror as the captain began to barf onto the floor, followed shortly by blood, and the man collapsed. The room was cleared after the horrifying event, as the captain was pronounced dead rather swiftly. The direct attack was an odd attempt, but one which was difficult to avoid. An assassin, using a powerful and expensive Okan poison had snuck their way into the kitchen staff and apparently was able to hand the prince the drink without much care of others, and slipped away before they could be caught. Marsha’s agents searched high and low, but it mattered little, as before Resan could even grieve his friend, she had him packing for Edgk. Not wishing to be responsible for her failure to spot such things, and believing Lorgan would better take care of him, Resan was gifted with two regiments and sent to the army of Nausk and Garlor to begin aiding and coordinating the main battle lines into Ok’va. Her suspicion immediately fell on her son Tesan, and she summoned him to the capital, his refusal would have meant immediate betrayal. Tesan arrived with his own guard, and approached his mother in private rather than talking in an open room, where despite the two being of one family, Tesan could not stand his mother. Both argued for hours, Tesan throwing a fit and smashing a table in anger were Marsha still refused to acknowledge that she had stolen the throne from him. Tesan angrily demanded his country, and Marsha refused, interrogating him on the attempted life on Resan. Tesan refused to answer, only saying that he would ‘grieve for his brother if such things came to pass, the same could not be said of you’ to his mother. Marsha ordered her son out, and threatened to kill him if he continued to interfere, in which Tesan then threatened to cause rebellion during ‘her precious little war’. Tesan stormed off back to Souk Mar to sulk, his mother watching him leave and planning to spite him.