CHAPTER ASHBORN 438: COUNCILS AND STRATAGEMS

“Ashani? If you wouldn’t mind?” Vir asked, having just returned to his throne.

“It would be my pleasure,” she said. “Ladies? If you’ll follow me?”

Ashani led Ira and Maiya out, while Maiya brought the princess up to speed on her daring plan. With Ashani and Vir’s wolves present, he wasn’t overly worried about Maiya’s safety. Especially not since she’d regained her armor and orbs. She’d even brought back a few Communications Orbs so they’d be in touch during her time there.

Even still, Vir couldn’t help but worry. They’d only just reunited, and here she was, thrusting herself back into the deadly world of politics.

“Akh Nara?” Janani asked, bringing Vir out of his thoughts.

“Apologies. My mind was elsewhere. Now, it’s clear that we have several crises on our hands. Cirayus? Greesha? Reports, please.”

Cirayus was about to speak when Greesha beat him to it.

“All hell’s about to break loose!” she cried. “Your little stunt might have pacified the people for now, but deity or not, all fall before the weight of famine. The Chitran might march on our walls, but without food, there’ll be no one to fight them.”

Vir’s expression hardened. “You’re right. Which is why Baira is providing emergency supplies for the time being, but we need a more sustainable solution.”

Greesha snorted. “Thaman’s our lifeline, yes. But the needs of an entire city are great, to say nothing of the broader clan. Can Baira alone feed us all? I think not. It is a tenuous lifeline any enemy with half a brain will seek to disrupt.”

“Ashani’s Gates connect Camar Gadin directly to Samar Patag and our refugee camp in Baira. A camp that is heavily guarded. Unless Annas has some way of destabilizing Gates, I cannot see how this would be possible.”

“And if he does?” Greesha asked.

How paranoid is this woman?

Vir wondered.

As if reading his thoughts, she replied, “When you live as long as I do, you learn to expect the impossible, Akh Nara.”

Her response caught Vir by surprise, delaying his response. He glanced at Cirayus, who wore a wry smile. He distinctly avoided making eye contact with Greesha.

Do those two have a history? Vir wondered. Something to look into later.

“Very well,” Vir said. “I’ll have Ashani establish two additional Gates, all leading to different locations here in Samar Patag. One of which will be deep inside the castle. If Annas manages to disrupt even that, I’d say we have bigger problems on our hands.”

Greesha nodded, apparently satisfied. “You will owe him much after this is all said and done. But it’s not enough.”

“Which is why I’ve ordered runners sent to both the Panav and the Iksana. Rajni Kira owes us for saving her healers. I’ve little doubt she’ll be willing to sell us the supplies we need for a discount. Perhaps even defer payments until later. And the Iksana, well, I did as I promised. If he does not wish to be labeled a liar, Sagun’Ra will have no choice but to recognize my legitimacy. Between the three, we ought to have enough to tide us over.”

Vir had not forgotten the crimes Ra had permitted Zarak’Nor to commit. The demon might be dead, but the fact remained that Vir’s life was put in jeopardy in his very own Trial.

Vir was going to milk the Iksana for all they were worth. And Clarity was just the beginning.

“And longer term?” Greesha asked. “Relying on external food sources is nothing but a stopgap. We must secure our villages. Get the lands productive again. And buy the rest from the other clans.”

“Cultivation is not a problem we can solve overnight,” Vir said with a sigh. Though not for the reasons one might think.

From the moment he saw the barren lands of the Demon Realm, Vir had considered how to solve the problem. He’d even asked Saunak to devote time and effort to exploring options. Yet miracles did not occur overnight, and while the mad Thaumaturge had some promising prototypes, he’d yet to devise anything viable for mass adoption.

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Far more troublesome, however, was honoring Saunak’s request that he be honored as the creator of this miracle machine. With as new and tenuous as his rule was, Vir didn’t know if he could suffer that blow to his popularity. Regardless, he’d pressured Saunak to focus on this over all else. With luck, they’d have a solution sooner rather than later. s

In the end, Vir decided to let Greesha down softly. “While I cannot say more at this time, I assure you, the problem is being worked on.”

His words earned him some raised eyebrows from the others in the room, but Vir shrugged it off.

“Now that the food problem is under control, at least for the moment, what of the military situation? Cirayus? How fare our preparations?”

Cirayus stepped up, clearly pleased to take the stage. Or, Vir guessed, to take the stage away from Greesha.

“Annas has amassed a force of around fifteen thousand. A number that continues to grow by the day as more Ash Boundary garrisons answer his call to arms.”

“What of their duties?” Vir asked, frowning. “Without them defending the boundary…”

Cirayus grimaced. “That is the larger issue, I’m afraid. Ash Beasts now flood western Garga, ravaging villages. Most disperse—either north to Panav or south to Iksana—before making it here, yet the threat to the land remains. Garga is more than just Samar Patag, after all.”

“I expected them to pull some soldiers away, but all of them?” Vir said, deep in concern. “Don’t they realize their own people will suffer from this?”

“I suspect they believe it’s better than the alternative—to yield to Gargan rule,” Cirayus said distastefully.

Unbelievable, Vir thought, running his fingers through his hair. He’d banked on the bulk of the Chitran forces being tied up at the Boundary, fully assuming they’d send some to protect Samar Patag.

It seemed he’d underestimated Annas’ stupidity. And his ruthlessness. It seemed the kothi was plenty willing to let his own people die to see Vir taken down.

“Furthermore,” Cirayus said. “This has freed Chitran forces to attack and corral Gargan villagers all across the countryside. Our forces engage them as best they can, but with there being so many villages, with many of them nomadic, we cannot save them all.”

“Then it appears our path is clear,” Vir said, rubbing his temples. Prana tempered or not, he was going to have a headache by the time the day was over. “Leaving only the barest minimum contingent to defend the city, I want all other airships in the sky. You’ll carry the orbs Maiya brought with her. Cirayus will teach you how to use them. The moment you find a settlement, return at once and bring Ashani back with you. She’ll create a Gate to Samar Patag. We’ll fit as many as we can in the Bairan refugee camp the civilians used during the battle. They’ll be safe there, guarded by Bairans and accessible only through Ashani’s Gate. The remainder, we’ll have to house within Samar Patag’s walls.”

Cirayus nodded in approval. “We cannot defend everywhere. Not with our numbers and limited means. By bringing as many as we can to a secure location, we can mount an effective defense, even if the shift will be difficult for our nomadic people.”

“Assuming we can even find enough space for them!” Greesha rasped. “Not to mention the food! Do you have any idea what an undertaking this is? We’ve just barely restored order and are facing a famine. And now, you wish to feed even more mouths? Or do you expect Baira to provide? Raja Thaman’s means are vast, though I will warn you, not unlimited.”

“I’m well aware,” Vir replied, feeling his nervousness rise. “Baira will do everything they can. To supplement, any spare Asuras will forage in the Ash. As many of you know, it is a bountiful land, full of all the food we could ever need.”

“With most of the soldiers hunting the Chits, I’m afraid we’ll have precious little to spare for this task,” Balagra said. “Not like we can substitute them, either. Unacclimatized souls will simply die there.”

“I know,” Vir replied, less confident this time. “If only the Panav could help… Has anyone seen Tara? Ekat’Ma mentioned she commandeered an airship.”

Balagra hung his head. “A failure on my part, Akh Nara. We know not where she went or why she set out so suddenly. As much as I loathe to even say it, I’m afraid we must brace for the worst.”

“Defection?” Vir scoffed. “I think it’s far too early to jump to that conclusion, don’t you think?”

Balagra averted his eyes, saying nothing.

What the heck is she thinking? His only wish was that she told him what she was up to. An airship and a dozen-odd Asura were certainly a loss, but it was a loss Vir could have accepted should the mission prove urgent enough. She knew all of this. Which must have meant that she either thought her mission too risky. Or too urgent.

“Nothing we can do about her now. Which is why we must wrap this up before food becomes a problem. That is our deadline. Eliminate the Chitran raiders and allow our people to return home.”

Vir was once again reminded of what an enormous boon the Bairans had been during this Gargan time of need. Without Thaman’s support, Vir might’ve won the rebellion, but what came after would have caused more deaths than the Chitran ever had.

By the same token, had the Panav been there to help, perhaps this would have gone even better.

“All well and good, yet what of the Chitran army that marches to Samar Patag?” Balagra asked. “Two of them, at that. The combined Aindri-Chitran forces amass to the east, along the Panav border, while the Garrison forces advance from the west. Before long, Samar Patag will be beset by both.”

For the first time in this rather serious meeting, Vir smiled. There was not a hint of happiness there, however. “Leave that to Cirayus and me. We’ve got something very special planned.”

“The two of you?” Balagra asked. “Against two separate forces, each several-fold larger than the one at Samar Patag?”

Vir’s smile grew. “Do you doubt our strength?”

“No, my Akh Nara. It’s just, well…”

“Annas’ forces have neither the benefit of walls nor the strategic potential of Demonic Overlord. Furthermore,” Vir said, shifting his gaze to the wall and through it, to the contraption that stood just outside. “Have you forgotten about our new acquisition? What army can resist an Automaton of the Gods?”

While his words were no lie, Vir only hoped his fledgling nation could weather the storm his stratagem was about to wreak upon the realm.