by J J Moriarty
Arafet nodded.
“Why?” Tsy asked.
“I don’t know”, Arafet said.
“Continue”, Hyzou said.
“This force is currently in the south-west corner of Lamybla, ready to ride into the west country. As far as is understood, it numbers nearly three hundred thousand”, Arafet said.
“So he’s attacking through the West Country”, Gardem said.
Hyzou shook his head.
“No, he’s not. Arafet, continue and explain it to everyone”, Hyzou said.
“The second force, of somewhere between eighty and a hundred thousand men, is under the control of Kyrios Nerikare”, Arafet said.
“Where’s he coming through?” Hyzou asked.
“The Northern Road, Your Majesty”, Arafet said. “He wishes to take it town by town. That’s what some of his captains have been saying in any case.”
“And the final army takes the river”, Hyzou said.
“Yes, sir. It is numbered at just over a hundred thousand men. It’s led by the Pharaoh himself”, Arafet said.
“This is awful”, Hyzou said.
“Your Majesty, is it?” Vorska asked.
Hyzou nodded.
“He’ll carve us open”, Hyzou said.
“Perhaps not”, Tsy said.
Hyzou looked at him.
“What’s your idea?” Hyzou asked.
“Abandon the West Country”, Tsy said.
“Why?” Hyzou asked.
“Because then we’ll have enough men to ward off invasions along the Northern Road and along the Gahis”, Tsy said.
“How?” Hyzou said.
“We could hold them with a trench and defensive line along our northern border”, Tsy said.
“No”, Hyzou said.
“Why not?” Tsy said.
“Because Prince Menes can then just double back and flank us, break our defensive line from behind. A slow moving defensive frontier is the worst thing we can do, we need to be moveable”, Hyzou said.
“Do we have the numbers to commit to three fronts though?” Vorska asked.
Hyzou shook his head.
“Probably not”, Hyzou said.
“So what’s your decision?” Vorska asked.
“We just can’t give up territory that easily. We have to meet them at the three fronts”, Hyzou said.
“You just said we didn’t have the…” Vorska began.
“I know. But we don’t have another choice. And we can’t know for certain, we may be successful in our attempts to defend. Divide our forces into three and meet the Pharaoh in the field”, Hyzou said.
“I agree”, Safia said. “My father always said that the surest way to lose a war is not to fight.”
“Very well sir, how do you want the army divided?” Yan asked.
“I’ll take a third and lead the charge against Kyrios Nerikare along the Northern Road. Archaier Tsy will take a third, as mobile as possible, and meet Prince Menes in the West Country. Finally, Phatmose, you’ll take an army that’s as immovable as possible along the Gahis and attempt to stop the Pharaoh’s advance. Are we all understood?” Hyzou said.
“Yes, sir”, came the reply.
“Can you set this up?” Hyzou said to Yan, speaking softly.
Yan nodded.
“Definitely. I’ll prepare the supply lines”, Yan said.
“And our men will be ready within two days to leave and meet those we already have stationed at the border”, Tsy said.
Hyzou nodded.
“Very well. You all know your duties”, Hyzou said.
He stood, everyone else stood with him.
“Oh, and Arafet”, Hyzou said.
“Yes, Your Majesty”, Arafet said.
“Let Sparrow know the invasion has started, that he’s to launch his attacks now”, Hyzou said.
Arafet bowed.
“Yes sir”, Arafet said.
Everyone got up. Some were muttering among them.
“Hyzou”, Safia murmured.
Hyzou stepped beside her.
“Yes”, he whispered.
“Are you coming back to bed?” Safia asked.
Hyzou shook his head.
“No. I’ll go and talk to Kyria Iset”, Hyzou said.
Safia kissed him.
“If I’m asleep by the time you return, don’t wake me”, Safia said.
“I won’t”, Hyzou said. “Good night, if I don’t see you soon.”
Safia left him, as did the others. They all went to leave the Palace or to rooms they held in the Palace. Only Hyzou went towards the cellar. There was a dungeon in the Palace, but Yan had been instructed to keep Iset in comfort, so she was kept in the cellar, the floor above the dungeon.
Her room was guarded by Piquean soldiers who bowed and let Hyzou through. He knocked on the door, and she came to it, wearing some simple linen clothes to sleep in.
“Emperor”, she said, when she saw Hyzou at the door.
“May I come in?” Hyzou said.
Kyria Iset’s eyes widened.
“I suppose. This is your palace”, Kyria Iset said.
“No, Iset, not for that”, Hyzou said. “I’m married.”
A look of relief washed over Kyria Iset’s face before she remembered to hide it. Hyzou followed her inside.
“I’ve met a few different men of your level of power”, Kyria Iset said.
She pulled a chair out for him, her back to him.
“And I’ve learned to never believe one when they tell me they have no such intentions for me”, Kyria Iset said.
“That’s why your guards are waiting behind that door to your bedchamber?” Hyzou asked.
Kyria Iset looked at him, shocked.
“Don’t worry, Servants can sense other people”, Hyzou said.
“Oh, right”, Kyria Iset said.
“The Pharaoh took advantage of you?” Hyzou asked.
She sat down across from him.
“The Pharaoh? No, definitely not”, Kyria Iset said.
“I’d thought not”, Hyzou said. “I never heard anything when I was in Lamybla.”
“Before I was the Pharaoh’s Vizier, I served as a Kyria advising the Divine Master of Yobo”, Kyria Iset said.
The Divine Master of Yobo had ruled over Yobo before the Pharaoh had conquered it six or seven summers ago.
“You did? Why? What did you advise him on?” Hyzou asked.
“I was his treasurer and his spymaster”, Kyria Iset said.
“You didn’t prevent him losing his life. A poor spymaster”, Hyzou said.
“I killed him”, Kyria Iset said.
“Oh, I didn’t know”, Hyzou said.
“In return for killing the Divine Master and installing a puppet on my string, the Pharaoh named me his Vizier”, Kyria Iset said.
“And you betrayed your leader because he took advantage of you?” Hyzou asked.
“The Divine Master Yakareb tried to rape me one night. His first time ever trying it. My… What do you call it? A Qi?” Kyria Iset said.
Hyzou nodded.
“My Qi took over and I struck him and escaped. That meant I had to flee the city and I went to the only place I knew I could be safe. By the Pharaoh’s side”, Kyria Iset said.
“That’s quite a history”, Hyzou said.
“If you don’t let me go, you’ll be next”, Kyria Iset said.
“It would be an honour to be a victim of your political machinations”, Hyzou said. “But that’s not likely to happen any time soon.”
Kyria Iset glowered at him.
“I know, you’re wondering about why I actually have detained you here. Well, part of it is that you’re family and have a very powerful Qi”, Hyzou said.
“That can’t be all of it”, Kyria Iset said.
“My spies have told me that you married Prince Menes”, Hyzou said.
“How did you find that out?” Kyria Iset said.
“And you are the mother to a baby who will one day inhe
rit the title of Pharaoh”, Hyzou said.
“Are you planning to ransom me?” Kyria Iset said.
Hyzou shook his head.
“There’s no grand ambitions in any of my manoeuvres here. It’s simply the way I’ve learned to wage war”, Hyzou said.
Kyria Iset frowned.
“I don’t understand”, she said.
Hyzou began.
“When the Colossus attacks you, you avoid him. When neither you or the Colossus are attacking each other, you must harass the beast. Make it aware, not only that you are not afraid of it, but that you are going to annoy it too. Kick sand at it, shout at it, spit at it. Anything. Just always harass an enemy when you are not fighting. And finally, in those moments, and they will be brief, when the Colossus is on the defensive, you attack”, Hyzou said.
“What’s that?” Kyria Iset asked.
“It’s what my master said, when she explained to me how I could defeat the Colossus. I still remember it today”, Hyzou said.
“And now, the Lamyblan army is the Colossus you’re fighting?” Kyria Iset asked.
Hyzou nodded.
“And kidnapping me is a simple way to harass the enemy”, Kyria Iset said.
Hyzou smiled.
“Exactly”, Hyzou said.
“Fuck”, Kyria Iset said.
“What?” Hyzou said.
“I thought you were an idiot”, Kyria Iset said.
“Sorry to disappoint”, Hyzou said.
“Is it working? Your harassment?” Kyria Iset asked.
“We’ll see in the battle”, Hyzou said.
“The battle?” Kyria Iset said.
“The Pharaoh is invading”, Hyzou said.
Kyria Iset smiled.
“Good luck then”, she said.
“I go to war. It might be a while before I get to see you”, Hyzou said.
“If ever”, Kyria Iset said.
CHAPTER FOUR
Battle of Pernefru
By the end of autumn, the invasion of Piquea had begun. In the eastern theatre, an army under the control of Pharaoh Ganymedes began to follow the River Gahis through the flood plane of eastern Piquea. Emperor Hyzou nominated Phatmose to take control of the force that responded, and at the small fishing village of Pernefru the Piquean force established a defensive settlement.
The Pharaoh attacked at speed and with numbers, however the Piqueans were in a strong defensive position. The Piquean forces were debuting their phalanxes, the well-designed formations created by Hyzou of Nuyin. This made it very difficult for soldiers rushing at pace to break the Piquean lines. In addition, the Lamyblan chariots were useless on a cramped, muddy, river bank.
The Lamyblans placed their heavy infantry in front of the lighter ones and arranged in a formation that planned to use their numbers to surround the Piqueans and eventually drive them into the water of the Gahis. The Piqueans used their infantry to form phalanxes that would withstand any front-on attacks, while on their flank was a single division of Servants on horses. The Servants used their pace and hand-to-hand strength to screen any flanking manoeuvres and forced the Lamyblan army to fight the Piqueans head-on.
Phatmose ordered the phalanxes on the right flank of the army to launch an offence. In response, the Pharaoh ordered a flood of bodies to the river bank to counter. The Servants abandoned their posts in flanking the army and led a wedge style offence through the heart of Lamyblan force. Because most of the Lamyblan forces were now positioned by the river bank, the cavalry charge carved the Lamyblan army apart and killed many infantrymen in the charge alone.
His army divided, and after suffering serious numerical losses, Pharaoh Ganymedes ordered his men to retreat. Phatmose proved successful in holding Pernefru.
Battle of Spet
Spet was the name given to a series of villages along the Northern Road, leading from Piquea to Lamybla. Spet sat right on the border between the two countries.
Kyrios Nerikare brought nearly a hundred thousand troops into Spet near the end of Autumn. He was met by a defending army led by Emperor Hyzou. Kyrios Nerikare used speed to attempt to break Emperor Hyzou’s force into pieces. Emperor Hyzou allowed his men to quickly retreat and Kyrios Nerikare pressed his men onwards. However, Emperor Hyzou had placed phalanxes in reserve, and these acted as a shield to the Kyrios’ probe. It was a simple trap, as the Emperor’s army, which had been fleeing just seconds before, turned and launched a counter-attack.
The feigned retreat was almost successful. Kyrios Nerikare’s men broke and began to flee. The Kyrios, however, managed to rally enough men to him and continue the attack. In the end he outnumbered the Emperor’s troops and managed to overwhelm them and force them to retreat.
Kyrios Nerikare was successful and managed to take control of Spet. However, Emperor Hyzou’s feint had seen Kyrios Nerikare suffer losses that would become untenable if they continued in this manner for the rest of the war.
Battle of Kamut
Far in the west, in lands that couldn’t effectively be claimed by either Piquea or Lamybla before the war, the largest battle of the early war took place. A force of nearly forty thousand Piqueans moved quickly through the West Country to meet the Lamyblan army under the control of Prince Menes.
In a decisive victory for the Lamyblans, Prince Menes used the superior chariots under his control in tandem with the wide-open spaces of the West Country to slowly pick off and break apart Piquea’s phalanxes. By the time Tsy ordered the Piquean forces retreat, it was too late, and only five thousand Piqueans survived.
The battle was a crippling defeat for Emperor Hyzou. There now was no force defending the West Country, and he had lost half the soldiers under his control in the space of forty-eight hours.
CHAPTER FIVE
The empty darkness stretched on forever in every direction. There was only Hyzou’s Qi. Slowly, one after another, the council members formed around Hyzou. Their ekstasis was effective. Gardem and Phatmose sent Servants of Qi as delegates.
To begin the meeting, Hyzou sighed.
“We were so close”, Hyzou said.
He just murmured it, but still, in this strange place, it was enough for everyone to hear it. They didn’t respond.
“Phatmose delivered us a victory I’d thought impossible. He’s turned the Pharaoh back, and reduced his numbers by so much. I didn’t manage to beat Kyrios Nerikare, but it was workable. It was enough of a defence”, Hyzou said.
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty”, Tsy said. “I’ve failed you.”
Hyzou shook his head.
“No one could’ve won that battle”, Hyzou said.
“I lost so many men, it’s just”, Tsy began.
Hyzou raised a hand to silence him.
“I told you it wasn’t your fault. It was mine, I sent you into a conflict you couldn’t win. The Pharaoh has strategized this perfectly, wouldn’t you agree”, Hyzou said.
“What do you mean?” Safia asked.
“It doesn’t matter how many odds defying and awe-inspiring victories we have, he’ll still win the war. He’ll win because he’ll always have more men no matter what we do”, Hyzou said.
“Hyzou. You can’t say that, you’re in charge of the army”, Safia said.
“Would you like to surrender, sir?” Vorska asked. “Perhaps Kyria Iset’s deal is still available.”
Hyzou sighed. He eyed the Servants Phatmose and Gardem had sent in their stead. Hyzou thought they might have tried to defend the Piqueans, but instead they looked eager for Hyzou to agree with Vorska.
They’re Servants, and they don’t want to die on behalf of Piquea. Hyzou thought.
“There has to be something we can do to win”, Hyzou said.
“Your Majesty, if you want to continue this war, you’ll have to abandon the West Country in total. Our five thousand cannot hold it. It’s going to be a massacre”, Tsy said.
Hyzou sighed.
“If we give up the West Country, could we set up a defence?” Hyzou asked.
Tsy nodded.
“A defensive line could be built”, Tsy said.
Yan tutted.
“But what about the West Country, how could we feed our men without it? The Pharaoh would cut off all our trade routes, we couldn’t feed ourselves for more than a year”, Yan said.
“But it’s either take Kyria Iset’s deal or abandon the West Country, we don’t have the numbers to defend there”, Tsy said.
“Have our actions been of any benefit?” Sparrow said.
Everyone looked at him. Hyzou laughed.
“Sorry, you’re probably surprised by how depressed we are. Everybody, in case you don’t know, the Lamyblan army only have six months of food left because of Sparrow. He and his fellow Servants burned most of their grain stores to dust in the north. Now, if they want to feed their army before summer they’ll have to take some grain from the populace. Or they can keep feeding the army and starve some of the population. Either way, we’re not the only ones worried about trade lines”, Hyzou said.
“But, from the sound of it, our work might make little difference”, Sparrow said.
“You’ve been cutting off food supplies and poisoning their water, I’d say you’re helping in a big way”, Hyzou said.
“Not if you surrender, then I’ll have just killed a lot of innocent people for nothing”, Sparrow said.
Hyzou sighed.
“We won’t take Kyria Iset’s deal”, Hyzou said.
“What then? Abandon the West Country?” Tsy asked.
Hyzou shrugged.
“It’s our only choice. Imagine taking Kyria Iset’s deal, how would we even manage that, just take every Servant out of the army and ride away”, Hyzou said.
Then Hyzou thought of something.
“Ride those horses hard, the West Country is perfect for them. You should make it back here soon”, Safia said.
“I will, Your Royal Highness”, Tsy said.
“Wait”, Hyzou said.
Everyone looked at him. Hyzou kept thinking.
“There’s another way. I think”, Hyzou said.
“What is it, Hyzou?” Sparrow asked.
Hyzou kept trying to think it through.
“Tsy, in your report of the invasion of the West Country, you said that Prince Menes had the Lamyblan army fight by spreading out wide and fighting with quick chariot units. That small pockets of infantry would then mop up your men”, Hyzou said.