Red Queen

by Jolie Jaquinta

  Chapter 33

  Generals

  The generals came briskly to attention as Jesca entered the room. She acknowledged their salute and inspected them up and down. Most wore a slightly worried expression, others were neutral. Hastily assembled, they were dressed in a variety of uniforms across the military spectrum. From fatigues on those who were woken up to the general of the 22rd army, who was never seen in anything less than full parade dress; an Orcish proclivity. After her cursory inspection she mounted a small dais. The Mages respected equals. The military respected authority.

  “We have a target” she announced. They responded favorably, not surprisingly. Everyone was chafing at the shadow warfare they had been conducting. “Our enemy command contracted a specialist demon as their military leader. This demon has the expertise of all the damned generals of history to call upon. That is the source of our tactical difficulty.” There was unsettled grumbling. “Obviously this leader is too good to present itself as a target. Obviously we cannot continue to battle it in the manner in which it has the clear advantage.”

  She paced up and down. “We have all studied the classic masters. I call your memory now to when Flavius fought Kawabe. He had the poorer army, poorer equipment, and, frankly, poorer tactical skills. Instead of continuing to defend his border badly he sortied across where it was thinly guarded due to the lack of tactical targets. He burned one of Kawabe's Emperor's favorite pleasure palaces to the ground and retreated. In short order the Emperor ordered his Shogun to cease the war.”

  She looked at them to see who had worked out where this was going. “Likewise we will take the fight to this demon general's master. We will inflict as much damage as we can to make his only viable course to recall this demonic general. The partisans have already surrendered and are in our custody.” She stopped and stared them down.

  “My troops are ready to follow you to the pits of hell for Romitu!” shouted the Orcish general, without hesitation, his face grinning. There was a pause and several of the others made echoing sounds of support, although more qualified.

  “Thank you, General Porterhouse”, said Jesca. “But I sense not everyone is as convinced. I welcome advice. Please speak freely.”

  There was an awkward pause. “Majestus”, said General Alessa, slowly. “Can we even do this? Stories tell of fire, Sulphur...”

  Jesca nodded to her. “I've just come from the Mages of the Academy. They are preparing the Irontree gate for transfer to the satrap's home lands. They assure me that our equipment is sufficient against the perils of the terrain, and most importantly, that the soul jars in our swords will work for our troops should any be slain.”

  “You said you want us to inflict damage, for political leverage”, said General Ainia. “But these are the demon realms. What do they have to damage?”

  “Good point”, said Jesca, encouragingly. “Just as our swords will safeguard our souls, they will also continue to work to contain the souls of those we slay. I do not know the nature of demonic fortifications or infrastructure. I suggest we stay away from it. Our goal is simple: to rescue as many souls as possible.” She paced up and down. “This is the perfect battlefield. Free from any morals. Any soul there is there against its will. No matter if its guise is man, woman, child or beast -- killing it will free it from tyranny. There are no complications. Everything is our target.”

  “Which armies are we sending in?” asked a general from the back.

  “All of them”, said Jesca. There were murmurs of surprise. “There is no point holding a reserve. If we do not act fast and decisively, we give our enemy time to make this a strategic play rather than a political one. We're outmatched on that.”

  “We've... we've never done this before”, said Alessa. “What if there's... a mistake. With all the armies there, they could get stranded. It would be the end of everything.”

  “It's a risk we'll have to take”, said Jesca. “If we keep going as we are, it will be the end of everything eventually anyway. We're neither losing nor winning.”

  “How many troops do they have?” asked Porterhouse, eagerly. “Will it be an even fight for once?”

  “We have no tactical information at all”, said Jesca. “I suggest we go in and form a defensive perimeter around the gate point. As General Alessa brought up, we absolutely cannot afford to get cut off from the gate. In the worst case, if there are overwhelming odds, we hold that formation as long as we can. If we present no flanks, then it does not matter if they outnumber us two to one, or a hundred to one.” Porterhouse's grin grew wider.

  “What about reinforcements? Allies?” asked Ainia.

  “We have no political information either”, admitted Jesca. “If the legendary accounts of demons are true, however, I do not think it will be a problem. I'm sure they have alliances, but not of a nature to be called upon quickly in need. I would think a demon would have to think as carefully as any country in this world about inviting in a 3rd party's army when its own army is hard pressed. A sortie to aid could quickly become a land grab.”

  “How much is 'enough damage'?” asked Alessa.

  “Another good question. And another I do not have an exact answer for. I think we fight as long and as hard as we are able to and have targets.” Jesca resumed her pacing. “I think the more fundamental question is 'when do we leave'. Let’s discuss exit criteria. Firstly, obviously, if command orders a withdrawal. I would add to that the condition if all the generals unanimously consider a withdrawal expedient.” She shrugged. “To temper me from being caught up in things. More?”

  “If any army becomes separated”, said Alessa.

  “Good one”, said Jesca. “I would add to that if we discover that our swords do not work and we are taking casualties. I'll not lose any of our souls to the demons.”

  “If we lose access to the strategic mana reserve”, said Ainia. Jesca nodded.

  “If we get full”, said Porterhouse. Jesca stopped and looked at him. “The swords will only hold a hundred or so souls each”, he explained.

  Jesca laughed. “Yes, should we fare that well, it will be time to come home and celebrate.” She put her hands on her hips and looked from one set of eyes to another. “We have everything to win. If we achieve our objective, we end the ground war. We free up our resources to prepare against the gods. If we conduct ourselves well, we will learn a lot. This is training for action against the gods. We will send them a signal that we can do more than banish their forms from this dimension. That we can project our force into their own realm to pursue the liberation of all souls. Do not think that this is a desperate move brought about by frustration. This is the next step on the course we have already laid out. We've been distracted long enough. It's time to start moving forward again.”

  She looked to each again, and saw heads nodding more genuinely. “Good”, she pronounced. “Go to your armies. Bring them to Irontree. Let them know this is not a drill. Let's see if we can beat some of our training times.” There was a cheer and stomping of boots.