Jackal Among Snakes

Argrave stood on the deck of the Sea Dragon, trying to dismiss the memories he’d made with Sophia here as a task of equal import demanded his attention. He could see it now, plain as day: the siege engine that had rained hellfire down on Berendar for the better part of a month, utterly defying their expectations of an offensive from the Coalition. And from all the way down here, the situation seemed quite formidable.

The sky tower looked like a great cumulonimbus. It was a dense billowing pillar of clouds positioned high in the sky, with nothing beneath it but an unfathomable stretch of air. The top of it roared with thunder and glowed with lightning, and electricity danced all along its surface. Rings of power swirled around it—divinity manifest as pure energy. These rings of power would begin moving slowly, then accelerate until they moved fast enough they were imperceptible. Then, the top of the sky tower would erupt in power, sending blasts toward Vasquer and making the spinning rings halt. Half a minute this took, blast after blast after blast. Almazora’s feat in defending against this thing was all the more impressive now that Argrave saw its source.

Argrave looked at Raccomen, god of space, standing on the deck with him. The god’s bejeweled hand rested on his chin as he gazed up at this siege weapon. Argrave asked, “You’re the god of space; how big is it?”

Raccomen glanced at Argrave, disturbed from his thoughts, then looked back. “It’s seven miles high precisely.”

“Seven miles off the ground, or seven miles high?” Argrave repeated in disbelief.

“The tower is seven miles. Its peak is about forty-five thousand feet from the ground,” Raccomen clarified.

As Argrave reeled, another deity chimed in. “As fortified positions go, you can’t ask for much better than the sky,” Rook noted, leaning against the deck’s railing. “There’s a reason the heavens are known as the realm of the gods. Largely, only our kind can do battle up there. Your people aren’t well-suited for it. But even among gods, few have mastered the sky as Kirel Qircassia.”

Anneliese leaned against Rowe’s staff as she watched. “It’s a blessing to us, I should think. How can the people of the Great Chu truly believe the gods aren’t interfering if this giant structure persists above them? Ji Meng’s intercession may come easy.”

“I can think of half a dozen different ways the puppeteered imperial court might spin the tales,” Rook mused. “Just make any number of reasons up. They could say that the tower belongs to us, for instance. It’s our nefarious weapon. Simple, effective… and no way of disproving it.”

“Now that we can see our goal, we should discuss our plan,” Argrave reminded them before they veered too far away from the point.

“I can tell you the most important information.” Lira walked to the very front of the deck, then pointed her finger upward. “Erlebnis and Qircassia both reside in the top of the tower. Beneath them, hundreds of thousands of divine servants lie in wait. The entrance to Qircassia’s realm lies at the top of the tower. Fortunately it’s fully melded to this mortal world, meaning that he can be killed there permanently. Nevertheless…”

“He’s as fortified as he could possibly be,” Rook summarized. “The worst thing we could possibly do is allow our foes time to run back into the heart of their territory. I hope Sataistador understands this.”

“Of course he does,” chided Lira. “That bastard knows war better than anyone, that much I’ll concede.”

“We’ll face the harshest opposition on the shores of the Great Chu. The gods of the Qircassian Coalition will come out in force. Should we falter at all, Qircassia or Erlebnis might deign to descend to deliver a decisive blow,” Raccomen summarized.

“…but they’ll never come unless things are truly desperate for us,” Rook said, walking away from the railing.

this realm. But my people aren't gods, and I can’t ask them to fight gods. Not here, not now.” He looked

gods considered this, yet

the god of space, that’s not’s merely doable—it would be ideal,” the aged god said. “It would spare your people casualties, and allow a monster like Law to fight freely

separating the fields of battle. If Law’s our vanguard… I will say one thing. He’s every bit as terrifying as those two

Raccomen looked between Lira and Rook, before his gaze settled on Argrave. His eyes seemed infinite, but Argrave didn’t

match any day. And once we stabilize things in the Great Chu, muster whatever forces we can, the sky tower awaits,” Argrave filled out the

the imperial court remain. So long as it stands, their presence in the Great Chu cannot be fully removed. But… even for

to get the lay of the land once our feet are on it. Our first objective should be to get a foothold, plan our further advancement.”

Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found

in history before, and I believe will leave it again. I theorize this will ultimately be

spoken,” Raccomen agreed, and most other

in the battle to come, they’re proving ample help before. We’ll come upon the coastal fortifications of the

I have plans to deal with the defense posed by the Great Chu,” Anneliese nodded. “All we need is reprieve from the gods—a battlefield between mortals alone, free of interruptions. If you can display

then looked back at the assembled deities. “Barring the final details, we agree with the generalities. Morning tomorrow, when information is more available, we

to assault the millennia-old Qircassian Coalition in a bid to

#####

I think you’ll end up being very important,” Argrave told his

tribal with gold eyes and tattoos

been taken with them for this long voyage. Durran’s wyverns, and all their riders, were one of them. Argrave might’ve had Lira make a bigger door so the beasts could pass at will, but Argrave wanted to limit how much could pass through at the same time in case the worst

proven his worth countless times, first in the Burnt Desert against the Vessels, and then against the Imperial Navy of the Great Chu. His battalion was pivotal for their future success, especially

You’re more of a secret important person,

enough, anyway,”

expediently to isolate the commanders of our opposition. I suspect once the battle between the divines begins, it won’t take long for many troops to rout in fear. It’ll take far longer to ensure a safe route for you to advance, so they’ll have a head start on you. The Great Chu has magic weapons stationed just about everywhere throughout their nation, so it’ll be a messy flight. It’s very important you leave a good impression upon these commanders. You

with complicated. Impossible is another matter. These commanders are supposed to be powerful combatants, right? And you want me to subdue them, in enemy territory, without just

to our side. Once there, you’re to tell them about me—Grand Commandant Sun.” Argrave slid

a drawing on the front. “I’m

Argrave smiled at his friend’s quick wit. “Anneliese interrogated him about each and every