Thirty Seasons Later: Book One: The War Torn Tundra
DISCLAIMER: see Chapter One.
AN: Hello everybeast! Sorry Chapter Two took so long, RL was giving me problems and so was writer's block. So here it is, enjoy.
Chapter Two: Council of War
"He who fails to plan, plans to fail."
"Twelve dead and eight wounded, sir." The Freelancer medic reported.
The dark green-eyed cat's face contorted into an angry grimace, exposing his long thorn-sharp fangs as the commander let out a frustrated snarl. "This makes what Corporal, thirty-three dead since the start of this accursed campaign?" He questioned the female otter in a strained tone.
"Y-Yes, Captain." The she-otter replied nervously. "I swear sir; we're doing all we can, sir."
The ebony-furred leopard looked up sharply. "I'm not mad at you and you didn't do anything wrong. I know you and your medics are doing your best. It isn't their or your fault that in this damned contract alone I've lost almost a third of my force." Jethro said more calmly. "I need to know who's wounded, how badly, and an estimated time of recovery. I also need a list of the fallen, and their bodies ready for burial by sundown, dawn at the latest." He grabbed her shoulder as she turned to return to the casualties. "And Corporal Swiftstream, if you need any more beastpower, all you have to do is ask and I'll give you the entire remaining force if necessary, ok."
"Understood Captain."
Jethro nodded and released the otter's shoulder. "Good." "She's been on her paws practically the entire campaign, what with the wounded and the dead, the marching and everything else she has to do for this job. If she doesn't get rest soon she'll collapse." His mind was soon jarred from his issues concerning his exhausted medic; however, by Aroth slapping him on the back as he delivered the casualty list and a message that the commanders of the Alliance of the Greatest Pack wanted him for a council of war. He thanked the fox as he promptly left the infirmary tent and briskly strode through the busy camp (if one can classify a military encampment housing over five thousand fighting beasts a camp), reading the list as he went.
Killed in action-12
Sergeant Avek Stormsand-mongoose; crushed rib cage resulting in multiple punctured vital organs
Eravic Sikya-desert fox; functional decapitation
Tieren Esun-mongoose; mace to the skull
Sciya Mareni-mongoose; dagger through eye to brain
Lieutenant Omoc Sigue-mongoose; arrow to the left lung
Furov Arna-ratel; torn neck resulting in death by bloodloss
Corporal Nikae Sumnate-mongoose; disemboweled
Ifin Rayades-desert fox; axe to the heart
Vercca Goret-mongoose; sword stab to the heart
Farren Micia-desert fox; decapitation
Feiral Kilter-mongoose; crushed trachea leading to suffocation
Trivian Gairma-desert fox; broken neck
Wounded-8
Merak Fikai- ratel; broken arm; ETR twelve weeks minimum
Kiari Teken-ratel; multiple large gashes; ETR two weeks minimum
Vuelven Stonejaw- ratel; multiple large gashes; ETR two weeks minimum
Viaje Augila- mongoose; ETR twelve weeks minimum
Traque Quieren- desert fox; slashed face and stabbed side; ETR three weeks minimum
Marron Kirn- ratel; multiple large gashes; ETR two weeks minimum
Isan Fennec- desert fox; multiple large gashes and cut tendons on the back of the left leg; ETR middle of next season minimum
Kesug Lespa- mongoose; arrow to the leg; ETR two weeks maximum
"What's that?" a voice said beside him.
Jethro flinched, his claws unsheathing instinctively before he relaxed. "Casualty report, and Terraff please stop doing that."
"No, it's far too funny to see an assassin jump when somebeast scares him for me to stop." The wolf looked at the list. "Only eight wounded? I know your guys are good, but seriously?" She questioned with a quizzical look.
"Those are only the ones SERIOUSLY wounded, besides most of them ARE ratels. Like their cousins the badgers, most of them get a little stir-crazy on the battlefield."
Terraff nodded in understanding. "So what's your opinion about our current predicament?"
Jethro gave her a weird look. "What do you mean?"
"Well, there three opinions about what we need to do to get inside the damn fortress. The first is to try a night infiltration to assassinate the leaders and get the doors open. Plan two is starve them out, and the third is a traditional assault as well as a combination of the first two plans."
"Well I'm certainly not for the traditional assault, it'll get us all killed!"
"Exactly my views. Personally I'm for the 'sit and wait' option, sure we'll be here longer, but less of us will get killed that way."
"I agree, I've lost about one third of my force in this, no offense, accursed contract, and I have no wish to see more good friends of mine get buried. And I don't particularly care how much they want to pay me."
"None taken, I might wholeheartedly support this war, but as you well know I don't agree with some of the methods used. Thankfully, King Meskochad shoots down most of the more reckless officers and their equally ridiculous ideas."
"In the end though all we can do is follow orders, and try our best to get as many of our brothers and sisters home alive. Speaking of War Councils, I'm surprised King Meskochad allowed me in there. Most of my employers would say that mercenaries like me shouldn't have a say in things and then proceed to throw me and the rest of my beasts into suicide missions."
Captain Terraff stopped and grabbed Jethro by the upper arm, turning the leopard to face her. "Of course he did, King Meskochad is an honest, and straightforward wolf who was elected by us pack leaders because of these traits. If he had disrespected you like that, he would have broken the commitment between a commander and his subordinates. Just because you are not a permanent member of the Greatest Pack, doesn't mean you don't have the rights of one while under our employ."
"Your society's laws grant me that right? I thought he was just being considerate."
The slim white wolf let go of the leopard's arm and shrugged. "He was, but his personal values weren't the only reason for his behavior."
"Oh." The leopard and the wolf continued walking to the command tent. "Is that what this entire meeting is about, the battle plans?"
"Basically."
"Nice of ye to bring me up to speed."
"Anytime."
The two captains entered the massive tent used as a make-shift command center and looked around. "You see any of them?" Terraff asked Jethro, who was craning his head to peer over the crowd of officers in the tent.
"Unfortunately not, I don't think Rakio or Sekn, have arrived yet." The dark-furred cat replied with a frown.
"Then apparently your eyes aren't nearly as good as they're supposed to be." Said a voice just behind him.
Jethro flinched and turned on the tan and white-speckled wolf who had made the remark. "Sekn Wintersand, would you quit scaring the Hell out of me! It's not funny!"
Sekn chuckled as he led Terraff and Jethro to a corner of the massive tent. "Oh it is very funny, Captain I'm-so-damn-stealthy-it's-unreal."
"It's true." Jethro retorted crossly.
"Then why do I keep managing to sneak up on you?"
"One, every time you scare the hell out of me, I'm TRYING to be found, and two, you're an assassin too."
"Anything that helps you sleep, Mortspear."
Jethro rolled his eyes as he finished greeting the other seven captains in their corner and opened his jaws for a scathing retort when a powerful black wolf dressed in plate steel armor and dark blue clothes with an enormous double-edged battle-axe strapped to his back rang a small tin bell loudly to get everybeast's attention. "I'll deal with you later, Sekn." Jethro murmured before turning his attention to the lupine king.
King Meskochad cast an annoyed look at the bell before speaking. "I really do hate using that bell, "the wolf grinned,"but maybe we can replace it with a gavel made from the bones of a wolverine when we're done here, eh?" A couple of the officers chuckled at the joke. Meskochad leaned against the desk and began to call roll. "Scovi Yerlica," A tall weasel armed with a short sword and a hatchet raised his paw. "Rakio Stormfur, " A female wolf with dark grey fur standing next to Jethro raised her paw in answer. "Sekn Wintersand," the tan wolf raised his paw.
Meskochad continued to call roll until all of the officers were accounted for, and put the roll call scroll to the side. "For the past eight months we have fought our most hated enemy, who have killed our packmates by the score in their hundreds of raids on our borders. Now we are finally at the last step of our campaign that will finally rid us of our enemy, avenge our dead packmates, and liberate the hundreds of creatures slaving away at the whips of the wolverines. And yet, the toughest nut to be cracked is still before us." Meskochad crossed his arms. "Now all of us, whether we belong to the Greatest Pack, Long Patrol, Wildcat Clansbeast, or even Freelancer mercenary, must figure out a way over, around, or through those walls so we can be done with this menace once and for all."
"And we can stop working with vermin, wot." A hare at the edge of the group muttered, "Not to mention we can stop supporting a tyrant."
A tension seemed to spring out of nowhere to permeate the room as various officers strove to control themselves from striking the offending beast down, including Terraff. Jethro put his paw on his friend's shoulder. "Don't do anything rash, King Meskochad has dealt with this before and he'll do it again now." The leopard murmured to his friends.
"I know, it still pisses me off to hear that said about him. Anybeast under our rule came into our Pack out of personal choice and they can leave anytime they want to." Sekn replied in a strained tone.
Jethro put his paw back by his side as King Meskochad replied. "Brigadier, for the last time, I am not a tyrant, and I would appreciate it if you stopped calling my packmates vermin."
"Sure you are," the hare replied,"you're a king with a kingdom that has an upper and lower class, and you force your subjects to fight in your wars. Therefore, you are a tyrant, wot."
"Then he's a tyrant I'd be proud to die for." an otter near the door growled, his paw clenched around the handle of the long rapier hanging by his side. "King Meskochad and the wolves never forced their rule on us, we voted and accepted it with open paws and under him we have never been more successful or safe. Now tell me he's a tyrant one more time."
Meskochad stepped in before the hare could say a word. "General Stormrudder, I appreciate and honor your gratitude and loyalty, but please calm yourself and stand down. We have business far more important than defending the Greatest Pack's reputation from false accusations to discuss."
"Very well, sir." The otter said shortly, although he continued to glare balefully at the brigadier.
"Now, several of you have approached me with suggestions of how to crack this final problem, and I'd like to have the masterminds get up here and fully explain their ideas to the rest of us, and we'll all figure out a solution." Meskochad continued. Looking around the tent for a moment, the wolf took a sip from his canteen before finishing. "First, I'd like for General Safway of the Long Patrol, and General Erature of the Evergreen Pack to take the floor and present their plan to us." Meskochad stepped to the side of the tent beside General Stormrudder, and let an old, greying hare dressed in a red uniform festooned with medals and a falchion hanging by his side take the center of attention, accompanied by a brown-furred wolf dressed in green, on his belt hung a large sledgehammer.
General Safway spoke first. "Our plan is primarily a traditional assault to distract the enemy as we infiltrate an assassin team inside the walls, wot." He picked up a map of the enemy castle and pointed at several positions along the wall, "At these points here, here, here, here, and here, we will roll up siege towers filled with fighting beasts after a two day and night bombardment."
"During which we sneak in a team of assassins and specialists by having them rappel down the mountain and into the fortress on the first night of the bombardment." General Erature added.
Safway nodded,"Exactly. They will then wait in hiding for two days and nights while we continue the bombardment. On the third day at midnight, during our main attack they will split into two groups."
"One will head to the front gates and open them for the rest of us. The second will infiltrate the palace and attempt to assassinate everybeast inside." Erature finished.
"You know, when I said "traditional assault" I didn't think that siege engines would be used this prominently." Terraff whispered.
"Yeah, this actually doesn't sound that bad." Jethro agreed.
Sekn shrugged, "I'd vote for it. It's well rounded, well thought out, and only has one major flaw."
"How in the 'Gates is an entire assassin team going to remain concealed in that damn place for three days without getting caught?" Rakio voiced their concern.
"Damn right." Sekn said, crossing his arms.
"Does anybeast have a question, wot?"
Jethro raised his paw, "Yeah, I do."
Erature pointed at him to let him know he had the wolf's attention. "Yes?"
"This plan is obviously well thought out, but there's one major problem. How in Hellgates are we-" Jethro gestured at himself and Sekn "- going to hide in that place for three days? We can get in no problem, it's staying hidden that's going to be the issue."
Safway nodded, "Ah yes. Chieftain Dorian, would you please answer this?"
A grey-streaked wildcat with a large war-spear and a shield strapped to his back nodded and looked over. "When the wildcat Clans split, I made sure to get some of my cats on their side. They're already in position inside the city and will hide you during those three days. I'll give you two the address and password later."
"Thanks, Dorian." Jethro said, giving the wildcat a paw-thumbs up. "Well that explains where that info came from." The leopard murmured.
"I'm just glad we had it, we never would've taken Fort Snowfrost without it." Terraff replied.
"Any more questions, wot?" Safway asked. A smattering of "No's was heard around the tent.
"Looks like we're done here then." The wolf said to the hare.
"Indeed, wot." Safway replied as they went to join their compatriots .
Meskochad returned to the front. "Generals Erature and Safway, thank you for sharing. Now I would like for Captain Scovi to share his plan."
"Don't mind me; I'm backing General Erature now that I've heard his plan." The weasel responded dismissing the call with a wave of his paw.
Meskochad blinked in suprise, "Um, okay, General James, your turn then."
"Same here, sir." A mouse with a gladius strapped to his back replied.
"Well, in that case you're all dismissed. We'll meet again three days from now to finalize the details." Meskochad finished.
As everybeast began to leave, Jethro turned to the others, "We still burying our dead together?"
Over the course of the war, the captains in their little group had grown rather close, and so had their respective companies. After the first few battles they had ended up burying their dead together in one mass grave, and had done so ever since. It was not only simpler that way, but it allowed troops in any of the companies to mourn most if not all of their companions at once without having to wait for an official casualties list to be circulated.
"Yeah, we may as well. There's a spot near my pack's campsite that's big enough. Meet there in two hours?" Terraff said as they ducked out of the command tent.
"I'll be there." The leopard returned as he left to walk back to his campsite.