Cent. Calendar 19/05/1639, Prime Minister's residence, Tokyo, Japan, 11:00
Commemorating 1 month since their transference in Asherah, the Japan Ground Self Defense Force have begun landing in Qua-Toyne, stamping out any last hopes for a peaceful resolution to the Lourian crisis. As elements of the 2nd Division began setting up, Prime Minister Takamori Hideaki convened his cabinet once more after the Self Defense Force brass had informed him that plans on a swift end to the crisis, should it escalate, have been drawn up. Entering the room and dismissing the rest of the ministers from bowing, he took his seat. Also present in the room was General Hinoki Yousuke, Chief of Staff of the JGSDF.
"Admiral, I believe we are all looking forward to the plans you've drafted, which will hopefully bring a swift and conclusive end to this crisis, should it escalate."
Takamori opened with a remark to the Chief of Staff, Joint Staff Koji Yuuichi, who was standing on the other side of the table and ready to report their plans.
"I am well aware of that, Prime Minister. We have consulted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and our Qua-Toynian counterparts on the status quo of Louria's political landscape to ensure that this plan will have its intended results."
Getting the hand gesture from the Prime Minister to begin, Koji had his aides distribute documents to all the ministers in the room before continuing to speak.
"Taking into account Japan's limited resources available for diversion to military operations, we have decided on the implementation of this plan of action which we have dubbed: Operation Zanzibar."
Cent. Calendar 04/06/1639, Gim, Principality of Qua-Toyne, 14:00
2 weeks after the first JGSDF elements landed in Myhark, the Myhark airfield was completed, along with a temporary pier in the port that allowed for roll-on/roll-off disembarkation by other JGSDF elements. The airfield had also begun receiving JASDF C-130H transport planes from which more JGSDF elements disembarked. In the 2 weeks since their landing, the JGSDF had completed their deployment in Gim and had begun cooperating with the Qua-Toynian soldiers garrisoned there. Princess Llanfair, wishing to better understand the Japanese way of fighting, sent Myhark Defense Knights commander Ine as her personal observer to the town of Gim.
Arriving on horseback in Gim through the gates in its modest walls compared to Myhark, Ine was received by an elven pikeman standing guard.
"Identify yourself."
Disembarking from her horse, Ine pulled out a parchment stamped with the royal seal and showed it to the guard.
"Ine, Commander of the Myhark Defense Knights. I've been sent here as an observer by Princess Llanfair herself."
Recognizing the royal seal on the parchment, the elf quickly fixed his posture and saluted Ine.
"O-Of course, Commander Ine! Right this way!"
Following the elven pikeman through the main road, Ine looked around, taking notes for the report that she will have to submit to the Princess. The town of Gim, once a vibrant residential area that housed the farmers that work Qua-Toyne's western lands, has been reduced to a mere ghost town, only populated by its garrison and their camp followers, due to an evacuation order from the government following the deployment of the Japanese forces to the town. The deeper they got into the town, the closer they got to the lesser square and the more Japanese soldiers she encountered. She took notes on their common uniform, a sign of a well-trained professional force, as well as their gear. The uniform, despite looking dirty at first glance, was actually well made. When they were stopped by a Japanese soldier on guard near the square, she managed to get a closer look on what they looked like. To her surprise, the patterns on their uniforms were extremely uniform, a testament to the sophistication that went into the manufacture of these apparel. Despite the best patterns Qua-Toyne's best tailors could manage, there were still imperfections and sprinkles of mistakes on them. The Japanese soldiers' uniforms, however, were unnervingly uniform for all individuals. It was as if they were all made from a single copy, Ine thought. She then noted the lack of iron armoring, although she did notice that the complex tailoring of the soldiers' vests and their alien-looking fabric may help deflect blows and slashes from swords and such. Finally, she noted their weaponry, which were black guns, uniformly distributed between all soldiers with some minor differences here and there. The guns, which looked less stylish than the Lourian arm cannons, were noticeably cleaner and sleeker, again echoing the sophistication behind their manufacture. All in all, while Ine could only say amazing things regarding the equipment of the Japanese soldier, she hardly understood the logic or doctrine behind them. Eager to find out more, Ine entered a large tent which was shown to her by her elven and Japanese escorts. Inside, she was greeted by a suite of alien panels which contained moving pictures, communications equipment which she assumed to be equivalent to their manacomms, as well as some more recognizable equipment like tables, chairs, food, and such. As she took mental notes of what she was seeing, her processes were abruptly stopped when one of the Japanese soldiers approached her.
"Good afternoon, Miss. Is there anything I can help you with?"
Surprised by the Japanese soldier's sufficiently fluent Asheran common, Ine took her time digesting everything before replying.
"Good afternoon. I am Ine, Commander of the Myhark Defense Knights. I was sent by Her Highness, Princess Llanfair, as her observer."
The Japanese soldier looked through his book, probably finding the appropriate translations, before facing Ine once more.
"Well met, Miss Ine. I am Major General Akiyama Hayate, Commander of the JGSDF's 2nd Division."
Extending his hand as a force of habit, it took a moment of awkward silence and stares before Akiyama realized his mistake. Before he could pull his hand away completely, Ine understood what the gesture may have meant and instinctively grabbed Akiyama's hand with her own.
"Nice to meet you, Major General."
Exchanging smiles, the topic they changed to forced them to drop their initial warm expressions.
"Us back in the capital and at Myhark are not really up to date with the current situation, Major General. What's happening with the Lourians?"
Internally lamenting that the Qua-Toynians aren't up to date with their own situation, Akiyama sighed before urging Ine to follow him. Moving towards one of the panels with the moving pictures, Akiyama turned to Ine, read through his translation book, and began speaking.
"This is one of our... Uhh... unmanned aircraft, which allows us to see what the Lourians are up to in their camp. Right now, they've mostly been content in training themselves and welcoming more soldiers coming from deep within Louria."
Still unsure at what unmanned aircraft means, Ine followed Akiyama's finger, which pointed to one of the panels. Looking closely, she realized that the moving pictures depicted on the panel showed humans-Lourian soldiers-moving around in their camp and doing various activities in splendid color and quality. Realizing that the soldiers were being viewed from above, she started understanding what unmanned aircraft meant.
"Do you currently have a flying object in the air right now? And that flying object has no person piloting it?"
Inwardly praising Ine's quickness, Akiyama nodded in affirmation.
"And through the eyes of that flying object, you can see the Lourians as they are right now?"
Akiyama nodded once more. Ine, knowing the importance of accurate, realtime information of the enemy's movements, felt the power in her legs fade away in awe of what the Japanese were capable of. Not only did the Lourians realize they were being watched, the Japanese were likely to be aware of what the Lourians were doing, how many men they had, and maybe even spot potential hiding places of additional troops and weaponry. Swallowing her shock, Ine maintained composure as she struggled to get her next words out.
"Do you know of their total strength?"
Akiyama paused for a moment to remember his Asheran common number terms before looking back at Ine.
"They're estimated at about 15,000."
Ine turned pale. 15,000 was a moderately high number of troops for taking one, measly farmers' town. Gim's own garrison contained only 400 troops with wyvern support from the fortress city of Ejei. According to the documents their government received from Japan, their military is only deploying 6,090 troops, with 1,000 dedicated to the construction and engineering aspects. If Japan is confident with these troop numbers, they must have some sort of force multiplier that allows them to bridge the number gap, Ine thought.
"Are you, Major General, confident in your numbers?"
Seeing that Ine was still ultimately a knight from a Renaissance-era nation, Akiyama thought for a moment, mostly to find the Asheran common words he needed.
"Numbers, too, are important in warfare. However, we have something that can offset sheer numbers. Come."
Finally getting her answer that the Japanese have a force multiplier, Ine eagerly followed Akiyama outside. Despite the threat of Lourian invasion looming over the town, she noticed an eerie calmness and tranquility hanging over everyone. While she could dismiss this for the Japanese soldiers, the Qua-Toyne soldiers were unmistakably lax. They did maintain their discipline but tension or anxiety were nowhere to be found on their faces.
Why the calmness? Do they not see nor hear the Lourians next door?
Akiyama led her up Gim's bell tower, the tallest structure in the town. Scaling the spiralling stone stairs, they reach the top of the tower where the bell was located. Posted as a lookout was one of the Japanese soldiers, who saluted Akiyama as he emerged from the stairs. From there, they have a clear, commanding view of Gim, its outskirts, and the geography from at least tens of kilometers away, provided they weren't obstructed by something else. Gim was situated in the plains just north of the Divine Forest, which was visible to their south, sloping upwards into the high mountain ranges that served to divide Qua-Toyne and Quila. As Ine began to wonder why they were up there, Akiyama handed her a pair of binoculars and pointed somewhere southeast.
"Use that to look over there."
Recognizing the pair of binoculars as a more sophisticated telescope, Ine instinctively understood where to put her eyes. Following Akiyama's direction, she then pointed the binoculars southeast along the feet of the mountains from where the Divine Forest began. For a few moments, she struggled to find what Akiyama was asking her to look at but then she happened upon some weird lumps of green equally spaced out over a clearing. Adjusting her focus to scrutinize the lumps better, she saw that the lumps were huge, metallic carriages fixed with long, massive tubes pointing up into the sky towards their direction. She inferred the size of the carriages from the numerous people, likely Japanese soldiers, that she saw on top of and walking around these carriages. Seeing Ine's confused expression, Akiyama assumed she had found the Type 99 self propelled howitzers and began his explanation.
"Those vehicles that you see are our mobile long-range artillery batteries, which we call 'self-propelled howitzers' back in our old world. Their cannons, a concept I hope you're familiar with, can lob highly explosive... errr, cannonballs, over long distances."
With Ine still struggling to understand the concept, Akiyama gave her a scenario she could understand.
"Miss Ine, what I'm trying to say is that these cannons can reach and hit the Lourian camp from where they currently are."
Hearing those words, Ine connected the dots. While she still didn't know what else the Japanese had in store, what she was shown and what she noticed alone were enough to convince her that the Japanese had powerful force multipliers. Cannons that can reliably reach and hit targets outside of what they could see, eyes in the sky that tracked enemy movements and deployment... If needed be, the Japanese could single handedly eliminate the Lourians right now if they wanted to. However, she remembered reading in one of the documents that Japan had codified laws that prevented them from being the aggressor in a conflict. Shelving it to the back of her mind, Ine moved on to the next topic.
"What have the Lourians been doing?"
Before Akiyama could answer, a Japanese soldier called out to him in their native language, which Ine absolutely did not understand.
"Major General, the Lourians are at the border again!"
Seeing Akiyama's expression turning to one that displayed urgency, Ine assumed that there had been developments relating to the Lourians. Akiyama then turned to her and invited her to come along.
"Come. The Lourians have been spotted deploying in formation at the border... again. I think it's best if I explained it there."
Running back to the tent with the panels, they were guided by the soldier back to the panel that showed them the Lourian camp a while ago. Looking at it once more, the panel now depicted an open field dotted with ranks of Lourian musketmen, pikemen, and cavalry formed up in their typical battle formation. As she instinctively sweated bullets at the sight of their supposed, would-be-conquerors gearing up to finally begin the war, she looked over to the soldier and Akiyama who surprisingly both had nonchalant expressions on their faces. Returning to the panel, she saw that the Lourian army had begun marching forward towards the Lourian - Qua-Toynian border. Despite being far away from the border, she could imagine the feeling of the ground shaking from the sheer amount of boots stomping on the ground from the panel. As the first row of soldiers inched closer and closer to the border, Akiyama picked up a black box and began talking to it in Japanese.
"All units. Stand by."
She heard the running footsteps of Japanese and Qua-Toynian soldiers running to their posts in orderly fashion. What Akiyama said may have been a command for them to be ready to counterattack. Looking back at the panel, she saw the Lourians close the gap to the border, which was demarcated by logs placed into position. She estimated the time it took for the troops to finally breach the border and began counting down in her head.
Five. Four. Three. Two. One...
At the last second, she noticed that the Lourians stopped just a single step away from the logs before turning about-face to resume their march. Ine, confused by the action, turned to the soldier and Akiyama for clues. Adding to her confusion, both men breathed out sighs of relief.
"Phew. Just another marching drill for today then."
The soldier sighed out. As Ine was about to ask Akiyama about what happened, he answered her before she could get her words out.
"That was one of their drills. I hope you understand what it means."
Understanding it, Ine silently said "Ohhh" while raising her eyebrows in mild surprise.
"The Lourians conduct marching drills every 2 to 4 days with a pattern that we could only conclude to be random. Probably to their delight, I admit that their drills do indeed have us on the edge sometimes."
Giving out a mild chuckle, Akiyama was interrupted by the soldier.
"Sir! We've got wyverns incoming!"
Despite not understanding what the soldier said, Ine instinctively looked back at the panel, which now showed a force of 25 wyverns flying towards the direction of Gim. As Akiyama raised his black box back to his mouth, the force of 25 wyverns scattered in 8 distinct directions before crossing the imaginary wall projected over the border. With tensions heightened again, the soldier once more commented.
"It appears that they timed their wyvern drill with their marching drill this time."
Akiyama, without looking away from the panel, replied.
"That's a first."
Letting out a deep sigh through his nostrils, Akiyama continued to watch the feed for another 5 minutes before finally letting his guard down after the wyverns and the soldiers returned back to their camp. Raising the black box once more, Akiyama gave out the all clear.
"All units. Stand down."
Finally turning back to Ine, who was still trying to grasp what was happening, Akiyama looked at her with an exhausted face before speaking.
"Why don't we go eat? I'm hungry and... I'm afraid I've been lousy as a commander in not giving the information to you straight."
Accepting Akiyama's offer, they went to a nearby, larger tent which housed the cafeteria for use by the soldiers.
Sometime later
Being briefed on the incremental changes in Lourian personnel count, suspected alternative deployment routes for the army, position of the camps on the map, and then finally the deployment of Qua-Toyne and Japanese forces on their side, Ine learned that the Japanese had been meticulous in tracking and studying the movements of the Lourian army. She also learned from Akiyama that there were numerous close calls during their night patrols, where Japanese soldiers find Lourian soldiers attempting to pounce on unsuspecting Qua-Toynian patrols before scaring them off by giving away their location. Through those stories, she learned that the Japanese have an ability to work in the dark better than their forces could, despite the means remaining a mystery to her. Akiyama also pointed out 6 different occasions wherein official Lourian emissaries would come up to the border calling for dialogue. When Qua-Toyne and Japanese officers responded, the Lourians would simply threaten them to withdraw their forces. While the 'dialogue' never devolved into quarrels, malicious words and offensive threats were exchanged between the Qua-Toynians and the Lourians. Hearing this, Ine simply chuckled and rolled her eyes.
"Typical Lourians."
While filling her in, Akiyama was savoring the Pynn bread he was given. Having been also subject to the harsh rationing in the wake of Japan's transfer, Akiyama was representative of Japanese people enjoying bountiful, delicious food after a month of reduced consumption and increased labor. Taking another bite of Pynn bread, Akiyama could not hold back his glee at being able to eat a different kind of food. Ine even noticed tears forming in his eyes.
"Holy shit. I missed food. I'm sorry for my inexcusable behavior, but goddamn. Food just never tasted this good!"
Looking at the other Japanese soldiers eating in the cafeteria, Ine could spot the same reactions from them. For every single bite of either Pynn bread or Gim's famous, fatty roasted pork, the Japanese soldiers paused, cried, and grinned uncontrollably. It was either due to the fact that Qua-Toynian food was exceptional or that the Japanese simply had a bad time back home with their rationing. One of the Japanese soldiers, after taking a bite of the roasted pork, immediately leaped to the ground with his hands clasped together, seemingly praising the gods for the food that they were able to eat. Either way, it was more than obvious to Ine that the Japanese army, including their commanders, were equally subject to the same conditions, leading her to assume that Japan had some sort of culture that promoted egalitarianism. Hoping to understand more about the culture within the army, Ine opened her mouth. However...
"Major General! The Lourian emissaries are back at the border!"
One of the officers ran to them from outside, reporting in as she saluted.
"Alright then..."
As Akiyama stood up from the bench, the officer continued.
"They're looking for you, sir."
Akiyama, who had now stood up, looked at the officer with a surprised look.
"Me?"
"Yes, sir. The Lourians, according to the Qua-Toynians, are asking for the highest ranking Japanese officer in Gim."
Looking down at the ground for a moment, Akiyama returned his gaze at the officer.
"Alright. Get a High Mobility Vehicle ready in front of the west gate."
Dismissing the officer, Akiyama once more turned to Ine as he fitted back his officer's cap on his head.
"I'll be going, Miss."
Ine, eager to see the Lourians personally, caught Akiyama's attention with a "wait!"
"I want to come as well to fulfill my duties as an observer."
Akiyama, seeing that there's nothing wrong with a Qua-Toynian officer coming along for the ride, allowed her to come.
Louria - Qua-Toyne border, 15:20
Disembarking from the High Mobility Vehicle, Akiyama, Ine, and 2 Japanese soldiers walked along a dirt road up a decently sloped hill. Arriving at the crest, they found 5 Qua-Toynian pikemen with their pikes at the ready and an officer facing off against 3 Lourian soldiers right across the log-demarcated border. One of the Lourian soldiers had a more distinguished chest plate than the other two and carried with him an aura of poise and dignity deserving of an officer. He looked excellent, possessing blue eyes, blond hair, a fair complexion, and a sharp jawline that culminated in a prominent cleft chin. The Lourian officer, seeing the Japanese walking towards them, lightened his expression and looked at the incoming Japanese with a gaze that had hints of mockery.
"Why, hello there! You must be the highest ranking Japanese officer here... or not."
Ignoring the Lourian officer's statement, Akiyama dismissed the Qua-Toynian officer and asked him to have his men stand down. Walking towards the border, Akiyama looked at the Lourian officer with a steely gaze.
"Ooooh. Don't tell me you can attack us with your stare, now? Hah"
Forcing a laugh, the Lourian officer taunted Akiyama, to which he responded.
"Perhaps."
As the two men looked at each other with grins on their faces, Ine walked closer to just behind the 2 Japanese soldiers standing behind Akiyama. The Lourian officer then broke his expression, turning his mocking smile to a serious frown.
"I'll get to the point. You..."
The Lourian officer pointed directly at Akiyama before shifting his finger to point at the two Japanese soldiers behind.
"And you. And you. This isn't your fight and it doesn't have to be. Far from home in an alien place... It makes sense why there was some hesitation before your government finally ordered you to go here."
Stabbing in the dark and hopefully hitting home, the Lourian officer actually knew nothing of Japan's motives in siding with Qua-Toyne. Fortunately for him, the point did resonate with Akiyama and the others, although they did not show any hint of being persuaded. With a kind yet resolute expression, Akiyama responded.
"You made it our fight when you refused to do things peacefully."
Taking a deep breath and then exhaling, the Lourian officer took off all facets of respect before replying.
"Why side with the undesirables? Aren't you humans as well? Don't tell me that whore of a Princess offered herself for Japanese swords!"
The 2 Lourian soldiers who were with him began smiling and laughing as they imagined Princess Llanfair, who was branded as an elven whore in Louria, satisfying their desires. The Qua-Toynians, hearing their Princess being called a whore, began hurling insults at the Lourians. As the tension built up, the Lourian officer continued his verbal assaults.
"And you, Japanese officer. Don't tell me this elf whore here..."
The Lourian officer pointed to Ine, who was standing behind the two Japanese soldiers.
"I get it... I bet she already seduced you, giving you a nice taste of her plump, juicy, elven thighs..."
As the Lourian officer drew out Ine's thighs with his two hands mid-air, Ine looked at him with offense and disgust. Just as she was about to draw her sword and hurl her own insults, Akiyama stopped her with his hand. Intending to end the talk and head back, Akiyama also got dirty.
"I think that we should end this futile attempt at a talk..."
Pausing to look at the Lourian officer directly in the eye, Akiyama continued.
"While we're at it, I also can't control myself when talking to someone whose balls are located on his chin."
Immediately getting self-conscious, the Lourian officer immediately caressed his chin, which took on the form of testicles with scant strands of hair growing out of his prominent cleft chin. The soldiers on both the Qua-Toynian and Lourian side, realizing what Akiyama said, began giggling at the Lourian officer. Having been the recipient of what had been the most offensive insult to his person, the Lourian officer lashed back.
"Fuck you! Come back here and let's settle this like men!"
Driven by fury, the Lourian officer stormed forward towards the logs demarcating the border. The moment his foot touched the logs, the 2 Japanese soldiers immediately stood ready and pointed their Type 89 assault rifles at him. The Lourian officer, recognizing that the Japanese weapons were also guns, stopped dead in his tracks and froze. Looking behind him, the Lourian soldiers failed to raise their own firearms in time and froze with them lowered. Realizing that they were not in an advantageous position, the Lourian officer backed off a few steps away from the logs. In response, the Japanese soldiers lowered their rifles. Not intending to leave the tense standoff as it is, Akiyama left one last remark.
"I do hope we get to see each other again. Hopefully not in this setting as well."
Taking off his cap as a gesture of farewell, Akiyama then turned around and returned to their High Mobility Vehicle, followed by Ine and the two Japanese soldiers while the Qua-Toynian soldiers returned to their patrols.
Lourian camp, 18:00
Dejected and insulted, the Lourian officer brooded in his personal tent. Holding a mirror to his chin, he cursed his parents for giving him his prominent cleft chin. In spite of the rage, he mostly felt regret for failing to shave his pathetic excuse for a beard which allowed him to get insulted. Just as he was about to reach for a blade, one of the soldiers under his command entered his tent and saluted.
"Commander Kerges, they have arrived!"
Understanding what they were, Kerges's face brightened.
"Show me."
Following his soldier out of the tent, they walked past the tents of other officers and then the regular soldiers before arriving at the open space in the middle of the camp. As horses entered into the open field, the carts containing the massive hunks of firepower were pulled into position. Soldiers then detached the horses from the carts while placing wheel guards on the carts so that they didn't move. With the carts still draped in cloth, Kerges went for the closest one and anticlimactically pulled away the covers, revealing the massive bore of a mortar looking at him. Taking a closer look at it, he could see that the mortar was still in need of assembling. Grinning in satisfaction at their new toys, Kerges admired the beautiful piece of artillery before him.
"Our benefactors have really outdone themselves."
Making an offhand comment for himself, Kerges was taken aback when someone responded to him.
"Said benefactors are expecting these things to allow you to yield results. I fear that I might have to keep reminding you, Lourians, that."
Emerging from the other side of the mortar was a masked man. While his robes hid away a good part of what he was underneath, the man's accent reminded Kerges of the haughty manner of speech that those in the Philades continent seem to possess. Still, the masked man was indeed their benefactor so they still had to show them respect. Bowing to the man, Kerges replied.
"Louria's children thank you and your people for your support. I assume that you are one of the operators for these bad boys."
Dismissing Kerges's show of respect, the man went straight to business.
"Anyway... Your commanders said that it begins tomorrow, yes? If that's the case, we will need to set these up."
"Ah, of course!"
Ordering his men to assist in the assembling of the mortars, the Lourians, together with their benefactors, were able to fully set up and train the mortars at Gim just as supper was about to begin.
That same time, Gim
"Yep, those are mortars. Probably from the American Civil War era or something."
The drone operator for the ScanEagle tasked with monitoring the Lourians, after spotting multiple horse-drawn carriages mysteriously clad in cloth arriving in the Lourian camp, asked for confirmation from one of the soldiers who were more aware of historical weapons. Watching the covers being pulled away from the carriages, revealing the mortars, the soldier was able to recognize from what era the mortars were. Maj. Gen. Akiyama, who was also watching the drone feed, asked the soldier.
"Can these mortars reach all the way here?"
"Considering that Gim is about a km away from the border and the Lourian camp is less than 500m away from said border... Yes, sir. Those mortars can reach us. Their accuracy could be better if they set them up a bit closer too."
Immediately coming up with plans in his head, Akiyama walked away from the station to discuss plans of redeployment with his officers.
"Continue to watch them! I want to know if they intend to use those mortars soon!"
The next day, Jin-Hark, Kingdom of Louria, 6:00
As the morning sun barely cleared the horizon, an amazing fleet of 123 warships (of which 33 are galleys, 20 galliots, 20 galleasses, and 50 merchant ships converted to warships) left the harbor of Jin-Hark to commence the invasion of Qua-Toyne later that day. By the time they would have reached Qua-Toynian waters, the advanced force near Gim would have already crossed the border and besieged Gim. At the helm of the flagship stood Vice Admiral Sharkun, admiring the sight of the rising sun casting a somber yellow unto the ocean and onto his face. Remembering the events of the previous week, Sharkun groaned. Having received intelligence from their spies in Myhark that the Japanese forces have completed the construction of an airfield that allowed for their iron flying objects to arrive, the other commanders tasked him and his fleet to launch an assault on the airfield, in addition to them clashing with and defeating the Qua-Toynian and Japanese navies. Prioritizing the airfield, the other commanders overruled Sharkun's protests and had many of the larger ships in his fleet refitted to accommodate 1 or 2 wyverns. Sharkun lamented this last minute change. Despite the usefulness of having wyverns with them, the ships' combat capabilities were drastically reduced just to allow for their accommodations.
"Wyverns are great but... Now we have less men and cannon..."
Cursing his luck inwardly, Sharkun could only watch in sorrow and anxiety as their fleet inched ever closer east, towards the direction of the rising sun.
That same time, Lourian camp
Standing guard outside the Lourian camp, two soldiers were almost on the verge of falling asleep, having stood guard for the good part of the early morning. Just as they began to snore, they were kicked back to life by the sound of a galloping horse approaching them. Narrowing their eyes to better see who was coming, they then forced themselves awake after recognizing who it was. The man on horseback, who had now arrived in front of them, gazed out towards the east with an eager yet resentful glare. Climbing down from his horse and stepping onto the dirt, the man was greeted by two soldiers on guard.
"Lieutenant General Adem, sir!"
Ignoring their greeting, Adem zoomed past them and into the camp.
"Today's the day..."
Barging into the officers' tent, Adem then took command of the entire advanced force before moving on to plan their moves for the upcoming battle.