Authran sat upon his throne contemplating the Empire's state of affairs. The large wolf had certainly enjoyed the lush lands and vast resources the Empire had conquered, but part of him missed the Land of Ice and Snow, the sheer amount of strength needed to survive a hostile land. Strength was his view, his Empire was forged by is forefathers, but under him achieved a might and expansion unrivaled by any kingdom. All who opposed him were destroyed…save one, Tanaria. He snarled at the thought of the name, his most recent conquest, and yet her creatures fled across the sea, they posed a minor threat to his reign, but still a threat. Authran's thoughts were soon interrupted by one of his Wolf Guard.
"Your Excellency, we have a report from Lord Redclaw on his progress," the young guardsbeast said, handing a scroll to the Emperor. Authran took the scroll in his paw and skimmed through it, he turned to one of his other lords, a young wildcat, newly appointed as a Baron.
"Lord Verith, what would you suggest concerning the report from Lord Redclaw?" Authran inquired, handing the scroll to the wildcat. Verith skimmed over the scroll briefly.
"It sounds as though Lord Redclaw was caught off guard by the Tanarian forces at sea, victory, yes, but at what cost? He offers no report on his own losses, and the fact one ship escaped the battle is concerning. We no longer have the element of surprise," he assessed thoughtfully.
Authran smiled a long wolfish smile, a rarity for him, "At what cost indeed? If he had lost none or little, I would have expected a report from him, but no, it seems we are dealing with a moderate to significant loss. Such a loss could be detrimental to the invasion effort."
"What is it you suggest we do, your Excellency?"
"How long would it take for you to levy troops from your lands and holdings, Lord Verith?"
"I could assemble a few hundred in a day or two. The question is how we transport reinforcements of that size, Lord Redclaw took much of the armada."
"It will take about the same amount of time to do so for the Imperial Legion as well as ready the Wolf Guard. We can hire pirates to make up for the ships we need. You have two days, Lord Verith."
"Would that be wise? Pirates cannot be trusted."
"Their only love is coin, I doubt they will attempt anything if paid well enough, besides we can use them as fodder on the vanguard. Not to mention, what could pirates do against the might of the Imperial Armies?"
"I see your point, your Excellency. You do intend to join the battle then?"
Authran slowly turned to the young Baron, slowly rising to his footpaws, inching closer to the wildcat, "I will watch every village, every city burn and the fields of their new kingdom filled with the dead of their creatures. None will traverse their lands without the scent of blood filling the air for seasons to come. Their new king will die by my blade and my paws and the world will know…there is no escape from the Empire, there is no escape from Emperor Authran."
Verith helplessly recoiled, fear filling his very soul at the imposing figure of the Emperor. It was easy to forget the sheer size of the large wolf, but what seemed to fill the wildcat with dread the most, was the worlds uttered by his Emperor. He was a beast of few words, but a beast with conviction. Every war he fought brought death and destruction to his enemies and nobeast ever survived his conquests, Verith knew all to well what would become of Tanaria. The kingdom would fall to steel and blood, "O-of course, your excellency, they would be fools to oppose you," the wildcat submissively and deeply bowed to the wolf.
Authran backed away from Verith at last, "Return to your lands and raise what forces you can, in the meantime I will prepare the Legion."
Authran waited in his war room, the deadline had already been reached and he awaited the report from Verith. The wildcat soon entered, "I was able to levy a little over five hundred, your excellency, if I had more time I could enlist more."
Authran straightened from the table, "The Legion and Wolf guard both make up just over a thousand, assuming Redclaw wasn't as reckless as he usually is, we may still have anywhere between a thousand to fifteen hundred soldiers available currently on the field."
"You assume he's been reckless?"
"Redclaw has brought the Empire victory in the past, however his attrition tactics have always proven costly. I advised him to secure a foothold, but it is likely he will attempt to push as far into Tanaria as possible. If they are smart and capable, they won't let him get very far."
"Remind me not to be so reckless."
Authran slowly lowered his eyes to Verith, "See that you do, this war is a perfect test for you as a commander, Baron, failure could cost you your title."
"Not my head, your excellency?" Verith gulped.
"Treachery would cost you your head, Verith. I am not in the habit of killing my officers especially when they show potential. Continuous failure does have its consequences however, and that has proven effective among all officers. Come, let us depart."
Verith slowly nodded and followed his Emperor, despite his fears, there was determination in the wildcat's eyes. This was his chance to prove his abilities as a commander, rise in the ranks of the Empire, his name would go down in history, the greatest of all Lords of the Empire. The emperor was right, Tanaria and all who opposed the Empire will burn, and it will be he, not Redclaw who will see to the Emperor's vision. This was not the hour of Redclaw, this was the hour, nay the season of Baron Verith of the Empire.