Chapter 653 – Packbinding Exercises
When it comes to internal management between Divines, there are many who come immediately to mind: Malam, Helenna, Irinika, Allasaria, Maisara, Kassandora see themselves as commanders over charisma. Yet all of these Goddesses fail when given the job of keeping Divinity together. Irinika and Allasaria, who have both ruled their own nations, result in tyrannies. They are fairly benevolent in their tyranny, I shall not claim otherwise, but the only facet that holds their followers in line is the fact that none can truly go up against either Irinika or Allasaria. Maisara and Kassandora succeed at leading humanity, Maisara’s Paladins are loyal and the most devout of any Order, Kassandora’s armies does not know of such a thing as ‘rebellion’, yet both fail at integrating their peacekeeping into Divinity. Kassandora for a total lack of trying and effort, Maisara for totally overwhelming Divinity around her and treating them as if they were mortal. Helenna breeds obsession, everyone seemingly knows everything for the woman has a natural talent at spying. Her presence, whilst being glue to some extent, results in the same kind of suffocation that Malam’s results in. Both are passionate and neither are long-term in their plans.
So now, as my family grows, I find myself needing one to bind them together. Irinika will stifle them. Olephia has no interest in such things. Anassa is simply not fit for such work, nor is Neneria. I have considered other candidates, although there is no one in Divinity who possesses that natural level of solidarity and has been tested.
Yet there is one who is untested. Who has followers from all ends of the world, who we have all interacted with in the past, both during times of war and times of peace. I have discussed the issue with her, and questioned her on it even. No explanation is given for her behaviour, whether it is from a lack of knowledge or from an abundance of caution, I do not know. The level of intelligence with the golden eyes is tremendous, especially when the Goddess they belong to cares not for trying to impress outsiders with her antics. Yet her understanding of loyalty and pack dynamics seems to exist on purely an intuitive, bestial level.
If wolves could talk, I am certain they would talk of family in the same manner.
When pressed upon it, she only told me that wolves were hunting together long before humans learned how to how to hold hands.
- Excerpt from the Private Writings of God Arascus, of Pride.
Through a door and into the realm of the beast. Kavaa took a deep breath as she got to the office that was supposedly assigned for integration in Ordeaux. Troops were already collecting outside of Aris but there had been a delay, apparently, that delay was Kavaa herself. Of Health grumpily rolled her eyes, it wasn’t her fault that Kassandora needed help with spitballing ideas. And that they both wanted to spend more time with each other. Kavaa stepped into the office, the pair inside were already stood, their backs to the door and leaning over a table, discussing something that wasn’t Kassandora, thus, it was non-essential.
Kavaa shut the door behind herself, she had no issue whatsoever with Fer. Of Beasthood, everyone got along with. Frankly, if someone had a problem with Fer, rare was it for such an amicable deity to exist that seemingly everyone got along with. The Goddess by Fer’s side though… Kavaa half shut her eyes as she they passed over that silver hair which fell low. Over the Imperial black uniform, now bearing the insignia of an axe and a stockade. Maisara had been assigned an emblem as charismatic as her. At least she did not get a cap yet. Kavaa readjusted hers and stood behind the pair of giants.
Kassandora was taller than Kavaa, most of the deities that made up Arascus’ daughters were. All of them save for Baalka in fact. Kavaa didn’t know if they were getting taller or if she was simply shrinking, it seemed to be both, even though she had not lost an inch since the time she measured her own height. Rarely did the height differences matter, pettiness like that was reserved for the likes of Helenna and Malam. They all stood taller than humans anyway, they should feel huge. But when it was just Kavaa next to Fer and Maisara…
It was difficult not to feel small.
Fer’s wild golden hair alone, falling past her hips, probably took up more space than Kavaa did in her entirety. Maisara’s, not as long, was a pillar of silver. Kavaa’s eyes barely managed to get to their chests. Barely. Fer easily had two full heads on her, and there was not much difference between Fer and Maisara. The ears on top of Fer’s head stood proud, as if to try and buy height for their owner. “I have arrived.” Kavaa said as she looked past the two Goddesses. Pictures and diagrams of weapons and vehicles. Drawn designs of armour and the like. Theosius would like a table like that, Kavaa had seen enough of them in hospitals, save there it was about the internals of the human body rather than the internals of a military holy order.
“Finally.” Maisara exhaled as Fer chuckled.
“And here we were afraid Kassandora had eaten you up!” Her tone rose at the end. From Malam’s filthy mouth, it would have been an innuendo, from Fer’s, it was a joke. Kavaa didn’t laugh.
“Apologies for the delay, Pax has breached in Rilia. Kass requested I stay to bounce ideas off.” It wasn’t a lie. Not completely at least. She may have missed some details out though.
Fer chuckled. “Was testing perfume one of them?” Maisara looked up from the table, then at Kavaa. Those silver eyes narrowed for a moment as the two ex-white Pantheon Goddesses stared at each other. It was one thing meeting back on Olympiada, where a cold gaze would be immediately followed by pretending the other did not exist. Off the mountain, they never ran into each other and now, Imperial Bureaucracy had forced them to be co-workers. Alone, it would have never worked.
They weren’t alone though. Kavaa didn’t know if Fer had been assigned to this task because she had some great knowledge of military organisation, or whether it was simply to make sure that Maisara and Kavaa did not end up killing each other. Her laugh broke the tension. “You reek of love.” Fer said and Kavaa’s shoulders dropped as they lost strength. For once, she just stared in silence at Maisara without any bile whatsoever. Hopefully Maisara got the message: This is what have to I put up with.
Maisara turned to Fer. “I can’t smell it.”
“No no.” Fer said, turning and sniffing. “Kassie washes with her own stink.” Kavaa didn’t even know what the fuck that meant. “Roja Vania does not suit you Kavaa.”
Kavaa’s cheek went crimson. How did Fer even know perfumes? And how did she even get it correct? “I’m here for the integration.” Kavaa sidestepped the entire topic. There was no point in this discussion and she knew Fer well enough to know that were wasn’t a point in trying to outwit her.
“Integration is ongoing, we are stuck.” Fer said and suddenly, it was Maisara’s turn to break posture into a depressed slouch. She stared back at Kavaa, saying nothing but her eyes sent the message: This is what I have to put up with.
“Why?” Kavaa asked.
“We aren’t stuck.” Maisara said. “Rather, we were waiting on you to see how you integrated the Clerics.” There wasn’t a hint of embarrassment in her tone, nor any pride. It was a simple, Maisara-style, assessment of the situations. Kavaa stared at the pair of taller Goddesses. Of Order, with her private army, and Of Beasthood, with her warherds, and they couldn’t work out how to integrate the Paladins into the Empire? And she was supposed to help?
“As auxiliary battlefield healers and combat medics?” Kavaa asked. “What do you mean?”
“I told you.” Fer said. Maisara sighed.
“And command? How does that work?”
Kavaa stared at Maisara for a few moments as she tried to work out what was being asked. She ended up replying with a shrug and an explanation. “A number of Clerics is assigned to a unit, a division, or an entire front. They get housed in headquarters. Local commanders ring? Kassie’s men organise themselves? What do you mean?”
“Told you.” Fer said. “No, we’re not doing that.”
“We’re not doing that.” Maisara agreed. Kavaa just stared at them. What the fuck were they even doing?
“I’ve been told to ensure that the Order of the Silver Sword integrate with the Paladins.” Kavaa said. “It’s Clerics and Paladins working together, I’m just here to resolve tensions on my end. Morale keeping, so to say.”
“So what? Your men operate under mercenary structure?” Maisara asked.
“Specialist combat auxiliaries.” Kavaa said dryly. “Like magicians.”
“Oh no!” Fer said with a comedic gasp. “Don’t remind us of that.” Maisara took a deep breath, her fists curled for a moment, then released as she calmed herself down.
“What?” Kavaa asked.
“Do you not have a headquarters?” Maisara asked.
What a stupid question. “Why would I want a headquarters?” And for what reason? So that she could go ahead and battle with Imperial bureaucracy about planning permission permits? No thank you.
“So were do they stay?” Maisara asked. “When not in combat?”
“They’re Clerics.” Kavaa replied. “They get sent to hospitals or clinics.” Urban or rural, it didn’t matter, and Maisara didn’t deserve the wasted effort that would be the extended explanation.
“Told you.” Fer said and Maisara sighed again.
“So you don’t have recruitment bases?”
Kavaa just stared at Maisara. How hard was it for this woman to accept that the Clerics were more than whatever her private army of a holy order was? If Fer wasn’t here, she would have started shouting. But Fer was here, and with Fer here, Kavaa was very much reminded that although she was close, she was still not one of Arascus’ adopted Daughter-Goddesses. “On a semi-regular basis, mass blessings are organised by Kass, Helenna or Arascus whenever they need more.” Kavaa said.
Maisara stared at her as if she had just invoked black magic or said some curse that would send them all to hell. “Excuse me?”
Kavaa reframed it. “I don’t have recruitment offices. I just get a field of men and then I can pick out who I want to bless and who not.”
“That’s not efficient.” What a comment. Fer chuckled.
“I don’t bless those who want to be Clerics.” Kavaa just stared dryly at Maisara. This had always been a point of contention between Of Health and the entirety of the White Pantheon. The simple fact of the matter was that the vast majority of the population simply did not deserve her blessing. It was not a scheme to get prestige, nor wealth, nor love or respect. It was a fucking job and it would forever be treated as a fucking job. Nothing more. Nothing less. Anyone trying to become a Cleric for any reason other than the fact they had nowhere else to go did not fit.
Maisara just stared at Kavaa. “And what? They let you get away with that behaviour still?” She looked at Fer.
“Short or long answer?” Fer asked.
“Either.”
“Short is that is that it’s Kavaa’s business on what she wants to do.” Fer said. “Long is that there simply isn’t a need for Kavaa to have recruitment offices because her Clerics are on demand. If she did, we would have another faction in the bureaucracy. Everyone has it easier because of the fact that they are borderline unorganized.”
Maisara turned to back to Kavaa. Cold grey eyes met cold silver eyes. “And you’re fine with that?” Maisara asked.
“Should I not be?” Kavaa asked. She honestly did not care. The management of her Orders had always been fatigue-inducing. This conversation was like trying to explain to the foolish apothecaries and hermits of old who complained when the urban hospital put them out of business. Oh no! Not the old glory of the healing pilgrimage! Not the endless trekking from village to village! They weren’t the ones doing the trek, were they? Likewise, if Maisara wanted to get her fucking bureaucracy so much, she could get it. Kavaa was in no mood for it.
“Just that? Healers on demand?”
“We’re in it for fundamentally different reasons.” Kavaa said dryly. “There is nothing more than that. I am the shopkeep, the Empire is my customer. Customer knows best.” Maisara sighed and shook her head, then turned back to Fer.
“That’s it?”
“Customer always knows best.” Fer cooed. “And Kavaa runs her business well, very little overhead.”
“And when there’s nothing to do?” Maisara asked Fer, then turned to Kavaa.
“I have a home.” Kavaa said.
Of all the things said so far, this was the one that seemed to have the greatest effect. Maisara’s eyes grew wide, her mouth fell open. She turned from Kavaa to Fer and back again. Of Beasthood nodded in emphasis. “You should see it Maisara, it’s in the mountains. No one’s there, you can hear the birds in the morning.” Kavaa turned her glare to Fer. She could handle a great deal of things. Fer inviting Maisara into Kavaa’s home was one of the few things in the entire universe that was not on that list.
But then it was Fer. And trying to argue with Fer was an exercise in futility. Kavaa had the same would have as much success in trying to defeat in single combat as she would with words. “It’s a long way from here and we have a job.”
“We do.” Maisara said. “I’ll pass.”
“Thank you.” Kavaa replied immediately and then blinked. Once again, grey eyes met silver. There was no stern gazes between them though. It was more the surprise of seeing a pig fly. Did they actually just agree? Did Kavaa just thank Maisara?
“I’m sure we’ll find time.” Fer said.
Two replies followed immediately, almost running over each other. “I have an order to organise.”
“Maisara has an order to organise.” Kavaa added. “What? Headquarters?” She changed the topic before Fer somehow managed to invite her entire family into Kavaa’s home. “Use mages.”
“You can’t.” Fer said immediately.
“It’s Maisara.” Kavaa said. “She’s the Goddess of Order.” The Empire operated on its hierarchy, but there had always been a hierarchy amongst Divinity. Maisara may be the worst of them, but to say she did not belong in the upper echelons was just flat out wrong.
“And she can’t. We covered this.”
“You didn’t explain before.” Maisara said. She turned to Kavaa. “Apparently you needed to hear it too.”
“Kavaa did indeed to hear it too.” Fer said. “Because I know you don’t watch the news.” Kavaa felt her lip twitch. Why was it even annoying? It wasn’t insulting. Maisara had said far worse things to Kavaa. It was just that Fer said, and Fer had that annoying skill in that she could made anything seem obvious to do.
“Should I?”
“Demons in Aris?” Fer said. “Pax in Rilia?”
“I know about the second.”
“But you don’t about the succubi in the Arisian catacombs, do you?” Fer asked.
“No.”
Maisara took a deep breath. “So I’m going to clear them out?”
“It’s not our domain friends.” Fer chuckled to herself. “Apparently, Malam has it under control. She’ll ring when she needs a purge.” She raised an eyebrow at them. “I bet neither of you knew that?”
“It was on the news.” Maisara said. Kavaa rolled her eyes. Of course Maisara watched the news. “The mage issue.”
“You can’t use them.” Maisara turned to Kavaa and took a deep breath. Then back to Fer.
“What do you mean I can’t?” It was good that Maisara played along, Kavaa utterly hated the fashion in which Fer explained things.
“There are no spare mages left.” Maisara squinted her eyes, her mouth opened, then closed. She looked to Kavaa. Of Health bounced her shoulders in a shrug and shook her head.
“Don’t ask me.” She said.
“What do you mean the Empire has no spare mages left?” Maisara asked.
Fer leaned from one side to the other. “Since three days now, Dad has put an order in. Every new graduate is going to Project Super Circle, even the reserves are being sent off.” Maisara turned back to Kavaa. Once again, of Health just shrugged.
“Don’t ask me.” She said.
“What is Project Super Circle?” Maisara asked.
Fer made a wry smile, bending down to look up at Maisara. She knew she was being annoying right now. Kavaa kept her smile satisfied smile contained, Maisara deserved it. “Do you have the clearance for that, Goddess of Order?” She whispered.
“Don’t I?” Maisara took another deep breath, releasing the tremble in her arms. She turned to Kavaa. Once again, of Health returned with her shrug. She knew the answer this time: If you had to ask, you did not. But then this was the first time she was hearing of Project Super Circle so who was she to laugh?
“Don’t ask me.” She said.
“You don’t, it doesn’t concern you.” Fer answered. “What concerns you right now is management of your Order. If you want a headquarters, we have channels for that.”
“Channels?”
“Go through Internal Affairs.” Kavaa said dryly. She would help out at least. This was miserable.
“It actually should be through Divine Affairs, Military Department.” Fer said.
“I just send everything through Internal Affairs.” Kavaa replied and Fer laughed.
“So do I.” She said. “But D.A.D.M. is the proper channel.” She turned to Maisara. “You’ll remember that, won’t you?”
Maisara rolled her eyes. “Your ineptitude in your own system is not of my concern.” She said. “The headquarters can be sorted out later. Arascus and Iliyal both said some of my old fortresses will be returned.”
“Oh!” Fer said. “Now that you mention it.” She reached into the waistband of her shorts and pulled out a piece of paper. “Here’s that list.” Maisara stared at the list as if she was being handed poison. It was a cleanly folded envelope. Her eyes went to the paper, to Fer, to the paper, to Kavaa, then to Fer again. Kavaa could practically see the gears in her mind working and the rage coming out of her ears like steam.
“And why do you have this?”
“I was hoping I could take some off you if you forgot.” Fer said. Kavaa let out a half-laugh, then covered her mouth as she saw Maisara try to process what Fer had just said. How many times had someone just been so honest with their intentions to Maisara? She better get used to it. Kavaa knew exactly what it was like to be on the receiving end of that behaviour.
“You were planning to steal off me?” She said. “Why?”
“I’m but a poor Goddess and I need money.” This time, Kavaa bit her cheek to cool her laughter. Maisara opened her mouth, closed it, took the letter and read it. She slowly set it on the table and took a deep breath.
“Is she always like this Kavaa?”
“Get used to it.” Kavaa replied.
“Alright.” Maisara said. “And armour?”
“You can dress your men up and yourself however you wish. We get score cards at the end of the year for good behaviour, presentation is one of them.” Fer said. “I keep it loose, as you can see.” She tugged at her own shirt. “Kavaa is very professional and formal.” Maisara turned to Kavaa, Of Health once again shrugged. Her shoulders were starting to get tired at this point.
“What?” Maisara asked. “Fucking score cards? Are you serious? Kavaa?”
“This is the first time I hear of it.”
Maisara shook her head. “Don’t… I’ll… It’s not important. I meant armour as in vehicles. Tanks? Artillery?”
“Oh.” Fer said. Was she being annoying? Was it genuine? Kavaa couldn’t tell. “You can submit your designs if you make them for your own troops. If not, you get what Kassie hands out.” Maisara turned to Kavaa, an eyebrow arched in expectation.
“Don’t even ask.” Of Health replied as she shrugged.
“I have to, what do you use?”
“Local commanders organise it.”
“And you don’t train your men to use armour?”
“Most of them are veterans.” Kavaa answered. Maisara took a deep breath.
“But…” Maisara began, then trailed off. She put her wait on the table. “Alright…” She said. “Can we… just the integration Kavaa. Just let us organise our Orders and then that’s it. Nothing more.” Kavaa turned from the Goddess of Order to the Goddess of Beasthood.
She had never seen Maisara defeated like that.
Fer was a monster.