Accursed Wars of Immortalis

Chapter 1: Chaos Effect

"I hope you slept well, Walgen, young Flann," he said, "Are you ready?"

"I am," she responded.

Walgen and Caron had also been trapped along with Flann, in the Sea of Flames, which formed a bond that none who haven't been cursed would understand.

"Well, then, I need you to distribute supplies," said Caron, "We received some during the night. We were lucky to get some at all. The caravan was delayed by a bandit attack. I wish that those thugs would understand what is a stake in this war. If only we could have taken a road to get to Kriesgrab, we might have avoided this trouble."

They parted ways. Walgen and Caron had tasks of their own.

Flann reached one of the largest tents. Inside were most of their supplies, including those that had been delivered. She knew the routine; other priests and priestesses had gone to assess how many supplies were needed and where they were needed most. They would come back with lists and Flann would give them an amount proportionate to their needs. It would often happen that there were not enough supplies for everyone, which is why she needed to know how much they had.

She began taking inventory. To her dismay, quite a few sets of bandages had been soiled with blood, most likely during the bandit attack. Those would not do. She put them aside to be burned later. She counted everything: bandages, bottles of alcohol, food rations, surgical tools and catalysts. Some of the food rations were soiled as well. She had finished with the inventory by the time the first priest arrived.

"I need thirty bandage rolls, twelve bottles of alcohol, enough food for sixty, for three days, and give me six catalysts."

She gave him twenty five bandage rolls, six bottles of alcohol, food for fifty for three days and six catalysts.

The priest sighed when he noticed the quantities.

"Dear Maiden, I pray to thee. Enlighten those pitiful bandits, so that we may have the supplies we need to protect humanity."

They loaded the supplies onto a horse-drawn cart outside the tent. The priest blessed Flann and departed. Three more came in the next half hour. They too, received less supplies than what they needed, aside for catalysts. There were always more magic catalysts than people skilled in magic. The inhabitants of a valley to the west, past the Ashen Peaks, were exporting an absurd number of catalysts made of precious metals, such as lunerum, aurum and even platinum, which was very lucrative for them. They would do much more good if they exported the same number in bandage rolls or built more distilleries for alcohol.

She attended to this task for the entire morning. She could hear people outside taking down the tents. They would be leaving soon.

Walgen came to see her. He took her in his arms.

"How is the inventory?" he asked.

"Not as bad as it could be. It was worse last week," she muttered, "It can't be that bad again; we cannot afford it. Many would die if that would happen again."

He agreed, but she knew better than he. She had been treating the wounded that time. Many had perished from infections; there had been too many infections to treat them all with healing magic and not enough alcohol to disinfect their wounds and too few clean bandages.

Shortly before midday, Luxurite soldiers came to take down the supply tent, which was almost empty. Few remained of the essential supplies, no more than an emergency stock. A few crates of catalysts stood in the centre. They loaded these onto a cart, last.

Flann joined her peers, who were having a small meal before the war-band would depart. She was given her ration, which she ate voraciously. She could not remember the last time she had a real meal; she had been eating rations ever since she was rescued from the Realm of Chaos. Rations usually had a chunk of gynesis root, which had to be cooked over a fire, or boiled in water. The root tasted strong and bitter, but was highly nutritional. The rest of the ration consisted of a few small dried fruit, a small piece of smoked and over-salted meat, and a piece of seasoned bread, which, had it not been cooked into a hard block for preservation reasons, would have been the most pleasant part of the meal. She did not complain; few were lucky to have meat and fruit in times of war, which was reserved for those who needed the best nourishment possible – magic users.

After the priests and priestesses had finished eating, the fire was extinguished. Luxurite soldiers and legionnaires gathered. High Priest Caron was at the head of the formation, along with the Luxurite leader of the war-band, Kemp of Stoickson, ranked a Cadleder, and esteemed military commander. Cadleder Kemp gave a signal and the war-band, four hundred strong, marched forward.