A Jaded Life

When looking at the compound of Lorgar's merry band of sun-worshipping lunatics at a relatively short distance, I couldn't help but be impressed. Sure, I thought these people were completely and utterly insane, but that didn't change the fact that they had built something huge. Not tall or monumental, like my towers were, but a wide, sprawling complex, with numerous cleared fields. To make matters even more impressive, they were somehow able to control the environment to the point that a few of their fields were filled with golden wheat, while the countryside was buried in snow. It had to be some sort of symbol, or a message to anyone looking at their compound, a physical demonstration of their power and security.

After all, if you could grow a whole field of grain in the middle of winter, you'd always be able to harvest more, at least that's how I interpreted the symbolism. Sure, I might very well be wrong, who knew what went on in the sun-burned brains of these fanatics, but I didn't think I was. These fields of wheat were too obvious and, just as importantly, I could see other areas, fields that lay fallow and were covered in snow. Most likely, they could control the environment of these few fields, keeping them clear of snow and reasonably warm, but they couldn't do so for all their fields. Still, it was an impressive feat, and I was curious how it worked, even if I was willing to bet that the answer would be some sort of divine shenanigans. Not something I could replicate, at least not consciously, but I wanted to investigate nonetheless.

And that was where I had the biggest problem. I had no idea what magical protections these people might have on their compound. Or protections in general, the martial behaviour I could observe from my location, about a kilometre away from their compound, made that obvious. These people demonstrated great discipline and self-regulation. I could see groups of twelve move around together, marching in tight formation.

Never more than twelve, never less, always those three rows of four people, moving in literal lock-step. They all wore the same uniform, made from a coarse, brown fabric, and some of these groups were armed. All with the same weapons —spears and shields —though, luckily, the armed people were in the minority. It was pretty eerie —their synchronicity making them seem more like automatons than people —but I could see their breath mist in the cold air. These were people; they had just given up their individuality to become part of something bigger. I couldn't imagine a worse fate, and yet, from what I could see, numerous people had embraced this fate, forming a massive community here in the mountains.

It was difficult to estimate just how many people this group had. I could see over fifty large buildings, though some might be barns. Still, there had to be hundreds, maybe even a thousand, people down there, showing just how pervasive and convincing Lorgar was. It was, quite frankly, the largest community of humans I had seen since the change, and that made me somewhat uncomfortable.

In addition to the long buildings that could be some sort of longhouse or a barn, I could see several smaller buildings, some of which I could recognise. There was a smithy, a mill, something I thought was a tanning hut on the outskirts and other recognisable craft shops I had seen on Mundus. This wasn't just some struggling group of survivors clinging together; it was becoming a civilisation, led by a fanatic and devoted to a deity I had been in conflict with before.

My expedient and efficient mind suggested dealing with them immediately. It was winter, and if I waited until night fell, I could try to sneak in, relying on my stealth and the cover of the night to find out where they stored their food and then I could strike. Destroy their food, maybe kill their leadership and leave the rest to figure things out on their own. Afterwards, I'd likely step through the shadows, grab my daughters and return to the Nexus Tower, letting nature take its course here. The vast majority of these people would die without the food they had stored for the winter, solving this problem and preventing a hostile power from rising further.

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However, I knew they would attack the other communities in the area if that happened. People didn't just roll over and starve if their food was destroyed; they did whatever they needed to get more food. Some would try their hand at hunting, but the rest, those who knew about the other communities in the area? They would go out and forcibly take the food they needed. Given that, even now, I could see five of those twelve-person squads, each moving in perfect formation, this would create a massive bandit problem, with numerous roving bands roaming the countryside, taking all the food. Some would likely get destroyed in the fighting, or other issues could crop up. Ultimately, destroying their food would likely doom everyone in this region. Hel, even removing their command structure risked destabilisation and turning the disciplined fanatics into a large-scale bandit operation, especially if destroying their command structure also destroyed their ability to influence the environment and grow the crops they needed.

It was curious. I could see the easy path right in front of me, with only a few potential issues. The obvious question was whether they had set up some sort of defensive magic to protect their home. Some kind of blessing, giving them sanctuary and shelter, protecting their community from outsiders trying to sneak in —it was possible, especially if the protection was anchored in the faith of Sunna. Setting up something that would react if someone not inducted into the faith entered their area wouldn't be overly complicated. I was confident in my ability to conceal myself from mortal eyes, but keeping a divine ward from noticing my presence? That was an entirely different question.

To make matters worse, I realised that the curse Lady Sunna had placed upon the Legacy of Morgana was still active. Sure, it had largely ceased to matter in my everyday life; my magic had grown to the point that I could shield myself from the Sun whenever I needed, but the curse was still there. Could I be utterly confident that Lady Sunna wouldn't use that lingering curse to strike at me directly if I decided to wipe out a large community of her followers?

I had heard that there were deals between deities in place, but I had no idea how binding those truly were. Were they air-tight, or were they more like those between countries before the change? Only binding as long as both parties were roughly equal in power, but discarded if a good enough reason came along. Would those deals protect me at all, given that I was only associated with Lady Hecate and not one of her followers, and how would my own, burgeoning divinity play into things there?

Closing my eyes, I conjured up a scrying construct, deciding to start testing their defences with my usual means. The construct was made from shadow, ice and wind, and the bound spirit allowed me to control it indirectly, adding a layer of separation that would hopefully insulate me from any backlash.

The raven immediately took flight, while I watched through an orb of conjured shadow. It wasn't as good as controlling the raven directly and sending my mind along for the ride, but it made sure that any serious defences would destroy the shadow without harming me in the process. It was a tried and true method, and it didn't take long for me to be greatly relieved and glad that I had taken this particular step.

Once the raven was over their community and dropped below forty metres in altitude, the shadow started to unravel, fading away like mist in the morning sun. I could feel an overwhelming presence simply push my magic away, far too powerful for me to resist. They had magical defences, that much was obvious, and I had no idea how they worked, to what they reacted or if I could overcome them.

With so many questions and issues, I had to reconsider the idea of openly attacking the compound here. If I wanted to keep the issue contained, it would be better to provide a counterpoint to the growing power here. Help the locals to gather strength of their own, train them in arcane magic or introduce them to different deities who could offer them alternatives to the rigid structure Lorgar created in this camp.

Letting out a sigh, I stepped back, letting myself drop off the tree I had been sitting in for a few hours, studying their layout. This would take a lot more effort than simply waltzing in and burying them all in snow. Now, I just had to figure out how to make this happen without getting myself into serious trouble.