Exile cursed as he glanced around at the other leaders in The Raider's Horn. Everyone wore solemn expressions, having already heard how things were going from those who retreated earlier. 'They came too fast! I thought it would take time before we saw anything from that war!' Exile was livid that Parthus had chosen to attack when he did.
They were already trying to keep a low profile while dealing with the Civil War, but now Sommerdan invaders were threatening their shores as well. 'Parthus... who the hell are you?' Exile wracked his memories, but could find no information about a player who used that name. 'He's definitely someone worth knowing about. It has to be an alias.
"How do we deal with this? We're already hearing some talk on the streets that other places have been attacked as well." Noslin cocked an eyebrow at Exile while letting out a sigh.
"I don't know..." Exile shook his head as he slammed a fist on the table, making it creak. "I thought we could use them to trap the ruling faction between us and them. But if they're coming from different landing points, that will be almost impossible. Our NPCs will want to deal with them before they can ruin their homes."
The other leaders contemplated the matter for some time and offered a few suggestions, but all of them were weak or had obvious flaws. Unfortunately, the Sommerdan invasion had just come at the wrong time. 'Maybe we need to work with the ruling faction for now... Obtain a temporary truce or something...'
It was the only thing that Exile could think of for the moment. Weakening the other Pantheons in the face of a mass invasion was not a smart move, as they would need everyone they could get. 'How do we go about it, though? I don't think the other side is working together so it would take time to convince them to work together.'
"We're going to have to split into two groups. One to deal with the civil war and one to deal with this invasion." The leader of Greenhouse Pantheon declared as she glanced around the table. "Most of you are probably thinking we should unite with the ruling faction, but they could use that to stab us in the back. Exile, you were right in thinking of using them against each other. You just didn't consider that to make it work. We have to shrink our own area of interest to something we can defend. Then let the Sommerdans and ruling faction weaken each other."
Exile frowned as he studied her. Her bright green bob hairstyle was vivid against her dark skin. "If we give up on those territories now, we'll be putting a lot of strain on our remaining ones. They'll have to produce enough to sustain so many refugees. Not only that, but who here will willingly ask their NPCs to relocate?"
The leaders began to glance nervously at each other upon hearing what Exile had to say. It was clear that none of them wanted to bring that news to their followers. After all, they would have to travel across treacherous regions full of wildlife and enemies to reach those places decided as safe zones.
"Why don't we get a map and find out where everyone is exactly. The territories that are the closest together will be used by the alliance and anyone outside of it will have to migrate. I think that should be fair, right?" Noslin suggested.
There were a few complaints, but it was the best course of action they could come up with for now. Midas soon scurried over with a large map of Skardia, that marked where everyone's territories were and a problem soon appeared.
'There are nine kingdoms in Skardia.' Exile frowned as he studied the map. 'Even my own members are spread all over the place. I can't ask them to travel that far to bring everyone together.'
It would take months in the game to bring everyone into the areas most densely populated by their Pantheons. Glancing over it, Exile spotted that Eraldsfen, Korden, Clay and Burri's territories all fell within that area. But everyone else was scattered outside of it. Exile let out a deep sigh as he stared at the map.
"Ok, we can all see that nobody in particular benefits from gathering in the kingdoms of Stormcrown, Harlcarf and Ulvog. Most of our Pantheons have a good presence in these three, while the other six clearly hold more people from the ruling factions anyway. Once we gather, we'll cleanse these kingdoms and turn them into allies that border each other. Think of it as one giant fortress in the Mortal Realms." Exile declared as Noslin nodded to show her support despite her own people being outside of these kingdoms.
"Once we're all gathered, we should have a large enough force to patrol the borders. This will be easier since we won't have to worry about our friendly neighbours, minimising the area we need to protect." Noslin added as she traced the borders to show one big circle that ignored the areas where the three kingdoms met each other. She hesitated for a bit as her finger reached a large mountain chain in the west of Stormcrown.
"We can ignore that. It's a natural barrier against whatever is on the other side. Those settled in Stormcrown can send extra troops to Harlcarf and Ulvog to shore up their defences." Exile stated as he saw her hesitation.
"Ok, so that's the plan..." Noslin nodded as a serious expression set on her face. "Head to whatever of these kingdoms is closest to you. Try to meet up with each other for added protection during the journey. Maybe those in these territories can send troops out to meet you as well. You'll have to plan the supplies you'll need, especially if you're far away. You can ask us if you need help, like supplies to meet your people along the road. We'll do everything we can to make this happen and protect your followers."
"Bring your members up here to study the map and explain the situation. Those who are within the kingdoms should have their followers start to build settlements or extend their current villages and towns for a population boom. Try to find out how many more people your villages and such can realistically sustain as well. We'll probably have to split them up and spread them out a fair bit so we don't cause the territories to collapse from overconsumption of resources." Exile added in a grim tone.
"Make no mistake. This is a huge undertaking and will definitely cause a lot of interest. Just by doing this, the ruling faction Pantheons are certain to find out we're on the move. They'll try to target you on the road if they're not too busy dealing with Sommerdan." Noslin sighed as she glanced at the grim expressions of those who would face the most danger. "They're bound to figure out that we're all working together and that we are actively coordinating to increase our chances. Unfortunately, this is the hand that we've been dealt. It's not ideal to reveal our alliance at this point, but there's no other choice."
"Ok, get moving!" Exile commanded before anyone could raise any objections.
In a group like that one that was full of leaders, a stern voice was needed to make them listen. Otherwise, it would have dissolved into chaos with everyone arguing points to hold their own current territories instead. Exile moved away from the table to allow the other leaders to get their members in and explain the plan.
As expected, there was some discontent among the normal members, but everyone seemed level-headed enough to understand their grim situation. This was for their very survival. Exile and Clay spoke to the Ragnarok members and clearly explained why it was necessary before waiting for a gap to show their affected members which routes they should take.
Naturally, it was decided to gather the entire Pantheon in Stormcrown and turn it into a massive stronghold for their Pantheon's followers. The other leaders did not object to this, as it would open more space in the other two kingdoms so they could gather their own followers to one area as well. There was no point in competing for followers against each other when they had to rely on each other's strength as it was.
Exile's eyes narrowed on the map as the plans were laid out for their exodus when a thought struck him. 'Beans' villagers will have to come through this path in the mountains to reach Stormcrown... If Parthus doesn't catch up, he might follow them right to us!' a frown appeared on Exile's face as he looked at the layout of the mountain path. 'Maybe we'll get the opportunity to deal a heavy blow to his invasion if he doesn't let them go...'
Exile's eyes fixated on a specific part of the mountain road before a grin appeared on his face...