The Great War: Chapter 3
Ripples cannot be stopped
“War?”
“That’s the word.”
Cassie lets out a hum as she holds up her crystal glass, inspecting the red wine inside. She’s come quite a long way from her years being a pickpocket for a living. A very long way.
“Tell me, Mitch,” she says, “how is this my concern?”
Mitch shifts uncomfortably in her peripheral vision. He has certainly come a long way as well, though he’s far from the top like Cassie. He’s got nicer clothes, though his outfits have stayed true to his street ware of years past. However, the left side of his face sports a rather large burn scar. Otherwise, he doesn’t look any more different than when she was a child.
Maybe she had a hand in his appearance, though.
“Smuggling is going to get harder, but it’ll be much more profitable,” he replies. “And more beings may seek refuge in bars after dusk, especially those who will spend time on the front lines.”
Cassie sighs through her nose and takes a sip of her wide. It’s cool and smooth, not to mention fruity.
“What a world,” she mutters to herself. She’s one of the largest investors in the smuggling industry. For the most part, they’ve been a rather stable way to gain a small boost of iron with only one or two occasional failures. She still has a few bars and escort services at her disposal which allows her to not worry about the smuggling income. However, the war simply means she must be careful in which expeditions she provides funds to.
“There have been reports of growing hostility towards magic users across many islands,” Mitch adds. “Some figures of the underworld have even gone missing in recent times as-”
Cassie rolls her head to face Mitch, her expression flat. Her right hand quickly falls silent and stands ridged, fear overtaking his expression.
“Did I ask for any of that information?” she asks.
“N-No, but… it’s related, isn’t it?” Mitch stammers.
Cassie stands from her chair, setting down her wine glass on a small side table next to her, and steps up to Mitch. The two stare at each other in silence, Cassie relishing in his fearful stupor.
She cracks a sly smile and raises a hand, placing her index finger under Mitch’s chin. His head lifts ever so slightly, inhaling sharply as he prepares himself for what’s to come next.
Cassie’s nail blazes to life, small red flames flickering gently. They lick Mitch’s skin, tickling him with their heat. He grits his teeth to combat the flames, though his icy chill will eventually be no match for her fire. It’s only a matter of time.
“You know how I run my operations, Mitch,” she hums, digging her nail into his skin. “No amount of discourse or disappearances will put a stop to the underworld. Not if they’re paid to put their opinions aside for a few… transactions.”
In fact, the disappearances may work in her favor in the long run. They create power gaps that are just waiting to be filled. And with war on the horizon, she doubts that there will be fighting competition to fill those positions.
If she doesn’t make the wrong moves, she can quite possibly become the queen of the Astria underworld.
She laughs in Mitch’s face, much to his confusion. She steps away from her right hand and twirls around the room like a child with a plate of sweetleafs all to themselves.
“Oh, this is wonderful, Mitch!” she cackles.
“It… is?” he mutters back quietly.
“Think about how much we can expand!” she replies, spreading her arms wide. “We can take over the underworld in one fell swoop! Besides, I’ve always wanted to be a queen…” She giggles as she pretends to crown herself. Yes, she’s always wanted to be a queen.
“Are you not concerned for when the war ends?” Mitch speaks up.
“That’s the most intelligent question I’ve heard you pose all cycle,” Cassie replies, her excitement draining out of her all at once. That’s the only issue she’s been neglecting to give much thought to.
Wizards versus Guardians. On the surface, there is little chance for the wizards to win. Then again, fate could turn in their favor, and the Guardians could be wiped off the face of Astria altogether. She has no clue how life will be post-war. It really all depends on who claims victory and what actions they will take afterwards.
Mitch also mentioned a growing hostility towards wizards. That is certainly bad indeed. Cassie has done many nefarious things to get to where she is, and she couldn’t have done any of it without her magic. If she were possibly forced to hide her magic, she may lose her entire empire, and the underworld will be in shambles. If she were to go into deep hiding… well, it’d just be a matter of time before she would get caught. And that’s not even considering the fact that crime crackdowns may get stronger post-war anyways, no matter who wins or loses.
She lets out a frustrated sigh. It’s too many nebulous factors and what-ifs to make any certain long-term decisions.
“Let us remain business-as-usual for the time being,” she finally speaks. “And if there are any opportunities to expand, take them. While they have their ship battles on the tides of the ocean, I’m sure infighting will arise under the waves. We must be ready to defend our own empire. We will worry about the outcome of the surface war when it happens.”
Mitch simply nods in agreement.
“Just breathe, Yumi,” Jae urges her friend. Her and her friend, Yumi, are sitting around the backside of the small infirmary tent. Yumi gasps for air as she hyperventilates in panic, with Jae unable to do anything but pat her back gently.
Inside the tent, healers are rushing around taking inventory of their supplies. Arrangements are being made to expand the infirmary as well, bring in new beds and bolster storage space for extra medical supplies. The order from the castle came without warning, and now every being is panicking like crazy.
Yumi took the news the worst. She pretty much collapsed in the middle of the infirmary when she was told, and has been struggling to catch her breath since.
It may also be because of the fact that Yumi was recently nominated to be the head healer of the infirmary, and it’s all but confirmed that she’ll get the position. Her involvement at the infirmary has gone leaps and bounds beyond what was expected of her, stepping up into leadership positions whenever possible. Jae is happy that she’s going to become head healer, but no doubt it’ll be even more stressful to keep the infirmary running smoothly with a war on the way.
“I can’t… I can’t…” Yumi mutters between breaths, shaking her head furiously.
“Yumi,” Jae sighs back, “you’re more qualified for this than I am. Why are you panicking?”
“It’s a war, Jae!” Yumi cries. “How are you so calm?”
Jae wraps her arm around Yumi’s shoulders, thinking of a response to give. She is worried about the war declaration. The entirety of Eros is on edge. It’s pretty hard not to be concerned about it. It means a lot of death and horrific injuries the likes of which they’ve never had to see or deal with before. It’s a sight she’s not looking forward to seeing.
“Panic does nothing,” she finally replies, “but make everything more chaotic.”
Yumi takes a deep breath, finally swallowing her distress.
“Right…” she mutters quietly. “You’re right.”
Jae just smiles. “Well, one of us needs to keep their head on straight.”
“I’m more worried about the infirmary. How it’s going to operate, how full it’ll be on any given cycle, and how the healers will even handle everything…”
“Being the head healer must be quite demanding as it is without a war.”
Yumi nods. “I’ve only been getting a taste for the mountain of work I’ll be doing. The last thing I need is a war.”
“A war is the last thing any being needs right now,” Jae adds.
“Yeah, I know.”
“At least you seem to be doing better now.”
Yumi rolls her eyes and sits up straight to gain some ounce of composure. “Yes, well, I dislike surprises like this. And… panic only makes things more chaotic.”
“Gee, I wonder who said that,” Jae chuckles.
The two healers stand and brush off their clothes. Yumi’s ears twitch in irritation, or maybe it’s impatience. It’s hard to really tell.
“Okay,” she breathes, “so materials for expansion will be arriving sometime next cycle, along with extra shelves. I believe there are a few healers looking into obtaining more salves and bandages. I’ll need to ask around about that.”
“I heard that the extra cots are coming before dusk,” Jae adds helpfully. “We’ll stack them and move them inside for the night, then spread them out when we get the infirmary expanded.”
“We might need some wood for sturdy flooring,” Yumi hums. “There’s not much space for us to expand already, and evening out the dirt will be more effort than it may be worth and may also take far too long to complete before the injured start to arrive.”
“I believe my mother knows a being who may be willing to supply some planks.”
“Good, go ask about that then.” Yumi runs a hand through her hair, fingers passing between her ears. “Next cycle is going to be very chaotic.”
“All we can do now is prepare the best we can,” Jae nods simply. “You’ll be a fine head healer, Yumi.”
“Well, I’d not be here if it weren’t for you, Jae,” Yumi chuckles halfheartedly.
“What can I say? We’re the perfect team,” Jae replies with a smile.
There’s no pair better than them. Whatever Yumi forgets, Jae remembers. Whatever Jae is distracted by, Yumi is there to fill in for her. They were both giving nominations, actually, but Yumi only won because she’s a little more involved with the inner-workings of the infirmary than Jae. But in Jae’s eyes, they both won the position.
“Well, tasks don’t facilitate themselves,” Jae says, gesturing to the infirmary’s tent wall next to them. “I’m sure there’s plenty of beings waiting on you.”
“Already?” Yumi asks with a smile. She places her hands on her hips, her confidence returned. “Right, I think I’m ready to get back to work now. Thanks, Jae.”