While the situation in Dregux worsened, the action elsewhere in the Hadarian theatre was just starting to worsen also. Just north of Dregux Wing Admiral Therathel Avalorn waited to enact a plan to possibly rid the Southern waters of a small Sendrassian flotilla that had been patrolling the strait between Dregux and Bhoszaal. With confidence, Tehrathel plots to sail his personal ship up and over the northside of the small island west of Dregux with the wind in his favor in the hopes of potentially baiting the flotilla in more preferential waters for the Regalian ships to take advantage of. Saddeningly, this did not go the way the Wing Admiral had hoped and the Sendrassian Navy proved far too cunning to walk into such a blatant trapping attempt. The Sendrassian ships didn’t bother to fire a shot at the single ship, instead shooting flares into the sky which prompted the single ship to return to the thirteen warship navy in the North. This resulted in ten additional ships moving to reinforce the original 7 Sendrassian ones which now prepared themselves in formation for a proper attack. “We’ve been had!” the captain of the single vessel proclaimed as it settled beside the Avalorn flagship, prompting the crew members in the crowsnest to flag down the other warships to alert them to the possibility of a counter assault. Fearing the worst, the ships moved to engage nonetheless to prevent any additional ships from joining the Sendrassian navy to prevent a large armada forming that could potentially put the battles occurring in Dregux even more at risk. The Wing Admiral raised a hand, signalling to the skipper in the warship to their portside to signal to the Avalorn’s other 12 warships into an attack formation to take on the gathering Sendrassian fleet. Once the Regalian ships curved the bend they caught sight of the 17 warships which had organised into a battleline. The ensuing battle was rough and despite Avalorn’s skill as an Admiral, many of the Regalian Warships caught in the volleys suffered moderate damage with many casualties, forcing the Admiral to flee from the waters with 5 ships less than when he had started the skirmish and having only sunk 3 of the Sendrassian ones. While the Generals further south fought for their lives and Empire, the situation was less tense on the Island of Zzonzeer. Field General Cinna Eledhwen left her tent that morning after having instructed her officers with a confident gait, eyeing the work and fortifications that had been constructed on the Zzonzeer over the last 13 weeks. She had been praised for it earlier on in the campaign but recently the General had received a lot of criticism both on the front and at home. Her officers left the base camp tent soon after Cinna did, some sneering and muttering between themselves. This was not a new experience for her either, as this had become rather routine amongst the many soldiers totalling 26,000 that had been stationed on the Island and under Cinna’s control. As the Officers made their way to the camps and fortifications, the surrounding soldiers all stood, eager to finally hear that they’d be seeing combat. Instead, they were informed by the Eledhwen cabinet that they’d be leaving Zzonzeer to fortify another Island even further away from the fighting. “Are you bloody serious?” “My brother is in Dregux fighting! Dying while I sit here on my arse!” “Eledhwen is a Spirit be damned coward!” voices rang out. Some of the higher ranking soldiers rode in on their horses and did their best to calm down the hundreds of soldiers who were firmly against this decision but more outcry was made. “We’re soldiers, not work slaves!” “If I wanted to build for a living I’d have become a carpenter in Rumvalia!” “Maybe the General should dig a hole herself then crawl in it, the poxxy fool!”. It became increasingly obvious that the morale in the Eledhwen camp was at an all time low and come nightfall things were about to get even worse. Ahsozhel Ssalerzyra was the first to be woken up in the commotion that engulfed the entire camp. Horses galloped down rows of tents fleeing the loud explosions coming from the forested areas. Her and Ingemar jumped to their feet and ran outside, watching as a few trees in the distance burnt in the inferno that was erupting. Both Ahsozhel and Ingemar had little time to think before being roped into a group with Hudil Eledhwen and Humaira Reinard who commanded their battalions and charged for the forest to engage in the unknown foe that was the cause of the whole mess but found that there was absolutely no one to be found. Quickly and swiftly, the group with Fathiyaa Nasir Al Ramoran, Joasaie Lloablen and Lindara Eledhwen, Field General Cinna Eledhwen’s top field Commanders rounded up some of the soldiers to help ferry water from the shoreline to douse and put out the fires where they could. As the hours passed, it became increasingly obvious that the commotion had been a distraction and the explosions small amounts of gunpowder that had been ignited to create a distraction. Cinna had Joasaie and Lindara perform a headcount and her theory was proven right -- Deserters. Almost 3,000 Regalian Soldiers utilised the commotion to abandon the island to either return home on passing Allar merchant ships or transports that were heading back to Regalia. Some also might have escaped to other warzones to fight and were likely to pop up again later down the line but it was clear that Cinna was on thin ice with her men. Even those whom stuck around for the trip to Varsoss filed official complaints with the Grand Marshal, who was under even more pressure from the Imperial Marshal to see something done about the complacency of one of the medium sized armies in the deployment zone. Nevertheless, the remaining 17,000 soldiers arrived in Varsoss with no issue but took their sweet time surveying the land before fortifications could be made due to their lowered morale. Field General Markus Delmotte secures the Island of Bhoszzhaal from further invasion, stationing his army of 30,000 on beachhead fortifications that are overseen and reinforced by Markus’s fortification expert Wulf Grofsmid, with the assistance of Lazarus Lupenzi, the later of which ensures regular patrols throughout each encampment to maintain security and guide regular training exercises to ensure the morale of the troops remains in tip top condition. With very little action for the time being, the encampments become ripe with gossip and whispers, with news spreading fast of disgruntled opinions forming by the soldiers against some of the Generals stationed in the front, Eledhwen being the primary point of contention but surprisingly, some not too happy about Latimer, Mac Conall and interestingly enough, Delmotte himself. Between patrols, Lyonel Deceres and Kyazza My-Vyzal hear thoughts from the soldiers gathered around campfires amidst small kaffee gatherings that Delmotte seems to care little about the soldiers themselves and that his station in the military remains untested. Subtle mentions are made in relation to a perceived disconnect and some even find Delmotte untrustworthy and cruel from rumors they heard from back in the capital. Deceres and My-Vyzal find it to mostly be inconsequential to the soldiers overall morale in wanting to win the war, but there was clearly some strife when it came to their General’s character that didn’t settle well with the men and women on the front. Nevertheless, the patrols switch out and the soldiers continue marching on their merry way. Mercenaries spread out along the beaches, mingling with the soldiers and play games with them in their downtime, sharing stories of their families back home and Wintertide plans that were clearly not going to be happening for them. Lockets with cameos are shared around, showing off loved ones, wives and brothers, all of which would be missed during the holidays in the best case scenarios, while others receive letters from up in the Military pipeline informing them that relatives had been lost in the battles prior. Abad Hussaini overhears the weeping of one younger soldier from within one of the encampment and takes the opportunity to console him, a boy no younger than seventeen, after he discovers his older brother had perished in the failed attack on Digmaan Deridess during the Battle of Mumungaan. The war was leaving its effect on everyone and the true nature of what was actually going on became blatantly apparent during the troops' downtime when the heat of battle cooled and humanity settled back in. Atop his horse, Field General Delmotte would peruse the battlements, sidling down the narrow lanes of the vast encampments. Quiet befell most soldiers for fear of upsetting the ambience or causing some sort of outburst from Markus himself. Some soldiers saluted, others did not, some didn’t even know how to properly interact with the Highborn and relinquished themselves to a deathly silence for safety’s sake. What was known to the General though was things were far too quiet. Spirit, way too quiet. Glancing out over the beach and the ocean off yonder, the faint impressions of sails dotted the horizon, absent of the traditional Regalian standard. Elsewhere in the Hadarian Archipelago, dozens of Regalian transport vessels finally make land on the Great Island Chain of Mozzatozzalorataal. One by one the hulls of these great hulking metal vessels opened and thousands of soldiers poured onto the sands of the large landmass in droves; immediately setting up station on the beachhead while the Field Marshal Rodrigo Peirgarten himself descended from the flagship and into the fray. His cabinet was met by a delegation from the Digmaan Raazkyit who authorised Rodrigo to begin making preparations for an oncoming attack that the Allar residents were made aware of from their scouts earlier that week. Fearing that time was of the essence, Rodrigo delegated Cro-Maarx to overseeing encampment preparations alongside his kinsman and Field Commander Florian Peirgarten, who were able to successfully deduce that the most likely avenue for assault would occur in a small bay juxtaposed to one of the larger trade cities in that region. 20,000 soldiers were immediately put to task, helping arrange tents, distribution of rations and constructing make shift fortifications, though weaker than what could be found on the other islands due to lack of anyone in Rodrigo’s cabinet having any sort of fortification expertise. Preliminary assessments and arrangements are left by the wayside as the island is deemed far too large to possibly have active patrol routes without dedicating a maximum of five soldiers to each road, trade route, village, town and city. Instead, Field Commanders Mosmo Duviri and Boromar Gyshara are sent to the capital of the Island Chain to attempt to gather additional intel on the Island’s weak points, further proving Cro-Maarx and Florians assessment that the Sendrassians, if smart, will attack the weak point in the south. What's more, it was discovered that reports had been coming in relating to local fishing boats disappearing and entire Hadarian Battle vessels just vanishing without a trace. Mosmo theorizes it was likely maritime raiders but the reports detail loud, bellowing noises in the black of night coming from the ocean waves which understandably sends a shiver down Boromar’s back. Nevertheless, the return to the encampment with this information where they rendezvous with Eilaria and Noelle Peirgarten, the latter of which was doing routine health checks on some of the soldiers that had been transferred to the Field Marshal’s army from other fronts that had recently seen conflict. With none forthcoming anytime soon, Rodrigo bunkers down, preparing and remaining alert for flagships on the horizon.
