Chapter 42: Chapter 42 : Understanding The Board (Part 2)

Preparation.

One couldn’t always bank on making the best moves in the heat of the moment. Preparation was key to raising one’s odds, and when especially thorough, one could win off preparation alone. Rei understood the importance of preparation very well. Dozens of his chess games had been won using preparation alone. Once his opponents entered the lines he prepared, the match was effectively over.

Just like Rei, Caelus understood the importance of preparation as well.

The five-year period allowed Caelus to prepare very deeply.

Alongside the usual concerns like arming the soldiers, organizing logistics, and gathering supplies, he made use of some unconventional tactics. He had his forces infiltrate many nations and spread his message of unification. At the same time, he had made many backroom deals with various powers and factions.

The one that was most pertinent to mention was the Radiant Church - or rather the Western Radiant Church.

The Radiant Church, after a dozen or so Holy Wars, had managed to consolidate itself into two branches, the Eastern and Western branches. Both sides had been in a deadlock for a hundred years by that point, and both wanted to swallow the other up. However, the existing kingdoms hadn’t been too eager to aid either one. Most were still hurting from the most recent Holy War.

Caelus saw this as a golden opportunity and reached out to the Western branch, meeting with Pope Diago Vunrogo himself. The Pope took to the idea but said he would only throw his lot in after Caelus showed some results.

Moving around the world, Caelus engaged in many such deals, utilizing every method available to materialize the future he envisioned. His invisible strings wrapped around many world powers' figures and then began a sublime manipulation.

Preparation complete, the Bellusian Army hit their first target, the nation of Setsuna. The southernmost tip of Inis was a perfect target. Not having to worry about being attacked on all sides, the Bellusian Army struck.

Starting with the town of Revona, he and the forces moved swiftly, effortlessly conquering place after place. Setsuna fell in less than fifty days.

Caelus kept the ball rolling, and victories rolled his way one after the other. Nations fell like dominoes under his forces’ unstoppable momentum. The idea of world conquest began seeming less likely by the day as the victories continued to pile up.

Over and over, battle was fought and won. With each successful conquest, his name and message spread wider and wider. People and factions saw his meteoric rise and hopped on his bandwagon, snowballing his troops and reputation. Some liked his message while others did it for their own self-interest. Caelus didn’t care either way. Anything that would shorten the distance between himself and his goal was welcomed. After four nations were under his belt, the Western branch made good on their word.

Actually, they went a step further. The Western branch’s Pope had gone as far as to dub him Raiken’s Apostle. He stated that Caelus was sent by the Divine himself to correct the world's errors and that Caelus' inhuman talents and mismatched eyes were proof of Raiken's divine blessing.

This statement sent a great ripple throughout all of Inis. In a time as hyper-religious as those days, it was extraordinarily helpful to Caelus’ cause.

While he didn’t believe it to be true, Caelus leaned hard into the idea. He performed many 'impossible' feats; magic tricks, illusions, and displaying his incredibly mental prowess; he used everything he could to sell the idea.

His most noteworthy trick was undoubtedly Raiken’s Lightning Sword.

One of the Radiant Church’s long traditions was for would-be Bishops, Archbishops, and Popes to stroll through the Teravour Mountains. This place was incredibly storm-prone. Passing from one end to the other through a storm without dying was seen as Raiken giving his blessing.

Caelus decided to give this a go himself, but instead of crossing from one end to the other, he decided to take a more unconventional path. He declared that he would stay in the middle of the storm for an entire day and not suffer a single scratch. The claim was shocking and naturally drew attention. It was made into a big event; countless souls made the trip to see whether his so-called divinity was real.

The event arrived. When two million eyes were on him and the storm was especially fierce, Caelus, brimming with his usual self-confidence, moved toward the dark clouds. What was noteworthy was the large cinquedea-like sword resting on his back. The dark purple gem embedded at the base of the triangular blade attracted many gazes.

With this strange sword, Caelus entered the middle of the storm. Finding a grass patch, he drew his sword and stabbed it into the dirt. He straightened his posture and rested his hands on the large pommel. Shutting his eyes, serenity washed over him. This pose, which would later become iconic, was held for the next twenty-four hours.

It was said that many hearts were moved as he assumed the pose. What was more moving though, came not even five seconds later. A bolt of lightning came thundering down. The crowd recoiled in shock as they witnessed this, but even more so when they took in the aftermath. Caelus stood motionless, maintaining the same pose.

Many couldn’t believe their eyes, but most held out on the idea that the lightning had just missed him. No one could perceive lightning’s movement after all. However, after dozens of lightning strikes, it was impossible to deny it. There seemed to be an invisible barrier protecting him. As soon as the lightning snakes closed in, they would instantly dissipate.

Twenty-four hours later, Caelus finally moved. With a clear sky above him, he sheathed his sword and moved toward the crowd. As one could expect, he was greeted with frenzied and fanatical gazes.

With all eyes on him, he drew his sword out and explained that the sword allowed him to withstand the storm, and was just one of the many holy armaments Raiken had entrusted him with.

The sword was indeed key to his survival but it was no holy weapon. The dark purple gem was later understood to be the starstone, netherian. It was able to absorb electrical energy, and even lightning wasn’t quick enough to escape its gluttonous nature. Of course, the people of that time were unaware of the special properties of this material.

In a world so devoid of electricity, discovering netherian’s special property was nigh impossible. Yes, nigh impossible.

In his travels, Evron had managed to make this discovery. He had been sitting on the information wanting to study the curious stone further before submitting his research notes.

Caelus was privy to this information and used it for his purposes, even taking the extra step of making a fancy but impractical sword and adding his made-up lore. And despite not having others, he heavily alluded to the existence of other holy armaments.

During his conquests, people went wild with their speculations as they imagined what other holy armaments were in his possession. In retrospect, he was a normal man with no magical powers. However, when he was alive, most considered him a demigod-like figure, possessing many magical powers.

The ability to summon an invisible shield that blocked all attacks, the ability to split himself into multiple clones, the ability to read minds, the ability to petrify his foes with his left eye, the ability to…the list went on and on, getting more ridiculous and ridiculous.

Caelus encouraged this and even dedicated a portion of his forces to mythologizing. He understood the power of ideas.

Still, the power of ideas was no more than paper tigers unless one had the necessary brute force to back it up…and he and the Bellusian Army had brute force in spades.

‘Like lightning,’ Rei thought as he took a sip.

This idiom was a favourite of the authors describing Caelus or his conquests. A drinking game around this idiom’s sighting was ill-advised. ‘If we meet Dimitri, I’ll suggest it. No matter how many bodies he has, it won’t be enough.’

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Like lightning; this idiom’s frequency couldn’t be helped, it just fit so perfectly.

Two things defined Caelus’ conquest: speed and unconventionality.

Of the hundreds of battles fought, none were settled by him simply directing his soldiers to mindlessly crash into the other side. He was famous for coming up with various creative ploys and tactics. This was Rei’s favourite part to read as he wondered what tactic Caelus would come up with next.

At the impenetrable city of Canova, Caelus had his men gather up a mountain of Ibtis plants outside and set it alight. With the help of the winds, the intoxicating smoke smothered the city and turned all the defenders dazed and useless. His army strolled in and claimed the city without a single life lost.

At Fort Ruvero, Caelus employed what could be called the first gliders in history. Using the nearby hill, he had dozens of his elites glide through the night sky like birds, and open the entranceway for his main unit. Dropping down from the sky was a popular tactic. At Fort Unglo, he constructed a giant spherical flesh ball made out of monster parts that a human entered. After performing the necessary calculation, these things were then launched via trebuchet into the structure. The flesh and roll cage cushioned their impact, so they were able to exit and go about their duties.

What was important to note was Caelus’ participation in these tactics.

While other rulers sat back and gave commands, Caelus was a ruler that led from the front. He was dauntless, unafraid of death or failure. To him, his actions made perfect sense. He regarded himself as the most capable fighter, so just sitting back would be a waste. This attribute only drew more to his cause and caused those already on board to fight even harder.

Redirecting rivers to drench the area, pole vaulting walls, causing mudslides, rolling spherical stones down a slope to break through walls, tunnelling under structures…the list went on and on.

These tactics allowed Caelus to very quickly subdue his foes. If one didn’t work, he’d throw another and another. No matter how competent the commander, none could withstand the bombardment of unorthodox ideas the Bellusian Army threw at them.

The Bellusian Army didn’t just rely on clever tricks though. It was without question the best military force in the world. The initial ten thousand soldiers he had, were specially trained in various military formations, some of which he burrowed from history and others Caelus came up with himself. He introduced many concepts that would redefine warfare forever.

Tactics were swell but where the Bellusian Army truly stood well above all others was in the area of weaponry. Crossbows, trebuchets, ballista, a spherical molotov-like contraption that was fired from either of the two previously listed… and a slew of other weapons were invented by his hands for the Bellusian Army’s victory.

Those forces who faced these contraptions for the first time didn’t know what hit them - until it was too late. As time went on, powers mimicked Caelus’ tactics and equipment, but it was pointless. He stayed several steps ahead, always having a counter and a new tactic up his sleeve.

The Bellusian Army stormed onward, adding nation after nation to their collection. While Caelus’ name attracted all the attention, the Bellusian Army’s success wasn’t a one-man show. Dozens of exceptional individuals, each one talented enough to become great rulers themselves, joined his movement. They acted as fuel to keep the flame of success alive and well. The countless souls who fought bravely under his direction need not be mentioned, for, without them, Caelus would have to be satisfied with conquering sandcastles.

Another thing that couldn’t go without mention was Caelus’ luck. It was extraordinary.

The weakened state of most world powers at the time, the Radiant Church’s branch conflict, the foolish actions the various world powers took in response to his rise...without the stars aligning just perfectly, Caelus, no matter how brilliant would have never been able to complete his goal in the short time span he managed, if at all. It was something he fully acknowledged.

The Maiden of Fate was most kind to him, as everything seemed to twist in ways that would benefit him. No more was her bias so clear than in the Heaven’s Judgement incident at Pooral Castle.

Holding up at Pooral Castle, Julian Valten Reis and his forces had proved difficult to deal with, prompting Caelus to make the trip over himself.

He arrived when a storm was brewing above. Moving to an open area, he stared at the castle with his steely mismatched gaze. While his mind was occupied with conjuring up ideas, a bolt of lightning flashed down and struck one of the castle’s flags. The once rowdy battlefield was said to have become dead silent in an instant. In the passing moments, all attention shifted to Caelus, the supposed caster of the heavenly attack.

Caelus rolled with it. Masking his surprise, he played his part. Needless to say, the commander and his men’s hearts collapsed in their chests, and within a minute, the doors were swung open and surrender was called.

Another down, the Bellusian Army moved on. And just like failures begot failures, successes begot successes. Each win made future victories easier. The idea that Caelus and his forces were unstoppable became the common sense of the day. Neither madmen nor fools dared to stand against the Bellusian Army.

After the Bellusian Army had devoured all of the Central Region, the bloody battles all but dried up.

That wasn’t to knock what would come next, for it was also interesting. Xhuge Ling, Emperor of Xin started a certain trend. He challenged Caelus to a contest known as the Ruler’s Trials. It was a series of games meant to test the various capabilities of a ruler. Should he win, Caelus would leave him and Xin alone, and should he lose, he would hand over Xin without trouble. Caelus didn’t have to accept it, but he did anyway. The two competed in the games, and as one could expect, Caelus came out on top.

What would follow were similar bizarre requests or proposals thrown his way. Caelus didn’t mind it. If there was a method that would reduce the loss of human life, he’d readily take it. He’d go from place to place, dealing with proposal after proposal. There were a few incidents of clock and dagger shenanigans, but none that could trouble him. Most requests were simply to stay well off, some were weird though; the weirdest of which, belonged to Sera Ilesaya, Queen of the Forty-Nine Tribes of Ifjuk, who requested to be his lover. For reasons that would be obvious later, Caelus accepted.

After a few more stops, the conquest that spanned ten years would come to an end. Velusia; a single nation encompassing all of humanity had been realized. It was a monumental accomplishment. All of Inis rumbled in jubilation when the official announcement arrived in their area. No longer were they X, Y, or Z, now they were Velusians. The atmosphere was electric with no shortage of accounts detailing hysteria-like levels of joy shown all over Inis.

Caelus was happy too but he didn’t allow himself to linger in celebration mode for too long. Becoming a supreme ruler wasn’t the end goal, merely the first step. After delivering a formal speech and a brief celebration, Caelus resumed his role as supreme ruler.

A golden era followed- or rather continued. Caelus hadn’t waited until Velusia was fully formed to begin implementing the changes he desired. From Setsuna already, he had been making moves. Ten years in, and many places had already seen the benefits of rule under his leadership. Now, without battles to think about, all of his brainpower was dedicated to the world’s prosperity.

Caelus fully harnessed humanity’s power to achieve his goals. Without the infighting and a ruler to set a clear direction, the rate of progress was astounding. The Society of Sages was especially helpful. The knowledge that they had been amassing for thousands of years in isolation was now used for the world’s benefit.

Food production increased tremendously; massive metropolises were constructed; jobs boomed; technology advanced steeply, etc. Just like a rising tide lifted all boats, all territories of Velusia benefited from these increases.

‘Universal basic income, standardized housing, free knowledge; Caelus had some pretty progressive ideas. And that pyramid, Maslow would be proud.’

While slightly different, Caelus too, believed that a human’s ultimate goal was achieving self-actualization. To him, much of humanity’s potential remained dormant, and it was the first two ‘needs’, basic necessities and security, that was the biggest obstacle to humanity’s collective ascension.

He cited his own example and famously said,

I was lucky that day, but what about others like me? How many similarly talented individuals has humanity lost due to these concerns? I don’t know the answer, but it’s certainly not zero.

It was a compelling argument. Though, whether it convinced the masses or not didn’t matter to Caelus. He was one who could only move according to his own path and did just that.

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