boyutpedia Page 143
Page 143
"Of course," Casalos replied, "Aren't you even a little interested in what cities under ogre rule look like?"
Toona raised an eyebrow: "That might sound interesting, but you mentioned it was to help Casalos..."
"It sounds like you're not too keen on helping your new lord with some of the burden without expecting anything in return." Casalos smiled. "Don't worry, I'll sing its praises and make sure it rewards you accordingly."
“Ha, no need for that,” Toona lightly pinched Casalos’s waist. “To be honest, as a lord, it is much more competent than the likes of Pilgalen. It helped the dragons of Waterdeep City resolve the crisis, allowing them to live openly in the city… It’s just that I’m not very familiar with it. It feels a little strange that something like this happened during our honeymoon.”
"Then let's ignore it and go somewhere else?"
Tao Na stood up gracefully, her silver hair shimmering in the sunlight. "No...no need. I'm not saying this out of rejection, it's just a strange feeling. Besides, I'm actually curious to see what kind of social state would emerge when a human empire that prides itself on civilization is conquered by 'savage' ogres."
The towering cloud-shrouded mountains could not stop the dragons' wings; the two dragons easily flew over this natural barrier and entered the heart of the Amn Empire.
Casalos remained hovering slowly high in the sky, its vertical pupils carefully observing the distant city shrouded in black smoke through a purely optical telescope.
"Ascati," Toona flew beside it, "once the most prosperous commercial center of the Am Empire. Caravans departed from here to ports on other continents, returning laden with gold and rare treasures, making it the most powerful empire in the Sword Coast."
"But such a seemingly powerful empire had its capital captured by ogres in just a few months." Casalos's tone was laced with sarcasm. "What does this show? It shows that so-called civilization and prosperity, without the support of real power, are as fragile as a mirage."
A flicker of doubt crossed Toona's dragon eyes: "With Ascatra's wealth and status, how could they be breached by ogres? Although Amn forbids arcane magic, their divine spellcasters and shadow thieves should have enough power to defend against it."
"That's the problem." Casalos adjusted his flight altitude, placing himself at a safe distance from ground-based counterspells. "Amn law forbids arcane spellcasting, regarding magic as 'evil art.' When the Scourge strikes, cities lacking arcane protection are like giants without a leg. Furthermore, the new rules of the gods have caused divine spellcasters to undergo a transformation, leaving the entire defense system virtually paralyzed."
Taona pondered the question: "Do you think ogres could rule a human city? Simply conquering it by force is one thing, maintaining long-term rule is another."
"That's exactly what I've been looking for," Casalos replied. "Theoretically, ogres, as a race driven primarily by force and instinct, shouldn't be able to establish a complex system of governance. But ogre wizards are different from ordinary ogres; they possess intelligence far exceeding the human average and adhere to order. If they've found some effective way to govern, it would be very valuable for research."
The scene of Ascatra gradually came into focus. This once-glorious city sat on the northern shore of the Gulf of Tesenia. Dozens of merchant ships still anchored in its vast harbor, but maritime trade had noticeably diminished compared to the past. Rough animal-hide banners flew on the city walls, and burly ogre guards stood at the city gates. Humans and ogres mingled in the streets, but strangely, there was no chaos or bloodshed as expected.
The city's architecture remains magnificent, with towering towers and ornate palaces gleaming in the sunlight. However, closer inspection reveals traces of battle on the exterior walls of many buildings, and in some areas, ruins that have not yet been fully restored can still be seen.
"Interesting." Casalos pulled out a dragon-shaped telescope, the same model as his own but two sizes larger, and helped Toona put it on. "Use this to look at the city streets. This thing doesn't emit any magical fluctuations and won't trigger any passive magical detection."
Tao Na observed carefully for a moment, a look of surprise on her face: "This... is indeed very interesting. I originally thought I would see ruins and bones everywhere, but the actual situation seems to be completely different."
The two dragons could clearly see that people were indeed active on the streets of Ascatra. Shops were still open, vendors were still hawking their wares in the market, and even some human children could be seen playing in the streets. Although the overall atmosphere was rather oppressive, this was by no means a dead city after a massacre.
To the dragon's further surprise, while dark creatures like ogres and goblins did patrol the streets, they didn't indiscriminately kill or destroy. Instead, these tall, humanoid beings seemed to be maintaining some kind of order. Occasionally, humans would talk to ogres, and although the atmosphere seemed tense, no violent conflict ensued.
"Look over there," Casalos pointed to the city's central area. "What flags were flying over the former imperial palace?"
Tona adjusted the focus of her observation equipment: "It's... an ogre's battle banner. But strangely, the emblem of the Amn Empire is still preserved above it. What does this signify? Some form of legitimacy declaration?"
"Very likely." Casalos retracted his observation device. "It seems this conquest is far more complex than we imagined. The ogres clearly didn't resort to simple, brutal slaughter to rule, but rather established some kind of... how to describe it... a system of shared governance?"
The two dragons circled high in the sky for nearly an hour, gradually figuring out the current situation in Ascatra through careful observation. The entire city was indeed under the control of ogres, but their methods of rule were surprisingly "civilized," and the daily lives of ordinary people were basically guaranteed.
"The greatest malice towards humans always comes from humans themselves!" Casalos suddenly exclaimed. "It seems this Cecily is far more intelligent than we imagined."
Tao Na looked at him curiously: "You mean?"
"It didn't choose the traditional method of massacring and plundering cities, but instead adopted some form of enslavement and rule." Casalos folded his wings and began to slowly descend. "This model, though cruel, is much more 'civilized' than direct slaughter. At least people are alive, and the city's basic functions are preserved. Moreover, judging from the mercenaries gathering outside the city, Amn is preparing a counterattack, but the lack of arcane support and a complete and unified military system has kept them at a disadvantage—an 'empire' built by a bunch of compradors, no matter how loudly it boasts or how wealthy it is, is ultimately just a paper dragon. If Baldur's Gate hadn't been ruined by the plague in Lavok, and if the Cloud Mist Mountains weren't so treacherous, the Flame Fist Mercenary Group would have already incorporated the Amn 'empire' into its territory."
"From my perspective, this system of governance is not bad," Casalos concluded. "At least the city is functioning normally, there hasn't been a massacre of the people, and economic activity continues. Compared to the chaotic situation in Luscan, which was plagued by internal strife, Ascatella appears much more orderly."
Tao Na nodded thoughtfully: "That's true. But behind this superficial order, there must be deeper problems. After all, there are fundamental physiological and cultural differences between cannibals and humans."
"It's a very simple fact: besides being slaves to these dark creatures, those people also have the identity of being domesticated 'livestock'..."
49. Powder Keg
A dragon's perspective is, after all, a dragon's perspective. If you were actually in that situation, you might only feel the cruelty.
What was once Ascatra's most bustling commercial district has now been transformed into a vast "human ranch." Ogres have enclosed the entire area with crude wooden fences, keeping tens of thousands of Ascatra residents like livestock.
These former citizens of the empire have now been stripped of all their property and freedom. Whether they were once wealthy merchants or high-ranking officials, they are all just "food reserves" in the eyes of the ogres. Every morning, the ogres will provide enough food and water to sustain these humans' basic survival needs.
Marian de la Monte was once one of Ascatra's most renowned transoceanic traders, her fleet carrying Am's goods to the distant continent of Maztica, returning with ships laden with gold and exotic treasures. Now, this businesswoman, well past forty, huddled with others in a dilapidated wooden hut, dressed in coarse cloth whose original color was no longer discernible.
"More mashed potatoes and black bread," a young woman beside her said with a wry smile. That was her daughter, Alicia. "I've almost forgotten the taste of Maztica cocoa bean desserts and the spiced liqueurs from Caratou."
Marian gently stroked her daughter's hair, her eyes filled with sorrow: "At least we're still alive, Ellie. Those shadow thieves who tried to rebel and the representatives of the Six Councils were found and killed by the ogre mages long ago. It's a miracle that we ordinary merchants have survived."
Indeed, the first thing the ogres did when they took over the city was to completely destroy Amn's proud council political system—or rather, the disaster destroyed them, but the suffering masses had already blamed all their suffering on the ogres and those dark creatures.
Humans are always like this... The ogre wizard just took over Ascatra, a place in ruins after the disaster.
The anonymity of the Six Councils was meaningless before Cecily's magic, and the hidden rulers were exposed one by one. Although the Shadow Thieves were skilled in concealment, they could not completely evade capture in the face of Severina's warrior intuition and magical detection.
The hillside behind the city port, formerly a "wealthy district," has now become a settlement for ordinary cannibals and their accomplices; the situation here is far more complicated.
"You fools! Food distribution should be based on contribution!" A thin human man roared at several of his comrades. His clothes were much better than those of ordinary slaves, and he wore a bone badge on his chest as a symbol of his status.
Victor Mallory was once a small gang leader in the lower city of Ascatella. When the city fell, he was one of the first humans to join the ogres. The fear and discrimination against arcane magic in Amn society ironically gave this marginal figure an opportunity—while orthodox divine spellcasters were still adapting to the new rules of the gods, he unhesitatingly pledged his loyalty to the ogre mages.
"Victor is right." Another voice rang out; it was Reginald Blackwater, the former city port official, a corrupt official wanted by the Sixth Legion Council for embezzlement. The ogre's occupation had ironically given him the opportunity to regain power. "Lord Cecily needs useful servants, not useless ones. If you want better treatment, you'll have to prove your worth."
However, not all collaborators acted voluntarily. In a corner of the crowd, a young pastor was bandaging the wounds of several injured civilians. Her movements were gentle and professional, but her eyes revealed deep pain and struggle.
"Thank you, Lydia," a little boy said timidly, a fresh scar on his arm.
Lydia Gold Coin forced a gentle smile: "You're welcome, child. The pain will pass soon."
She was once a young priestess at the Temple of the Moon, specializing in providing blessings and healing to caravans, and held a high position in the commercial kingdom of Amn. When the city fell, she could have fled with the other clergy, but she chose to stay and care for the civilians who could not leave. The ogres quickly recognized her value and forced her to heal the wounded and sick of their warriors. In exchange, she was allowed to continue providing medical assistance to humans.
It was a painful choice. Every time she treated the cannibals, she was indirectly helping these invaders. But if she refused, not only would she die, but the innocent civilians who needed her help would also lose their last hope.
In the heart of the city, the once magnificent Six Legion Council Hall has become the meeting place for ogre leaders. The building's exterior remains largely unchanged, but the interior has been completely transformed. Exquisite business contracts and trade charts are now covered in animal hides and spoils of war, and display cases that once showcased exotic treasures are now filled with human heads.
Cecily was a colossal figure nearly four meters tall, but unlike his kin, as a wizard among ogres, his eyes gleamed with the wisdom unique to arcane spellcasters. Beside him lay a massive staff, inlaid with various magical gems. Severna, on the other hand, wore heavy plate armor, her greatsword resting across her lap, radiating the ferocious aura of battlefield carnage.
"How is today's grain production?" Cecily asked his human assistant standing before him in a low voice.
"Reporting to you, sir, with the help of the goblins, the farmland outside the city has recovered sixty percent of its production capacity," replied the former agricultural supervisor of Amn, who now oversees grain production statistics for the ogres. "The fishing fleet at the port has also resumed operations, although the yield is not as high as before, it is enough to sustain the basic needs of the city's population."
Severna interrupted gruffly, "What's the situation with those undisciplined mercenaries?"
"They're still gathering in Pusu, but they haven't dared to launch an attack," another human scout reported. "The lack of unified command makes it difficult for them to employ any effective tactics. Their divine spellcasters are still unable to successfully execute most spells, magical support is limited, and the mercenaries' specialty, hit-and-run tactics, are ineffective. They're constantly being suppressed by your army."
“Very good,” Cecily nodded in satisfaction. “Dead humans are worthless. Only living humans can continuously create wealth for us. What we need is not ruins, but a gold mine that can continuously produce gold coins. How is the construction of the new transoceanic merchant ships progressing? And the recruitment of sailors…”
The core of the cannibalistic wizard couple's ruling philosophy was to treat the entire city as a large commercial machine and maximize profits through reasonable "management"—he was smart enough, but still lacked experience and wisdom in ruling, and his subordinates were all evil dark creatures, which ultimately turned "management" into cruel enslavement.
They had clearly realized their shortcomings, which is why they recruited a large number of former Ascatra officials willing to serve them to help them manage the city and establish this relatively stable system of rule.
It's only temporary.
Within the city's underground sewer system, a secret resistance organization is quietly gathering strength. Its leader is Alex Stonebridge, a former centurion of the Ascatra city garrison. He and a group of surviving soldiers hide in the intricate sewer network, secretly supplied by a group of volunteers, plotting to overthrow the ogre rule—even though a single spell from an ogre wizard could wipe them all out.
"We can't just sit here and wait to die any longer," Alex said to the dozen or so people gathered around him. Among them were soldiers, shadow thieves, ordinary citizens, and even a few intelligence agents who had previously served in the Sixth Legion Council. "Every day of delay means more deaths."
"But our strength is too weak," said an older shadow rogue with burn marks on his face from Cecily's detection spell, his expression worried. "Not only are the ogres numerous, but their two leaders also possess powerful magic. With our small numbers, there's no way we can fight them head-on."
A determined glint flashed in Alex's eyes: "So we need outside help. There are rumors lately that powerful dragons are active in the north. The Iron Dragon of Waterdeep is said to be reforming the entire North. If we can contact a similar force, perhaps we can get some assistance."
Why should the dragon help us?
"Gold coins! Of course, it's for gold coins. The Iron Dragons ruled Waterdeep and Baldur's Gate for gold coins, and Ascatella is much richer than Waterdeep. We have plenty of gold!"
"How do we contact that iron dragon, and how do we ensure that after it kills those ogres who deserve to go to hell, it won't replace those two ogre wizards as the new King of Ascatra?"
"I heard that Iron Dragon is happy to abide by the trading rules, as long as we prepare enough gold coins to make it accept the trade..."
The idea sounded crazy, but for desperate people, any hope was worth trying. They began to devise a plan, attempting to send messengers to contact Pusu's mercenaries and have them find a way to contact Waterdeep.
Meanwhile, within the ogre ranks, differing voices and factions existed. Many young ogre warriors considered the rule of Cecily and Severna too "weak," and their chaotic and irrational behavior led them to advocate for more direct and violent methods, such as slaughtering the entire city's inhabitants and hanging the corpses to dry, thus securing several years' worth of food reserves. Unfortunately, most of the enlightened ogre wizards who controlled the various ogre tribes supported the existing policies, believing that this sustainable model of rule was more in the long run. Only a few disloyal individuals managed to create little trouble.
Every corner of the city, every group, is searching for its place and opportunity within this complex power structure. Ascatella, though outwardly calm, is actually like a powder keg ready to explode at any moment.
50. The Ascatella Incident
The two giant dragons still looked down from high above. The sunlight, unobstructed by clouds, shone brightly on the scales of the metal dragon subspecies, but due to the distance, the people bound to the ground by gravity could not perceive it.
Casalos spread his wings and hovered in a steady gliding posture, his vertical pupils staring at Ascatra below through his eyepiece, but the light in his eyes had changed from simple observation to the brilliance of a pseudo-Laplace's demon deduction.
"What are you thinking about?" Tao Na noticed the change in her partner's mood and gracefully flew to his side. "I can feel your thoughts racing."
Casalos chuckled softly, the sound carrying clearly through the high winds: "I've been wondering why we always habitually think from a human perspective. Is it because we dragons have been living in human society for too long?"
"What do you mean?" Tao Na tilted her dragon head slightly, a look of confusion flashing in her silver eyes.
"Look at that city below," Casalos pointed his wingtip at Ascatra. "Humans would say it's a tragedy, that evil conquered civilization. But from a dragon's perspective? Two ogre leaders with advanced spellcasting abilities established a relatively stable system of governance, maintained the city's basic operations, and even ensured the survival needs of the ruled after the catastrophe. Isn't that far more civilized than those barbaric conquerors who only knew how to plunder and then leave?"
"The savage conquerors you're talking about... are they the Amm?"
"That's right, I'm talking about the Amm. A few years ago, they discovered the continent of Maztec, then organized a colonial fleet to cross the Unseen Sea, wantonly burning, killing, and plundering the indigenous people of Maztec who were indulging in a life of decadence amidst the abundance of resources. They brought back ship after ship of gold and jewels, and in just a few years, they became the richest Amm Empire in the Sword Coast. Every copper coin in their hands was forged from the blood of the native inhabitants of Maztec." Casalos let out a dragon's roar: "It's not just the Amm. From the Ismakar Empire to Netheril, and then the Vale Calendar, which human empire in Faerûn wasn't like this? And it's not just humans; elves, dwarves, gnomes, and so on have no bottom line when it comes to slaughtering their own kind. Compared to ogres—of course, only those ogres led by ogre wizards—humanoids are the greatest enemies of their own civilization's development. Tell me, if we humans lived in the Maztec region, how would we see the fate of these Amm people now?"
Taona fell into deep thought. As an ancient dragon who had lived for hundreds of years, she naturally understood the deeper meaning behind Casarosz's words. However, as the dragon most deeply influenced by human nature, the Gothic dragon would unconsciously consider issues from a human perspective. Casarosz, in particular, brought up the perspective of another group of humans, further complicating the matter.
"you mean......"
"Do you think, if there were no ogre wizards, would the Ascatras still be like the Luscans, with nobles and the wealthy living in luxury while the poor still live in refugee camps built of masts, struggling to survive for even one more day?"
“Perhaps…no, it won’t be like that. They will be even more miserable than the Luskans!” Toona sighed. “They don’t have the power to build a peaceful and prosperous world for the upper class in a short time. Without the support of magic, even those nobles and wealthy merchants are still struggling to survive after the disaster. At the same time, they have too much wealth, making others envious! If Ascatella hadn’t been conquered by the ogre wizards, the pirates of the Neransera Islands, the Tesserians, the assembled mercenaries, and the elves of the Vildas Forest who have an irreconcilable hatred for the Ammen would have torn this city, built with the blood and gold of other continents, to shreds by now. And they would never establish a rule like the ogres; they would only be like hyenas, ripping Ascatella dry, looting it, killing all the living things in the city, and then burning the city to the ground…just like the Ammen did in Maztec.”
"What I mean is, perhaps we should consider the Amn problem from a different perspective now," Casalos said, his voice brimming with interest. "The intelligent life on Forgotten Realms is so diverse; how can it all be dominated by humans? Goblins, kobolds, ogres… these creatures, considered 'evil races' by humans, could, under proper guidance, create a civilization more efficient and stable than human society."
"So you've suddenly decided not to help Casalos subdue these ogres?"
"On the contrary, I intend to offer more effective assistance." Casalos's dragon mouth curled into a sly smile. "But not by directly subduing them, but by helping these two ogre rulers establish a long-term and stable regime, creating an ogre kingdom!"
The idea was so audacious that even the well-informed ancient dragon was somewhat shocked. But upon closer reflection, it did indeed fit Ratambirol's usual style—this guy had once brazenly started trade with Waterdeep in his true form, sailing a magical ship.
"So what do you plan to do?" Tao Na asked, "Should we just show ourselves and make contact with them?"
"Too brutal," Casalos shook his head. "Ogre wizards are far more intelligent than most humans, and intelligence often breeds suspicion. The sudden appearance of a dragon claiming to help them would raise suspicions about the motives of any rational ruler."
Inside the Six Council Hall of Ascatra, torchlight flickered between the stone pillars, casting menacing shadows. The runes carved into the pillars told of this once-glorious trading town's past. Severna, the ogre sorceress and warrior, stood to one side of the hall, her greatsword "Earthbreaker" slicing slowly across the whetstone, emitting a harsh grinding sound. Her physique was massive, her greenish-grey skin gleaming in the firelight. The patchwork of her wizard's robes and plate armor highlighted her dual identity—a master of arcane magic and a battlefield slayer. Her intelligence far surpassed that of ordinary people; her 16-point mind was like a precise magic circle, capable of deciphering complex arcane formulas and grasping the essence of strategy. But at this moment, her eyes betrayed her frustration.
In the center of the hall, Cecily sat cross-legged before a massive stone throne, a complex divination circle laid out before him. Runestones and crystals emitted a faint magical glow, but the circle's fluctuations were intermittent and unstable, clearly interfered with. He muttered a curse, his rough voice echoing in the empty hall: "Damn those clergymen of Amn! Their prayers swarm like flies, disrupting my divination!"
Severna stopped sharpening her sword, frowning at her partner. "Spells are useless. Let me lead my men out of the city and slaughter all those mercenaries!" Her voice was filled with murderous intent, and a bloodthirsty glint flashed in her eyes. As an ogre sorcerer of evil order, she and Cecilis had already established a preliminary order of rule in Ascatra, intimidating the residents with an iron fist and fear, but the threats from outside the city left her feeling helpless.
“No.” Cecily shook his head, his forehead wrinkles deepening. “Our advantage lies within the city walls. Fighting in the open would play right into the enemy’s hands. Amn’s mercenaries are skilled in guerrilla warfare, and we are outnumbered; our chances of winning are too low.”
Severna snorted coldly and resumed sharpening her sword. The ogre alliance's conquest of Ascatella was not as easy as imagined. This major trading town in the north of the Amn Empire, once incredibly wealthy due to its gold and trade routes, had been conquered. After the occupation, they used the iron fist of Order's evil to force the residents into submission. The kobolds and goblins of Order were more willing to obey the ogre wizards' orders, gradually becoming the backbone of the city's control and helping to maintain order. This behavior greatly displeased the ogre warriors who truly belonged to the ogre wizards, leading to frequent riots and conflicts. If the ogres weren't so dim-witted, they would almost certainly be on the verge of mutiny.
Am's wealth continuously attracted outside help, mercenaries outside the city lurked like a pack of wolves, and rebellious sentiments were brewing within the city. This passive situation was incompatible with Severna's belligerent nature—most of the time, she preferred to draw her sword and kill rather than calmly deal with these problems.
Just as she was becoming agitated, a strange consciousness surged into her mind like a tide, as if someone were whispering in her ear: "The art of domination is not about killing, but about control." The voice was indistinct yet clear, carrying an undeniable authority, as if rising from the depths of her soul, or as if it were an external invasion.
Severna jolted, her sword-wielding hand trembling slightly. She glanced around; the torchlight still shone, Cecily remained focused on divination, and the hall appeared normal. "Who's speaking?" she growled, her voice wary. Her sorcerous senses swept across the surroundings, but found nothing. Her high intelligence immediately put her on alert—with her arcane prowess, ordinary illusions or mental magic could not possibly penetrate her defenses. The source of this voice was far from simple; suspicion rose in her mind, and countless possibilities flashed through her thoughts: Anm's divine conspiracy? Psionic manipulation? Or some unknown curse?
"What's wrong?" Cecily looked up and noticed her unusual behavior.
“It’s nothing.” Severna frowned, trying to hide her unease. Her paranoia made her wary of the unknown, but her exceptional intelligence also made her realize that the message conveyed by the voice might contain some important knowledge. She didn’t want to admit it, but the whisper terrified her, because it seemed to directly touch her thoughts.
The words in her mind, like a shadow, intermittently invaded Severna's consciousness. They were no longer just vague whispers, but gradually became clearer, bringing with them unfamiliar concepts—"unified laws," "clear rewards and punishments," and "resource allocation." These words were both strange and familiar to Severna. She could quickly grasp the logic of these ideas: unified laws could restrain chaos, clear rewards and punishments could incentivize loyalty, and resource allocation could improve efficiency. These were precisely the essence that she and Cecily lacked in the evil order of Ascatra. However, she could not accept that this knowledge had arisen in her mind out of thin air.
She suspected it was an enemy trap, an attempt to sway her will with false ideas. She tried to shield herself from this consciousness with witchcraft, casting protective spells in her mind, and even attempting to trace the source of the sound during nighttime meditations. But all her measures were ineffective; the sound always managed to seep in silently, making her increasingly agitated, to the point of losing control. That day, while patrolling the city walls, the words echoed in her mind again: "To strengthen the army, first strengthen the law. To govern the people, first govern their hearts."
Enraged, she swung her sword and smashed a section of the battlement, startling the kobold guards behind her into trembling fear.
“This damned magic!” she roared. “Who’s playing tricks on me? Come out!” Her shouts echoed across the city walls, and the guards exchanged bewildered glances, assuming their leader was having another outburst. Severna’s paranoia made her wary of the unknown; she even began to doubt her sanity, fearing these whispers might be a sign of some kind of mental illness. She couldn’t ignore the potential of these ideas, but they also made her more suspicious of their origins.
To get rid of the words in her head, she began to try to be alone with Cecily, sitting in her own room to clear her mind.
The walls of the room were covered with trophies—broken shields, enemy skulls, and a finely crafted longsword seized from the nobles of Amn. She closed her eyes, trying to banish the nagging whispers through meditation, but they only grew clearer: "Dispersed power leads to chaos, unified laws bring order. Centralized resources and clear rewards and punishments are the keys to lasting peace."
Severna opened her eyes abruptly and angrily smashed a clay pot. "Enough!" she growled. "What's the use of all this nonsense? Kill all the enemies, plunder all the wealth—that's the path of the ogre!" But there was already a clear hesitation in her voice.
She couldn't deny the logic in these whispers. They depicted a system of governance that would not only solidify the order of Ascatra but also ensure the residents' voluntary obedience, rather than mere fear. She began to suspect that perhaps this knowledge wasn't a conspiracy by an enemy, but rather that a more powerful force was guiding her.
Before Serena's doubts could dissipate, a sudden crisis shattered the peace of Ascatra.
This major trading town in the north of the Am Empire had been occupied by the ogre alliance for months, but tonight's tranquility was shattered by a sharp alarm bell. The mechanisms of the east gate were broken in the darkness, the heavy iron gate cracking with a piercing sound, and then shouts of battle surged up like a tidal wave, tearing apart the silence of the night.
Severna, the ogre wizard warrior and one of Ascatra's new rulers, returned to her residence from the Six Guilds Council Hall, her greatsword "Earthshatter" gleaming heavily in her hand. Her greenish-grey skin glistened in the firelight, and the wizard's robes covering her plate armor highlighted her dual identity: a master of arcane magic and a slaughterer on the battlefield. By the standards of Forgotten Realms adventurers—primarily the legendary bard Varro—her 16 points of intelligence far surpassed that of ordinary ogres; her mind was like a precise magic circle, capable of deciphering complex arcane formulas and grasping the essence of strategy.
As soon as the alarm bells rang, Severna's sorcerous senses detected an ominous aura. She whirled around, her gaze like a knife sweeping towards the east gate. Flames soared into the sky, mingled with the screams of humans and ogres. "Rebellion!" she growled, her voice filled with rage, and immediately charged towards the city walls, wielding "Earthshatter."
Chaos reigned at the East Gate. A gaping hole had been torn in the ogre army's defenses, fragments of the gate's mechanisms littered the ground, and the iron gate itself was twisted and deformed by explosives. Ordinary ogre warriors, bloodthirsty and disorganized in their chaotic ranks, wielded battle axes and maces, but were thrown into disarray by the sudden attack. Accustomed to charging in a scattered formation, they proved clumsy against agile enemies. Some ogres blindly pursued, crashing through their own fortifications, while others darted about in the firelight, howling for their commander. Kobold crossbowmen attempted to create distance, but their field of fire was blocked by the large, erratic ogres, limiting their support. The goblin guards, the backbone of the orderly faction, tried to command the ogres to rebuild their lines, but outnumbered and burdened by past conflicts, they could no longer contain the spreading chaos.
Mercenaries swarmed in from outside the city like a pack of wolves, their movements swift and coordinated. Hired by the wealth of Amn, they were a collection of elites from across Faerûn: human rangers moved through the shadows, sniping ogre sentries with precise arrows; half-elf priests cast spells to control the battlefield, supporting other mercenaries and creating even greater chaos among the ogres; dwarven warriors formed phalanxes, shields and warhammers working together to deflect the ogre charges. They avoided the ogres' main force, targeting weak points in the defenses to launch surprise attacks, using the chaos to create further chaos.
The resistance within the city was the inside manipulator of this raid. The resentful natives of Ascatra, enslaved by the ogres, secretly contacted mercenaries, providing a blind spot in the ogre patrols and allowing the city gates to open from the inside. Among the rebels were former Amn nobles' private soldiers and oppressed civilians. They set fire to granaries and barracks throughout the city. The flames illuminated the night sky, and the thick smoke choked the tall ogre warriors, causing them to cough and obstruct their vision. The smaller rebels, however, huddled beneath the smoke, their shouts mingling with the mercenaries' horns, creating an eerie rhythm that seemed to mock the ogres' clumsiness.
Severna charged onto the city wall, her greatsword "Earthshatter" flashing in the moonlight, each strike sending blood and flesh flying. She cleaved open the chest of a human ranger, blood splattering onto her plate armor; another cleaved the shield of a dwarf warrior, the cracking of bones making a bloodthirsty glint in her eyes. Her keen senses allowed her to easily pinpoint enemy spellcasters even in the thick smoke; a "magic missile" struck precisely, the barrier extinguishing mid-air, the priest falling to the ground. However, the enemy's continued coordination proved troublesome. Ranger arrows rained down from the darkness, forcing her to dodge; the rebels' fire attack engulfed the granaries behind them, weakening the ogre's supply line.
"Kag! Reorganize the defenses!" Severna roared at the kobold leader. Kag hurriedly ordered the archers to form ranks, but the kobolds' discipline was difficult to maintain in the chaos. The goblin captain tried to lead his men to block the breach in the city gate, but was bogged down by the mercenaries' guerrilla tactics and found himself in a fierce battle. The chaos among the ordinary ogres exacerbated the situation; some ogre warriors instinctively began to loot the spoils on the ground, completely ignoring Severna's orders.
"Fool!" Severna roared, swinging her sword to cut down an ogre who had dared to steal the spoils. Blood splattered everywhere, shocking the surrounding chaotic warriors. The ogre army's greatest weakness was its disorganization. The chaotic formation of ordinary ogres led them to focus only on immediate killing and plunder, lacking unified command. While the kobolds and goblins were more organized, their numbers were severely insufficient to turn the tide. She realized that even if the enemy's surprise attack was doomed to fail, her side couldn't completely shift the balance of power through force alone; a more efficient organizational method was needed.
The battle raged until dawn, and Severna's greatsword had drunk the blood of countless enemies. Her combination of spellcasting and warrior skills repelled wave after wave of attackers.