Tyranny of Steel

924 An Average Morning in the Villa

Khorijin sat on horseback as she gazed upon her elder brother with a stoic expression on her pretty face. For the past few months, the Golden Horde had been bogged down in the mountains of Georgia, fighting a series of protracted sieges.

It had become increasingly clear to the woman that they would not be able to beat both Georgia and the Byzantine Empire within a year's time. As a result, she had begun to counsel her brother on a new strategy.

"My dearest brother, it is the advice of the spirits that we move on from Georgia and focus our efforts on Anatolia. The western half of the Kingdom of Georgia has dug in their heels and is fighting to the last man. There is no surrender, and no retreat. If we continue to assault this petty Kingdom, we will not make it to Constantinople in time."

Chagadai nodded his head in understanding as he gazed upon the vast wasteland that was their most recent conquest. He had lost thousands of men to take one simple city. It was becoming increasingly clear that his little sister's words were true, and as a result, he felt compelled to agree with her approach.

"Very well... If that is the advice that the spirits have given me, who am I to reject such wisdom? I will gather our troops and we will abandon what remains of this petty Kingdom. It's not like they have the means to take back the land we have already conquered."

After saying this, Chagadai snapped the rains of his horse and rode off to rally his troops and give them their new orders. As for Khorijin, she sat on her horseback and gazed up at the sky as the wind kissed her regal face. She could hear the spirits speak to her, as they issued their warnings once more.

"Beware the eagle in the west. In six months' time, it will spread forth its wings and bring ruin to your people..."

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Time was passing quickly, and yet at the same time, incredibly slow. It felt as if every single moment Khorijin was on edge. The more the spirits spoke to her, the more she felt uneasy about her people's fate. Though her brother had promised a quick conquest, the mountains of Georgia, and the castles that the people dwelled in, had presented more difficulty than they expected.

Now she only had six months left before the eagle spread forth its wings and brought ruin to her people. It was a warning she had heard too many times to count, and with each passing month, the time became less. Eventually, Chagadai returned to his sister's side with a wide grin on his face as he nudged her forward.

"The army has been gathered. The orders are given. We ride to Anatolia."

Though Chagadai expected some form of happiness to appear on his precious little sister's face, in reality, all he saw was a deep-seated anxiety, which spread from the depths of her heart. As if she had already seen their defeat before they had even begun their conquest of the Byzantine Empire. The Mongol princess appeared to be within in a trance. The woman paid no attention to her brother's words and instead repeated what she had heard from the spirits.

"wings of iron will bring forth volcanic rain.... What does it mean?"

She could never have guessed that the Germans had mastered the skies, and were capable of dropping bombs on her brother's army without ever coming within range of the Golden Horde's weapons. Because she did not know what an airplane was, or the power of a modern bomb, she could not comprehend the warning the spirits were giving her.

As for Chagadai, he was stunned speechless. For once, his sister was listening to the spirits, but could not understand what they meant. It was not uncommon for the woman to enter a trancelike state whenever she tried to comprehend the meaning behind the parables which the spirits spoke to her in. However, she always deciphered their meaning correctly and rather swiftly at that.

Yet this message had completely stumped her. She could not figure out what these words meant, no matter how much she tried. Because of this lack of understanding, there was a deep sense of fear in her black eyes. It was only after she recovered her whereabouts did she plead with her brother once more. There was an expression of panic on the young woman's face as she grabbed hold of her brother's sleeve and held onto it for dear life.

"Dearest brother, I implore you once more to move your armies north and abandon your dreams of conquering the south. I fear that the fate that awaits us in constantinople is unimaginable. For the first time in my life, I can't decipher the spirit's meaning. Please brother, I beg you!"

Chagadai was utterly speechless. His sister had, on more than one occasion, implored him to march his army north. However, she had not done so in some time, as if she had accepted her fate. Whatever it was the spirits had told her, it had thoroughly spooked the girl. She was practically shaking as she stared deeply into her brother's eyes.

However, no matter how fearful Khorijin might be, Chagadai would not be deterred. His goals of conquering the Byzantine and Timurid empires were too great to abandon now that they had made some progress. Thus, he did not attempt to persuade his sister, and instead wore a stern expression as he gave her a direct order.

"Enough! I have obeyed the wills of the spirits far more than any of my predecessors. Just because you can't seem to decipher the meaning of their words, doesn to mean that a horrible fate awaits us. The Byzantines are weak, and the Timurids are on their last breath. Now is the time to strike! Now is the time to conquer an Empire that will make the entire world fear our might!"

Khorijin was practically moved to tears as she heard her brother so thoroughly rebuke her. She did not know why he was so stubborn about this. Nor did she understand why she was so fearful. Perhaps he was right. The Spirits had previously assured her that so long as Constantinople fell within a year, there was nothing they needed to worry about.

Thus, she took a deep breath, and found her resolve while she silently nodded her head in silence several times. After a few moments has passed, she released her grip over her brother's sleeve, and responded meekly to his commands.

"I will do as dearest brother has commanded. We will ride south, and I will bring with me the wisdom of the spirits..."

Upon hearing this, Chagadai smiled and grabbed hold of his sister's dainty chin before reassuring her everything would be fine.

"You don't need to worry so much, I would never let any harm come to my precious little sister..."

After saying that, the two noble mongols sat in silence for several moments before leaving behind the wasteland and rejoining with the main army. However, Khorijin could not help but look back with an intense anxiety in her black eyes. As if this were the last gasp of the Mongol people...