1 The Fall of Idobha
"What's wrong, young Mukuru?" came a voice from the door. "If you don't stop jumping around soon you'll regret it tomorrow. "
Erwin paid his mother no heed, tossing and turning in bed trying to find a way to sleep. Finally, he turned to face her and replied sullenly "Why do we have to listen to those Magnus bullies? I know we have to host them whenever they declare a visit, but every second word they say is an insult to our kingdom! I thought we were supposed to honour and protect the Theluji name, but even you and Father smile and bow before their ambassador."
Anna Mukuru couldn't help but laugh. Of course, the young master would be offended by the Empires delegation; the envoys' children had spent hours talking about how the Theluji capital of Idobha was "a little bigger than a town". Any 7-year-old who had grown up on stories of the greatness of the Kingdom of Theluji would feel the same, imagine how he would react if she told him how much gold and labor they were forced to pay as tribute every year!
"I can tell you if you want. But it's not a happy story. The Mukuru usually wait till their children are old enough to understand it before they pass on this tale. Do you think you're ready?"
Erwin straightened up, he could tell his mother was watching him closely. "I will listen carefully, Mother," he promised, with a serious look on his face.
"Then let me ask you some questions. First, who are the Mukuru?"
"The bearers of the elephant seal, the family which has commanded the Theluji military for centuries, the strongest family in the whole world" came a quick reply, filled with pride.
"Mostly correct. Now you will remember the port at Amani Bay, just along our Western coast. The merchants there are richer than most and some say the Amani family is wealthier than even the Theluji royal family. So why do they call the head of the Theluji family their queen?"
Erwin paused for a moment. He had never heard anyone call the queen of Theluji the 'head of the Theluji family'. "Well that's only natural", he replied eventually, "they are Theluji subjects after all."
"That's the correct answer if you are speaking to anyone other than me or your father. Anna replied nonchalantly, "But here that is the wrong answer. "
The little boy was stunned. How could the authority of the Theluji not apply to their own people? What was his mother trying to tell him? "The queen of Theluji is just and capable" the boy tried again, "she is loved by her people and brings prosperity to the land. The merchants see that and swear loyalty to her."
"It's true, the queen is a brilliant woman. The people come out in droves to see her whenever she holds an official ceremony. " his mother frowned "But it seems you are not yet ready, young one, you know what a Mukuru is but can't yet think like one"
"Wait wait, one more chance please!" begged the 7-year old, he could never bear to disappoint his elders, and tonight felt like an opportunity he couldn't miss.
"Think like a Mukuru", Erwin told himself, "what would the Elephant do if the merchants acted disloyally to the crown."
"We would crush them. " he said finally, "the Amani can have all the gold in the world, if they stop respecting the queen, she would send us to burn their Bay to the ground. Their money would not save them."
"Exactly," his mother smiled, "now tell me, Erwin, why do we have to listen to those bullies from Magnus Auster?"
"Because.…they would crush us?" Erwin did not believe his own answer, the Magnus ambassador could boast all he wanted, but on the battlefield, he could never compare to the might of -
"Exactly, " his mother confirmed, "Because the Mukuru are the strongest in Theluji, not the South, and certainly not all of Salok."
Erwin froze. He would sit with his father as he made battle plans against the bandits from Pan, and he could recite countless stories of his mother's victories against pirates in the Insulis Libertatis. They had never lost an encounter, so how could they be weaker than anyone?
"It's not the story we've told you so far, I know. " Anna put her confused child's head on her lap as she continued "But it's about time you realize our true place in the world."
"But how do we know they would crush us, Mother?" argued the boy, grasping at straws to save his family's immortality, "When Father came back from his latest operation in Tawm Forest, he told you that he was expecting to lose far more men than he actually did! We never know until we try!"
"I'll ignore the fact that you were eavesdropping on us just this once" Anna declared, shooting the little rebel a disciplinary glare, "But your confidence is something we have raised you to have, so I do not blame you. It is not that the Magnus Imperium 'would' crush us, it's that it did."
Erwin's eyes widened, "this is the tale the Mukuru must never forget"
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Yanis Asaju wiped the sweat off his brow as he stared into the distance. He could see that dreaded crest on the banners now. The two-faced black eagle meant only one thing - it was time for battle. It was his 5th year in the Theluji infantry, and it would be his 15th major battle, a testament to the tenacity of the Magnus Imperium.
He scanned the terrain for any odd features, a meaningless activity for an infantryman with no troops under him, but he wasn't planning on staying in the lower ranks forever. "Flat plains, clear weather, no room for trickery", he thought, as he walked towards the sharpening stone to get his sword ready for combat.
When he got there he saw it was occupied, but it seemed the boy at the wheel had no idea what he was doing. "If you keep pushing and using that angle there's no point in sharpening it at all boy" he barked immediately, Yanis had no patience for niceties, never mind right before combat.
"I'm sorry sir, I've never done this before. This… this is my first battle" stammered the new recruit.
"Move aside then", Yanis murmured as he took the wheel "I can sharpen two swords today".
"Thank you so much sir!" shouted the young pup, throwing a clumsy salute. "I am Dreyfus of the Chinua. I joined the military this year to defend our land against the Magnus invaders. "
"Don't worry about it", chuckled Yanis. He thought back to his first battle 5 years ago, as someone who spent the night before in the sick tent, he had no right to judge. "If this is your first battle then remember these simple rules: when the fighting starts, make yourself small, never turn your back to the enemy at the front, and your shield is far more important than your sword. I am the Asaju's Yanis, this is my 5th year of service. "
Dreyfus's mouth dropped, "So you were at Tawm crossing where General Hanis routed the Imperium! Please, you have to tell me about it. Were his tactics as visionary as they say?"
Several heads turned at the mention of the great battle of Tawm crossing, "I was in the vanguard" Yanis affirmed, keeping his beaming smile suppressed to maintain an aura of mystery. "Everything you've heard about the Mukuru is true. I've fought under him several times now and it's quite clear he sees the battlefield in a way that we can't comprehend."
The crowd grew as the son of the Asaju used the opportunity to build some reputation for himself, "At Tawm crossing we met a force three times our size and walked away with half the men lost. I managed to kill 4 men just by myself, and I saw one of the Hatha warriors break a shield wall with nothing but his bare fist. If this battle is anything like that one we'll be back in Idobha by nightfall. "
Stating his own achievements in the same breath as those of a Hatha warrior, the most experienced troops of the Theluji, did little to hurt his reputation.
"I heard that all ten thousand Hatha have been recalled for this attack!" came a voice from the gathering, "Even Sciprio doesn't stand a chance against them. "
The crowd shrunk a little at the mention of the opposing general, he had won too many battles to be taken lightly. Since his appointment, the Theluji had been pushed back until they could no longer afford to retreat, but he had never faced Hanis Mukuru before.
"By god, look over there. " came an excited voice from the crowd, as Yanis felt the gaze of the crowd slip away from him. The new object of admiration was a man 10 meters away, adorned with a rose gold crest bearing the mark of the tiger- it was Mahar Shujaa.
The chatter turned to silence as the newcomers took in their first glimpse of the mythical figure. "Do you think he'll say yes if we ask him to show us his cultivated talent?" came a whisper from the crowd. "There can't be more than 20 fighters here who have cultivated talent, this might be our only chance!"
As soon as the suggestion was made, Shujaa glared at the crowd. "You fool, just because we can't hear him from here doesn't mean it goes both ways." came a caution from one of the new recruits. "We are sorry sir, we will get back to work. " said another saluting soldier, leading to the crowd's rapid dispersal.
"Well then, " Dreyfus probed, now that he and Yanis were alone again "have you ever seen talent?"
"You clearly misunderstand what 'talent' is," remarked the Asaju, "fundamentally it is no different from gaining skills through experience and training. The effects are different for everyone, but if you work hard enough at doing something you have the chance to exceed the limits of normal humans. Most of the Hatha will have what you or I would consider 'talent'. I've seen a Hatha warrior run faster than a cat, and another one lift something that usually takes 3 men."
"Then we could also be like Commander Shujaa one day?" blurted the excited Chinua.
"No, you fool! The jewel families are different. They have secret methods to raise the speed of their talent accumulation. They are generally stronger and faster than all of the Hatha, but when they focus and call on their secret techniques they can temporarily burst forth with power."
Seeing that he still had Dreyfus's undivided attention, he pointed to the General's tent, around 60 meters away "Do you see where Commander Shujaa is now? If he focused he could easily strike either of us down with a javelin right now"
The Chinua said nothing, staring with awe as the commander disappeared into the tent.
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"General, the scouts are back with their report. Magnus' infantry numbers around thirty thousand to our fifty, but their cavalry stands at four thousand which is twice ours." reported an adjutant.
"That much is to be expected, this isn't the extent of the Empire's forces, are they really not serious about taking us?" laughed Shujaa, turning to face his commander only to see a rather grave face. "What's wrong Hanis? This seems like good news. We have 80 war elephants on our side, which should more than makeup for a lack of cavalry. "
"A quarter of those elephants were captured too recently for me to trust them completely, " cautioned Mukuru, "But my worries go past this battle, still it doesn't matter. For now, we focus on the enemy in front of us. "
He stared at the plan his war council arrived at(https://imgur.com/8TuJlaE): they would line up with 3 rows of infantry, with the Hatha at the rear and newcomers in the middle, the cavalry would be split equally on the flanks and the war elephants would take center stage. Just like they had at Tawm crossing, the elephants would charge first, tunneling through the Magnus ranks and causing disarray among the enemy infantry. The Theluji cavalry had fewer numbers and worse horses, but they would be sufficient to keep their counterparts occupied and prevent them from playing a decisive role. Then it would be infantry against infantry, a battle they were sure to win.
"Are you sure about this commander?" spoke up another voice in the room, pointing to the Hatha's positioning in the lines, "We could lose fewer people if we let the Hatha go before the newest recruits. We risk losing the battle if we trust them to keep the pressure up on the front lines."
"You aren't wrong," admitted Hanis, "but we can't afford to lose any more Hatha than we already have. Like Mahar said, this is likely not even the main invasion. If we cannot win with a limited loss to our main force now, we stand no chance in the battles to come. In fact, after this battle, we cannot stand still, we need to march and hold a more favorable position before the next wave comes. "
Shujaa raised his eyebrows, understanding the grave look on his commander's face a little better now.
"Then I will relay your orders to the troops", he said, going out to get the formation set up, as Mukuru sank into his chair, deep in thought.
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Yanis checked his surroundings to confirm that he was in the correct position. He had been placed in the vanguard yet again, the first row on the left wing, before the cavalry on the flank. This filled him with pride, if the wings gave up too much ground then the enemy could easily encircle the formation and destroy the line, naturally then, a position on the wings meant the higher-ups were noting his good performance.
He turned around to see a familiar face in the line behind him waving furiously. Dreyfus, now quivering in his boots, was more towards the centre, but still on the left of the second line. If the first line did their job well enough, it would lessen the pressure on the novices. Yanis was a bit concerned that he could see no Hatha, but the array of war elephants in front of him was more than enough to calm his nerves. As the sun reached its peak, he assessed the formation that enemy general Sciprio had chosen. It seemed to nearly mirror theirs, Yanis could see a single line of infantry with cavalry on both flanks. From this distance, it was hard to say exactly how many lines the Imperium was holding behind the first, but what was plainly clear to see was that they had not yet learned how to use elephants in war. All he had to do now was wait for the battle to start...
An hour later, Yanis had not moved. He could hear groans of frustration from the line behind him, but there was enough experience in his line for them to realize that one should savor the time they had before the start because once a battle starts things move too quickly for comfort. At last, the Imperium formation showed movement, a temporary gap in the flank opposite Yanis was opened to allow a small band of chariot riders to pass through, heading straight to the left column of war elephants. The trumpets rang on both sides, the soldiers tightened their fists, and the wait was over.
For the Theluji, the trumpets were a dual signal - the start of the battle, and the signals for the elephants to charge. The Asaju watched with expectation as the elephants began to barrel towards the enemy line - he couldn't help but pity the chariots that had been sent out early, they would be the first to be pushed into the ground. As the chariots drew closer, Yanis was taken aback when he saw the riders. Each chariot had a driver and a single female passenger with what looked like a trumpet in their hands. But from their lack of armor, it was clear these women were not warriors, there would be no meaning in their sacrifice, he had never seen this on a battlefield before.
The chariots were now seconds away from the elephants, Yanis watched as the women raised their trumpets. What followed was an ungodly scream, the likes of which no Asaju had ever heard before. A high-pitched shriek which rattled his very bones, he stumbled but managed to stay on his feet, was this some kind of talent?
Yanis raised his head to see the result of this action, the chariots had all been trampled in the confusion as expected. The fear-stricken elephants seemed to be charging with even more ferocity now, only their direction had changed.
Before the son of the Asaju had time to think, the elephants fell upon his part of the line. The screams of terror around him were drowned out by the sound of raging elephants. Yanis had stopped thinking, only instincts could keep him alive now, he turned and ran towards the cavalry, getting as far away from the elephants as possible. Unfortunately, the elephants were headed the same way, Yanis looked back to see an elephant only seconds away from him. He closed his eyes in fear and never opened them again.
---
The Chinua were a simple people, farmers based out of Idobha for as long as their history could remember. But even the son of hardened warriors, would not have been prepared for the chaos unfolding in front of Dreyfus. He remembered hearing a soul-shaking shriek, and the next thing he knew the line of warriors in front of him had been decimated by their own elephants. He was lucky to still be alive, just 20 meters from him an elephant had punched a hole in his line as well. The Imperium was not sitting still either, their cavalry had taken advantage of the confusion and were now finishing off the cavalry of the left flank. "Advance." came an order from behind, "leave the left to the Hatha and advance". Dreyfus was still in a daze, but his body responded automatically, if he was to die anyway, he might as well do so while moving forward. He rallied all of his strength and charged forward.
He could see the elephants who had kept their path true charging in front of him, they had reached the first Magnus line and were about to avenge the left flank. Suddenly, there was a rapid change in the Empire's formation. Sections of soldiers across the first line shuffled back, and in a swift movement slotted into a gap to their right. The Empire had never been arranged in lines like the Theluji were, there were large gaps between, each column of the lines (https://imgur.com/jBQ9yHA).
Elephants are not suicidal creatures, when asked to charge into a row of spears, even the well-trained ones will move into free space if possible. This sealed their fate, Dreyfus watched as the elephants shaved off parts of the Imperium lines while escaping into the gaps, but the majority of the Empire's troops were unharmed. They now had the elephants surrounded on all sides, and a sea of javelins and arrows rained down on the mighty beasts. By the time Dreyfus's line had reached the first Magnus line, the elephants had fallen with little achievements to speak of. He had no time to curse them for their failures, it was his turn now. He raised his shield and packed in tight with the soldiers around him. He was not in the front line, but he needed to provide relief to the fighters up ahead if they started to give any ground. He screamed out loud to give himself the bravery for what was needed next and pushed forward.
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Hanis Mukuru watched in horror as the battlefield laughed at him. That the shrieking chariots appeared right before the most inexperienced elephants was a cruel stroke of fate. He ordered the left flank of his Hatha warriors to encircle the Magnus cavalry which had seized the initiative and was decimating his own cavalry on the left. They had overreached, and were now stuck in combat without being able to utilize their mobility, the Hatha would make quick work of them. This gave Hanis no consolation, Sciprio would be more than happy to sacrifice half of his cavalry to achieve what they just did, and this was before mentioning the disastrous performance of the elephants. The Empire was innovating at a terrifying pace, the strategy that had routed them multiple times was not just nullified but turned against the Theluji.
"Fix your face Mukuru" advised Shujaa from his right, "we still have the advantage in terms of numbers, and besides you help no one by worrying your troops. "
Mukuru took the advice immediately, he was always grateful to have a second-in-command who wasn't afraid to speak his mind, unfiltered. There was reason in Shujaa's words as well, the Hatha had not been diminished in any way, and even the forces that he had sent to take care of the Empire's cavalry could achieve this without major losses. There was only one annoying piece left on the board.
Hanis raised his hand and signaled to the horses on his right flank. The mission was clear, nullify their opposite number, whatever the cost. The horses began their stride, moving in refined formation as they took the battle to the Empire's remaining cavalry.
Hanis watched the collision closely, the Theluji cavalry was performing excellently. Despite being half the number of their rivals, they held the line firm and made the Empire pay in blood for every inch of advance. But there were limits to bravery, the line crept back ever so steadily. Eventually, the Theluji cavalry turned away from the battle and rode away, with the Empire's horses hot on their heels.
A smile crept across Shujaa's face, the cavalry had achieved their objective. No plan survives first contact with the enemy, but they had somehow managed to isolate infantry against infantry as was originally planned.
"General Mukuru, the first line has been exhausted, they will start to give ground unless we push up further" came a report from the front lines, "Very well, order the second line forward. '' came an immediate response.
---
The rhythm of battle had set in, and Dreyfus could feel that he was doing well. He had been ordered forward nearly an hour ago, and after joining they had pushed the Empire back a considerable amount. The fighting was in no way less severe than the moment he joined, but his senses felt numb to everything but the man in front of him. He could see the whites of his enemy's eyes, he was as afraid as Dreyfus was. He thrust a spear forward into his enemy's leg before retreating into the safety of the shield wall. The whole line moved as one, pushing forward with as few gaps as possible. Dreyfus pushed forward too, as the enemy before him stumbled onto the ground. He was now flailing his sword around, screaming in pain while his leg bled profusely. Dreyfus would have been disgusted by the sight just a few hours ago, but the scent of blood was all he knew now. He stepped forward out of line, rapidly jutted his spear into his enemy's neck and retreated back into his formation. The Chinua had made their first kill in combat. Dreyfus felt no remorse, but no joy either. He had no time for any of those thoughts, the enemy who had fallen was quickly replaced by another, and the dance of death continued.
Soon enough, Dreyfus could feel his strength leaving him. His muscles screamed for him to just lie down and accept his fate, but he knew what would happen to Idobha if he did. The rotations and relief from the soldiers behind him had become less frequent, the Theluji line would not hold for long. He turned around to judge the situation, the rest of his line was in no better shape, the Empire had lost more men but had taken the initiative. Suddenly the trumpets blew, and orders came from behind "Pull back, hold the line, and pull back." Music to his ears, Dreyfus turned his back to confirm the source of the order, and before he knew it, felt a sharp pain in his left arm.
He staggered back to see a gaping wound, blood falling like the waterfalls at Kali Cliffs. Dreyfus screamed in pain, as his comrades swallowed him into the line to give him some relief. "What would sir Yanis say" he muttered to himself in disappointment, he had only one usable arm now.
He raised his head when a trumpet sounded from the Magnus side of the line "Fall back, return to the main unit" was the command. Dreyfus was confused, the Theluji line was faltering, the Empire line was tired but they were still better off than his own side, why give up the initiative now?
He glanced behind and understood immediately. The Hatha had finally started to move.
---
The battle had started with fifteen thousand Hatha, and nearly all of them had yet to see battle that day. Hanis marched his troops forward in an orderly line, he could see the Empire's troops had pulled back and were re-organizing into one giant line, but it was too little too late. They now had roughly the same number of soldiers left on both sides, but at least half of the Empire's troops were exhausted, while the Hatha were simply frustrated that they had been kept on the rear for so long. The cost for this was the front two lines, which had been nearly completely decimated. They picked up the remainders as they marched forward, as Mahar ordered the wounded and exhausted to retreat to the rear.
"Sir, I can still fight. Please do not order me to withdraw. " came a voice from one of them. The Shujaa turned to see a boy, only a few years older than his own child. He had the eyes of someone who had seen hell and come back, and now he was asking to plunge right in again.
"Your left arm is completely useless, soldier. You have done excellently so far and your glory will be noted, but you will only hold us back from here. " he rebuked.
"I am right-handed, commander Shujaa." came a steely response. Dreyfus was no longer thinking, just the previous day the thought of merely talking to the great Hatha commander Shujaa would have seemed a faraway dream, but now he was attempting to change a direct order.
Shujaa had nothing but appreciation for the young boy's spirit. His superiors had left his line stranded and unsupported just to preserve their strength, yet instead of rage or contempt, he was trying to re-enter the fight. Perhaps it was just the rush of war, but it showed that the boy had the makings of a Hatha. "Drop that sword and keep only a shield. Stay in the back of our line and no matter what, do not get in our way. You will also receive your punishment for this when we return to Idobha." he commanded as he walked forward.
Dreyfus held the most proper salute he could muster. Return to Idobha? Dreyfus was not thinking that far, all he knew was that he could not sit still while others were fighting. He joined the back of the Hatha line and followed his heroes into battle once more.
It was a sight he had seen before, the Empire's line standing firm as the Theluji marched forward into them. But there was something different this time, the rhythm Dreyfus had achieved in his moment of excellence, he could tell it was a feeling every one of the soldiers around him knew deeply. They moved in perfect unison, picked up speed right before clashing with the enemy, and when they made contact immediately pushed back the Imperial line by several paces. Yanis had not lied to him, Dreyfus quickly realized his presence made no difference to this unit whatsoever. The Hatha made smooth, steady pushes forward, it was like they had never stopped moving, only slowed down. Dreyfus turned to see each member of the line doing with ease what he had needed the blessing of the gods of luck to achieve. One Hatha warrior jumped up from within the back lines and threw an axe into the crowd, killing 2 Imperial soldiers in one blow. Right as the warrior landed on the ground, his whole column rushed forward, the enemy bundled over each other as they gave significant ground. But the Hatha did not press their advantage, they raided the opening, took as many easy kills as they could get, and retreated without any losses. This was a completely different battle, this was the Hatha.
Dreyfus had the time to look around and assess their positions; he could see Shujaa in the very front of the center of the line, pushing back three men on his own. The Empire's line had become long and thin, it seemed the center was weaker than the flanks and had been pushed back more than other areas. This was the tactic of weak centers and strong flanks, used by none other than Hanis Mukuru at the battle of Tawm crossing, so he was sure the Hatha knew how to counter it. The battle had started poorly for them, but victory was within sight.
---
Hanis looked around as he pushed forward and eliminated an enemy before sinking back into the shield wall. Things were going smoothly, the Hatha line had pushed the Empire back and inflicted heavy blows in the process. Shujaa was enjoying the bloodbath, making sure his reputation as a fearsome berserker was upheld. He was going to breathe a sigh of relief until he heard something faint in the distance behind him. "Shujaa, hold the line" he shouted as he retreated behind to focus on the noise, it was a rhythmic tapping … the sound of hoofs.
Hanis's eyes widened as he realized what was happening, he tore his way to the very rear of the Hatha line to confirm his fears. His heart sank at the sight, the Imperial cavalry had returned. They must have realized the plan was to separate them from the battle and were returning rapidly with no sign of the Theluji cavalry to offer resistance. He traced the path of the cavalry, they were splitting up into two units, heading for each of the flanks. Hanis had no time to think of any countermeasures, even if he could, his orders would not reach the flanks in time. He could only watch as they collided into the unsuspecting flanks on the rear.
His Hatha were the most capable warriors in the world, they had never been defeated in battle before, but they were only human. The flanks quickly collapsed in on themselves, and Hanis knew all too well what was to come. "Pull the center back, Shujaa stop the advance" he screamed in vain, nothing would save them now.
Dreyfus was jolted by screams to his left. He had been too mesmerized by the Hatha in front of him to notice, but the flank had fallen. "Which hell did those horses come from?" he cursed, as the long line of the Empire circled around and surrounded the Hatha line. What he saw next was a slaughter. The Hatha were trampled, cut up from all sides, and pushed into each other with no space to breathe let alone maneuver. Dreyfus yelped in pain as his comrades crushed his wounded arm, but what shook him more was the sight in front of him. On the ground, he saw a trampled body, with a rose gold tiger crest pinned to the side. The Empire's banner stood tall on all sides, the Hatha were now little more than prisoners, and he could hear the cheers of victory from every corner.
"You tried your best Hanis" came a booming voice from what was the center of the Imperial line. "But with this, Idobha has fallen."
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"There is no other way to say it, Erwin. They crushed us." Anna checked on her son to make sure he hadn't drifted off to sleep. "After the battle, the Theluji king had no choice but to surrender. The Empire took control of the entire southern continent, swept past Theluji, eradicated the kingdoms that opposed them and eventually established their stronghold in the South that we know as Magnus Auster. The kingdom has done its best to make the people forget the details of this battle, but as the ones responsible, we can never forget. Do you understand now, why we live this way?"
Erwin nodded quietly, trying to suppress a stinging feeling in his chest. He felt the anger and pain of his fallen ancestors, but it was dominated by the shame he felt in his own family's failure.
"Let me ask you then, Erwin." said his mother, seeing her child lost in thought "At what point did Theluji lose the war?"
Erwin considered the options: was the whole battle plan flawed? Was the failure of the elephants the decisive factor? Or was it simply the final moment when the cavalry swept aside the Hatha warriors?
"I think-"
"Before you answer, Mukuru," his mother interjected, "do not answer this question as the descendant of Hanis Mukuru. If you answer this question wrong, it is a sign that you might be mature enough to fight a battle, but not enough to fight a war."
Erwin paused. "First she asks me to think like a Mukuru, and now tells me not to?" In the end, he admitted defeat - "I don't know."
"Well, at least you aren't wrong" she laughed as she realized she had expected too much of her child. He had plenty of time to come to the correct answer.
"Sleep now child, you've been up too long."
