“Oftentimes the worst way to find out that you’re in charge is to have the authority handed over to you when you’re completely not ready for it, nor desiring it at all.” - Saying attributed to Goran Egazov, mercenary commander from Elmaiya, circa 539 VA.

Middle General Kang Lu-Shih had not had any decent sleep for the past week and a half.

It was already bad enough when all he had to deal with was the scolding from the High General and the heckling from the staff she brought with her, another middle general and four low generals, all from her clan, but things just got worse in the worst possible way for Lu-Shih. He suddenly had the responsibility over the army thrown back into his hands under thoroughly unpalatable circumstances.

For the High General Zabibah Taouan to foster members from her family into high positions in the military was not unexpected. It was old practice amongst the Empire’s nobility, and even the Huan did the same when the Conefederation was still a thing, so it was not even something limited to the Aqwa. The High General had brought two of her children and three cousins of her extended family as her staff, which ensured that the high command of the army listened to her and her alone.

Normally a High General’s opinion could be vetoed if enough of their Middle or Low Generals disagreed vehemently with the matter in question, but since Lu-Shih was the only member of the high command not part of the High General’s family, that was no longer a possibility. All he could do was to obey and follow the orders he was given.

Which was one reason he was sent to make headway into Kolitschei while the High General and her ilk besieged Oleynuos and gained all the credit for taking down the city.

Even so, he never expected for assassins to boldly infiltrate the camp two nights ago. Worse, they somehow succeeded in avoiding all the sentries and patrols the army had set up around the camp and made their way to the central area where the officers had their tents set up. Those assassins had struck swiftly and slain the High General and all but one of her staff, with only their headless bodies left behind.

Lu-Shih survived the incident since he had set his tent a bit further away from where the High General and her family stayed, while the High General’s younger daughter, one of the Low Generals she brought with her, apparently survived through pure luck. The assassins only had enough time to attack and ransack five tents, the lucky woman’s tent being the one they skipped.

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Even so, the future looked bleak for Lu-Shih. Some patrolling soldiers found the assassins only after they had done their grisly deed, and immediately accosted them. The ensuing fight – for the assassins resisted most fiercely indeed – resulted in at least ten dead soldiers and another two dozen or so injured, and all they had to show for it was one dead assassin and another captured alive after the soldiers managed to cripple the assassin’s arms and legs first.

There were signs of more assassins who likely made their getaway, as they left behind several groups of dead or injured patrols. Some of the patrols even only had one survivor left behind. There was nothing Lu-Shih could do against those who already escaped the army’s grasp, though.

Attempts to interrogate the one assassin they captured – and nursed back to some semblance of health – went poorly, as the assassin in question was quite determined to stay mum. Then again, perhaps they simply had not understood what was even being asked of them. The locals of this new land used a different language than what the Empire used.

That was something Lu-Shin confirmed in person when he tried to interrogate the assassin with the language that traders supposedly from this land used way back in the past. His family had been descended from merchants who dealt with such folk back when, and they passed down the knowledge of the language in case it would be needed again in the future.

To Lu-Shih’s surprise, the assassin actually responded to his words.

“Just kill me. I will not offer you any information worth anything,” the crippled man had said with a rather accented tongue and a resigned smile on his lips. “A blade had been used and broke during its final performance, so its time has come to an end, that is all.”

Lu-Shin found himself unable to refute the assassin’s words, the man clearly at peace with his own impending death, so he could only shake his head and leave, ordering the guards to keep watch over the man. Perhaps the assassin would change their tune after the Empire won the battle, which would not be too late. The High General hailed from a powerful family, and her family would likely wish to pursue the matter to the very end.

Either way, the sudden death of all but one Low General from the high command left Lu-Shih as the highest ranking officer present. Not even the late High General’s daughter contended his command, as the young woman – too young and inexperienced for her position, in his opinion – was still in shock and distress over the sudden assassination, in no condition to function properly, much less command.

He himself had instituted a more conservative policy on the battlefield, believing that his people would be able to grind down the enemy’s defenses with time. It might be less effective to fight in such a manner, but it actually spared the lives of his soldiers compared to the more reckless assaults the High General preferred, as they had more time and leeway to cycle back tired and wounded troops to be replaced by fresh soldiers.

If there was one major change Lu-Shih made, however, it was the quadrupling of patrols and sentries during the night watch, which most considered to be an understandable reaction given the fate of his predecessor.