"I don't like this," said Tongana. "We weren't routed, but we're set up for a war we can't win. In some ways, that's worse."
"Elaborate on that, please," said the mayor. "I'm interested to hear your side of things."
Tongana sighed. Just two hours ago, she had endured all the fear and fury of battle, and her body was vehemently reminding her that she was not twenty anymore. All she wanted was a shower, her bed and a cup of warm tea. Instead, she walked alongside Mari Maldashi's mercenaries and the highest figures in Bonde Wakulima, watching as stretchers and gurneys funneled into the hospital, loaded with butchered fighters.
"This isn't the win it looks like," said Tongana. "The enemy lost more personnel than we did, but they can absorb the losses they took. We can't. For that matter, they're wise to our concealed autocannons now. If they give us a few more battles like the one we just had, we won't be able to keep up with them."
"What can we do better next time?" asked the mayor.
"Talk to Mari Maldashi. She predicted this, and she hired the mercenaries who saved a lot of lives today. She knows what she's doing."
Two of the mercenaries grinned.
"Wonderful," said the mayor. "You'll be happy to hear that your mercenary friends have recommended the same thing, and we're heading there now. But once again, I'm interested in your input here. What flaws were in our tactics? What equipment should we have, moving forward?"
"I'm not a tactician. I'm just a soldier. But I do know the basics: be willing to change plans as you go, don't engage unless you have high ground and keep your troops talking to each other."
"Think back, Ms. Tongana. Imagine the best officer you served under. What would she have done in this situation?"
"The best tricks I ever saw were the enemy's. It was on Bokhir Golyn, and they used the environment well. They set traps that didn't require us to do foolish things to spring them. Mines were our biggest problem, but they used remotely detonated explosives too. You stepped the wrong place, and that was it. You just vanished." She shook her head. "Nothing left but a big cloud."
"Excellent." The mayor held out a hand. "Ms. Tongana, how would you like to be part of our military advisory council? From now until the war ends, you'll have a vital role in defending your home."
A cold sensation coiled around Tongana's spine. "This is what I came here to get away from. But someone has to do it. I accept."
"You're a good woman, Ms. Tongana. And now there's someone I'd like you to meet." The mayor gestured ahead to a ruined farm, where a dark maw opened up in the earth, braced by brick and metal and surrounded by mighty-looking trucks with tires like stone cylinders. A robotic gun sentry clung like a giant metal mosquito to the wall of a fire-singed silo, and vehicle tracks crisscrossed the trampled farmland. A harvesting rig lay smoldering beneath a crumpled shack, and Tongana saw a trail of blood where a corpse had been dragged across the gravel driveway. A tired-looking woman ran up to them. Tongana recognized Mari Maldashi before she spoke.
"Mrs. Mayor," said Mari Maldashi. "I want... I just want to say I'm sorry. I never wanted this for anyone. And I'm shutting down the mine."
"What?" said the mayor. "What for?"
"What started this war? Why are we fighting in the first place?" She wiped her brow, clearing dirty hair away from her wide eyes. "My copper. None of this would have happened if I hadn't dug up my copper. So I won't do it anymore. I'm done profiting from all this."
"Don't be ridiculous!" said the mayor. "You've made an enormous contribution!"
"Shutting down the mine won't stop them," Tongana added. "The bandit clans smell blood in the water, and so does Ahriman."
