Daria the Divine and Tammuz the Beheader had managed to secure a foothold on a border planet… and they were quite annoyed.

"These ants are a problem," Tammuz said as he toppled a tower. "The humans are of no real consequence, but…"

Daria simply nodded. She did her best not to reveal the lingering injuries to her arm, but she was well aware of what they could do- and in only an instant. She hadn't fully recognized the danger until she encountered them once more- she had merely thought it was a special ability of that strange cultivator who barely had an energy signature. Now she knew better. There had been reports, of course, but none of them had the clarity she now held. Truthfully, the vast majority of engagements that hadn't involved Divinities had been losses for the Holy Stars.

"We should just scuttle the planet," Tammuz said.

Daria glared at him. "Why would we even bother coming here if we were to take such an option? It is a rare sight… or at least, it should have been. Yet this Alliance possesses a great many planets with high purity of energy."

"And that's why losing one wouldn't make a difference in the long run. It would make our dominance clear," Tammuz explained.

"No." Daria couldn't accept that. "We stated our goal was to come here to conquer this planet, not to destroy it. It would appear a failure."

"But like this-"

"We will not fail. Poisons must be sufficient to eradicate them. I have great confidence."

She said that, but neither of them dare to rest their feet on the planet for even a moment. Nor would they relax their senses, in case some flew to engage them. It was simply incomprehensible, creatures that could overcome the power of Divinity. Furthermore, ones that could be crushed by a simple peasant by hand.

Neither of them mentioned that they couldn't possibly have brought sufficient poisons to handle the ants. They hadn't fully been aware of the necessity, and the Holy Stars weren't known for poisons in general. They didn't want to ruin the planet, they wanted to occupy it. And from there, every other planet this 'Alliance' controlled. The Holy Stars would make far better use of it, for a people that mattered.

-----

Third Watch was playing a guessing game. She was guessing at many things, first of which was the probability of certain plans working. Educated speculation… some might call it. But in the current circumstances, there was so little prior information that it was no better than a true guess.

Though Third Watch was loath to admit it, she couldn't lay a single mandible on the divinities. They were too cautious… too quick. It was easier to catch the lesser angels. They were more numerous, so finding one off guard was feasible. Corentin had led the void ants to many victories with his actions. They were holding strong, even if many of the largest population centers were held by the Holy Stars.

The payoff was enormous should one of the divinities fall. But Third Watch simply couldn't balance it against the monumental unlikeliness of it all. The consequences of failure were not simply the loss of void ant lives- they would gladly make that sacrifice for a chance. No, the true consequences were allowing the divinities experience against them. There would only be a few precious opportunities to take them down. Third Watch did not think she had such an opportunity, and the others agreed.

It was the next steps where they diverged, but a coherent plan formed regardless. First Watch and Second Watch would remain to combat the intruders. Third Watch would follow her inspiration towards another opportunity. But for that, she needed to pick the right ship.

She couldn't simply inform the locals not to destroy a particular one. That would be too obvious. But she couldn't wait forever to choose which one to board. But there were some with a high probability of value. Carriers of people that were of less military value- but one that would be fast enough not to be at the end of the line.

Fortunately, they had no standardization. There was sufficient variety in their vessels that Third Watch had choices. Now she just needed an excuse. Corentin had agreed to the plan, now they merely had to implement it. A raid on a particular encampment would be the distraction, but he would still be needed to transport them to the right location 'subtly'.

-----

Another troublemaker, halfway around the planet. Daria constantly had to deal with them, though she only got involved where her people cried out for her. They had to grow on their own… and she couldn't be bothered to do everything herself.

This one she'd had her eyes on for some time. He'd been personally responsible for the defeat of numerous Angels- along with those accursed 'void ants'. People had been captured and interrogated about the void ants, but their words were incomprehensible. They acted like they were people. But perhaps that made sense to them, when they were barely people themselves, despite being human.

Corentin of the spear. Daria would let him get himself deep into trouble. He might kill a few people, but they would be acceptable losses. Even another Angel, if necessary.

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The man took pride in his speed, that much was clear. He appeared in the skies over a city, blatantly spreading his aura. Then he'd descended like a bolt of lightning. He always stuck out at many different foes, leaving behind darkness wherever he went- the tainted ants.

Daria didn't even bother approaching closer. She simply spread her wings from where she was. But- could you believe the audacity?- some of the ants nipped at her. She grabbed a building and tossed it as Corentin while she held him. That should crush them- though he would bear the weight of his sin a while longer. She would make sure of that. Her Saints would capture him and-

"Daria. So you truly dared to return."

The disrespectful voice came from an aura that suddenly appeared- hidden moments before along with an approaching fleet.

"You shall address me as Daria the Divine, nameless fool!" she spoke imperiously.

"Daria of Nothing Notable. You and your companion of indiscriminate slaughter shall leave the sovereign territory of the Lower Realms Alliance, or you shall never leave. I swear this on my name as Devon of the Shattered Chains."

Tammuz scoffed. "It's just one man. What can he do?"

That was what Daria was interested in finding out. She might as well let him do it.

"A fair point. I shall defend our assets here."

Tammuz shrugged. "If he's a chain user that's already broken, I don't see why I couldn't do it again."

The 'unity' cultivator Devon's aura pressed down around them. "Why don't you try it? You still have an opportunity to flee in disgrace."

Tammuz made a face. He hadn't intended to be overheard, but it didn't matter. "Bring it on."

Two axes… no, that was for widespread slaughter for the most part. Tammuz combined his weapons into a greater heavy axe. Some might say it was unbalanced, but it was perfect for an execution. As chains began to form in the sky, Tammuz took the opportunity to swing at one of them. He figured half his power would do, and he was right. The chain broke apart. How trivial.

Then Tammuz felt the entire planet begin to reach up for him. Not once in his life had Tammuz been afraid of anyone below Life Transformation- not since his birth. He'd had guardians of Saintly power since that point. No matter how many there were, it would not make a difference. But now? He was suddenly aware of each and every man, woman, and child around him.

The chain snapped back into place, whole once more, as more crossed each other around the globe. Tammuz got the feeling that Devon's declaration hadn't been an unsubstantiated threat. Surely he couldn't bind the whole planet and two Divinities but…

Tammuz leapt off the planet anyway. He sliced through another chain, but only barely. And this time it was a full powered swing. And Daria? She was right behind him.

-----

Devon didn't even flinch as two divinities came towards him. That didn't mean he was without caution, but he couldn't afford to show any weakness. He retracted his chains, prepared to encircle just the two of them. One he was confident in. Two would require the full power of Unity. Fortunately, he happened to have an oppressed planet beneath him, groaning to be free. Obviously it would have been better for things to never get to this state, but at least they could aid in their own freedom.

The fleet behind Devon wasn't directly by him specifically. They had general orders… and with easy targets, they took a shot. Just one, combining the power of the whole fleet. Devon had to admit he was impressed. Of the two, he wouldn't have targeted the one known for her great defensive abilities.

That was why he would have to commend them. Because they made her dodge. Which was a damn shame, because they absolutely would have annihilated her with that. A perfectly synchronized combined attack, focused on exactly the right precisely the right energy signature to bypass her abilities. Had they been preparing that the whole way over?

"Leave and never return." Devon didn't have a planned statement, but that was the best one he could manage in that instant. It was a shame he wasn't Aerona… she would have had the words necessary to weaken them. And from what he'd heard, divinities would truly fall to words, if they reached the heart of their followers.

Devon still expected this to be a battle. And yet… Daria and the other he hadn't heard the name of yet slowed. Daria appeared to be more important- or at least she demonstrated her belief of that by taking the lead.

"We will show respect for your might just this once. But can you truly defend all of your people? Look at what we have done already."

Devon had to admit, her words hurt. Briefly. Could they defend everyone? No. But the Alliance wouldn't crumble because of failures. Their people weren't sheltered from the truth. "If that is what you must say, I do not mind. Depart from here."

Devon could see the way Tammuz was eyeing the planet. He didn't have to say anything for the hint to be perfectly clear. With the planetary barrier down- perhaps it had never been particularly strong to begin with- this place would not survive if he truly wished to destroy it. Whether or not he won the ensuing battle was of no consequence, unless he could guarantee slaying one of them. Even then, he didn't want to balance a planet's lives against that- and a great many of the citizens still seemed to live.

-----

Third Watch had to admit, Devon had great timing. He may not have known it, but he saved Corentin- the spearman had gotten away the moment Daria's pressure weakened. The way he handled the situation was also for the best, as Third Watch was able to swiftly see people boarding her chosen vessel.

She wondered how many of her kin were aboard other vessels. She had her own contingent, of course, but surely she wouldn't have been the only one with the idea. It didn't have to be royal guard. At certain times, even lowly sergeants had been known to perform great deeds.

What act could be greater than striking the heart of their foes- what was more, with free transportation? The logistics of sneaking void ants onto their planets were still in the works, but Third Watch had an opportunity right here. Once she arrived, she would continue to make the best strategic decisions for the alliance. The Great Queen would be proud of her… if she ever heard about what they did. But Third Watch knew very well they might die to perform their task.

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