Second Lachelle-Villore War

The Second Lachelle-Villore War was a boiling point in a seventeen-year rivalry. While King Aeschylus I of the Lachelle Kingdom required firm action against the southern Villorians to tame his own subjects, the Plenum of Villore grew increasingly open to another northern occupation. This strife would conclude the rivalry between these nations, as Villore came out triumphant, and Lachelle sued for peace in utter disorder, without a firm army, harvest or sovereign. The scars of these conflicts would show on Lachelle for generations.

## War

### Prelude

After the First Lachelle-Villore War, tensions between Villore and it's northern neighbor sharply increased as Villore cultivated seized territory while the Kingdom struggled to recover from wartime razing. Politics within the Lachelle Kingdom were of hostile sentiment to the Villorians. Large, organized but 'anonymous' raids were dealt unto the farmlands of Villore, which did little to harm the city state's economy, but highly increased public support for a war. The recent inauguration of Consuls Phobois and Theron proved that the latter had a mindset for an occupation, and began polarizing their northern neighbors in the public eye.

King Aeschylus I, meanwhile, was endeavoring on securing his father's throne. Pressed by his councilors and populace to protest diplomacy with Villore, his actions would only help fuel the fire the Consul Theron had been stoking for the past year.

### Conflict

With the casus belli of retaliatory strikes against the raids in 121 and 128, Consul Theron earned the support of the Plenum and raised an army, falling upon the Lachellen border just days after sending their declaration of war. Aeschylus I, encouraged by the populace to punish the arrogant Villorians for their past and present transgressions, raised an army of his own to meet the enemy at the field outside of Calice. Aeschylus I had a fortification on a hill just parallel to the capital city, which in itself had it's own garrison. Consul Theron, meanwhile, had been forced to take the field below, but after being rained upon by arrows from the defenders, chose to withdraw.

It is said that Solon I was a close adviser to the Consul, and spoke out of his experience in the previous war. Under his influence, Theron I went around Calice, pillaging and then razing the countryside once more, while sending for reinforcements from the capital to assist in a future siege. Aeschylus I was then left with a dilemma; rush to his people's aide and catch the enemy before they grow any stronger, or allow his people to suffer once more at the hands of the southerners. While the King had made many promises to his subjects to attain his throne, he ultimately remained behind his own defenses during the razing. In reply, the enraged councilors in Calice accused the King of being cowardly. Understanding the peril at stake, Aeschylus I then tried to flee the capital for his army's fort, but was caught and stabbed to death.

Following the murder of King Aeschylus I, Onesiphoros, the former marshal of his court, was declared King. Onesiphoros marched the armies from Calice immediately, leaving only a small garrison to hold it, and intercepted the Villorian reinforcement train, slaughtering the unprepared recruits. Learning of the attack, Theron I redirected his army to Calice. Despite their efforts, however, the Lachellens would return before they arrived. The Villorians persisted, this time; thinly surrounding the hill and city. The following nights, large assaults fell upon the siege line, and eventually Theron I was forced to withdraw from the siege at the imminent risk of his own line breaking. A siege remained equally as impractical as the last time they considered the option. Confronted with stagnation in the war, Solon I then proposed a strategy of trickery. The following nights, the Villorian camp would distance itself further and further away, and eventually two thirds of the camp shrunk in size - particularly, the lights and campfires every night. Onesiphoros was then certain the Villorians fled and left a minor garrison, to which he leapt at by morning. Once he engaged in battle, he came to discover that the tents were just tightened in proximity - that the army, indeed, was still full in size. Goaded into an attack, the Villorians were able to easily defeat him, while Theron I led an assault to swiftly take Calice following the victory.

### Aftermath

> "*If not for the treachery of the Lachellens, Lachelle might never have fallen.*"
> ― Solon I
>
>

It is said that Onesiphoros was killed in battle. Lachelle, afterwards, experienced political disorder, having lost both their King and their capital, which fell under the annexation of Villore. Theron I and Solon I both received grand praise for their victories, and it is recorded that the Triumph was invented to reward their achievements. Additional to their parade, Theron I was able to procure support from the Republic to receive a governorship over Calice - the first governorship distributed in the Republic's history. The Plenum's golden age is said to have been sprung from this victory, where a generational rival of Villore had been thoroughly crushed.