The Conflict
Prelude
After learning that she shared parentage with Hilandra, Hihaye wasn't seen in public for several years. As drastic as it sounds, it was a blink of time for an immortal. When she returned, she engaged in a campaign of misinformation, attempting to paint her half-sister as evil. She refused to believe that the story behind their births was true. She figured that Kephru had somehow duped her father, Tenyuu, using dark magic. The resulting offspring, Hilandra, was therefore evil and unnatural.
Aiding her campaign was the public distrust of the kairyll, a species native to Hilandra's country, Kaishivan.
By the year 2984/200 BF, Hihaye had the Miltanites convinced of Hilandra's evil nature. Trade from Miltan to Kaishivan slowed, becoming non-existent within a few decades. Goods from Kaishivan were refused entry into Miltan. They had to resort to trading with Silvestri and the island nation of Ju’shal’long, facing outrageous import and export fees.
Hilandra, not knowing what else to do, petitioned the gods for their help. Her people were suffering and Hihaye refused to speak to her about it. She was firmly reminded that she and her sister were put in place as Empresses so that the gods could step away from mortal affairs. This problem was up to her to solve.
In 3159/25 BF, there were skirmishes between Miltan and Kaishivan along their shared border. At first, these skirmishes were believed to be Miltanites attempting to expand their territory in direct violation of their goddess-given charters. In this, the gods did intervene, warning Hihaye that any move to expand into Kaishivan would be met with heavy and immediate reprisal.
In 3179/6 BF, Hihaye officially declared war on Kaishivan, beginning what would come to be known as the War of the Roses.
Prior to declaring war, Hihaye had made arrangements with King Stallion Tanvihr which allowed her to move the bulk of her troops through Silvestri. There was no love lost between him and Hilandra, so he readily agreed, gaining both an ally and a promise of reduced trade fees.
Hihaye knew that Hilandra had spies in Miltan, so she moved some troops towards the border with the hopes that Hilandra would make the assumption that this was another skirmish.
For most of the war, Miltan and Kaishivan fought each other while the other countries stood by, doing their best to keep from becoming involved. It was only after the
Forging that the other races joined the Miltanites.
The primary battleground was along the mutual border between the two countries. As the years passed and the fighting became increasingly intense, battles spilled into
Athros and
Silvestri. The
shai'then remained neutral, refusing to aid either side until Hihaye met with Duchess Al’hya in secret. This pact spelled the beginning of the end for Kashivan.
The gods, as one might expect, weren't happy with Hihaye. They argued amongst themselves, trying to find a way to end the war. In the end,
Shan-Illu overruled them, allowing the war to continue. She was still angry with Tenyuu over his encounter with
Kephru and the resulting offspring. She convinced Sahalje’ran,
Tehaksha, and
Vetol’xosed to support her.
The gods maintain that, had they known what the outcome would be, they would have acted differently. More often than not,
Kalhalla is blamed for not seeing it.
Hihaye believed herself victorious. not only had she erradicated her half-sister and the monstrous kairyyl, but she had firmly placed herself as the supreme ruler of the
Soulforge Alliance. The entirety of the known world was hers to command.
The magic used to obliterate the people of Kaishivan made the entire country uninhabitable. The border had to be moved to create a buffer zone between what was now called
the Forbidden Lands and Miltan proper. The town of
Paraten became an outpost charged with keeping the untamed magic from contaminating their country.
Kaishivan became forbidden to enter, hence its new moniker. Anyone caught leaving the country was deemed to be corrupt and immediately sentenced to death.
Historical Significance
Contrary to what the Alliance believes, there were survivors from the Kaishivan side. They'd survived thanks to Hilandra's magic sealing them in a cave system on the border with Silvestri. From there, they made their way across Ardren, though the Tehvir Mountains, and all the way to the Strait of Scallen, where they built crude ships and feld to
Keltos
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