Palkh's conquest of Trebizond had shattered Pontic unity and left them reeling, buying the Varicarnate time to stabilise itself and integrate its new-old territories in Urapivarta and Urapital. Though plans had been made to march across the Spines of Vari to capitalise on Pontic weakness and reclaim the central plateau, the untimely death of the ruling Varicarn followed by a regency had stymied them.

Instead time had passed and the Pontic Persians had forged themselves anew, becoming whole once more. Their hard living and martial traditions saw them more successful than the other not-so-Immortal rump states despite their setbacks, and ultimately they had come to be just one of three remaining, with Canaan and Byzantium standing as the other two contenders.

When word reached the new Varicarn that Pontus would be engaged in war against Byzantium, they quickly seized upon the opportunity and made to liberate territories which yet held substantial Varic populations upon the South-East plateau. It proved to be false information, though, with the Pontic people prepared to meet the Varicarnites and defeating them in two brief engagements before word could be sent to Nekvarta in search of aid.

As it happened, though, the alleged Byzantine-Pontic war came to pass. When the bulk of Pontic forces turned hurriedly west to face this new threat, both Nekvartans and Urapivartans began to flow through the mountain passes under the leadership or local mountain guides until they formed a large enough mass to throw the Persians back, after which time the remainder could flow through the Uramarga more quickly.

Though the Varicarnite forces were quite badly bloodied by their earlier battles, together with their Nekvartan kin they stood numerous enough to throw out the remaining Pontic garrisons in the area whilst their main army was preoccupied in the west. Despite many of the locals resisting their encroachment, enough Varic people stood in the fields and within walls to provide their incoming cousins with key logistical and tactical support. Most notably, the gates of Edinn were thrown open in the middle of the night when a conspiracy of local Urapi killed the gate guards. The resulting sack was brief, and ended with the Varicarn Branding the conspirators, the brand itself being heated in the Eternal Flame of Edinn's great ziggurat.

Meanwhile, the Pontic state emerged victorious against the Byzantine invaders and consolidated the remainder of the plateau, though could not cross the narrow straights to seize Byzantium itself.

Map