The Maiden's War—formally recorded as the Berinese-Thazvaari War—emerged as an unintended consequence of a long-term imperial strategy orchestrated by the Bare Hand. The conflict commenced in northern Berinu when an ethnic Thazvaari official was elected in the Berinese capital of Binol. This individual was a Bare Hand operative placed decades earlier as part of an extended deep-cover operation.
The Bare Hand was formalized during this era by Imperator Kenez’Feraaz, a Thazvaari appointee tasked with governing the mountainous corridor linking coastal and inland Thazvaar to Berinu's northern border. Drawing from his prior service in The Emperor’s Shadow and observations of Yuvaari unarmed combat traditions, Kenez’Feraaz developed a doctrine centered on prolonged infiltration rather than direct confrontation. Recognizing that inland Thazvaari resistance—rooted in syndicate networks, piracy, and criminal warlordism—could not be eradicated by conventional force, he established the Bare Hand as a specialized unit emphasizing lethality through improvisation, long-term identity immersion, and patient subversion from within. Operatives were trained to embed as officials, merchants, farmers, or criminals, often over generations, to gradually align regional power structures with imperial interests.
The election of the Binol official represented the culmination of one such placement: a strategic foothold designed to exert subtle influence over northern Berinu and, by extension, the contested inland corridors of Thazvaar. However, the public revelation of a Thazvaari in high Berinese office—regardless of the operative's true allegiance—reawakened deep-seated ethnic antagonisms originating in the Geban-Thazvaari War. By this period, Berinu exhibited a markedly skewed demographic, with females constituting approximately ninety percent of the population—a proportion exceeded only by inland Thazvaar. The Empire refrained from intervention, consistent with Berinu's retained regional autonomy granted during its voluntary assimilation centuries earlier.
Underlying social practices further exacerbated tensions. Polygamy had become widespread across the planet following the severe male deficit initiated during the Geban-Thazvaari War and subsequent conquest policies. Males from inland Thazvaar, confronting acute scarcity of potential partners in their own regions, frequently traveled to Berinu in search of additional marital unions. Berinese women were widely regarded as preferable spouses in such arrangements owing to a constellation of cultural traits shaped by centuries of maritime heritage: pronounced industriousness, adaptability to fluctuating conditions, cooperative dispositions forged in communal seafaring and trade, a perceived warmth and expressiveness in interpersonal relations, and—crucially—a demonstrated capacity for harmonious cohabitation with co-wives. These qualities instilled confidence in husbands that their children would be raised effectively within stable, productive households. In contrast, Thazvaari women—whose pre-conquest culture had been predominantly monogamous and nomadic—were frequently characterized as possessing resolute yet austere and unyielding personalities, often described as "hard and dry," with a stoicism that prioritized survival and vigilance over emotional openness. Historical patterns of fierce independence and competition over partners persisted, rendering them less amenable to polygamous arrangements and more prone to conflict with co-wives. These cross-border marriages, while addressing demographic pressures in Thazvaar, engendered reciprocal resentment: Berinese communities resented the depletion of their female population and the perceived appropriation of their cultural strengths, while Thazvaari elements harbored grievances over the implicit denigration of their own women and the necessity of seeking partners elsewhere. Such sentiments transcended the immediate political catalyst and sustained broader inter-ethnic friction.
The conflict acquired the designation War of Maidens, reflecting the predominance of female combatants.
No formal treaty or resolution concluded the hostilities.
Post-Conflict Developments
In regions served by comprehensive public relay networks, interactions between Berinese and Thazvaari populations are marked by occasional verbal disparagement devoid of substantive animosity. This disposition is particularly pronounced among males, who regard the original conflict as lacking broader imperial significance.
In zones characterized by limited or absent relay coverage—particularly the mountainous and border regions adjoining inland Thazvaar—serious and sustained hostilities continue unabated. Documented activities include abductions, human trafficking, and frequent armed skirmishes, all rooted in persistent ethnic divisions. Participation remains overwhelmingly female. Across the planet, an overwhelming majority of recorded hate-related crimes trace their origins to animosities between Thazvaari and Berinese women. These ongoing conflicts remain largely obscured from general imperial awareness, known principally to the specialized contractors and mercenary crews engaged in relay construction, energy-corridor establishment, and infrastructure maintenance within contested territories.