Agathangelos stood up and cleared his throat.

"Neither can I. That is the very reason why our situation is so precarious. We have two field armies, one commanded by Antigonos Gonatas, and the other by Krateros. Both are at the moment in the south. If you do not wish them to split up, Karpos Aiginios, then you are left with a dilemma: which front would you have us leave undefended? Of course, the question whether our resistance will be strong enough in either place if we only send a part of our forces is also a strong point, as you point out, and we will need to balance these issues dearly. It is not as clearly cut so that the preferable course of action is obvious. I'm sure we all agree about that.

Personally I have not yet made up my mind on what route we should take, but I do lean towards a split, with Gonatas moving back north. More soldiers to stand a better chance against Pyrrhos can be levied up in Thessalia, and if our coffers allow it and our need demands it, there is the option of hiring mercenaries. If we do that I have enough faith in Gonatas' ability as an army commander to have a fair chance at beating Pyrrhos back to Epeiros, and if he manage to do that, we may be able to ascertain a peace with him, and convince him to focus on Italia instead. Meanwhile, Krateros should be able to keep the Greeks at bay. I'm not saying it would be easy, or that it would carry no risk, but a smaller army travels faster, and we may be able to surprise them that way, catch them off guard.

I'm not completely sure though, as I said, and your thoughts are, as always, heavier than gold."