The Mage-Fire War (Saga of Recluce)

by Modesitt. Jr. , L. E.

  Lhadoraak pointed. “There they are.”

  Rojak just looked at the rows of neatly stacked sabres. Then he actually began to count one stack.

  “There are three hundred and sixty-three here,” said Lhadoraak. “We think the townspeople kept quite a few. We counted over four hundred bodies. We burned them, of course.”

  “But … if you could do this…” The Lydian majer shook his head.

  “The battle against one battalion almost killed Jessyla and Beltur,” said Tulya from the back of the group. “They’ll send an army next.”

  “Most likely with mages,” added Jessyla.

  “But why … Haven’s not … I beg your pardon, but it’s not the most prosperous of towns. To lose an entire battalion, and then risk losing even more…”

  “We thought the same thing,” said Lhadoraak, “until we realized that it’s not about Haven. It’s about who controls the road that leads to Lydiar.”

  “You honestly think…?”

  “What else can we think?” asked Beltur. “You just pointed out that Haven doesn’t have enough of worth to merit losing a full company, let alone a battalion.”

  Rojak shook his head. “Commander Heissyl … he said that was a possibility, but a distant one. That’s why…”

  “He only sent three companies?” asked Lhadoraak.

  “Then, too,” said Raelf, in a musing tone that he didn’t feel, Beltur could tell, “it might be that Commander Heissyl couldn’t believe that the most honorable Duke Massyngal would actually break his word and try to take over this part of Montgren.”

  “The commander didn’t mention that,” replied Rojak.

  “I’m sure that was just an oversight,” said Raelf ironically.

  Rojak frowned.

  “If Haven falls to Massyngal,” replied Raelf, “he’ll control the road and access to Lydiar itself. He could muster an army here and march directly there.” The majer shrugged. “Of course, if we lose Haven, then Montgren would have no further reason to take on Hydlen. But, I’m sure someone in Lydiar must have thought of that. I can’t imagine why that wasn’t discussed with you. The dispatch from the Duchess to Duke Halacut pointed that out.”

  Rojak tried not to swallow.

  “There is one other matter,” said Jessyla coolly, turning to Rojak. “Black mages don’t lie. Ever. They may be mistaken, and at times they may not tell everything they know, but they never intentionally lie. I don’t know how you got to be a majer without learning that, but it’s something you need to keep in mind.”

  Beltur could sense immediate anger from the younger majer.

  “Who are you—”

  Rojak’s words were choked off by the shields Jessyla had slapped around him.

  “I’m also a black mage who could kill you in a few instants. We demon-near died protecting the road to your duchy, and you come in here as an arrogant bastard who knows nothing about the military situation or about mages and presumes to tell us what happens to be going on?” She held the shields until Rojak started to turn blue before releasing them.

  “I’ll take my men—”

  “That would be most unwise,” said Raelf. “If you do not support us, I am empowered to negotiate a safe passage for all Hydlenese forces through Montgren to Lydiar, provided, of course, that Haven is spared. Do you really want to be responsible for that?”

  Rojak stared. “You wouldn’t.”

  “I most certainly would. And don’t bother to threaten anyone. Three mages destroyed a battalion, without any troop support. I have three companies here … and the mages.”

  Beltur managed not to show surprise at Raelf’s absolute firmness. Just why did he seem so in control? He couldn’t have wanted a fight with a supposed ally.

  Raelf smiled. “What will it be, Rojak?”

  The Lydian majer looked from face to face, then swallowed. “Perhaps … I was hasty. Of course I’ll support you.”

  Raelf offered an inquiring look to Lhadoraak.

  The older mage nodded, then said pleasantly, “One other thing. Black mages can tell when you’re being deceptive. Like now. What did you plan to do? Agree … and then ride off as soon as you could manage it?”

  Rojak opened his mouth, then shut it.

  “It gets a little hard to talk your way out of something when someone can tell if you’re lying, doesn’t it?” asked Tulya.

  Rojak looked to Raelf, then said, “This is totally unacceptable. Totally.”

  Raelf smiled sadly. “You’re absolutely right, Rojak. Absolutely. Your attitude and behavior are totally unacceptable.” He turned to Cheld. “Undercaptain, I’d appreciate your gathering all the company officers, both from Montgren and from Lydiar, and bringing them here for a meeting. Majer Rojak will remain here with me and the mages.”

  Rojak looked to Raelf. “You can’t do this.”

  “I haven’t done anything. Not yet. Neither have you. We have a problem. Both our lands are threatened. We obviously disagree about what needs to be done. So a conference of all the officers is definitely in order.” Raelf gestured to Cheld. “Go ahead.”

  Cheld hurried up the narrow steps and into the kitchen, as if glad to escape the confrontation between superiors.

  Rojak glared at the Montgren majer. “I’m the senior officer of the Lydian force.”

  “Even your duke placed you under my command,” replied Raelf. “Now, I think we should repair upstairs, but leave the cellar door open. Healer-Mage, if you’d go first, and then make certain that Majer Rojak, who will be next, continues to enjoy our company while the rest of us follow.”

  Jessyla smiled pleasantly. “I can do that.”

  Once Jessyla and Rojak were up the steps, Lhadoraak turned to Raelf and asked, his voice barely above a murmur, “Might I ask how you’re going to get the Lydian company officers to follow you?”

  Raelf offered a tired smile, then replied quietly, “I already have. I was once a Lydian undercaptain. I worked with two of the three captains. I’ve been quietly talking with all three of them on and off ever since they arrived in Weevett. I delayed our departure for two days to obtain additional supplies … and to talk to them.”

  For Beltur, that explained more than a few matters, but he immediately asked, “What do you want us to do at this officers’ conference?”

  “Just answer questions.”

  “I have just one more question. Where is Captain Karch?”

  “He remains in Montgren, with an understrength company to provide some protection for the Duchess. He delayed taking his stipend to take that duty. He’s not so well as he appears, nor as young.”

  Beltur nodded, recalling what Jessyla had observed.

  “We’ll need to bring over more chairs,” said Tulya.

  Raelf nodded, then gestured for Lhadoraak to take the steps. “If you would, please.” When everyone was standing in the parlor, Rojak turned to Raelf. “Once this is over, I’ll have your head. I will.”

  “No, you won’t. Either the Hydlenese will, or we will have defeated them, and you can return in glory to Lydiar. You really wouldn’t want to cause trouble between Lydiar and Montgren. That’s the last thing Duke Halacut would want from you. You know that better than anyone … don’t you?”

  Rojak offered a crooked smile. “You don’t have any sense of loyalty at all, Raelf. Your so-called loyalty only serves your ambition.”

  “If that belief comforts you, then hold fast to it.”

  “Without loyalty, nothing holds together,” declared the Lydian majer.

  “We agree on that.”

  “Tulya and I are going to get more chairs,” declared Jessyla, looking to Beltur.

  “I’ll watch things here.”

  Once the two women and Taelya left, Raelf said to Beltur, “I understand that you were able to take out most of the Hydlenese officers. Was that by coincidence or by plan?”

  “By plan. From what I’d learned, the Hydlenese punish troopers and even officers severely for failing to obey orders blin
dly and instantly. I thought removing officers and squad leaders would disarray them. It did to some extent, enough that it allowed us to pick off the scattered squads over time. That would have been more difficult otherwise.”

  “Could you do that again?”

  “If I had a squad to support me, it might be possible. It would depend on where the senior officers were.”

  “That’s … dishonorable,” said Rojak. “What if all armies fought like that?”

  “There might be a bit more reluctance to attack other lands,” replied Beltur dryly. “And younger sons from wealthy families might not be quite so eager to become junior officers.”

  “What do you know—”

  “Former Undercaptain Beltur has fought in more battles than you’ll likely ever see,” interrupted Raelf. “He’s killed more men than most companies ever will, and he’s likely seen more broken bodies than either of us, both as a mage and as a healer. You really don’t think that the Duchess put these three mages here on a whim, do you?”

  Again, Beltur had to admire Korsaen. Clearly, the lord had made sure Raelf knew everything. But that also raised other, much more disturbing questions, such as whether Korsaen and the Duchess had anticipated what had come to pass. The fact that Raelf had brought the bulk of Montgren’s forces, as well as the fact that Raelf was the particular officer chosen to command them, suggested a long-thought-out strategy. But why hadn’t she sent all her forces?

  Rojak’s almost stunned reaction to Raelf’s questions reinforced Beltur’s concerns that he and the other councilors were just plaques to be played in an elaborate and high-stakes game. Fleetingly, he thought of the gambler whose hands he’d mostly healed, who had asked Beltur if he’d ever gambled for something of great value. Beltur smiled. You only thought the stakes were high.

  “What are you smiling at?” asked Rojak.

  “The gambles people choose to take … or not take,” replied Beltur.

  Again … Rojak looked as though he might say something, but decided against it. Abruptly, he moved to the settee and seated himself.

  Within half a quint there were eight chairs and a stool arranged beside and behind the settee, not enough for everyone who would be there, but all that they had.

  “That will do,” said Raelf. “You councilors and I will be standing anyway, and the young woman should take the stool but be beside you.” He gestured to Tulya.

  In another half quint, the six captains, Rojak, and Cheld were seated, and Raelf stood before the empty hearth facing them. To his left were the councilors and Taelya.

  “Captains,” began Raelf, “I’d like to introduce you to the councilors of Haven and you to them. As some of you may know, three of the four councilors are mages, and two of those mages are also healers. Two of them also fought as mage-officers in Elparta against the Gallosians…” Raelf went on with an even more detailed introduction than the one he’d given earlier, including the results of the skirmishes already fought over and around Haven. Then he began naming the officers. “From Lydiar, we have Captain Naajuk, who successfully destroyed a pirate enclave set in the cliffs northeast of Renklaar, using unconventional tactics. Captain Deminaar, who has successfully turned brigands into useful soldiers, albeit with means not always endorsed by his superiors…”

  At that, Beltur saw that Rojak’s mouth opened, then quickly shut.

  “… and Captain Zekkarat, who escaped from an Analerian slaver as a boy, stowed away on a Lydian merchanter, survived the docks of Lydiar until he could join the Lydian guard, and then worked his long way up to captain over more than twenty years.” Raelf was far more perfunctory in introducing the two Montgren captains, Reynaard and Knutwyl, just mentioning their names and where they’d been posted.

  Naajuk was burly, broad-shouldered, and blond, with a narrow white scar across his forehead. Deminaar was a good head shorter than Beltur, but wiry, with an easy smile and short-cut auburn hair, while Zekkarat had skin the color of light amber, and black hair and eyes. Reynaard had sandy-red hair and deep-set pale blue eyes, and faded freckles sprinkled across his face. Knutwyl was blocky, but not fat, square-faced, with brown hair, and deep brown eyes that never stopped moving.

  “The reason why I’ve gathered you all together so soon after our arrival,” Raelf went on, “is because I’ve heard a number of misconceptions about the task facing us and about the four councilors. I’d like to clear some of those up, and I also thought you should meet the councilors and offer any questions you have to them. While I’ve done my best to answer your questions so far, your arrival in Haven may have raised others, and it’s best we address them before the Hydlenese arrive.

  “First off, there seems to be an idea that the Hydlenese will be sending a massive army against us, and that we’ll be overrun immediately. That’s not only wrong, but it’s nonsense. As you should have heard by now, the four councilors here effectively destroyed an entire battalion. Less than fifty troopers survived. Duke Massyngal will react by sending as large a force as he can, but…” Raelf stopped for emphasis. “Without relying on levies, he only had six full battalions. He is trying to raise another two battalions, but they are nowhere close to ready. He already lost one entire battalion, as well as most of the company that was posted here earlier. Since he can’t raise levies quickly, he can’t afford to send all of the five remaining battalions against us. I know some of you will say that Massyngal has twice that many troopers. You’re right, but those other six battalions are in Worrak, and it would take a season to get them here. Not only that, but if he did, he’d likely end up losing half his land to the pirate lords, because those battalions are all that keep them in line.

  “The most we’re likely to face is four battalions, and almost certainly less. He will also send white mages, but he is also limited there, and he won’t send all of them here, not when they’re needed to maintain his power in Hydolar. Our mages should be able to overcome his mages, or at least, keep them from reducing our numbers. Also, we have certain weapons, based on what the mages learned in their battle against Gallos, that will help reduce the power of the white mages. Given that our men are better trained, we have an advantage there, but it won’t be easy. Now, what questions do you have?”

  The smiling Deminaar said, “If this is so, why is he attacking? And why do we need to fight here?”

  “He’s attacking for several reasons. First, Haven will only get stronger with the mages here. Second, he wants an easy and direct path to Lydiar because that will give him a better port than Renklaar and one that the pirates can’t easily raid. Third, he hates being denied anything, and the councilors have done that. We’re fighting now, because when we defeat his forces here, that will reduce his power enough that he won’t be able to attack again for years, if ever. Also, it will be easier now than if he has two more battalions by autumn.”

  “Why are you so confident?” replied Deminaar, still smiling. “At best, we’ll still be outnumbered, almost three to one.”

  “Three mages destroyed a battalion. That’s a hundred and fifty to one.” Raelf smiled back at Deminaar. “Two black mages and a healer-mage. I’m only asking each of your troopers to take out two or three men who aren’t trained as well.”

  “He’s got a point, Deminaar,” said Zekkarat. “Besides, my gutter rats’ll take out three apiece to make it easier for your boys.”

  “Promises, promises…” But Deminaar’s smile briefly became a grin.

  “There’s one other thing,” said the burly, blond Naajuk. “Duke Halacut only has two mages, and neither’s worth sowshit. And there are only four more decent companies in Lydiar. One way or another, we’ll fight. I’d rather fight here and now.”

  “If this is so important,” Deminaar asked Raelf, “why aren’t all your companies here?”

  “Because Fourth Company can’t get here any time soon. The squads have been dealing with hill brigands west of Lavah. And Fifth Company is an understrength training company from which we took the best armsmen.”
>
  As the comments and questions progressed, and it became clear that the three Lydian captains, for various reasons, supported Raelf, Beltur watched Rojak, with both eyes and senses. He thought Rojak was resigned to the situation, but that could change at any time.

  Then, out of nowhere, Rojak addressed Jessyla. “Healer-Mage, how many did you kill in that battalion?”

  Jessyla looked momentarily surprised, then smiled. “I couldn’t say. At the beginning, I kept a rough count, but then there was too much going on. After a score or so, I stopped.”

  Beltur suspected that Jessyla really hadn’t wanted to know. He certainly hadn’t kept track.

  “Isn’t killing somewhat … opposed to healing?”

  “I can’t very well keep healing if I’m not around to do it and if there’s no one left to heal,” replied Jessyla, not quite tartly.

  Beltur noticed that almost all the captains looked amused at her reply. Rojak must have noticed as well, because he didn’t venture more.

  “Are there any more questions?” asked Raelf, looking across the group.

  “I do have one,” said Deminaar. “To the young woman on the stool. Why are you here?”

  Taelya looked surprised.

  Tulya said gently, “Taelya … tell the captain what you are and why you’re here.”

  “Ser … I’m a beginning white mage. No one in Elparta wanted me there. No one in Axalt wanted me there. This is the only place I can be. I’m here to protect my mother.”

  “How will you do that?” asked Deminaar.

  “My shields will protect us both for a little while. I’m not strong enough to hold them for more than a quint.”

  Deminaar nodded politely to Taelya, then said, “Thank you.” He turned to Raelf. “When a child is willing to put her life on the line, how can I do otherwise?” After a pause, he added sardonically, “Especially when I’d still have to fight later under less advantageous circumstances.”

  Rojak looked to Raelf. “You’ve made the situation very clear, Majer. We fight.”

  Beltur could sense both agreement … and reluctance, suggesting that Rojak still needed to be watched closely.