Eastern Expansion

by Randi Darren

  They had tried to dress him in something other than his combat leathers.

  He’d declined and threatened to actually run away.

  “Everyone is aware. It’s one of the reasons they all trust you. You’re not here to rule them, my liege. They know you simply want what’s best for everyone, and will use your best judgment, devoid of politics,” Elysia said, stepping up beside him. She gave him a strange look then she swatted him on the ass with her ledger.

  “Follow after ten seconds,” she commanded.

  Quirking a brow at him she turned and entered the hall.

  Thera and Eva gave each other a quick look and followed her in.

  Taking a deep steadying breath, Vince gave himself a shake.

  “Maybe bringer feed Red after? Bringer seems to feel better after a feeding,” inquired the red eyed monster in the corner.

  He’d almost missed her being there. Crouched down low in a shadow.

  She’d somehow developed the ability to “darken” her eyes, as she called it. Their glow would drop to nothing for short periods of time.

  Laughing at her statement, Vince couldn’t disagree. The dominating side of him really did enjoy it. “Sure. Why not.”

  “Good. Red getting stronger with every feeding. Orc wants to fight later. Will try to get her to surrender,” Red said. Then she slithered out of the corner and ghosted out a window.

  He’d noticed that Fes had immediately taken up her duties of first wife with all three elves, Red, Blue, Green, and even Leila for some reason.

  Red and Leila were forced to take rooms in his manse as guests, and the Elves were changed from the guest wing of the building to the wing that Fes and the others inhabited.

  Politics even in my love life.

  After Meliae gave Fes and Petra a clean bill of health, they’d started sparring with all of them. She actively used Petra as her second to drill everyone daily.

  Giving himself a mental kick, Vince moved forward with determination.

  All conversation dropped and died off within seconds of him entering. The only sound was the sound of his boot heels clacking on the stone floor.

  Moving without a word to his seat at the center of the dais, Vince did a quick once over of the room.

  It was packed. Packed and then some. Even the standing room was full.

  His carpenters would be hard at work after this to do all they could to squeeze in more seats.

  Spread out in two wings behind his chair in viewing boxes were his wives, and his inner circle.

  Standing to the right of his chair were Elysia and Thera. To the left of it, Eva.

  Taking a seat in the overly large but simple throne, as it couldn’t be anything else now that he thought about it, he got as comfortable as he could.

  Glancing up to Elysia he caught her eyes and nodded once.

  “This council is now in session.

  “First, a few public announcements,” Elysia said loudly. Looking at her ledger for a second she continued. “Our Dryads have conducted an interview with our new prospective citizens. Save for a few who had to be turned away, we’ve accepted nearly all of them. We’ve added a significant amount of people to our fair city.”

  There was a moment where Elysia was forced to pause as the room erupted into applause. Elysia seemed surprised, but Vince wasn’t. Their reaction was his own.

  Optimism and hope.

  More hands to work. More hands to hold a weapon. More hands to defend a friend. More hands.

  Over three thousand souls.

  The applause died off, giving Elysia a chance to resume.

  “I’m pleased to also announce the number of resident Dryads has gone up significantly. They will begin hosting open hours for families each day. They’ll be available during daylight hours.”

  Another round of applause forced her to stop briefly.

  “Bearing that in mind, those who have growing families will eligible for housing improvements, or simply moving to a larger home. We’ll do all we can to support you in raising a family. Please consider this a public confirmation of that.

  “On the same topic, as you’re all already aware of, Vince now has four heirs, and all are healthy and hale.”

  There was a thunderstorm of applause and cheers at that. Vince kept himself from squirming at the personal shouted congratulations on his line continuing.

  Nobody could ignore Kitch and the Ogre next to her though. They stood up and pounded their mitts together in a deafening cracking of callused hands.

  “Viewing of the heirs will be in a few weeks, as they’ll be presented to all who would wish to see them,” Elysia said.

  Meliae had assured him that this was something that must be done. The population must know the heirs, know that they existed and feel a personal connection to them.

  They couldn’t only be something spoken of, they had to be real.

  “At this time, there are no crimes that need to be heard in council. Everything has been handled at the local level.

  “Now, on to the agenda. First on the docket is our Dwarven councillor.” Concluding, Elysia sat down lightly in a chair Vince had overlooked.

  A Dwarven woman stood up from the viewing box made specifically for her and her fellow councillors.

  “Lord Vince, I ask that you grant us rights to begin digging down into the earth of Yosemite, as well as exploring the caves,” said the solidly built middle-aged Dwarf.

  Vince thought on that for a moment. “To what end?” he asked.

  The councillor blinked, a small crease forming in her brow.

  “Lord?” she asked.

  Vince hesitated and mulled over his thoughts for a second.

  “What would be the goal? I can’t imagine everyone would want tunnels being dug under their home,” Vince said thoughtfully.

  Suddenly he nodded his head, knowing what he wanted to do.

  “Actually, let’s do this. I grant you and charge you with the following,” Vince said, leaning forward in his chair. “You must first, secure our lands. Begin surveying the earth below our walls and do what you must to insure our defense.

  “Second, I grant you the ability to dig tunnels below any and all streets, avenues, and boulevards. These must also have security checkpoints. Should an enemy breach them, it would not do to have them able to run a straight shot into the heart of Yosemite. I speak of built and triggered cave-ins, guard details, and choke points.”

  Vince paused to change his focus to Henry, one his captains.

  “I imagine Henry and his people would eagerly take up part of this duty, so you may want to seek him to see what he can assist with.”

  The Dwarven captain gave him a smirk and nodded his head.

  His people really would be at home below ground as easily as above.

  “Third, I give to you the area beneath the Dwarven enclave. Do with it as you will, so long as you do not go outside of the boundaries of the land granted to it.

  “Lastly, the caves are available for all to explore, but not mine. Not yet. We may have citizens later on who will look to them for their residences. I’d like to hold onto that for now.”

  Nodding heads all around the hall could be seen bobbing along with each point he made.

  The Dwarven councillor bowed her head deeply to him. “Thank you, Lord Vince. You’ve granted us responsibility and trust, as well as what we asked for, in equal measure.” Sitting down, she said nothing more.

  “Ambassador of the Wood Elf clan named Silt, to the northeast,” Elysia called out.

  An Elven man got up from a seat in the audience and walked to the forefront.

  “Lord Vince, we of Silt would like to work out a trade agreement with Yosemite.”

  “Alright. Please put together what your requests are in a single document and submit it. We’ll look it over and respond as quickly as possible. Though I’ll tell you now and upfront, I’m not opposed to trade and will welcome it. Please understand that my people are working not on the value of coin tho
ugh, but for the betterment of everyone.

  “Eventually, we’ll be using standards as currency, or a duplicate. For the time being, though, I recommend expecting bartering until that happens.”

  The Wood Elf bowed his head and went back to his seat without a word.

  “Ambassador to Verix,” Elysia called out.

  A High Elf in a bright blue robe stood up and moved to the front.

  By now, everyone had heard what had happened at Verix. None seemed pleased at someone being here who had sought to trick their Lord.

  “Lord Vince, first let me say I personally congratulate you on your success at Verix,” said the High Elf.

  Vince raised an eyebrow at that.

  Well, everyone has a job to do, even if they don’t agree with their government.

  It only took a quick brush of the Elf’s mind for Vince to confirm what he thought. He was just doing his job to the best of his ability.

  “Unfortunately, as the ambassador though, I must… I must denounce you as a thief and oath breaker.”

  The room exploded in shouts, and more than a few people looked like they were considering rushing the stage.

  Vince held up his hand, and all noise fell off within a single breath’s time.

  “I respect you for the courage to conduct yourself according to your position. That is bravery if ever there was a definition for it.”

  He didn’t need to be the empath he was to see the collective emotional change in the room. They all searched out their own hearts to determine if they could do what this High Elf had just done.

  “As to your charge, I would argue that I collected on what was owed to me. As the Lord of Yosemite, I offer your government the payment I originally offered them.”

  Turning to Elysia, Vince asked her softly. “What was the final count of people we took from Verix?”

  “Four-hundred and twelve. If you were to break out the cost against current rates, it’d come to one thousand, six hundred and forty-eight standards,” Elysia said after a quick check in her ledger.

  “You’re a wonder and a beauty at the same time. You already thought this would come up, didn’t you?”

  “Yes, my liege,” said the blushing High Elf. “Also, you seem to forget that your citizens have fantastic hearing.”

  Looking to the audience, he found no small number of people grinning at him. Moving his eyes back to Elysia, he shrugged. “And? You are amazing and beautiful. Thanks, Elysia.”

  Turning back to the ambassador, who had the good grace to pretend he didn’t know what was about to happen, he cleared his throat.

  “Yosemite is prepared to offer one thousand, six hundred and fifty standards to Verix for their loss.”

  “Most generous, my lord. I will convey your offer to my homeland when I return. I’m afraid I’ve been recalled, and will be departing this afternoon.”

  Vince sighed at that and nodded his head. A cessation of negotiations was usually the precursor to war.

  “I understand. Though I’d like to offer you a position here in Yosemite. Should you find yourself free of your obligations, I would welcome you and your family here. Extended family as well. Yosemite is always in need of brave hearts and courageous minds.”

  The High Elf turned his head partially to one side, clearly thinking on the unexpected offer.

  Bowing his head to Vince, the Elf turned and left the assembly hall.

  “Ambassador to the Emperor of The West,” Elysia called.

  A human man stood and made his way to the front of the dais.

  He looked more or less like anyone you’d meet from the human cities. There was nothing that would mark him in a unique fashion.

  “The Emperor would like to personally greet Lord Vince, and congratulate him on his formation of Yosemite. No city has ever been erected in the Wastes, and he sees this as a victory,” said the man.

  Vince said nothing. He wasn’t sure what they wanted, nor even what Yosemite wanted. If he didn’t have to deal with slavers, he wouldn’t.

  “Ahem. The Emperor would also like to extend the invitation for Yosemite to join the Empire formally, and would grant to him the Kingdom of Yosemite.”

  “At this time, Yosemite will remain independent, though we appreciate the offer. Perhaps we can reconsider at another time,” Vince apologized.

  “Of course. The Emperor would also like to extend a personal invitation to you to join him for a negotiations meeting at his home in Benicia. A trade agreement would be most welcome, as the military has come to him repeatedly for requests to purchase arms and armaments from his own arsenal, and then secondary to that, the smiths of Yosemite. He is, of course, loathe to give away his personal arsenal, but understands the greatness of Yosemite’s smiths.”

  To say nothing of the fact that you’ve been trying to seduce my smiths away right from under my nose.

  “I gladly accept the Emperor’s offer, but am unable to attend at this time. I would ask for a postponement while I take care of matters here,” Vince said neutrally.

  “The Emperor happily agrees, and is glad to hear your agreement to a meeting. Thank you for your time,” said the ambassador, moving back to his chair.

  The moment they end that civil war, they’ll turn their attention this way. I need to make sure I’m not an easy target, or one that he wants to deal with.

  “Ambassador from the Wooden Heart grove in the North West,” Elysia said in a curiously toneless voice.

  No one got up from their chair that he saw. Vince looked left and right, seeing no one.

  Then Meliae walked past his chair. She stepped down from the dais, and took the position everyone else had for their audience.

  “Greetings from the Wooden Heart grove, Lord Vince,” Meliae said seriously.

  Vince wasn’t quite sure where this was going, but he was sure everything was fine. Meliae would be more likely to take her own life before endangering his.

  “I greet the ambassador from the Wooden Heart grove,” Vince responded just as seriously.

  Meliae let out a soft breath, a smile threatening to overtake her face.

  Maybe she’d been nervous I was going to brush her off?

  “The Wooden Heart grove has existed for eighty years and is the single strongest grove on the western half of the continent. Many of the Dryads in the area can trace their heritage back to the grove at some point in time in their family line.

  “I’m acting only as an ambassador as the Wooden Heart grove has no one who can leave their grove for an extended period of time,” Meliae explained.

  Maybe we could have someone remain in their grove as our ambassador since they can’t leave there. Maybe a Wood Elf. They’d probably enjoy it.

  “The Wooden Heart grove is more than likely aware of Yosemite’s search for young Dryads. The Wooden Heart grove would be able to consider the possibility of sending some of their young talent to Yosemite, but would wish to treat personally with Lord Vince in this matter,” Meliae said.

  Vince nodded his head to that. There was no doubt that establishing a relationship with a standing grove was in their interest.

  “I accept and will be happy to travel out that way. Is there anything I should know about this trip and what the expected party should be?” Vince asked.

  “Ah, I’d say you’ll need to take myself, maybe another Dryad or two, Elysia at the minimum. There’s no need for guards for this expedition,” Meliae said, smiling widely.

  “And why’s that exactly?” Vince asked, feeling like he was walking into something he wouldn’t like.

  “Because it’s my mother’s grove.”

  “Oh.”

  Chapter 15

  Leila grumped at him and grabbed his wrist. The way she was twisting his arm forced him to bend over so that she could get an easy look at him.

  From giving an audience to ambassadors the day before, to this today.

  My life is so weird.

  Turning his hand over she poked him in the middle of his palm. It
left a tingling feeling when she did it.

  “Magic that has nothing to do with blood is all in the study and application through your conduit,” said the Gnome. At the start, her large eyes were odd to him, now they were merely curious.

  Those big purple orbs were squinting at his hand.

  “Your magic capacity is… large. It’s bigger than any I’ve seen.”

  Vince snorted at that.

  Uh huh. I’m sure you tell that to all the guys.

  Her fingers carefully turned his hand over again and then began to trail up along his forearm. She paused for a moment at his elbow, her fingers pressing into his skin.

  Feeling slightly awkward about the whole thing, Vince stared at the back of her blonde head.

  At least they were out in the field behind his home. Away from prying eyes.

  Well. Other than Thera, Eva, Elysia, and Red.

  They rarely seemed to leave his side if they didn’t have to.

  Meliae, Petra, and Fes were with the children of course. Motherhood had claimed their lives completely. Not that he faulted them for it. He imagined the bond between them was healthy and strong.

  “Sorry,” Leila said.

  “Huh? For what?”

  “This.” Leaning her head down, Leila bit into the inside joint of his elbow.

  Vince instinctively wrapped his arm around the short woman’s head and pulled her into his chest. At the same time his other hand slipped up under her chin and curled around her throat.

  Gritting his teeth, he was about to finish it when she released him.

  “P-put me down already, fool. I need to watch the flow. Unless you have a thing for Gnomes and were l-looking for an opportunity?” Leila hissed at him, kicking her legs back and forth.

  He dropped her down to the ground and she immediately pulled his arm out straight. Blood welled up from a tiny bite mark in the skin of his arm.

  Leila didn’t exactly have tusks after all.

  Holding tight to his arm with one hand, she drew her index finger down through the blood. Moving her bloodstained finger further, she stopped when she reached his wrist.