by Gerard Bond
Demetrius was pleased, this sort of thing was getting easier. They walked out, mounted their horses and rode over to the next area.
They quickly found their destination, barged into the building and entered the second level. Upon crashing through a bedroom door they found Cadomedd clambering out a back window trying to pull clothes on. A soldier grabbed his foot and pulled him back in, dumping him unceremoniously on the floor. The girl in bed, shrieking her lungs out and naked, threw a candle holder at one of the soldiers who ducked then stepped forward onto the bed. He raised his sword and drove it down through her chest, pinning her through the mattress. Her eyes quickly glazed over staring back in shock, the room went deathly silent. Cadomedd looked on, frozen sitting up looking at her limp form not believing his eyes, his beautiful Maarika was dead. He tried to speak but nothing came out, mouth opening and shutting in silence.
Demetrius entered the room and gave it a quick once over with his eyes, looking down at Cadomedd, he smiled. It wasn’t long before they left the building. Two corpses marked their passing. Demetrius was deep in thought. They had gotten all the information they needed now and some of it proved disturbing indeed. It was serious news and he would have to report back to Aristeides immediately; this was something that would not wait. They mounted once more and moved off in the direction of the high tower which was central headquarters of the city. They would be there in 10 minutes and it was still only just after midnight.
Warlord Aristeides was in conference with his generals. The fire at the wharves was still burning but coming under control. He was already considering his options knowing what had been lost now that reports had started arriving. Their plans for the big offensive were in disarray and while he would only need time to replace what was lost, that was one thing that they did not have. If they were to overthrow the Kingdom this year and before the winter set in they needed to be in place within the next four weeks. That timetable was blown out of the water. He had to make alternate plans fast.
“General Koldo, I will need you to move your men out into the eastern provinces and build an encampment there, I cannot afford to feed and deal with your men using our supplies here in the city anymore. Do as we did here in the cleared lands, take what you need from the locals and kill those that are not needed.”
Aristeides was pointing to a part of the map just east of their previous conquests. Unbeknownst to him it was the area that Kane and Solynne had escaped to.
“With this decision to move now, that will take care of ten thousand men, and will relieve the pressure on the remaining stores. As for you General Marcellus, I will need you to step up your preparations at the base. Although the embattlements are not ready, you are to start sending troops in a few thousand at a time starting now and have them all in place by three weeks time. As for the other five thousand men in reserve to supplement the base, they will stay here under your command General Pallas. Until the second wave arrives from Isogorr and relieves them I cannot allow the mobilization of the third battle group. Now are there any questions before you act on my orders?”
The generals contemplated Aristeides words and all fully understood what was being asked of them.
“We are ready to act my lord.” They all nodded in agreement.
“Then go, begin preparations this instant.”
They bowed and left as ordered, an adjutant stood at the door.
“What is it?”
“Demetrius has returned sir.”
“Already?” This man was quick. “Send him in immediately.” Demetrius walked in and bowed his head. “Speak, what news?”
Demetrius began explaining what he had done. Talking Aristeides through it all, he understood that his Warlord would not only want to hear the information gleaned but also how he came about it. For a full five minutes he spoke, concisely without leaving anything of even marginal importance out. When he was done, Aristeides sat there troubled by what he had heard.
There had been an incursion by a very small group of four who had managed to hit a big blow in spite of them losing their leader, this Wollfen. That was not a name to forget. If the group could continue on without any setback even when their leader fell, then they were a formidable foe indeed and they also seemed to know where to strike with little force for greatest effect. He didn’t believe they were all there by chance. And what of this Wollfen? Where was he now?
“Cresus!” The adjutant approached. “I want a full list of all prisoners captured in the last two days and I want it within the hour.”
Nodding the adjutant moved off. The other more disturbing news was the fact that the Clique of Sorcs had kept all of this to themselves. They were supposed to be cooperating on this campaign but more and more it was becoming evident that they were operating on their own agenda, but what to do?
“Demetrius, I am going to set you up as a special force dealing with insurgents within the city. It will be up to you to weed out any possible resistance fighters and to find the three insurgents that we have identified already. I want them found and captured but not killed. Also when we find this Wollfen, I want him interrogated by whatever means possible to find out what position he holds within the government of the Kingdom. This man is well trained and skilled. He came here with purpose and his team has proved very capable. We need to know if there are any more of them out there.”
Demetrius considered his words and spoke carefully,
“I will need to put together a larger team than what I have now. I will need to hand pick three captains that I have in mind and also will need some support from the Clique of Sorcs.”
“The men you can have, talk to my Adjutant Cresus and tell him the names of the Captains. They are yours. As for sorc help, that is something we cannot do. Listen carefully Demetrius, I take you into my confidence in telling you this. You are not to tell or speak of this to anyone other than myself. Do you agree to these terms and are you with me?”
Demetrius nodded,
“But of course my Lord, my sword is your sword and it serves you faithfully.”
Aristeides knew he would say yes, Demetrius had proven himself time and again in service to him.
“That is good.” Aristeides went on, “I do not believe we are here for riches and I do not believe the sorcs are here in service of the King. What they are up to at present I do not know, but their interest in this Wollfen goes beyond normal expectations. This is also something you can investigate quietly too. At present we will only feed them the information that they need to know and no more. We will also not tell them about the fact that we know of this Wollfen. Do you understand?”
Demetrius nodded again. What they were doing would be seen as treasonous, but he had no love for the sorcs at all and if it came to pass that they could be taken down through this investigation of their other activities then he was all for it.
“Very well then, go now and get some sleep. With the dawn you may set your new orders into action.” Demetrius excused himself and left for his quarters.
Aristeides considered the path they were taking. It was dangerous and contained many pitfalls. If the High Priestess got wind of what he was initiating then Warlord Aristeides would not be warlord for very long at all. That too would produce ramifications which would flow right back to Isogorr. The King had hand picked him out of numerous Warlords. The sorcs were the power behind the throne and Aristeides had been selected in spite of his lack of love for the sorcs. But the King had understood that Aristeides would be unwavering in his loyalty to him. Even though he would be operating away from the Homeland in almost total autonomy, it would always be in service to his King. Had the King picked him because Aristeides wouldn't trust the sorcs? The King always played his cards very close to his chest; there was no point in trying to second-guess his wishes.
South of Port Cholandra Dark lay on her blanket. She had found it tied behind the saddle when they took the horse. It smelt bad. The horses they took had obviously been part of a patrol and had not yet been strip
ped and cleaned down. It made it hard to sleep when the thing stank of stale sweat.
She looked up at the night sky, wondering how Wollfen was. Was he seeing the sky right now too? Or was he being questioned or even worse? It didn’t bear thinking about. She really must focus on the job at hand, get to Port Valderus and seek a fast boat. But what could they ply to gain use of it? That was one question that still troubled her.
They had no money and no contacts there. In fact, she wasn’t even sure if they were still unconquered. What if that port was taken too? These southern cities were an insular lot. While they paid lip service to the notion of King and Country, the people down here really had no concept of a King being there for them and having dominion over them. The northern states pretty much kept to themselves just as much as these people did too. As long as the king was getting his taxes, what did it matter?
Wollfen was right, the nation as a whole had become decadent and self interested in these soft times. While this coming war would probably galvanize the people to some sense of unity and patriotism, she could see it slipping away just as quickly again once it was over. So what were they defending? What were they fighting for? It troubled Dark having those thoughts, it was stuff Wollfen had taught her. Looking across at Vaughn and Justin, she wondered if their simple lives would ever be different once the adventures were over. She got up and padded over to Keera who was on watch. Sitting next to her she contemplated what she might say to this young girl.
“Can’t sleep?” Dark shook her head,
“Bloody blanket stinks of man sweat and I can’t stand it, anyhow I can’t stop thinking.”
Keera nodded in agreement. She too had been lost in her thoughts over the last hour wondering about their fate and whether they would be able to get Wollfen back. Things were looking rather bad.
“Do you suppose we will manage to find a way out of all this?”
Dark didn’t have an answer and just shrugged her shoulders,
“All we can do for now is hope something presents itself and gives us a sign of what we should do.”
Keera sighed loudly, affirmative action was tough when you had nothing. Dawn was starting to break. Keera looked at Dark, it was time to move and continue onto Port Valderus.
Keera got up and went over, kicked each of the men’s feet and awoke them. They dragged themselves up, yawning and stretching. Justin commented,
“These blankets stink.”
Having packed, they mounted their horses and started off on their journey each of them chewing some beef jerky that Dark had handed out. Another day’s ride and they would be close. Dark wriggled about trying to get comfortable but the more she wiggled the more uncomfortable she got. It was starting to piss her off. Saddle sore, tired and stiff what else could they ask for? During the day clouds gathered and became ominous, but held back. That was one small mercy, but it didn’t last too long.
That afternoon after they had eaten some more out of their saddlebags it started to drizzle. It wasn’t heavy at all but eventually they became soaked anyway. If their spirits were down before, they were positively miserable now. They itched in their boots, armpits and their crotches and they were becoming testy.
“Watch where you are riding you keep running into my leg!” One would snap,
“Give it a rest, I have been listening to you moan and bitch all afternoon.”
Dark listened on and remained silent. She was also getting tired of all the gripes. Eventually the drizzle let up, but they weren’t going to get the pleasure of any sunshine, it was too late in the day. The air was getting cooler and a breeze had picked up, it was getting rather chilly.
Evening set in without any sign of the Port. Dark had really hoped they would get there before night set in. They continued on hoping with every turn there might be something but this road was empty. No taverns yet so they still weren’t close enough to the town. Dark decided it was time to pull up,
“Let’s make camp, we aren’t going to get there tonight,” she turned to Vaughn, “You take first watch, then Keera, after that Justin and then me alright?”
Vaughn nodded quietly at Dark as she pulled the smelly blanket off the horse kicked her boots off, more or less fell down and was asleep.
The next morning Dark awoke and saw everyone else up. Her throat was sore and her joints aching. She was coming down with something and she saw Vaughn coughing too. Dark felt miserable but they needed to go on. Getting up she instructed the others to get ready. She grabbed the blanket, slapped it together and tied it to the back of the horse. Then lifting her boots she sighed and stuck them in her saddlebag. Too much effort, she would put them on when she needed to. She lifted herself into the saddle, which was an effort in itself and motioned for them to move out. She was pushing herself but they needed to go on, sick or not, things needed doing.
Another two hours ride saw them approach a rise and as they crested the ridge they saw it. A few miles distant and standing isolated, Port Valderus sat on the edge of the coast like a beached whale, long and narrow. It’s protective wall wasn’t anything like Cholandra and it was only a town really, three long jetties jutted out into the bay with maybe eight small boats tied up. They could see a fleet of fishing vessels at work sailing out to the far reaches of the bay and back. Of the eight boats tied up, only three looked big enough to handle the ocean.
They spent a few minutes looking down at the panorama of the view. Sand hills receded from the beach covered in low-lying grasses, the surf like white tendrils closing into the shore. Dark signaled to the others and led the way, moving down the hill and towards the beach. The horses too could sense their journey was nearing an end and they picked up their pace. Once on the beach it was an easy trot along the firm part of the sand near the waters edge.
There were guards posted at the entrance to the town. As they approached one of them got up from his bench and raised his hand.
“What be your business travelers?”
Dark moved forward and addressed him.
“We have come from the occupied city of Port Cholandra with grave news. We wish to enter your city and seek counsel with the head of the town.”
Port Cholandra? They knew that the city was occupied by troops of some description and that it had been shut off. The gate guard sent another off to get the officer of the watch.
Sergeant Burkhard came out of his small outhouse near the gate and approached the strangers.
“You say you are from Port Cholandra?” Dark nodded in the affirmative.
Feeling sick and her throat sore, she didn’t feel up to speaking too much.
“Then you are aware of the goings on in the city?”
Again Dark nodded but this time added,
“Not only are we aware of what is happening there, but also in the outlands and their plans. We can also speak of their troop strength and where they are from.”
“If what you say is true them I am sure Lord Raz will be very interested in meeting you, allow my men to escort you there.”
The Sergeant waved at some men and they came forward ostensibly as a shadow guard for the four. A Corporal walked out front and they moved through the gates and into town. It was a simple place with sandy streets and low buildings mostly. It was certainly far smaller than Cholandra and Dark could see why the troops of Isogorr hadn’t bothered with it. There just wasn’t anything here of value, materially or strategically.
They approached a building larger than most and with wide doors, one of which was wide open, the corporal motioned for them to stop. Then he went inside, Dark could hear some words spoken and then the corporal came back out. He looked to Dark and informed her of the Lord’s acceptance,
“You may go in, the Lord will see you immediately.”
The corporal moved off and they were left at the entrance. Dark strode forward and into the room. Before her was a large open area and towards the far wall a very large desk. It could have had banquets held on it. She continued forward towards a figure there. She c
ould see, sitting behind it, a large man portly but sun bronzed by many years outside. As she regarded him, Raz was looking her up and down and the rest of her group too.
“I understand you have ridden from Port Cholandra?”
“That is correct your Lord.”
“May I ask your names?”
“My name is Dark Bruadar of the nightclan Berengah. This here is Keera, her partner Justin and that is Vaughn.”
Raz was surprised to see her. From what he had heard all the nightclans had been wiped out.
“You are from the nightclans of the northern snowlands? That is interesting, I had heard the wild tribes were wiped out by the orcs.” Dark nodded,
“That is so, I was one of the few survivors that moved west to seek refuge, but I am now a temperate woman who calls Wollfen her partner and it is for he that I seek your counsel.”
Raz nodded in return,
“I would like you to tell me what is happening with our brothers up north, we have not been able to get word at all of the goings on within those walls.”
“May I?” Dark motioned towards a chair off to one side a little, “I have a wealth of information that you will want to know.”
Dark began to explain from the time they had seen the burning villages, the sending out of a messenger to the King, the clash with a troop of men then the infiltration of Port Cholandra and seeing the enslavement of many of the city. She also spoke of the capture of Wollfen, the great interest they were showing in him and of their escape under unusual circumstances, the last part made Raz chuckle.
Raz sat there deep in thought, so many things churning over in his head. These four before him had quite an adventure this past week. He missed that. For so many years he had been a sea captain plying the trade routes of not only this ocean, but many oceans that most here didn’t even know existed. Fighting pirates, struggling though mighty storms and even surviving the occasional sinking. Yes he had had a full life and sitting here now having become leader of this town by popular demand, he had been dealing with the daily grind of the administrative and state needs for the last five years. It had become a kind of death and he hadn’t even been aware till now. He did have his pet project, but he wouldn’t tell these people of that right now. Raz finally spoke having sat there for a few minutes thinking.