by John F. Carr
Alkides, a former mercenary captain from Agrys City who had joined Kalvan after the Battle of Fitra, was a tall, thin man with an incongruous pot belly that squeezed out of the bottom of his breastplate like a spare tire. He spoke in a deep voice like that of a radio announcer. “Losing the Royal Foundry team was a serious loss to our artillery-making abilities, but, Dralm be praised, the Nostor artillery team was evacuated safely and they have been working day and night at the new Royal Thagnor Foundry. They have proofed over forty four- and six-pounders, twenty-three eighteen-pounders, including eight rifled cannon, and forty-eight thirty-two-pound ship guns. The new rifled cannons have been fired and tested accurate at eight marches.”
Even Kalvan whistled. That means we fire shells at the Grand Host from over four miles away! We’re going to drop one in your pipe, Lysandros, and let you choke on it.
Alkides continued with projected figures for new castings and number of shells that could be produced until Kalvan found himself starting to nod off. He quickly cut Alkides, who thought everyone shared his passion for artillery, off. “Thank you for that illuminating briefing. Now, to the next stage: Rylla, would you please lay out the first phase of Our strategy for the upcoming campaign season?”
Rylla rose up, with her thick blonde hair cascading over her silver breastplate, all ablaze in the reflected firelight. She drew her sword blade and used the point to draw their eyes to Nythros City. “Gentlemen, this is where the main force of the Styphoni blackguards holed up. The Grand Host’s first step, once the rains cease, will be to take out our neighbors along the Sea of Aesklos.”
She raised her sword point to the drawing of Baltor and then Morthron Town on the deerskin map. “The Baltori are ruled by a puppet council called the Council of Seven financed and governed by Nythros. They have a small army, consisting of a few hundred professionals and some fifteen hundred poorly trained Citizen militia, who will offer little or no resistance to the Grand Host. They probably will be coerced to join with them. The Morthroni have a standing army of some three to four thousand and can probably add another ten thousand levy, of indifferent quality, to their numbers before the Styphoni arrive. Previously, their Prince was aware of the Styphoni threat, but was wary of any entanglement or alliance with Nos-Hostigos. Now that King Theovacar has allied himself with Styphon’s House, the Morthroni will most likely allow the Grand Host free passage over their territory. If coerced, they may even provide stores and troops.”
Several of the generals nodded.
“However, a number of Morthroni nobles and merchants have moved their assets, and in some cases families, to Thagnor City. Their movement was inspired by the tales their exiled Nythrosi brethren brought from Nythros City. It’s just as well that Morthron has refused our offer of an alliance. Their town walls are in need of repair and their army has not been tested in the field for several decades. It’s doubtful, even with Hostigi help, that the Morthroni could delay the Grand Host for even a quarter moon. An alliance with Morthron would have forced us to fight at the Grand Host’s time and place of convenience.
“It is our plan to harass the Grand Host with skirmishers and Trygathi raiders, as they make their way from Nythros to Thagnor. King Chartiphon has pledged to send five thousand light horseman to harry the Styphoni forces and disrupt their supply trains. We will make them pay in blood for every march of territory they cover!” Rylla finished, with a flourish of her blade.
There was a moment of silence, then the banging of goblets on the wooden tabletop, accompanied with shouts of “Hear, hear!” and “Down Styphon!”
After Rylla took her seat, Kalvan rose and pulled out his sword. “The moment the roads dry, I will take the Mobile Force and five thousand cavalry across the lower peninsula here.” He paused to draw his sword from Thagnor to Greffa City on the map. “We will skirt Theovacar’s Army and hit Greffa City itself! Instead of waiting for Theovacar’s Army, we’ll kick him right in the breadbasket, where he least expects it.”
There were several gasps.
“We are most fortunate that Galzar and Dralm have returned Verkan just when he is needed the most. I am appointing Verkan to be Captain-General of the Mobile Force and second-in-command of the Army of Greffa.”
There was a round of applause and shouts of “Long live Captain-General Verkan!”
Baron Tortha nodded for permission to speak.
“Yes, Tortha?”
“Do you realize the immensity of Greffa City, Your Majesty? It is three times larger than Rathon City and its walls are higher and thicker. A hundred nomad hordes have camped outside its steel gates in the past thousand years; but none have ever breached those walls.”
Hearing that, Chartiphon took his pipe out of his mouth and whistled.
“True,” answered Kalvan. “However, none of those armies have two batteries and The Fat Duchess to hurl iron at those walls. Walls alone are not invincible. Back in the Cold Lands the Kingdom of Byzantium had its own impenetrable rings of stone walls and they crumbled before the cannons of the Ottoman invaders. No stone wall is safe from the right tools--and we have them.”
Nods of agreement ran up and down the table.
“Nor will Theovacar be able to do much, not with the mass of his army attacking Thagnor, several hundred marches away.”
“I suspect you’re right,” Prince Phrames said. “The siege of Greffa will likely draw off the Grefftscharri Army, Your Majesty. However, what will we do after the Grand Host has passed through Morthron?”
Kalvan picked up his pipe and lit it again. “We’re not strong enough to face the Grand Host in the field, not yet. Nor are they strong enough to take Thagnor with our new walls. It’s what we called back home a ‘Mexican Standoff.’ They have a large force to supply and we need to plant our fields. We can use Chartiphon’s Trygathi skirmishers to attack their supply lines and generally make their lives miserable, but they can compensate with larger wagon trains and more guards.
“We need to stock up on foodstuffs and supplies for as long as we can keep our sea lanes open. Once the Grand Host arrives with their guns, they will be able to choke off Thagnor River and cut off all shipping to the Sea of Aesklos. With the Styphoni alliance with King Theovacar, the Grand Host will have the support of the Grefftscharri Fleet so we can expect the northwest Seas to be blockaded. Count on it. Fortunately, the Styphoni have never felt a need for a Saltless Sea fleet, but that may change.
“We are waging a struggle for survival with a relentless foe who knows neither restraint nor pity. We must Praise Dralm and Galzar, and keep our powder dry!”
“Down Styphon!” Sarrask of Sask cried.
“Down Styphon and King Lysandros!”
THIRTY-SIX
To Sirna it seemed as though every artisan in Harphax City was simultaneously working on refurbishing the Harphaxi Royal Palace. Workmen with building materials were scurrying through the corridors and byways, bringing foot traffic to a crawl. The old Palace had been neglected for almost a century, since most of the previous cheeseparing monarchs had chosen to live in that creaking mausoleum known as Tarr-Harphax. Great King Lysandros had begun work on the restoration, but it had been interrupted by the war against Hos-Hostigos. After arriving in Harphax City, Great Queen Lavena had made its renovation her primary mission.
The Queen’s private audience chamber was the first completely restored chamber and would not have looked out of place on Fourth Level Imperial Italian, The Empire of the Sun or Anglo-Byzantine. Of course, all this spending for restoration had done little to aid the Queen’s popularity but it had contributed to her mystique. Lavena was becoming as famous in Hos-Harphax as Marie Antoinette, a symbol of conspicuous consumption on most Europo-America time-lines.
However, Lavena was no featherbrained seat holder, but an energetic and young pregnant Queen with too much empty time on her hands and a strong nesting instinct. She was also very lonely, evidenced by the way she jumped off her throne at Sirna’s appearance and gave her a big hug to the ch
agrin of her Ladies-in-Waiting. They were further humiliated when Lavena whisked them away with a wave of her hand.
All this for a foreigner, and some tarted-up merchant’s daughter, no less. Did you hear that Prince Phidestros met her in a bordello? How shocking! From the looks on their faces, Sirna felt as if she could read their thoughts as they exited the chamber.
“Oh, Sirna. It’s so good to see you. Where have you been?”
Sirna shrugged her shoulders in reply; she wasn’t about to admit that she’d been sleeping or moping around her rented townhouse. She hadn’t realized how strong her feelings for Phidestros were until Princess Arminta arrived and she was casually tossed aside. Now she didn’t know what to do with herself. Of course, the University’s response, as the Great Queen’s confidante, would have been “wasting valuable time for unique primary research and observation,” but at the moment she didn’t give a fat fig for her academic, or any other, career.
“I’ve missed you. There’s no one here I can talk to. They all lick my heels, but I know what they say the moment they’re out of my chambers.”
Sirna guessed that Ladies-in-Waiting were much like those who formed Academic Action Committees so they could feast on gossip and innuendo. “Your Majesty, you’re new to your position, so it’s inevitable that there might be some jealousy and backbiting.”
The Great Queen laughed uproariously. “Some jealousy and backbiting! I’ve lived under that cloud my entire life in Hostigos, as the beautiful Princess Rylla’s poorer and nastier dark-haired cousin. But at least I had some friends in Hyllos Town.”
“It’ll get better, Your Majesty, once your new subjects get to know you.”
“Please ... Sirna, I doubt that. You know better. And, in private, please don’t address me as Your Majesty; it makes me think of my Mother.” The Queen made a sour face.
“Fine, Lavena. But things will get better when Lysandros returns.”
“You don’t believe that, nor do I. Lysandros is despised and hated almost as much as I am.” The Queen looked as if she were about to burst into tears.
Sirna was nonplussed; there was no arguing the truth of that point. “Well, maybe there are some things you can do to improve your standing among your new subjects.”
“To Styphon with them all! When my husband returns with Kalvan’s head on a plate and Rylla in chains, his public esteem will rise. Already, they’re beginning to see that Lysandros is a great military leader. Maybe neither of us will be loved, as Kalvan and Rylla are, but we will be feared and obeyed!”
Sirna was beginning to feel she was at a tennis match the way Lavena’s moods were bouncing back and forth. Was Ms what it was like to be pregnant? Praise Dralm, that I live in an enlightened and advanced society where, for the most part, live births are done by mechanical wombs and hormone therapy is used to balance out the ensuing emotional reactions. “It just takes time for people to adjust, that’s all.”
“I know, I know, Sirna. I’ve just never been very patient. My father always spoiled me; he bought me everything I ever wanted. Well, almost everything. I wanted to be Princess of Hostigos and he couldn’t beg, buy or steal that for me until it was worthless. However, he did introduce me to my husband; until then, not even I ever dreamed of becoming Great Queen of Hos-Harphax!”
Sirna pointed to the obvious bulge at Lavena’s waist, saying, “And soon you will have a baby and heir to the Throne to care for. That should help.”
Lavena looked disgusted. “I’m no brood mare. I’ll have a wet nurse and some maids watch over it day and night. I have too many important affairs to attend, to allow myself to go ga-ga over a baby. I can’t wait to get my figure back. I’d be worried, but you saw how well Rylla looked a couple of moons after Demia was born.”
Sirna nodded her agreement, wishing the Queen would get to the point of why she had ordered her appearance. “Was there any reason for my attendance this morning?”
Lavena drew back. “Does there have to be a reason for friends to see each other?”
“No, of course not. I just know how busy you are these days and thought maybe there was something you needed from me.”
“No, just your company. And, I heard a rumor that you were preparing to depart Harphax City.”
Sirna cursed under her breath while maintaining a straight face. She’d been traveling around the city looking for a posted message, usually masquerading as a decorative design, which announced the location of the Harphaxi branch of the Kalvan Study Team for any displaced Home Timeliners. She’d found the sign at the House of Olthos, a small trading firm. One of the Queen’s spies must have been following her.
So far Sirna hadn’t announced her presence to the Study Team because once she did it would be an irrevocable step, one that would probably result in her being sent back to Home Time Line. However, she was beginning to feel as though her time here was wasted and was thinking about returning to the University and taking whatever punishment they handed out.
“I’ve missed my family, Lavena. So, now that it’s spring, I was thinking of returning to Greffa City.”
“Now is not the time to travel to Grefftscharr, Sirna.”The Great Queen lowered her voice. “I just received a dispatch from my husband. He informs me that the Grand Host has not only made a treaty with your King, but that King Theovacar is going to aid him in their attack on Thagnor City. Lysandros also says that the Usurper’s barbarian outriders are attacking everything arriving from the Great Kingdoms.”
Lavena’s eyes grew wide. “You know, the Trygathi barbarians don’t discriminate between civilians and soldiers! They use female captives terribly.”
Sirna pulled back in shock. Does Chief Verkan Vail know all this? Probably, since a dispatch from King Lysandros would take five or six ten-days to arrive from Nythros. Still, it botches my plans to “return” to Greffa.
“So you can’t leave for Greffa now.”
Sirna nodded in agreement.
Isn’t that wonderful,” Lavena gushed, unaware of Sirna’s distress. “Now we’re allies, too!”
“Yes ... yes ... I’m still in shock.”
“I know what I can do. Now, I’ll be able to make you the unofficial Greffan ambassador. Then I can give you a title and a generous stipend. You won’t be able to live long on that stingy purse Phidestros used to buy off his conscience.”
Phidestros, before she left Besh Town, had given her five hundred gold crowns and a thousand of silver for services rendered in Hostigos Town as the Iron Band’s healer. For what little she’d accomplished, in her mind, he’d been very generous. Especially, by local custom.
“You need decent quarters, not that cramped, dingy little townhouse. And new clothes, jewels and a fine horse and carriage. I’ll go with you and we can pick them out together.”
For Sirna, who hated shopping, this was another slap in the face. Still, now she was trapped.
“Sirna, I have to be honest, since we’re good friends. I’ll do anything necessary in order to keep you here. You’re the only friend I’ve got.” Tears were welling in Lavena’s eyes, a sight Sirna had thought never to see.
“Of course, I would never abandon you. But let’s do some fun stuff, too. I’d like to open a playhouse. I’ve got some ideas for plays that I saw performed in Greffa.” The local playhouses were usually made-over taverns or bawdy houses, not like the large ones in Greffa City. The two plays she’d seen here had been mostly rural in theme and humor. She knew she could do much better.
She’d once taken a University course on Fourth-Level Elizabethan plays and fallen in love with the work of Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare. With First Level perfect recall, she’d have no problem remembering them verbatim. Although she might have to stick to the lesser Elizabethan dramas and comedies; it wouldn’t do if one of her plays were successful and Kalvan found himself reading “to be, or not to be.” That might not only bring a recall visit from the University, but from Paratime Chief Verkan, as well.
“A Royal Playh
ouse, what a lovely idea! There’s this ugly eyesore across the Royal Square that I’ve been wanting to tear down. We could build it there. Have you finished any of your plays?”
“Not in Zarthani. I’m still learning my runes.”
“Would you like me to find a good scribe to help?”
“Yes, yes!”
“See, Sirna, it doesn’t have to be boring and tedious at Court. This idea could help us both.”
Maybe the Queen was right. At the very least, it would occupy her thoughts until she got over her broken heart.
II
“Verkan, it’s good to see you!”Tortha Karf said. “With all the trouble brewing on First Level I didn’t think you’d be able to take a leave of absence now.”
Verkan sat down next to his former boss in Baron Tortha’s sitting room. “I see you’ve done well for yourself in my absence. A Baron yet! And you look about fifty years younger; I guess getting away from those rabbits on your Fifth Level plantation has been a balm for your health.”
Tortha laughed. “The same old Verkan. Put the onus on me so you don’t have to answer my question. Things must really be bad.”
“I’m surprised you haven’t heard all about it from Kostran or one of the junior Kalvan Study Team members in Thagnor City.”
“I stay away from the Thagnor Transposition Depot. Every time they see me, all they want to do is complain or ask my advice. I’m retired from all that; I’ve put in more than my share of time. I sent my resignation to the Paratime Commission before I arrived here. Kostran has been too busy with all of Kalvan’s debriefings to visit. Besides, Kalvan’s got enough troubles for a dozen timelines. I don’t need to look elsewhere for more problems.”
Verkan pulled out his pipe and tobacco pouch and started to fill it.
Tortha pointed to Verkan’s pipe. “It must be bad news if you’re bringing out the heavy artillery.”