The priests looked to one another but no one said anything. Finally the silence was broken by one of the priests of Tuemis, a bulky man who looked strong. “What will our role in the battle be?”
Victus answered immediately as if he was waiting for the question, “Your exact locations will be told to each of you as we get into formation tomorrow. You will be spaced out amongst the men and will use your divine powers to enchant our soldiers, making them stronger, faster, and more powerful. You are all capable of this correct?” The priests nodded or spoke their affirmative response. “This is a key to our victory. You and the blessings of Aya, Tuemis and Phelios will help us crush our enemy.” He looked across the men and the woman again. He spoke confidently, which assured those who may have felt nervous. “Of course, you may have to engage in some hand to hand combat yourselves, but I trust each of you is capable of such a thing.” A smile widened on his chiseled face. The priests looked around again but this time no one spoke.
The Captain then shocked the clerics by mentioning to them that their army would have three mages with them. Rarely did anyone see or hear of the “old world” magic as some called it. It was a different force from divine magic all together; a force that few knew or trusted. The Captain explained that the primary function of those arcane magic users would be to handle the large ogres and giants that were inevitably going to be part of the opposition. He assured them that the larger formidable enemies would not be a problem and that they would be disposed of quickly…and harshly. His passion was contagious.
Once the talk had concluded The Captain curtly answered a few questions, thanked the men (and woman) again and went on his way. Before leaving he had told them where they would stay that night, and asked them to pray to each of their gods, for they would need their divine strength in the coming days.
***
It was one of the first buildings built in any of the cities and was in the center of what was serving as the unofficial capital. It was named The Scorpion’s Den, or as it was more often referred to, The Den. The structure had begun to be erected the same day that the location of the first city of Faletonia was chosen. It had been only a year since the first city was founded, but so much had already been accomplished in the young nation.
The ceilings of The Den were a lofty thirty feet high, and needed to be because giants often occupied the building. Faletonian flags flew on top of the massive building as if to boldly make their claim to the land. The red banner with a centered black scorpion led to the choosing of the name The Scorpion’s Den. In the last year most of the main decisions for the budding nation were made under this roof. This night would be no different than nights past.
An assembly of leaders who represented the various races led Faletonia. They were known as, simply, the Council of Leaders. Only the most powerful leaders spoke on behalf of their respective races. It was an immense challenge. The leader of one tribe, whether it was orcs, goblins, or ogres, would potentially have to report up to a leader from another tribe that sat on the Council of Leaders. This was not normal for any of the races, and had the potential to be very dangerous. Tribes would have to coexist, which generally didn’t happen when they wandered the lands independently. Those who arrived to partake in a chance to put their nomadic violent lives behind them had to adapt, had to swear fealty to the greater cause and thereby had to respect the leadership structure. There could be no challenging this edict.
Within the regions of Herridon normally any interaction of orcish, goblin or ogre tribes would inevitably lead to fighting and death. This was not to occur in Faletonia, for it was strongly forbidden. The Council of Leaders made it very clear that if you are not an integrated part of the society, you were on the outside...and from the looks of it, there were plenty of reasons to be part of the new nation. There was plenty to gain for all. Infighting would not be tolerated; in fact, violence within Faletonian cities was a serious crime, at times punishable by death. An iron-fisted rule of discipline was needed at this early and impressionable time . Even with such severe repercussions for violence, it was still a tough issue to prevent. The Council of Leaders, however, had the citizens of Faletonia doing surprisingly well so far.
Argorok, the unofficial chairman of the council sat on his enormous chair. He was a stone giant, a rare and unique race, and hailed from the far western mountains by the Salty Sea, an area that was home to many of the giants prior to arriving further inland to join Faletonia. There were twenty-two giants in Faletonia at the time, which made up a fair share of the race’s population in the surrounding lands south of the plains. The giants were very important to the Faletonia in its early stage of development. Several of the giant species were supremely intelligent (and some were not, like hill giants, who were not present in Faletonia) and of course very powerful standing at around twenty feet tall and at least a half of a ton in weight. They could do the work of twenty men (or orcs) quickly and with minimal effort. The giants, headed by Argorok, had an unofficial leadership position within the nation; they often presented new ideas and had the most influential opinions on matters. The non-giant races mostly accepted the decisions of their enormous colleagues. They did so primarily because the terms were usually very favorable for their own race and tribes. But in the end, the Council of Leaders finalized all decisions collectively.
Most of the council was present in the Den this night. The two members that were missing were away handling business in the other two young cities. The Council of Leaders was comprised of two giants, one ogre, three orcs, one goblin and one human. The lone ogre and one of the orcs were the council members who were absent. At the time, Faletonia had founded three cities named Southland, Westland and Midland based simply on their location in the lands south of the plains. There was no reason to complicate the names of the cities or to favor names of any race’s language. The unofficial territory of Faletonia, the area surrounding the three cities collectively, was centrally located between the plains to the north and the human cities and South Sea to the south. Lirrowick Forest was some distance to the east and The Singrin Peaks rose in the west. The Scorpion’s Den was in Midland, the first and most developed city. Although Argorok usually commenced the meetings, he did not this time. The giant secretly admired the audacity of the orcish commander, who was called Ayliki, who took the liberty of opening the discussion.
“I think that all here have learned of the human force that has marched from Abellard to Rogsnelk, as our scouts report.” The orc’s accent on the common tongue was heavy, but he spoke very well, better than most orcs. Everyone nodded or said yes. Ayliki was shorter than the average orc standing a few inches below six feet. He had maroon skin that almost looked brown in dim light. His yellowish fingernails were always long and sharp. “There is no news that this is offensive, it may be like the other defensive measures our scouts seen, but we must speak of it.” He tapped his fingernails on the table, which was a normal height to accommodate the orcs, human and goblins rather than the giant and ogre. The orc commander referred to the obvious and expected increased military response by the three human cities that was inevitably caused by Faletonia’s emergence.
Argorok leaned forward in his stone chair. Even sitting he was over thirteen feet tall. Stone giants very much resembled humans, however four times as tall and with much more brawn. Their skin often had a slight grey color to it, like the stones of the massive mountainous caves that they lived in and gave them their name. “Southland is nearly fortified, and our forces there are strong,” said the giant, his voice booming and deep. “That would be where they would attack, if that is their intention, which I believe it may not be.” He eyed the five other council members. The stone giant continued. “Is Southland well supplied?”
Another orc named Neemno cleared his throat and spoke in a croaky voice. “They have good supply. They grow much food, enough for weeks. All other supplies are good. The only problem is the wood, which is problem everywhere. The elves crush us with their prices.” He sla
mmed his hand down on the table and his jaundice eyes scanned from council member to council member. His command of common was not as good as Ayliki’s. Heads began to nod at the mention of their strange neighbors, the elves to the east, and their tough deals.
Lirrorwick Forest is a massive expanse of woodland miles away from Faletonia. The seemingly endless forest is occupied by a civilization of elves who have been living there for thousands of years. They consider the forest their home, and much more. The forest and nature are sources of energy to the mysterious elven people. It serves as symbol of their gods and a part of their way of life. The elves rarely interacted with any of the races that surrounded the forest. They believed that all races were inferior to their own and stuck very much to their own peculiar ways.
The elves had to interact with their neighbors however. Their beloved forest itself was important to all those around it. The trees within would inevitably need to be used as wood for construction by those who lived nearby, which, under certain circumstances, was acceptable to the pointy-eared guardians of the forest. Although few knew anything about them, sharing the bounty of the forest was believed to be a part of their religion. Lirrowick was also a source of wealth for them for even the strange elves desired worldly items, particularly those created by foreign races. Their generosity only went so far though. Cutting into the forest had to be regulated and it had to be approved by the elves themselves. They would charge fees to those who wanted to chop down part of their forest. At times, when the demand for wood was high, they would charge steep prices payable in gold, arms, crops or other goods. Also, if there was a sacred religious period for the elven folk, they would not allow any deforesting, and such times could last days or even weeks. To attempt to chop wood without elven consent was a recipe for death.
Faletonia first tried to obtain wood from Lirrowick Forest without approaching the elves. Precision arrow shots from elven killers hidden in the trees quickly put an end to this venture. It simply was costing too many lives to not try and obtain the consent of the forest’s guardians. To the surprise of the Council of Leaders, the elves were very open to business and did not initially charge superfluous sums. They accepted crops and goods such as jewelry and other lavish things that orcs or goblins may have robbed from human travelers. Then Faletonia grew beyond anyone’s expectations, and they were simply consuming too much of the forest’s resources. The elves had to reduce the amount of deforesting, and they did this by skyrocketing the price. Faletonia had very little to bargain with and wouldn’t risk taking wood without the consent of the elves.
The Council of Leaders knew that they simply were not chopping enough wood to support all the construction of buildings, equipment, and weapons production that was happening. Plus the population of Faletonia was expanding rapidly. Goblins, ogres, mostly orcs and some humans were coming from all over the land and pledging fealty, increasing the power of the nation. But the reality was the council knew they would gain nothing from starting a war with the elves over wood. At least not yet. Production would have to be slowed. For example, production of bows and arrows to defend the walls of Southland from a possible human attack would have to be curtailed.
Fortunately, they had already created plenty of supplies and each tribe or group that arrived to Faletonia often brought their own weapons and items and would offer a good portion as tribute. It was the price to pay to join the society, and a reasonable one. Faletonia even traded items with the human barbarians who roamed the vast plains to the north. They would trade anything from weapons to animal skins; however the barbaric folk were often too volatile to deal with. The Council of Leaders sat atop a developing economy that’s endless potential could be unlocked with the right leadership.
“The elves have done more than we can ask of them. They are the first of the races to recognize us as a nation. While they are strange and dangerous indeed, they did not turn their backs on us, instead they negotiated, and allowed for proper diplomacy. They honored our sovereignty. We must preserve our relationship with them…and develop it,” said Frick, the other giant on the council. He had long hair that was tucked behind his ears and a long goatee that hung down to his chest. Fair skin and freckles made it clear he was not a stone giant.
“Elves not the problem, the humans to the south are problem.” The third orc, Minsheen, said with an obvious stare towards the human council member. He was a large orc and notorious for his brash manners. A red gem that hung from a necklace on Minsheen’s broad neck sparkled in the dark room.
The human councilman was named Desmund Feon. He was large for a human, reaching about six feet in height. A two-inch thick column of hair ran from the front of the center of his head down to the back to his neck. The rest of his head was shaved. He wore three earrings in his left ear. Desmond was an intimidating man, even to orcs. He slowly rose from his chair while staring at Minsheen. His expression was not pleasant. “Men are formidable behind their own walls. I know these cities and their ways. Their councils keep the people on a leash. They have no desire to expand. It is unlikely they would march out of their cities.” He shook his head and looked around at each member of the Council of Leaders. “They would not be so bold. They lack the proper leadership to do so.” His dark eyes moved slowly from giant to giant.
“We must be prepared either way, we must not risk it,” said Frick.
“If the humans attack Southland, they will meet a ferocious resistance. The city walls are complete. Thousands of warriors are within the city along with fierce several other giant including…Bix Olan Fod.” He seemed to hold his head higher after mentioning his kin. Bix Olan Fod was a particularly dangerous giant of a very uncommon race. All within Faletonia feared him. “They will not risk such a defeat. Besides, we have not threatened any of their three cities, why would they attack us? I actually await their proposal for trade.” His tone was half serious. Argorok put his hands in front of him on the table. “Their weak army is simply pulled together out of fear.” With that statement he pushed himself back in his chair and looked at the other members of the council. One head nodded in agreement and several others had looks of uncertainty.
“Ayliki, how many orcs have just arrived here in the last two days?” Argorok asked the orcish leader who was stationed in Midland and participated in the ongoing census.
“Four tribes, about three hundred and thirty orcs,” replied Ayliki.
“And how many were adult males?”
“Around one hundred and eighty.”
The stone giant subtly looked to the other giant who sat to his left. “If this council agrees then, let’s send these new arrivals to bolster the defense of Southland,” one side of his mouth rose in a semi smile. “We cannot be too safe, humans often act erratically.” He then shot a wink to Desmund Feon, who replied with a smile that showed he was not so entertained. “All in favor?” All, including Desmund, indicated they agree.
The human leaned forward onto his forearms on the table. “Now that that is settled, there is another matter that we must discuss.” All eyes went his way bidding him to continue. “The number of my fellow men has increased to over thirty. We are by far the minority here; however it could be argued that our contributions rival any other races. We have taught how to work and farm the lands. We provided details on blacksmithing, weapons crafting, city design and structure, engineering, methods for raising livestock and various other integral aspects to living a settled life.” He pushed up from his forearms, his arms spreading wider and straightening.
“All true, without such knowledge our development would be drastically delayed.” Argorok said. “What is it you seek?”
“Slowly, more men continue to join our ranks. Some from the cities to the south. Others from nearby lands who have lived independent lives. The thirty plus that reside here now are scattered about. Most have settled in Westland and a few are aiding in the development of northland. In Westland, we have not been able to live together. Residences had filled so quickly, that we were sc
attered about the city. I am hereby requesting that a small section of the city be marked for humans, so that we can live together.
“Goblins scattered too, we no make request.” The goblin representative of the council said. His name was Abutosh. He was a large goblin, nearly five feet tall and muscular. His skin was a green color similar to the leaves of a forest.
“Yes, but there are so many goblins and so many orcs. It is impossible to truly be scattered. There will inevitably be kin near you wherever you live. Our numbers makes our scenario more like the giants.” He raised a hand towards the two behemoths. “Even though your kin may be different cities when aiding in construction, you all actually live here in Midland.”
“Yes, but there probably has not been one day since we founded this city that my kin have been all together in this city,” said Argorok. Desmund began a response but was cut off by the giant’s deep voice. “However, I don’t see a problem accommodating this request.” The stone giant hesitated to see if anyone would quickly object. No one did. “If we can agree, I propose we designate a section of Westland to the humans. Due to the threat in Southland, I believe it is wise to be sure no men remain in that city. While I’m sure some of the men of Faletonia have a bone to pick with the men of the south cities, it is best to just let our other races handle any potential human offensive. Do the present members of this council agree?
Kingdom Come (Price of Power Book 1) Page 13