A Dubious Peace

by Olan Thorensen

  “You’re making the magistrate who presented the evidence carry out the execution?” asked Mark.

  “There’s no formal execution position on Caedellium,” said Yozef. “Traditionally, there are too few death sentences for that. It would fall to the hetman to determine how the penalty is carried out.”

  “I expected to have to do it,” said Balwis, “but I confess I didn’t argue all that much with Yozef.”

  “My point had the advantage of being accurate,” said Yozef. “If Balwis were the executioner, none of us needed any added resentment from those who supported Washton. It was also a lesson to local officials who might lapse in keeping an eye on potential trouble. Give Lalton his due for being honest. He reported there had been numerous occasions when Washton mentioned doing exactly what he did. Also, several occasions when Washton confronted and railed at ex-Narthani. Lalton admitted nothing had been done to discourage Washton or look for his family and friends to try and control him. When Lalton goes back to Ponth, Wyfor will accompany him. They’ll be meeting with the mayor and then family and friends of Washton’s. These won’t be pleasant meetings, but fines will be levied against Washton’s extended family for evidently having knowledge of and being sympathetic to what he planned to do. The fines will go to the Moody family members who survived the attack. There will also be forceful admonitions about further incitement against that family or any other ex-Narthani.”

  “Hah!” Balwis interjected. “Yozef phrases it civilly, but what it really means is that Wyfor will scare the shit out of anyone liable to cause further trouble.”

  CHAPTER 11

  AMBASSADORS

  Yozef was prepared to be fully engaged on the day meetings began with the other ambassadors and representatives. Not that he looked forward to that day, but he could focus once committed. He wasn’t sure whether it was a trait he’d brought to Anyar or if it had developed out of necessity and experience.

  An aide of Storlini’s scheduled the meetings. Ranglid Amapunt was a placid-appearing man of fifty years. He, like Storlini, was an ex-Narthani. In contrast, Storlini was a teacher of lower-class Narthani children, whereas Amapunt had been a staff member of Nizam Tuzere’s, the Narthani civilian administrator during the occupation. As far as Yozef could tell from Storlini’s description, Amapunt had been the equivalent of a troubleshooter for Tuzere. Amapunt placated ranking Narthani civilians and religious prelates who complained for one reason or another, and he interacted with a counterpart on General Akuyun’s staff.

  As talented as Amapunt was, it was not an option for a hetman’s ex-Narthani troubleshooter to handle internal Preddi Clan problems. For Balwis, having Amapunt deal with foreigners was a case that fit one of Yozef’s Amerikan sayings.

  Yes, Balwis had thought, I can kill two birds with one rock. Or was it two murvors with a brick?

  Whichever it was, Amapunt’s considerable talents were put to use by his being in charge of the foreign representatives and their embassies. The other use for Amapunt, and the one most important to Balwis, was that Balwis wouldn’t have to deal with foreigners unless absolutely necessary—a requirement so stringent as to be nearly indistinguishable from an outright ban on direct interaction.

  As much as Yozef recognized Balwis’s accomplishments with his clan, he was becoming impatient with the new Preddi hetman’s recalcitrance in dealing with specific unavoidable issues. Fair or not, Yozef had delegated to Balwis the job of being overseer of foreign diplomats. Yet Amapunt being the main point of contact was different from his being the only contact. Too much was ongoing during this visit, but Yozef thought something needed to change. He would talk to Maera when he returned to Orosz City. In turn, she might communicate with Ceinwyn to pass on the Paramount’s concern.

  Yozef’s mulling over whether he should brace Balwis during this visit was cut short when the door to the meeting room opened, and in walked Amapunt and Isla Kennrick-Luwis. The latter had followed Yozef to Preddi City and had spent several days working with Amapunt during Yozef’s diversion by the trial and the meeting with Gaya.

  “Good morning, Paramount,” said Amapunt. He nodded and sat opposite Yozef at the round table. Isla sat to Yozef’s right and smiled without speaking. Yozef had seen her only once in passing since she’d arrived.

  Amapunt laid a folder of papers on the table and opened it. “Isla and I have developed a ‘briefing’ for you—she says the word is how you describe summary information. I will present our report. Isla has a written version if you wish to read it later. She will take it back to Orosz City. She also tells me that you prefer ‘visuals’ to clarify points, and she suggested we use maps.”

  He pulled out two folded sheets, opened them, and pushed them toward Yozef.

  “These are maps of Landolin and the Iraquinik Confederation. You may write on these copies if you wish. Several more copies are in the folder for Orosz City. You already have some acquaintance with Landolin from your experience with the Munjor representative, Gaya. Therefore, the report for Landolin will be shorter than for Iraquinik. Should I begin, or do you have questions or wish changes?”

  “That’s fine. Continue.”

  Amapunt pointed to the Landolin map. “As you probably already know, Landolin has five kingdoms on the continent. Amalor is a large island physically separated from the other five, but its people are culturally related. Five kingdoms speak versions of Low Landolin, believed to have derived from an original language sometime in the distant past. The history is unclear. Some distinct dialects of Low Landolin can be almost unintelligible between speakers from different kingdoms or even regions within a single kingdom.

  “However, most inter-kingdom communications use High Landolin, a scholastic version of Landolin. High Landolin also has scattered speakers among scholastics, traders, and officials throughout western Anyar and even some scholastics farther east. We also estimate there are as many as two hundred Caedelli who speak enough High Landolin to be understandable and who could translate.”

  “Yes,” said Yozef. “I remember that Diera Beynom speaks High Landolin, which she learned when she studied medicant treatments on Landolin. I think it was Naskin where she trained.”

  “We’ve made a list of the better Caedelli speakers of High Landolin,” said Isla, “in case we need to use them for translators. Only two are here in Preddi. Most others were lost during the occupation. Six live in Orosz City. At least two of them could probably be convinced to serve as translators as long as they didn’t lose income to support themselves and their families.”

  “That wouldn’t be a problem,” said Yozef. “I assume they are concentrated in scholastics.”

  “Most, yes, but others have various stories about how they came to speak High Landolin.”

  “There is one exception to how we described the Landolin languages,” said Amapunt. “Jahmnor is the southernmost kingdom and the largest in size. Although they speak what could be considered a distant Low Landolin dialect, it has many words and a few grammar forms not found with the other kingdoms. Isla has made an interesting observation.”

  “I do not have many examples to compare,” she said, “but I’ve come to suspect that the differences within the Jahmnor language are related to the languages of Ilskin and Buldor. It’s known that those two languages are related, but I could not find references to any relation to Jahmnorese. This would only be a curiosity were it not that Jahmnor seems to have more history of conflicts than the other kingdoms.”

  “We suspect this has played a role in the current Narthani actions,” said Amapunt. “We read the notes from your meeting with Gaya. Based on what happened on Caedellium, we believe it likely that the animosity between Jahmnor and the other Landolin kingdoms gave the Narthani an opportunity to ally with Jahmnor against those kingdoms. You mentioned to Gaya that it’s not exactly the same, but it’s a similar strategy as they used with Preddi, Selfcell, and Eywell. That is, pitting kingdoms against one another, instead of clans as here.”

  Yozef nodd
ed. “Does what Gaya said agree with what you’ve found out?”

  “Mainly,” said Isla, “though, as expected, there may be a slant toward favoring Munjor, particularly with regard to problems in developing a coordinated effort against a Jahmnor/Narthani alliance.”

  “Do you have any more unbiased detailed intelligence on how the conflict is going?” asked Yozef.

  “Unfortunately, no,” said Amapunt. “That’s a major reason we believe it important to develop closer relations with all the Landolin kingdoms. Not only would this give us more information from different sources we could compare, but it also opens up the opportunity to develop our own independent sources.”

  He means spies, thought Yozef.

  “Of course, we realize there are other factors you have to consider as Paramount,” said Amapunt.

  Yeah, thought Yozef, like trade, which should be good, and entanglements, which would be bad.

  “All right,” said Yozef. “I think I get the big picture. I can read all the details in the full report, but do you have any recommendations?”

  Amapunt and Isla looked at each other as if hoping the other would speak first. If anything, Amapunt appeared hesitant and Isla impatient.

  They agree on something, thought Yozef, but Amapunt feels awkward. In contrast, Isla knows I want honest, straight opinions.

  Isla spoke first. “We need direction from you, Paramount. Until we have a framework, we do not know what to look for or how to evaluate what we find.”

  Yozef smiled, which made Amapunt nervous and Isla reassured.

  In other words, do your fucking job and make decisions, thought Yozef. If only it were always so easy.

  “Thanks to both of you, and some clarity will be coming along in the next few months.”

  At least, I hope so, thought Yozef. One way or another. My main wish would be for none of this to be important, as long as Caedellium stays out of more wars.

  “Now . . . what about Iraquinik?”

  “Ah . . . now that’s a different story,” said Amapunt. “Much more complex. It could be argued that the Iraquinik Confederation is a creation of the Narthani. Iraquinik had a long history of strife between the kahsaks . . . that’s what they call their political units. It was only when threatened by Narthon that the kahsaks called a general truce among themselves and began fighting together against a common enemy.” He pushed forward a second map.

  “The map shows the nineteen kahsaks. It also shows three traditional alliances among the nineteen kahsaks. The four most northern kahsaks don’t belong to such alliances, probably for two reasons. One is that the Narthani have not pushed hard that far north. Another factor is that the weather and the two inland seas make direct attacks difficult. That could change, of course, but so far, the Narthani have focused on the central and southern kahsaks. What is not shown is that the Narthani have already absorbed considerable territory and peoples related to the remaining kahsaks, and that land is now part of western Narthon. We don’t have exact numbers, but five to seven kahsaks seem to have fallen to the Narthani before the rest of the Iraquinik kahsaks started working together.”

  “My understanding is that the borders have been pretty much stalemated for quite some time,” said Yozef.

  “That’s true,” said Amapunt. “Depending on who you ask or what the reference is, the borders haven’t changed that much in anywhere from thirty to a hundred years. That doesn’t mean there isn’t major fighting, and one side doesn’t gain ground, but it’s back and forth over time. A couple of the Iraquinik representatives hinted that there’s worry about the two sides being eventually worn down by the Narthani.”

  “Do we know how good the coordination is between the . . . uh . . . kahsaks? With nineteen different realms, I can imagine the problems operating together.”

  “Again, it depends who is offering an opinion,” said Amapunt. “I’ve heard more than one complaint about other kahsaks not bearing their share of the fighting. Some of this is bound to be the usual belief that your own people are the bravest and are fighting the hardest.”

  “How do they coordinate their efforts?’

  “That we have almost no information about—including who commands when battles involve men from more than a single kahsak.”

  “I almost hate to ask,” said Yozef, “but can they even talk to one another? What is the language situation?”

  “We can’t know how much of a problem it is within their different militaries. The three alliances I mentioned are kahsaks with similar but not identical languages within the alliance. That’s only one factor because, from what we’ve learned so far, the alliance members have shifted over time. What you see on the map is only what we think are the latest alliances.”

  “It’s not all bad,” said Isla. “Somewhat similar to the Landoliners, the Iraquiniks have a language . . . or dialect . . . I’m not sure how to evaluate what we’re hearing . . . that has speakers in all the kahsaks, though the percentage of the population varies. Kahsakist is closest to the language in the southern kahsaks. Evidently, it was originally a religious language but is now more secular, particularly in trading.”

  “All right, so what I’m hearing is that with both Landolin and Iraquinik, there are common-enough languages . . . or dialects . . . to help us communicate without needing too many translators.”

  “That’s right, Paramount,” said Amapunt. “It will be easiest with Landolin, but there are a few fluent speakers of Kahsakist on Caedellium.”

  “A few?” scoffed Isla. “What I’ve heard is we haven’t found anyone who speaks it.”

  Amapunt scowled at Isla. “We’re still searching, so we may find people.”

  He sighed. “But Isla is correct. There almost certainly would have been a few speakers in Preddi City. However, the Narthani occupation eliminated almost everyone associated with trading . . . which would have included most Kahsakist speakers. I still think it’s possible to find a few people who might be able to translate, but for the moment, we have to use other languages until more Iraquiniks learn Caedelli . . . Gaya and one other in his party being the most obvious examples right now. As for the other parties sent so far, they all have one or more people who speak Suvalu, High Landolin, or Narthani. We can have translators for all three. Of course, I’m sure the Iraquiniks will eventually have Caedelli speakers, and we’ll have people who have learned Kahsakist.”

  “Okay,” said Yozef, “so we’ll have translators for when I meet the representatives, but tell me something about the cultures. Not details. Just give me a sense of what I should expect. You know . . . religions, attitude toward negotiations, general demeanor.”

  “Most consistent seem to be the Landoliners,” said Amapunt. “I’ve dealt with their parties for several months, so I think I’m getting a sense of them. They definitely see themselves as more ‘civilized’ than Caedelli, and there’s some justification when you consider the depth and breadth of their history, literature, and level of scholarship.”

  Isla coughed, with a pointed stare at Amapunt.

  “Uh . . . yes. As Isla has so adroitly called to my attention, the last factor has changed somewhat since your arrival on Caedellium, Paramount. Some of the Landoliners have recognized this, such as Gaya from Munjor, but other ones are yet to be convinced.”

  “I think I have a sense of Munjor’s culture,” said Yozef. “Gaya certainly attempted to regale me with its wonders before he returned home. He tried to convince me to move, not quite explicitly saying I could accomplish more and become fabulously rich. It also sounded like a very stratified society.”

  “That’s definitely true,” said Isla. “Both Rangild and I have talked with multiple people who have intimate familiarity with the culture, mainly of the northern kingdoms. Landoliners are born into strata they seldom move out of. Most movement is downward, though there are evidently rare cases of upward mobility.”

  “I would think that would cause internal tension,” said Yozef, “and complicate fighting the Narthani
/Jahmnor alliance if it comes to war.”

  “Well . . . we don’t have personal experience,” said Amapunt, “but both our impressions are that the people accept the strata system as natural . . . at least more than Caedelli would.”

  “Okay . . . so what about the Iraquinik kahsaks?”

  “Nothing so uniform,” said Amapunt. “For example, how they are ruled, the religions, and common customs are far more varied than what we know of on Landolin or certainly among the Caedelli clans. For your immediate needs, Paramount, we assume the most important aspects are the ruling systems. The majority of kahsaks have rulers with absolute power, but even that has variations—a single long-ruling family, an extended family that somehow selects successors, and examples with constant internal conflict for each succession. Exceptions are the most northerly and some southern kahsaks. In the south, the Irapah, Hawsa, and Agala kahsaks have formal leaders, but they are effectively ruled by a committee of shifting membership. How this works is unclear, but evidently it does because those kahsaks are referenced as being wealthy through trade. The northern kahsaks are very different.”

  “You already said that . . . uh,” Yozef looked back at the Iraquinik map and pointed, “ . . . these four kahsaks are not part of internal Iraquinik alliances.”

  “It seems to be due to several reasons,” said Amapunt. “As I already said, the weather and inland seas make large-scale warfare difficult. The northern-most kahsak, Abaton, is so mountainous and the population so low as to be almost physically and culturally isolated from the other kahsaks. Then there is a long-standing conflict between Kolinka and its other two neighbors, Ponomyna and Muskamon.”

  “The impression we get is it’s a larger version of what went on among the Caedelli clans before the Narthani came to Caedellium,” said Isla. “Feuds, cross-border raids, and occasional short-lasting wars that settled nothing. One benefit of the Narthani coming is the dampening of conflicts among the northern kahsaks.”