The three Federation officers stared in disbelief as the two dwarves approached. They watched as the one called Kroto untied a large sack and reached into it.
“Behold the head of General Gattas,” Kroto said as he pulled the head from the sack by its hair. “And the head of General Montero,” he added as he pulled out the other head and held it up for all to see.
“So you think we dwarves should run and hide from the mighty Federation armies, do you, Ritka?” scowled Prince Darok. “You had better think again. My people are not very endeared to the Federation whose forbearers enslaved some of my kin. In fact, we take particular pleasure in pummeling the likes of you.”
General Stemple’s face paled as he gazed upon the severed heads, but General Ritka’s face grew scarlet with rage. The Spinoan general’s hands curled into fists.
“You asked by what authority we were asking for your surrender,” Prince Darok continued. “I am Prince Darok, a Knight of Alcea. I serve as the voice and sword of King Arik wherever I go. I have been authorized to accept your surrender. In fact, the king has, unfortunately, mandated me to seek it. Should you choose to accept, I would be bound to let my human compatriots escort your men to safety until they could be repatriated to their homeland. Personally, I hope you refuse to suffer such an indignity as surrender. I could take great personal satisfaction from killing you.”
“Not in this lifetime, dwarf!” shouted General Ritka. “Before this day is done, it is your head that will be impaled upon a pike.”
General Ritka roughly turned his horse and rode back towards the valley, but General Stemple and Colonel Pierce remained, their eyes fixed upon the heads of the two defeated generals.
“How did they die?” General Stemple asked softly. “Did they refuse to surrender?”
“They were not given the choice,” answered Prince Darok.
“King Arik now believes that we Alceans should endeavor to avoid killing your men,” interjected Captain Azule. “All over Alcea the king’s forces are seeking the surrender of all Federation teams. Very few Federation teams still exist as a threat.”
“That is hard to believe,” frowned Colonel Pierce. “I have been to Alcea before, and your nation does not have the soldiers available to go up against all of the Federation teams.”
“In the Federation,” replied Captain Orteka, “your lives are centered around the army. That is not true in Alcea. Our armies are small, but all of our people will fight you. Your generals had not counted on dwarves and elves fighting by our sides, but they are Alceans, too. Even our civilian populations will rise up against your armies. Such is the case of thousands of mercenaries such as the Kadin Claws, and we are formidable warriors.”
“Ritka will never surrender,” stated General Stemple. “Surely, you are aware of that?”
“Then he will die,” shrugged Prince Darok. “I will see to it personally.”
“If your men wish to surrender,” stated Captain Azule, “they can do so, regardless of what General Ritka decides. They are to leave their weapons on the eastern side of the valley and then retire to the western side. Any man on the eastern side of the valley will die.”
“As will any man on the western side who still holds a weapon,” added Captain Orteka. “If your men are surrendering, it would behoove them to eliminate any man in the western half with a weapon, for such an armed man endangers them all.”
General Stemple nodded and turned his horse around. Colonel Pierce followed and the two men rode slowly back towards General Ritka and the squad escorting them.
“What are you thinking, Colonel?” asked General Stemple.
“I don’t know what to think,” admitted the colonel. “I would not have believed their stories had they not produced the heads. We were supposed to meet up with Gattas and Montero today. If the mercenaries and dwarves have enough of a force to annihilate Team Pontek, it does not bode well for us being cooped up in this valley. I think we need to at least check out the southern exit from the valley. “
General Stemple nodded. “We might be able to find better ground for a battle against the Alceans. Will Ritka allow it?”
“I would be surprised if he is not already planning such a scouting mission,” answered Colonel Pierce. “He will see this valley as a good defensive position but a lousy offensive one. If he wishes to carry the fight to the enemy, he needs to find a way out of here.”
“What took you so long?” snarled General Ritka as General Stemple and Colonel Pierce approached the escort. “We do not have time to wile away. Pierce, I want you to scout out the southern exit. See if we can extricate ourselves from this valley without the enemy being aware.”
“I will go with him,” stated general Stemple. “I feel a need to see for myself.”
General Ritka shrugged with indifference, and the group headed back into the valley. As they rode through the camp, Colonel Pierce noticed that the mood of the camp was odd. All of the men watched the generals ride towards the large command tent, and that was not unusual in itself, but there was also a look of fear upon many of their faces. Some of the men openly glared at General Ritka. That was not a wise posture to adopt in the Federation army, but the Spinoan general did not seem to notice. Without a word, General Ritka dismounted at the tent and disappeared inside. The squad leader continued onward, leading his men as an escort for the two officers heading to the southern exit of the valley.
The southern exit of the valley was less wooded with large stately trees sparsely populating a grassy plain. The colonel saw three individuals standing boldly in the middle of the trail. One was a man holding a staff, and one was a dwarf, but the colonel’s eyes were drawn to the third figure, a black-cloak. He shivered involuntarily and ordered a halt to the small column.
“We have come to talk,” shouted the colonel.
“Then come and talk,” called back the man with the staff. “Leave your soldiers where they are.”
Colonel Pierce and General Stemple rode forward and halted before the three Alceans. The colonel noticed hundreds of dwarves lurking among the trees, and he felt a shiver race up his spine. He focused his eyes on the dwarf standing alongside the man with the staff.
“Are you also a Knight of Alcea?” he asked.
“I am a Knight of Alcea, Colonel Pierce,” stated the man with the staff. “My name is Tedi. Why have you come here?”
The colonel blinked at the use of his name. He refocused his eyes on the speaker as if evaluating him. While Tedi’s body appeared fit and muscular, he did not even carry a sword. It was hard for the colonel to imagine the Alcean as being anyone special.
“You know my name?” questioned the colonel.
“You will find that we Alceans know far more about you than you know about us,” Tedi replied with a taut smile. “Had you known about us, you would never have undertaken such a poorly advised invasion. I notice that General Ritka chose not to accompany you and General Stemple. Does that indicate that he will refuse to surrender?”
“How do you know so much about us?” asked General Stemple.
“How we know so much is not a matter that needs discussion,” replied Tedi. “You already have enough to think about. Will you act boldly to save the lives of your men, General, or will you sacrifice them out of stubborn pride as General Ritka intends to do?”
“Your knowledge about us might answer that question for me,” retorted General Stemple. “Merely knowing our names does not convince me that you can beat my army in a fight. Why then should I consider surrendering?”
“He is wondering if you know about the other teams,” stated the dwarf. “He holds onto a foolish notion that delaying us here will give some advantage to the other teams.”
Tedi nodded to Doryelgar, the dwarven mage from Talman.
“Fair enough,” said Tedi. “Team Pontek was completely destroyed, as I am sure you are aware. In Lanoir, Team Chi and Team Elmor have already surrendered. I am not sure about Team Barouk. In Targa, Team Danver Shores has surrend
ered, and all of Force Cordonia is out of the war. That only leaves a handful of functioning Federation teams still in this war, and appropriate Alcean forces are dealing with them. None of your remaining teams have mages or food. Their men are tired and hungry. If you are wondering about Team Caldar, the Alcean forces here at Hendy Valley will not be needed to deal with General Omirro. You will gain nothing for the Federation by having your men die this day. Dwell upon that, General Stemple.”
The general nodded, satisfied that the Alceans did indeed know the complete Federation battle plans.
“We will return to camp and tell General Ritka of your words,” stated General Stemple.
The two officers retreated to the escorting squad and then returned to the valley.
“General Ritka will never surrender,” Colonel Pierce said softly.
“I know,” replied General Stemple. “What do you think about our chances of exiting this valley?”
“They are not good,” answered the colonel. “While I did not see overwhelming opposition at either exit, it would not take a large number of men to close off the valley. The exits are narrow enough to stop us from presenting a broad face to the enemy. Perhaps if we could get a regiment over the top of the ridge…”
The colonel glanced up at the ridge as he spoke, and he suddenly halted, his mouth gaping open as he saw the ridge lined with dwarves. He turned quickly and gazed up at the other ridge.
“They have us surrounded,” gasped the colonel. “Look!”
General Stemple looked at the ridges without a visible display of emotion. “It doesn’t surprise me,” he said calmly. “In fact, I would have been surprised if they were not up there. The Alceans have planned this well. The question now before us is if we can figure a way out of this trap.”
“Do we have a choice?” the colonel asked distractedly as he watched a commotion before them. “General Ritka is the team leader, and there is little doubt to what his orders will be. Much blood is going to flow this day.”
“What is going on?” asked General Stemple as he also focused on the commotion.
“I am not sure,” admitted the colonel as the two officers halted their horses near the large group of men gathered around a pair fighting. “Stop!” he shouted with an air of authority. “Stop it this minute!”
The group immediately noticed the officers and backed away from the scuffle. As the colonel’s eyes focused on the two fighting men, those in the group slowly backed away, getting lost in the maze of soldiers.
“What is the meaning of this?” demanded the colonel.
“He was planning on deserting,” one of the men said, pointing at the other accusingly. “I saw him drop his sword at the eastern edge of the valley. Now he claims that he has lost it.”
“I did lose my sword,” the accused soldier said defensively. “He is lying.”
General Stemple looked at the arm patches of the soldiers and recognized them as his men. He dismounted and walked up to the fighters. He glanced at the accuser and dismissed him before turning his attention to the swordless man.
“Who told you to leave your sword in the eastern half of the valley?” he asked.
The soldier started shaking his head as if the general had misunderstood the situation, but as he opened his mouth to reply, the general interrupted him.
“Do not even think of lying to me,” the general warned in an ominous tone. “I asked you a question and I expect a truthful answer. Disappoint me and you will wish you had not.”
The soldier swallowed hard and nodded shamefully. “We heard the instructions given to you, and we know that General Ritka will refuse to surrender. None of us want to die to dwarves, General.”
“Who told you what was said at the parley?” asked the general.
“No one told us, General,” replied the soldier. “We heard your voices. The whole valley heard it all.”
The general glanced at Colonel Pierce with a worried look on his face. The colonel said nothing. The general returned his attention to the soldier.
“Go find your sword,” he ordered. “I will not have my men taking things into their own hands. I still command the 29th Corps and you will follow my orders until I no longer command.”
General Stemple returned to his horse and mounted it. Without a backward glance at the soldier, he started riding slowly towards the large command tent. Colonel Pierce rode alongside him.
“I have been thinking about the words that were uttered while we were with the Alceans,” the colonel said softly. “If everyone heard what was said at the parley, we will not have a functioning army much longer. They will know about the dwarves and the fate of Gattas and Montero.”
“I know,” agreed General Stemple. “I now understand all of the dwarf sightings of the past few days and the spread of rumors in Valdo. The Alceans are playing mind games with our men, and they are winning.”
“You think they are bluffing?” asked Colonel Pierce. “Are they trying to get us to surrender because that is the only way that they can win?”
“I am not sure,” answered the general. “I would have readily said yes before, but that would not explain how they managed to defeat Gattas and Montero. The truth is, we don’t know how strong the enemy is. What we do need to understand though is how weak we are. Ritka thinks he still has twenty-thousand men under his command.”
“And you disagree?”
“Strongly,” General Stemple said with a nod of his head. “Look around, Pierce. These men are all scared out of their wits. More than half of them would bolt given the slightest chance, and I am not sure about the other half. Given a strong dwarven charge, or even an effective use of battle magic by that black-cloak they have, and these armies would collapse. The flow of Federation blood would be immense.”
“They must have more than one mage,” frowned the colonel. “The black-cloak was not present when we met with the mercenaries, and that is where leaving the swords in the eastern part of the valley was mentioned. It does seem like the Alceans have outsmarted us, but none of this will change General Ritka’s mind. He will never surrender.”
“Then perhaps it might be time for Team Gortha to have new leadership,” the general replied softly.
The colonel’s eyes grew large as he understood the meaning of the general’s words. The only way that General Ritka could be replaced as head of Team Gortha was if the Spinoan general was dead.
“You can’t be serious?” balked the colonel.
“Pierce,” the general said in a serious tone, “there is more than a good chance that you and I will both die today. If Ritka orders an attack, and we both know that he will do so, half of the men in this valley will refuse to fight. They are more afraid of the dwarves than they are afraid of Ritka. How will Ritka respond to that?”
“He would not stand for it,” the colonel answered without hesitation. “He will order the shirkers seized and punished.”
“So we will have our very own civil war here within the valley,” declared the general, “while the enemy still waits for us to emerge. Or better yet, the dwarves can enter the valley while we are fighting among ourselves. They have us beat, Pierce, and they didn’t even have to unsheathe their swords to do it.”
The colonel nodded in agreement.
“What are you going to do about this situation?” asked General Stemple. “Are you ready to watch your men die needlessly?”
“You want me to die so my men can surrender?” frowned the colonel. “That is what you are asking of me. You must realize that. If I kill General Ritka to save the men, I will be hung. I would rather die fighting the dwarves.”
“If Ritka orders an attack, you won’t live long enough to see another dwarf,” retorted General Stemple. “Mutinous men will kill their officers first. Besides, there is no reason for you to die. With Ritka dead, I would inherit the position of team leader, and it would be my right and duty to pass sentence on you.”
“And you would spare me?” questioned the colonel.
General Stemple smiled. “I would reward you. In fact, I think you would make an excellent replacement as general of the 21st Corps. You could claim that Ritka had lost his senses, and I would praise you for noticing it and taking action. Who is going to argue against us?”
“And what good would a promotion do me?” questioned the colonel. “I would only lead the 21st Corps for an hour at most as the men lined up to surrender.”
“The Alceans promised to repatriate us,” the general pointed out. “You would return home as a general. A defeated general to be sure, but we will all return home defeated in any event.”
“Unless the Alceans fail to defeat the remaining teams,” argued the colonel.
General Stemple shrugged. “If Omirro manages to defeat the Alceans, he will rescue us from wherever the Alceans imprisoned us. Then you will return home as a general of a victorious force. You have nothing to lose, Pierce. It is the only way that either of us will survive this day. Do you have the guts to see it through?”
For a long time, the colonel remained silent. Eventually he nodded. “I do not care much for this solution to the problem, but I can find no better. Ritka would expend the life of every man in this valley rather than bend his knee to the Alceans. I cannot let such senseless pride be the cause of such massive destruction, but I will handle this my own way. Dismiss the squad when you reach your tent, and stay away from Ritka. Find an excuse not to meet with him. I do not want him to know anything about the southern exit.”
General Stemple nodded in agreement, but he raised an eyebrow at the request. Colonel Pierce turned his horse and headed back towards the southern exit without an escort.
Chapter 38
Generals
Colonel Pierce rode through Hendy Valley towards the southern exit. As he rode through the camp, he watched the men closely. He noticed many of the men moving towards the western side of the valley, and he noted that they had all seemed to have lost their swords. He shook his head at the effectiveness of the Alcean plot. Up until now the officers had worried about the men fighting over scraps of food, but a deadlier game was about to unfold unless he acted quickly. Soon it would be those wishing to surrender against those loyal to General Ritka, and the squabbles would be bloody.
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