by Joe Jackson
Carson continued, “Dannumore is primarily inhabited by the bakatur, and though their society nearly collapsed after their failed attempt to attack Askies, they have regained much of their military strength. However, for the last century and more, they have aimed their hostilities inward, culling their own people in some purification war. We have continued to trade with their coastal cities, which have sizeable rir and human representation among their populations, but we have heard no rumblings of war aimed outward.”
Aeligos gave a respectful nod to Carson’s historical knowledge, and noted in his mind that the young man may have recently finished university schooling. The rogue beckoned for Jol to come forward and, after hesitating for a moment, the massive male did so. His size drew wide-eyed gazes from the councilors before Aeligos prodded him further. “What happened in the war with the bakatur?” the rogue asked.
“They landed and established a hold in the northeast, near Ceritopolonis,” Serenjols said. “They found victory easily initially, but they drew the ire of Seril, and soon found themselves fighting against two opposing forces. With the rir and humans as well as the serilian demons attacking them, they were forced to withdraw, and many of their ships were destroyed from the air by fire-wielding brys and corlypsi. More than half of their vessels were destroyed and their people drowned. It is believed that less than a quarter of their attack force returned home.”
Aeligos patted his brother on the shoulder in thanks, amazed at how much Jol had spoken – almost more than he had in the previous few months combined. “I can’t admit to knowing much of these people other than what my brother just shared,” the rogue said. “But if the Tuvurasti and the gods themselves are concerned, it stands to reason you should be as well. My brother’s orders are very specific: war is to be avoided at all costs. My sister and I came to the conclusion that while war is to be avoided, a single, quick battle that deposes Gaswell and scatters his forces should accomplish our goal without provoking the northern kingdoms. They’re far less likely to attack a unified Tsalbrin than they are several scattered armies.”
“I’m curious,” Petra said. “Why did Zalkar not inform us through the clergy here? Why was your brother sent here to do what any man could have done?”
Aeligos accepted an offered glass of water from an officer of the court, and Sonja took up his line of thought. “As we understand it, our brother was assigned to look into a demonic threat to the east. While he didn’t give us many details, we’ve been suspicious that whatever he and his partner are looking into might also have something to do with Gaswell and his rise to power. A civil war is a serious enough matter, but a civil war sparked by a demon represents a threat to everyone. To be fair, it’s only speculation at this point, but until my brother and his partner arrive in a few days, we won’t know for sure.”
Potter looked to each of the councilors before speaking again. “This situation is getting more complicated by the minute,” the governor said. “Let us assume for a moment that our most prudent course of action is to send the provincial armies south to confront Gaswell: what is the shakna-rir plan once we join them?”
Aeligos touched his sister’s shoulder to silence her, and he looked over the gallery before speaking. “With all due respect, sir, I don’t think it’s a good idea to divulge any specifics with the gallery full,” he said.
“Yes, you are correct,” the governor said. “We will adjourn for a short recess, and the court officers will clear the gallery before we come back into session in one hour.”
Potter banged his gavel on his podium, and the councilors stood and exited through a back door. Aeligos watched their egress and turned around to supervise the clearing of the gallery by the court officers. His siblings approached, and he folded his arms lightly across his chest and glanced at his human companions. “That went about as well as I could’ve hoped,” he said. “At the very least we haven’t been shoved off on account of our race.”
“That was very keen of you to hold your tongue on our plans with the gallery full,” Sonja said. “It hadn’t occurred to me until you touched my arm to stop me from speaking.”
“Probably unnecessary, but better to be cautious than reckless,” he returned with a nod. “On the off chance Gaswell had a spy in the gallery, they haven’t learned anything they didn’t already know. They must know what’s going on with the shakna-rir, and that the Tuvarasti would ask for help from this city. Let’s go get something to eat while they’re adjourned.”
Aeligos led the group to a local tavern for a snack, and they chatted lightly while they waited for the council to come back into session. The rogue spent the time explaining the basics of how to get more information than you give in a seemingly two-sided conversation, and the young humans took his lesson in eagerly. He also explained what he saw in each of the councilors simply based on their appearance, and how their words had altered those perceptions. He was happy to have gotten as much out of the council as he had, but he knew there was still a lot he had to learn if he wanted to convince them to follow his plans. He explained that the more he knew of them and the way they thought, the easier it would be to convince them, and they would end up making the decision he wanted without any real effort on his part.
They finished their meal and made their way back to the city hall’s assembly room. The gallery was empty, and only the three scribes and two court officers were present when the group took the places they had occupied during the first part of the meeting. Aeligos paced the floor, and it didn’t escape his notice that Sonja was once again working to stifle a laugh as she watched him. For all his dislike of being in charge, Aeligos understood that it was a role he filled well when the situation demanded it; Sonja’s behavior made that clear. Aeligos didn’t have the imposing physique of Erik, but what he did have was the charisma to draw people to him and make them listen to what he had to say.
The council arrived in the chamber and took their seats, and the governor banged his gavel three times to bring the meeting back into session. He regarded his fellow councilors for only a moment before he sat back and fixed Aeligos with a curious gaze. “Now that we’ve cleared the gallery, we’d like to hear what you and our shakna-rir neighbors have planned.”
“Well, foremost I can tell you that our intention is not to try to defeat Gaswell by means of attrition,” Aeligos said. “Assuming you send your provincial army south to meet up with Maktus and his forces…”
“Warlord Maktus leads this force personally?” Petra interrupted as her ears perked up. She made a slight gesture of apology when Aeligos paused and nodded. The shakna-rir woman turned and looked to the governor. “If Warlord Maktus has taken the field personally, then what our guest has said is no exaggeration. The warlord himself would not have left the city if they were expecting invasion from the north. If Maktus leads this force personally, then he goes to win this conflict quickly and decisively. Queen Omalias is clearly taking Gaswell and this young man’s plan quite seriously.”
“Indeed,” Potter said, and he gestured toward their half-demon guest. “Please, continue.”
“As I was saying, assuming you send your army south to join with the shakna-rir, the general idea is not to wage a war of attrition, but to draw Gaswell’s army out onto the field. Once the bulk of his garrisons have been drawn out of the castle, your army and the Tuvurasti forces would engage them while a strike force infiltrates Gaswell’s stronghold to kill him and secure the castle. With their leader dead and no base of operations to return to, we believe his army will simply scatter before the combined might arrayed against it.”
“What if he isn’t in the castle when this strike force invades his halls?” Avery Nash asked dryly, and he cupped his chin in his hand as he leaned on the podium.
“We’re almost certain he will be,” Aeligos said, holding up his hand to stifle any reply. “Even assuming he’s insane – which I believe he is – this will be the first real test of his army. He’s not going to take the field and risk losing ever
ything before he’s had a chance to see what cards his enemies are holding. Everything in my experience tells me he’ll be holed up inside that fort, watching and waiting, ready to disappear should things look hopeless, to try another day.”
“But again, if he isn’t?” Nash prodded.
“If he isn’t, then an attrition battle will be unavoidable, at least to start. If he takes the field, the strike force will still be able to secure the castle and cut off their retreat. Once his army starts being slaughtered by the superior force awaiting them, they’ll lose morale. Gaswell is not a leader, he’s just a man promising things and drawing fools to his side. He’s also not a demon king: he doesn’t rule this army by force or fear, only by the promise of victory and glory. Even if there’s a demon behind all this, there’s no reason to believe these men will die blindly for it. So the only way Gaswell can keep his army from abandoning him in the face of a superior force will be to rush in headlong to spur them on, and he’ll be done in by his own impatience.”
“And what of the demon, if indeed there is one?” Potter asked.
“We have three demonhunters among our number, sir,” Aeligos said confidently. “If the demon doesn’t flee, it’s going to die.”
“You seem very sure of how Gaswell will react,” Carson Duvall said. “Exactly what experiences are you drawing on?”
“The Apocalypse,” Aeligos answered. “I know your island probably saw almost no fighting, but my siblings and I were in the thick of the war from beginning to end. We did this sort of thing once before to a minor demon lord, and we accomplished similar tasks against other targets of opportunity. I’m not saying our plan is perfect or guaranteed to work, but given the dangers of inactivity and allowing Gaswell to gain more of a foothold than he has, I believe it is our best chance at succeeding in the task we’ve been given from above.”
The shakna-rir woman in the center smiled. “Well spoken,” Petra said, and Aeligos received the nods he was expecting from Max and Sadessa as well. Avery was still skeptical, and Carson looked as though he wanted to think on it further, but Petra continued, “So let us assume that Gaswell stays in his fortress as you believe he will: what kind of strike force are you planning to send, and what makes you believe they will succeed?”
“My siblings and this fine young man and woman before you,” Aeligos said, waving a hand toward his companions. “Also, my elder brother Erijinkor and his partner when they’ve rejoined with us; that will make up the strike force. We also have another companion on the inside, serving within Gaswell’s fortress to gather information for our strike.”
“You managed to get someone inside his fortress?” Petra asked with wide eyes. “I see now why you were hesitant to speak before the full gallery.”
Aeligos nodded. “Our insider is well disguised,” he said, and in the back of his mind he hoped none of his companions would give away his ruse. “He’s already provided us a detailed map of the fortress and the best ways to get in and out. He’s given us a lot of information that should make getting in rather easy, coupled with my sister’s ability to mask our movements. From there it will be a matter of finding and killing Gaswell, which I admit is far from a simple matter, but well within our capabilities, I believe.”
“This is quite a daring plan, I have to say,” the shakna-rir woman said, rubbing a finger under her chin thoughtfully. “What do you call yourselves?”
Aeligos regarded his companions before he turned back and said, “The Silver Blades.”
There were clear nods of respect from nearly all of the councilors, and silence fell for only a moment before Governor Potter addressed them. “Well, let us put this to vote,” he said, but he held up his hand when Aeligos looked at him. “Not on sending the army just yet, young man, but a vote to determine if this matter has satisfied our requirements to deliberate further on its merits. All those in favor of giving this matter our full consideration?”
Aeligos couldn't suppress a smile as all five of the council members said Aye, and he nodded to Sonja over his shoulder. “The council is unanimous,” Potter said. “We will take the records of the scribes and the sealed documents of Warlord Maktus Tuvurasti into consideration, and should have our resolution for you in a matter of days.”
“Days?” Aeligos repeated incredulously, but he mentally berated himself as soon as he’d spoken. Nearly all of the councilors and the governor himself seemed surprised by the outburst, and Aeligos made a gesture of apology. “Forgive me; I’m just a little impatient due to the nature of the matter. Please, take your time coming to whatever you consider the proper decision.”
“You have the thanks of the city and her people for delivering this message to us,” the governor said with a nod. “We will send a courier to you when we have reached a decision. In the meantime, do try to relax and enjoy the hospitality of our city.”
“Thank you, and farewell,” Aeligos said. He turned and motioned for his companions to make their egress. He was glad to have convinced the council to make a decision, but at the same time he could hardly believe they were going to waste days coming to that decision. It had already been a couple of months since Gaswell rose as a threat, so Aeligos couldn’t imagine they needed to deliberate all that much on whether or not to stop that threat. He shook his head in disbelief but said, “I don’t know if they’ll do what we asked them, but I don’t think that could’ve gone any better.”
“Neither do I,” Sonja said. “You should be very proud of yourself. I would certainly do as you asked were I in their position.”
“Based on what you told us to watch for, I think two of the humans and the shakna-rir woman were clearly in favor of following your plan,” Katarina said, and Aeligos nodded, glad to see his lessons had sunk into someone. “The other two seemed skeptical, but I cannot imagine they will ask the city to sit idly while Gaswell threatens them.”
The Silver Blades returned to the inn, and Aeligos dismissed them to do as they pleased for the remainder of the day. He passed the afternoon fishing peacefully, and when he and his companions gathered for dinner, they spoke of the coming confrontation as quietly as possible. All of them were anxious – even the siblings who had fought in the Apocalypse for eight years – but as Aeligos looked to each of the faces around the table, he realized there was no one there he didn’t trust in. There was no reason for them to fail unless every possible facet of luck turned in Gaswell’s favor or some unforeseeable, catastrophic event took place. Aeligos was not the type to ever think that success was assured, but he couldn’t imagine being any closer to it.
Raugro was surprisingly quiet and sleepy at night for a city its size, and the companions found little nightlife among the streets. It was just as well since Aeligos asked them to stay out of trouble: to be content to pass the time in calm boredom and simply look forward to Erik and Kari’s return. He himself was looking forward to seeing Eryn again, but his mind was focused on his mission, his brother’s imminent return, and finally getting to the bottom of the situation with Gaswell. What time he couldn’t pass sleeping he passed playing cards with the others, or by himself, until finally he retired to bed after the midnight hour.
Aeligos was disappointed that no courier came to summon them to the council chamber on the following morning, so he passed the day fishing. Grakin joined him and the two spent the morning and afternoon chatting about everything from their lovers to their plans for the future. They kept the topic of the coming battle close in their minds but didn’t speak of it in front of the locals. They tried to keep as upbeat as possible, as they didn’t want the simple fact that they were half-demons to compound any negative attitude about them or tip the common folk off to the fact that danger was looming.
No word came the following morning either, and Aeligos decided to check in at city hall. The length of the decision was already making him nervous, and he couldn’t help but think there was something bad coming as he crossed the bridge toward city hall.
Chapter XVI – Failures
/> “No!” Kari yelled. She fought back the urge to draw her blades, and instead turned and dropped to her knees beside the brys, who had crumpled to the ground. The guards fanned out around her and trained their weapons on the fallen demon, but Kari paid them little heed. She looked Makauric over and could see that his left leg was shattered by a direct hit, and the other bolt was lodged deep in his belly. Already his black blood was pooling around the wounds, and his eyes remained closed, his face set in a grimace of pure pain.
“Stand aside!” the captain of the guard yelled as his men moved to surround the creature.
Erik moved between Kari and the guards and held his hands up. “Stand down, we’re demonhunters,” he said.
“Makauric?” Kari asked, fighting to keep her voice steady. He didn’t respond, still didn’t open his eyes; he only let out a pained groan, and Kari whirled on the guards with a scowl. “You idiots! Did it occur to you he was walking with us for a reason?”
“Kari,” Erik said warningly.
“What business do you have bringing a demon to the gates of our city?” asked the guard captain, a middle-aged terra-rir male. “If you’re demonhunters, why is the creature still alive?”
Kari ignored the idiotic question, turned back to the brys, and put a hand to the wound in his belly. Makauric screamed in pain but Kari kept the pressure on it regardless. “Is there a temple to Kaelariel in the city?” she asked.
“You’re not bringing him into the city,” the captain said.
Kari rose to her feet and her hands dropped to her scimitar hilts, but Erik put his hand to her chest. “Kari, stop!” he said, his stare incredulous.
