“Speaker,” said Chadar, “I beg your and the council’s pardon, but I’d like to invoke article eighteen of our country’s charter.”
“What are you doing?” I hissed to Myra.
“Protecting you,” she said quickly before drifting away to stand on the opposite side of our group so that I could not press her more.
“A private audience?” asked the Speaker. He frowned. “That is a strange request to make now, after the council has already made a decision.”
“I know Speaker. But I think a private audience with you and some senior members of the council would be beneficial to everyone,” said Chadar.
The Speaker regarded the council, looking for an obvious objection, but he got none. “Very well.”
He dismissed all but four members of the council. Those who remained moved to seat themselves in the lowest row. Chadar personally thanked each person who left as if smoothing over any possible slight for seeking a private meeting. I tried to make my way over to Myra as Chadar pulled her aside and the two conversed quickly. However, Zadok stepped into my path.
I scowled down at him. “What are you two—?”
“So what is it that you wish to address?” asked the Speaker as the doors closed.
I clenched my jaw in frustration at my son. “You did that on purpose.”
He shrugged. “Sorry, Pa.”
The apology did nothing to ease my aggravation.
Chadar cleared his throat as he stepped away from my daughter. “Speaker, we believe you’re making several huge mistakes.”
“And what mistake is that?”
“Mistakes,” he clarified while giving Myra a look.
She gave him a slight nod, and he pressed on, “The council is focused on my friend’s war experience, and in doing so, I believe overlooked his other useful experiences. You said many of the northern farms are untended. What plans are in place for when our food stores run low?”
“We still have farms being worked in the south.”
“They still produce mostly root vegetables, correct? No wheat?”
“Yes,” he answered, dragging the word out as though he did not follow their point yet.
Chadar stood straighter as if the Speaker’s response was what he had hoped for. “Root vegetables don’t store as easily, or for as long as wheat, corn, and other northern crops.” He spoke louder, confidence growing. Myra also looked pleased with herself. “Tyrus said he grew up the son of a farmer and was one himself before being called to war. He’s even mentioned that he’s familiar with the very wheat our people perfected. Why not have him re-establish one of our northern towns and tend to some of those abandoned fields? What good is it to add more bodies to an army that will likely run out of food? Or win a war and have us starve afterward?”
I realized I had been so caught up in the prospect of another war that I had too easily resigned myself to that fate.
Luckily, Myra and Chadar were thinking clearly.
The council members exchanged curious looks.
The Speaker noted their reaction, “You make a good point, but you said there were mistakes. What else?”
“I think that the immediate threat in the northeast has left us vulnerable to a war on two fronts.”
“He’s right,” I jumped in. “Who defends your northwest lands?”
“No one. Our enemies are in the northeast,” said the Speaker.
“I worry that Byzan might see your vulnerability and look to grab a piece of the spoils while your army is busy fighting against three nations already. Even remnants of the Geneshan Empire might reorganize and strike south. Look at it this way, I just led a thousand people right up to Batna’s door. What’s to stop someone with aggressive intentions from doing the same?”
The four council members shifted nervously in their seats, but calmed when the Speaker stated, “An army would never get inside our city.”
I thought of the city’s defenses.
“You’re probably right. However, you would find it difficult to resupply the city. And to restate Chadar’s point, where would you get supplies if you’re being attacked on multiple fronts with no trade partners to make up for a lack of crops. Can Batna really endure a siege right now?”
The Speaker countered in frustration, “And could a thousand people, many women and children, really protect our borders?”
He made a good point. It would make no sense to claim that we could guarantee safety.
“It would depend on the size of the enemy and the defenses we could erect beforehand. Our thousand would be better than nothing as they are better trained than your average citizen. We would be strengthened further if any local people also found refuge with us. We’d at least slow an enemy down enough to get word back to you so that the city could better prepare for a siege.”
Chadar exchanged another glance at Myra. “Speaker, I’d like to add that if the council allows our group to settle in the north, it would provide me and my wife an advantage for renewing trade routes with Byzan, and it could even accomplish our original mission of establishing trade with the southern region of the Geneshan Empire. The sooner we extend friendship and offer favorable trade terms to our neighbors, the sooner we dampen their ambitious thoughts and possibly gain an ally. If all goes well, we could have several strong outposts in the northwest, renewed trade routes, and the beginnings of a better food supply. We might even be able to hire out mercenaries if our military ranks still need bolstering.”
Not a bone in my body felt that everything would go as optimistically as Chadar presented it to the council. Yet, I conceded that pessimism was never a trait that should shine in negotiations.
Also, if I ever did anything continually right in my life, it was surrounding myself with men and women who not only thought independently and clearly, but differently than myself.
The Speaker approached the four council members. I could see we had given them something to ponder. After a whispered discussion among the five of them, the Speaker turned back to us. My stomach dropped at the unconvinced look he wore. I had seen it too often in others. He might concede that we had raised valid points, but they would not be moved.
He said, “We don’t think it so simple. You ask what good is it to win a war if we can’t feed our people. Well, what good is it to have food if we have no nation left to feed? We must strengthen our army today, not hope that we can hold out long enough to do so months from now with the chance you could convince the leaders in Byzan to come to our aid.”
I cleared my throat, grasping at anything that might change their mind. “I’d be willing to look at your military reports and offer advice. I know it isn’t the front lines of battle, but an outsider’s perspective could be important. And I will also speak to the able bodied men at my camp and explain the current situation. Some may wish to volunteer on their own.”
I didn’t think the number of volunteers would be high, but I knew that several men had hinted at their preference to life in the military.
The Speaker rubbed his chin again as if making a show of considering my comment. I doubted my additional proposal was enough to sway his opinion, yet I had nothing left to offer other than myself.
Molak-be-damned. The council would stick to their original offer, and I’d be forced into war.
“I’ll go in his place,” said Ava behind me.
“No,” I whispered as she walked past without acknowledging me. She had to have known I wouldn’t want this.
The Speaker smiled. “I appreciate your willingness, but you are one person and a woman.”
“A woman who could defeat all five of you with a sword,” she snapped. “More importantly, my brother didn’t reveal to you what I can offer.”
She held out her hand. A ball of fire took shape instantly. She raised her arm overhead, allowing the ball to grow larger and hotter. It floated upward,
until it hovered near the ceiling. She had everyone’s attention. No one could look away from the sphere of orange and yellow flame.
She had shown several times as we traveled over the last few months just how much stronger her control over sorcery had become. It was more apparent now.
“Ava, stop it,” I said.
She ignored me. “This is a small example of what I can do. The new deal is this—my brother reestablishes and defends one of your abandoned towns in the north. He will begin farming the land, and Chadar will work to secure peace and trade in the northwest. Tyrus and I both will provide our opinions on your current strategy. Finally, we will ask for volunteers from our group. If you agree to these terms, I will fight for the Southern Kingdoms until your borders are safe from Bozrath, Kartan, and Noval. If you decline, we leave immediately.”
The fire overhead dissipated. The council members breathed a collective sigh. Then the Speaker walked over to begin another low, heated discussion.
“Gods-be-damned, Ava,” I said to her in a whisper as I pulled her aside. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Yes, I did,” she whispered back with a solemn expression.
She approached the council. “I fail to see why this is such a difficult choice. You already said that Noval is using sorcery you’ve never seen before, and given what you said about your sorcerers earlier, I imagine you lost a great number of them in the plague as well, right?”
The four councilors exchanged thoughtful glances with each other. They spoke much more calmly than before.
The Speaker looked up shortly afterward and announced. “The council accepts those terms.”
* * *
Everything in me had wanted to berate my sister, but I refrained. Arguing in front of an audience would do no good. And the decision had already been made.
However, as soon as we found a moment of privacy outside the hexagonal building, I let loose. “What was all that about back there?” I snapped.
She glanced up at the night sky. “I’d say that was success.”
We had been inside for hours, and the darkness felt disorienting at first. I found my bearings at the thought of Ava going off to war without me. “Why did you volunteer? The council hadn’t even declined our second offer.”
“You saw their faces. We both know they were going to turn it down.” She paused. “Don’t worry. I’m more powerful than ever. I’ll be fine.” She shrugged. “Maybe this is the best way to put all this new control to use.”
“I can think of much safer ways to take advantage of your new control than entering another Molak-be-damned war. In fact, we should explain how your power could help cultivate the land, rebuild, provide better protection for our settlement, and—”
“You know they’ll say no now. You’ll just need to wait until I return before I offer that kind of help.”
If you return, I thought to myself.
“Gods Ava, haven’t you had enough war? Why would you beg for more?”
That set her off. “Of course I’ve had enough! And so have you.” She glanced down. “I saw you hide your shaking hand in there. How long has that been going on?”
Despite the accusation, the question was not as bad as it could have been. She only knew of the latest tremor I had suffered. Not the ones before.
“Not long.”
Her voice dripped with sarcasm. “Yeah, I bet. Going off to another war is going to help that? I know you, Big Brother. You were going to choose war rather than find a different country to start over in, right? Regardless of what promotion they had planned to give you, it wouldn’t be long before you would find your way into the deepest part of the fighting. It isn’t like you to hang back.”
“I don’t like what you’re implying.”
“I don’t care. We’ve both seen people freeze up in battle because of what you’re showing signs of. That could get not only you killed, but also those around you. No way you could live with yourself after something like that.”
She was right. That would destroy me. But I wasn’t ready to give in either. “That wouldn’t happen.”
“You don’t know that. But let’s say it doesn’t and you manage to survive another war. How much worse are you going to be because of it? Would you be you at all? Or just a shell? How would that affect your relationship with Myra and Zadok?”
That hit close to fears I harbored. So close that I couldn’t talk about it. “So you’re saying I can’t cut it? That my little sister has to step in and see things through because I no longer can.”
“No, you idiot. I’m saying you’ve risked your life more than enough times for me, your family, your friends, and those under your command. You always give, and rarely do you take. I want you to take now. Take time to learn how to live in peace, to enjoy the company of your family, to truly come to terms with Lasha’s death.” She paused as my chest tightened at my wife’s name. “Maybe even settle down with Damaris.”
“Ava, I—”
“Yeah, I know. We’ve talked about it before. Just . . .” she paused again. “I’m doing this so you don’t have to. End of story.”
I looked down at my feet. Emotions overwhelmed me. I felt the honesty and love in her words. Those touched me deep. I also couldn’t stop the anger over knowing that she was probably right about everything, including my mind’s stability. Her words made me confront what I didn’t want to acknowledge.
She must have sensed the conflict within me because she surprised me with a warm embrace. That made it worse. Ava wasn’t the sort of person who showed such blatant signs of affection. That spoke volumes of her worry for me. Still, I could not deny the comfort I got from that hug. I knew our time together was limited.
Gods, my little sister was going off to war without me.
CHAPTER 5
Given my ignorance of Southern Kingdom geography, I trusted Chadar to work with the council to select an appropriate town to resettle. He assured me that Kasala had good farmland, a strong water supply, and was large enough to not only accommodate our current size, but also provide plenty of room for growth. I wanted to have that information before I addressed our people waiting outside of the city.
Emotions ran the gamut from anger to confusion to reservation when I delivered the news. I was relieved that even those who were displeased with the council’s conditions came around to finding solace in the reality of finally settling down.
To distract them from their concerns, I tried to provide them with what I knew about our future home. “Kasala is about three days away. The town mainly produced livestock. At one point, two thousand people lived there. It was one of the last cities of that size to be abandoned which is partially why we agreed to settle there. We figured it would need the least amount of work. However, we won’t know for sure until we get there.”
“Is there a wall?” someone shouted.
“No. None of the Southern Kingdom towns have a wall around them.”
“What about protection?” came a second question.
Chadar’s wife, Galya, stepped into the conversation. “Remember, our reputation alone deterred many from even considering an attack.”
Another shouted, “That reputation doesn’t hold the same weight as it once did!”
“No, sadly it does not,” said Galya.
“Why choose Kasala to settle then if the council wants us to focus on farming?” came another question.
I answered, “Mainly because the size and location meet the criteria I hoped for in regards to farming.”
That bit of information seemed to pique the interest of the worried group. Hopefully, the more positive information I provided, the less concern they would carry.
“There’s a small river that runs along the western border that can offer some protection, and provide us with a reliable source of water in addition to the two wells in town. I’m not sure how
the town used that river before, but I’m hoping we might be able to set up an irrigation system for the fields if there isn’t one already in place.”
I looked to Galya for confirmation.
She shrugged. “I don’t believe there was anything like that before. When we passed through Kasala previously, we never studied such things.”
After nearly half an hour of more questions, I managed to steer the conversation to the other terms of our agreement with the council.
Nearly eighty men volunteered to join the Southern Kingdom army. All were single. All were veterans. Not just good soldiers, but good men. Several officers like Sergeant Margo stood out, men who I thought would help Ava through whatever the future held. Her gasp at the Speaker’s mention of necromancy hadn’t left me.
Regarding those volunteers, some people were apparently just more comfortable with the known certainties of war than the unknown futures of peace. The only thing that kept that fear manageable for me when I returned to Denu Creek was getting home to my family.
This time, peace was no longer the only thing I feared. Living under any condition was what scared me. I didn’t know when my body or mind might betray me. Both had been scarred heavily. That was a difficult thing to admit to myself let alone to anyone else.
CHAPTER 6
Outside of Batna, Ava pulled Damaris and Ira aside while Tyrus spoke to the Turine volunteers who would join the Southern Kingdom army. She needed to be quick. The council expected them back soon to begin going through military reports.
“You don’t look so good,” said Damaris as they walked side-by-side.
“Worse than usual, that’s for sure,” said Ira, unable to let a dig go by.
She gave him a sour look, but let it pass. She had more important things to address, and picking at Ira would only derail her thoughts. “Not right now. I’ve got a lot on my mind.”
“I bet,” he said. “I’m surprised Tyrus agreed to you going off to war.”
“It wasn’t his choice to make.”
Forever Soldiers: The Tyrus Chronicle - Book Four Page 3
