by Radu Aldea
Nestor could’ve made the executions quicker, cleaner. The fact that he didn’t, that he put on this spectacle, spoke volumes about him. Her eyes stopped on a young woman. Unlike the rest of them who were truly frightened, she looked defiant even though she didn’t have long to live. She was among those who were going to climb on that podium next. Maya wanted to put an end to this, but first she had to find out what the hell was going on.
“I see the emissary from Cuttland has arrived,” Nestor spoke. “Robert likes them young, doesn’t he? Are you even an adult, girl? Why have you come? Are you here to see how we deal with troublemakers? Then you have arrived just in time.”
“My lord Nestor, perhaps we should talk in private.”
“Don’t be silly, girl! We all have the right to hear what you have to say.”
Damn! If she had gotten him alone she would’ve had a chance to sway him. With his clients around, he could not appear weak. Maya saw that some of them didn’t like what Nestor was doing, but he was the head of the house and they had no choice. Therburg had less than five thousand inhabitants. To kill such a large percentage of them without a good reason, which she suspected they didn’t have, was insanity and they knew it.
“I have come because of the one who calls himself priest of the Sun God.”
Nestor laughed. “Well, you have come a week too late. He’s been executed. These are his followers.” Nestor pointed to the smaller group. “Where is your Sun God now?” Kara had been right. They’re from Riffland. They’re nothing if not shortsighted. At least that’s what she remembered the Suttland senator had said. Or something to that effect.
Unsurprisingly, none of them said anything. Therburg was not on senatorial lands, but if they thought that made them safe, they were deadly wrong. And now they would pay with their lives. Even so, Maya had problems believing the priest had been so successful.
“They wanted to hear the priest preach. They attended at least one of his gatherings.”
Maya didn’t recognize the senator who whispered that to her. She had never met him, that was true about most of them, but she did know a lot about everyone, including descriptions. She was ninety percent sure this was Felix and he wasn’t pleased with Nestor. Apparently she wasn’t the only one who could smell the tension in the air.
“Your lord and master is right. This is not Suttland… yet.” Maya let the carefully thought pause speak for her. Sometimes how you said something or what you didn’t say was more important than what you actually did say. Maya had walked into this trap all by herself. There was nobody else to blame. And there were too many senators for anyone to think he or she could fight his way out of here alone. So she had to rely on her wit. What she had insinuated was that Suttland was ready to exert its hegemony over Riffland, a fear that lived deep inside Nestor, she was sure of that. It wasn’t outside the realm of possibility. Marcia and Reyna were probably considering annexing their western neighbor. It actually made a lot of sense. Conquer Riffland and make an alliance with Wessland, which would not be in the position to decline the offer, if the more powerful province managed to isolate it. With the resources of these provinces and its own, Suttland might be able to defeat an alliance of Cuttland and Essland.
“You haven’t heard the news yet? Suttland’s armies are in the Gap.”
Even though she had been in such haste, she still picked up on that rumor: more than ten thousand soldiers pouring on both sides of the Gap. “Something is moving on the Gap, but I’m not sure it’s Western Suttland. More likely the eastern part is behind this.”
“And your master has run away.” Nestor laughed and it was clear what he thought. That Robert Castus was a coward and he should’ve stayed and fought.
“Lord Robert did exactly what he was supposed to do. Severely outnumbered, the smartest choice was a tactical withdrawal, until the rest of Cuttland’s senators joined him. Only a fool jumps in a fight he cannot win now, but he would if he just waited.”
“If he waits too long, Essland will be lost. If they take over the Gap, Essland will fall and Cuttland will lose the war,” another senator told her.
She couldn’t disagree with that, but the Gap wouldn’t fall. Whatever Julia was planning, nobody had figured out yet. And Maya didn’t think it was taking over Ornulf’s Gap. “They sent too many soldiers there, practically all their battle-senators could throw at something. And they didn’t ask for assistance from the other two Suttland houses. Do you really think Western Suttland would leave its territory undefended, ready to be conquered?”
“Perhaps we should talk in private,” Nestor told her.
Finally, she got him exactly where she wanted. Now all she had to do was to be clever, which she was, and apply some more subtle persuasion. Nestor could be manipulated, you just had to make it look like that’s not what you were doing. When they were alone, Maya spoke.
“Suttland will come sooner or later. You know they will.”
“The same could be said about your master and the rest of Cuttland as well.”
“True, but Suttland is closer and more dangerous. Their power is more centralized.”
“What are you proposing?”
“I’m not proposing anything. The truth is, even if he wanted to help, there’s not much Lord Robert can do for you. Do you know why?” Maya waited a few moments, just in case Nestor wanted to answer. “Suttland is not your biggest problem. Your senators are. And most of them are friendly to the Arvillii and are likely to sit on the sides if Suttland attacks. Everything would be over before anyone can do anything about it.”
Let him stew on that. Truth was a weapon and when used properly, more effective than a lie. Over the years, Suttland senators had been careful to nurture amicable relationships with its neighbors, including Cuttland. They weren’t successful with the other superpower, but they were with Riffland and in some measure with Essland. That’s why Aaron and Dana were friendly to Julia. In time, these relationships evolved into economic relationships. If those were to end, Riffland would become a lot poorer. Technically senators only needed to feed and arm the soldiers they controlled. But the hidden truth, one most senators didn’t realize, was that the only province who could sustain a full military mobilization for a long time was Suttland.
Right now there were three types of armies in the provinces: the imperial armies, the armies of the human lords and the senatorial armies. The imperial army was more than a hundred thousand strong and the human lords had something between two thirds and three quarters of that. Senators had proven at Crimson Hill they could field about one hundred and fifty thousand soldiers and that was under a severe case of militarization, when every senator controlled as many soldiers as he possibly could. The numbers were not reliable and the Order had lost a great deal of their members by then, so Maya actually thought the senatorial army had been also a hundred thousand strong. Now, under the same conditions, they could maybe field a hundred and thirty thousand soldiers, as senators had bounced back.
The insidious problem was one that Cuttland’s senators didn’t comprehend or didn’t think important. In Suttland the Order operated at fifty percent of their potential, which meant they controlled half the humans they actually could, and they did so easily. The jump to seventy-five percent was not that much of a stretch. In the other provinces, except Essland, senators were at thirty percent of their potential and were having difficulties. Essland was slightly better than the rest at forty percent, but they also had problems.
The reason for the discrepancy had to do with the economy and the roots could be found in the way the provinces developed after the Great War. While Suttland valued exceptional senators and encouraged them to innovate regardless of their power the rest of the provinces didn’t. The southerners were the only ones to understand what an important resource the non-battle-senators could be. As they were more likely to innovate in any other domain except war, they were motivated to do so. You discovered something important, you were well compensated and your status w
as elevated.
The result of this policy was visible twenty years later. Suttland’s manufacturing equaled that of Cuttland and Essland together and maybe exceeded it. A lot more gold flowed into than out of Suttland. The imbalance was not so great because Suttland imported grain and oil, although it didn’t really need it. The agricultural productivity was higher than in the other provinces as well and the south could produce enough to feed the population. The stores were full and they were building more. Suttland had more than enough supplies for war.
There were other discrepancies. Suttland had the highest percentage of senatorial land of all the provinces. The result was that only in Suttland the senatorial army was larger than the imperial one. Theoretically, the imperial army in the provinces was under the command of a military governor and was tasked with keeping order among the humans, regardless if they lived on senatorial land or not. In reality, the imperial army only controlled the imperial lands. It didn’t even intervene on the lands of the human lords, let alone on those of senators.
Because so much of the territory was controlled by senators there was no need for a large imperial army, and in fact, the imperial army in Suttland was half that of Cuttland, it equaled that of Essland, and numbered about twenty thousand. The same proportion was true about the armies of the human lords. So, while Cuttland struggled to support a large army and order was an illusory dream in the province, Suttland, who was stronger economically, maintained order with half the army. It had to do with the mentality of its senators who did take an active role in enforcing the law, sometimes even on lands that did not belong to them. The senators of Riffland, for example, couldn’t be bothered usually.
In case of war, Suttland could triple its army, which they were already doing, Maya was sure of that, while Cuttland could not increase it by much. Cuttland senators’ response to the militarization was to take resources and soldiers from the humans. Long-term this strategy would lead to the collapse of social order. And no matter what other people thought, Maya knew that any war between Suttland and Cuttland would not end quickly.
While Suttland held the passes of the Serelians and a small force could thwart a much larger one there, the only avenue available to Cuttland for invading its southern neighbor was through Riffland. That’s how Suttland had been conquered during the wizard wars. Nestor might not know it, but war was coming to him. The other option was an invasion by sea, but Cuttland had limited access and didn’t possess a large navy.
Cuttland faced another problem, again not obvious to its senators. Their potential was a little below that of Suttland senators, the current thinking was they would be evenly matched if not for Julia and Kara. Maya was not so sure. Suttland could resort to butchery as a strategy. They could just send army after army north and grind Cuttland’s to dust and its senators could soon face a shortage of soldiers. You might be able to order a human to do something, but if he didn’t have the abilities he couldn’t. A senator might order a human to flap his arms and take flight, but that didn’t mean the human would succeed in his attempt. It was similarly true that a weak, underfed human without weapons and armor did not make a good soldier.
All this passed through Maya’s mind, but long-term strategy would not solve the current problem. It was not her time to speak. She had to wait for Nestor.
“I don’t hear a solution from you,” he told her.
“Because there isn’t an easy one! The priest of the Sun, he was a problem, too.”
“Not anymore!”
“You think so? I’m not so sure. Not if he was capable of resisting our power as he claimed. Then we are in a lot more trouble than we think.”
“He was immune. Probably something he inherited from one of his parents.”
“In sorceresses, this kind of immunity is not transmitted through blood.”
“Well, we’ll find out soon enough. We are going to track the members of his family. His immunity was different than that of the sorceresses, though.” Nestor explained to her that he could read the priest’s mind but could not order him to do anything.
“Strange! What can you tell me about him?”
Nestor didn’t know that much. The priest came from Cuttland to preach here because the Sun God told him in a dream. Nestor had sent word to senators who resided near the priest’s family to investigate. Maya was pretty sure how that would end. The family almost certainly wasn’t immune, but they would end up dead just the same.
“I’m a little worried that he was aware of his immunity,” Maya said. “What if someone, and I don’t mean a god, made him immune and this mysterious person has a plan?”
“I haven’t heard of anyone who could do that. And what kind of plan?”
“I don’t know. That’s my concern. I would like to investigate this.”
“And you need my permission to stay in the province?”
“I need a little more than that. I need you to release the prisoners. I mean all of them.”
“Why would I do that?” Maya explained her reasoning and hoped it was convincing enough. For the most part it was, but he had some objections. She must’ve been pretty persuasive because she combated all of them and Nestor agreed to her demands.
“Besides, not all your senators like what is happening here. This way you show them you value their opinion and maybe they won’t be so eager to help Suttland.”
“I have a better solution for that. I’ll just kill them.”
“There may come a time for that, but right now it’s not necessary. It’s like cutting an arm or a leg. Something you have to do only when they are gangrened. We’re not there yet!”
“And if I help you can I count on Robert’s support in case I need it?”
“Lord Robert knows how disastrous Riffland’s conquest by Suttland would be for him. He would not allow it. And if he considers that, I can convince him it’s a mistake. I can be pretty persuasive, you know!” And Maya gave him the friendliest smile she was capable of.
“I can see that. I guess we have an agreement.” She did get what she wanted and Robert would help Nestor if Suttland attacked him. That was if he was able to intervene, which Maya didn’t think he would. Of course, Nestor and his supporters could flee in case of an invasion from Suttland. Then, Robert would fulfill her promise.
When they returned to the square, Nestor, in an act of benevolence, set free the rest of the people sentenced to death. His demonstration was enough and would scare humans everywhere. Felix approached her.
“I don’t know how you did that.”
“I have my ways. I will stay a bit longer in Riffland, but I don’t have lodgings…”
“Say no more. You are welcome to stay with me and my daughter. Are you alone?”
“Yes, it’s just me! I don’t have any humans.”
Now that she had a place to stay Maya went to take care of something else.
“What’s your name?” Maya asked the defiant woman she had seen earlier.
“Do you expect me to thank you? You’re a senator and a murderer, like all of them.”
“I just asked what your name is. If you don’t want to answer, that’s fine. You should head to Suttland. I heard there is another priest in Hilderfort.”
“Maeve. My name is Maeve!”
Chapter thirty-one
The great temple of the Gray Gods dominated the area. The huge round building was an architectural marvel. No other temple, or building for that matter, came even close to it. The temples of the White Goddess were smaller and rectangular. Senators had built temples to their goddess before and after the Great War, but none was so magnificent.
An outer ring of marble columns encircled the main room that housed the abstract representations of the Gray Gods. Yet the truly exceptional achievement was the dome, which was truly without equal. The oculus at the top allowed the light to get in. Wizards, for reasons nobody really knew now, had decided to build the temple this way more than two hundred years ago, after the wizard wars had ended. On the outsid
e, you could admire the stunning frieze telling the mythological story of the birth of the wizards, when the first wizard learned how to commune with the Gray Gods. Inside you could worship the seven Gray Gods, identified with the four elements – earth, water, fire and air – the active principle, the passive principle and time. It wasn’t that surprising that the gods of the wizards were these abstract entities and represented as such, because they were tied to their power. You would expect sorceresses to have the same main gods, but they worshipped the Earth-Mother. The deities of the humans and senators were anthropomorphic. The White Goddess, who was always depicted as a woman ready for battle, with the shield in one hand and the spear in the other, was a good example of that. It wasn’t immediately obvious why senators had chosen her, but if you thought about it her martial spirit mirrored their own.
The location of the temple had also been chosen carefully. It was situated before the Cuttland opening of Ornulf’s Gap. From here you got the most exquisite look at the Aldurians and Serelians coming so close to each other and failing to meet. People who traveled from Cuttland to Essland passed through here and brought offerings to the temple.
Kara took a deep breath and admired the view a little longer. She had never been here before, but she heard stories about the great temple. The stories could not compare to the real thing. She was not here by accident, of course, or to admire the view. This temple, unlike many other temples of the Gray Gods, was not abandoned. People still brought offerings and the Guild used it as a sanctuary, fact little known to other senators.
The Guild was an organization of senators who didn’t want to be part of any house. They were mostly weak senators who didn’t like taking orders and obeying the more powerful ones. Kara could understand that, but being a member of the Guild was not without obligations. While less hierarchical than the families, the Guild nevertheless had a hierarchy, although the criteria for the differentiation was not power.
