Alutar: The Great Demon (54 page)

“No jewelry?” Princess Bahia replied with dismay. “What is the sense of owning such wondrous things if we cannot show them off?”

“A very good question,” Prince Samuel smiled. “According to law, all of your jewelry is owned by the kingdom. Perhaps we should talk about selling some of it to aid in the rebirth of Valdo. There is going to be a tremendous need for gold in the coming days.”

“You wouldn’t,” Princess Anadale retorted with fear still etched in her eyes.

“Why wouldn’t I?” asked the prince. “I doubt that you have noticed the poor of our city, sister, but I have. While you stand here with a fortune on each of your fingers, there are people in this city trying to find grubs to eat. Can your desire to impress people really be greater than your sense of duty to care for our citizens? If so then you have remained inside these walls for far too long. Jewels will never impress the people you seek to impress in any event. You merely come across as fake and as greedy as Mother did. The only thing that people will notice in a good light is how well the kingdom is ruled.” The prince turned to the Rangers and said, “Luke, I want a couple of your men to escort my sisters into the slums today. I want them to see what my mother’s rule has done to the people of Valdo. Make sure that they are back in time for the coronation.”

* * * *

Karl Gree and Theos sat on a bench on the porch of Sidney’s estate outside the city of Ur.

“The hour is up,” Theos remarked. “Are we to march off to death?”

Karl raised an eyebrow at the mage. “You treat this as if it is a joke,” he replied. “It is not a joke to me, Theos. I lost my first love, and now I am losing my second. I will not go through that heartache again. For years I have tortured myself for not being there to save Lyda when she needed me. It has been an open wound festering within me. Not a day has passed when I did not wish it had been me who was attacked by the elves that day instead of her. Now Althea is inside the Old Keep, either dead or soon to be, and you are asking me to sit here and do nothing about it. I cannot do that. I will not do that.”

Theos sighed and nodded. “At one time you asked me to think about saving the lives of Tyronian patriots. You tasked me to better our plans to save the life of a single man each day. Your words were wise, Karl Gree. I concentrated hard on fulfilling your wish, and it helped ease the burning need for action that dwelt within me. Think of how many patriots you will be consigning to death by your own actions. When you are discovered inside the keep, and you will be discovered, King Mectin will increase the effectiveness of his defenses. Hundreds of patriots will pay the price for your inability to handle your emotions. Is that truly what you want? Would Althea want you to do that?”

Karl bent his head down, his fists pressed against his brow and his eyes staring at his boots. He rocked back and forth gently and sighed audibly.

“No and no,” Karl finally answered, “but I cannot help myself, Theos. This is worse than Lyda. Lyda was unfortunate that the elves chose to attack our city, but Althea is in danger because I put her there. If I had not chased her away, she would not have thought of throwing her life away. I know that what I am planning is not in the best interests of the patriots, but I am no longer of any use to them. I can not keep my mind clear enough to plan the assault. My thoughts are centered solely on Althea and nothing I do changes that.”

Theos sighed and nodded. “Then we shall march off to war,” he said. “At least we will take a fair number of them with us.”

Karl sat up and stared at the red-headed mage. “There is no reason for you to die, Theos,” Karl said sincerely. “Althea is my problem, and it will be my life pledged to save her. You are needed to help with the assault.”

“I made a bargain with you, Karl,” Theos replied. “I keep my bargains.”

“That is nonsense,” retorted Karl. “I will not hold you to your bargain. Why should you die alongside me when the foolishness is mine alone?”

“Because you are a man worth dying for,” smiled Theos. “Besides, I owe you for saving my life.”

“You owe me nothing,” Karl declared. “Besides, I am not planning a frontal assault. I plan to sneak into the keep and sneak out. If you want to help me do that, I would appreciate the help, but I will not take you along with me.”

Theos looked at the Knight of Alcea with surprise. “How are you planning to sneak in?”

“I plan to scale the wall of the tower after dark,” answered Karl. “Perhaps you can supply some type of diversion for me.”

“I would consider it an honor,” stated Theos.

* * * *

It was near high sun when General Marashef and General Forshire arrived outside the Old Keep in Ur.

“Have your men make camp here temporarily,” suggested General Marashef. “Accommodations are tight in Ur, but I am sure that we can open up some space for a more permanent camp by tomorrow.”

“Good enough,” replied Clint. “I suppose I should pay my respects to King Mectin. Will you join me?”

“I should,” answered General Marashef. “I suggest that you mention your reason for being here as strictly for supporting my efforts to protect the kingdom. We do not want Mectin getting nervous about you being here.”

“I agree,” Clint responded. “Hopefully that is all it will turn out to be. I really want to get back to Despair.”

As the two generals headed into the keep, a rider raced towards them. They turned to see what the urgent message might be.

“We are under attack,” the rider reported. “An unidentified army has attacked our men watching the Sebastian Pass. They are now heading north into Tyronia.”

“An unidentified army?” frowned General Marashef. “Explain.”

“They wear uniforms,” replied the messenger, “but one that no one is familiar with. They are all in black.”

“Rebels?” frowned General Marashef.

“I think not,” replied General Forshire. “There were reports of Alcean Rangers being involved in the overthrow of Karamin and Vinafor. They wore uniforms of all black. If it is the Alcean Rangers, I would suggest responding in force, General. The Rangers are not an army to be underestimated.”

“How many of them are there?” General Marashef asked the messenger.

“At least one thousand,” answered the messenger. “I cannot be sure because I might have only been seeing the vanguard.”

“Only one thousand?” frowned General Marashef. “I can’t imagine such a small army advancing on Ur. There must be more behind it.”

General Marashef signaled for Colonel Timbo to join him. The colonel hurried over.

“We have an army marching up from Sebastian Pass,” General Marashef said to the colonel. “I want pigeons sent to Despair and Camp Destiny. Inform Despair of the situation. Notify them that we suspect the army is led by Alcean Rangers and that the size of the army has not been determined. Also let them know that I am requesting the 1
^st
Corps to start heading in this direction in case the size of the army is large. Then send the same message to General Tauman and request that he start the 1
^st
Corps on the road to Ur. If the army is small, I will crush it and send word to him so that he can return to his camp. If it is large, we will trap the enemy between our two forces.”

“The 1
^st
Corps will not arrive in time to make a difference,” stated General Forshire. “They are too far away. They would only be effective if your army has already been defeated, and King Mectin is barricaded in the Old Keep.” Clint glanced up at the walls of the Old Keep and sighed. “Perhaps the emperor is wiser than all of us to foresee this possibility. It is a good thing the A Corps is here. We can hold the city of Ur while you engage the enemy.”

General Marashef scratched his chin and eventually nodded. “That will allow me to send the full force of the 32
^nd
Corps against the enemy,” he pondered aloud, “but I am wary of leaving just the A Corps to protect the city. No offense, Forshire, but your men are not the caliber required to defend Ur by themselves.”

“My men are handy with their bows, General,” Clint replied. “If the A Corps were to man the walls of the Old Keep, no uprising could dislodge them. While that would not defend the entire city, that hardly matters. We would defend the Old Keep until your army returns to take control of the city again.” General Marashef was not convinced, and Clint continued, “Or you could send half of your men to battle an army of indeterminate size, but you would risk losing the battle if the enemy army is larger than you think.”

“That is not acceptable,” scowled General Marashef. “Perhaps I should wait until the Alceans get closer to the city before I attack them.”

“Then you risk them getting around you,” warned Clint. “I know the terrain of Tyronia well, Marashef. The further south you attack them, the better your chances of victory. If they get close to the city, there are multiple paths for their army to take to get to Ur. That means that you have to spread your army out more, increasing the risk of a breakthrough.”

“Good point,” agreed General Marashef. “Very well, Forshire. We will do this your way. Timbo, send only the pigeon to Despair and just tell them that we are under attack by Alcean Rangers. We will update them as the situation changes. Once the bird is dispatched, order the men to make ready for deployment. I will be with King Mectin if you need me.”

General Marashef turned to enter the Old Keep and General Forshire joined him. Together they entered the fortress and made their way to King Mectin’s office. The king was not in his office and a runner was dispatched to find him. The two generals waited impatiently.

“Forshire?” King Mectin asked with surprise when he entered the room. “What are you doing back here in Ur?”

General Forshire bowed to the king and smiled as he rose. “Emperor Jaar thought you could use some help defending the Old Keep,” he said.

The king raised an eyebrow at the words, but General Marashef was impatient to state the news.

“Tyronia is under attack,” General Marashef stated. “We just got word that Alcean Rangers have attacked our forces at Sebastian Pass. They are currently marching northward towards the city. I am taking the 32
^nd
Corps southward to defeat them. General Forshire’s A Corps will be moving into the keep to man the walls until I return.”

“Into the keep?” the king asked warily. “I do not think so. You know my prohibition about foreign troops in the Old Keep. It is forbidden.”

“I am not foreign to Tyronia,” frowned Clint.

“Not you, Forshire,” replied the king. “You are welcome here, but your men are foreigners. They may camp outside the walls.”

“I don’t have time for this, Mectin,” scowled General Marashef. “I am taking the entire 32
^nd
Corps out to battle the enemy. That leaves only the A Corps to protect you. You should be thankful that the emperor sent them.”

“I have my own men,” interrupted the king. “I can hold this castle against an army with just them. Let the A Corps police the city.”

“With five hundred men?” scoffed General Marashef. “You are deluded. The A Corps may be a bunch of misfits, but there are two thousand of them, and they can handle their bows well enough. Let them join your men on the walls, and I will feel confident that you will still be alive when I return.”

“This castle is mine, Marashef,” the king replied defiantly. “You may exercise your authority outside these walls, but my word is law inside them.”

“I see no problem,” interjected General Forshire. “The Old Keep is rather defendable, and King Mectin feels safe with his men. I will have my men man the city walls until you return.”

“There are rebels within the city,” complained General Marashef. “Manning the walls will not aid in the defense of this castle.”

“If things begin to heat up,” shrugged General Forshire, “I will speak to King Mectin again about this matter, but I see no need to meddle in the king’s affairs until that time.”

General Marashef sighed in disagreement, but he let the matter drop. “I need to see to my army. I want to get started southward while we still have daylight.”

General Marashef excused himself, leaving General Forshire and King Mectin alone.

“I am surprised, Forshire,” said the king. “I thought you would have fought harder to get your men inside the castle.”

“Why?” shrugged Clint. “If you are happy with your protection, why should I disagree with you?”

“To take over Tyronia,” retorted King Mectin. “Isn’t that really why you are here?”

“Hardly,” chuckled Clint. “I guess you haven’t heard about my promotion. I am now the Imperial General of the Federation, the first ever to hold the position. I report directly to Emperor Jaar. Why in the world would I want to lower myself to become the King of Tyronia?”

The king looked as if he had been slapped, and Clint wondered he had been a little too demeaning. He reached into his pouch and handed the proclamation to the king. King Mectin read the document, and he smiled broadly.

“I suppose I should congratulate you,” said the king. “How did you manage such a feat?”

Clint smiled at the king. “The emperor has taken a liking to me,” he said. “It helps that I caught Grand General Kyrga in an act of defiance against the emperor. Emperor Jaar may not care what his kings do, but he demands absolute loyalty from his generals. Kyrga forgot that. He is lucky to still hold his position.”

“You always did know how to play the game,” chuckled the king. “So if you are not here to seize control, why are you here?”

“General Marashef just told you,” answered Clint. “Karamin and Vinafor have fallen to the Alceans. It was thought that they would attack Tyronia next. The A Corps was the closest army to Tyronia, so we were sent to buttress the forces here. Unfortunately, I only have two thousand men with me. We couldn’t even hold the city walls for an hour if a determined enemy sought entry. That is why Marashef wanted my men inside. With twenty-five-hundred men, this keep would be practically invincible.”

“Even if they were misfits?” the king asked with a wry smile.

Clint grinned. “I recruited them out of the prisons,” he said, “but they are trained well enough with bows to man the walls. The good thing about them is that no one will care if they die while they are defending you. I can easily replace them. The prisons are full of men.”