King Lenard Asput

  The King of the Falmoren peninsula strode into the war room, frustration oozing from his pores. General Rhines and the King's Uncle Norris Falmore were both sitting at the conference table discussing something.

  "What is going on, General Rhines? First, we find Turabe forces in Hitub. Now I hear we are being attacked on two fronts!"

  "Precisely, my lord," the general said in an unflappable tone.

  “What happened to our alliance? We were to be the hammer and they the anvil."

  "Apparently, they decided on another option."

  "Another option?" Leonard fumed. "This isn't picking out an outfit for a party. This is war. I need everything you know so far."

  "We were a week away from the capital when our scouts reported sightings of what looked like Turabe ritual fires. Soon after, one group was ambushed by what the survivors believed was a group of Turabe scouts," the general said.

  "Yes, yes, I heard all that," The king said, waving his hand.

  "Well, the latest report confirms it, Turabe forces are attacking our troops, and we just received another message that a second army is spilling out of the Vassal Kingdom of Nile."

  "How did the Turabe forces get into Nile in the first place?"

  "I am guessing they reached an agreement with the leaders of Nile and have been moving through a mountain pass we were not aware of," said Rhines

  "Nile belongs to us, why were we not aware of this pass?" Norris, the king's uncle, said.

  "They either hid it from us or it was recently discovered," Rhines explained.

  "Nile has been quiet for over fifty years. So do we have a full-on rebellion from one of our vassals, or is this just some militant group?" The king asked.

  "It is inconclusive just yet, but I went to get the latest report from our envoy. The scribes said they hadn't received one this month. We have a few people in Turabe that we are also waiting on. This sometimes happens, but the timing makes it seem less like a coincidence, as well as the number of missing reports. I had them send a pigeon to all our envoys to report the goings on in the kingdoms," said the general.

  "And our ambassador to Turabe?"

  "Reviewing his last several letters, he is either being forced to report in a manner that gives us no indication of their treachery, or he has joined them. Most likely, they have bought him off. This is my opinion, but I cannot verify it yet."

  The king paced in agitation. "So now what? What is our military doing?"

  "Our forces are retreating to our strongholds. We may lose some supply trains, but it is an organized retreat, not a rout." General Rhines said.

  "How much of our progress in Hitub will we lose?" the king asked nervously.

  "About a third."

  The king's shoulders slumped. "It is over half of what I was able to accomplish during my reign."

  "My true concern is Nile. If they are truly rebelling, we do not have enough men to defend on both fronts." Norris's face was stoic as he spoke, but he, too, felt the noose tightening.

  "Call in all your advisors. We need a plan. I refuse to lose any more land! I will not go down in history as a failed king."

  "As you command," the two men said in unity.

  *****

  It was a tenday later before a new council was formed. The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

  Outwardly, the king was calm. Straight-backed, his gaze was icy as he looked over the men sitting at the table. The inner turmoil caused by the shock of Turabe's betrayal had cooled, and he was now ready to hear these men's proposals.

  "I do not need to tell you the severity of our situation; you have all been briefed beforehand, but to make sure that we are all familiar with the details, I will have Lord Rhine explain the situation."

  The general stood to face the men sitting around the table. "What we have uncovered so far is that this is in response to the use of our new weapon, the crossbow, and the invention of our new, more mobile cavalry unit. With it, we have made great strides in the conquest of Hitub land."

  "Are you saying that the Turabe are afraid we will push into their territory now that we have a superior weapon? Did the invention of these things make things even worse rather than better?"

  Sometimes, the General wondered how some idiots got their positions. "On the contrary. As you should have read in the report, the army that had amassed on the Nile was quite large. We can therefore assume that they had been building it up in secret and were planning on betrayal for a while now. They were probably going to wait until we were at our weakest or had overextended ourselves by sieging Sherik before stabbing us in the back. Our new advantage caused them to move early."

  "If they are such an advantage, then why are we retreating?"

  Idiot!

  "The cause of retreat is due to the size difference in the armies. We are retreating back to our most fortified positions. The crossbow works best in siege scenarios, so we will let them break their teeth against our defenses before we make a counterattack."

  “How is the supply situation for the army?” the king asked, hoping there would be at least some good news.

  "On that account, we should do well" chimed in a council member. Most of the locations we are retreating to have been where we store the food in preparation for delivery to the front line.”

  “This is a good start, and I think we will be able to handle the Turabe. Once their blood has cooled a bit and they tire of wasting their men fruitlessly attacking our walls, we can counter. What we really need to discuss is the vassal kingdoms. Niles has now officially declared its independence. There have been assassinations and uprisings in Yecter and Blizmur, but the government is still under our control,” the king cut in, trying to show he was on top of things.

  “Have there been any changes in the Dremlek Kingdom?” one man asked. “The last report only said minor unrest."

  "This is true, but the unrest is no more than to be expected, and most of it is between them and Yecter. They are trying to take advantage of the chaos and seize land from one another." General Rhines said. "The King's road is still open, and no rebellions are currently taking place."

  "Will it last?"

  "Even if it doesn't, rebellions in Dremlek will be easy to put down."

  "Have there been any incursions into Githum from the vassals?" A member further down the table said in a high-pitched, nervous tone.

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  "No, but all new soldiers and conscripts will be positioned along the border, and if possible, work with loyalists in the kingdoms to restore order. Githum and Kimton will cover Blizmer, while Falmore and Herron will cover Yecter. With the forces we already have there and the new ones coming there, there should be no issues." Rhines said confidently.

  His words did not reassure the gathered men. They were all too familiar with war, and it never went as simply as it seemed. Turabe was no weak force. They were an Empire with a large military. If it weren't for their constant conflict with their neighbors to the south, they could easily muster a third more people than Falmoren.

  Peter Vaspar

  Peter sat upon a chair in the audience chamber. His outfit was immaculate, with his deep crimson scarf sitting perfectly over his left breast. His hair was done in the latest fashion, and his posture was as straight as a rod. His freshly manicured and polished fingers drummed against his chair as the daily reports kept coming in. The income from Vaspar and the surrounding regions had increased slightly, and he was looking forward to the party that he would be hosting this evening.

  Unfortunately, the meetings never seemed to end, and the latest news was putting him in a bad mood.

  "It appears that the unrest is increasing despite the guards' assurance that they are doing everything they can to stop it," Casper said formally. "I am guessing there is an outside influence pushing for dissent, my lord."

  Peter slammed his fist down on the throne. Nobody twitched so much as a muscle. They were used to Peter's reaction to bad news, and it was always the same.

  "It is that thief. I am sure of it. We must gather our troops and march on Malcomp. He will support us as we retake my land from my brother and that fake count."

  "Might I recommend caution in that action. Even if Malcomp agrees with us, he has taken an oath of vassalage. He is a man of honor, and I doubt he would be willing to break it. Also, Count Bicman has the favor of the king. There will be consequences for the attack."

  "Fine, we will be more subtle."

  "The king has already sent a Messenger concerning your father's murder. Though he found no evidence of your involvement, I cannot think that he was entirely convinced. If the count were to die suddenly, I think the investigation would be even more thorough."

  "Are you accusing me of murdering my father!" Peter shouted.

  Casper kept his face completely neutral as he said, "Not at all, my lord. It is the public we have to worry about, because your enemies will use this as an excuse to slander you. I also doubt Count Bicman has the resources to make such a large-scale campaign to smear your name within Vaspar."

  "Possible," Peter said thoughtfully, "anyone who ever met him would realize he lacks sense. However, I believe we can end all these problems by getting rid of him. My people will see my power and realize that they must submit. We will wait for now."

  Casper was not looking forward to the next topic, as he knew it would set the count off again. "We have received letters from both the duke and the king. There have been complaints that our roads are not safe. They demand you fulfill your obligations and keep all the King's Roads passable, and work to eliminate any bandit threats in your county."

  "That is ridiculous. The only issue we are having is along the northern road, and it is probably bandits from that fake county coming across the border and raiding people. It may even be a ploy by Bicman to discredit us. I will send him a letter telling him to take care of his own problem."

  Casper was finally fed up with this behavior. There was only so much the king and duke would allow before the county was taken from the House of Vaspar. A house that had headed this city for almost as long as the House of Kimton had held the duchy.

  "My lord, you and I both know these men are not from North Cove. Also, the complaint did not come from a mere peasant. It came from the cousin of Baron Eval. He said he was harassed at the ports when they found out he was going to North Cove and again on the road. We need to address this issue before the duke sends his own men to handle the problem. The fines we will face will be a drain on our treasury."

  Peter's face turned a blotchy red. If there was one thing he hated, it was unnecessary expenses. The duke's unreasonable fines would be a burden on his lifestyle. He wished the rebels, whoever they were, would get rid of the duke. He was completely irrational, just like his father. If he would just keep his nose out of other people's business, the duchy would run much more smoothly. Now he would have to send a message to end the harassment of the people traveling to that thief's land. He would also have to tell the harbor master not to be so overt.

  "Very well, gather one hundred men and see if they can find any issues with the road. Also, send a letter to the king and the duke, letting them know that the issue is being resolved."

  Casper nodded. "As you wish, my lord. There is one more matter I want to discuss. I recommend establishing our own publishing house. We lost a large amount of tax revenue when the other one burnt down."

  Peter's anger flared again, "Why would I create anything that reminds the people of that man. Besides, I am sure that books were just a fad. People will soon forget about books."

  Casper looked frustrated but Peter didn’t care.

  "My lord, we both know it was probably Lord Bicman who burnt down his own shop so that you would not receive the benefits. We don't have paper, but if we create our own books using parchment, we will make much more than we did with Bicman's books, and we will have an easier time selling them."

  This brought a smile to Peter's face. Steal the thief’s business, it was a perfect opportunity to get back at Bicman for all the trouble he was causing.

  Frederick Vaspar

  Fredrick was not a fan of the damp weather of Cove Town. The road along the mountain had been cool, but at least it was dry. As he looked around, though, he couldn't help but be impressed. The long houses Amos had made looked nice. Several other buildings were either under construction or had their foundations completed.

  As he wandered around, he noticed that the boundaries were made of completely smooth slabs of stone. It didn’t make sense. The size of the stones required to build such a foundation would have been unmovable, let alone carve. The surface was flawless, without a single chip or tool mark. It was an impossibility. The idea of it being some sort of mortar or cement was ridiculous, and Fredrick knew Amos was not that stupid.

  He couldn’t believe how active everyone was. He had seen an example of Amos’s wheelbarrows in the town of Plimgus and thought they were a good invention. However, watching an entire town use them as they moved everything around was incredible. Then there were the lifts next to the houses, raising wood shingles and a barrel of pine resin to quickly finish yet another roof.

  Of course, he had seen something similar in Vaspar, but to see them here in this backwater town was bizarre. The runner must have found Amos, because he came out from a trail leading towards the cove in the distance. A young woman, he assumed was Lady Paper, walked beside him. He had to admit Amos had good taste. As they approached, Emily said something to Amos. He could not hear his response, but it made her laugh as she left him to go towards a house.

  "Amos, what is going on here?" Frederick said in an almost accusing voice as if Amos had been trying to keep a big secret from him.

  He would not have been shocked to realize that was exactly what was going on. Amos was a mystery.

  "Well, per the orders of the duke, we are building a town on the cove so that we might defend the Northern border," Amos said in a wry voice.

  "I know you're trying to build a town, but I didn't expect you to have all the things you would see in a modern city, and I had no idea how useful those wheelbarrows were. Look how much everyone is carrying. Also, what is that?" Frederick said, pointing at the concrete foundation.

  "That is a cellar. I could have sworn you had them in Vaspar. I think it is where your father kept all the wine you drink," Amos laughed.

  "I meant how smooth it is. It looks like you made it out of mortar, But I know you aren't a fool. I am guessing it's pretty tough."

  "It is, but all of this is temporary."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Everything we are building will have to be rebuilt in a couple of years because we have found that there is a lot of soft, wet soil underneath this. We have diverted the water, but the land is going to take years to settle. Even though we have smashed everything down and put as much rock, gravel, and sand as we could underneath it is still floating on mushy soil. In a few years, we can probably build permanent buildings, but until that time, it will be buildings that look good but won't last."

  Fredrick was getting frustrated. "You are dodging my question. What is that?"

  "Of course I am. It is a secret recipe I am not giving out. Also, the resource we use to make it is hard to gather, so it would be tough to get."

  Fredrick just nodded. He was nobody's fool. If Amos was making cellars out of it, then it had to be some amazing stuff. If he had something like that, he wouldn't let the secret out either.

  "Fair enough, still, this is all really impressive."

  "It is going to be an amazing city. All I am missing are people," Amos said.

  Fredrick gave him a grin. "And that is why I am here."

  Amos arched an eyebrow, "I doubt that, but I also think you didn't take a two-day journey just to tell me I was doing great."

  "Actually, we made it in a day and a half. If anything is impressive, it is your roads. They are as nice as Vaspars. But you are right, that is not why I am here. Julie sent a message. It is time for me to return to Vaspar. I need your help."

  "Now? Frederick, I don't have an army."

  "I don't need an army. The people are fed up with Peter, and Julie has been stoking the flames. Most of the military personnel left in Vaspar have sworn to assist me if I return. She has also gathered enough dirt on Peter to make my return legitimate. I just need to get to Vaspar without my brother realizing I am there. I need a ship. "

  Amos thought for a moment and smiled, "Now I can do that. Give me three days."

  "I won't forget everything you have done for me, Amos. If you need people, I can find you people."

  "Now that sounds like a deal." Amos grinned.

  As they shook hands, both men were thinking of very different things. Amos was relieved that once again he would have an ally in Kimton. Fredrik was thinking of vengeance and all the money he would make by having a golden kayver as a friend.