Maelstrom Page 2

  "And if they refuse to surrender?" asked the young Therengian.

  "Then Rugg has permission to reduce their walls. That threat alone should be more than sufficient to convince them to give up. Tell them that as long as they don't resist, there will be no punishment."

  "A good idea," said Natalia. "It's common practice amongst the Petty Kingdoms to sack a captured city."

  "Not amongst Therengians," said Athgar. "A point we must be sure to impress upon them."

  "And as to the rulership of Novarsk itself?"

  "I shall confer with the council, but I'm inclined to appoint a military governor, at least for the short term."

  "And in the long term?"

  "That largely depends on what we decide to do with Rada." He paused a moment, looking drained of energy.

  "Are you all right?" asked Natalia.

  "I'm fine, just tired of having to make all these decisions. We've had nothing but war for the last two years. I feel like my life has been stripped away from me."

  "It's my fault. If I hadn't claimed the name Therengia, none of this would have happened."

  "Don't blame yourself," he said. "The defeat of the Church's Army could have no other outcome. At least this way, we secured some breathing room. Outsiders will now think twice before taking on the army that defeated Novarsk. Always assuming, of course, they don't see us as an even bigger threat and gang up on us."

  "Even that will take time. The Petty Kingdoms subsist on a diet of subterfuge and guile. They'll not be so eager to trust their neighbours in an alliance anytime soon."

  "Good," he said. "Then we'll finally have peace."

  "Yes, and a chance to return to a semblance of normal life, whatever that is."

  They wandered up the hill, making their way past the injured and dead. There'd been terrible carnage here, deaths that would affect people not by the loss of warriors but by the loss of brothers, sisters, husbands, and wives, for amongst the Therengians, both genders fought side by side.

  Natalia, in particular, found it difficult to reconcile the loss of so many even though victory was achieved. Athgar, however, was more pragmatic. To his mind, it was better to sacrifice a few rather than the many who would be subjugated under the oppression of foreign rule. Therengians, as a people, had suffered for centuries, a forgotten folk valued little amongst the Petty Kingdoms. Here, however, they had found a home, a home they would gladly give their last breath to defend.

  Finally, they found their way to Kargen and Shaluhk, only to witness the great Orc chieftain pushing Rada to the ground. Her armour was blood-soaked, yet her sword remained clean, or so it appeared as Kargen handed it to Athgar.

  "I bring you the Queen of Novarsk," he announced. "Or should I say, former queen?"

  Athgar stared down at Rada, noting the defiance in her eyes. "What have you to say for yourself?"

  She spat at him, although he was too distant for her to hit.

  "Take her away and put her in chains," he ordered. "We shall deal with her back in Ebenstadt."

  Aftermath

  Spring 1108 SR

  * * *

  Athgar glanced around the room. Seven thanes were present, along with the Dwarf, Belgast Ridgehand, who, this day, would represent the interests of Ebenstadt. In addition, four Orc chieftains and their shamans attended, bringing the total count to sixteen: eighteen if he included himself and Natalia, who was present in her position as warmaster.

  At the moment, everyone was quiet, with all eyes on Athgar as he pondered how to begin. A loud squeal interrupted his thoughts when Oswyn ran into the room, narrowly missing the edge of a table. Behind her raced Agar, coming to a halt as he saw everyone now looking at him.

  "Sorry," said the young Orc. "Oswyn got out of hand."

  Athgar chuckled before rising from his seat and scooping up his daughter as she ran past.

  "Are you causing trouble again?" he asked, his mood lightened by her presence.

  Agar drew closer, and Athgar had to remind himself the young Orc was only four, for he was the size of a Human eight-year-old. "She keeps trying to take my axe."

  "Give her your old wooden one, but keep an eye on her. I wouldn't want her to get hurt."

  "Are you sure? Mother is always telling me Human younglings are delicate compared to us." Agar looked at Natalia.

  "She's a Therengian," she replied, "just like her father. See that she learns respect for it."

  "I shall," said Agar as he held out his hand. Athgar put Oswyn down, and she ran over to her tribe brother, placing her hand within his.

  "You be good," said Natalia, "and do what Agar says."

  Everyone sat quietly, watching them leave until Grazuhk broke the silence.

  "He does you proud," she said, looking at Kargen. "He shall make a fine hunter one day and follow his father to become chieftain."

  "Perhaps," said Kargen, "but the path is his to follow, not mine to direct."

  "Would that Humans felt the same way," said Natalia. "Then we might not have to deal with the likes of Rada."

  "You mean QUEEN Rada," corrected Faramund, the Thane of Farwald.

  "I mean Rada," she replied. "She no longer rules, nor is it certain she ever will again. However, that decision is, of course, up to this council to decide."

  "Yes," said Athgar, "which brings us to the reason for this gathering. It falls on the council to determine the fate of our prisoners, including the erstwhile Queen of Novarsk."

  Wynfrith leaned forward in her chair, placing her elbows on the table. "There are many who would suggest we execute them, although that is a tad excessive to my mind.

  "Or we could enthrall them," suggested Cynrith, Thane of the newly restored Ashborne.

  "No," said Athgar. "There's no place in Therengia for thralls. Slavery is a vile practice, and I will not condone its presence."

  "Then what would you suggest? Imprisonment?"

  "I was thinking of offering them up for ransom. This war cost us greatly, not only in people but in coins. I propose we recoup some of that loss by allowing common soldiers to go free after paying their value in coins."

  "You can't be serious?"

  "Why not? It works for the nobility, doesn't it?" He turned to Natalia. "I would value your thoughts."

  "It's true," said Natalia. "Ransom is a common and effective way to deal with prisoners of noble blood. It would also help recover badly needed funds."

  "But these are commoners," said Raleth, "with little to their name."

  "Then they shall pay less," said Athgar. "Details must be worked out, but the principle remains. In addition, each warrior released would take an oath never to take up arms against Therengia again, under pain of death."

  "I don't like this," said Cynrith. "How can we trust them?"

  "To start with, we treat them as civilized beings. We cannot continue to win over our enemies by the force of arms alone. Rather, we must make efforts to establish ourselves as a legitimate land with laws and customs understood by all."

  "Are you suggesting we adopt skrolling customs?"

  Athgar winced at the use of the word. "They are not skrollings," he replied. "That word marks them as outsiders. Therengia encompasses many different cultures now, not only our own. We need to learn to live with them, not spend lifetimes trying to suppress them."

  "He's right," offered Belgast. "I might remind you that, by your definition, this kingdom consists of more skrollings than Therengians, or did you forget how many of us live in Ebenstadt?"

  "Let us put this issue aside," said Kargen. "This bickering will lead nowhere. The matter at hand is what to do with the captured warriors. I say the High Thane's proposal has merit. I, for one, have no desire to watch over prisoners, not to mention looking after slaves. Do you?" He stared at Cynrith, and the thane backed down.

  "I have no objection," the man answered.

  "Then let us take a vote," said Athgar. "All in favour of this plan to ransom the prisoners?"

  All hands rose.

&n
bsp; "Then it's settled. Who would like to oversee the arrangements?"

  "I shall," offered Wynfrith. "Although I need to discuss it with Natalia before proceeding, as we have to determine how to establish a prisoner's worth, and I would be interested in her ideas."

  "I should be glad to help in any capacity," said Natalia.

  "That brings up the matter of Rada herself," noted Athgar. "I should very much like to hear your opinions."

  "We cannot let her go, even with a ransom," said Aswulf, Thane of Thaneford. "She is far too dangerous. Within months of her return, she'd raise a new army, and we'd be back to more fighting."

  Everyone nodded in agreement. Athgar's gaze fell on Raleth. "You've held her in custody these past few weeks. What do you think?"

  "That she's despised. There are rumours she conspired to kill her father and seize the throne. Not exactly the type of person we could trust. There's also the matter of her invasion of our lands."

  "Come, you are a thane now. If the choice were yours, what would you do with her?"

  "Imprisonment is the only option," said Raleth.

  "Why would you say that?"

  "We can't trust her to honour any ransom agreement, and if we kill her, we might make her remaining followers more fervent. To my mind, confining her is the next best solution."

  "And who will hold her?" asked Kargen. "We have no place for such things."

  "Let me take care of that," said Belgast.

  "How?" asked Athgar. "By placing her in the city's jail?"

  "If this council will grant me permission to do so, I shall meet with Captain Yaromir. He now commands a sizable contingent of Temple Knights of Saint Mathew and can likely be persuaded to care for the prisoner on our behalf."

  "Why would they do that?" asked Cynrith. "They are a part of the Church, not an arm of the council."

  "The order is sworn to keep the peace," explained the Dwarf. "They can be trusted to ensure the humane treatment of anyone under their care. Who knows, in time, they might win her over to our way of thinking."

  "I like the idea," said Athgar, "although I doubt they'll succeed. People like her are not easily swayed."

  "So we're all right with the idea?" asked Belgast.

  Athgar looked around the room, noting the nods. "Very well."

  "And how long will this imprisonment be for? Bear in mind whatever we decide will become the measure by which all future imprisonments are judged."

  "What would you suggest?" asked Athgar.

  "Five years," said the Dwarf, "after which we'll review her sentence and decide whether to continue with it."

  "There should be an upper limit," said Natalia, "else it will automatically become a life sentence. Either that or drop all pretence and make it forever."

  "Who's next in line for the Crown of Novarsk?" asked Athgar.

  "I believe it's a cousin," replied Raleth. "He's only twelve at the moment, although in five years, he should be able to claim the Crown for himself."

  "Then I recommend a maximum penalty of twenty years. That will keep her from interfering until he can establish himself as the new ruler. Furthermore, I would recommend we recognize his claim once he's of age."

  "To what end?" asked Cynrith.

  "We can't occupy Novarsk forever. We need a stable, friendly realm on our border. A buffer, if you will, against future incursions."

  "Excellent," said the Dwarf. "A five-year sentence, reviewed in five years, with a maximum sentence of twenty years. Anything else I should consider?"

  "We'll leave the details to you," said Athgar, "and trust in your judgement."

  * * *

  Darkness had descended by the time the meeting adjourned. Athgar and Natalia made their way back to their lodgings accompanied by Kargen and Shaluhk while Agar and Oswyn ran ahead, full of energy despite the late hour.

  "It has been a long day," said Kargen. "I am looking forward to some sleep."

  "So it has," agreed Athgar, "yet there's still more to do."

  "Nothing that can't wait until tomorrow," said Natalia. "The High Thane needs to take a break so I can have my bondmate back."

  Shaluhk chuckled. "You fit into the tribe so naturally, Nat-Alia. It is like you were always destined to do so."

  "Destiny is such an interesting word. Had you asked me five years ago where I would be now, I would have told you my fondest wish was to be at the court of an influential noble."

  "But you are. You are bondmate to a High Thane."

  Natalia laughed. "I suppose I am now that you mention it. Still, this is not quite what I envisioned. Having family and friends is far better than anything I ever imagined." Oswyn let out a shriek of glee, and Natalia smiled. "You know, back at the Volstrum they wanted to breed me. Strange, now that I think of it."

  "Unimaginable," said Shaluhk.

  "And yet here I am, bonded to a powerful Fire Mage, just like they wanted."

  "Athgar is not a Fire Mage—he is a master of flame. There is an important distinction. Artoch taught him to respect fire, not try to tame it."

  "Yet you still call him a master of it," noted Natalia. "A very strange term to use when you consider it."

  "I suppose it is, but our culture has many things that seem strange."

  "Such as?"

  "Artoch was a master of flame," said Shaluhk, "Rugg a master of earth, yet shamans are not called masters of life."

  "True, but then again, shamans are more than just Life Mages; they are also the arbitrators of justice within the tribe. In Human terms, you would be more like the reeve of a shire."

  "I am not familiar with that term," said Shaluhk. "What is a shire?"

  "A small administrative region lying within a kingdom. They sometimes call them counties. I suppose, in a sense, they're similar to what we have in Therengia. In our case, each village, be it Human or Orc, might be considered a shire, except for Runewald, of course, since it houses both an Orc tribe and a Human village."

  "And what is a reeve?"

  "A person designated by the ruler to see to the administration of the region."

  "But the chieftain does that."

  "That's true," said Natalia, "but if the tribe were particularly large, it would be hard for him to rule over everything. Thus, he might designate someone to take on that responsibility."

  "And Human kingdoms do this?"

  "They do. Some even go so far as to appoint separate individuals to rule on matters of law. We call them judges."

  "It is strange to think of such things," said Shaluhk, "yet the larger this land of ours gets, the more I understand the need."

  "It also depends on how active the ruler wants to be. Many barons insist on doing everything themselves, while others would gladly pass that burden on to someone else."

  "What of the family?" said Shaluhk. "Were they operated in such a manner?"

  "In a sense, but their entire hierarchy is based on magical ability rather than birth. A powerful spellcaster will advance rapidly to the top, while someone less gifted is relegated to the lower levels for the rest of their life."

  "If that is true, you would have been destined to rise high in this family."

  "We refer to it as the family, but it's far from that. If anything, it's more of a loose collection of like-minded people more akin to an army than blood relatives."

  "One does not need blood to make a family," said Shaluhk. "We are living proof of that."

  "Indeed we are, and thank the Saints for that… or the Ancestors, if you're so inclined."

  "Or the Gods," said Shaluhk. "You might as well thank them all while you are at it."

  "You are getting quite philosophical," said Kargen. "Is that the right word?"

  "Yes," said Natalia, "but I'm surprised to hear you say that. She is, of course, but it's not a word I would expect an Orc to use or a Therengian, for that matter."

  "It is the influence of Tonfer Garul. Ever since his arrival here, I have been intrigued by his thoughts. Never before have I met a true scholar,
let alone one who is an Orc."

  "I've been busy of late," said Athgar, "what with the war and all. How is he doing with the archives?"

  "He has spent much time with Dunstan, the bard. I believe he intends to document as much oral history as he can."

  "And where is he keeping all this information?"

  "In the old Cunar commandery," replied Kargen, "although I suppose it belongs to the Temple Knights of Saint Mathew now."

  "I wonder how the Church feels about that?" said Natalia. "I can't imagine the Cunars are too happy with the loss of property."

  "If they wanted to keep it," said Athgar, "they shouldn't have declared war on us. As far as I'm concerned, it's the spoils of war, and if we choose to gift it to the Mathewites, there's little they can say about it."

  "My bondmate," said Natalia, with a chuckle. "Ever the diplomat."

  "In any event," said Belgast, "the Temple Knights of Saint Mathew saw fit to accept our invitation to bring more knights here, necessitating the promotion of Brother Yaromir to captain."

  "Temple Captain," corrected Natalia. "It's a subtle distinction, but an important one."

  "He's also agreed to take on the responsibility of patrolling the city streets," said the Dwarf. "I'm told crime has gone down significantly in the last few months."

  "See?" said Athgar. "The Petty Kingdoms can be civilized after all."

  "Now the war is over," interrupted Kargen, "what is the next task awaiting our attention?"

  "Good question," replied Athgar. "I suppose Master Rugg can continue building stone walls around the rest of the villages like he did in Runewald, and we'll make more warbows for the other tribes. Who knows, maybe we'll settle down and have a few more children? What do you think, Natalia?"

  "I would like that," she replied. "I'm also looking forward to allowing Oswyn to grow up in peace and quiet."

  Athgar knitted his brows. "I'm afraid that's not likely unless you believe the family gave up on her?"

  Natalia sighed. "No, I suppose not. I wish I could go there and reason with them somehow, but I doubt that would work."