Enlightened Empire

Chapter 301

Within the Green Court's Grand Hall, Corco sat in a quiet corner to the side, as he observed the mess of an argument that was happening in the room. Much of the bad mood came from the warriors, because Sumaci had done something outrageous in their eyes. When she entered to discuss Rasacopa's current military challenges, Sumaci had taken a seat atop her father's throne.

While the local warriors certainly didn't like it, they also wouldn't dare to voice their opinions directly. After all, in this hall, Sumaci was still the one of highest birth, and the one with the strongest claim to the seat. On top of that, the Lady of Green had come to sit in on the court session in support of her daughter, for the first time since she had married into the Hulpatec household.

Thus, with the blessing of the only other high noble on the island, Sumaci managed to claim the seat with no complaints. However, that didn't mean that the warriors were happy with the claim. Since they couldn't complain directly, they tried to operate behind the scenes and make things difficult for her instead. That was something Corco eagerly felt at the moment.

“Again, our path ahead should be clear,” Sumaci claimed. She was leaned forward, and her tense body showed her frustration with the reluctance of her warriors to follow orders so far. “Since we are expecting an enemy attack, we should prepare our defenses. And then we simply invite them to attack us, repel them and gain more time to build up our strength.”

It was a tactic very similar to what had worked for southern Medala so far, but the locals still looked unconvinced.

“Invite them? That seems like an undue risk,” Phuyu the advisor mumbled.

“Why would that be riskier than the alternative?” Sumaci asked back. “From everything we know, our enemies have much greater numbers than us, and they have a larger population as well. If we fight it out slowly on the waves, we'll get ground down eventually. So the best outcome is a quick end to the fighting. Once we have prepared for a fight here at home, we just need to goad the other kings into an attack, into our strongest point. Once we crush their invasion, they will have to respect my status as Colored Queen and cede to a peace deal, at least to a temporary one, while they recover their forces and their morale. What we need the most right now is time. So we'll give them a bloody nose and make them cautious about another attack.”

“All of that sounds very beautiful, but how would we prepare for an attack when we don't even control the waters around the Green Island? If we pull back to defend, we give up our territorial waters, so we will no longer see their attack coming. At that point, they could attack us from almost any of our shores. What then?” Tayali argued.

While Corco already didn't like the guy before, he had since learned of his attempt to take over the throne. Everyone agreed that he needed to be removed somehow, but his influence among the warriors made that impossible for now. If they didn't want a rebellion from the locals, they would have to tolerate his 'advice' for now.

“That's why I said we needed to prepare,” Sumaci argued. “Defending is more than just shrinking back behind walls. A well done defense is active. Saniya has had much success defending themselves from their northern neighbors as well, despite their relative weakness on water, and despite their long coastlines. So I think it would be a good idea to copy their approach.”

Although the warriors in the room started to grumble excuses again, Sumaci didn't give them the time to respond this time.

“First off, we need to set up beacon towers along the entirety of the inhabited coastline,” she continued. “The towers will be manned by warriors with good eyesight, armed with telescopes we can import from Saniya. Once they spot an unknown ship along our coastline, they can alert the capital through a semaphore system along the entire line of towers. On top of that, we should redirect our military efforts, since our strategies need to change. Our strength has always been outstanding in the Verduic Sea, but it's entirely built around attacking and raiding. If we want to successfully defend ourselves, we should invest more time and money in polearms as well as gunpowder weapons, which are much more effective during a defensive siege.”

Again, Sumaci's ideas were well-intentioned, but again, the locals had problems.

“Impossible!” Tayali shouted. “Our men don't use cowardly weapons like that. Even if they did, how would they learn to fight with weapons they have never used before?”

“Gunpowder weapons are simple to learn, even without any prior training,” Sumaci tried to explain. Meanwhile, Corco admired her patience. “If the warriors don't want to learn, we can train a militia from the commoners to support the defensive effort within two moons.”

“The warriors of Rasacopa will never fight alongside commoners!” Tayali shouted again, as if he spoke for all of them. “They would rather die than be shamed like that.”

This time, Corco had had enough.

“Then how about you die by yourself, rather than dragging the entire island with you?” His cool voice lingered in the room and froze the heated discussion. Breathless, Tayali stared at him.

“You-”

“We don't need the commoners. It was just a suggestion,” Sumaci interrupted before the argument could get any worse. “But we can't have our warriors do what they have always done. It won't work this time, not with our numbers. We'll die. Since we can't make use of the commoners, we should let our allies help instead. I and my husband have brought many Medalan warriors with us. They can help with our defenses. After years of combat against northern Medala as well as the Chutwa, they are also more experienced in this kind of combat, so they should be able to teach Rasacopa's warriors well.”

“That would be difficult.” Once Tayali was shut up, Phuyu began to argue again.

“And what's the problem this time?” Sumaci asked in a grumpy tone that the old advisor ignored.

“The warriors have a hard time accepting most types of change. You know as much, princess.” While Sumaci was also a queen now, in Rasacopa she was still only a princess. Although she was currently sitting on the throne mostly based on her mother's status, she was a princess regent at best, since she hadn't been crowned yet.

“No matter how good their intentions, if the Medalan warriors land on the Green Island in the hundreds or thousands, everyone will think they are here as occupants,” Tayali added with a sly look over to Corco.

Despite the captain's confrontational tone, this was an issue Corco was aware of as well. While he had managed to shut up the warriors during their reception banquet, their words couldn't be taken back. By now, many local warriors would be scared of a silent occupation from Corco's forces, should they ever come ashore. All they had wanted was to bring some reinforcements, but now it had turned into a mess.

As a result, most of Corco's warriors, including his own cousin, were still stuck on their ships in the harbor, even two days after their arrival. With such strong resistance from the locals, everything had become pointlessly complicated. Clearly, Corco wasn't the only one who felt frustrated.

“Our allies have made a long journey across the ocean to come to our aid, but we won't even let them come ashore?” Sumaci asked. Her tone getting harsher. “Where is Rasacopa's famed hospitality, where is our loyalty to those who would stand with us?”

“Even our own brothers betrayed us at Tullpuna Court,” the advisor explained. “It is no surprise that the men would not trust anyone at the moment. After the incident during princess and King Corcopaca's reception, their fears have only solidified. As the husband of princess, King Corcopaca's presence within the court is barely permissible, but even just the presence of his personal guards is the matter of heated discussion among the men. At the very least, the guards Princess Sumaci has brought along from Saniya are seen as a huge problem. According to many, the fact that the green princess needs to be protected by outsiders makes us look weak, and it makes princess look like a hostage in the grip of a foreign nation.”

Since he was a guest here, Corco had tried to control his temper, but this was the time when he couldn't hold back any longer.

“Bullshit,” he snarled. “Are you asking your princess, and my wife, to run around without protection? That'd be pretty convenient to some people, huh?”

Tayali ignored the dig and argued back.

“The warriors of Rasacopa are defense enough for Rasacopa's royalty.”

“Like they were for your last king?”

This time, it was Tayali's turn to get angry.

“Say that again!” he shouted and built himself up to look taller. However, Corco hadn't been intimidated by Pacha, his monster of an uncle. He certainly wouldn't be intimidated by some random pirate.

“If you insist,” Corco cleared his throat to milk the moment. This was something he had wanted to say for a while now. “I won't have my wife protected by traitors who want to see this country destroyed and want her mother either dead or married off to some little warrior.”

Although his attack seemed unprovoked, Corco wasn't just blindly insulting people without a plan. The king was eager to goad a violent response out of Captain Tayali. This way, he could surprise him in close combat, just like he had surprised his enemies before.

Since the captain couldn't be touched politically, Corco would simply eliminate the danger himself, and claim self-defense. It would completely ruin Corco's reputation with Rasacopa's warriors, but he didn't care so long as he could support Sumaci's claims and get rid of an imminent danger to her life. However, someone else had different ideas. Just before the situation could escalate, Lady Sisa stepped forward.

“All, please remain calm.” She turned to her son-in-law. “Please. King Corco, we cannot have division within our ranks at this time. We should all take a step back and work together.” After, she also turned to Tayali, with a much colder tone of voice. “And Captain, what the king said about my daughter's safety is not unfounded. The recent events did happen after all. At the very least, Princess Sumaci is far more comfortable with Saniya folk around to guard her, since she has lived there for so long. Even if her guards are not acceptable, it should still be fine to leave behind her maids, should it not?”

“So long as the armed guards leave the city,” Tayali mumbled with a darkened face. At this point, Corco felt like they wouldn't make any more headway on the issue. Sumaci seemed to have the same thought.

“Could we not waste our time on minor issues like that? Rather, we should work out the details of our defensive plan. Once the work on towers, moats and walls are underway, we can squabble all we want.”

“I still disagree with the plan. Our warriors are not suited for defense, and shrinking behind walls is a shame for the people of Rasacopa.” Of course, Tayali had problems with Sumaci's orders again.

“Then surely, the great Captain Tayali has a better plan in store.” Sumaci's eyes narrowed, her voice dripping in sarcasm.

“Why not do what we have always done best?” Tayali asked as if he hadn't noticed everyone's mood. “It's pointless to sit here and talk about defense and wars on land when the thing our people have always excelled at is to raid and attack. Before those other kings can come to invade us, we simply get to their cities first, catch them off guard. We surprise them, crash through their defenses, and pillage their courts, cities and shrines until they've understood that we're not to be taken lightly.”

“Oh, and considering our numbers, how would our chances look for such an undertaking?” Sumaci asked, still in the same sarcastic tone.

“While chances might be slim, we will prevail so long as our spirit is strong. They are certainly better than any other attempt anyone could come up with.”

“Nonsense.” This time, not even the old advisor could sit still anymore. “Why make claims like that when we lack even the most basic intelligence about our enemy's fleet? Even if we only consider the numbers we are aware of, all the other colored kings combined outnumber us two to one. But their betrayal has been planned at long hand, and they have had support from the Orientals, and possibly from Medalan forces as well. Their numbers should be far beyond our estimates. Outnumbered three to one or worse, how good can our chances be in an open confrontation?”

“Still-” Tayali tried to defend his position, but Sumaci interrupted him this time.

“Here's an even worse thought: Where are our enemies right now? Why have they not attacked us yet?”

In the face of Sumaci's lack of respect, Tayali's face sank, but he still replied.

“Surely, they are busy with each other. Maybe they are fighting over who gets what piece of Rasacopa once they are done with us.”

“Or maybe they are predicting our desperate attack, and are now waiting to ambush and crush us once we try.”

At Sumcai's suggestion, Tayali's face grew pale. He looked around the room, but no one met his eyes. This time, with only a few words from the princess, he really stood alone on the issue. Though her words were nothing compared to Corco's next ones.

“Or maybe they are waiting for some traitors within to use the threat of an attack so they can take over Rasacopa. That way, they can win without a fight,” he added.

Since he was already on the defensive, Tayali didn't get angry this time. Instead, he took a deep breath before he continued.

“King Corcopaca, no matter what you may think of me, my thoughts are, and always have been, only with the island. I risked life and limb to defend my king. And even though I failed, I will not stand and be slandered like this when all my thought have only ever been with the warriors of Rasacopa. And yes, when we were without leader and without direction, I did intend to lead the people in defense. But I did so only because we needed a leader. No one else was willing to stand, so we needed drastic measures. Now that princess is back, I no longer need to strive for the position.”

The captain looked around the room, possibly in search for applause.

“But even so, I will do everything in my power to defend my homeland, no matter what you may think of me. I spent decades of my life at sea, and I believe my counsel to be valuable, and sincere. Some may disagree with my plans, but that is no reason to consider me a traitor. What's more, Princess Sumaci's own plans may work in Medala, but they will not work here. Despite my wishes, despite what may be convenient or easy, the warriors of Rasacopa will never allow outsiders to meddle in their wars, even less so after they have been betrayed even by their own brothers. This may be frustrating to you, King Corcopaca, but it should not cloud your vision. I am not the enemy. The other kings are, be they from the Verdant Isles or from your very own Medala.”

“Thank you captain. We all appreciate your loyalty and dedication,” Sumaci said, though Corco was sure that she was being sarcastic again.

However, he also knew that his little speech had turned the mood in the room somewhat. Right now, the removal of Tayali would only cause further problems, maybe even riots.

Thus, Sumaci would have to humor him for the moment. Still, despite his bias, the captain pointed out a real problem in the plans of the princess. While Tayali could use his influence with the warriors to make them comply with Sumaci's plans, no one else in the room could do the same. And since Tayali wouldn't agree to Sumaci's suggestions and his own plans were idiotic, the warriors wouldn't move for anyone. Thus, they were stuck. Sumaci also furrowed her brows, before she exhaled and continued.

“Okay. Since there aren't any good solutions at the moment, the court will be adjourned for today. I expect everyone to be back here tomorrow, at noon. In the meantime, I will counsel with individual members of the court and try to find workable solutions to the problems that have been raised today. I expect everyone else here to do the same, so that tomorrow may be more productive.”

Thus, the first strategic meeting on the Verduic War ended in frustration for all sides.