Enlightened Empire

Chapter 345: Open Contempt

Although negotiations ended quickly, the logistics of it all weren’t quite so easy to resolve. While the captains had no choice but to give in and return to their previous role as servants under their Queen the following day, transferring soldiers in an active war zone wasn’t that easy.

On the Rasacopa side, the scattered warriors needed to be formed into a coherent army. This wasn’t exactly easy, since they couldn’t just be sent there with the captains in charge of their crews. After all, breaking up the power of the captains had been the entire reason they had fought them.

As a result, there was still some pointless wrangling over who would be in charge of what for a few more days. Even after all of that, the warriors still needed to be mobilized and transported into battle. At the same time, their supplies needed to be organized as well.

Only when they had arrived and properly taken over all responsibilities could the Saniya soldiers retreat from Iskay Island. As a result, it took Corco almost two weeks before he could take all his troops and get on his way back home. In the meantime, things were moving quickly on his kingdom’s eastern borders.

On a quiet, early winter morning, on an endless, rolling field of green grass heavy with dew, a cowherd drove the fifty livestock entrusted to him towards their daily meal. Although his own rations were not much more opulent than the grass of the cows, he enjoyed his work. Out in the open, no one would bother him, so he could be lazy all he wanted. Work was easy, and calm, and there was no threat anywhere to be found.

Only a few years earlier, the cowherds had moved in much larger teams. Because of the constant threat from bandits, some had been in charge of herding the cows, while others had protected them. Since King Corcopaca had taken over the kingdom and built all those new roads, the bandits had all fled back into the hills. The cowherd’s work had become a whole lot easier as a result. Now, most of the more ambitious cowherds had left the hills, either to find work in the nearby town, or to search for luck in the distant Saniya. He, however, had stayed here, untainted by ambition.

Accompanied by a satisfied grunt, he sank down along an old pine tree that stretched its crooked trunk out of a shallow little hill’s flank. From here, he could see the grazing cattle while he ate his dinner. Eating early was a bad habit, and he knew it, but for once, there was no one here to give him any orders. Not even his uncle could order him around out here. Thus, he unpacked the plain rice balls from their cheap paper package and dug in with great relish, while he watched the clouds roll by.

Unlike most of Yakuallpa, the weather here in the hills was always predictable, another thing the cowherd was fond of. Here, he didn’t have to fear any storms, or floods, or earth tremors. This far inland, it rarely rained, which made agriculture difficult and was part of the reason for their poverty. Though of course, the cowherd would have never seen any of the wealth anyways, so he was content with his lot.

In the end, all he had to care about was the cold, but it wasn’t deep winter yet, so he could imagine shapes into the clouds all day without concern. Sometimes, he felt like one of the great priests, predicting the future from the signs of nature. This was no more than an idle thought on any other day, but today was different. Today, the cowherd saw a cloud that was nothing like the others, one that would prove a dark omen.

This one hung low, like fog, but was brown like dirt. As he watched, the cloud slowly moved towards him and his herd of cows. He didn’t even realize when he stood up with grains of rice still hanging from his lips. By the time the remaining rice balls fell down into the grass, he could make out the figures hidden in the dirt cloud. Thousands of men were walking through the hills, westwards, towards his position. They were armored, and armed with spears, shields, and other killing instruments.

Behind them marched a long snake of even more people, donkeys, llamas, and wagons, far too many to count. This cloud hid an army beneath it, and it hadn’t come from the capital. How could such an army appear out of the empty hills in the east? Had the bandits formed their own secret kingdom? Had evil spirits taken shape somewhere inside these hills, and now come back for revenge? The cowherd had heard stories like this from his elders, but he didn’t have time to consider truth or falsehood.

Without another coherent thought, he turned and ran. He left behind not only his dropped meal on the hills, but also the herd he was supposed to take care of. Soon, the cows would turn into additional supplies for the Arcavian army that had just crossed into the territory of the southern kingdom.

However, the cowherd knew nothing about it, nor did he care. He was focused on running back to the place he had come from. Soon, he came back to a little town at the very edges of the Utusku territory. Long before he entered the town itself, he could see the early signs of civilization.

All the way out here, the roads were of high quality, newly built by the southern king. At the end of the road, where the smooth stone turned into a dirt path, stood a stone tower, one of many that had been built along these royal roads. This guard tower was the cowherd’s goal, since he knew that it was built by the king just as much as the roads were.

Although he had abandoned his cows out of fear, the long trek back had given him time to think. The town behind the tower was his home, where his family lived. Be they monsters or soldiers, if the cloud of dirt reached this place, they would destroy everything the cowherd knew in life. In his hopelessness, the best he knew to do was to inform those who knew more than him.

While the soldiers who had been tasked to guard this remote place of the kingdom didn’t know what to make of the rambling local, they didn’t ignore him either, since they didn’t have anything better to do. This was an unimportant, sleepy town on the edge of nowhere. They couldn’t expect any serious attacks from the midland mountains, so occasional bandit attacks were the worst they had to handle.

Now that someone was bringing real news to them, they were happy to break up the monotony. Not to mention, the actual contents of the rambling sounded concerning, once they had deciphered them.

The beacon tower guards had only just arrived from Saniya, where rumors of foreign armies gearing up for attack had been circulating for a while now. While one of the two guard soldiers walked eastward to get a close-up look at the ‘cloud of ghosts’ and confirm their worst guesses, the other sent a semaphore signal down the line. Quickly, the same symbol was repeated on top of the tower west of theirs, and then it traveled from tower to tower, until it reached Rapra Castle in Saniya less than an hour later.

However, no one was there to meet the message when it arrived. Although it was being picked up and recorded by an official in the castle, those with authority were currently away. Corco was still out west, solving the civil unrest in his wife’s kingdom.

Meanwhile, Fadelio had also left the castle for the city, having to deal with his own brand of internal problems. Thus, the official on the radio ordered a team of ghosts to go out and deliver the message as quickly as possible. To their luck, at least they knew where to find Official Fadelio.

At this time, Mayu stood in his Saniya mansion’s grand garden, elevated on a chair. Below, many lords of the Kingdom of Southern Medala surrounded him. All others stood as well, and raised their cups towards the young governor.

“My fellows; like-minded compatriots,” he bellowed out into the fresh morning air. “Let us drink, on a happy cooperation!”

All the lords returned the greeting and drank together. Seeing their enthusiasm, Mayu became even happier than before. It had been a long time since the lords had done what he wanted. Or rather, maybe this was the first time they did. After all, Mayu had become governor at the same time Corco had become king, stripping all privilege from him before he could exert it. In truth, he had never really had the power that should have been his birthright. His first real taste of it made him excited.

“All of us know why we have come here, for we are men with a common purpose,” Mayu continued. “Divided we are weak, but united we will get what we deserve, what we are owed!“

“And what would that be?” A discordant voice came from the garden’s entrance to spoil the mood.

His complacent smile wiped away by a frown, Mayu turned around to see his cousin’s watchdog Fadelio invade his private mansion, flanked by a dozen guards. The governor assumed that his own men had been restrained outside. After all, it wasn’t quite yet time to fight the authority of the king, so his men couldn’t use force to keep out the king’s hounds. But that didn’t mean he would bow down to a base warrior.

“Oh, Official Fadelio. What leads you here?” he asked, ignoring the dog’s previous question. By now, his frown was gone, and his calm had returned. There was an audience after all, and a need to look fit to rule.

“A banquet of the southern lords, in Saniya. Shouldn’t the king have been invited to something like this? I wonder, what is it that you’re plotting here?” Fadelio looked around to intimidate the lords, but most of them had been prepared well by Mayu. Only a few cowards averted their eyes, while most met the dog’s silent challenge.

“Plotting? Whatever could Official Fadelio mean?” Now that he had seen the response of the lords, Mayu’s smile was back, just like his confidence.

“Then what did you say before, governor? ‘You will get what you are owed’? What are you owed?”

“Just words of bravado. Did this governor say anything untoward, warrior?”

He emphasized his last word, but it still couldn’t be construed as an insult. After all, a mere warrior was what the dog was. In the end, there was nothing concrete the dog could accuse him of. Outside of secret meetings, Mayu had always kept all the rhetoric he used with the lords as vague as possible.

For now, he still had to be careful, though even that would be over soon. As could be seen by their high officials, the Rapra Castle was toothless. Even the dog had nothing to say in response.

“Since this governor has not done any wrong, then this governor cannot be expected to admit to any crimes. Or should this governor invent some, so warrior may find an excuse to imprison half the lords of the south on treason charges?”

Again, Fadelio looked around, but this time, he looked a lot less intimidating, despite his massive size. Just like it’s highest official, the power of Saniya looked imposing, but would crumble at the slightest push back. Still, Mayu didn’t expect the old order to give in without a fight.

“Then if you are not doing anything illegal, why not invite your king to your secret little meeting?” the dog repeated his earlier question.

“King Corcopaca is not in Saniya – as so often – and everyone knows it. However, that does not mean that the banquets of the lords can halt until he deigns to return. With both the king and his queen gone for so long, who should we send the invitation to? A warrior in the palace? How inappropriate.”

The warrior in the palace was stewing in anger, but Mayu was secure in his position. He knew that the dog wouldn’t dare start a war against so many lords at once, not without his owner’s word, and that owner was far away.

After a while, Fadelio wanted to bite back again, but he was interrupted by another figure who intruded from the outside. With a frown, the master of the house watched the unknown warrior march right next to Fadelio, whisper in his ear and hand him a piece of paper. After he had read it with a stony face, he thought for a moment, before he looked up at Mayu again.

“Today, you get off the hook, since I’m too busy to deal with your megalomania. But I have to give you a fair warning, ‘governor who hasn’t governed a thing in his life’: Whatever you think you’re doing in your fake castle here, drunk on your imagined greatness, you better make sure it sticks. Otherwise, none of this will end well for you, even if you’re the king’s cousin.”

“What are you implying, warrior?” Mayu asked with narrowed eyes, but the warrior had already turned to leave.

“Tread lightly, or you will really get what you deserve,” he said, before he disappeared.

Once again, anger stirred in Mayu’s heart. He had prepared for a grand confrontation with the king’s dog, defeating the brute with words and proving himself in front of the other lords. In the end, the dog had appeared, insulted and threatened him, and then simply left.

However, Mayu soon calmed down again, as a confident smile spread on his face once more. This was nothing. He had endured slights to his status for years now. A few more days would make no difference. Soon, it would be time to revert back to what was right, and show the warrior dog and his many minions in the castle why the lords had ruled these lands since the dawn of time.