I stepped up to the podium and situated myself to look as in control as I could given the clear tilt of the scales against me. There’s a reason they call it the hot seat it seemed. Whether imagined or real, the temperature of this little circle of light was higher than the surrounding area. My monkey suit was starting to feel a little stifling now.
The quiet in the room didn’t last long as a voice in the middle of the semi-circle of council seats. “We of the council recognize Lord James, champion of the Eternal Mother and conqueror of Yol’vastume. These proceedings will commence in accordance with our laws and regulations for the betterment of the coalition. Now, Lord James, please state clearly your intentions for this meeting as well as your goals.” Trying to focus on the appearance of the council members through the gloom was difficult, but I was able to see that the once at the head of the seats was the Satyr leader, whose name I was hesitant to even repeat in my head.
Clearing my throat, I organized a quick, respectful, response in my head before letting it loose. “Members of the council, thank you for meeting with me today. As I am sure that you have all heard, Yol’vastume has fallen under the control of the coalition forces thanks to a combination of efforts by myself and the forces of General Durdan. I doubt that any of you fail to see the significance of this event as Yol’vastume was a major producer of food for much of the region. With this their production will not be able to meet the demands of both the people and the armies. Such a problem will be even more exasperated by the coming winter, where consumption is at its highest while production is low. You could not ask for a better opportunity to make a strong push into their territory. So, I am here to call upon you to take swift action and send your armies, as many as you can spare, to Yol’vastume to secure the land and use it as a staging ground for further invasions into Thrainian territory. Right now, General Durdan and his forces are holding it and are likely under siege. They will need our help if they are to survive, so I implore you not to throw their lives away. It is the will of the Goddess that this senseless and unjustified war end for the freedom and prosperity of all the races of Valthrain.” Invoking her name felt like bile in my mouth, but if it helped me now, I would do it.
I took a deep breath after all that to release some of the tension. All in all, I thought that I did a good job explaining how important this was. Not to demean their intelligence though as they were probably smart enough to realize that as well, I just hoped that my status in society would be enough to convince them to act.
A more feminine voice spoke up next, coming from slightly to my right. From the general shape of the silhouette, it was probably Artisa, the serpentine Valus leader who managed the trader's guild.
“Yes, we are aware of the situation at Yol’vastume. Unfortunately, moving such large quantities of soldiers is hardly an easy task, let alone the supplies and equipment that would be needed to run the campaign itself.”
“I know,” I replied, “it isn’t easy to move so many people, but I think that the supply problem can be mitigated somewhat by using what is in Yol’vastume. From what we could tell, they hadn’t exported many of their goods at the time of our attack. There is enough to feed an army, a sizable one, so packing the minimum amount needed to make it there would be enough to launch a campaign from.”
“And what if we lose that fight?” A much deeper and accusatory voice called out to me on the other side of the panel. The broad-shouldered shadowed figure just screamed Ulgor, so this was Larvell. “What happens if the Thrainian forces repel our army? Out of those who would even survive such an event, half of them would then starve on the retreat march back into friendly territory. A compounding disaster that would change a loss into a tragedy, one we could scarcely afford at this time.”
“I know it’s a risk, but I'm confident that if we catch them by surprise between the forces stationed in Yol’vastume and our relief support, then we can destroy what would be a sizable force to kickstart an invasion.”
“You are making a lot of assumptions, playing a lot of guessing games with my soldier’s lives.” Larvell did not sound pleased with my argument. “While you may not face the consequences of being at the other end of a blade, every one of those kids sent out there is mortal, a life being put at risk every second during a conflict, and my people have lost too many of those lives already.”
This wasn’t good. So far, not one voice had spoken out in support of my proposal, and with the murmured conversations spreading between council members, I doubted that things were going to slide my way without pushing a little.
“So, you would leave the soldiers who took such valuable land to die? Let them be surrounded and stamped out, all their efforts, losses, and lives amounting to nothing but a temporary inconvenience for the Thrainians. All of them were willing to take the risk for the hope that perhaps the war might finally end, that everything they’ve sacrificed might actually mean something!”
A heavy fist slammed into the podium in front of Larvell. “I will not be lectured to on loss by the likes of you! You, who drops out of fucking nowhere and thinks that he can start ordering us around, commanding us to give more than we already have for a cause that you know barely anything about. I’ve given thirty years of my life and more to this battle. What do you have to show for it? Less than a handful of months? You don’t have the right to tell me to give more!”
Before I could formulate a response to his vitriol a loud clapping bang rang out in the room. Another member had used the equivalent of a gavel with no handle to regain control over the proceedings. The loud noise came from a more diminutive figure, Olias, the Nactren industry tycoon.
“That’s enough you two! The manner you are conducting yourselves in is unbecoming of these chambers. Larvell, we know you have strong feelings about the progress of the war but maintain your dignity and refrain from such public outbursts.” The disgruntled old soldier grumbled but refrained from starting the argument up again. “And you, Lord James, should accept that our situation here is far from simple enough to make such a drastic decision. Even if we show up in force, our equipment is lacking. The weapons and tools at our disposal are of a lesser quality than the Thrainians for the most part. If we were to fight a head on battle, there is no guarantee that we would win against a force designed to take back Yol’vastume.”
Damnit all, these people have no hope left. None of them seem to believe they have even a chance against the Thrianians, it’s like they’ve lost already.
This was frustrating, like talking to a brick wall and hoping to change its mind. They may have had decent reasons for being so reluctant to put their forces at risk, but now was not the time for hesitation. After everything we’ve gone through, the things I've done, the lives that were risked and ended, to just do nothing felt like spitting in the face of all that. This meeting was going nowhere fast.
Olias then made his next move to advance the proceedings. “We have heard the proposal and now know of all that hangs in the balance of the decision. I now move to put it to a vote. Will we send our armies to Yol’vastume, or maintain our current position and gather strength in preparation for a response?”
Wait, this is going too fast! I haven’t been able to change their minds yet! “Hold on, this is way more important than-”
“The time for speaking has ended, Lord James. We have initiated the vote and will now decide a course of action. Remain silent or be removed from the chambers.”
My jaw locked in frustration as my teeth grinded together. To say I was pissed would be an understatement as they basically told me to go pound sand while they shut me down.
“Now, to continue with the vote, all in favor of sending our armies to Yol’vastume, raise your hands.”
To my infinite surprise, there were actually two hands raised. One from the Satyr councilman, and the other from Nadala, the Trelnval council woman. Both took me by surprise with that move, but it wouldn’t matter in the end.
“And all those opposed?” The rest of the council then raised their hands, outnumbering those in support of my proposal four to two. “We have come to a decision. Our armies will remain where they are. We will continue to prepare defenses against the Thrianian threat. This meeting is now concluded. Should you wish to contest this decision you may schedule another meeting with the council at an appropriate date. Dismissed.”
I’ll fucking dismiss you right out the nearest window with a boot to the ass! Only two of you assholes have any brains whatsoever! Fucking cowards. I hadn’t even been in this city for a day and I was already done with everything politics. At least we had accounted for this outcome, so the plan was hardly going to change. I guess it was too much to hope that they would have at least some sense to them.
At the announcement of the conclusion to this whole disaster, the various council members began to rise from their seats and make their way towards the exit. Across the room a few crystal lanterns that I had not seen preciously were slowly revealed so as not to blind everyone who had been in the darkness of the room for too long. With the darkness dispelled, a few more interesting features of the room came into view. There were more statues, only these ones didn’t seem to be depicting a specific person if the fuzzy facial features were any indication. These seemed to be more a general depiction of the different races as well as what they were best known for. I guess stereotypes exist in any world, though maybe it’s more a point of pride for each of them.
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Regardless, the council was walking out now. Most of the members hardly paid me any mind beyond a passing glance. Larvell, though, shot me a withering glare in passing, and if it wasn’t for the location, I assumed that he might have taken a more physically confrontational approach towards our interaction. The man had a real problem with me, which complicated things greatly considering he oversaw the maintenance of their army.
After that mildly uncomfortable situation, I was approached by another who took the time to stop and talk with me. The Satyr councilor stopped at a respectful conversation distance. He was an older man, not so much as the bishop, but enough that grey was starting to creep into his otherwise brown hair. His beard was cut shorter along the sides of his face while coming down to a long point from his chin.
“Greetings Lord James, it is a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance. A shame that it couldn’t be under more pleasant circumstances.”
I quickly shifted gears and called up his name to the best of my ability. “It is a pleasure to meet you as well, ‘The one who marches trails across the barren wastes to find the lands towards which he makes haste, uhh, A determined soul who yields...”
My attempt to speak his full name was interrupted by a raised hand and a light chuckle. “While I certainly appreciate the attempt to adhere to my people's culture, having someone speak my whole name every time they wished to address me would leave little time for actual work. Please, you may refer to me as Bardis.”
That was a massive relief. It really was nice that the Satyr’s were at least practical about interactions outside their culture, but that did bring up a question though. “Would you mind if I asked a personal question, just to sate my curiosity?”
“Feel free.” He answered assuredly.
“Your people have quite elaborate names at times, but it seems that you also have much shorter names the same as everyone else. Why is that?”
“Well, our names are earned through our actions and accomplishments as we grow older and are generally considered a mark of pride more than anything else. While these names are important in our culture, they can hardly be used all the time, and when we are young, we don’t even have them. We need some way to distinguish one child from another as simply shouting something like ‘boy,’ ‘girl,’ or ‘child’ would lead to every young one in earshot responding. Consider it our acknowledgment that our names are complicated.”
“Hmm, well, that’s interesting to know and can save me a bit of trouble in the future.” A sigh escaped me. “At least I came out of this with something other than a headache.”
Bardis gave a sympathetic nod of his horned head. “Yes, I'm sorry that your request was denied. As a council we must have a majority consensus to act lest it all falls into chaos. There is nothing I would like more than to seize upon the opportunity that you and all those of General Durdan’s camp sacrificed to make possible. My colleagues, though, are nervous, scared even of committing so many lives and resources to what they see as a gamble. I feel that the odds are in our favor, but they don’t seem to be satisfied unless a victory is all but guaranteed.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose for a second before responding. “I apologize if it is uncouth of me to say this, but refusing to act out of cowardice and fear are some of the worst decisions you could make. You can’t hide behind forests and in the mountains forever. Something has to give eventually.”
“True enough words those.”
“If you agree, could I possibly ask you to attempt to change the minds of your fellows who voted against me?”
“Such a task would be difficult, even for me. I could maybe warm them to the idea a little bit, but to outright change their minds would require more than words and assurances, they need something tangible to grasp as an anchor for their resolve.”
“Any amount of help you could provide would be most welcome. I’ll do what I can to find ways to change their minds on the matter as well.”
Bardis dipped his head slightly. “Then we are allies in this endeavor. You are the chosen of the Eternal Goddess, and if her will is to take this chance of victory then we’d be fools to defy her.”
A pious man are you? Well, even if that’s the only reason why he’s supporting me then I’ll take it. “Well, I wish you luck then. It seems that we will need all of it that we can get.”
That marked the end of our conversation as Bardis went on his way. He probably had more work to do before the end of the day anyway, so I didn’t want to delay him at all. I returned to my group only to be met with a very irritated Kala who was lashing her tail about in self-evident frustration.
“They’re all idiots.” I heard her mumble as I came within earshot.
It was such a blunt statement that was said as if it were fact. I cracked a smile while speaking in low enough tones that someone would be hard-pressed to listen in. “Most of them, yes, but we didn’t expect for them to go along with us to start anyway.”
She sighed. “Yeah, I know, but it would have been nice if they lent their support from the start. I don’t like the idea that the lifesaving support that those at Yol’vastume need is left up to these cowards.”
“I know you might not like them, I don’t either, but try to keep a lid on those emotions. It does us no favors if you make open enemies of these people.”
“I’m not an idiot, I know that. Doesn’t hurt if I complain when they aren’t in the room though.”
An amused smile grew on my face as I put an arm around her shoulder. “Come on, it’s been a long day. We can start working on all this tomorrow, but right now I'm feeling exhausted and want to rest.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” She leaned into me with a content sigh as I began to lead us out of the room and back down the long hallway towards the exit. As we approached the entry hall I noticed there was another council member waiting there, the second one who voted in support of me, Nadala, the Trelnval in charge of food distribution. She was obviously waiting for me as her gaze was locked on me as we approached.
I prepared myself for another formal conversation and at the same time felt Kala press herself a little closer to me. Even after our conversation on the matter, it seemed she was still nervous about me interacting with other Trelnval. Turning my attention back to the council woman, I put on a friendly smile to start.
“Lady Nadala, what a pleasant surprise. Is there anything I can help you with?”
“Lord James, the pleasure is all mine. I was simply wondering if you had time to speak of the future with me for a few minutes.”
“Well, I don’t see a reason why I couldn’t spare the time to hear you out. I trust that what you wish to talk about is something relevant to the current situation that was just discussed?”
“Indeed, though it also regards the current health of the coalition in a general sense as well. To put it quite bluntly, we are barely balancing the supply and demand of food amongst our territories. As you might expect, mountains make for poor land to farm on, and anything that can grow on mountains is limited in production or usefulness in terms of a sustainable food source. The forests that divide our territory with that of the Thrainian’s are the best place for farms, being plentiful in fertile land, but also the most likely to be raided and destroyed, making work there both expensive and dangerous.”
It only took a moment of consideration to piece together what she was getting at. “So, you’re saying that your current supply chain is fragile?”
“Exceptionally so. In many scenarios, we are one bad raid away from food shortages becoming a widespread problem. I brought this up in conversation before the meeting, but I fear that just caused them to become more fearful, hesitant to reduce our border protections even a little bit. I’m of the mind that not only is the taking of Yol’vastume a major blow to the Thrainians, but that we need to keep Yol’vastume if we are to build up a healthy store of food for our own people. If we don’t create some breathing room, we will eventually suffocate.”
“I take it that is why you were in support of my plan, but what do you propose we do about the other four who were not?”
“I will continue to press upon them the importance of increasing our access to food of course.” The look in her eyes changed a bit, and the new gaze made me feel nervous. “Speaking of food, perhaps you might find time to visit my home for dinner. We can discuss in further detail plans to convince the council while sampling some of the most exotic dishes that my chefs can prepare. I just know that what I offer can satisfy your tastes.”
There were a lot of suggestive undertones that could be inferred from her words, but I wasn’t nearly skilled enough to tell whether they were imagined or real. Kala, evidently, thought they were real as I could feel her claws start to dig into my hips where her hand was resting. At least she maintained a neutral face, but her eyes were practically murdering the woman before us.
“Thank you for the offer. I will... consider it should I have the time.”
“I look forward to your reply.” Nadala dipped her head slightly before turning and leaving the building.
As soon as the door closed behind her, I had to address a rather pressing issue. “Kala.”
“Yes.” She replied coolly, eyes still locked on the door.”
“Would you be so kind as to remove your claws from my flesh.”
She blinked and seemed to realize the death grip that she had on me. Her claws were quickly retracted from my hip which allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief. “Oh gods, I'm sorry, are you bleeding?”
“Maybe a little, but it’s fine, should be able to fix it without a crystal.” I used a little bit of magic to fix the small punctures that she had made in my side. It didn’t cost me too much of my energy stores to do something that small. “All better now.”
She let out an exasperated sigh. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have gotten like that. It’s just... that shameless harlot thinks she can muscle her way in on our relationship.”
“I know, I got a strange feeling from her, but her invitation was worded innocuously so we can’t be openly hostile to her invitation, and if she decides to push on it, I think I would be forced to attend else she could claim offense.”
Kala grumbled a bit to herself. “I hate how twisted things are around here.”
“We knew what we were signing up for. Let’s just forget about that for now and go back to our room. There will be plenty of work left for us tomorrow.”
Kala snuggled into me as we left the building. Despite the fur cloak doing its job, she wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to be both close to me and steal some of my warmth. It was rapidly approaching the twilight hours as the sun drew close to the horizon, casting an orange glow over the land. The warm colors were largely contrasting with the overall temperature outside that was steadily dropping. I made a mental note to have one of those fur cloaks for myself if we ever went out later in the day. It would only get worse the longer we were here as winter seemed to be encroaching on us.
Cold, tired, and mentally drained, I ignored the world around me while making a straight shot towards the diplomatic reception building that we were staying in. Kala and I immediately retired to the room, bidding everyone else a good night as we settled in. Our therapeutic cuddle sessions did wonders for the both of us as all the stress just melted away. After the sun went down, we undressed, got under the thick fur sheets, and slowly drifted off to sleep. Tomorrow I will be creating some malcontents in the ranks of the army.