My declaration of victory was met with some rather amused looks from most of my audience. Kala even chuckled a little at me. “Feeling a bit more confident I take it?”
I allowed the moment of levity to sweep over me and cracked a smile of my own. “Yeah, sorry, I guess I was just getting a little over excited.” Suddenly I was much more conscious about my words and realized that probably sounded a little arrogant proclaiming that my idea would guarantee victory in such a way.
Some more snickering came with waves of embarrassment as I could feel my elongated ears heat up. Jorn decided to try and give me a break and let a heavy hand fall on my shoulder. “Well, if you’re that confident, I’d like to hear this plan of yours. What destructive ideas do you have for this place?”
Figuring it would get everyone’s attention away from my little display earlier, I took him up on the opportunity to talk about some of my ideas. “Okay, so, the short explanation of what I was thinking was to launch a lightning strike of a sort coupled with some divide and conquer.”
“Lightning strike?” Jorn raised an eyebrow, apparently not finding the term to be familiar.
“Essentially, you hit them hard, you hit them fast, and you keep them confused all the while.”
“Oh, kind of like an ambush?”
“Sort of, but when it comes to sieging it’s more about creating a situation with as much chaos as possible. The first thing we have to do is wait until Dart is back in the area so we can coordinate an attack with the rest of the coalition forces. If we start shit too soon then we will just be caught and put down before the actual fighting can take place. The second thing is that I need to get my hands on two sets of keys, one to the towers, the other to the slave pens. The towers will be the priority. If I can sabotage just one of them and then have the army focus their attack on that segment, they should be able to break through the walls.”
“If that goes off without a hitch, then we can move on to the slave pens. We will have to take over the whole of the pens and hold them until the siege starts.” I looked over to Silia. “What is the night shift like in the pens? How long do the shifts usually last? When do they start?”
“The shift changes over at sundown and lasts till sunrise. They have a few guards wandering the rows to make sure that everyone is behaving in their cells, which usually means sleeping. They alternate this patrol with the rest of them who usually wait upstairs. The night shift normally consists of eight guards, give or take one due to outside circumstances.” She was very forthcoming with the information and not making it a hassle to get out of her this time.
I guess even she can see that this isn’t a time for stubbornness. “Alright, I think we can handle that many. If we do end up taking over the slave pens, we have to do it quickly and quietly. Incapacitate all the guards, tie them up, gag them, and then make sure that no one else wanders in and raises an alarm about us being there.”
“If we can manage all of that, then we can start freeing the people there and recruiting all those who would be willing to fight for a two-pronged attack once the siege starts. The defending forces will be split between the attackers on the outside and the revolt from within, making it all the easier for one of the groups to do some serious damage. Any questions?”
Holdrem raised a hand before voicing his opinion. “Won’t taking the keys raise the alarm once they know they are missing?”
“Normally, yes, but when I take a key from one of the captains it will be after I've knocked them out and tied them up, stowing them away somewhere secluded. Hopefully, their absence won’t be noticed until it’s already too late. For the slave pens my target will be Yulvin, the drunk that was mentioned previously. If I catch him at a time where he’s had a lot of drink and then manage to relieve him of his key ring, the assumption might be that he lost it while drunk, which should also buy us enough time before the siege begins. Anything else?”
“How do you plan to get the jump on one of the captains?” Otar asked.
“I was thinking a simple late-night ambush of the last one out. Someone has to lock up for the night, and they will be my unfortunate victim. Anyone else?” This time I didn’t get anything from them, so I figured that the Q&A was done for now. “Alright then, if no one has anything else to add, then we must continue along like nothing is different. Once I can get into contact with Dart again, then we will begin.”
What that mostly meant was that we had to start selling things again. An awkward proposition for everyone now that we were out of the information gathering stages of this whole operation. Still, it was necessary, at least for now. I just hoped that Dart would be back tomorrow so we wouldn’t have to delay any longer than necessary.
It was quite amazing just how much the feeling of selling things to these people changed once it was no longer about the information I could glean from them. The minute that we moved out and I started trying to get people to come over, I regretted not deciding to instead play the sick card or something to that effect. Now that I was no longer focused on listening and learning, my mind was left to picture all these people who came up to talk to me, all their smiling faces, their earnest expressions, turning to fear, horror, panic. If the wall came down, what would happen to them then?
I knew from personal experience the many members of the coalition held a great amount of hate in their hearts for the Thrainians. While the camp that I had been a part of might have had a change of heart recently, I couldn’t expect every individual cell of the coalition’s forces to share that same revelation. It didn’t help anything that the animosity towards the residents of Yol’vastume in particular was vehement. Was there anything I could even do about that at this point? I felt like I had to try something to lessen the blow on the civilians at the very least, but my mind was coming up blank at the moment.
There was no way for me to control a whole army, especially since I didn’t even hold a position of authority in said army. My thoughts on the matter were interrupted when a shift in the individuals wandering the street drew my attention. Through the crowd of wandering off duty soldiers emerged the form of Balidor Kirthwain, a figure that I had hoped to avoid interacting with any further, especially right now.
He was accompanied by a pair of attendants I hadn’t seen previously. They probably served as ceremonial guards of a sort, and there was one other person that surprised me. A small child, a little girl who barely made it up to his hip was at his side. She wore a lovely blue dress that stopped just above her ankles. Her shoes matched the dress and looked both fancy and practical to wear. Her golden hair practically gleamed in the sunlight and was tied up in a neat ponytail that touched the small of her back. In all likelihood, this was his daughter that he had mentioned before.
Why they were out here I did not know, but I figured that I would be finding that out soon enough as Balidor appeared to be focused on me. The small group stopped in front of my stand and Balidor commenced with the greetings.
“Hello again Mr. Sothalis. I hope the day finds you well enough.”
I bowed in the traditional manner that was expected of me while giving my reply. “Well enough indeed, Lord Kirthwain. I do hope that you have had a pleasant morning as well.”
“Thank you, it has been pleasant thus far, and please, unfold yourself. No need to stand on formalities for a visit as informal as this.”
I stood up straight again in compliance to his wishes. “What brings you here today?”
“Coincidence mostly. My little girl here wanted to go out and play with her friends, so I decided a nice walk would be good for everyone since I have been buried under paperwork as of late. Seeing you here simply opened an opportunity to have a quick conversation about the business we discussed.”
Just then a small hand came up and tugged on his shirt. “Daddy, can I go play with my friends now?”
He hunched over a little to talk more closely with her. “Oh, I'm sorry sweety. Yes, you can go play with your friends. I’ll be right along behind you after I finish talking to this gentleman.” He stood up straight again and turned his attention to the pair of escorts. “Make sure she gets there safely.” The duo bowed their heads slightly in acknowledgment and then proceeded to follow the little girl who started racing off to meet up with her friends.
I found it interesting that she was heading off into the common district and not the noble one. My ruminations on that fact were interrupted as Balidor started to talk again once she was out of earshot. “Sometimes I wish that she could just stay young forever, to remain a child free from the worries of an adult world. But we all must grow old at some point, which is why I want her to have as much freedom as she can while she can still have it. Life becomes far more complicated when you grow up, especially for a lady.”
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
A moment of silence was allowed to exist before he huffed and shook his head. “Ahh, forgive me, I was lost in my head for a moment there. Let us get back to the matter at hand. I hope that I am not pushing you to a conclusion, but have you had enough time to consider my offer?”
Right, he still wants to know if I'll be his informant. I didn’t know what to say to that. Really, I didn’t even consider it at all as I was a little busy with my little stint of espionage and was just planning on avoiding him until after the fact. This was incredibly awkward, and I was trying my hardest to appear unphased by all of this as I quickly came up with some story to tell him.
“Well, I get the feeling that the future will be full of work, and I will have very little free time while things are in motion. Perhaps once my situation has calmed down, we may revisit the offer.” Half-truths make for the easiest lies.
Balidor nods in an understanding fashion, apparently buying my excuse. “I see, that is unfortunate that the terms could not be met under your current conditions. But your wording seems to suggest that you are not against working with me?”
“Indeed, if the conditions change, then we may talk about cooperation then.”
He flashed a smile. “In that case, I hope that your work is resolved quickly so that our business relationship might have a chance to grow. Now, if you will excuse me, I have a little one to catch up to, and believe me, they can move fast at times.” He chuckled a little before dipping his head in farewell and turning on the spot. His pace was brisk as he walked off in the direction that his daughter had run off in, determined to catch up with her.
The moment he was out of sight I felt a wave of relief flow over me, which was immediately followed by a crash of nausea. This whole situation was fucked beyond anything that I could have imagined myself being a part of. Despite everything I knew of this place, all the atrocities that no doubt happened here, I couldn’t dehumanize these people, couldn’t draw that line that simply made them the enemy so I could stop caring.
I wanted to go home. That was a desire that hadn’t shown its face in a while, but now it came back with a vengeance, plaguing me with memories of my peaceful world where I wasn’t concerned with matters of life and death. My head felt full of helium, my stomach turned, and I was forced to sit down with as much composure as I could maintain so as not to appear suspicious.
I never would have wanted to be in this situation, but I was, so I had to deal with it. Simply curling up into a ball and letting everything just swallow me up in a wave of misery was no longer an option, nor would it have been an appealing one if it was. Power through, keep moving, you’re trying to save people. It felt like I was having to reassure myself more often than I had previously.
It was best to try not to dwell on things right now. I knew what had to be done, we had a plan, I just needed to follow it. There will be time to sort through all this later.
We continued on with the day, selling things here and there as I conversed with the occasional customer. As long as I was working, I wasn’t thinking about the future, but it couldn’t last forever. In what felt like no time at all, the sun was already starting to set, meaning we had to pack up for the day and head back.
Once back at the inn we performed the well-practiced dismantling and storage of the cart before getting some dinner. I ate separately from the group as was expected of me in this situation, though I wanted friendly company immensely right now. As it was, I ate with only the company of the innkeeper, whom I didn’t really have much to talk about with right now. After that, there was nothing left but to go to my room and get into bed, hopefully finding some rest.
It was a vain hope as it turned out. I spent a long time tossing and turning under the thin sheets. No matter what I did I just couldn’t calm myself. My heart rate was constantly elevated as anxiousness set in, condemning me to a restless night. It was only after several hours of this that I finally managed to slip away into the relative comfort of sleep.
I didn’t dream that night, probably because I was so lightly sleeping that even the first rays of light from the following morning were able to wake me almost instantly. It had not been a restful night, and I swore I was more tired than before I had gotten any sleep. I went through my morning routine and then went outside to check up with everyone.
Dart could be back today, and if he was, then that would mean that tonight was when we would make our move. Everyone understood the situation, and I decided to just kill some time to give Dart just that little bit of extra leeway to arrive if he needed it. I checked what was left of our goods in the cart, taking inventory down to the details. We still had plenty of tools that we could use and at least a hundred feet of rope. Oh, and my little pocket crystal I had made while we were on the road. I didn’t know how useful and numbing crystal could be, but I wasn’t willing to discount anything at this point.
Even after I had gone through everything in the cart, I had taken to simply doing it a second time and generally fidgeting with some of the more expensive goods, admiring their quality. To anyone who might have seen me it would appear that I was simply inspecting everything thoroughly. In truth I was just doing anything to keep myself busy or focused on a specific task.
A lot of kicking rocks, juggling various items, and counting tiles on building roofs later, it was closing on midday. I figured that at this point I had given Dart enough time to arrive, and if he still was not around, then I would try once more near sundown if possible. With my loitering officially over, I started off in the direction of the main gate to get outside.
Once I had arrived at the gate, I found that it was mercifully open right now. They must have had a group exit recently or were expecting a group to return. Either way it saved me some hassle to convince them to open the gate to let me out for a walk. The convenience of the open gate didn’t stop me from being questioned by the guards as I made my way past them.
“Hold a moment. Why are you exiting?”
“Ahh, sorry, I was just feeling a bit restless as of late and thought a nice walk through the fields would be a good way to alleviate that.”
He nodded at my given reason. “Very well, try to be back within the hour and don’t wander past the borders. We cannot protect you if you encounter trouble that far out.”
I dipped my head to him. “Thank you for your concern, I'll be sure to keep that in mind during.” Now given the clearance to proceed, I started my walk down the road.
Along the way I encountered the occasional patrol of foot soldiers who wandered around the fields that were currently being worked on by the slaves. The soldiers who were on horseback rode through the fields keeping a closer eye on the workers. One even gave a crack of a whip at no one in particular, apparently just thinking that they needed to move faster. It had the desired effect as the slaves moved with a little more urgency, all wanting to avoid becoming a target for the lash.
The sight actually helped reinforce my resolve a little more. This had to end. These people were suffering endlessly and needlessly, all because of the deranged machinations of Alathos and his ilk. With renewed purpose I strode forth to find Dart.
Easier said than done really. How was I going to find a spy master who could probably hide in the middle of an enemy camp without being detected? While I was considering my options for that I suddenly came to an epiphany. I didn’t have to find him at all, if he was back already, then he was already watching me. A slightly unnerving thought, but one that was useful at the moment.
I looked around for a moment. Not a soul in sight, the wind gently swaying the fields of grain around me. Serene, peaceful, probably hiding a little green man with a particular set of skills. “Dart, you there?” Because if you’re not I'm going to feel like an idiot talking to myself.
There was a moment of silence, and I was starting to think that I really was just talking to myself before a voice came directly from my left. “I’m here.” Despite me just calling out to him, the sudden reply from so close caused me to jump a little and snap my head in that direction. “Stop looking towards me, stare straight, stretch a little.”
I realized my mistake and turned back towards the road. I hadn’t actually seen Dart at all, but that was undoubtedly his monotone voice. Taking his advice, I started to stretch and generally act like I wasn’t talking to anyone right now.
“Did you find something?” The local grains asked me.
“Yes, I believe I can open a hole in their defenses and allow you a chance to punch through them.”
“How?”
“Their magical wards are in the towers along the wall. They are powered by, and this might be an understatement, gigantic crystals with enough runes on them to boggle the mind. I plan to get into a tower and sabotage the crystal, allowing you freedom to cast as many spells as you would like on the walls in that area.”
“Which tower?”
A good question, one that I hadn’t thought about but now considered greatly. I came upon the answer after a quick moment of thinking. “The west tower. There’s an orchard in front of it, and it can provide you with some cover for your approach.”
“When should we attack?”
“Now that I have relayed this to you, I'm going to attempt to get into the towers tonight. If you can start the attack at first light that would be optimal. Play it safe though and prod the walls first before committing. If your magic is repelled, then I have failed, and you should retreat before more lives are lost. Also, be aware that I intend to release the slaves being held within the city to distract the garrison.”
“Noted. Anything else?”
There was one more thing that came to mind just then, and may have been more for myself than anything else. “Yes, I want it to be perfectly clear that if I catch any of the coalition forces slaughtering civilians then I will kill them myself.” A mostly empty threat, but I wasn’t above beating them bloody for it at the very least.
Dart was silent for a moment before replying. “I’ll bring it up with Durdan but can’t make any promises.”
“You best find a way to get it through their thick skulls before I'm forced to stomp it in.”
Dart didn’t deem to reply to my little outburst and just continued on. “Is that all?”
“Everything of importance I believe. Just try not to stab me in the crossfire.”
“We’ll try our best. Good luck.” With barely even a rustle that could very well have just been the wind, I got the feeling that he had left the area to bring the news to the army.
It was done, set in stone. The siege was happening, and nothing would stop it now. I had to complete my sabotage before sunrise or else everything that we have done up to this point would be for nothing. Taking a deep breath, I turned around before walking back towards the castle and whatever fate awaited me there with only a single thought in my head. Just one last night.