The Warlord Ch. 05

"Dahlia has fallen."

That shouldn't have been possible. The combined Balaban and Morcar field armies didn't have enough infantry to successfully storm the city. We'd had over three thousand troops in the garrison.

Stephanie recovered first. "Mother, we captured Goldenrod."

Lady Rona made a sound very much like a 'Harumph'. "A modest victory, then, to offset a major disaster."

I wasn't having that. "No, Lady. Goldenrod was a significant victory. Losing Dahlia is a blow, but I won't know if it was a disaster until I hear what happened. We still have five production centres, and a powerful field army."

- "Come to the dining room, then, and you will hear the tale."

I don't know if she did it deliberately, just to piss me off, but Rona let her son Moran tell the story. The little shit smirked and strutted, and acted as if he hadn't had a thing to do with losing the city.

- "The Morcars arrive with only a standard field army: 1,600 troops. The Balabans had six thousand. But they also brought devices that none of us had ever seen before. They were like three-storey houses on wheels. Four of them."

- "Siege towers?" I blurted out.

Lady Rona frowned at me. "You know of these things?"

- "I know of them. I've never actually seen one. Except in pictures."

- "You could not have told us of them?"

I wanted to throw a little tantrum. I could have told them of ballistae and trebuchets, cannons and even drones. But that wouldn't have helped if we didn't know how to build the damn things, would it? Then a thought struck me, and I decided to be a little more diplomatic.

- "I would not know how to build them, Lady. I have seen pictures - illustrations - of many weapons that would be completely unknown here. I am only a strategist, though; you would need an engineer to design and build them. But it may be that now we know what the Balabans asked of the Gods, as their boon."

Stephanie turned to me, and nodded slowly. She got it. But Lady Rona was still in a shitty mood, and dickhead Moran was annoyed that I'd interrupted him.

- "Carry on, Moran." she said.

- "These... towers were pushed up to the walls, and then swung open, at the very top, creating a sort of bridge upon which the enemy heavy infantry could simply walk onto our ramparts. They were impervious to arrows, and -"

- "Wait - the heavy infantry? Or... you had the archers shoot at the towers?" I didn't have to add 'That was stupid'. But I was also doing calculations in my head. If these sieges towers negated the defensive bonus of city walls, then we'd left just over three thousand troops in a trap.

- "This was your doing, Warlord!" shouted Moran. "You never warned us that these things existed. We fought hard, but there was no way to stop them from reaching the walls."

I'd built plenty of archers in Dahlia, but that was of limited use if the Balabans could just place heavy infantry on the walls. We didn't have enough heavy infantry to prevent that.

- "We took heavy losses." said Lord Enver. He named a junior family member and three half-Hadyks who had gone down fighting. Malusha bowed her head; she recognized at least some of the names.

Moran hated being interrupted. He resumed his tale, describing the desperate fighting in the streets (even though I'd have bet my life savings that he hadn't been directly involved). The Balabans had brought most of their family fighters, unlike the Morcars, who'd had to split theirs between the flank march on Ivy, the defence of Goldenrod, and their field army outside Dahlia. That was a good strategic reminder for me: don't try to do too many things at once. Multi-tasking doesn't work in real life; it's even more true of grand strategy.

I decided, then and there, that I would have to speak to one of the other family members who'd escaped, or maybe one of the half-Hadyks. Moran was useless as a source of reliable information. He wasn't finished talking, though. Apparently I was to blame for every bit of bad fortune the Hadyks had experienced in the last decade.

I let him ramble. Deondra and Stephanie could tell Lady Rona what we'd achieved at Goldenrod. I wasn't minimizing the disaster at Dahlia. We'd lost a little over three thousand infantry at one stroke. But then, hadn't the Morcars just lost 2600 at Goldenrod?

Our losses were relatively light, and partially recouped by the 500 prisoners we'd taken, who were now part of our army. Had something similar happened at Dahlia? How many troops had the Balabans lost? And how many of our defenders had been captured, and were now ready to fight for our enemies?

Moran stopped talking (I think). Lady Rona was glaring at me.

- "Well?"

- "I'm sorry. Was there a question?"

Her eyes narrowed.

- "What are we to do, Warlord? That is the question."

I was tired. I was certainly annoyed. But I tried to keep it diplomatic.

- "You have options, Lady Rona. The first is to contact the Balabans - and the Morcars. The balance has shifted. I would guess that the Morcars were the driving force behind the coalition against you, but things have changed. They had three production centres, and the Balabans had two. Now that's reversed. What if you offered them two of the Balaban cities? Or if you promised the Balabans one of the Morcar cities?"

Either way, the Hadyks would have six production centres. Their enemies would be fools to accept a deal like that, but it was worth a try.

"Militarily? Now that they have these siege towers, I don't know that we can prevent the enemy from taking Flax or Hyacinth, or recapturing Goldenrod. We also have to protect Ivy. That means that we probably have to force a battle by attacking Dahlia, where the siege towers are. We'll need all of our best commanders and officers for that. That includes you, Lord Moran."

I added that just to mess with the little prick. Would it annoy him?

I pleaded fatigue, and the need for time to make plans. Meanwhile, Deondra and Stephanie could explain what had happened at Goldenrod.

In fact, I was tired. Physically, and emotionally. This 'Stranger in a Strange Land' gig was wearing on me. So were Moran and Rona. I liked Deondra, and Malusha was pretty much an open book. I also liked most of the half-Hadyks I'd met. Stephanie was a bit of an enigma, though. Her mother had hinted that I was going to marry the Princess.

I wasn't feeling it. Stephanie was gorgeous, obviously intelligent, and... maybe interested in me?

So I went back to my chamber. Peony followed me. Nosey and Pudge were guarding the way.

- "Hey guys." I said, just a bit wearily.

- "Well done, Warlord." said Nosey.

'Really?' I thought. I just didn't have the energy to engage with her.

- "Thanks."

Peony could see that I was exhausted. It wasn't just physical, either; I think that I was suffering from moral or morale fatigue. I thought we'd won a major victory at Goldenrod, one that would put us in the driver's seat, only to find out that we'd lost Dahlia and over three thousand troops. On top of that, I was getting peons killed at a record pace.

- "It wasn't your fault, Lord." said Peony.

- "I know." She was calling me 'Lord' again. "Can you do something for me, Peony?"

- "Anything, L- Dan."

- "Could you find me someone who was at Dahlia? Someone who fought there, and escaped? I want a better idea of what happened there, without having to ask Lord Enver."

- "I will do that for you." She hesitated for a moment. "In return, may I ask a favour? Or a boon, if you prefer."

- "Pardon?" Was Peony asking for something? "Umm... what's the difference between the two?"

- "They are much the same." she said. "A boon is a favour. But it is one that benefits a particular person. In this case, me. Plus I would not ask you for a boon more than once."

- "A lifetime boon?" I'd heard of such a thing. "Is it that important to you? Of course I'll do it - if I can."

She nodded. "I understand that you don't know enough suitable candidates to be your bodyguard, or, better yet, bodyguards. Plural."

- "I have Nosey and Pudge." I pointed out.

- "Only in a city. And they're peons. They can't really defend you against 'people', or even half-people."

- "I know. You told me this before."

- "Yes. And the danger grows."

- "Danger? What danger?"

- "Your reputation grows, Dan. Your fame. If the other families could deprive the Hadyks of your skill, do you not think they would seize the opportunity? Or what if there was a Hadyk who was jealous?"

I shook my head. "Moran? Please. He's a spoiled brat."

- "And a dangerous adversary. You must not underestimate him simply because he appears to be a petulant child who cannot conceal his animosity. He is more than that. And there are others who can conceal their animosity."

Even tired as I was, I could hear her sincerity, and her concern.

- "I'm sorry. I'll take it more seriously. Does this have something to do with your boon?"

- "I ask you this: if I find suitable bodyguards for you, will you please accept them?"

- "That's not a boon, Peony. You're doing me a favour. Yes, I'll accept your help."

She relaxed a little. "Thank you. Then let's get you ready for bed. You look exhausted."

I was. I went straight to sleep again. Were the beds in the Decapolis that much better than my own?

Of course, that was where I woke up - in my own bed. In my apartment.

***

I did very little work. My head just wasn't in it. Instead, I looked up siege towers, and then went down a rabbit hole again, into detailed discussions of medieval warfare. There were plenty of simple, basic designs for siege engines.

But could I build them? First off, there were very few trees in the Decapolis. Even if I cut down all the trees within five miles of Hyacinth, and had them dragged back, would we have enough wood to build battering rams? Mangonels? A trebuchet? Assuming I had one of those, what would we use for ammunition?

The Decapolis was like one vast golf course fairway. There was no rough, no forests, no sand traps. Where could I find huge stones to fire at city walls? It was more likely that I would have to use a Touchstone. And what then? Could I ask for a catapult? Or cannons? Might as well wish for stealth bombers while I was at it.

I couldn't help feeling like my apartment was empty. This was new for me. Maybe that was why I got my coat and went outside. My footsteps led me to a Vietnamese restaurant, where I could get a big bowl of Pho soup for under ten dollars.

There was a sizable lunch crowd. I could hear the buzz of conversation, but I really wasn't paying attention. I was alone with my thoughts. Wasn't that the pattern of my life, these past couple of years? Work from home, game online with friends - still alone.

I hadn't really felt lonely. But now I did. I missed having people around me, interacting with them - even if they didn't consider themselves people.

This game - if that's what it was - was beginning to feel more important than anything going on in my real life. If I managed to win the war for the Hadyks, would it be game over for me? Would I go to sleep there, and wake up here, stuck for good? It wasn't that I wanted to prolong the war for ever, but my mind kept returning to the subject of life without the Decapolis. I didn't like those thoughts.

I would miss Deondra and Malusha. Jashi, too. I couldn't say the same for Lady Rona and her son, but I would miss the place. And I would miss the possibility of Stephanie. I wasn't at all sure that Rona had actually promised me her daughter, but it was sort of possible, wasn't it? After all, if we won the war, and the Matriarch eliminated all of the other families, who would there be left for Stephanie to marry? Never mind that I wasn't even sure if I wanted to marry her; it was the possibility that intrigued me.

I would probably miss Peony most. It might sound odd, but of all the people I'd met in the Decapolis, I could most easily imagine her in the real world. A friend, who gave good advice. Someone I could talk to - a female - without getting nervous.

Sure, I could talk to Jashi or Deondra about strategy and tactics, just like I had some online friends who were female. But all we really talked about was gaming. I just felt like I could talk to Peony about anything. And that led me to some odd thoughts.

That night, I had no real interest in playing another game. I studied my own home-made map of the Decapolis, and tried to work out what our enemies might do next. It wasn't especially conducive to getting to sleep early.

***

I woke up in Hyacinth, wearing the loose blue t-shirt and grey track pants I'd had on yesterday. Peony must have been telepathic, because she came into my chamber a moment later, bearing a tray.

- "Good morning, Lord Daniel." she said, cheerily. "I took the liberty of bringing you a little something for breakfast, just in case Lady Rona calls for you early. Apple juice, and some toasted bread with butter. I can get you more, if you're hungry. Or something different, if you prefer."

- "No, that's fine, Peony. Thank you."

Lady Rona did call for me early. The dining room was full of Hadyks, and so was the Map Room. It seemed as though our planning session was going to be a more public one, this time.

- "I have made a few diplomatic moves." said the Matriarch. "Messengers were sent to the Balabans, proposing an alliance. I have offered them the city of Caladium, while we take Eglantine."

The Morcars would be eliminated. The Balabans would then have four production centres, while the Hadyks had six. After a short peace, Lady Rona would then declare war on them. The Balabans would have to be complete fools not to see that.

- "Did you say moves, Lady? Plural?"

- "Of course. I offered the Morcars Amaranth and Bryony if we are allowed to recover Dahlia."

- "Umm... what if they compare notes with the Balabans?"

She frowned. "What does that matter? If either one accepts my proposal, then we win. If they don't discuss it with their ally, then it sows distrust between them. Even if they both refuse, they will have to consider when to offer us something similar, should they begin to win."

Brutal. But then again, Lady Rona knew the Balabans and Morcars infinitely better than I did. Maybe her style of diplomacy was what worked here.

"There is bad news, though. Lady Shorr has rejected my offers for a marriage alliance. She will not give us Symenon Shorr, even if we take Falas as well."

Deondra looked genuinely disappointed. Malusha sucked her teeth. She was single; would she have been married to Symenon? Or to Falas?

Lady Rona turned to me. "That makes our next moves all the more important. What do you suggest, Warlord?"

- "Hopefully a better plan than your last one." said Moran, with a sneer.

- "Moran." said Lady Rona.

- "What? He bungled the job. Cost us Dahlia."

- "And gained us Goldenrod." said Malusha. "Don't be a fool, Moran: no one could have predicted that the Balabans would have those towers."

- "Enough!" snapped Lady Rona. "I am not here to listen to your bickering." She glared at each of them in turn. "Go ahead, Warlord."

- "I have a question, Lady Rona."

- "Which is?"

- "Can you create picks and shovels from the Touchstones? Hundreds of them?"

- "Why would you want hundreds of picks and shovels?"

- "So that we can dig a moat - a ditch, if you prefer - around each one of our production centres. Fifteen feet wide, and five feet deep."

Deondra's eyes went wide, and Malusha actually burst into laughter. Stephanie got it, too, I think; when Lady Rona still looked confused, her daughter leaned over and whispered an explanation.

- "Ah." said the Matriarch. "As a defence against these siege towers. I see."

- "If you want to dig them even deeper, it would also make enemy siege ladders too short to reach the top of our walls. Flax and Hyacinth should be our first priorities, Goldenrod and Ivy second."

- "That is an excellent suggestion." conceded Lady Rona.

- "Then why didn't he think of it sooner!" complained Moran.

- "Enough, Moran. You are excused." said his mother. Apparently even she had had enough of his interruptions. Or maybe it was just that, by that point, he had already served his purpose. It didn't look as good to have him bitching at me if I was making sound sense.

Moran left in huff. He did a very convincing huff.

I was then invited to give my ideas on the coming campaign. I tried to ignore the extra people in the Map Room. I was really only speaking to Rona and Stephanie, Deondra and Malusha, and possibly Deondra's father, Aymort.

- "We have to reinforce the garrison at Ivy, and rebuild Jashi's screening force. She did an excellent job in Turn Two. I would like to promote her to the rank of Colonel, as well."

- "What is that?" asked Malusha.

- "A rank higher than Captain, but still less than General. It's mostly just an honour, really, but she deserves it."

- "Oh."

- "My father would agree." said Deondra. "He said that the victory at Ivy was largely hers." Lord Aymort went up another notch in my estimation.

- "I will consider it." said Rona.

- "I don't think that the Morcars will make another attempt at Ivy, but we have to be careful. The same goes for garrisoning Goldenrod."

- "But the main army is there."

- "The main army will be moving. We'll build field armies in Flax, Hyacinth, and Goldenrod. Then we'll move towards Dahlia, and locate the Balabans' army."

- "Really?" said Deondra. "You would seek a battle?"

- "I don't see another option. With those siege towers, they can capture any city, even if we have thousands of infantry in the garrison. We were lucky at Goldenrod; the archers were very effective. But our next attempt to storm a city could prove to be very costly. And all that would achieve is to trade cities with the enemy again. We have to break that cycle."

Lady Rona and her daughter exchanged a look. Neither one looked particularly keen about the prospect of an enormous battle. For the moment, though, nobody had a better idea.

In the afternoon, I travelled by Portal to Ivy with Lord Aymort. He was going to reprise his role as Commander of the garrison. We discussed a build that would leave him with enough troops to feel confident if the Morcars attacked again. He was very glad to hear that Jashi would once again be screening the city with her mobile force.

But it was really her that I'd come to see. Her role in Turn Three was going to begin the same way as in Turn Two, but if I guessed correctly about the Morcars' intentions, then I had additional orders for Jashi that would saddle her with additional responsibility.

Then I told her about her promotion.

- "Colonel? I don't understand."

- "It's a rank. An honour. Above Captain, but below General. Think of this way: it will make the Hadyks more likely to accept when I give you more troops and another independent command."

She smiled at that. "Thank you, Warlord. But shouldn't you save this role for someone more deserving? Like Sudha? Or Wantrao?"

- "There can be several Colonels. For now, Wantrao is too... controversial. I'm also not certain if he's suited to independent command. But you're right in one sense: another performance like at Jacaranda, and he'll certainly deserve the rank. Sudha has to prove herself. Armene might be another candidate."

I went through the Portal again, this time to Jacaranda. Wantrao was exercising in the yard.

- "Ah! The mighty Warlord returns, to grace us with his presence!" he said, with just a bit of a curl in his lip.

- "You know," I said, "the only other person who speaks to me that way is Moran Hadyk."

That put Wantrao on his back foot. I knew that he didn't like being compared to that cocky little shit. Not one bit. But I'd also referred to him as a person.

"Look, I won't ask you to bow and scrape." I said. "Just don't try to embarrass me in front of others."

That confused him, too. He looked around. "But there are only peons here."

- "Peons have feelings, too, Wantrao. Of all people, you should know that. And if they're going to follow us into battle, it wouldn't hurt if they had some respect for us."

- "Follow us?" he said, grinning now. "Does that mean that you intend to lead from the front this time, Warlord?"

I had to smile back. "Okay, you got me. Poor choice of words. Never mind. How are you feeling?"

- "Fit. Restless."

- "Good." In real time, it had only been a matter of days since he'd been seriously wounded. But apparently the end of a Turn and the beginning of another were like pushing some kind of reset button. Wantrao was good to go.

I gave him a rough outline of what I expected from him. He didn't like all of it, of course, but his curiosity was certainly piqued when I mentioned the possibility of promotion. I explained the term 'Colonel' for the third time that day.

- "Why would you do such a thing?" he asked.

- "To give you status. To allow me to give you more responsibility in future, without being told that I have to employ a Hadyk family member."

- "You're serious."

- "Of course I'm serious. I was at the storm of Jacaranda, remember? Even if I didn't lead from the front, I saw what you did."

Wantrao's eyes narrowed. "Are you doing this to tweak Lady Rona's nose?"

- "First off, I haven't done it yet. You'll need to perform well again. Preferably without almost getting yourself killed." Then I grinned just a little. "But in answer to your question... maybe. A little."

He grinned back. "They will shit themselves!"

- "If we win this battle, I won't care. My position will be unassailable, and you'll be building on yours."

- "Be careful, Warlord: no position is unassailable."

I probably should have paid more attention to what he'd said, but I was a little carried away, I guess, by the fact that we were apparently getting along.

Wantrao and I travelled by Portal to Goldenrod, where I called a meeting that included Sudha, Armene, Inzhay and Virdyan. Inzhay's broken rib wouldn't be fully healed, but he wasn't necessarily a 'lead from the front' guy, either.

They all deserved to know the outline of my plans, since they were all directly involved. I'll admit that I also wanted to see how they would interact with Wantrao (and he with them).

I had to do too much of the talking, so I wasn't able to just sit back and observe. I should have thought about that beforehand. Maybe I should have brought Peony along as some kind of secretary. But I got the impression that the others weren't overly fond of Wantrao. It wasn't that they were prejudiced against him; they just didn't like him very much. Given the behaviour he was capable of, that shouldn't have come as a surprise.

As for Wantrao himself, he was remarkably... restrained. I don't think that he liked most of them either. But then I caught him looking at Sudha. That was it. She was an astonishingly beautiful woman, and Wantrao wasn't immune. He didn't want to be a complete asshole in front of her.

Good to know.

I also explained Jashi's promotion, and the concept of a colonelcy (again). I didn't hesitate to let Armene know that she had the inside track on the next promotion.

- "You've already distinguished yourself twice." I told her. "You don't have to perform superhuman feats this Turn. Just do your job, and don't get yourself killed. I need talented officers much more than dead heroes. That goes for all of you."

Much as I was tempted to go to Flax next, and meet Malusha's mother (and Wantrao's), I returned to Hyacinth. There was more discussion of builds, and Lady Rona informed me that she could indeed create picks and shovels from the Touchstone. She had gone ahead and made 500 of them at Flax, where the garrison had already begun digging a moat.

I had something to eat, and then retired to my chamber to go over my projected numbers for the army one more time. But Peony was waiting for me - and she wasn't alone. There were two people with her.

- "Lord Daniel, may I present Boloda?"

Boloda was a burly older female, built like a linebacker. She kept her hair short, which did nothing to soften the contours of her square face. I'd read the expression 'lantern-jawed' before; I'd just never seen it in person. Boloda had bright blue eyes, and a horrific set of scars both above and below her left eye. She had no eyebrow on that side. I realized that I was staring.

- "Fell off a wall in the middle of a battle." she said. "Landed on my face. Stung a bit. Pleased to meet you, Warlord."

- "And this is Kisel." said Peony, indicating the third person in the room.

He was a slender male, probably in his thirties, with blonde hair, and a beard and mustache. He wore a battered suit of chain mail, and sported facial scars of his own.

- "Pleased to meet you." I said, as I finally remembered my manners. I extended my hand as well.

The man didn't reply. He just looked at my hand.

- "Is that a form of greeting, Lord?" asked Peony. Only then did I realize that I hadn't shaken anyone's hand.

- "Yes. It's... it's called a handshake. An empty hand shows that you're not armed, and, well, I suppose it replaced bowing. More of a greeting between equals."

Boloda's one remaining eyebrow shot up, and she looked to Peony, who promptly flushed.

- "I've been trying to explain some of your ways, Lord Daniel." she said. "Obviously I didn't know about this greeting."

- "Interesting, though." said Boloda. She tentatively extended her own hand.

I took it. "Sorry, I should have responded to your greeting. Pleased to meet you - especially if you're friends of Peony." Then I offered Kisel my hand again. He took it with his left hand, because he didn't have a right hand.

- "I asked Boloda and Kisel to come to meet you, to see if you would accept them."

- "Accept them? As officers?"

Boloda chuckled at that. "No, Lord. I don't move so well anymore. Hurt my leg, too, when I fell off that wall. Plus I'm getting a little long in the tooth. Can't march with the army, or climb ladders all that well. Now I'm more of an instructor."

- "Boloda teaches the young Hadyks and Half-Hadyks. Weaponry and combat skills." said Peony.

- "Could you teach me?" I asked.

- "You need teaching?" asked Boloda. "Or you just to learn a new style or two?"

- "I've never held a real sword in my life."

- "Oh. Hmm... you look a bit old to start training now."

- "Better late than never."

- "Maybe." said Boloda. "But keeping you out of fights might be the best way to keep you alive. Peony suggested that Kisel and I could be your bodyguards. Or attendants, if you prefer. When you have questions that you don't want to ask a Hadyk, and Peony's not around."

- "I wouldn't want to take you away from your teaching. Or other duties." I said.

- "We're at war, Lord. My students, thankfully, are too young to fight in this one. There'll be plenty of time to train them before the next one. Nobody has any real use for me at the moment, so it'd be no trouble to pose as your trainer."

- "Kisel isn't an officer either?"

- "No." said Boloda. "Kisel's mute. Can't shout out orders, so he can't lead troops. They sent him into battle to hunt other halfs. That's how he lost his hand. People tend to forget that he isn't deaf, though. Kisel was at Dahlia, fighting on the wall. They nearly left him behind when the retreat started. Peony said that you wanted to speak to someone who was there."

- "Umm..."

- "He can't talk. But Kisel can answer questions. Especially if they're yes or no answers. Don't make the mistake of underestimating him, Lord."

Did I need bodyguards? Peony thought so, and Boloda seemed to agree with her. It wouldn't hurt to have attendants, or aides - extra eyes and ears. Both were experienced fighters, and I wouldn't be embarrassed to learn from them. And if Peony was vouching for them, I could probably trust them.

- "Would you be willing to attend me? As bodyguards, or aides?"

Boloda's lopsided grin was answer enough.

***

We built double standard garrisons in our front-line cities (Ivy, Flax, and Hyacinth). We also reinforced Jashi's screening force so that she had enough light cavalry and horsed archers. In Jacaranda, we built mostly infantry.

Then I used simple triangulation to choose a meeting point for the main army (with the build from Goldenrod), and the reinforcements coming from Hyacinth and Flax.

Lady Rona didn't officially approve Jashi's promotion, but I just went ahead and started referring to her as Colonel Jashi. The Hadyk Matriarch didn't tell me to stop.

It wasn't too hard to guess what the enemy would do; their options were limited. If they didn't try another attack against Ivy (the wiser course), the Morcars could send reinforcements from Eglantine to Caladium. They could build a field army in Caladium, and have it join their forces outside Dahlia.

The Balabans could send troops from Bryony to Amaranth, while a field army from Amaranth went to join their main force at Dahlia.

I played an exhausting game of fifty questions with Kisel, assisted by Boloda, trying to learn what I could about the fall of Dahlia. The siege towers had been a terrible surprise, and the morale of our commanders and officers had been undermined from the start. Shooting arrows at the towers had been a complete waste.

Enver and Moran might have begun to concede a little too early. Kisel believed that there were still more than a thousand troops fighting hard when father and son left through the Portal. That was bad news; it meant that the Balabans might have taken (and converted) more prisoners at Dahlia than we had at Goldenrod.

I slept that last night at Hyacinth. I offered to get cots for Boloda and Kisel, and let them share my chamber. That seemed to catch them by surprise. Boloda looked to Peony.

- "Lord Daniel sleeps alone." she said. "It might be a good idea for you to become accustomed to sleeping nearby."

Peony needed a little reminder; she'd started calling me 'Lord' again a little too often. Boloda didn't have that problem; having trained so many family members, she just casually avoided the honorifics. I didn't have to remind Kisel not to call me 'Lord'.

***

Deondra and I went to Goldenrod, where all of my half-Hadyk officers were already gathered. Malusha went to Flax, to lead the reinforcements from there. Stephanie would bring the Hyacinth forces. Unfortunately, her brother would be accompanying her.

Stephanie had a good idea of how little I wanted him with the army. "Don't worry." she said. "I'll make sure that he's under my direct command, or given a task where you won't have to interact with him."

Turn Three began. I sent out my scouting parties, and we marched. There was really nothing interesting about our journey; we travelled across a vast putting green, past occasional copses of five or six trees. We had the greatest distance to cover, so we only reached the rendezvous point the next morning. Stephanie and Malusha were already there.

The next phase of the campaign rested on one of my least-favourite activities: waiting. By now, the enemy at Dahlia had been reinforced by two field armies. We waited for our scouts to discover which way their combined host would move.

The answer came in just before nightfall: they were marching in the direction of Flax, with their four siege towers. The scouts had done a magnificent job of identifying and counting the enemy units. The Morcars had just over three thousand troops, the Balabans just under seven thousand. Ten thousand soldiers, then. We had only a slight advantage in numbers, with slightly less than eleven thousand. There wasn't much to choose between the two armies in terms of quality or morale. Everything would hinge on leadership and battle plans.

We actually pulled our troops back, so that we wouldn't be immediately discovered if the enemy sent forward light cavalry units. It was not part of my plan for them to find out where we were just yet. Nor did I want to force a battle too soon.

The siege engines, as we'd predicted, slowed down their movement. Over rough terrain, or facing a major river or mountains, they couldn't have done it all. They were still more than a day away from Flax when their light cavalry encountered ours.

Sudha was in command, and she did an excellent job of preventing the enemy from getting a good look at our army, without revealing the fact that she had hobelars as well as light cavalry. There was some skirmishing, but more feints and maneuvers than actual combat. She sparred with our opponents, but did not fully engage, just as I'd asked her to.

Most of our officers didn't know why we were delaying; some didn't like it. The more aggressive would have preferred to attack at the first opportunity. Armene paced and cursed, while Wantrao fretted and cracked his knuckles incessantly. He might have complained openly, if not for the fact that Moran Hadyk was monopolizing that particular activity. Moran didn't directly accuse me of cowardice, but came very close; he also loudly predicted that I was letting victory slip from our grasp.

That was just stupid. The Morcars and Balabans, slowed by their siege engines, couldn't possibly outrun us. We could force a fight whenever we were ready. I just wasn't ready. I was waiting on messengers. They arrived on the fourth day.

I moved the entire army for an hour just before dusk, so that we would be in position at first light. This was not something I would have done with human soldiers or real horses, but the peons wouldn't be negatively affected by shifting our camp.

Then I called all of the key officers except Sudha to a meeting. I didn't invite her, because I'd already given her a thorough idea of what I intended, and what I expected of her and her troops - even if I wasn't quite sure where they would be deployed.

Everybody else got a short pep-talk.

- "We have a slight advantage in numbers." I told them. "We are also fighting as one army, while they are two separate forces who probably don't fully trust each other. I believe that we also have better leadership, in the person of our officers."

- "Some of them." muttered Moran.

One of these days, there was going to be a very short, but very intense meeting between his face and my fist. For now, though, I pretended not to have heard.

- "We will move as early as possible tomorrow morning. Lady Stephanie will have the bulk of our forces, to face the Balabans. Lady Deondra will line up against the Morcars. Lord Moran will lead the heavy cavalry. Everyone else, you know your assignments. Get some sleep if you can."

I doubted that I was going to be able to sleep. It wouldn't hurt, I suppose, to move around the camp, so that any officer who was unsure about their role could ask about it more privately, rather than admitting it in front of all the others.

Boloda and Kisel followed me just about everywhere I went, with one exception.

- "You can pee over there." said Boloda. "We'll wait here."

She had a wide range of knowledge, based on her experience, but she was also quite clever, and had an oddball sense of humour.

- "I could arrange to have him killed, if you want." said Boloda.

- "What?"

- "Little puke. It could save us all a lot of trouble."

- "Who?" I asked, even though I suspected that I knew very well who she meant.

- "Come on. He makes everyone want to puke. But that's not how he got the nickname. He was still young, but already bothering some of the female peons - takes after his father in that regard. I was training him in archery. He was being... well, just being himself, I suppose. I 'accidentally' gave him a sharp rap in the gonads with my bow. He had himself a little puke, right then and there."

We had only been together a few days, but I was quickly getting a feel for Boloda's sense of humour.

- "Is that a true story?"

- "Ask him if you don't believe me."

There was an added effect of having Boloda with me. She knew all of the Hadyks, and all of the half-Hadyks. She'd trained every single one of them. And every last one of them showed her respect, if not affection. Even Wantrao, if you can believe it. I asked her about it.

- "Puppy?" she said. "He was eatin' out of my hand."

- "You're joking. Right?"

- "He wanted to know everything I could possibly teach him. Every trick, every dodge. Wantrao was a very dedicated student."

- "Hard to believe."

We made a tour of the army. The troops were all awake, and apparently all aware of us. They watched as we passed, but kept a respectful distance. I greeted some with a brief nod, others with a gesture halfway between a wave and a salute.

"Why does it look like everybody's awake?" I asked Boloda.

- "Because they are. D'you think a General has ever walked among them before a battle?"

- "But... many of them were only created a few days ago."

- "Collective memory." she said. "They know how to fight, and how to speak, without having to be taught. Makes me wonder if they're created, or re-created, if you know what I mean. They themselves don't know."

- "You've asked? And they talk to you?" I stopped walking, to turn and look at her.

- "They talk all the time, Warlord. Just not when 'people' are around. Lately they'll all been talking about you."

- "Me?"

- "You're the Warlord. You're new, and you're different. Plus they've been seeing you talk to half-Hadyks more than any other Hadyk. And you talk to peons. Pudge won't shut up about it."

- "Pudge? But... he's never said a word to me."

- "He may not talk to you, but he talks about you. So does your scout, Chalky. That's another chatterbox, there."

- "I didn't know."

- "Course you didn't. But try to see it from their side: the only time a Hadyk speaks to a peon is to give an order, or because they want to have sex with them. You talk to them, and you haven't ordered Peony into your bed."

My embarrassment was complete. "They all... everyone knows that?"

- "See? You keep using words for 'people', and applying them to halfs and even to peons. Did you think they wouldn't notice?" She snorted. "They're just like Kisel; just because they don't speak doesn't mean they can't hear."

I hadn't given it any thought. Most of the time, I was mulling over strategy. When I did think about people - individuals - it was Hadyk family members, half-Hadyk officers, or Peony. I didn't differentiate between them based on who was a 'person'.

Well, if it meant something to them, then why not embrace it?

I walked over to the nearest group of troops. From their limited armour, they were light infantry.

- "Good luck tomorrow." I said. "It'll be hard fighting, but we're going to win." I extended my hand. The soldiers just looked at it, as Kisel had.

- "He wants you to take his hand." said Boloda. "It's a greeting."

The troopers continued to stare. Finally, on of the female soldiers cautiously raised her hand. I took it in mine, and gave it a squeeze.

- "I'm Daniel. What's your name?"

Her eyes were wide. She looked paralyzed.

- "P... Plucky."

- Pleased to meet you, Plucky. Good luck tomorrow."

Two of her comrades shyly offered their hands. I met Shorty and Melo. Shorty was almost six feet tall, and Melo might have been Mellow, for all I know.

I don't know how the word spread, because I didn't hear the babble of voices, but by the time we reached the next light infantry unit, there were three times as many troopers ready to shake my hand. I met Windy, Biggest, Helps and Chatty. I met another Nosey, which prompted me to ask how they could tell this fellow apart from the guard I knew back in Hyacinth. The answer - which I should have guessed, was that there was generally only one Nosey per unit. The troopers all knew their unit designations, so this Nosey was Nosey LI9H (ninth light infantry unit created in Hyacinth).

Anyone else with a big nose in the same company got a different name. I met a Beak, a Hooky, and a poor fellow named Nostrils.

I shook a lot of hands. Hundreds of them. I couldn't meet the entire army (there were almost eleven thousand of them), but I shook hands until my fingers were too sore to continue. I met twenty-four troopers named Nosey and one named Balls (No, I didn't ask).

I have no idea what it meant to them. It had quite an effect on me, though. I started looking at individuals, and in many cases tried to guess what their name might be. One fellow was so good-looking that I would have guessed 'Handsome'; his name was Face.

My hand was sore, and it was getting late. I called an end to our tour.

- "You can talk to them after the battle." said Boloda. "There won't be so many, then."

***

The Balabans lined up on our left, the Morcars on our right. Both of them had their light cavalry on their outside flank, while their heavy cavalry was combined, side by side in the centre, a thousand strong. They'd adopted similar formations, with heavy infantry in front, supported by light infantry and archers. The Balaban host also had four enormous siege towers in the middle of their array.

They had a slight numerical advantage in light infantry, and parity in heavy cavalry; otherwise, we had the edge. I allocated two thirds of our troops to Stephanie, opposite the Balabans. Her job was to hold them. I assigned Armene and Inzhay to her, to give her at least one offensive and one defensive officer. Her idiot brother was with the heavy cavalry, where he could enjoy himself and hopefully remain too busy to negatively affect our strategy.

Deondra had a little over two thousand infantry on our right, to face the Morcars. But she had Malusha and Wantrao as sub-commanders, because my plan was to break the Morcars first. They were the junior partners, now, in the enemy alliance. Their confidence had to be slightly shaken by the loss of Goldenrod, and their costly defeat when we'd turned the Shorr field armies by capturing Jacaranda and then Ivy.

The peon troopers on both sides might be much the same, but units did have a morale component. It was based on their leaders. When the officers began to worry about their own survival, and their thoughts turned to extricating themselves from danger, then their loss of nerve began to affect their troops. If they did flee the field, the soldiers under their command were pretty much done.

The Morcar officers didn't have as many soldiers to protect them. I was going to make it even more dangerous for them by putting Malusha and Wantrao in their faces.

But my main effort was going to be on the extreme right. On the extreme left, I put Virdyan in command of the light cavalry, and gave him nine units to oppose the Balabans' eight. He too was ordered to skirmish, to spar, and to avoid over-extending.

But on the right? The Morcars had six light cavalry. I gave Sudha the command there, with nine light cavalry and our four hobelar units. She had a two to one advantage in numbers, and a weapon (mounted archers) that these enemy units would not have seen yet.

I had three significant advantages; I unleashed two of them at the very beginning of the battle. Malusha and Wantrao led our infantry against the Morcars, and Sudha charged at the Morcar light cavalry.

It was bad enough that they were outnumbered three to two. But whenever one of their companies was exposed, it was showered with arrows. The bow shots didn't have to be accurate; their cumulative effect was tremendous. Sudha was clever, and she was quick. She didn't miss an opportunity to increase our advantage.

I was watching the whole battlefield, of course. The heavy cavalry clashed in the very centre, while Virdyan was able to spar on the left. The Balabans weren't expecting to win a light cavalry fight there. Instead, they came forward with their infantry. Stephanie and Armene would have to hold.

Sudha was winning. I believe that she would have won outright, but then my third major advantage arrived on the battlefield, directly behind the enemy host.

Jashi.

She'd done her job, thoroughly scouting between Ivy, Eglantine and Goldenrod. The Morcars weren't going to try for Ivy again. So she sent messengers, and did precisely what I'd asked her to do: she rode south. When her next messengers arrived, I knew that she was in position, so I decided to give battle.

Jashi arrived with six light cavalry units, and three units of mounted archers. The Morcar cavalry facing Sudha were clearly losing; now they saw their doom. They fled.

The Morcar infantry numbered only 2,100. They had Malusha and Wantrao attacking them in the front, Sudha victorious on their flank, and Jashi in their rear. Our hobelars weren't horse archers, but when their target was two thousand tightly-packed infantry, most of those lightly or completely unarmoured... they did considerable damage.

I don't know how long classic historical battles lasted. From what I'd read, some of them went on for more than a day. There must have been some that were short. The Battle of the Towers, as it became known, was essentially decided in the first twenty minutes.

The Morcars were broken. Their light cavalry flank protection fled. Assailed on three sides, overwhelmed by arrows, and facing Malusha and Wantrao, their infantry collapsed as the leaders chose discretion over valour.

Meanwhile, the Balabans committed their infantry to an all-out assault on Stephanie's forces. She held. Armene performed prodigies.

The heavy cavalry, in the very centre, were slow to realize that they were being subjected to archer fire whenever they weren't closely engaged with our heavy horse. This wasn't the horse archers; the moment the Morcars broke, Deondra deployed her infantry archers to fire at the enemy horsemen in the centre.

It was like folding an omelette, or closing a sandwich. Our right wing ran out of Morcars to fight, because our enemy ran away. Our soldiers simply pivoted to the left, and found new targets.

Jashi's troopers took off in pursuit of the fleeing Morcars. Sudha re-organized her units, and swung all the way around the armies to take the Balaban light cavalry in the rear.

There was stiff fighting between Stephanie's front line and the Balabans', both composed largely of heavy infantry. Archers on both sides launched their arrows over the armoured infantry, seeking softer targets behind. Casualties would be heavy, but nothing compared to when an army broke. That was when the real killing began.

The Balabans showed courage. This was their main field army - their only army, essentially. It only made sense that most of their family members who could command and fight would be here. But that cost them, because they stayed to fight longer than I would have, in their place.

Was it because they didn't want to give up their precious siege towers? Those were effectively lost when the Morcars fled the field. Now, on one flank, the Balabans had Deondra's victorious forces to deal with, and her archers could hardly miss. Sudha and Virdyan together trashed their light cavalry on the opposite flank. Their heavy cavalry didn't want to be surrounded, so they turned and tried to cut their way out of the trap.

It was once again the family members who fled the field first. They left the half-family to fight on, but those more junior officers could be killed, so they didn't stay for long, either. A few even surrendered, rather than run the gauntlet of our archers and light cavalry.

I gave the signal for Sudha to join the pursuit, and for Virdyan to rally. He didn't really have the temperament for relentless harrying, and I thought it best to keep a reserve of light cavalry available. Besides, Armene and Wantrao did have that temperament, and were soon leading over two thousand of our light infantry in pursuit of the fleeing Balabans.

Moran joined the chase with half of our heavy cavalry. I went to find Stephanie, the only person who could possibly rein him in. Otherwise, he was likely to get into trouble. The heavies were powerful, but slow, and with limited stamina. The only units they could catch up to were other heavy cavalry, or heavy infantry - coincidentally, the two troop types that armoured horsemen should not charge at indiscriminately. If they were running, or seriously disrupted, yes; but if they formed ranks, or even a rough square, then definitely not. Could Moran tell the difference?

Meanwhile, our heavy infantry were happy to round up prisoners, and to take possession of the siege towers, which were significant prizes. I wasn't at all surprised that the enemy hadn't tried to destroy them. After all, how could they? Fire? They wouldn't be carrying barrels of oil. But it was more likely that the thought of damaging the Gift of the Gods would have been inconceivable to them.

With Boloda and Kisel at my back, I trotted over to join Stephanie. She was beaming.

- "Just as you predicted." she said. "Again."

- "You held the line, against the Balabans. It wouldn't have worked, otherwise. Lady, is there any chance you could recall your brother? I don't want him getting into trouble."

- "I can try, though it probably won't do much good. He is unlikely to stop until he can no longer lift his arm." She looked at me coolly. She had to know that it would hardly break my heart if the idiot got himself killed. I didn't want him losing troops unnecessarily, though, from recklessness or sheer stupidity.

With Deondra's help, we got the prisoners taken aside, and then reorganized our infantry. Light troops took over the siege towers. Less than an hour later, we were marching for Dahlia, dragging our prizes along.

***

The Battle of the Towers was more decisive than even I had hoped. The Morcars suffered the worst, proportionately speaking: just over 2,000 killed, many of those as Jashi pursued them halfway to Caladium. 300 more were captured, which meant that only 700 escaped. The family members got away safely, but three half-Morcars were captured.

The Balabans lost 2,500 killed, and 700 captured, including one family member and five half-Balabans. They'd also lost their boon from the Gods; the siege towers were ours, and we meant to use them against our enemies as soon as possible. Over three thousand of their troops escaped, but at least five hundred of those were light infantry built at Dahlia, and thus linked to its Touchstone. It was a long way to Amaranth; better to have them defend the city than to transform into Hadyk soldiers if we succeeded in capturing the city before they could reach a new Touchstone.

Our losses, in the end, were 1,700. That struck me as awfully high, until I realized that, proportionately speaking, it was less than 15% of our total force. The Morcars, by contrast, had lost three quarters of their army killed and captured, and the Balabans almost half of theirs.

Credit for such an amazing margin of victory belonged to Sudha and Jashi. Everyone was going to get their share of the laurels - yes, even the idiot - but I made it known that those two were top of the list. Jashi had more than confirmed her promotion. If I had my way, there would be at least three more new Colonels: Sudha, Armene, and Wantrao (who had survived mostly unscathed).

I was congratulated multiple times. Nice as that was, I had to get the army moving. The officers still on the battlefield were in a celebratory mood, but that would have to wait. I had to bully them, to get the troops going. We had a victory to exploit, and siege towers to drag to Dahlia.

Inzhay might not have been a great fighter, but he was very good at organizing hundreds of light infantry into squads who would take turns pulling the towers along. Armene got her troops to move dead bodies (both peons and horses), clearing a path for the cumbersome siege engines.

Deondra and Stephanie supervised the whole move, while Virdyan's remaining light cavalry kept their eyes open. I didn't expect any more enemy troops to be anywhere nearby, but overconfidence is the mother of disaster.

Wantrao was limping a bit. We put him on a horse, and he rode along just behind me. Then I realized that two units of heavy infantry were keeping pace with us, one to either side. Both of them had been in Deondra's force, serving directly under Wantrao.

I called to him.

- "Wantrao? Is this just a coincidence?"

- "Coincidence?" he said, feigning ignorance.

- "Two of your units marching along beside me. Honour guard, or extended bodyguard?"

Boloda answered for him. "Happy coincidence, Lord. Just pretend that's what it is."

- "Why, Boloda?"

- "Do you think that we can take Dahlia?" she asked, answering my question with her own.

- "With the siege towers? Of course we can."

- "You may not be the only one who can see that." she said.

- "Meaning?"

- "Doesn't take a genius to figure out that we'll have six production centres. The Shorrs are gone. The Morcars have been defeated twice and lost a city. Now the Balabans have also been thrashed, and they've lost their boon. Looks like the Hadyks have the upper hand, doesn't it?"

- "Yes. What are you trying to say, Boloda?"

- "What if someone decides that the family can win on their own from here on? Without a Warlord?"

She'd hinted at this before. Upon reflection, I think that maybe Peony had been hinting at something similar. After all, it was her idea for me to have bodyguards in the first place.

We had managed to find two hours, so far, for training. Boloda attempted to teach me to handle a sword. Now, I'm not particularly coordinated, borderline obese, and a lifelong nerd (or geek) who took two years of judo classes when I was seven, where I managed to learn to fall without injuring myself. I was already too big to train with kids my own age, so Sensei matched me up with older students, who happily tripped me and slammed me to the mat.

After an hour of Boloda's tutelage, she came to an easy decision.

- "Alright. Not swords."

We tried a bow and arrows, and then a spear. "Right." she said. "Have you ever used a club?"

Now, after a major victory, she was even more concerned about my safety.

- "You really think I could be in danger?" I said.

Boloda just looked at me. It was Wantrao who answered.

- "From indispensable to expendable, in three easy Turns." he said.

Stephanie and her small entourage (a junior family member and two half-Hadyks) came over to ride beside me. Boloda and Kisel stayed close, but Wantrao dropped back a bit.

- "Ah." she said. Now I see what you were looking at. It is quite a sight."

We were riding slowly, following behind the crews of light infantry hauling the siege towers along.

- "Oh. I wasn't really..."

- "There's no need to be modest, Lord Daniel. This is possibly the greatest victory in the history of the family. It is most certainly the greatest campaign. You should be very proud."

- "It's a shared achievement, Lady."

- "Of course. But without your leadership, I know that we would definitely not be here today. I mean no disrespect to my cousin Deondra; she is a fine strategist. But your plans have been inspired."

If she was trying to get me to blush, she was succeeding. I thanked her. For another few moments, we walked our horses in silence.

"I have to ask, though." she continued. "Is it absolutely necessary to have that officer so close by?" She managed to roll her eyes in such a way that I knew she wasn't referring to my bodyguards. Wantrao was riding just a bit further back.

- "We wouldn't have taken Jacaranda without him, Lady." I reminded her. "And he fought well today, too. He's one of the best we have."

- "You may find that he's not welcome at family gatherings, though. It would not help your reputation to be seen with him too often."

Was I surprised? Unfortunately, no. I was disappointed, though. I still held out hope that Stephanie wasn't cut from the same cloth as her mother. Did she really expect me to shun Wantrao, but remain civil to her brother?

There was no significant obstacle between us and Dahlia. No enemy forces remained in the vicinity, and the ground was flat and level as a decent billiards table. Stephanie didn't understand why I insisted on rotating the teams who were dragging the siege engines.

- "They don't tire as we do. You know that by now, don't you?"

I couldn't tell her that I thought of them as people. That was too alien a concept. I tried to put it in terms that she would understand.

- "It's more for my own instruction." I said. "I'm curious to see if these units are at all competitive. Will these troops pull harder than the last crew? Will they try to cover more ground? I'm trying to find out if they can be motivated in this way."

Stephanie plainly didn't think so, but she allowed me to continue my experiment until dusk. We stopped then, and made camp.

***

We reached Dahlia the next day, in the early afternoon. Stephanie, Deondra and I were all agreed. We didn't want to risk waiting too long, for fear that the Turn would suddenly end. It was highly unlikely, but if the Balabans were given a chance to build new units in the city, then we could end up facing another 1,500 light infantry, or worse yet, 1,000 more archers.

On the other hand, we didn't want to rush our own preparations, or to attack without our best family members to lead the way. That meant Malusha, obviously. She was still off pursuing fugitives from yesterday's battle. Stephanie also suggested waiting for Moran, who also had not returned.

Malusha came back just before dark, exhausted but happy. There was no sign of Moran. The next morning, we pushed the siege engines up to the walls of Dahlia.

There were probably a thousand defenders inside the walls, and several hundred of those were archers. They hardly dared to interfere with our attack, though, as our archers outnumbered them five or six to one. In fact, I would say that morale was at rock bottom even before Malusha, Wantrao, and Armene reached the ramparts.

The troops' morale, of course, was affected by the confidence of their officers. The Balaban family and the half-Balabans apparently had next to none of that commodity. They were beaten before the real fighting began.

It didn't last long. In the space of ten to fifteen minutes, the defenders went from putting up stiff resistance to retreating into the city. At that point, it was essentially over.

Dahlia fell for the second time. We lost two hundred troops, but captured four hundred.

***

The Matriarch had us all return to Hyacinth for a victory celebration. By 'all', I mean all family members. I went through the Portal alone except for my bodyguards, where I was greeted by Peony, Nosey and Pudge. Nosey shook my hand, and Pudge gave me a fist bump. Peony, however, looked concerned.

- "She said no." she said.

- "I know. That's why I'm here."

She nodded, and led me to the dining room, where Lady Rona was having a cup of wine with Stephanie, Deondra, Malusha, and, unfortunately, Moran.

- "There is our victorious champion." said the Matriarch. Was I mistaken, or did she sound a little possessive? Well, I suppose she was entitled to gloat a bit, or to blow her own horn. The Balabans had chosen siege towers as their boon, and their gifts from the Gods were now in our hands, being used against them. The Morcars, we had learned from prisoners, had asked for a genius strategist of their own. So far, they had little to show for it.

But Rona Hadyk had asked for me. Okay, she'd asked for a Warlord, and I was what she got. But it had worked out pretty well for her family, if I do say so myself. I took a deep breath.

- "I am sorry, Lady," I said, "but I've only come to ask you to rescind your decision."

- "My decision?"

- "I asked that you invite some of the half-Hadyk officers. They deserve to be recognized for their efforts. They've shown courage, and shed blood for you."

- "Daniel," she said, "I thought I'd made it plain that this gathering was going to be for family only."

- "They are your family. More than your spouses are. Far more than I am."

- "How dare you! Our spouses become Hadyks the moment they marry into the family! You may not understand that now, but when it happens to you - when you marry my daughter - you will be changed. You will become a Hadyk. Fully."

- "It's true, Daniel." said Stephanie. "You'll understand when it happens. Maybe you could speak to Lord Enver about it. Or Lord Aymort, or Lord Parush, if you prefer. They could all explain it for you."

So there it was. Explicit, cards face up on the table. They were offering me Stephanie if I could win their war. Moran's face looked as if someone had peed in his wine, but Deondra was smiling, and Malusha winked at me.

That was something I would have to think about - later. But I wasn't about to let it derail me now. I had something to say.

- "Then I ask as a future member of the family: why can't we show some appreciation for the half-Hadyks?"

Rona didn't flinch. "That too you will understand when you are one of us."

Moran made a gagging sound, but Stephanie stepped in again. "There is no room for so many at the table, but perhaps we could allow Daniel's officers to be presented to the family, and thank them for their contributions. Perhaps a drink before dinner?" She was speaking to her mother. Cajoling?

Lady Rona scowled, but turned to me. "Would that suffice?"

- "It's a start." I said. Stephanie's compromise was a face-saving solution; I had to give her credit for that. But I wasn't going to stop pushing for more respect for the halfs. I could already imagine the fight I was going to get when I started promoting peons' rights.

- "How many?" said Rona. "And which ones?"

- "Six. Colonel Jashi. Captains Armene, Sudha, Inzhay, Virdyan and Wantrao."

- "No." she said. "Not that one. Absolutely not."

- "Lady, we wouldn't have captured Jacaranda without Wantrao. Malusha can testify to that. He nearly died. And he was in the forefront of the fighting at the Battle of the Towers."

- "No means no, idiot!" shouted Moran.

I could have laughed in his face. I would have, had we been alone. If anyone should have known what those words meant, it was the little prick. But I had far more at stake here than scoring points off Rona's moronic son.

Stephanie shot me a look that seemed to be equal parts sympathy and 'I told you so'. Malusha wouldn't meet my eye.

- "You can bring the others." said Lady Rona. "But not that one. And that is the end of this discussion."

With that, she turned and left the room. A moment later, Moran snarled at me and did the same. Deondra gave me an apologetic look, and followed them. Malusha went, too, without making eye contact.

Stephanie sighed. "While I appreciate your loyalty, I did try to warn you."

- "It's something that has to change, Stephanie."

- "You may see it differently after we are married." she said. "But It's not likely to change while mother is Matriarch."

Interesting. Was that some kind of promise?

I excused myself, and went straight back to the Portal room.

- "Peony?" I asked. "Can you come back with us? I'd like it if you joined us."

- "If you wish it, I would be happy to."

- "I want you to meet... my friends."

Peony laughed. "I've known them longer than you have, Daniel."

Back at Dahlia, there was no one to object when I commandeered the dining room. My six favourite non-family officers were there, plus my bodyguards. And Peony.

- "I tried." I said.

- "He really did." said Boloda. She raised her cup. "Here's to you, Warlord. You've got balls. Never heard anybody speak to Rona like that before."

Peony turned to me. "Excuse me, Daniel." She then proceeded to repeat, almost word for word, what had been said in the dining room at Hyacinth. It was a stunning performance. But in addition to her prodigious memory, what struck me was how attentively the half-Hadyks listened to Peony.

They knew her. Of course they all knew her. She was old enough to be their great-grandmother. She'd probably watched them all grow up. Peony was one of the very first Hadyk peon servants, back when they'd only controlled one supply center. Was she some sort of elder statesman for those who weren't family members?

For a while, these past few days, I'd been imagining Boloda, my irreverent and rather blunt bodyguard, in that role. But wasn't it Peony who had recruited Boloda and Kisel for me? I looked at her very differently right now - as if I was seeing her for the first time.

- "Thank you." said Inzhay. "For trying."

- "What are you talking about?" said Armene. "He succeeded."

- "Not quite." I said.

- "You tried, Warlord." said Wantrao. "And... I appreciate it. But if you keep this up, you're going to get yourself killed."

- "That's what I've been trying to tell him." said Boloda.

Kisel rapped his knuckles on the table. Then he tapped the side of his head.

"You've got to be more careful." said Boloda. Then she frowned at Kisel. "We know that!"

Kisel pointed at Peony.

- "Ah!" said the oldest person in the room. "You can't raise the subject of peons, Daniel. If the Hadyks fear you - if they plan to do away with you - that sort of talk will only accelerate their action."

- "What?" I said. "They just made it plain that I'm to marry Stephanie."

Boloda shook her head. "Hadyk promises. With those and a razor, you can shave your face."

Peony put her hand on my arm. "I'm sorry, Daniel."

- "Who's going, then?" said Boloda.

- "What's the point?" said Armene. "They don't want us there."

- "That's precisely the point. If none of you go, then what Daniel did was pointless."

- "I'd rather not." said Sudha.

- "Understood." I said. Moran would be there. It was one of the reasons I'd asked for her, originally. She'd turned out to be a brilliant commander, though, just as Peony and Jashi had said.

In the end, three of them agreed to accompany me back to Hyacinth: Jashi, Inzhay, and Virdyan. Armene chose to decline.

- "Why?" said Boloda.

- "Look, everybody there is going to know why Sudha didn't make the trip. It doesn't make any point, except that Moran is beyond creepy. So tell them that I said no because Wantrao wasn't included."

There was silence for a moment as we all considered her words.

- "You don't have to do that." said Wantrao.

She scowled at him. "I know."

- "Puts a target on your back, though, Armene." said Boloda.

- "So?"

Peony interjected. "Is that wise? They are already suspicious of Daniel because he praises you Half-Hadyks, and insists on promotions for you. If you take an antagonistic position, doesn't that suggest that Daniel is guilty of the same, simply by association?"

- "Maybe he should be." snapped Armene.

Boloda patted her gently on the shoulder. "Isn't that why we're all here, sweetheart?"

***

"Sudha declined the invitation." I said. "She feels badly that Wantrao was excluded." I could see by their faces that none of the Hadyks gathered in the dining room believed that for a moment. They all knew the real reason she hadn't come. But they also looked sour, probably because I had mentioned Wantrao, 'He who shall not be named'.

"Armene is indisposed, unfortunately. Her wounds were slightly more serious than we thought at first."

- "Will she be available for Turn Four?" asked Deondra. I believe that her question was kindly meant - that it showed a little concern. Unfortunately, it came out sounding like she'd just asked me if we had any spare light bulbs.

- "I believe that she will."

- "Very well, Warlord." said Lady Rona. "You may proceed with your introductions." Her tone said it very clearly. She meant 'Let's get this circus over with'.

- "May I present Colonel Jashi, who was instrumental in the captures of Jacaranda and Ivy, and then spoiled the Morcar attempt to recapture Ivy. I'm sure that Lord Aymort would agree with me there."

- "Of course." he said. Deondra's father was a decent sort, but he still wasn't prepared to stick his neck out too far and risk Rona's wrath. It was too much to hope, though, that Murari would acknowledge his illegitimate daughter - even though every single person in the room knew of their connection (I would have said relationship, except that they didn't have one).

- "Major Inzhay and Major Virdyan have both distinguished themselves in every Turn of the war so far. I have enormous confidence in them."

Uncle Detsen, who'd fathered both men, pretended not to know who they were.

My confidence in them was enormous - but not unlimited. I didn't think they were capable of an independent command, unless it was to command a garrison, or to lead a newly-built field army to a rendezvous.

I'd explained it to them in Dahlia. Neither man had flinched. In fact, they agreed wholeheartedly with my verdict. They knew very well that Jashi and Sudha were a cut above them in terms of strategy and tactics, while Armene and Wantrao were way out of their league when it came to courage, fighting ability, and sheer bloodthirstiness (let's call it ruthlessness).

So I'd promoted Sudha and Armene to Colonel, and Wantrao to Major. I wasn't sure that I trusted the latter two with an independent command just yet, but if I had to pick a third (after Jashi and Sudha), it probably wouldn't be him. To my surprise, Wantrao not only didn't mind - he approved.

So did most of the female Hadyks. That is, they disapproved of me promoting half-Hadyks, but if I was going to insist, then far better that I gave the higher rank to females.

A few of them said polite things to Jashi, and Stephanie thanked her, and briefly rubbed her cheek against Jashi's in a sort-of air kiss. Inzhay and Virdyan received brief congratulations. Lady Rona cut those short. She officially thanked the halfs for their loyal service, and then expressed the hope that they would continue to impress her next Turn.

I walked them back to the Portal, so that they could return to Dahlia.

- "I'm sorry." I said. "I know it wasn't much..."

- "Armene will be sorry that she missed it." said Virdyan.

Inzhay turned to Jashi, and they both began to giggle. Soon all three were laughing. It seemed that none of them were heartbroken by their fathers' failure to acknowledge them.

Boloda came through the Portal with me, and then back. Did she think that an assassin was waiting for me in the Touchstone room at Dahlia?

- "You never know." she said. "And the day you stop remembering that, you find out that it's true. Are you ready to go back in there?"

- "Why wouldn't I be?"

She laughed as we went back to Hyacinth.

Peony was waiting for us. "What's so funny?" she asked.

- "Daniel doesn't seem to realize what he's done." said my bodyguard.

- "Oh dear." Peony looked at me. "You've created a stir, Daniel. You've dropped the baby. They are all very, very angry."

- "What? Dropped the baby?"

- "How would you expect a mother and grandmother to react if you dropped the child? They won't show it openly, but they are steaming. You've embarrassed each and every one of them."

I think my mouth was hanging open. "What?" I repeated.

- "Murari is furious that you brought Jashi. It reminded everyone of his numerous 'dalliances', and of course of Wantrao, Kamla's great indiscretion. Poor Malusha is embarrassed, too."

- "None of that is her fault."

- "I agree. But those are her parents, and it reminds her of why she is so often excluded from the inner circle, despite her ability."

Do I have to say it? I hadn't considered that. I had kicked the hornets' nest - an analogy that would have meant nothing to Peony or Boloda.

"Uncle Detsen is mortified, of course." said Peony. "He likes to pose as a paragon of virtue, a defender of the old traditions, but he has just as many illegitimate children as the rest of them. Now Keratsa and Deondra are looking at their husbands, wondering how many other little Half-Hadyks are running around thanks to them."

- "I didn't mean to embarrass Deondra."

- "She will be among the least offended."

I returned to the dining room. Just about everyone stopped talking as I appeared, and then they all turned to look at me. No one said a word. As if on cue, they all turned around again, and resumed their conversations.

All except one, who swaggered over to me with a characteristic sneer on his face.

- "Trust you to find a way to insult all of us in our own home." said Moran. He slurred his words just the littlest bit, as if he was a few drinks ahead of everybody else.

- "It wasn't meant as an insult." I replied. "I just think that the half-Hadyks deserve a little more respect. You, of all people, should understand that."

Moran was significantly shorter than I was. Yet he refused to tilt his head back so that he could look me in the face. Instead, he glared at me from beneath his pale eyebrows.

- "I suppose you think you're clever." he snapped.

I was getting tired of his little tantrums, of his performances. Given that I'd just annoyed all of the Hadyk family at once, I probably should have just let it go. So of course I didn't.

- "I don't know about clever, but I'm certainly smarter than you. I understand that that's no great achievement, though."

Moran stepped just a little closer. He lowered his voice, but raised his intensity. If you've heard a person snarl while whispering, you'll know what it sounded like.

- "You fat fool!" Spittle flew from his mouth. Fortunately, it didn't reach my face. "You think that Stephanie is for you? We would never, ever give our fairest to a fat slug like you. You're fat, and you're ugly. You can't ride. Can't even walk properly. You're a complete disgrace. You have only one use - and even that is limited, and coming to an end."

- "MORAN!"

Conversation instantly ceased as the Matriarch shouted at her son.

"Step back, Moran." she said.

- "He insulted me, Mother."

- "Step back."

- "It's alright, Lady Rona." I said. "I don't take anything he says seriously -"

That was when Moran tried to throw his drink in my face.

Most of it landed on my chest, but some splashed my chin, and a drop went up my nose.

- "MORAN!"

But her precious son wasn't listening. He was still absolutely enraged.

- "I challenge you!" he screamed. "I challenge the Warlord!"

*****