The Warlord Ch. 08

WARLORD Chapter 8

- "She'll ask for more troops." said Wantrao. "The Hadyks are doomed, and we'll be next."

- "Does this change our plans?" asked Armene.

- "No. We still take Goldenrod as quickly as possible. Even if we can't benefit from having another production centre, we can deny it to our enemies."

- "For as long as possible." added Wantrao.

- "It's a strategic location. It shields Jacaranda, and partially covers both Ivy and Hyacinth. It gives us a central position, too."

We had ridden out to join the main army, halfway to Goldenrod. My four bodyguards were with us, plus Luth. It wasn't a very large officer corps, so I had to do something about that immediately.

The troopers were waiting for us, in orderly ranks, creating a sort of avenue for us to ride through. The moment we came abreast of the first two units, they started cheering.

There was nothing I could do but grin and bear it. And salute. I did a lot of saluting.

We spread the word, asking every unit in the main army to choose one representative, and had them meet me just outside the camp. I couldn't address all 14,000 troops that were here, but I could just manage a crowd of 140.

- "Every unit is to elect its own officers." I told them. "You know better than I do who is best suited for positions of responsibility. People with talent. People you trust, and have confidence in. That might be you, or it might be someone else."

- "What title should we give them?" asked one tall woman.

- "Captain, for the first officer in the unit. Give them two lieutenants, to assist or replace them at need. Each squad of ten should have a junior leader. Call them corporals."

We dealt with supply issues fairly quickly. They still had food for another five days. Once we captured Goldenrod, I could use its Touchstone to replenish our stocks of food and water. I also tackled the subject of camp sanitation and latrines, because Wantrao had been right. Fourteen thousand soldiers do a lot of shitting.

But I also had to tell them the truth.

- "You're all people, and so are the servants. There are no more Graham peons. That's the good news - but it's also the bad news. There won't be anymore Graham peons. I can't create people from a Touchstone. That means that... after this turn... we won't be getting any reinforcements. We have to win the war with what we have now."

I didn't conceal the fact that we were going to be seen as heretics by the other families. Outlaws. Outcasts. It wasn't a concept they were familiar with, but they got the idea.

- "We're still with you, Lord." said another soldier. I recognized him; he was another Nosey.

- "Thank you, Nosey. But let's stop calling me 'Lord'. I'm just a person, like you. 'General' is my rank. Other than that, I'm just Daniel."

I sent them off to organize the elections of officers. Then I called it a night. Sleep when you can, the old soldiers say. If the other turns were any indication, I might have to go without in the very near future.

Turn 5 began just before dawn the next morning.

***

We marched for Goldenrod, and on the way learned something about an army made up of people rather than peons. I had expected that we would be slower, because peons didn't get tired, and didn't have to stop for lunch. But our people moved faster. They marched with purpose, and rose to the occasion. It made the former peon army look a collection of dawdlers out for a stroll.

The troopers sang as they marched, which helped them keep the pace, and also kept their spirits high. When one unit stopped singing, to catch their breath, two more units picked it up.

Soldiers called out to me when they saw me. Not all of them, obviously, but enough that I spent a lot more time answering, saluting, and waving.

We surrounded the city. It wasn't at all difficult to see that the walls were very thinly manned. It appeared that the Hadyks had built forces here and then immediately moved them to Dahlia. Had they abandoned Caladium as well, since it was likely to be the first place attacked by the enemy coalition?

- "Makes sense." said Luth. "Rather than take heavy losses defending two cities, they can build up a stronger force in Dahlia. It also gets them out the way, so the enemy can confront us directly."

The storm of Goldenrod was completely anti-climactic. Concentrated fire from our archers kept the defenders' head down. There simply weren't enough troops to hold every part of the wall. Many of our soldiers reached the top completely unopposed.

The Hadyks and half-Hadyks commanding the defence didn't stick around very long. The result was never in doubt, and they left through the Portal long before any of our fighters got near them. With their escape, resistance ended.

There had only been two hundred defenders. Half were killed. The remainder, our prisoners, became people as soon as we took control of the Touchstone. There were a hundred troopers, and a thousand servants. They were utterly amazed. Our army was delighted.

We lost seven killed in the fighting. I would have felt the loss if they had been peons, but somehow it was much, much worse now. The fallen soldiers had only gotten to enjoy being people for a few days.

I used the Goldenrod Touchstone to create some new supplies for our people, and then set about getting to know the new captains. It was a process that I wasn't going to finish overnight, if ever, but there was no better time to start. I wasn't going to move the army until we heard from our scouts and our flanking forces.

The next morning, we heard the ominous gong again, followed by the powerful voice.

- "The Shorrs have declared war on the Morcars."

***

Our scouts weren't able to confirm what was happening until the following day. The Hadyks hadn't stirred from Dahlia, but they clearly had over ten thousand troops there. Meanwhile, there was no news of the Balabans. The Shorrs easily took both Eglantine and Caladium.

But we found out about the Morcars firsthand, because they came to us. Sudha sent them with an escort. We had ample warning that they were coming.

- "If they ask for your protection, it's customary to ask them to surrender their weapons." said Luth.

- "Our protection."

- "That may not be how they'll phrase it."

We waited for them just inside the city gates, with plenty of troops on hand, partly as an honour guard, partly for security.

The Morcars were partial to yellow clothing and trimmings, and most of them had blonde hair. Their leader was a very young woman flushed from the exertion of riding here - or perhaps it was embarrassment that gave her red cheeks. Her hair was partially piled up, behind her head, while much of it was allowed to hang loose, behind her neck and down her back. It was a style I'd seen before, on Lady Rona Hadyk.

- "I am Melanie Morcar, heir to the Morcar family." she said. "I ask for your protection, Lord Graham, against your enemies and mine."

They were fine words, except that she wasn't heir to squat anymore. Also, she'd been among my enemies only a day ago. Finally, Melanie had a raspy voice that reminded me again of Rona Hadyk, and she hadn't learned that a half-scowl doesn't qualify as a smile.

- "I grant you the protection of the Grahams." I said. "I must ask, though, that you surrender your weapons until such time as we have discussed the status of your family." Luth had briefed me on the 'rules', and I remembered what Rona had said when Lady Shorr and her family had come to us as refugees after the fall of Jacaranda and Ivy.

The Morcars had lost their last city, too, and their army, in its entirety. They now had to throw themselves on the mercy of another family. They could intermarry, and effectively join the Grahams, or they could offer to 'serve' as allies, in the hopes that we might grant them a captured city, and restore them to great family status.

Lady Shorr, at the mercy of Rona Hadyk, had chosen 'none of the above'. She'd gone and made a deal with the Balabans, instead.

- "We understand." said Melanie Morcar.

I invited the Morcars into our dining room. There were eleven of them, plus six half-Morcars and a strange little girl with glasses. Melanie introduced all of her family members, in a tone that simultaneously suggested that I should be impressed, even while it ticked me off. Then she rapidly skipped over the names of her half-kin, only to finally introduce Peachy Exel, the little runt in spectacles.

That name was like a delayed lighting strike for me. "You're the strategist. Wait - Peachy? How do you spell the rest? It's not your last name, is it? You spell it XL?"

- "Umm... yeah. How d'you know that?"

- "You play Conquest? Warlord?"

- "Yeah. You're freaking me out a bit, here..."

- "You'd know me online as NeOublie."

- "No way!"

This little runt in glasses, who looked to be about 4' 9" and weighed maybe 87 pounds, had kicked my ass in multi-player games for the better part of two years. More often than not, anyway. She was quick-thinking, ruthless, and knew exactly when to turn on an ally - and now that I got a better look at her, appeared to be about twelve years old.

- "I'm fourteen." she said, a little sullenly. "And if you're smart," she added, "you'll watch out for a little Red Wedding action before the day is over."

It was a warning that couldn't have been clearer, even if she and I were the only two people in the room who would get it.

I had food and drink brought for our 'guests', and stepped out of the room to make a few arrangements.

Melanie Morcar was not in the best of moods. It was understandable, I suppose; they'd lost their last city, and their army, to treachery. She was reduced to casting herself on the mercy of the upstart Grahams. She could have been a little nicer about it, though, given that we weren't obliged to extend our hospitality.

She might have been a good match for Moran Hadyk. Melanie was spoiled, wilful, and ill-humoured. They might have done everyone a favour and killed each other on their wedding night.

- "No, I cannot renounce our family status." she said. "My mother is not here."

- "Where is she?"

- "In Eglantine. Captured by the Shorrs." Lady Morcar wouldn't have been able to escape through the Portal, because she had no other city to go to.

- "Then doesn't that make you the head of the family, in her absence?"

- "In some ways. You could grant us a production centre, and I could form an alliance with you."

- "Why would I do that?" The Shorrs had just been granted a city by their allies, and had promptly betrayed one of them.

- "You are desperately short of commanders and officers. We have more here than you do. And a second strategist, for what she's worth."

I glanced at Peachy XL. "What's that supposed to mean?"

- "When Mother used her boon, she specifically asked for a strategist that was better than you. And this is what we got."

I could have laughed at that, but Melanie Morcar wouldn't have got the joke. Instead, I went to speak to the strategist herself.

- "They don't seem to appreciate your talents." I said.

- "Why would they? I haven't exactly been on a winning streak."

- "Was it your idea to try and recapture Ivy?"

- "Yeah, but you saw that coming. You and that damned cavalry force. And horse archers. I didn't even know that was an option. And I couldn't do anything about anything, because they wouldn't let me out of the damn castle!"

- "They were fooled by your appearance?"

- "Yeah. They treat me like a little kid. Most of them, anyway. These are my friends, Travot and Stina." She indicated the two half-Morcars sitting beside her. Stina was obviously a half: she had the blonde hair of the Morcars, but the dark skin of the Shorrs - which was probably unfortunate for her, at this stage. I greeted the two.

"I wasn't kidding about the Red Wedding thing." said Peachy.

- "I believe you." I said. I was standing about two steps from the doorway to the Map Room. Nosey and Pudge were in there, while Boloda and Kisel were with me. Once inside the room, I had no doubt the four of them could defend it easily, however many of our Morcar guests had failed to hand over all their weapons.

Sure enough, they telegraphed their intentions. Four of the Morcar family members, seated closest to the exit from the dining room, 'nonchalantly' got up from their seats.

- "Now." I said, for the benefit of my bodyguards. We simply moved into the Map Room. The Morcars who'd stood up produced daggers, and surged in the other direction, into the hallway.

They'd probably intended to surprise the guards at the door. It didn't happen. First, I'd tripled their numbers, and moved them a little further down the hall. I'd also put Armene in command of them.

The Morcar quartet, temporarily foiled, made the bold decision to go the other way - toward the Portal Room. If they could take control of our Touchstone...

That wasn't going to happen. Wantrao was waiting there with eight more troopers, and another dozen back in the Portal Room itself.

We heard shouts, a clash of weapons, and then a pair of high-pitched screams, mere moments apart.

In the dining room, a group of the Morcars came toward the door to the Map Room. One brave fellow launched himself at us, with only a dagger. Nosey ran him through.

If the Morcars had been determined enough (which would have required at least eight or ten of them to show suicidal courage) they might have gotten close to me. Didn't happen. Not even close.

Four of them died trying to get past Wantrao. He wasn't the most merciful of fellows. When he and Armene entered the Dining Room, the remaining Morcars threw down their weapons (except for Peachy and her two friends, who had dived under the table as soon as the trouble started.

Lady Melanie and her surviving family members were searched and disarmed, then led away to be locked up.

- "Not them." I said, indicating Peach and her cohorts. She had warned us, and the other two had not participated in the attack on us. That was good enough, for now.

Wantrao let Armene take the prisoners away.

- "I need to speak to you." he said.

- "So do I." said Boloda.

- "About what?"

- "Did you not see Nosey kill that man trying to come through the doorway?" she said.

- "Of course. That was well done, Nosey."

- "Daniel." hissed Boloda. "Peons can't attack people."

- "But Nosey is a person..." I began. And then it hit me.

Our entire army was no longer composed of peons. Every single member of the Graham community was a person, now. And people could do more than simply defend themselves. People could kill...

My first thought was that Moran Hadyk was in for a nasty surprise.

- "Stubby. Little Red." said Wantrao. "Step forward."

Two of our soldiers - two of our shorter soldiers - stepped up beside him.

"I was about to tell you the same thing." he said. "The Morcars concentrated on me. I skewered the first, but the second tried to stab me in the neck with his dagger. Stubby killed him. And then Little Red took care of one of the others."

- "Thank you both. All three of you, I mean." Wow. This was big. Potentially big.

- "That's not supposed to be possible." said Peachy XL. "Peons can't attack people. Right?"

I nodded. "But Nosey is a person. So are Stubby and Little Red."

- "You use half-breeds as guards?"

- "There are no half-Grahams. There never will be. The half-Hadyks who joined me are all full Graham family members. And our former peons are all people now."

- "That's crazy. How did that happen?"

- "I used our boon."

- "To make peons people? Damn..." Peachy shook her head. "That's seriously messed up. No wonder you suck at Conquest and Warlord. Lady Shorr got fifty thousand troops, and you got peons who need food and water."

I'd heard what she said. "Fifty thousand?"

Mother of Mercy.

***

- "Tell me what happened." I asked Peachy.

- "Our field army was supposed to join with the Shorr army, to attack Caladium. The Shorrs suddenly declared war on us. They had split their forces, and sent infantry to attack Eglantine."

- How many?" I asked.

- "Twenty-five thousand." she said.

- "Total?"

- "Infantry. Lady Shorr used her boon to ask for more troops. The Gods granted her fifty thousand."

To his credit, Wantrao didn't immediately leap into the air and scream 'Told you so!'. He didn't sneer, or curl his lip. He simply looked away.

- "How big was the Morcar field force?"

- "Six thousand. We kept 2500 to defend Eglantine, in case you tried something. So the Shorrs now have 56,000 troops, if not more. How many do you have, anyway?" asked Peachy.

- "Not that many."

- "So you have five cities, and she has three. Caladium is toast."

- "I doubt the Hadyks even tried to defend it. They only left a skeleton force here."

Peachy sighed. "Time to make nice with the Hadyks and the Balabans, then. You're gonna need all the help you can get."

- "The Balabans are allied to the Shorrs." said Armene.

- "Right. A deal they probably regret, right now. Did you see how quickly Lady Shorr turned on the Morcars? She'll finish you guys off, and the other two families won't stand a chance."

- "What makes you think that we're next?" I asked.

- "Wouldn't you concentrate on the most dangerous enemy first? Besides, the other two families have over ten thousand troops each, and only one city to put them in. Could be expensive to storm. Meanwhile, you have a bigger field army, but five cities to defend. I mean, if this was a game, I'd come after you first. Take your production centres, or force you to fight a battle, and then take your production centres."

She was right. I knew it, too. It was time to let all of my family know the bad news.

***

They took it reasonably well. Once again, Wantrao passed up the opportunity to remind everyone that he'd been right. Nobody else had any recriminations to make.

- "You did the right thing, Daniel." said Boloda. "Now we have to fight to preserve it."

- "Wait." said Faldor. "If our former peons are now people, and can attack people - I mean, members of other families - then does that mean that their peons can't attack our people?"

- "Oh, wow..." said Vanea.

- "No." said Luth. "We lost seven killed storming the city."

- "How is that possible?" asked Faldor. "Peons can't attack people."

- "That compunction isn't innate. It didn't come from the Gods. The families all agreed, long ago, to order their peons not to attack family members."

- "But they didn't include half-Hadyks?" I said. "Half-family?"

Boloda looked at me sadly. "You're forgetting where half-kin come from. Every family is run by a matriarch, and not one of them wanted to extend any protection to the illegitimate children of their husbands, brothers and sons."

- "But Daniel adopted us." said Jashi.

- "Oh, you're all Grahams. But do you think that Rona Hadyk will order her peons not to attack Grahams? Obviously the Morcars didn't, either."

The next morning, we all heard the gong, and the announcement. Turn Five was over.

***

Peachy found me in the Map Room, staring at the ten cities of the Decapolis as if some kind of plan might leap up and smack me in the face.

- "You're starting early." she said.

- "Have to. I got us into this mess."

- "Nobody seems to blame you, though. And your soldiers and servants look a hell of a lot happier than the Morcar peons."

- "If I can find a way to keep them alive."

- "Well, talk to me, then. Maybe I can see something you don't."

- "You want to help us?"

Peachy shrugged. "Don't know if you noticed, NeOublie, but I'm not exactly swamped with job offers at the moment. Besides, your side is beginning to look like the good guys."

I had to smile. "You want a job?"

Peachy grinned back. "Sure. What's the pay like?"

- "Room and board. And a full share of the loot."

- "Really?" she said. "How much loot do you have?"

- "Well, not much, actually."

- "Thought so. And how many shares are there, total?"

- "Roughly twenty-nine thousand."

- "Cool. Alright: how bad is it?"

- "We have about 24,000 troops," I said, "and 5,000 servants who have asked for arms."

- "But don't know how to use them?"

- "Correct. But they could still be an asset. Meanwhile, both the Balabans and the Hadyks have over 10,000, plus a build coming. They'll probably create mostly infantry, to defend their single city. The Shorrs have 55,000, give or take a few - and three builds coming."

- Most likely infantry, too," she said, "so they can attack your cities."

- "Right. So we're outnumbered about three to one, with no prospect of reinforcements."

- "So it sounds a lot like Turn One - before I got here. Maybe a little worse."

That was right, too. I don't know if Peachy was just trying to remind me that things weren't completely hopeless. It kind of sort of worked.

- "Except that gaining cities by surprise doesn't benefit us. We can't add a single trooper."

- "I don't know about that." she said. "My friends Travot and Stina are thinking they might want to join up with you."

- "Do they know the odds against us?"

- "They're not stupid, Daniel. They're just tired of being treated like third-class citizens in their own family - 'scuse me: what should be their family. You guys have a pretty cool vibe going on here, you know. So, two of them, one of me... you're up three just this morning."

- "You'd have to change your name. Officially."

- "What?"

- "That's how it works. Full adoption. There's no way I would trust you within ten miles of a Touchstone as long as your last name is XL. I don't want to risk having you do to me what I did to the Hadyks."

- "I wouldn't do that." she said.

- "You'd be tempted. At some point you might start thinking 'I can do better than him'. But this isn't Conquest."

- "I know that." she said. Then she grinned. "If it was, you'd be getting your ass kicked."

- "People's lives are at stake, now."

- "I know that, too. Alright, we'll do it your way. I can live with Peachy Graham."

I shook my head. "No. Real name."

- "You don't need my real name."

- "I'm not taking the slightest chance that you could turn around and pull off a coup."

- "I would never -"

- "Don't care. Real name, or you can be locked up with the rest of the Morcars."

- "You don't need my name. What the hell? You're a pushover in multi-player, but a hardass in real life?"

- "I don't have time for this. Real name or the lockup."

- "Fine!" she snapped. "It's...."

- "Pardon?"

- "Delilah."

Poor thing. My heart went out to her. Delilah Zuniga.

- "I adopt you, Delilah, and welcome you to our family. You will be Delilah Graham to me alone, and Peachy Graham to everyone else."

***

I talked to Luth, as well. It was mostly me talking, as if I was thinking aloud.

- "Are you reserving judgment?" I asked her. "Or just letting me blow off steam?"

- "Both."

I spent time with Armene, Jashi and Sudha as well. We didn't get any farther with strategic planning, but they certainly did their best to let me know that they still supported me one hundred percent, and didn't blame me at all for our predicament. That helped, too.

Then Wantrao asked for a moment of my time. I couldn't very well say no. Besides, it was probably better to get this out of the way sooner rather than later.

He suggested a short walk. We went through the castle courtyard, only to be greeted by just about every trooper working there. The people who'd been servant peons in Goldenrod were still a little shy, having only been people for a day. But our soldiers had no such qualms: they called out to me, waved, or even came over to shake my hand.

A few even greeted Wantrao personally. He was not a warm individual, but he was fearless and fearsome, and he led from the front. He'd been among the first over the wall in every storm he'd been present for.

- "This might not have been the best idea." he said. "I was thinking of a more private conversation."

- "Let's go down the street. We can talk outside the walls. Wait - that's a bad idea, too. The whole army is there. No - do you want go back inside? Or should we take horses and ride out of the city?"

- "Let's ride. It should be safe; you haven't fallen from a horse for days, now."

We received even more attention going down the main street, until we finally passed outside the gates. We rode along the perimeter of the city wall.

Wantrao took his sweet time, letting me stew. He definitely had a cruel streak.

- "I will only say this once, Daniel." he began. "And then we will both pretend that this conversation never took place."

- "Alright."

He looked me in the eye. "I'm sorry." said Wantrao.

I wasn't even sure that I'd heard him correctly. "Did you just...?"

- "You were right, and I was wrong."

- "About what? I don't even know... are we talking about the boon?"

- "Of course we are. You made the correct decision."

- But I thought..."

- "Yes, I opposed you. And I was wrong. Did you not just walk through the courtyard and ride down the street with me? They love you, my brother. And so they should: you've given them a precious gift."

I hung my head a little. "I don't know. I feel like a fraud. We're going to end up getting them killed this way."

- "No. You're wrong about that. If they were still peons, most of them would have died or disappeared, regardless of whether we won or lost the war. They are experiencing life. Freedom."

- "Which gives them freedom of choice. What if they decide not to fight? Or to change sides?"

He laughed aloud. "You need to talk to the Captains again. Listen to me, Daniel: there's not a single new person here who wouldn't risk their life for you. They also know what to expect from the Hadyks, the Balabans or the Shorrs. Death, or a return to slavery. They'll fight to prevent that. You've given them a taste for freedom."

- "Which might only last for a few more days."

- "I imagine that a few days of free life taste better than years of slavery. I should have thought of that sooner. What if Sudha had been a peon? She couldn't have done a damn thing to prevent Moran Hadyk from ordering her into his bed."

- "You really like her. Love her, I mean."

- "I don't know." he said. "These past few years, she's been my morning sun. My inspiration. My fixation. But I don't believe that she has any more affection for me than she does for Inzhay or even Faldor. I suspect that she cares more for you."

- "Me?" I think my voice might have squeaked a bit there. "But - uh, you do have people who admire you, Wantrao."

- "I know. You. My new friend, Jashi. And Armene, who looks at me as I wish Sudha would."

- "You know about that?"

- "She is not especially subtle."

- "How, umm..."

- "How does it make me feel? Alive, brother. How do you feel when Peony looks at you? Yet you fear to take advantage of her, because she was a peon. I think that was what finally got through to me. You are not Moran Hadyk. Nor are you Murari, my mother's husband. Or any of the Hadyk males, for that matter. Nor am I."

- "I know."

- "Do you? But do you know why? It's only because I despise them, and everything they do. But what if I was a full Hadyk, and Sudha was a peon? Or even Armene? Would I take her, simply to satisfy my curiosity?"

- "I don't think you would."

- "Thank you. But I don't know myself. And what if I had children? A son, say. Would he be like you, or more like the Hadyk males?"

- "I was thinking along the same lines."

- "I know. You said so. And that was why I had to apologize to you. You used our boon in the most honourable, most magnificent way possible. I was hopelessly wrong, and you were right."

I don't know what it cost Wantrao to admit that. I had a small epiphany.

- "Was that why we had to have a private conversation?"

He raised one eyebrow, and glared at me. "Obviously. And we shall never speak of this again - at least not in front of others. If you do, I will of course deny it."

- "Alright, brother."

***

Peony joined me in my chamber as I was getting ready to go to bed. This was nothing new; she'd made a habit of doing this from the very beginning, when she was first assigned to me. But it was different now. She was a person - her own person, doing it of her own free will.

- "It will come to you." she said.

- "What will?"

- "The strategy you seek."

- "I hope you're right. I... I'm just mentally and physically exhausted, at this point. I should be down on one knee, asking you to marry me, only... I want to do it right."

- "You will. You said you would. But why does it involve kneeling?"

- "It's a custom in my world." So is a ring, but I didn't have one of those, either.

- "Any way you like is fine. Now go to bed. You need sleep more than anything else, right now."

When I finally crawled into bed, Peony followed, and lay down beside me. She rested her head on my shoulder, and put her arm across my chest.

- "Peony, I..."

- "You are going to sleep. But you need to practice sleeping with me close by."

- "Do I?"

- "Yes. I have wanted to do this for a long time. Don't you know that I've been in love with you since Turn Two?"

- "You have?"

- "Oh yes."

- "You could have taken me the very first night that Lady Rona gave me to you. I thought that you might at the end of Turn One, to celebrate your victories."

- "No."

- "I wondered if it was because you were not at all attracted to me. But then you looked at me, during Turn Two. And I realized that you weren't taking me because you would never force me to do anything against my will. It is part of who you are. Of what you are."

- "I am attracted to you."

- "I know. I love you as well. Now go to sleep."

***

Of course I woke up in my own apartment. Apparently my not wanting that to happen had no effect whatsoever.

On the plus side, I could use the extra time to think and plan. And I wouldn't have to feel guilty about spending time planning my proposal to Peony. I could get a ring from the Touchstone. And I would definitely be kneeling, rather than towering over her. Then another idea occurred to me, and I felt even better about it.

Shower, shave. Make coffee, and toast a bagel. These were all muscle-memory activities that allowed my mind to roam free. It didn't help; I got nowhere with our strategic situation. We were heavily outnumbered, and couldn't build new troops. Was an alliance with the Balabans or the Hadyks even possible? How could we trust either family?

We couldn't. That was the short answer.

When I finally sat down at my computer, I decided to look up other subjects. If we did survive the war, and somehow won, we would have to establish some kind of government. Many revolutionaries spend all their time planning the uprising or the seizure of power, and don't give enough thought to the form of government they'll adopt. That might be strategy, too: don't alienate anyone too soon by announcing your future plans.

The Grahams would no doubt be perfectly happy to leave me as some sort of benevolent dictator. They trusted me. "You haven't failed us yet." Jashi had said. I could have answered 'Give me time'.

When it came right down to it, I wasn't one of them. I didn't share all of their hopes and aspirations. What if power went to my head? What if I fell ill, or changed? What if I became cruel, or selfish? I could almost hear Peony saying 'You wouldn't'.

She and the other Grahams were too trusting. Too loyal. Absolute, unthinking loyalty is not a good thing. They needed some means of removing me from the leadership if I abused my power. Or a way of limiting my power from the start.

No, I wasn't thinking of democracy. Certainly not the type of democracy practiced in my world. Representative democracy leads to the party system. The party members are of course more loyal to their party than to their constituents. Party solidarity stifles independent thought and criticism. People who submit to party discipline, who 'toe the party line' are put forward as candidates. Patronage goes to the loyal party servants. The voters get a choice of shitty alternatives. And once you allow money into the process, you're totally screwed.

Real democracy, as practiced in Ancient Athens, wasn't any good, either. Demagogues sway the masses. Cliques dominate the proceedings. And the conduct of affairs is carried on at the level of the ignorant majority. Athens voted its way to self-destruction in the Peloponnesian War.

I would have to think about a lot longer before I introduced politics to the Decapolis.

My thoughts turned back to the strategic situation we faced. How do you win in an unwinnable situation? I wasn't James T. Kirk, and this wasn't the Kobayashi Maru simulation. I didn't know how to cheat. I would have gladly hacked the game, if I knew how. Maybe what I'd already done was a hack.

I had been happy in the morning, mentally engaged around noon, but now I was growing despondent. More map study didn't help. I decided that I needed a break.

I wasn't in the mood to play a game. But I could always watch someone else play. I found the latest stream of my fellow Canadian, Kylted, playing competitive online Risk. I enjoyed his sense of humour, and his willingness to choose an unusual starting position or a novel approach, for the fun of it.

Near the beginning of every game, Kyle (his name) announces the rules being used. In this case it was fixed capitals, no alliances, no fog, and stable Portals.

I sat there with my mouth open. Stunned. Portals. There it was. Not just an advantage, but an incredible hack of the game system.

Throughout history, several famous armies have had a significant advantage when it came to mobility, and speed of movement. The Mongols, for instance, could travel incredible distances. French troops during the 1790s and early 1800s moved significantly faster than any of their opponents. It was a tremendous advantage.

But how to use it?

The answer was right there for me. Peachy had basically told me to recreate my success in Turn One. Peony had expected me to celebrate my victories in Turn One. The question was: could they be duplicated in Turn Six?

I studied the map for a while. There were multiple ways to use this idea, but most of them depended on what our enemies did. It was going to be a parry and riposte, unless I could accurately predict what they were going to do.

At that point, I wanted nothing more than to go to bed, fall asleep instantly, and wake up in the Decapolis. Eventually, I got my wish.

Peony was already up, sitting at the desk, watching me sleep. She smiled.

- "Good morning."

- "Stay there." I said. I swung out of bed, and pulled on my t-shirt and track pants. Peony had already seen me in my underwear, and she hadn't gagged or passed out.

- "I don't understand."

- "Stay here. Please. I'll be right back."

I ran to the Portal Room, with Nosey and Pudge sprinting to keep up with me. That meant that they were the first to see what I asked from the Touchstone. They both approved.

I walked back to my chamber, not wanting to arrive out of breath. Pudge stayed outside the door, while Nosey went to fetch Boloda and Kisel.

Peony looked slightly worried as I closed the door behind me.

- "Is everything alright?"

- "Better than alright. I have a strategy. But there's something more important that has to come first." I produced the bunch of flowers from behind my back. "These are peonies. Do you remember that I thought you were named for the flower?"

- "They're beautiful." she said.

I handed them to her. "They're pretty." I said. "You are beautiful."

- "I've never seen one before."

- "That will change. We're going to make sure that they're everywhere. They're not just attractive; they're fragrant, too."

- "Mmm..." Peony had held them up to her nose.

- "And on top of that, there's what they represent. In my world, peonies stand for love, honour, happiness, romance and beauty."

I went to one knee.

"I should have waited for a better occasion, or at least a more romantic setting. But I can't think of anything else. If I tried to wait until later, I would be completely useless for the rest of the day."

- "Oh..."

- "Peony, will you marry me?"

Her cheeks were flushed, and her lower lip quivered just a bit.

- "Yes. Of course yes." She didn't wait for me to stand up, but instead wrapped her arms around me and buried her head in my shoulder.

I'd gotten her a ring as well. It was delicate, like her, with a small diamond set in gold. It took a while before I could get Peony to let go of me long enough to show it to her. That led to our first kiss.

She would have been happy to continue kissing, but we had four friends waiting outside the door to witness our engagement. They were absolutely delighted for us. Kisel hugged me, and kissed me on both cheeks, while Boloda slapped me on the back so hard, I nearly swallowed my tongue.

We might have spent even longer celebrating, except that Wantrao came to call.

- "The Hadyks want to negotiate."

- "Again?"

- "They claim to have something new to offer."

- "When?"

- "Now." Wantrao was frowning. "Have I interrupted something?"

- "I just asked Peony to marry me."

His smile was genuine. "My congratulations, then. Welcome to the family, Lady Graham."

- "Just Peony." said my bride-to-be. "Just Daniel and Peony."

- "I'll be back soon." I said. With that, Wantrao and I walked to the Portal Room. Boloda and Kisel came with us.

- "You are very fortunate." he said.

- "I know. More than I deserve."

- "Obviously."

Stephanie and Malusha came through the Portal.

- "Hello, Daniel." said Stephanie.

- "Hi. Hey, Malusha."

- "Daniel."

Neither of them greeted Wantrao or my bodyguards.

- "You have a new offer?"

Stephanie was very good at schooling her features, but I could tell that she was at least slightly offended by my abruptness.

- "The situation has changed considerably, wouldn't you say?"

- "Sure."

- "Daniel, the Shorrs will attack you first. You must know this."

- "It's possible. Maybe even probable."

- "You could have an alliance with us. We have the same enemy."

- "The Grahams have lots of enemies. Is this going to take long? We have quite a bit of planning to do. No offence, Malusha."

Malusha simply grunted. Stephanie finally got the message.

- "I understand. You are still angry that I wasn't entirely truthful with you the last time we spoke."

Not entirely truthful. What lovely phrasing.

"Let me make amends for that." said Stephanie. "You will face the Shorrs alone. But you could have an alliance with us. And not just us: the Balabans as well."

- "Really?"

- "We have contracted a marriage alliance with them. My brother Moran is to marry Amelia Balaban."

- "Good for him. Sorry for her."

- "Daniel... don't you see? Amelia is the Balaban heir. Moran will go to Amaranth. You would never need to see him again. He would become a Balaban."

I didn't react, so Stephanie changed tack. "There would be no obstacle to us fulfilling our agreement."

- "Our agreement?"

- "Our marriage, Daniel."

I don't think that I kept a very straight face. I'm pretty good at online gaming, but I would probably be a crappy poker player. Hopefully, Stephanie would think my shocked reaction was based on the fact that her family had tried to kill me, but were now proposing marriage.

There was a part of me that wanted to announce my engagement to Peony. I wasn't the least bit ashamed of it; in fact, I was going to proudly announce it to all of the Grahams. But if the Hadyks thought a marriage between Stephanie and me was still possible... shouldn't I encourage that?

I didn't turn to look at Wantrao, Boloda, or Kisel. But neither of them said a word.

- "What would that mean?" I said.

- "An immediate three-way alliance, against the Shorrs. Both the Balabans and the Hadyks would come to your aid."

Sure they would. With paratroopers, helicopter gunships, and tanks. The Shorrs outnumbered all of us together. The Hadyks and the Balabans had only one city left - if they lost it, they would join the Morcars as prisoners or exiles. No, they'd let me face the Shorr army alone, and cheer from the sidelines.

- "So... full alliance, and all I have to do is marry you."

- "Well, my mother and Lady Balaban would require a show of good faith. That is, they would ask for a show of good faith."

- "What kind of show?"

- "You would return Flax and Hyacinth to us."

I wanted to laugh out loud, but I kept it in.

- "That's all?"

Stephanie was no fool; she knew that I wasn't instantly enamoured of her offer. "You would still have three cities. And we would have three. Equal partners."

- "Equality. Yes. Very important. Well, I would have to discuss it with my family."

- "I understand. You need time to consider. Should we speak again tomorrow?"

- "I'll contact you when we have an answer."

- "Very well. I... I hope you will say yes, Daniel."

Still lying. Malusha didn't even make eye contact as she went back through the Portal.

- "Thank you, everyone." I said. "I didn't think that it was the best time to announce the fact that I'm engaged to Peony."

- "You aren't changing your mind, are you?" asked Boloda.

- "Are you crazy?"

***

I officially adopted Peachy, Travot and Stina, then invited them to our strategy session. I brought Peony with me, and Chalky, our lead scout.

- "What happened?" asked Luth.

- "What do you mean?"

- "Yesterday you seemed despondent. Now you appear to be in high spirits. Something happened. Something good, obviously."

- "Several good things." I said.

I began by introducing the new members of the family. I made sure to relate the story of how they had warned me about what Melanie Morcar intended. Then I presented Chalky to those who hadn't met him yet. He was pleasantly surprised to learn that most of them already knew his name.

Then I told them of Stephanie Hadyk's offer. Armene laughed out loud. She caught herself, and looked around at the others.

- "Wait. You're not seriously considering it, are you?"

- "No. I can't meet their conditions. I have no intention of giving up two cities for an empty promise. And I can't marry Stephanie Hadyk because I asked Peony to marry me earlier this morning."

It took a moment for that to sink in. Of course, my bodyguards and Wantrao already knew, but the others were a little slower to react.

- "Yes!" said Jashi.

Armene stuck two fingers in her mouth and let loose an ear-piercing whistle.

- "Congratulations!" shouted several people at once.

Of course they all had to shake my hand, and Peony was repeatedly hugged. I got hugs from Jashi and Sudha, too. Brotherly hugs. And I was relieved to see that Sudha seemed genuinely happy for me. When Wantrao had said that she liked me, it was evidently just that - like.

- "You can do that?" said Peachy. "I mean... like... marry her?"

- "I guess we'll find out."

- "I guess." I caught her casting a quick glance at Travot. Oh-oh. "But no Grahams are getting married at fourteen."

- "What? Who said anything...?" She saw me now looking at Travot. "Whatever. You're not my Dad."

- "I am your Big Brother, though."

- "Sure, Noobley. Keep telling yourself that." Peachy had taken to calling me 'Noobley', a play on my online name, NeOublie.

We eventually got to strategic matters.

"We're outnumbered." I said. "Badly. And we have to watch out for a sneak attack by the Hadyks. But I suspect that they won't move until they're sure that the Shorrs are coming for us, and not them."

- "Having only one city left should make them more cautious." said Faldor.

- "I hope so. Now, Luth is quite right that I was not feeling very optimistic yesterday. But after a good night's sleep, I realized that we have several significant advantages. The first is that our troops should be highly motivated. They have something to fight for now."

- "I'll say." said Chalky. "Sorry. I shouldn't -"

- "You have as much right to speak as anyone, Chalky. I didn't invite you here just to serve as decoration. Your scouts are going to be a critical part of our plans."

- "Aha!" said Armene. "You do have a plan!"

- "I do. The first part of it depends on Chalky's scouts. We need to know that the Shorrs' main army is coming for us here, at Goldenrod. We also need to know that the Hadyks are staying put. If both of those things happen, we can implement my plan."

- "What about the Balabans?" asked Faldor.

- "Too far away to reach us quickly. We'll watch them, but I don't expect trouble from them this turn."

- "You said something about advantages." said Faldor. "More than one?"

- "Yes. Yesterday I was seeing only the negative side of our boon: the fact that we can't build new troops. But there's a positive side to that, too. Our troops are no longer linked to a Touchstone. If we lose a city, we don't lose any of our troops. Or our servants, for that matter."

- "Holy shit!" said Peachy. None of the Grahams understood her words, because religion was almost entirely absent in the Decapolis. They recognized the power of the Gods, but they didn't worship them, or perform rituals associated with them. As for defecation and bodily waste, they were learning more about that every day.

- "That is significant." said Luth.

- "We still don't want to lose cities." I continued. "We don't want our enemies gaining new production centres. But our troops aren't tied to their home cities. That gives us options."

- "What kind of options?" asked Vanea.

- "Well, that's connected to our second advantage. Our servants are people, too. Actually, let's stop calling them servants. Civilians?"

- "What's a civilian?" asked Faldor.

- "Non-combatants. Well, that's not going to work, either. Auxiliaries? Let's try that. You see, our auxiliaries have asked for weapons. We have five thousand more armed people."

- "Can they fight, though? They aren't trained soldiers."

- "I wouldn't ask them to," I said, "except in a pinch. In a desperate situation. But our enemies don't know about them. Our auxiliaries will look just like regular troops."

- "Decoys." said Peachy. "I love it."

- "Deception." said Sudha. "That could be very useful."

- "How?" asked Vanea.

- "Well," I said, "imagine that the Hadyks sent a force to attack Flax, or Hyacinth. What if, when they arrived, they found the city defended by 5,000 troops?"

- "I gather you mean the serv - the auxiliaries." said Faldor. "But you intend to put them all in Flax? Or Hyacinth? What if they attack the other city?"

- "Remember our scouts; that's part one. Part two is that we have a force that looks just like regular troops. And part three is... the Portals."

- "Ahh..." said Luth, with a sigh of deep satisfaction.

I explained the possibilities. Then I explained it again, with some examples. Some of them got it the first time; others needed to hear it twice. Many just weren't that familiar with the Portals. They got it, though.

- "And there's one more possible advantage; you may not believe me, but it just occurred to me. We put archers on horseback, and light cavalry on foot. What if all of our cavalry could fight on foot?"

- "As infantry?" said Armene.

- "Yes. What if they could defend a city? Or attack one? They're people, after all; they should be much more adaptable than peons."

I was overloading them; it was a case of too many new ideas, too fast. Both Jashi and Sudha had worked with the archers on horseback, but picturing cavalry as infantry was a bit much.

"Try it out this afternoon. Armene and Inzhay: I want you to organize units of dismounted cavalry, and have them carry out a mock assault on the walls. Faldor and Vanea, you'll organize more cavalry troopers, and have them defend against the mock attack. Luth, would you observe, along with Jashi and Sudha?"

I hadn't assigned Wantrao a task. He sat patiently, knowing that I hadn't forgotten him.

- "You got anything for me to do?" said Peachy.

- "As a matter of fact, I do. Travot and Stina, too. I want you to accompany Second Army."

- "Second Army? I didn't know you had two."

- "We didn't, until now. Wantrao and Sudha will command it. But he'll probably be among the first over the wall, so I'll need you to take charge of the reserve and the auxiliaries."

- "What are we going to be doing? Wait - the wall? Which wall?"

***

I spent far too much time in the Portal room, using the Touchstone to create a mountain of food and water, and then to create the special equipment we were going to need. Then I went to Ivy with Wantrao, and began the same process. I left him behind to continue the good work. Then it was off to Jacaranda with Inzhay, to Hyacinth with Kien, and to Flax with Faldor. We couldn't build more troops, but I did what I could to give us advantages that might surprise our enemies.

Peony insisted on accompanying me. She let me work, undisturbed, yet she was always nearby with food and a drink, in case I could spare the time to refuel. We all needed to do that. Peons were tireless, and didn't need to sleep. The same was not true for people.

We had another family meeting, to compare notes, and for me to give them all a better idea of what Second Army would be doing. I'd gone over it with Luth in detail, and she tentatively approved of it. It was the plan involving First Army that had her concerned.

- "Nobody's ever done that, Daniel. Not against the numbers that the Shorrs will bring."

- "Nobody's ever had an army composed entirely of people, either."

- "That's true." she conceded. "Still..."

The rest of the family were even more... concerned.

- "But that's... that's impossible!" said Jashi.

- "It can't be done." said Faldor.

- "You're only saying that because it hasn't been done before." said Peachy, with a bit of smirk. Faldor was the only person in the family circle who was shorter than her, so she tended to look down on him. A bit. I glanced her way.

- "Not helpin'." I said.

- "I suspect that Daniel has a few more surprises for us - and for the Shorrs." said Sudha.

- "They'd better be big surprises." said Armene.

I outlined the rest of my plan. In hindsight, I probably should have waited until tomorrow to do that. Half of them looked punch drunk, buffeted by too much change and too many radical ideas in too short a time.

- "Let's talk about it again after breakfast." suggested Peony.

- "That's an excellent idea." I said. "And if anyone has any better ideas, I'm sure that we'll all be happy to hear them."

Peony and I retired to our chamber. I just wanted to say that: retired to our chamber. I loved the sound of it.

- "When should we have the wedding?' she asked.

- "I honestly don't know. I... I don't want to wait. But I feel that should pay full attention to the war."

- "I understand. We can have the wedding after the war. But maybe we shouldn't wait too long to have the honeymoon."

***

We had another day to stock up on supplies, place equipment, and train cavalry troopers to fight on foot. We also moved large numbers of soldiers and auxiliaries. The Portals were very busy.

- "You're sure about this?" asked Jashi. "What if the Hadyks attack?"

- "The scouts will give us plenty of warning. We can move people back long before they get there."

- "It's so odd." she said. "I know that it can be done. We are doing it. But part of me still doesn't believe it's possible."

The following morning, Turn Six began.

We did nothing. That is, First and Second armies didn't move. But our scouts were very active. We'd doubled their numbers, so that Chalky had 400 light cavalry at his disposal. Their first reports came in by the late afternoon.

The Shorrs were on their way, with an army of 40,000. That meant they'd left almost 20,000 troops behind, to garrison Bryony, Caladium, and Eglantine. Sudha and Jashi's flanking forces had already clashed with their advance guard.

But the most surprising news came from scouts who'd been watching Dahlia.

- "They're marching?"

- "Yes, Lord. I mean General. Ten thousand, headed west."

- "West? You're sure of that?"

- "Absolutely. Chalky said to emphasize that. And one more thing: there are only a few hundred cavalry with them."

Ten thousand? That was the bulk of their forces. They'd left only a modest garrison in Dahlia. If the Shorrs knew of the movement, they could easily split off enough troops to take it, while still keeping us contained. I had to confer with Luth. I brought in Peachy, as well, and took them to the Map Room.

- "What do you think?' I asked them, after they'd been brought up to speed.

- "The Hadyks are marching on Amaranth?" said Peachy. "That's the only destination in that direction."

Luth shook her head. "They're not marching on Amaranth. They're going to it."

- "You're right." I said. "That's it; they've gone to join them."

- "Aren't they on opposite sides?" said my little online nemesis.

- "That means little. Or even nothing." said Luth. "Daniel began a new precedent, by declaring war on the Hadyks while a Turn was still in progress. Lady Shorr waited until her troops were in position to betray the Morcars with a snap declaration. The Balabans and the Hadyks won't announce that they're at peace - and now allies - until the very last moment."

- "To avoid letting the Shorrs know?"

- "And us. Though there is little we can do about it yet." Then Luth looked at me. "Although... we could tell the Shorrs. If you saw an advantage in it."

- "They might not believe it." I said. History is full of examples of Kings, Generals and rulers of every stripe believing the most incredible rumours, and also failing to believe accurate information.

- "You guys are that sure of what's going on?"

- "Yes. Look: the Hadyk ten thousand can't do much if the Balabans keep their whole force at Amaranth. And very little cavalry? The Balabans could come out with their whole army and crush them. That also means the Hadyks left most of their cavalry at Dahlia. It's sleight of hand. They're gambling that neither we nor the Shorrs find out, because Dahlia is practically undefended. It's an incredibly risky move."

- "I wouldn't have thought that Deondra had this sort of daring." said Luth.

- "Who knows? But the only reason to take this big a risk is if there's a major reward. They mean to capture a city."

- "They can't." said Peachy. "The Shorrs left 20,000 troops behind in their garrisons. Oh - holy shit!" She was finally getting the whole picture too. "If they ally with the Balabans, and they act together..."

- "They could capture a Shorr supply centre. And who taught Deondra what happens when you capture an enemy Touchstone?" Luth winked at me.

- "They're going to try for Bryony." I said.

Peachy glanced at the map. "Caladium is closer."

- "But Lady Shorr got her boon at Bryony. She may have connected some of those troops to the Touchstones in Caladium and Eglantine, but she may not have. Or, she may have left the majority of her troops linked to Bryony just because it's the most inaccessible."

- "That is what I would have done." said Luth.

- "Can they succeed?" asked Peachy.

I looked at Luth. "Maybe? If they decided in advance to do this, and both built nothing but infantry units..."

- "So the whole time they were negotiating with you, they already had this planned? That's sneaky. They never meant a word of it." Peachy smiled. It was a sneaky move - worthy of her online character, Peachy XL.

- "Oh, they would have happily granted me that alliance, and occupied Flax and Hyacinth. Then they would have gone ahead with their plan while the Shorrs crushed us."

- "Now that we know," said Luth, "the question is... do we want them to succeed?"

- "I think so. The Shorrs are the main threat, right now. Anything that weakens them favours us. A strike on their farthest, safest city could send them hustling back to protect the others."

- "Or to punish the offenders."

The next question was whether to tell the rest of the family. If we did that, could we keep the information from our troops? I didn't think that a Graham would defect, and take that information to the Shorrs, but it would have been foolish not to consider the possibility. Or perhaps one of our officers or troopers could end up captured, and trade that intelligence for their own gain.

It was news that might raise our fighters' morale. In that case, though, I could save it for a moment when their morale needed a boost.

The Shorrs arrived the following day, just before noon.

I'd seen a huge army camp - ours, when our numbers reached twenty thousand. But this was an immense host, moving slowly. The dread began building in me. It was utterly disheartening. How could we defeat that many?

The movie 'The Two Towers' features a couple of awesome scenes - the first sight of Saruman's army, and then their advance on Helm's Deep. Those are cool. This, on the other hand, was terrifying. I had a lump in my throat, and my stomach roiled. I didn't want to try to cough, in case I threw up.

How could we fight this? It was bigger than both armies combined at the Battle of the Towers. My plan now looked to be utterly reckless.

And then, out of nowhere, I heard a cheer from the castle courtyard. The cheering spread, until it sounded as if there were hundreds of people involved. And it continued to spread, until there had to be thousands of our troops shouting and cheering.

I looked around. Kisel and Boloda were both grinning.

- "What's going on?" I said.

Boloda shrugged. "I might have sent Nosey and Pudge to tell the soldiers that you and Peony are getting married." She looked past me, and grinned again. "I think they like the idea."

*****