The Warlord Chapter 9

WARLORD Chapter 9

I watched the Shorr army carefully as they marched up, and then split into two columns, to surround the walls of Goldenrod. It was a great relief to see that the composition of their host was pretty much what I'd expected: more infantry than cavalry, by a margin of about 7 to 3. That meant 28,000 foot soldiers. The horse troopers would be more than a handful in battle, but they couldn't participate in the storming of a walled city.

From Turn One on, I'd seen that an attacker needed at least a two to one advantage to assault a city. It could be done with less, as we had at Ivy, but we'd had a significant number of archers. The Balabans' siege towers had eliminated the defenders' advantage, but now all ten cities had dug dry moats, and deep, wide ditches around the entire circumference of the walls.

I had 17,000 troops in Goldenrod, plus about 800 armed servants. The Shorrs did not have a two to one edge in infantry. More important, though, I no longer thought that numbers alone were going to be decisive.

Two thousand troops could man the ramparts, leaving no bare or undefended spots. Five or six thousand would fill the entire space, basically standing shoulder to shoulder the entire length of the wall. We had more than three times that many. Heavy losses would not impair our defence - not that I wanted to experience that - but we could keep fighting.

In a pinch, we could use dismounted horse troopers as infantry. I also had a few new tricks up my sleeve, thanks to some research I'd done while I was back in my apartment.

But the essence of my plan was to hold the Shorrs here, to defend Goldenrod while our Second Army launched a strike.

Peachy had been right. There was no Second Army. But I'd created it, starting by stripping the garrisons of our four other cities. That netted us 30 light infantry units, 5 heavy infantry and six archer companies. I supplemented that with Sudha's flanking force, and over 2,200 more infantry from First Army. Then, for good measure, I'd given Second Army 3,000 armed auxiliaries.

At the moment, Flax, Hyacinth, Jacaranda and Ivy were garrisoned by only 300 armed servants. They had strict orders to retreat through the Portal if they were seriously threatened. We could reinforce them from Goldenrod, but it was far more likely that we'd need every fighter we had right here.

- "Good luck." I said to Peachy. "Remember -"

- "I know, I know." she said. "Wantrao is in overall command, but listen to Sudha. Use the auxiliaries as decoys, to tie down enemy troops on the wall. Don't send them in unless we're absolutely desperate. Is that about it?"

- "Yes."

- "Don't worry about it, Noobley. We'll get it done. You concentrate on your job here."

And with that, she went through the Portal to Ivy, to give Wantrao the order. Travot and Stina were already there.

Luth put her hand on my shoulder. "You've loosed the arrow, Daniel. Let it fly."

***

The Shorrs needed a lot of time to maneuver their army. It was mid-afternoon before they were ready. There was no discussion, no flag of truce, no call for surrender. As far as the Shorr family were concerned, only peons were going to die today, barring a few accidents to real 'people'. They could build more at the end of the turn.

It was a thoroughly unnerving sight, to watch ten thousand infantry rush the walls, carrying their scaling ladders. More troops moved up in support. Archers followed them, and began to loft their shafts at the top of our wall. It would take them a few shots to find the range. Our archers, meanwhile, did not lack for targets.

When the Shorr soldiers leapt into our dry ditch, and began to plant their ladders, they discovered the first of the unpleasant tricks I'd prepared for them: caltrops. The Touchstone had created thousands of them for us. If you're not familiar with the term, a caltrop is a piece of metal with four sharp little spikes, like nails, arranged so that no matter how it lands, one of the spikes always points upwards. You don't want to step on one.

They've been used for millennia. The Chinese and the Romans knew how effective they could be against horses, camels, and even elephants. Caesar used them at Alesia. Ninjas supposedly carried them, to slow pursuers. They were used extensively in both world wars. Those odd-looking devices on the D-Day beaches? Czech hedgehogs, designed as anti-tank obstacles, and a menace for landing craft. Caltrops. Simple caltrops are being used now, in the war in Ukraine, to puncture tires.

A caltrop wasn't going to kill a soldier, but it's a nasty booby trap. The Shorr troopers who stepped on them weren't to be climbing a ladder in the next few moments, if ever. They were also going to spend part of their time looking down, to make sure that they didn't inadvertently step on another one. And the troops behind them weren't going to jump down into the ditch without looking. Even when they didn't cause wounds, these little devices seriously inhibited movement.

I had one minor qualm about using them. The Shorrs were going to remember this little surprise. If we Grahams were going to storm a production centre in future, these things might come back to bite us. But on this particular day, we needed every possible advantage we could get.

For the first five turns, I'd built more archer units than tradition dictated - certainly more than the standard build. But I'd allocated a thousand of them to Second Army. We still had two thousand in Goldenrod, and for the first few moments, they had the advantage of firing from atop the walls, at ranges that we'd practiced for the past few days.

The Shorr archers had to find the range. A number of them went down, falling to our arrows. And then their missiles began hitting the crenellations, or passing just above or between them - and hitting our troopers.

There were a hell of a lot of them, too. Despite the advantage of the wall, if we engaged in a straight archery contest, we were going to lose far too many people. I'd already instructed them not to fire at the Shorr soldiers as they climbed the ladders. Now I sent word for them to remain in cover as long as possible, and not to expose themselves too often.

I had another surprise for the Shorrs' assault troops.

The Touchstone could create almost anything you asked for; stone for building, for example. You could ask for whatever quantity you wanted. So I did. On the ramparts of Goldenrod, we had thousands of stones. Ten pound stones. Twenty and thirty pound stones. And a few hundred even heavier ones, just for good measure. We'd practiced dropping them from the top of the wall. They didn't need to be hurled, or thrown accurately. Just push them over the side, and let gravity do its work.

A ten pound stone may not sound like much, but have you ever tried catching one? The men's Olympic shot put weighs 16 pounds; the women's is 8.8 pounds (4 kilos). I wouldn't want to be standing in front of either one. Imagine standing on the ground while someone drops them on you from the roof of a house.

Now imagine that you're climbing a thirty foot ladder, while also carrying a weapon, like a sword. And maybe a shield. All our defenders had to do was tip the stone over the top of the wall, right between the side rails.

Our stone droppers were briefly exposed to enemy archers, but only a few were hit. Some wanted to get a better look at the results of their work, and leaned over the wall, or stood up, exposing themselves far too clearly. We took a dozen more casualties.

But the destruction they'd wrought was significant. The Shorrs simply weren't prepared for such weapons. Troopers were knocked from the ladders, and plummeted to the ground below. Some fell atop their comrades coming up the ladder behind them.

In many cases, the stones smashed into the ladder itself, snapping rungs, or even rails, The very least they did was to shake the entire structure, causing a few more soldiers to fall.

I don't know exactly how many ladders the attackers had placed against the wall; there were too many to count, and I couldn't see all the way around the city. The number was in the hundreds, though. Two hundred? Three? More? I do know that we dropped hundreds of stones - and then followed those up with hundreds more.

The Shorr troopers were peons. It wasn't a question of courage; they would advance into combat without even considering the danger. I'm not saying that they wouldn't cover themselves with a shield, if they had one, or dodge an enemy's blow. But the likelihood of imminent death of injury wouldn't stop them.

What did stop them was confusion. They simply didn't know how to proceed against an unexpected situation like this. What were they supposed to do if their ladder was damaged?

The Shorr officers, the family members and half-Shorrs, were the ones who had to respond. And here we benefited from something I hadn't even fully considered.

They were leading the attack. Just like us at Jacaranda, where it was Malusha and Wantrao who'd led the way. Malusha had been fearless - and why wouldn't she be? Only an accident could bring her down. Peons were not allowed to attack her directly.

Why wouldn't Shorr family members and their half-kin lead from the front? There would have been a few, at least, who would have gone up the ladders first. Now they'd suffered casualties. That had to be the cause of the continued confusion. Their peons continued to mill about in the ditch beneath the wall - and we continued to drop stones on them.

They were missing leaders, and the remaining officers appeared to be in shock. They seemed to be more concerned with their wounded or injured family than they were about restoring order in the ranks. In some cases, they left their ladders against the wall, which gave us more opportunities to damage or destroy them.

It took some time for order to be restored. A senior officer gave the command for a withdrawal. They took their ladders with them, even those that were damaged. They left behind the ones that were beyond repair - and the bodies of their dead peons.

***

The first Shorr assault on Goldenrod ended as a complete fiasco. There were over 550 bodies in the ditch, along with dozens of shattered ladders.

They hadn't even reached the top of the wall. Now they had fewer ladders. They had no workshop available, no carpenters or joiners, no tools. To get more ladders, they would have to send back to Caladium or Eglantine - plus however many troops were needed to carry them. That would take two days, at the very least.

We had lost 50 killed, and had 128 wounded. This was something new for us: non-fatal casualties. I'd been better prepared for it, though, and both Luth and blind Rima had helped with useful suggestions. We'd set up aid stations, inside some of the former servants' dwellings, where our auxiliaries offered what help they could. In some cases, that wasn't much; thirty of our wounded weren't expected to recover.

The enemy didn't look tempted to try another attack before dusk. Nor did we especially fear a surprise assault at night; when both armies were composed of peons - who didn't need sleep - there was no point in fighting in the dark.

But now one of the weaknesses of our 'humanity' came into play: our people needed rest. Some would have to forgo sleep, though, to remain on guard.

- "They wouldn't... would they?" asked Jashi.

- "Extremely unlikely." said Luth.

- "What would they gain?" I asked. "Surprise? It's hard for thousands to be stealthy. Concealment? We don't have to see far to drop rocks on their ladders. Whereas they'll want the light for their archers."

That was a sobering thought to end the day on. I sent the vast majority off to sleep, but spoke to the unit commanders as well as family members. We set up a rotation so that no one would lose more than an hour or two of sleep. The middle watches were the toughest, so I put myself down for that stretch. Armene tried to overrule me, but I pulled rank on her.

The Shorrs waited for the morning light. They took much greater care with their preparations this time. Instead of rushing at every part of the wall, they organized four divisions, each of at least four or five thousand troops. Each division, we noted, included a thousand archers.

It was the archers that took up position first. We had the advantage of the higher position and partial protection of the wall, but I declined to engage in a long-range archery duel. While we could create plenty of new arrows from the Touchstone, we couldn't create new archers. Even a favourable ratio of casualties would cost us people who couldn't be replaced. I chose to preserve our archers for key situations.

In fact, I moved them. Acting on advice from Luth, I shifted them to parts of the wall which weren't about to be attacked.

Their archers were significantly better coordinated. There were no massed volleys. Instead, they acted as squads of ten or twelve, each squad targeting a separate part of the top of the wall. Arrows were constantly trained on that space, and constantly being released. If one of our people stood, or hefted a stone over the battlements, three or four archers immediately targeted them. Just to stand up and look over the crenellations was taking your life in your hands.

Someone on the enemy side had made major adjustments after the debacle of their initial attack. I wondered if it might be the work of Symenon Shorr, the one male Rona Hadyk had wanted to have married into her family.

The greatest danger appeared around the main gate. The enemy carried a battering ram, which we had to stop at all costs. That meant our archers had to expose themselves. So did the troopers heaving rocks. Every single one of them was a target for enemy archers. We began to take heavy casualties.

Worse yet, we had fewer defenders dropping stones on the ladders. A few Shorr troopers reached the top. Fighting broke out on the ramparts. I called on our small reserve of archers.

And then Armene went into action. She was incredible to watch, like an irresistible, unstoppable force. She cleared one trouble spot almost single-handed. Then a brave trooper stood up to drop a heavy stone on an enemy soldier only two feet from reaching the battlements. Our fighter paid for it, as he was immediately skewered by two arrows.

Armene was already moving to the next trouble spot. Behind her, two more of our people dropped stones on the ladder that had reached the top, shattering its top rungs - but again, one of them was killed.

We really could have used Wantrao and Travot (Peachy's former half-Morcar friend), who was also an excellent fighter. But I'd sent them both with Second Army, who might need them even more.

We had Vanea, who did her best, and Jashi, who I tried to keep out of combat, because she would be needed elsewhere later on. Luth was far too old, Faldor too short, and Inzhay lacked the aggression necessary. Boloda and Kisel refused to leave my side; they would pitch in directly only as a last resort.

As Armene extinguished another trouble spot, the enemy got a dangerous lodging on the other side of the gate. They slowly began to expand their foothold. It took her some time to work her way back there. In the meantime, the Shorr bridgehead had extended even further, encompassing almost a fifth of the wall on the main gate side.

Armene finally got there. In a few short moments, she completely halted their progress toward the gate.

Then she was struck by an arrow. It hit the side of her helmet, and glanced off. But she was momentarily stunned. She stumbled, and very nearly fell. The troopers behind her took hold of her, to pull her back, while two more bravely stepped into her place. They were both almost instantly killed.

The enemy raised a cheer. Emboldened, they pressed their advantage. I glanced at Boloda. She shook her head. She wasn't about to let me go anywhere near there.

But I could give the order to our reserve archers. They began to fire at the Shorr troopers packed together atop our wall. Some of our bowmen had even occupied the upper storeys of building facing the wall, and were shooting from windows.

Our soldiers on the wall were now packed just as tightly. The enemy couldn't make any more progress. There was literally no room for more attackers to reach the top of the wall.

It was sheer carnage up there. People and peons fell from the wall. The living were pushing or even kicking the dead off the ramparts, just to make more space for themselves to stand.

Despite the savagery of the fighting, we were no longer in great danger. The Shorrs weren't going to control the wall directly above the gate. Nor could they reach the access stairway on their other side. Even if they had, how many of their troopers could have come down into the city? A hundred? Two hundred?

We had three thousand of our people waiting to receive them. They would have to control a much greater stretch of the wall before they could seriously threaten to break into the city. The fact that they had 40,000 troops trying to get into Goldenrod meant little when we had so many fighters inside.

It was a bit like a hockey game. Five skaters against four, when someone is sent off for a penalty, is known as a power play, or 'the man advantage'. Five on three increases the chances of a goal dramatically. But what if it was fifty against thirty? The advantage of numbers breaks down when there's no space to deploy them.

It took some time - and many lives - before someone on the Shorr side realized that they weren't advancing along the wall in either direction. They could freely climb their ladders in that section, and put more troops on the battlements. All that did, though, was to increase the number of targets for our archers, in what was rapidly becoming little more than a shooting gallery.

The enemy stayed far too long. Then they reached a point where they decided to stop feeding their troops into the meat grinder. No more soldiers were climbing the ladders. The ones on the wall were basically left to their fate. Only a handful climbed down. The remainder continued to fight, and died. Their bridgehead on the wall shrank to a foothold, and then to a toehold.

When the last of the attackers were killed, Armene's troopers found two Shorr family members among the dead. They were easily distinguishable by their ornate armour and the quality of their weapons.

That must have been a major blow to them. We suspected that one or two more had been killed in the first attack.

- "How many Shorrs are there?" I wondered aloud. "Family members, I mean."

- "Twenty-six." said Luth. "And perhaps another twenty half-Shorrs."

I could only compare them to the Hadyks. What if the Hadyks had lost Malusha, Wantrao, Armene and Jashi in the same fight? Who could replace them? Who would lead the next attack?

The Shorr family members had probably led the way, secure in the knowledge that peons could not attack them. Had they put their first losses down to accident, or bad luck? They had to know better, now.

The other assaults did not fare as well. They gained a brief lodging on the northern side of the wall, but were unable to expand it. Prompt reaction by Vanea and Faldor sealed them off. Their foothold was soon reduced and then eliminated. The other two assaults never reached the top of the wall, resulting only in more shattered ladders, and more dead peons. The Shorrs withdrew.

We had taken casualties, too. Our people attending the wounded were soon overwhelmed, and we had to set up an improvised hospice in the castle courtyard. I can't use the word hospital, because we had no doctors. Nor could I create painkilling drugs through the Touchstone. All we could do was make them comfortable, stitch up superficial wounds, and occasionally remove an arrow.

I'd read accounts, both fictional and historical, describing the terrible suffering of wounded soldiers, from ancient times right up to the Twentieth century. Begging for water was the least harrowing description. Let's just say that the history of battlefield medicine doesn't fill a person with much faith in humanity. The photographs I saw of a Civil War surgeon's tent will stick with me forever.

It simply hadn't been an issue when I led an army of peons. They died. That was it. There were no wounded. Those who were unhurt or only lightly injured survived. But now the Graham army was composed of people. Wonderful, tough, resilient and resourceful, but also fragile people.

The Shorrs appeared to have lost over 2,500 troops in their second assault. We had over 400 killed - but almost 900 wounded. I had to go and see them. Armene was my first concern, of course.

After the arrow that struck her helmet, she'd been cut on the arm and the leg.

- "Never better." she said.

- "You don't look it." I said.

- "Watch, then." Armene stood up, drew her sword, and performed a series of cuts and thrusts, stamping one foot and lunging forward. There wasn't the slightest awkwardness or sign of discomfort in her movements.

- "But you're covered in blood."

She shrugged. "Most of it isn't mine. I'll admit that I'm a little winded, but I'll be fine after a bit of a rest."

Vanea was among the wounded as well; she'd had two fingers on her left hand sheared off. Faldor had brought her in, wrapped her hand as tightly as possible, and served her a stiff shot of brandy. Then he gave her a second.

- "You did well." I said. "Both of you."

- "I can still fight!" said Vanea.

- "I know. And you will, Just... maybe not today. Unless we really need you."

- "I'll be ready!"

Faldor looked at me over her shoulder (she was sitting, while he stood behind her). He slowly shook his head twice.

There were many more of our people who were seriously wounded. I couldn't tell exactly which ones, but it was evident that a large number weren't going to survive.

We had hot water, and clean bandages. I'd explained at length about the need to use sterilized instruments. I had yet to see a case of infection in the Decapolis, but I didn't want us to be the ones who invented it. Bandages, knives, brandy and good wishes - that was just about the extent of our emergency care.

Then I saw someone among the wounded I hadn't expected. Her leg was oozing blood, even while somebody knelt at her feet and tightly wound a bandage around it.

- "Jashi?"

- "I'm alright." she said. "I can still ride." Her voice trembled just a bit. She wasn't making a confident statement; that sounded like a very hopeful wish.

- "What happened?" I said, a little too harshly.

- "I... um... Armene was wounded, so I went in with the reinforcements."

- "I meant what happened to you after that?"

The woman tending to her looked up at me. "She was stabbed in the leg. Fell off the wall. Landed badly, and broke it."

I managed not to shout 'Damn it!', but that was what I felt like doing. Instead, I thanked the woman. "Ah... I don't believe we've met."

- "Curly." she said.

- "Daniel." I said, extending my hand.

- "I know." She hesitated to reach for my hand, since hers were bloody. I closed the distance for her.

Curly grinned. "We're winning, aren't we?"

- "Today, yes."

I didn't tell her that Jashi had thrown a large monkey wrench into my plans. If Part A went well, and Part B fell into place, I needed Jashi for Part C - and now she was unavailable. The best-laid plans of mice and men gang aft agley, as the poet said.

- "I can still ride." said Jashi.

- "Not with one leg you can't." I let out a deep sigh. Who did we have that could replace her? Sudha would have been ideal, but she was with Second Army. Armene was wounded, and she wasn't a cavalry commander in any case.

Inzhay wouldn't do. I liked him, but he lacked the aggressiveness necessary to lead from the front in combat situations. Vanea might have fit the bill, but she was going to pass out soon, after a third shot of brandy.

"I'll have to do it." I said aloud.

- "Absolutely not." said Boloda. "Not if I have to tie you up and sit on you. Are you out of your mind? If you're captured or killed, we lose the war."

- "You're exaggerating." I said. "I'm hardly indispensable."

- "Idiot. Of course you are."

- "Luth can take command, if anything happens to me."

Boloda snorted. "I'll admit that's she's smarter than you are, and probably a better strategist - but do you think the people will follow her as they do you?"

- "Why wouldn't they?"

- "Because they don't know her, Daniel. Not like they know you. And trust you. And have confidence in you. Jashi and Sudha are important. Like them, Wantrao and Armene are essential to your plans. But you are the single most indispensable person here. It's not even close."

Kisel was standing beside her. He stared me in the eye, and nodded once, emphatically.

- "Alright." I said. "Then who do we send in Jashi's place?"

- "I'll go." said Faldor.

***

The Shorrs appeared to be licking their wounds. They'd lost over three thousand troops, and a few family members, which was probably more important from their perspective. They had to re-organize and re-group. I didn't think that they would try a second assault today.

But Part A of my plan came to fruition. Peachy came through the Portal.

- "We took it. We took Eglantine!" She pumped her fist, as if she'd just stroked a winner at Wimbledon.

- "Thank goodness." I think I was more relieved than excited or triumphant. "What's the bad news? What did it cost us?"

Peachy frowned. I'd let her exult for all of three seconds, and now I was raining on her parade.

- "Wantrao was wounded. Travot, too."

- "How badly?"

- "They'll live." she said. "I think. But neither one will be available for duty tomorrow. Or next Turn. I don't know."

That was a serious blow. As Boloda had said, Wantrao was essential. Now it was all the more important to keep Armene alive.

- "Who's in charge of the city?"

- "Sudha and Stina. Relax, Daniel. It's all taken care of. We lost under a thousand killed, and..."

- "And?"

- "Not quite two thousand wounded."

I winced. They'd had seven thousand troops; almost half were casualties.

"But wait - we took three thousand prisoners. They'll turn into people, right? And a thousand servants. They will too, won't they? So it more than evens out."

- "Peachy." I said. "We lost people. Our people. Many of our wounded are going to die, too, because we don't have the first idea of how to save them. It's not a game anymore."

She looked abashed. "I know. I'm sorry. I just - I don't know them all like you do."

- "Okay. Don't let it get you down. We can celebrate; it's a victory. We just can't forget those who paid the price for it."

I had her wait while I briefed Faldor again. He listened patiently as I repeated his instructions for the third time. He even schooled his features so that it didn't look as though he was thinking 'I heard you the first two times'.

I gave him ten minutes to get back to his position. Then Peachy and I went through the Portal to Eglantine, with Boloda and Kisel, who wouldn't even let me go to the bathroom by myself.

I'd never been in this city before, yet it felt very familiar. For one thing, every Portal Room in the Decapolis was laid out the same way: Touchstone, Portal, curtained alcove. In this case, I was reminded of Ivy, and Jacaranda before that. The Portal was wreathed in purple-tinted flames, and the curtain was also purple. There was a small tapestry above the door, which also bore the Shorr colours.

But there was green, too: four guards, with green shirts sticking out under their armour, green badges and green bits of equipment. I introduced myself to each one, and shook their hands.

- "Thank you." I said. "We're holding at Goldenrod. But this is a major victory for us. I can't thank all of Second Army, but... maybe you could pass the word for me?"

- "We will." said Legs. She wasn't particularly tall, but she had disproportionately long legs compared to her short torso. It wasn't freakish; just noticeable. I wondered (not for the first time) if I should encourage people to choose new names for themselves. Even if they chose odd ones, it had to be better than being the twelfth person in your unit called Nosey.

Sudha was there, too, wearing a loose green shirt over her armour. The colour suited her. Well, any colour suited her. Okay, maybe not peach. Then again, I wouldn't bet against her. Sudha was the most beautiful woman I'd seen in the Decapolis, with her blue-black hair and light blue eyes. It was no wonder that Wantrao was in love with her. I'm sure that there were hundreds, if not thousands of our people who felt the same way. As for me... obviously I was in love with Peony, but it wasn't because she was the number one most attractive woman... hopefully you get the point. Whatever the point may be.

- "Thank you, too, Sudha."

- "Wantrao and Travot deserve the credit." she said. "And Peachy feinted an attack with the auxiliaries at exactly the right moment."

- "Did she now?" I turned to look at our pint-sized strategist. "You didn't mention that part."

- "Too modest." she said. Then she cracked up. "I was totally going to brag, but you never gave me a chance."

- "You can tell the whole family after this Turn."

- "Oh, I will. Trust me."

- "Sudha," I said, "With Wantrao down, I need you to take command of Second Army. Can you do that?"

- "Yes, Daniel."

- "Once I'm gone, count to two hundred. Then take control of the Touchstone for the Grahams."

She simply nodded. Beautiful, intelligent, supremely skilled, and not addicted to excess words: how could you not be attracted to Sudha?

I went back to Goldenrod through the Portal. Once again, I reflected on what an immense advantage we had. Not only could we communicate almost instantly across great distances, but we could move people (and large numbers of people) between cities and coordinate our actions.

There was just enough time for me to reach the balcony overlooking the courtyard. I gave the signal to two riders waiting below. They trotted out of the keep, onto the main street. They were going to let Faldor know that the countdown had begun.

That left me only a few more seconds to question my decision again. Was it really wise to put Faldor in charge of this operation? He'd never held a battlefield command, or been entrusted with an independent mission. The Hadyks hadn't been able to see past his lack of height (he was barely 4'10") and his unimpressive physique. Was I just doing the same? I'd briefed the unit commanders who were going with him, hoping that if he couldn't pull it off, then maybe they could as a group.

Two things happened in quick succession.

In the Shorr lines, a significant number of their troops suddenly turned green. With some individuals it was their hair; for most it was part or parts of their clothing or equipment. The troops in question had to be shocked by this development. In the blink of an eye, they had gone from peons to people.

At the same time, the gates of Goldenrod were opened, and Faldor rode out with five hundred of our light cavalry. With help from our watchers on the wall, they knew exactly where to go. The 'green' troops were to the south, probably around 10:00 on an old-fashioned clock (if you considered our front gate as high noon - an analogy I could never use here).

This was the moment of greatest danger for the newly-made people; if the Shorrs turned their forces against them, from both sides, the green troops would be hard-pressed. They had no natural leaders or officers among them.

But the same weakness seemed to paralyze the Shorrs. They'd lost several family members already, both killed and wounded. If they had assigned adult kin to the garrisons of Eglantine, Caladium and Bryony, then there couldn't have been many left here with their army. Also, they would have been just as shocked as their peons.

Some of them, I realized, might be seeing this for the third time. We'd turned a Shorr field army by capturing Jacaranda, and then stolen another by taking Ivy. It was difficult to tell at a distance, but the contingents that had turned green seemed to represent somewhere between a fifth and a quarter of the enemy's army.

That had to present a significant danger to the Shorr leaders. If they turned on their former troops, and sought to eliminate them, they ran the risk of being very vulnerable to a sally or even a full-scale sortie by our garrison. Given that their forces were stationed in a circle around the city, parts of their lines could easily be rolled up.

The first thing they did, then, was hesitate. That allowed Faldor and his 500 to reach the green units. Obviously, we couldn't hear a word from inside the city - in fact, I doubted that Faldor's voice could reach all of the new people at once - but I knew exactly what he was telling them. They couldn't stay there. Eventually the Shorrs would regroup and attack them.

Nor could they enter the city. Trying to fit thousands of people, mounted and on foot, through the narrow gates would take too much time. It would present an irresistible invitation to the Shorrs, and a tempting target for their archers. If they clustered around the gate, trying to get in, we could not come out to help them. They would be squeezed into a tightly-packed mass beneath the walls. It would be a massacre. Worse still, how could we close the gates while they were trying to come through? What was to prevent the enemy from entering with them?

They weren't moving. Whatever Faldor was saying wasn't working. I had to suddenly gasp for air, because I'd momentarily forgotten to breathe. It was taking too long. The Shorrs were going to fall on them from multiple directions. A massacre was in the offing, or at least a bloodletting. And it was all my fault. We'd had to do it, to weaken the Shorrs and to give ourselves a chance, but these poor people, who'd only come to life a few moments ago, were going to pay for it.

- "They're moving!" said Boloda. "There!" She pointed.

It was true. It took me another moment to see it, but there was definitely some rippling and shifting among the green units. Then it became evident that some of the rearmost troops were moving - away from Goldenrod. If they had listened to Faldor, they would be marching in a south south-easterly direction. To Hyacinth.

Faldor led the way, while the bulk of his light cavalry acted as a rearguard. The Shorr forces to either side continued to hesitate. I could understand their dilemma: should they commit more than half of their remaining army to pursuing and destroying the newly-turned units? Would that expose them to a counter-attack by our army inside the city? They had no way of knowing our exact numbers, but it was no secret that we had a much larger than usual garrison, and that we had cavalry - witness Faldor's five hundred.

There are moments in time which loom larger than most. I don't mean in the lives of individuals, though that is possible, too. I was thinking of overtime in Game 7 of the Championship Finals. A potential winning putt on the final hole of the Masters. A fifty yard field goal with three seconds remaining, to win the Super Bowl. Penalty kicks at the World Cup of soccer. Sorry, football.

I was holding my breath again, and mindlessly repeating the same little mantra over and over again: 'Please. Let them get away. Let them get away'.

Were the Shorr forces beginning to move? They couldn't just let this happen, could they?

And then we all heard it: a loud, booming gong, followed by a deep voice that seemed to come from the sky.

- "The Balabans have made peace with the Hadyks."

I wish I could tell you that I wasn't surprised. Peachy would no doubt have said that she 'saw that one coming a mile away'. Truthfully, I was expecting just such a thing. But now? Right at this moment? The timing was incredible. Faldor's retreat stuttered and halted, as the people stood in awe - or in shock.

But how much worse was it for the Shorrs? Take this announcement however you wanted to, it was not good news for them.

The second booming gong was greeted by gasps from just about everyone around me. Boloda, Kisel - who could gasp, even if he couldn't speak - Nosey and Pudge. I felt a small hand slip into my mine, and give my fingers a gentle squeeze. Peony.

- "The Balabans have declared war on the Grahams."

That was not what I'd been expecting. It wasn't exactly a surprise, either, but why now? This second announcement would hardly displease the Shorrs.

It did motivate Faldor's people to begin moving again. They couldn't just stand there and wait for further updates. The Shorr lines began to ripple again.

The third booming gong just about stopped my heart.

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

There it was.

A spontaneous cheer erupted inside the city. Thousands of our people gave vent to their feelings. It was relief, happiness, and hope in equal measures. The siege of Goldenrod was effectively over. There was no way that the Shorr army could remain here, with dwindling hopes of capturing the city, while their production centres were threatened by the Balabans and the Hadyks. Had they known what I knew (thanks to Chalky's scouts), the Shorrs wouldn't have been seriously perturbed; they'd be in full-blown panic.

There was no way, now, that they could afford to risk a battle, to take heavy casualties fighting for no better reason than to inflict casualties on us. They would need all of their troops to defend their two remaining cities. At least one of them was at risk now, because if Lady Balaban had learned anything from Lady Shorr, it was to withhold her declaration of war until she was ready to strike.

There was obviously considerable confusion among the remaining Shorr leaders. It took them over an hour to come to the correct decision: they withdrew to the west.

***

I sent riders to catch up to Faldor's force, to have them return to Goldenrod. Then I sent most of our remaining light cavalry and horse archers, under Inzhay, to follow the retreating Shorrs.

- "Only to keep an eye on them." I told him. "Don't be tempted to attack, or even to harass them. There are too many of them, and they're withdrawing in good order. Just observe - don't get drawn into a fight."

When Faldor returned, I went out to commend him on a job well done. But I was also there to meet the new people, the former Shorr peons. They were still in a state of semi-shock, but also excited. They had a hundred questions for Faldor's horse troopers; everyone seemed to be talking at once. It looked more like an outdoor concert crowd (with weapons) than an army.

The units were all intermingled, but I was able to discover that there were 84 of them. That meant 8,400 new people. I shook hundreds of hands, and told everyone I met to spread the word: each unit was to elect its own officers, and the Captains were to gather in the castle courtyard after dinner, so that I could address them.

I hadn't foreseen how the mention of that one word would affect them: dinner. It was a new concept for them. For the very first time, they realized, they were actually thirsty after their march.

Much as I would have liked to meet even more of them, I had other business to take care of. First off, I had to return to Eglantine via the Portal, to visit the wounded there. Last of all, I went to see my wounded family members.

Travot looked decidedly pale; he'd lost a lot of blood. Wantrao had at least six wounds, including a nasty gash on his left foot. For good measure, he'd broken his right ankle.

- "Won't be climbing any ladders for the rest of this Turn." he said. He sounded a little groggy.

- "Or the next. But if you can sit a horse, you can command troops... Colonel."

He smiled at that. "About time."

I made Travot a Major, and told them that I'd have them carried through the Portal so they could attend a family council in the morning.

- "Until then, get some sleep."

I returned to Goldenrod well after dark. To my surprise, Peony was waiting for me in the Portal Room.

- "Thank goodness." she said. "Come straight to the Map Room. Inzhay sent messengers. So did Chalky."

- "What's going on?"

- "I'll let them tell it." she said. She walked down the hall beside me, and once again slid her hand into mine. I turned my head to smile at her.

- "Sheesh..." muttered Boloda. Kisel elbowed her.

There were three women in the Map Room, in addition to Luth and Peachy. I shook hands with them, and introduced myself.

- "We met before, General." said one of them, a tall, rail-thin woman. "It was the night before the Battle of the Towers. I'm sure you don't remember. You spoke to so many of us that night."

- "Stretch?" I said. It was a bit of a guess, but I did vaguely remember her; there just weren't that many former peons taller than me.

Her mouth fell open. "You remember me?"

- "You do stand out in a crowd." I said.

Her companion was Knuckles, and the third messenger, one of the scouts, gave her name as Soma.

"Did you choose your own name?" I asked her.

- "Yes, I did."

- "Good for you."

Stretch gave her report first.

- "We shadowed the Shorr army, General, just as you ordered. They didn't stop their march at dusk."

- "Ah." I wasn't all that surprised: peons don't get tired, and the Shorrs were in a hurry to get back to their cities.

- "Then half of their army turned red."

Red was the colour of the Balabans. They'd taken Bryony, then.

- "What happened after that?"

- "They started fighting."

"If I may, General?" said Soma.

- "Please."

- "Chalky had us watching the Balaban light cavalry that were also shadowing the Shorr army - but from the west. There were three hundred of them. When half the Shorr troops turned red, they didn't hesitate: they rode straight in."

- "Family members, then. They went to take command."

- "Yes. We think so. That was when the fighting began in earnest. Chalky has a theory, General - if you'd like to hear it."

- "Of course."

- "He thinks that the Balabans want to tie up what's left of the Shorr field army, so that they can't get back to Caladium."

That made perfect sense. The Shorrs had withdrawn from Goldenrod with almost 30,000 troops. Even if half of those had turned red, there were still 15,000 purple Shorr troops. If they reached Caladium, and fortified themselves inside, it would be virtually impossible to take - especially now that they had learned about caltrops and stones from us.

The Balabans and the Hadyks were going to attempt to take Caladium. No doubt they were already on the march.

- "Luth? Family Council. Now. In the dining room. Peachy - could you go back to Eglantine? Bring Sudha and Stina. If Wantrao and Travot are asleep, leave them be. But if they're awake, have them carried here."

- "Got it."

- "Anything else?" I said to the scouts.

Soma nodded. "Chalky wants you to know: it's almost impossible for our people to get close to Bryony. There are enemy light cavalry all over the place."

- "They're learning. Good to know. Thank you very much. Get some rest. Have you eaten?"

Luth returned just as the scouts were leaving.

- "Are you thinking of Dahlia?"

I nodded. "If it's that lightly defended, we have to take it. I'm even tempted to try for Amaranth." I looked at the map again. "Except it's almost twice as far, and the direct route passes too close to Caladium."

- "You don't want to take heavy cavalry with you, do you?"

- "No. Too slow."

- "So you don't want to risk a battle."

- "No. We won't march from here. We'll go through the Portal to Flax, and march from there."

Luth smiled. "Clever. I still haven't fully grasped the potential of the Portals, but you see so many possibilities."

- "Some of them. I'm sure that I'll see even more after the war is over."

- "May that day come soon."

The family council was more of a presentation on my part. There was no debate; Dahlia was too big a prize to pass up. The only questions were about who would lead the various parts of the operation. There were only so many healthy family members left. Peachy had left Wantrao and Travot to sleep. Vanea was sleeping, too, after all of the brandy she'd drunk. Jashi wasn't fit to ride.

- "Sudha and Faldor will take the light cavalry and the horse archers. Your first task is to find out what's happening with the Shorr army - especially those that are now Balaban troops. I expect that that will lead you to Caladium. It's almost guaranteed that the Balabans and the Hadyks will attack there next."

- "How can you be so sure?' asked Faldor.

- "Well, it's what I'd do. But the main reason is because they can't let the Shorrs bring the remaining half of their army back to Caladium. They'd still have something like twenty thousand troops. Can you imagine trying to storm a city with a garrison that big? Lady Shorr could just laugh at everyone, safe inside the walls. Then the Balabans and the Hadyks would have no choice but to stay put in their own cities - which can all be easily reached from Caladium."

- "Would that be so bad?" said Inzhay. "If they're all busy defending against each other, they won't be coming after us. We could have peace."

- "Except that they would still be at war with each other. Building troops every turn. It's an advantage for the Balabans in the long run, because they now have two cities, while the others only have one. And I don't know if they understand what our boon was. As far as they know, our armies are still composed of peons, and we're building in five production centres - six now."

- "That could tempt them to temporarily set aside their differences." said Luth. "Long enough to unite against us, at least."

- "That's for the future." I said. "Tomorrow, we have to take Dahlia. Armene, you're with me. Inzhay and Stina, too. When we capture it, Sudha, you and Faldor have to be prepared to bring out the Hadyk troops who turn green. We have no way of knowing where they'll be. You'll have to act on your initiative, and do the best you can. Don't risk your own troops unless you absolutely have to."

- "What about me?" said Peachy.

- "You and Luth are going to lead the army west. You'll be going to support Sudha, if she gets into trouble." Peachy didn't appear to be happy abut her assignment, but she chose not make an issue of it.

- "Is this something you have to lead in person?" asked Boloda. It was a shrewd question. The truth was... probably not.

- "Armene can't be first over the wall AND direct the reserves. Peachy led at Eglantine. It's my turn." That wasn't entirely fair to Luth or Inzhay, who were quite capable of leading an attack on an undermanned city. I just wanted to be there. Thankfully, nobody seriously opposed me.

"Alright: everybody get as much sleep as you can tonight. We may have to go without for a while."

Peony walked back to our chamber with me, holding my hand again. Boloda and Kisel, and Nosey and Pudge wished us a good night.

- "You've been very quiet." I said, to my bride-to-be.

- "I... I've been trying to think of the future. About how we end this war."

I sat down on the edge of the bed. "Tell me."

- "What if the Shorrs stay in Caladium, with twenty thousand troops? Or the Balabans put ten thousand each in Amaranth and Bryony? We can't attack so many, can we? We would lose so many of our people..."

- "Well, we could try to draw them out."

She shook her head. "And what if Luth was right? What if they unite against us?"

- "I don't think they trust each other enough. They're a pretty treacherous bunch."

- "I know." she said. "But is there no other alternative? Just more war, with thousands and thousands killed and maimed, until there is only one family left?"

- "You've been thinking of an alternative, haven't you?"

Peony came and sat beside me. I never ceased to marvel at how tiny she seemed, compared to my bulk. I reached for her hand, and gently held it. "Tell me."

- "What if we offered them peace?" she said, softly.

- "They wouldn't accept it. We hold more cities, so we would have the advantage when war resumed - as it would. That's what the Decapolis is built on, after all. As it is, they have ten or twenty thousand troops. If the Shorrs made peace, they would go back to a mere one thousand. If they think that we're still using peons, they would see that as us outnumbering them six to one."

- "But we don't need cities, do we?"

I had to turn and look at her. Peony had been thinking well outside the box.

- "You mean... give them cities in return for peace?"

- "They might be tempted." she said. "Five for them, five for us?"

- "I don't know..."

- "Even three for each of them, and four for us. Our numbers wouldn't change. We would still have the advantage."

- "Except that..." I had so many objections. I didn't trust either family. The Hadyks had tried to murder me; the Balabans had stabbed the Shorrs in the back (never mind that it was only after the Shorrs had betrayed the Morcars and stolen their last production centre).

The numbers were worrisome. We had a little over thirty thousand troopers, and almost six thousand auxiliaries. There was no way to know exactly many troops the Hadyks and Balabans would have at the end of the turn, but if they could capture Caladium, and steal the last Shorr field army... they could easily be on par with us. Making peace would mean immediately disbanding those enormous forces.

If we gave them a total of three cities each, they would have peace-time garrisons of 1200. Say 7,200 troops between them. But the moment either of us declared war on the other, they could build just as many or more new troops. It would take them until Turn Three of a new war to be on equal footing with us. And after that...

- "There's something else that's been worrying me, too, Peony. I've been thinking of the future, too."

- "Tell me." she said, repeating my words.

- "Morale. Right now, virtually every single former peon in our army and the auxiliaries is highly motivated. They're fighting for their lives, and they all know it. They can't surrender to the Hadyks; they'll be killed. Nor can they go back to being peons. Not after tasting freedom."

- "That sounds very much like a good thing."

- "It is. But let's say we make peace. What form of government will we have? Why should they continue to obey me, or any of the family members? What claim do we have to their esteem, much less their obedience?"

- "You've fought for them. You gave us that freedom. You gave us our lives, Daniel."

- "Okay, we could debate that one for days. For now, let's just say that I agree. Does gratitude bring with it obligation? Do they have to serve us?"

Peony didn't reply right away. She gave my words due consideration.

- "What is it you fear?"

- "It would be natural enough for them to disagree with me. Some might not approve of a peace. Think of the thirty thousand peons fighting against us, on behalf of their masters. If we make peace, four fifths of them would simply disappear. As if they had never been."

Peony had been the one to tell me of this phenomenon. She knew it better than anyone.

"And if we make peace, aren't we leaving thousands of peon soldiers and servants as slaves to the other families? You know how Moran Hadyk will treat them. Can our people enjoy their freedom and peace while others toil under the yoke they so recently escaped?" Okay - I hadn't been a slave, myself, but I was on a poetic roll. And that didn't mean that I couldn't sympathize. Sudha would know exactly what I was thinking. So would Peony. And Nosey and Pudge, Chalky and Stretch and Soma.

"Here's another thought: say we have six years of peace. How many children will we have? How many of our female fighters will be pregnant, or nursing small children? How many of our troops will be willing to fight again? I mean, if we made peace once before, why can't we do it a second time?"

- "It wouldn't be the same. We would have even more to fight for."

- "Not everyone will see it that way. Some see it as a reason to fear war. Not everyone trusts the same logic, or accepts the same common sense. In my world, that's why we still have wars. Good people mostly don't believe in fighting, but they have it forced upon them by those who do."

- "You have Hadyks in your world, then? And Balabans and Shorrs?"

- "And Morcars. Oh, yes."

- "But you have Grahams, too." said Peony. She smiled. "And that is a comforting thought."

- "I'm... I'm not what you think I am, Peony. At home, I just play games in my spare time. My job - my work, rather... well, I'm more like a peon than a warlord. Your world often seems more real to me than my own. Despite the war, I like it here a lot more." I was just talking off the cuff, but even as I said it, I realized that it was true: I wasn't playing a game, or having fun commanding troops. I wanted to win the war, of course, but I wanted to end it - with as many of our people alive and unhurt as possible.

"Besides," I added, "you're here."

Peony wrapped her arms around me (well, as far as she could reach), and nestled her head against my chest.

***

We left first, with the infantry. It took some time to get eight thousand light infantry and archers through the Portal. I decided against taking heavy infantry, because they would slow us down. Later in the day, Sudha and Faldor would lead the light cavalry and horse archers west.

Chalky shifted quite a few of his scouts south, to cover our approach to Dahlia. He was remarkably good at his job; I was probably going to have to promote him again. Inzhay probably deserved a bump, too. He hadn't done anything flashy, or spectacular, like the others, but reliability in a limited role should still be rewarded.

I was going to have to promote Travot and Stina, as well, because we couldn't give all of the rewards to former half-Hadyks, and none to anyone else. There would be former peons to promote as well. Note to self: make days longer, so that I could have time to attend to these details. Or maybe I could put Luth on it. Better yet, Luth, Kien and Rima.

Inzhay, my bodyguards and I rode. Armene insisted on marching with her troopers, and Stina felt compelled to emulate her.

Our scouts rode in regularly to report: there was no enemy force between us and Dahlia, or between Dahlia and Goldenrod. Large forces were converging on Caladium. The remaining Shorr army and the new Balaban troops had left thousands of corpses lying on the field after their clash. Now there were also dead bodies strewn for miles in the direction of Caladium. Our little adventure was definitely a sideshow.

Sometimes, in war, there are extremely one-sided results. There are battles where one side routed, trashed, creamed or even annihilated the other. That was sometimes the result of overwhelming numbers, or ridiculous technological advantages (Omdurman, and a host of other 'colonial' battles). There are also surprisingly decisive victories over equal or even superior numbers: Cannae, Austerlitz, the Mongols against just about everybody, Agincourt... I've probably forgotten your favourite.

But there are also engagements with mismatched forces that are barely worth mentioning. The assault on Dahlia was one of those. We marched, we arrived, we attacked. The city fell in fifteen minutes (okay, maybe seventeen).

The garrison consisted of only one thousand infantry. The Hadyks had taken all the foot soldiers they had to Bryony, and then to Caladium. They might as well have taken these last thousand light infantry. There simply weren't enough of them to defend the walls.

Some of our troopers climbed their ladders, reached the top, and found no one there to oppose them. The defenders had no archers; we had a thousand. We had Armene, they had no one; almost all of the remaining Hadyk family members must have been at Caladium.

There were two thousand Hadyk horse troopers in Dahlia, but they couldn't fight. Instead, they watched as we stormed the city. Armene had the honour of taking the Touchstone, apparently only minutes after Lady Rona had scampered through it.

That meant, unfortunately, that she had somewhere else to go. The Hadyks had control of Caladium's Touchstone. The Shorrs were without a single city. Again.

Six hundred of the defenders of Dahlia died. The remaining 2400 became human. We lost 45 killed and 117 wounded.

I also renewed acquaintance with Wantrao's mother. Apparently she hadn't been important enough to include in the last-second evacuation. She was still in her chamber.

- "Hello, Lady Kamla." I said. "Don't worry: I'll see about having you rejoin your kin at Caladium."

- "Again?" she said.

***

I left Inzhay in command at Dahlia, with a little over two thousand infantry. He had orders to abandon the city if a powerful force arrived to attack. Our people could retreat through the Portal if necessary.

I sent Armene through the Portal to Goldenrod with six thousand light infantry. She was to march west at once, at top speed. By now, I knew the map like the back of my hand; it would be a shorter distance from Goldenrod than from here. Also, Sudha and Peachy might be retreating, making the distance even shorter.

The cavalry, however, couldn't go through the Portal. I put Stina in command.

- "The heavy cavalry will only slow you down. Have them follow, but press on with the light units as fast as you can. Chalky's scouts will guide you to the best position - and then use your own judgment."

Then I went through the Portal myself, with my bodyguards.

I was increasingly worried about Sudha and her cavalry. I'd given her a task that needed doing, but one that could prove to be extremely dangerous.

Faldor had undertaken a similar task, just the day before yesterday. He'd ridden out to take command of the Shorr troopers who had turned green because of the capture of Eglantine. It had been dangerous, but the Shorrs were dismayed by the failure of their second assault, and hamstrung by unexpectedly heavy casualties among their leaders. Then the three announcements from 'the Gods' had caused them to halt in their tracks. There was no pursuit of Faldor and our new people.

Sudha would be watching the combined Balaban-Hadyk armies, who had captured Caladium. That meant that the remaining Shorr forces had turned red or blue. They could have well over twenty thousand troops there.

When we took control of the Touchstone, some of the Hadyk forces were going to turn green. They might be inside the city. They might be in a difficult position to reach, between enemy units. Worse yet, darkness was falling, and Sudha had to find a way to extricate as many of them as possible, without risking her own little army.

That last part of my orders was, admittedly, a little vague, a little too open to interpretation. It had to be that way. Sudha would have to use her own judgment, and rely on her instincts, because I couldn't predict what kinds of circumstances she might be facing.

Peachy and Luth had left three thousand troops in Goldenrod, not counting the wounded. They were heavy infantry - too slow for our purposes. I took three thousand of the armed auxiliaries, and set out just after Armene.

That was when it struck me: the Shorrs had somehow managed to lose 60,000 troops in a single turn. Three production centres, as well, but it was the sheer scope of their troop losses that was so staggering.

As we marched, we met a steady stream of scouts and messengers, bringing back reports of what was going on up ahead. Sudha had gotten away from Caladium, with most of our new people. 'Most' was a very troubling word, under the circumstances. Sudha was being pursued every step of the way. The fighting was confused, in the dark.

The retreat could only be at the speed of the slowest units; she wasn't going to leave anyone behind.

The next messengers brought numbers: Some 4,500 new people had escaped to join Sudha. Only 300 were light cavalry; the rest were all infantry. Sudha had three thousand cavalry, but she would be hard-pressed if both the Hadyks and the Balabans were after her, with at least half of the former Shorr army.

The next report had a little more detail, most of it bad news. We'd lost over a thousand people, killed and missing. Hundreds more were wounded. The only bright spot was one unexpected little nugget of information: there were a few half-Hadyks with the troops who had turned green, and one of them was Virdyan.

Virdyan was Inzhay's closest friend. Yet when I had begun my coup, and invited him to join us, Virdyan had declined. I wondered what might have happened to change his mind.

We pressed on. Secrecy was not an issue, so I let the auxiliaries know that Sudha's troops and our new people were under tremendous pressure. Then I rode ahead with my bodyguards to join Armene and the infantry.

A new messenger brought encouraging news: Peachy and Luth had made contact with Sudha. Their troops were shouting 'Graham! Graham!' to avoid being mistaken for enemies.

Time seemed to crawl. I'd been on plenty of marches by now, even urgent ones, but the minutes had never passed so slowly before.

- "I should have taken the army, and let Peachy go to Dahlia." I said aloud.

- "Now you say that." said Boloda. "Well, guess what: I've changed my mind, too. I'm glad you're not up there, in the middle of a night battle. We couldn't see threats in time to protect you. One stray unit in the wrong place, one random arrow... and we could be mourning the head of the family."

The next scout told us that Peachy and Luth were retreating, with Sudha, but the fighting was still going on. We'd lost another thousand killed and wounded. The good news was that we were getting close.

All of the troops with us were light infantry. I asked them to jog, and they were game. I dismounted, and set the pace myself. You know that I was no runner, but this was an emergency. Also, I'd been riding, while the troops had marched miles. I wasn't carrying any weapons, either. We weren't going to be running a four minute mile. But when the General trots, everybody trots.

Believe it or not, some of the units started cheering. They knew where we were going, and why, but it didn't escape me that they were taking inspiration from seeing their fat, out of shape Warlord jogging to war.

I don't know how much time we saved. It probably wasn't that big a deal. But it felt good, and while I trotted I wasn't solely concentrated on my fears.

It wasn't something that I found out about until later, but Stina and our light cavalry from Dahlia reached the battlefield before us. Chalky's scouts led her to the perfect position, and she launched a surprise attack on the enemy's flank.

That was a marvel to me. Less than twenty-hours ago, the cavalry troopers she led had been Hadyk peons, unable to participate when we stormed Dahlia. Now, after a night ride, they were charging against superior enemy forces, to aid people they'd never met. There was a strange bond between former peons, even if they were complete strangers.

By the time we drew near, the dawn was close. The enemy could see us. Six thousand light infantry, with three thousand auxiliaries behind us, would change the balance rather dramatically. The Balabans and the Hadyks lost their appetite for continuing the battle. Their troops began to disengage.

Thankfully, I found Peach and Luth, behind the centre of our line.

- "Where is Sudha?" I asked.

- "On the flank, with the light cavalry."

- "Send her a rider. Armene is going forward, with six thousand light infantry. All cavalry, all archers to pursue." We'd paid a price, to extricate our people. Now it was time to get some payback.

I was all wound up, with no place to go. There was no way Boloda was going to let me join in the pursuit. So I visited some of our tired units, and especially the wounded. There wasn't much we could do for them, but I had the auxiliaries take charge of some of the cases who could be moved, and begin the long trek back to Goldenrod with them.

There were far too many wounded. Hundreds of them. Thousands, even. Would it have been more merciful to let them remain peons? For them, the alternatives were survival, or a quick death. They didn't linger in pain. No, that was just me, overwhelmed by the suffering and the gruesome sights I came face to face with.

We'd lost just over three thousand killed, and almost two thousand wounded - all of this in an effort to save the roughly five thousand former Hadyk peons. Hundreds had been inside the walls of Caladium when they changed colour. Most were massacred there, though a few did escape.

I visited the new Grahams, the former Hadyk peons who'd become people when we took Dahlia. There were some 2,500 left, with a few hundred wounded. They were at once stunned by the loss of half of their unit mates, and yet amazed to be alive. They knew - no, they could feel what that meant. No more blind obedience to their masters. No more instant compliance with manual tasks or sexual commands.

And there I encountered Virdyan, comforting the wounded. He finally shook my hand, his eyes wet with tears.

- "So many dead." he said. "So many hurt."

- "But free." I said. "Ask them. They know what it's worth."

- "I know. I have." He sighed. "I should have joined you from the start."

I shook my head. "I wished you had. But after today, I'm glad that you were there to help them out. To get them away."

- "Daniel?" said Boloda. "You should see this."

Some of our troopers had identified enemy officers by their clothing. They'd found two dead Balaban family members. And Enver Hadyk, Rona's husband, and the father of Stephanie and Moran. I would never have sent him into battle, but I suppose that this was a moment of dire need for the Hadyks. They needed everyone.

There was one more body recovered.

- "Malusha." I breathed.

Of all our enemies, I had no ill-will for Deondra and her children, and very little for Malusha. I only wished that she had been kinder to her half-sister Jashi, and to her half-brother Wantrao. I had actually wondered what might have happened if we had met in combat. Would she have tried to kill me?

Malusha had been struck under the arm by an arrow. It looked to be firmly wedged between her ribs. She had a nasty gash on her arm, but the fatal blow (if the arrow hadn't done it) appeared to be a sword cut to the back of her neck.

Rest in peace, Malusha. You were on the wrong side; your family never appreciated you.

Our pursuit of the enemy was effective. We suffered another five hundred casualties, killed and wounded. They lost fifteen hundred dead.

Sudha had done what I asked - and more. We'd rescued almost five thousand people, at the cost of 3,100 dead, and 1,850 wounded. The Hadyks and Balabans had lost over 5,000 killed.

We couldn't afford too many more victories like this.

*****