A Dragon Born (10 page)

"My cousin?"

"Quenta is my son," Laurana told her. "That would make him your cousin."

The Queen of Elvanar turned and walked away, leaving the hall, leaving Ariana standing next to Keira as the other elves approached.

"You have done well," Keira said quietly. "It was not what I expected, but be careful of the Prince. He is not a forgiving sort and you have called him by second worst insult among our people. No elf will stand being called a coward."

"What is the worst insult?" Ariana asked.

"Being called a liar," Keira told her. "Thus I am glad you kept your oath not to use your fire magic."

"Thank you for helping me, Keira," Ariana said as the other elves drew near. "I am grateful."

"Welcome, Princess!" said one of the elves, a male, who was dressed in light green leathers. "I am Rolan. Many season to you. I greet you in the name of the court."

"Many seasons to you, Rolan," Ariana replied as the other elves of court began to introduce themselves.

The Maramyrian troops had emerged from the passes and taken up defensive positions in the foothills. While his brother, Elric saw to the fortification of the city and the palace and Duke Kaledra and the other nobles raised troops from their lands, Borrican and his uncle Boric had taken joint command of the advance guard. Reports were few, for Cerric's army had proven very thorough in killing any Kandaran scouts they found nearing their encampments. Even some of the stealthiest of his people had been ferreted out and apprehended by the Maramyrians' own scouting parties so Boric himself had taken to the field, with a guard of his best fighters atop the fastest and most surefooted horses in the kingdom. Borrican had been on edge since his uncle had left that morning and he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw him riding toward the command pavilion at the center of the Kandaran camp. Borrican also noticed that his uncle's scouting party was much fewer in number.

"Uncle," he said as Boric dismounted from his horse, "I see that you have encountered the enemy."

"That I did," Boric said as he pulled an arrow from the leather saddle of his horse. "They're pouring out of the passes, thousands of them."

"Then what we have seen is just the advance soldiers. What numbers did you count?"

"From what we have learned from the few scouts who have returned from the smaller passes, and from what I saw this day, I would reckon there are already ten thousand Maramyrian soldiers encamped in the hills and there is a much larger force moving down through the main pass that looks to be twice that number, at least."

"Thirty thousand or more," Borrican said. It was a large force, much greater than the numbers they expected to raise to defend Kandara.

"From my knowledge of the Maramyrian kingdom, I would expect ten thousand of them to be cavalry. No doubt they'll build siege engines as well. Things do not bode well for us, nephew."

"A rider arrived while you were away, with a report from Kaledra." Borrican had more bad news for his uncle. "He is requesting aid, for his lands are under attack from creatures that sound like these Darga you told me about. Lizard men, the rider called them."

"That would be a right description of them," Boric said and he frowned at his next thought. "How many?"

"The rider estimated at least several thousand Darga," Borrican told him, "and they are also accompanied by a force of Xallan soldiers, maybe ten thousand strong."

"Damn," Boric cursed. He knew that if Kaledra was under attack, he would not be joining in the defense of the crown city and its surrounding lands and they could only hope that some of the other nobles would soon arrive, for the royal guard numbered only three thousand and the troops Elric had been able to muster from among the people was barely ten thousand. With the advance guard, which numbered just over two thousand horse, that made fifteen thousand against the thirty from Maramyr. Kaledra's lands were by far the largest and his numbers should have meant an additional ten thousand, half of them mounted and most of them well armed. "If Kaledra's raised his army to its full numbers, he might be able to hold out against the Xallans, but against that many Darga, no doubt he is in desperate straights. We must send aid."

"But how can we, uncle?" Borrican asked. "We face an even greater threat, and are outnumbered by the Maramyrians, at least two of their soldiers for every one of ours. The other nobles all together might be able to provide another five thousand, but we still remain badly outnumbered."

"Borrican, it is the duty of our family to protect the lands of Kandara. The other lords, even Duke Kaledra, who ranks highest among them, are administrators. They have been given rank by us, the Akandar, to oversee the lands, but they do not have the true power to defend the people. It is our responsibility to protect the people of these lands and come to their aid, for it is a promise we made and we Akandar keep our oaths. It is the responsibility of all Akandar, it is my responsibility and it is your responsibility as well, as a highborn noble of Kandara, as a Prince of Akandar. Remeber this, Borrican.  No matter what is required, we will honor the our oath as lords of Kandara and we Akandar do not submit, nor do we surrender."

Borrican could not see how it was possible to fend off so many. The lands would soon be overrun with soldiers from Maramyr and Xalla, along with these Darga, who sounded fearsome, and yet his uncle did not seem afraid. Borrican knew the members of his family were exceptional fighters. It was in their blood and, even though Kandara was a peaceful country, the nobles of Akandar hand long been trained from a very young age in the arts of war and now he understood why. Still, no matter how strong his own sword was, he did not know what they could do with so few soldiers against such numbers.

"I will take a thousand of our strongest to aid Kaledra," Boric said. "You are in command of the rest of the advance guard. Do what you can to slow down the Maramyrian advance but try not to lose too many of our own. We will need every strong arm to defend the city."

"As you command, uncle," Borrican said, though he was not happy about it.

Borrican knew it would only be a day or two and the rest of the Maramyrian forces would be through the main pass and begin their march toward the city, which would take another handful of days. After that, it was only a matter of time before the battle began and Borrican wondered if he would face any of his former captains.

*****

Nathas rode at the head of the Maramyrian force, accompanied by Kaleb Alaran. Duke Mirdel and Lord Barant, followed along behind, with a contingent of the royal guard and Nathas had little doubt that either of them would take to the field for the real battle. Kaleb had been chosen to take command of the advance troops and Nathas was expected to personally lead the main force. Cerric had issued several royal decrees, making those command decisions, claiming it would be best for the morale of the soldiers to see familiar commanders leading them into battle. Cerric had written the orders in Maramyr, and Mirdel had only revealed them once they had moved on from Rivergate and were well into the Kandaran mountains.

Both Nathas and Kaleb understood what the orders meant. They would personally lead the troops, and though it would certainly mean more effective command from a tactical perspective in the field, they would also be placed at much higher risk of being killed, which they both privately agreed was intentional on Cerric's part. Matters were made worse by the fact that the overall battle would be coordinated by the Lords General, Mirdel and Barant, who were far less experienced in matters of war, which could easily put Kaleb and Nathas and the soldiers at even further risk. They were not particularly pleased with the arrangements, and were further dismayed when several of the black robed mage priests appeared, traveling by some magical means to catch up with the army, and there was talk among them that Cerric might take command himself.

"I don't know what happened at Maramyr, but the black robes seem a little disconcerted of late," Kaleb commented.

"Apparently they had some magical ritual having to do with their religion during the wedding ceremony between Cerric and Calexis and something happened to Cerric. He claims to be a god, called Kroma," Nathas told him what one of his men had reported.

"Kroma?" Kaleb frowned. "Kroma is one of the old gods, known as the god of courage, valor and virtue. Even thought the temple at Maramyr has been empty for years, there are still some places in the countryside near White Falls where he is worshipped. A lot of the outposts I have been uncovering are marked with references to Kroma, so I would imagine he was popular with the Bordermen, back in the times before the Great War."

"Courage, valor and virtue?" Nathas said. "Not a very good match."

"What isn't a very good match, Captain General Nathas?" asked Duke Mirdel, as he rode up between Nathas and Kaleb.

"Lord General, Duke Mirdel, good of you to join us," Kaleb greeted the man. "The Captain General was just saying how poorly matched the Kandarans are in numbers. If the reports are to be believed, they have barely more than ten thousand to field against the thirty thousand we command, not to mention however many will be coming over the eastern pass."

"Another twenty thousand," Nathas said, "not counting the Darga."

"Right," Kaleb added. "We have over fifty thousand against what, ten, perhaps fifteen thousand Kandarans? It doesn't promise to be a very good match, if you're a betting man. Are you a betting man, Duke Mirdel?"

"I'm not shy of a wager," Mirdel replied.

"Shall we have a wager then," Kaleb suggested. "How long do you think it will take before the walls of Kandara fall to the mages?"

"Ha!" Mirdel scoffed. "I saw the mages demonstrate the power of their magical fire. Nathas was there too, he saw it. Once they are within range of the city, I give it a day, perhaps two if the walls are particularly thick but not more than three."

"Three days or less," Kaleb replied. "Would you be willing to risk a hundred gold crowns?"

"Why not?" Mirdel turned to Nathas. "What about you Captain General, what's your wager?"

"I would rather not wager on such things," Nathas said. "I'm just a man of arms, and not a noble like the two of you, so a hundred gold crowns is not a bet I would make."

Mirdel pondered for a moment. "Tell me, Nathas. How much does the crown pay you for your services?"

"A hundred gold crowns is almost a year's pay, and I am the highest ranking officer in the Maramyrian army," Nathas told him, "not counting the Lords General, of course."

"Such a paltry amount?" Mirdel was surprised. "I should have a word with Cerric once this war has been won. Surely he can afford to pay you a little more than that. My household spends more than that in a week."

"The lord Duke is very fortunate to enjoy such plenty," Nathas replied.

"A hundred gold is a rich for a country lord like myself, but I can manage it," Kaleb said. "Here's a thought. Nathas bets ten gold crowns. You and I bet a hundred. We treat the winnings as equal."

"How is that fair?" Mirdel asked.

"If you win, you will be a hundred and ten gold crowns richer," Kaleb said. "If I win, I will be a hundred and ten gold crowns richer. If the Captain General wins, he gets two hundred gold crowns and we get the satisfaction of seeing the highest ranking officer in the Maramyrian army paid his due, and we'll sue Cerric in the royal court for reimbursement after. He can't deny us both, especially for correcting what must surely have been an oversight by some low level magistrate at the palace. It is an embarrassment that the Captain General of Cerric's army is compensated by such a paltry amount."

Mirdel laughed. "You're a fair man, Kaleb, and far too generous but I can see why your people like you. I agree to the terms, if Nathas is willing to play our game, of course."

"I wager it will take ten days to breach the walls of Kandara, once they are directly attacked by magic and other means," Nathas said, "perhaps a day or two less or a day or two more, if I am permitted a range."

"The Lord General chose one to three days, so I do not see why not," Kaleb said. "I say they will not fall, but if they do, it will take thirty days, possibly more."

"One might think you were siding with the Kandarans," Mirdel said. "Have you no confidence in our army?"

"No, Duke Mirdel," Kaleb said. "I believe our army is superior in size to the Kandaran army and I have no doubt that our mages are powerful, but Kandara has never been conquered. It is an old city and some say it was built in the last age. If its walls have withstood attack for so long, then I would imagine that it will be no easy feat to bring them down, even with mage fire."

"That's a fair point, Kaleb," Mirdel said. "I think you underestimate the power of the mages, but I will happily take your gold, or pay it to Nathas if he proves to have guessed correctly.

"Excellent. Whomever is closest to the number of days, will be a richer man for it." Kaleb smiled at the Duke, then at Nathas.

"Very good," Mirdel said. "Are we expected to reach the forward encampment by this evening? I find this mountain air makes my head feel somewhat light."

"We should," Nathas told him.

"Excellent. I will let Lord General Barant know."

Mirdel slowed his horse then turned and rode back along the line, amused by the conversation. Even if Kaleb or Nathas were correct in their estimates, which he found to be preposterous, the likelihood of either of them surviving the battle was little to none. Both of them were proving to be able commanders with the respect of the troops, and no doubt they would motivate the soldiers in the field with their bravery, but once their usefulness had passed, they would be cannon fodder. Even though Barant seemed to be of a somewhat fairer mind, Lord General Mirdel had no intention of sharing the glory of this war and, as he rode back to meet up with the other Lord General, he wondered if there was a way to arrange for him to share the same fate of the other two.

"Why do I feel as though I should bathe every time I speak to that man?" Kaleb asked.

"Duke Mirdel is a cunning fox," Nathas said. "No doubt he expects neither of us will live to win that bet. Do not be surprised if we are ordered to the front lines or sent on a charge once the battle has begun."