Young Lord of Khadora (23 page)

“Why do you continue to call me Lord Quavry when you have already deposed me?” sighed the Sorgan Lord.

“Because I have not deposed you,” smiled Marak. “I wish you to continue on as Lord of the Sorgans.”

“Continue as Lord?” puzzled Quavry. “You have already sworn the entire Clan to your service. What is left for a Lord to do?”

“You are an important Lord in Khadora,” explained Marak. “You are respected and feared and you hold a seat in the Assembly of Lords. Yes, I have taken the allegiance of the Sorgan Clan, but I do not intend for the Clan to die. The Sorgan will continue to be a separate Clan and will have its own Lord. If you do not wish the position, I am sure that I can find another who will take it.”

Quavry stared at Lord Marak for what seemed to be a long time before finally speaking. “What authority would the Lord of the Sorgan have without the allegiance of his people?” Quavry asked.

“The people of Watula Valley must owe their allegiance to me,” declared Lord Marak. “I will give the Lord of the Sorgan Clan wide leeway in running his estate, but there will be guidelines on proper conduct of the Sorgan people. If anything, the new Lord of the Sorgan will be more powerful than you ever were. Already the size of the available Army has doubled and it will grow larger. Fardale and Watula Valley can work together to increase the prosperity of both.”

“All to the betterment of Lord Ridak,” grumbled Quavry. “You are only Lord Ridak’s pawn and now you want me to be your pawn. I fail to see how that betters my position.”

“I am nobody’s pawn,” corrected Marak. “The Lord of Watula Valley will owe no allegiance to the Situ Clan, only me.”

“For now,” mused Quavry, “but once Lord Ridak finds out you plan to build your own empire, he will send his Army to crush you or bring in the Lords Council to declare all of your lands forfeit.”

“Speaking of the Lords Council,” smiled Marak, “what do you plan to do with their emissary when he arrives?”

Quavry’s eyebrows rose in understanding. “If they learn what has happened here,” he remarked, “Lord Ridak and his Army will be here within a week. Even our combined armies can not stand long against that.”

“Do you wish to turn Watula Valley over to Lord Ridak or would you rather manage it in a reduced capacity,” asked Lord Marak.

“Watula Valley has been the home to the Sorgan for countless generations,” answered Quavry angrily. “I will not let that lituk sucking vermin infest this valley.”

“You see,” grinned Marak, “we share a common goal. I do not ask much of you as Lord of the Sorgan. All of your people must swear Vows of Service to me, all people will be treated with respect, and I will not stand for any subversive actions without my direct approval.”

“You are generous with your enemies,” suggested Quavry. “Had our positions been reversed, you would be dead. What will we do with Lord Burdine? The emissary will wish to talk with him, as well.”

“We bring him into our fold,” confided Marak. “Lord Burdine is already on his way here to meet with the emissary.”

Lord Quavry nodded vigorously. “He is as guilty as I am,” Quavry chuckled. “While I did not enjoy your victory over me, I will enjoy watching Burdine suffer the same fate. He will arrive with an escort, though, and we can not conclude our business with the emissary watching.”

“The emissary will be delayed until the morning,” declared Lord Marak. “Burdine’s escort will be welcomed to the festival currently going on outside. They will not, of course, be told the reason for the festival. They will assume it is a victory celebration for your defeat of the Fardale estate.”

“You are more devious than I could hope to be,” admired Quavry, “and yet you have not spoken a lie yet. What will you tell the emissary?”

“Nothing,” chuckled Marak. “You will explain that we have come to a peaceful understanding of our dispute and you wish to retract your grievance.”

Lord Quavry slipped out of bed and began dressing. “I can not say that I enjoy reporting to you, Lord Marak,” Quavry said as he slipped on his clothes. “You are , however, going to make life interesting. If we can bring the Litari into our fold, we will have enough might to withstand Lord Ridak.”

“More than that,” added Lord Marak. “We will have enough of a position to start influencing Khadora. As I said before, your power and influence will be greater under me than it could ever possibly be alone.”

“Then I would like to assume my position as Lord of the Sorgan, if you will permit me,” requested Lord Quavry.

“You are a most welcome addition,” granted Lord Marak. “I will meet you in the Meeting Chamber when Burdine arrives.”

Marak turned and left the Lord of Watula Valley to his grooming needs. Cortain Tagoro shook his head as he followed Marak out of the room. Marak had often shared his personal feelings with his old friend, but he had never expounded on his plan to change the culture of Khadora. Tagoro felt as though he was seeing the true Marak for the first time and he liked what he saw.

Marak explained to Tagoro what his plan was while they waited in the Meeting Chamber. Tagoro nodded and smiled for half an hour before Lord Quavry arrived. Marak sent Tagoro off to Fardale with orders for Lectain Zorkil and then spent his time discussing strategy for the upcoming meeting with Lord Burdine.

Their scheming was just completed when the door opened and Lord Burdine and Marshal Yenga entered.

“I took the liberty of inviting our Litari guests to the victory celebration, My Lord,” saluted Marshal Yenga.

Although the Marshal had purposely not specified which Lord he was addressing, Lord Quavry replied. “Thank you, Marshal Yenga. Lord Burdine, welcome to Watula Valley. Allow me to introduce Lord Marak of Fardale.”

Lord Burdine scowled at Marak and extended his arms to greet Lord Quavry. “Lord Quavry, I see that you deliver on your promises,” greeted the Litari Lord. “Where is the emissary from the Lords Council?”

“He has been delayed, I fear,” smiled Lord Quavry. “I am sure he will be here by morning.”

“Morning?” objected Lord Burdine. “Then why have you brought me here tonight?”

“I am afraid that is my doing,” smiled Lord Marak. “I thought it would be best to talk about what you intend to tell the emissary before he actually arrived.”

“Your doing?” howled Lord Burdine with a tone of incredulity. “I plan to tell them about your incursion into Glendale, home of the Litari. What else would I tell them?”

“You might try the truth,” suggested Lord Marak, “although that may not bode well for you, will it?”

Lord Burdine cast suspicious glances at both Lord Marak and Lord Quavry. “What is going on here?” he demanded. “Why is Marak still alive to talk?”

“I am alive because I won the contest,” grinned Marak. “The real question today is whether you wish to remain alive or not.”

Lord Burdine heard Yenga’s sword clearing its leather sheath and the blood drained out of his face. “You won?” quizzed Burdine. “How could you have won? This must be some kind of a joke, but I am not laughing. I have seen the victory celebration going on. I will not stand for being treated this way.”

“But how should a liar be treated?” asked Marak. “You have sworn a grievance to the Lords Council and that grievance is false. I will swear that it is false. Lord Quavry will swear that it is false. Tachora will swear that it is false. In fact, every person in Fardale and Watula Valley will swear that it is false. What are your plans, Lord Burdine?”

Lord Burdine slid into a chair, leaned on the table and propped his head up with his hands. For several moments Burdine sat there staring at Lord Quavry while his eye twitched. “I want to know what happened here,” he finally demanded. “I will not let Glendale fall into Situ hands.”

“I do not need to go into a detailed explanation of what has occurred here in Watula Valley,” declared Lord Marak. “What is important is that you are guilty of a most heinous crime and I can prove it. Your fate rests in my hands, but even my ability to ease your plight will be very limited when the emissary arrives. He will have no mercy for someone who has sworn a false instrument to him.”

“So,” spat Lord Burdine, “is it so much better to die at your hand than at the hand of the Lords Council? At least the Lords Council will not hand Glendale over to the Situ.”

“Nor will I,” promised Lord Marak. “I will claim the Vows of Service from every member of the Litari Clan as my just due for your transgression, but those Vows will be to me, not to the Situ Clan. You will be allowed to continue to rule in Glendale with a few minor restrictions.”

“Rule?” growled Lord Burdine. “You mean for me to turn the entire Litari Clan over to you and you will humble yourself to allow me to be your puppet! I think not. Go ahead and kill me. I will not be a stooge for the Situ.”

“You have little choice,” declared Lord Marak. “If you will not agree to my terms, you will force me to subdue Glendale by force. With both Fardale and Watula Valley attacking, your Army will have little chance, especially when they are surprised.”

“Lord Burdine,” reasoned Lord Quavry, “listen to what he has to say. He is not claiming our lands for the Situ. He has promised that will never happen. I am remaining in control of Watula Valley and I think it will be better than before. Our Clans will survive and our seats in the Assembly of Lords will remain. With the armies of our three estates combined, even Lord Ridak will be hesitant to bother us. Lord Marak’s reforms are not odious. He has freed all of my slaves, but they are so jubilant that they may actually perform better. If the Lords Council gets involved in this, Glendale and Watula Valley may actually end up in Situ hands. Depending on how one looks at Lord Marak’s position, Lord Ridak may actually claim a grievance against us, and win.”

Lord Burdine looked curiously at Lord Marak as if seeing him for the first time. “Exactly what is your relationship to Lord Ridak?” Lord Burdine asked. “I understood that you are the son of a slave.”

“That is correct,” answered Lord Marak. “Lord Ridak has given me Fardale with absolute control. All of my people have sworn Vows of Service to me, but not to the Situ Clan. Lord Ridak’s only control is through me and I promise you and the people of Glendale that I will never turn their allegiance over to the Situ. If we all work together, our combined influence will be far greater than the sum of our individual influence. I would like to get one of you seated on the Lords Council.”

“You are asking me to turn my people over to you so I can have greater influence?” queried Lord Burdine. “You must take me for a child.”

“Lord Burdine,” lectured Lord Marak, “you have brought this situation upon yourself. Your greed and avarice sought to destroy Fardale. Do you think I should just forget the incident? I will have Glendale with or without you. The only difference will be whether or not the Litari Clan continues to survive as a distinct entity. If I have to take Glendale by force, it will become part of the Sorgan holdings. I would prefer that you stay alive to keep the heritage of the Litari from fading.”

Marak caught a twinkle in Lord Burdine’s eyes as the Litari Lord sat erect and addressed Lord Marak. “If I agree to have the Litari swear Vows of Service to you, Lord Marak,” posed Lord Burdine, “what happens to the Litari when you die?”

“I actually thought that question would have come from Lord Quavry,” chuckled Marak. “I have made provisions for everyone who has sworn to me to become free and unassociated people. That means that the Litari will continue as a Clan without a Clan Leader. I think that situation would not be as good as what I am proposing, but it would still be preferable to the way Khadora is run now. The short of it is, you will gain nothing by having me murdered.”

“What about the Ragatha Clan?” asked Lord Burdine. “They have repeatedly attacked Glendale seeking a direct route to their other estate. I could have forced them to submit if it was not for your agreement to allow them passage. They seek to control this entire region.”

“I hope they try,” smiled Lord Marak. “They will find an army three times larger than they expect. As for the agreement with Fardale, they don’t have one. Lord Lashendo and Bursar Tachora were bribed to allow for the agreement. Fardale never received any compensation for the use of Fardale land. We shall talk after the emissary leaves and discuss this matter. There are many good points to this union, Lord Burdine. If you put your emotions aside for a moment and look at it, I know you will agree.”

“We made a poorly conceived attempt to crush Fardale,” interjected Lord Quavry while feeling his throat. “I know how you are feeling right now. I am sure that I felt worse. The point is, we made the error and Lord Marak’s offer is more than generous. We often talked of an alliance, but neither of us could fully trust the other. If Lord Marak is to be believed, and I think he is, we will end up better than before. Our three clans together present a force that can resist even the Ragatha.”

“Or the Situ,” added Lord Marak. “Are you so proud that you would cause the Litari to suffer because of your pride?”

Lord Burdine looked back and forth between the other two Lords. “No,” conceded Lord Burdine. “The last thing I want is for my people to suffer. If you, Lord Marak, will pledge to me that your thoughts will always be for the people of the Litari Clan and not your own personal goals, I will agree. If you can not do that, you shall have to kill me.”

“Lord Burdine,” smiled Marak, “that is exactly what I am about. I have no personal goals. I am using the opportunities that have been presented to me to make life better for all Khadorans, including the Litari.”

“What are the reforms you will demand?” asked Lord Burdine.

“I will free your slaves and ask that you provide them decent housing and living conditions,” detailed Lord Marak. “I will require your mages and soldiers to undergo specific training, and I want you to willingly accept input from your people, even the lowest of them. I also insist that no one trespasses on Chula land.”

“Those are your reforms?” Lord Burdine asked incredulously. “Freeing the slaves may hurt a bit, but training my people is something they will readily accept. As for the Chula, we learned that lesson ourselves the hard way. If that is what you are asking of me, Lord Marak, you have a willing servant.”