[OOC:? I'm going to start moving my stuff over to the , assuming this makes it through to folks.? Nothing new here, this is just a retelling and a test.]
Rayna Kovacsolt, Queen of Apa, Queen of the Sword, internally reminded herself that it was better to be even tempered and well mannered in the face of bad news.? She was a stateswoman first, after all.? Her people depended on her being calm, calculating.? She really wanted to radiate that¡
Upon finishing the missive from the Prince of Jotun, that attitude lasted about ten seconds.
¡°DAMN THAT PETTY LITTLE PRINCE,¡± Rayna roared, as she grabbed the edge of the table. ?¡°DAMN HIM, HIS FAMILY, AND EVERY TRIPLE-DAMNED NOBLE OF THE NORTHLANDS!¡±
Rayna wasn¡¯t what one would call classically beautiful.? She was tall, red-haired, and highly charismatic¡ªshe always attracted attention wherever she went.? She was also rather tall, and had the strength of that height behind her, which she demonstrated by upturning the war room¡¯s table, and scattering its contents to the floor.
All around her, gathered generals and nobles loyal to remained standing, remaining silent and not daring to utter a word as their queen and commander went through her tirade.? These rampages were rare, and thankfully short.? At the moment though, no one was sure about this moment.? One in particular, Duke Heinrich Colmyr, Duke of Klausburg, was rather uneasy.
Her Majesty took a deep breath, held it, and let it out slowly.? She turned to Heinrich, her eyes calmer. ?¡°I¡¯m sorry, your Grace.? I don¡¯t of course include you in that temper tantrum of mine.? Out of all the nobility here, you¡¯re one of the few who would talk to me, let alone pledge yourself to my cause.¡±
¡°Thank you, your Majesty,¡± Heinrich said, relieved. ?¡°The report¡is it bad?¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry to say it, but it¡¯s hard for it to get any worse,¡± Rayna answered. ?¡°The Prince has not only reversed his stance in adding his troops to mine, he¡¯s denying me access to cross the Susswasser.? I¡¯m short on troops, and unable to properly deploy.¡±
¡°You know why, of course,¡± Duke Otto Guverich, her closest advisor chimed in. ?¡°It¡¯s Archduke Norris.? He probably shipped over a small fortune in Lothari gold.? There¡¯s a reason they call him the Prince of Yes and No, after all.¡±
¡°I know, I know,¡± Rayna said. ?¡°I was hoping the Prince might¡¯ve found his balls finally, but it looks as if those are up for sale to the highest bidder.¡±
There was a general chuckle around the room.
¡°So, as it stands, I have enough troops to remain here, but not enough to press the advance without cooperation.? My coffers are too far away from the front, and what I have here in assets are nearly dry.? It¡¯s all we can do to just maintain our presence.¡±
¡°What about the promised Torquani silver?¡± Guverich asked. ?¡°Any word on Haran vos Naarmyr and his daughter?¡±
¡°Nothing yet,¡± Rayna shook her head. ?¡°I hope to the Goddess they weren¡¯t anywhere near Masden, especially with his daughter accompanying him.¡±
The Queen never had a problem with Torquani, or Tieflings as they were called disparagingly.? The sins of their ancestors shouldn¡¯t be a blemish on them, even if their appearance said otherwise.? In many ways, Torquani were far more decent than most humans she¡¯d ever met.
¡°The simple truth: ?I can¡¯t come to the rescue of Masden,¡± the Queen admitted. ?¡°As much as I want, I simply can¡¯t.? Without help, Masden will fall.¡±
¡°What about our Elven allies?¡± Heinrich, Duke of Klausburg asked.
¡°I only have one Elven kingdom listening to me,¡± Rayna said sadly. ?¡°And while I find Miera Holadi and her Wolf Rangers helpful, they¡¯re far too few to make a difference.? I¡¯m sorry, my friend, but Masden¡¯s best option right now is to surrender and come to terms with Turriq¡if such a thing is possible.¡±
Everyone in that room was grim at that fact.? Aiden Turriq, commander of the Ispaaran mercenary advance, wasn¡¯t known for his generosity of spirit.? At 54, he had been in multiple wars and raids for almost a quarter century.? In all that time, he had never known defeat.? The Church of the Holy Twelve despised him, but they couldn¡¯t argue against his success.? So the Church gave him their blessings¡and Rayna was sure they were secretly praying for his ruin.
In the meantime, the killing continues, Rayna thought dourly.? All I seem to be able to do is add to the misery.? Goddess, what am I doing here?
¡°Well, the best we can do, it seems, is remain in Baden,¡± Rayna said. ?¡°So be it.? We¡¯ll consolidate here for now.? Build our power point here.? We¡¯ll try and make overtures to Bahn and Essenburg.? If we can¡¯t get Jotun on board, then perhaps we can get his rivals instead.¡±
¡°I should return to Klausburg,¡± Duke Heinrich Colmyr said. ?¡°My people will need me.¡±
¡°I can¡¯t agree with that, your Grace,¡± Rayna said. ?¡°I mean no offense, but your own army is no match for Turriq.? And with the Prince against us, I can¡¯t guarantee your protection.? Stay here, with me.? I¡¯m sure your counsel will enrich me better here than back in Klausburg.
¡°Besides, with Winter coming, Turriq will unlikely be unable to move against Klausburg until the spring.¡±
Heinrich sighed. ?¡°Alright¡I¡¯ll stay.? I don¡¯t like it, but you¡¯re right.? I¡¯m no use to anyone if I¡¯m dead.¡±
¡°Good,¡± the Queen smiled.? She looked over at the overturned table and sighed. ?¡°Well, at least we won¡¯t need that table for a while.? I don¡¯t think we¡¯re going to get much more business done today.¡±
¡°As you say, my Queen,¡± Duke Guverich said. ?¡°Any orders?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll need messengers,¡± she said. ?¡°I have a few missives to send out.¡±
¡°Of course, my Queen,¡± he bowed, and let one of the waiting paiges to fetch the master of birds.
¡°If I might advise you, your Majesty,¡± the Duke of Klausburg said, ¡°I¡¯m have some reservations regarding the Prince of Bahn.¡±
¡°°¿³ó?¡±
Heinrich nodded. ?¡°I know him somewhat.? He¡¯s married to my niece, after all.? He¡¯s an amiable enough fellow for a noble, but courage isn¡¯t exactly his strong suit.? One alternative you might consider, though.? Have you thought to contact the dwarves?? We might petition to use the Underground Highway.? The odds aren¡¯t great, but you wanted to see about making more allies¡¡±
The Queen nodded. ?¡°For that, I¡¯ll still need that Torquani silver if I¡¯m to have any chance, but you¡¯re right.? I do want to make contact with them eventually.? Human wars have a nasty habit of spilling over all too often.
¡°As for your nephew-in-law, he¡¯ll be a lot simpler.? I¡¯ll give him a choice: ?He can either get some steel in his spine, or he¡¯ll get steel up his ass.? If not from me, then likely from Turriq!¡±
That got a bit of a chuckle from Heinrich.? He wished no harm to the Prince of Bahn, but the Queen of the Sword was right.? This war was going to visit him eventually.? He couldn¡¯t ignore it.? A few moments later, the Master of Birds entered.
¡°What is your will, my Queen?¡± he asked.
¡°I have messages to get out,¡± she said (obviously). ?¡°I¡¯ll need your swiftest birds to deliver them.¡±
¡°Always at your service, my Queen,¡± the old man said, as he took out a sheaf of narrow paper sheets, the kind that were ideal to slide into a messenger tube. ?¡°I¡¯m ready to dictate.¡±
¡°First message is to the Prince of Bahn,¡± she said. ?¡°Inform him that I am coming in two weeks, and to expect me when I arrive.¡±
The general idea is that he¡¯ll either stay silent, or if he¡¯s in league with the same people as the Prince of Jotun, he¡¯ll get a missive in return discouraging her.? It¡¯d take less than four days for a return message to get back to Baden, and the trip to Bahn would take less than a full week.
¡°Next message,¡± she continued. ?¡°To Miera Holadi in Kir Thanur: ?Ride to Masden, but do not interfere.? Your forces are too few.? Aside from that, use your own discretion, and report back on Turriq¡¯s major movements in the area.¡±
If worse came to worse, the elves could retreat to the denser forests.? Tercio formations moved best on open fields, not heavily wooded regions.? Rayna toyed with the idea of trying to have Miera lure Turriq¡¯s forces into those woods, but dismissed it almost immediately.? Miera¡¯s rangers were too few, and Turriq wasn¡¯t that stupid.
¡°Final message, to Lord Gural Warfury,¡± she said. ?¡°Would like to meet with you and yours to discuss mutually beneficial partnership.? Please respond at your best time possible.¡±
Rayna would include a gold coin with this message, one stamped with the Royal Seal of Apa.? That would give the dwarf confirmation that it was indeed her, and that she was serious.? It was, as Heinrich pointed out, a long shot, but she¡¯d take that shot regardless.
¡°That should do it,¡± she concluded. ?¡°Carry them out as quick as you can, please.¡±
¡°Yes, my Queen,¡± the Master of Birds hurried off.
She sighed. ?¡°And now, I think I¡¯d like to go for a walk.? Alone, if you don¡¯t mind.? I¡¯ll see you all at supper.¡±
She did this often, much to the chagrin of Duke Guverich.? How could he see to her safety if she did these isolated walks into the woods?? But she was stubborn, and well¡she WAS the Queen of the Sword.? And he knew why she took these walks.
Somewhere out there, she¡¯d seek out a perfect natural spot, and there she¡¯d draw Goddess¡¯ Glory, reverently lay that magnificent weapon upon the earth, and she would pray to the Goddess for guidance, ask forgiveness, and bare her soul.
Rayna was a pious woman, devoted to the Goddess and the promise of Her love to all living things, even those who didn¡¯t venerate Her.? Otto Guverich knew all of this.? He also knew that she felt incredibly guilty for the suffering she couldn¡¯t bring to a stop.
My Queen, it¡¯s not your fault, he silently implored.? Wicked men do wicked things.? Think ahead.? Think of the healing you could bring to the suffering.? I know that¡¯s why you¡¯re here¡but it¡¯s going to take time.? Don¡¯t lose hope.
He made his own silent petition to the Goddess, in hoping that She would guide his Queen to the wisest course, and guide them all to victory.
