The Ninth Prophecy

Not counting the few occasional skirmishes with the drifters along the way, the fleet of Baan Senicore reached Venegor without much trouble, some seven nights after the battle. Venegor is the only large port north of Baan Senicore. Although it is as large as some of the three cities, the Venegorans never wanted to have the status of a city, as they were never fond of the idea of having a lord. Venegor was the largest merchant city and, therefore, the richest one in the entire kingdom.

The city is run by an administrator. Administrators are elected among the wealthiest of merchants, which practically means that the administrator would always be the wealthiest and the most influential of the merchants. Once a merchant would lose his power or his riches, he would be removed by other ten benefactors of the city, as they were called. Then, they choose the new administrator from among their ranks. The town enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy in this aspect. It was allowed only because the town, being so rich, was filling the realm’s treasury more than any other collective contributor. The youth of the town served in the king’s army, but they were given the right of leave in all matters which concerned conflicts among straightwalkers. This meant that they could be summoned only in case of a Koprite or other outer threat.

As the fleet approached the town, Faris decided to share his impression of the view ahead of them: “I really do like Venegor. The yellowish-orange stone of its walls and houses looks much more appealing to me than the pale stones of the walls of Baan Senicore, not even to mention the dark stones with which the towers of Karos are built.”

- “I’ve sailed all through the lands known and I must say I agree. The view of Venegor surpasses by far everything else the realm has to offer. Even the farthest southern towns of eternal sun are not as magical as Venegor,” Geren spoke, confirming Faris’s view.

- “Admiral, what are we waiting for? Why don’t we dock? ” Faris asked, as Yon provided the explanation. “We have to wait for their approval. Basically, we are waiting for white smoke to appear from the two large chimneys at the ends of the harbor. Black smoke would mean that we are not welcome. I don’t think that will be the case.”

- “My lord, they are raising the green flag,” Geren noticed.

- “What does this mean?” Faris asked.

- “Don’t worry Faris. It means that they are sending a negotiator. I suspect it will be administrator Madi. She’s a good friend of mine,” Yon reassured his brother. Hadera went on to explain the matter further: “You see, Faris, whenever a ship or larger group of ships is to dock, a price for using the harbor must be negotiated. It is a sort of a tax for the town. Usually, it implies some of the goods the ships carry. Sometimes it is herbs or spices, sometimes it is gold and ore and sometimes it is plain workforce if you have no other means of payment.”

Right about this time, a small vessel with the yellow flag of Venegor left the harbor sailing towards the command ship of the fleet.

- “They say the yellow color of their flag symbolizes the colors of the city walls and houses. Personally, I think that’s bullshit. My opinion is that they use even the flag to show off. It just represents their wealth and gold, their greed,” Hadera introduced her perspective of the place. - “All right Hadera. Just keep your opinion to yourself and don’t make our hosts acquainted with your not so noble view of them,” Yon commented, keeping his eyes on the approaching vessel.

As the colorful, elegant party of Venegorans boarded the ship, Yon was screening the bunch with his eyes, looking for the familiar face of Madi. As he didn’t notice her, Yon first approached a man who - by his appearance and width - was a complete opposite of Dokal. Judging by appearance, he was just entering late age. He was slim and skinny that even the eyes on his face looked like they were going to pop out.

- “I am Yon Kulin, lord of Baan Senicore and the surrounding regions. Welcome aboard the ship. Before we continue, might I ask you to explain why your administrator is not with you? I would love to talk to Madi. I hope she is in good health.”

The man responded: “My dear lord, before I give you an answer, allow me to present myself. I am Legan, administrator of Venegor. Your friend Madi is in good health, but she is no longer the administrator, I’m afraid. She’s not even one of the benefactors.”

Yon was dumbfounded. He could not hide his surprise and obvious disappointment, although he tried to. “Excuse me for asking, but, when did this change come about, fair administrator Legan?”

- “It is today my tenth day as the administrator of Venegor. Your friend had made some poor judgments. She lost much of her wealth in a trade bargain with Karos. You see, she made a deal with the Karosians that she would provide their army with winter covering and fur of the highest quality. Unfortunately, the king was not pleased with the quality of the merchandise and he cancelled the whole arrangement. She had no option but to take some risks, as she then tried to resell it in the south. But, before she could get the merchandise to the markets, her two ships with the whole order were attacked, looted and then sunk by the drifters. Unfortunately, she lost all she had. I hope you are not too disappointed to see me at the position of the negotiator? ” Although Yon wasn’t sure that Legan’s account of events was the most accurate, suspecting that there was more to it, he was in no position to question the man.

- “No, not at all. I am sure you are a skilled and most honored Venegoran. You couldn’t be where you are now if it wasn’t so. Am I right? ”

Legan just smiled politely as Yon showed him inside the captain’s quarters.

- “Allow me to introduce my brother Faris, treasurer Dokal, commanders Hadera and Darion - please forgive Darion for remaining seated, it is a health issue – and marine general Geren.” Legan just nodded his head as Yon showed him his seat. As the two parties were seated, the negotiations were opened. Yon addressed Legan first: “Administrator Legan, honored benefactors of Venegor, allow me to present our state. We are a fleet that comes in good faith. We are not interested in bargaining in your market. We just want to use the service of your docks. We wish to disembark and continue on foot to our destination, leaving Venegor. Our fleet will then leave your city within the next day and sail off southwards. Please do name your price for the service.”

Legan took a long pause before he replied: “I am glad that you state that you come in peace. However, peace is not what surrounds your noble company. We too are well aware of the prophecies. The risks of welcoming you are great and therefore so will be the price for our services.”

- “I understand your position and I have no doubt that we can come to an agreement,” Yon spoke back.

- “First I must tell you that the price we set is not subject to an agreement. It is going to be our first and last offer.”

- “We are listening.”

- “The price is…your fleet. You shall all disembark and leave all the ships you have - the entire fleet. The ships are to serve as the property of the Venegor merchant fleet from then on.”

This proposal caused an outrage among the Baan Senicore delegation, Yon and, logically, Geren, being the most furious of all. Yon calmed the others down as he stood up and spoke.

- “Are you crazy? What kind of a proposal is that? There is no way we will just hand over to you our entire fleet of some three-four dozen ships! You may name some other price and I, the lord of Baan Senicore and challenger for the throne of the realm will forget this insulting proposal. You say you are aware of the prophecies. Well, beware, for I swear to you it is going to be a Kulin who fulfills the ninth prophecy and becomes the master of all the world! Bare this in mind and state your proposal.”

- “You have our proposal,” Legan stood firm in his demands, seeming not at all intimidated by Yon’s appearance. “You have by tomorrow at this time to make your decision. You can show that you accept our proposal by lowering your flags. Then you will be allowed to dock and disembark. Otherwise, you are more than welcome to seek other locations for landing southwards. If you try to dock by force, we will raise the metal bars from under the sea around the harbor long before the time you reach it,” Legan said getting up and leaving the premises, leaving Yon’s party still seated, without any of them showing any intention of escorting the Venegorans to their vessel.

- “The bastard is Daors’s puppet. I didn’t lose my fleet in battle and I’m sure as hell that I’m not going to just hand it over to that son of a bitch now” Yon spoke angrily, standing up and pointing with his finger towards Venegor, even before the Venegoran party got off his ship.

- “What are our options, my lord?” Dokal soundly asked for an assessment of the situation.

- “The most obvious one is that we attack Venegor.”

- “That’s crazy and you know it! ” Hadera tried to reason with Yon, as Faris made his point: “Look, even though Venegor doesn’t have an army, their every man bares arms, just like the hired harbor workers do, and they are not small guys. Most of them are former drifters, skilled in battle.”

- “Besides, you know that they will raise iron bars from the sea before we even get a chance to disembark,” Geren then spoke calmly and continued: “We would probably lose half of the fleet before we approach the shore. Fighting would then take, if not all the rest than most of the army. So, even if we win, there won’t be many of us left to celebrate.”

- “And what would we celebrate? The complete annihilation of the people and of the army of Baan Senicore? You can’t do that to your people Yon, you can’t be that cruel after they went through all this for you,” Hadera spoke with a decisive voice.

- “Well, then, we don’t have many options: we can either go back southwards or…or we can surrender our fleet to this maggot,” Yon said lowering his voice and sitting down. It was now Faris’s turn to speak.

- “Where to the south would we go, my brother? We just came from there, remember? We were lucky enough to escape. By now, Tibor has assembled the rest of the southern fleet and the river fleets too, for sure. Not to mention the drifters. The word of a lucrative caravan and a worthy prey has spread amongst them by now, no doubt about it.”

- “Yon…The bottom line is that we don’t have much of an option. The Venegorans are aware of it and so should we be,” Hadera persisted in persuading Yon to accept the inevitable loss of the fleet. Yon just let out a sigh and murmured: “By the name of The One, do I wish Hiraq was here now.”

Dokal stood up, asserting the role of an experienced councilor and addressed the council.

- “We must think clearly and act to the best interest of the people. After all, what was our plan with the fleet? What were our possibilities? Yes, it could maybe slow down the enemy, arrange some attacks on their shore settlements, prevent the alliance from transporting their army faster, but it won’t make a difference in the end. Either they or we will strike when one of the two sides are ready. A day or two sooner or later, it doesn’t matter. Maybe we could use the fleet to recruit some more southerners to join our ranks, but at what cost? We would definitely lose many ships on the way. Even more would be lost if we were to try to retake Baan Senicore from the sea, which is not an option for at least some time now. Where we are going we won’t need the ships. Maybe there is certain fear that the enemy might come ashore from behind Nox, but would they risk going through the land of the shadow people and through the forbidden caves? I think not! If they are going to use the sea for transport, then let them! The risk is too great. If we turn this offer down, we will gain little and we could lose so much. The sea will not win the war for us or for them. We will win it by ourselves.”

- “Dokal is right,” Faris added. Yon turned to Geren: “My dear friend, you have been silent until now and it is your child’s faith we are discussing, whether to sacrifice it or not. What say you about the destiny of your fleet?”

Everyone in the room looked towards Geren, knowing that his voice might decide the argument. Geren remained calm and spoke in a low voice: “Whatever I say it will not be my mind but my heart speaking. In positions such as the one we are in, the voice of the heart might do us more damage than the enemy. So, I will rather not speak on the matter if my lord allows it.”

- “I allow it my friend. You are a great warrior and friend.” Yon took a deep breath before continuing. “All right then. It has been decided. We come ashore in Venegor, but we do it tomorrow. Let’s wait until the end of the deadline. Maybe they will get nervous and lower their demands. If not, tomorrow at this hour we will lower our flags and dock.”

Allowing all others to leave, Yon called Faris to the side: “My brother, I just want you to know how much I value what you did for our cause. I know that it was you who sent out a distress call to the Fraternity. You are the only man in Baan Senicore whose call they would answer. I know how hard their loss must be on you. Their sacrifice will not be futile; we will make sure of it.”

- “Yes, we will my brother,” Faris said silently, gripping the handle of his sword as he looked out towards the fading sun.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Baan Senicore, the victors were awaiting king’s arrival. Tibor was sitting nervously on the lord’s chair, awaiting his father and his praise for the conquest. As the horns sounded king’s arrival, Tibor stood up with Aegor and Koprite commander Gul at his side. As Daors walked in, accompanied by his personal guards, Thrax, Damius, Terionus and a Koprite, Tibor rushed to meet him.

- “My dear father, what say you of our victory? I give you Baan Senicore!”

- “Baan Senicore? Where is it?!”

Tibor was confused by his father’s question, as he continued in even harsher tone: “Did I not send you a clear instruction not to attack before I come. Do you maybe see yourself as a king in this king’s duel?”

- “No, my father! I did this for your glory!”

- “For my glory?! This is no glory, this is a disgrace,” Daors yelled, enraged by his son’s deeds and attitude. “You managed to let Yon slip through our fingers, losing every third soldier in the process!”

- “I had no intention of letting them go…I…” Before he could finish, Daors interrupted once again: “Yes, I know you had no intention. That often happens to stupid people. They do damage unintentionally as soon as they start believing that their thinking can get them somewhere.”

- “You are wrong, father. There was nothing else we could do. We caught them unprepared…” This time, Daors interrupted Tibor by slapping him so hard that he fell down on the floor. Daors was so blinded by anger that he even pulled his sword half way out of the sheath but put it back in soon enough.

- “I am wrong?! You stupid, arrogant fool! Had you waited, we would have taken the city, killed Yon along with all his followers and we would have had Spero eating from our hand! The war would have ended today, you idiot!”

- “But father, the longer we would have waited…”

- “If you had waited for me, Yon’s defeat would have been imminent! Do you think I wanted to prolong the attack just so I could parade through the city when we march in?! I had long meetings with five of the most notorious drifter captains, trying to persuade them to help us. And you know what? They are gathering around the shores right now, thinking that the attack is to occur at some time today or tomorrow. They would then pin down the fleet of Baan Senicore, not allowing them to sail out as they did! By this time, Hadera would also have been dead and we would have pinned it on Yon. My guess is that Spero would more than gladly stay a loyal subject of the kingdom. His only condition would probably be that he himself cuts off Yon’s head.”

Tibor desperately tried to defend his positions: “But, my father, I don’t know how we could kill Hadera and we can still pay out the drifters…”

- “Boy, you really are an imbecile! You don’t pay out the drifters – they simply come and claim their bounty! And the bounty I had promised them was the rich houses at the shore of Baan Senicore! As far as I can see, those have already been looted and burned down and it won’t be long until the drifters realize it. As for Hadera, that was Aegor’s task.”

It was now Aegor’s turn to speak in his own defense.

- “Yes, my lord. Well, as we had agreed, I thought I would have at least some ten days to execute the order. I had tried to deal with it as soon as she arrived, but she was simply never off guard. Then I simply bribed one of her guards. The fact that I was sent out to organize the stakeout provided perfect cover for us. I was simply going to sneak into the city one night when this guard would be on the watch. He was supposed to let me in and I would finish her off and be on the hills with my troops before anyone could even cast a doubt on me. Unfortunately, there was no time, as lord Tibor decided to act sooner. I did try to advise the lord against it, but he decided to execute his plan,” Aegor said, adding fuel to the fire.

- “Aaaaaah! You stupid, stupid boy! Is this true?!”

- “Well, my father, I thought that it was for the best…”

Again, before Tibor could finish, Daors smacked him in the face once more.

- “Get him out of my sight! It should have been you carrying the name of Damius, as you are doing as good of a job as any Kulin would in your position. You even managed to get my most trusted and most experienced general killed. Poor Malak! I could’ve as well killed him myself instead of ordering him to serve under this ass. You even managed to receive a blow from the Fraternity. You let those men without armor break through your ranks! You left your flank unguarded for God’s name! Who does that?!”

- “Well, Aegor was sent to the flank by Yon, and he was with us, so I thought there was no need for additional precaution.”

- “No need for additional precaution, you say?! You were marching into a battle! Take him away, I say! To the dungeon with him! Five days. Give him only one meal a day. That should be enough time for him to think back on what he had done!”

As two guards were coming to grab him by the armpits, Tibor shook them off and walked away to the dungeon by himself, looking all around, making contact with all the faces he could see in the room.

- “My lord, who is going to run the city,” Thrax raised the question.

- “What? You want to offer your services as a lord?”

- “No, my king, I’m a warrior and I’m not interested in judging commoner quarrels over a piece of land and such shit. I just wanted to imply that someone has to do that job.”

- “Yes, you are right my dear Thrax and it sure isn’t going to be my idiot son. Aegor, as I had promised, you are the new ruler of the city. In this way, I will generously allow the Kulins to stay the rulers of the city. You Koprites will get your satisfaction and this piece of earth, once you fulfill your obligation of serving by my side until the end of this war.” The Koprite commander just groaned and Daors continued: “Aegor, what are your resources here?”

- “Let me first thank you for the honor, my king. Most of the people left with Yon, although I did everything in my power to make him look bad through repression of the commoners by my men and occasional cruelty towards the villagers. Those who stayed became casualties of our conquest. However, all villages are populated. I plan to bring the villagers here to help rebuild the city and to recruit the younger ones into your army. I will have the assistance of Rhyius, former Yon’s man of trust in the matters of the commoners. He was captured by my men and he offered his services immediately. He’s a resourceful man and his help will come unhandy. His loyalty lies with his personal desires. So, he will be loyal to us as we spared his life and his possessions.”

- “That’s good. Hopefully, you will be able to send the villagers back to the fields soon enough. I don’t expect this to last longer than whatever time it will take us to prepare the charge on Nox. I believe that will be in some two moons. The enemy should’ve reached Venegor by now. They will be in Nox in two nights, no longer. I have faith that Legan will do his part. If it hadn’t been for me, he wouldn’t be where he is now and he swore to return the favor. I wrote to him and he said that he will do all he can to dent Yon’s hopes more. He better do that. We will get news of his actions soon enough. The other unpleasant issue I have to deal with is a fleet of unhappy drifters knocking at the door. They had organized themselves into a fleet for the first time with my aid and now I have to fear that they will come here asking for my head because of my idiot son!”

Thrax pointed out the urgency of the matter: “We should send out someone to negotiate with them immediately. We don’t want them turning against us.”

- “You are right, but whom should I send? I can’t go. Who knows what their state of mind is.”

- “I’ll go,” Thrax offered his service to Daors.

- “Very noble of you Thrax. However, it’s not very smart. They want to see our sincerity in the matter. We don’t want them to think that we simply sent out an officer as a sacrifice. It has to be someone they believe I hold dear…”

- “Let me go, my king,” Damius spoke from the back of the room, “I am your blood, your son. That should be enough to at least buy me some time to present our case.”

- “Yes, you are right, my son. You must bring them a token of our gratitude. Aegor will fill a chest which you are to take with you. Be careful. If it doesn’t appear to be sufficient…well, improvise!” was the king’s last wise advice to his younger son.