Dark Court: The Final Hour Page 8

  A knock on the door distracted him and Roisen turned back from the windows to see a missive being laid on his desk by his man of affairs. More spy reports. Whether it was the more direct concern about Wierstoke's approach, or the more distant activities by Ashra, he wouldn’t know until he opened it.

  The contents surprised him. Ashra was gathering an army. He knew all about her activities going around every backwater in the land, spreading dissent and malfeasance. This missive, however, was more direct, saying she was actively gathering an army—one about to march.

  This changed things. Made it infinitely harder if they now ended up fighting every Solmnite in the land. It complicated everything.

  With a snort, Roisen dropped the parchment on his desk and sat down. Ashra made everything complicated. From the very day she had arrived here. She said one thing and did another. Exalted peace while at the same time gathered an army. She gave herself, then rejected in the same breath.

  But this was more serious than her personal inconsistencies. Ashra was trying to unravel them at their weakest point—undermining the very foundation of their society, refusing to heed a single one of his warnings.

  "Lord Wierstoke is coming closer," Fremming said, appearing at the door. Fremming was one of his commanders, one who implemented the strategy within any battle. "We must prepare to face them."

  Roisen hesitated for a moment, trying to think through what to do. Ashra was still a few days ride away according to his spies. Going into battle now with armies that were already exhausted from the last battle, would leave few men standing when Ashra arrived.

  Was she prepared to fight, though? Really fight? Or was this just a show of force, a display of the numbers they had? Did she come to negotiate with a threat? He would almost bet on that. The last thing Ashra wanted was battle, but he also knew that she refused to back down.

  "Give the order and I will have the men ready to engage," Fremming said. Roisen could hear the impatience in the man's voice. His commander was a man who loved to battle and also strained against being restricted by orders.

  "Prepare, but do not engage. Wierstoke will want to talk first."

  The man disappeared and Roisen was left to his thoughts again. How large Ashra's army would build remained to be seen. She had that thing no one else promised, a future for the people who felt they should have more. It would be stupid to ignore such a powerful motive, and this fight was now for a much larger objective.

  Annoyingly, Captain Burgess had been consistently absent from the citadel. His endorsement and men would be very useful right now, because they could use the guard’s skill and the fear they rendered. The fight could also be such that they would have to unite against her, which was why Roisen expected Wierstoke to come with talking in mind.

  *

  On the balcony, Roisen could see Wierstoke and his men approaching. They looked like ants down on the fields far below them. The portcullis was, of course, drawn down, blocking any entrance into the citadel. It served only to deter an easy and welcoming entrance to the citadel. There were so many entrances, it was impossible to sufficiently man all of them. Raufasger had been so assured of his own power, he never expected the citadel to be under siege.

  There was news of desertion in Roisen’s ranks. The same had to be true for Wierstoke. News of Ashra's march and activities could not be quelled. It likely spread amongst the lower ranks like wildfire. It had to or she wouldn't be able to form an army. The men were contracted and supervision was being increased.

  Roisen's men were assembled in neat lines in front of the gatehouse, to show that if Wierstoke wanted to get in this gate, he would be repelled, but as expected a messenger was being sent. Roisen could see him riding on a horse toward his own men.

  It took a few minutes to arrive, and the messenger was out of breath when he arrived at Roisen's apartments. "Lord Wierstoke wishes to speak."

  "Is that so?" Roisen said wryly. "Then he must come into the citadel and speak. Tell Fremming to withdraw the troops to inside the courtyard," Roisen said to his own trusted messenger.

  Taking his time, Roisen pulled on one of his heavier jackets and started to descend the endless staircases to the courtyard below.

  The clatter of horse hooves on the cobblestones echoed around the wall. Wierstoke streamed in with his men and they all looked exhausted and weary. He must want this very much, willing to cut himself off from the bulk of his men.

  "You wish to speak, Wierstoke," Roisen said. "I don't see what we possibly have to speak about."

  "You know full well what we have to speak about. Your woman is causing trouble and is marching on us as we speak. Or have you not heard?"

  Wierstoke had taken to referring to Ashra as ‘his woman,’ insinuating her actions were a failing on his part. It was a barb he had used before. "For our sins, Wierstoke."

  "She has an army. Over a thousand strong, the word is," Wierstoke said, still not getting down from his horse, enjoying a petty higher position. Still, it was Wierstoke who came here begging with cap in hand.

  "So it is said."

  "Don't be churlish, man. You know as well as I that we must join forces to defeat her."

  "Perhaps I should simply lock you out of the citadel and let her take care of you."

  Wierstoke was looking down his broad nose. "You know as well as I that you cannot keep me out."

  "But I might enjoy trying."

  "Your men are tired—half of them are injured."

  "That is a vast over-exaggeration, I can assure you."

  "So you seek to face me and then her tomorrow. I took you for more intelligent than that."

  "Perhaps I simply enjoy hearing you beg to be given entrance into the citadel."

  "I don't need your permission—or hers. I suggest we prepare a truce until we have sorted this uprising."

  They were dealing with more than an uprising. This was a full-on challenge to their authority, but for some reason Wierstoke wanted to see it as something piddly that could simply be dealt with.

  "Together, we can defend the citadel. We must speak with Burgess about defending the perimeter. They have longstanding plans for doing so, I am sure."

  "I don't think we can count on Burgess," Roisen said.

  "What do you mean?"

  "His absence speaks volumes."

  "Don't be ridiculous. His primary job is to defend the citadel against attack."

  "It seems he is rewriting his mandate," Roisen said.

  "Then he must be fired."

  There was something in Wierstoke's authority that showed he truly believed he was superior to the people of this land. Wierstoke would never entertain the thought that he would lose to Ashra and her army of peasants.

  "It may not be a time to pick a fight with the guard," Roisen said, wondering if it was a mute statement. Were the guard out marching with Ashra? Surely his spies would have reported it if it were true. "But you will have your truce for now." The sad truth was that they needed each other, and for now, they would have to put their challenge for the throne to side. First they had to assure there was a throne to aspire to. "Welcome to the citadel. You and your men."

  "We do not need you welcome, Lorcan," Wierstoke stated and finally dismounted. "We must rest and strategize."

  "Try to feed your men if you wish for them to fight with strength." Narrowed eyes regarded him. "And promise them enough to ensure they do not desert."

  "Having trouble keeping control of your troops?" Wierstoke accused.

  "Don't underestimate how powerful her message is."

  "Only a fool would believe her."

  "Only a fool would dismiss her," Roisen derided and walked away. It was arrogance that always got in Wierstoke's way—his primary weakness. Arrogance was fine, but not if it blinded one to the realities. Ashra was a threat and a considerable one, but not insurmountable if they worked together. Still, for now Roisen had to keep Wierstoke's propensity to blind himself in check. As useful as that normally was, in this, it w
as a considerable detriment.

  Chapter 16

  A SEA OF MEN STOOD behind Ashra. She'd never seen so many people in all her life. Technically they weren't all men. There were women too. This was more than some uprising, some revolt. This was a movement. The people here had had enough of the Naufren and their cruelty.

  Sadly, though. The Naufren didn't care what the people wished. This wasn't a democracy and they would fight for what was theirs. People like Bryce wanted to strip them of their lands and positions, run them off their lands. Before the Naufren, there had been Solmnite lords, who Raufasger had run off or killed. No one wanted to see the return of them either.

  She just wanted a better governance system, but there was no way of achieving that without dismantling the Naufren power structure.

  Sitting on her horse, Ashra tried to look comfortable and confident. In truth, she was neither. Horse riding wasn't a skill she'd developed to any great degree, and nothing about this sat comfortably with her. It was just that Wierstoke and Lorcan left her no other option.

  Her horse started walking, as did the others around her, those of the leaders of this army. They had tried to create some semblance of order in the ranks, but they weren't a professional army like the one they were about to face. Mostly they didn't have proper weapons either, but it was surprising what people pulled out of their attics. Even weapons that had survived Raufasger's clearing of everything that could have hurt him.

  Their numbers were filled with the young and the old, everyone with an ax to grind against the Naufren and the callous way they ruled.

  Progress was slow, and there was no doubt that spies had already carried home the news of their approach. There was no possibility of stealth. It was hard to hide a thousand people, but maybe that served her purposes.

  Unfortunately, numbers were not going to make either of her enemies see reason. They had the citadel and they would defend it.

  "We are finally on our way," Bryce said, riding up to her. The excitement was clear in his features.

  "They won't give up," Ashra warned.

  "Doesn't matter. We're going to make them."

  The problem with Bryce was that he didn't really see past the point of victory, whereas she wanted to skip this confrontation and get to the point after, where they would set up a council to rule. Bryce just wanted his day on the battlefield. "I guess you are getting your wish."

  "Lorcan has let Wierstoke into the citadel without a fight. They are joining forces against us."

  "Yes," Ashra said. Lorcan was pragmatic. He would collude with an enemy to tackle a common obstacle. "We will face a united force."

  "The citadel is too large to defend. Raufasger built a structure he couldn't defend."

  "His means of defense were to destroy any signs of rebellion long before he ever needed to defend the citadel."

  "I know full well what his means of defense were. I felt them personally," Bryce said sharply.

  "Then you were lucky to survive."

  The expression on Bryce's face was murderous. Whatever lightness had been in this man had been destroyed by years of cruel subjugation. It was perhaps understandable why he wanted his day of retribution, and this battle was it. The first time he'd really had the means to fight back. "My worry is that you will fold," he said after a while. "These are, after all, people that you have dealt and lived with for a long time."

  "Then you don't know me all that well. But I do have different motives than you. My interest is in representation of the people, not in vengeance."

  Bryce remained silent. "Then perhaps you were never really beset by his cruelty."

  It was Ashra's turn to snort. "Don't make the assumption that your burdens were worse than others’. It comes across as petulant and showed a remarkable lack of understanding of what life at court was like." He also didn't understand her well if he thought she would cower from this challenge. The truth was that he wasn't capable of creating this on his own. "Your anger blinds you, and that blindness makes you weak. You are not riding to face Raufasger today. Raufasger is dead; he died by trusting the wrong person and assuming his might was insurmountable. We are about to fight something completely different, but you don't seem to be aware of it, and that makes me nervous."

  There was a glowering look in Bryce's eyes, and they both knew they were using each other in this thing, but Bryce was fighting a ghost, while in reality, they were doing something much more complex. They may never even battle at all, as Ashra hoped. This was a show of force, and if anyone in this had any sense, they would relent and take themselves to the negotiating table. Sadly, Ashra had lost faith in hoping for reasonable behavior.

  They continued in silence for a while.

  "You think I am foolish," Bryce said. "I can't overlook what these people did to us."

  Ashra didn't answer. It wasn't for her to say he didn't have right to his feelings. "We are fighting for the future here, not for the past. This is for creating a just society, a level playing field. We are not here to punish."

  Bryce snorted loudly. "You are too much of an idealist." The exact same words Lorcan had used before.

  "Yet I am the one who these people ride behind. Don't forget that. These people are not interested in your retribution."

  "If you speak to any one of them, they'll tell you a different story."

  "Perhaps, but their actions speak differently."

  With a sharp look, Bryce rode away, leaving Ashra to wonder what she had started. There was a chance her quest would be overtaken by others. That was also something she had faced before, but she was not so easily trampled on.

  As they slowly marched onward, a row of men on horses stood waiting across the road. It was the guard and there was a dozen of them. They were clearly here to speak to her, although a dozen men could hardly take on the army behind her. As skilled as they were, they could certainly do a great deal of damage. A bunch of farmers with their pitchforks would struggle to take one of these men down. But at some point, sheer numbers overtook skill.

  "Captain Burgess," she said and stopped.

  "Lady Greve," Burgess said, his hooded eyes traveling across the scene behind her. "So you are riding for the citadel."

  "As you see."

  She had no idea why he was here and why he wished to speak to her. Was it to warn her off this?

  "You will face the combined forces of Wierstoke and Lorcan when you reach the citadel," he said.

  "So I understand. We are numerous."

  The captain said nothing. His impatient horse threw his head up and down. "You are traveling on my roads."

  "We believe these roads belong to the people, as does the means of governance. Who is it that you guard these roads on behalf of?"

  "That remains to be determined."

  "Yes, it does," she said. "Now we are marching on the citadel, and we will take them on." She spoke calmly without a hint of doubt in her voice. If she really had any doubts, she couldn't say. It wasn't something she was questioning. This had to happen. It was the only way of achieving what they had to do. "What future do you want, Captain Burgess?"

  "It is not my place to say."

  "As you say. It is not your place to say. We are asserting it is the people's place to say, and that these roads belong to the people."

  She looked him in the eye, trying to determine what was going on behind them. There was messiness in whatever positions he chose to take, and him throwing the guard in on either side would have a marked impact.

  "We will not join you in this fight," he said as if reading her thoughts. "But we will not join this fight in any capacity either. It is not our place."

  "A stance I can respect." It must have been difficult to be in his position and determine not to be a political pawn. In a way, they would lose authority if they threw themselves in with the people. "Then we must continue in our march."

  "If you insist," he said, not budging as she rode past him, and her army streamed between the horses of the guard. She suspecte
d Captain Burgess wanted the people to see that he wasn't standing against them. It was a politically astute move, and he shouldn't be underestimated in that regard. The truth was that he thought they had a chance to win and was bolstering his position without overtly picking a side.

  They marched endlessly until the skyline of the citadel came into view. They reached Raufasger’s punishment cages too, where bleached skeletons still littering the bottoms. It had been Raufasger's way of warning people coming to the citadel. "Tear them down," she ordered and a group of men went to do so.

  "You sure you don't want to put Wierstoke or Lorcan in there?" Bryce asked. "Might be a suitable place for them. I am sure they would enjoy the time together." There was lightness in his voice, but Ashra couldn't feel amused by it.

  "I am sure we don't want a reign like the one that has been."

  "Enemies must be dealt with." His voice as more serious this time.

  Chapter 17

  ASHRA'S ARMY WAS vast. They were camped down in the valley below and Roisen could see them from his apartments.

  "Your former lover has come to chase you down," Fiedra said behind him. "I have to say she takes the cake."

  "Make no mistake, she is here to destroy us."

  "What are a bunch of field hands going to do?"

  "Don't underestimate the intentions of some of them. You, particularly, don't want to be here if they breach the walls."

  "If they breach the walls?" she said incredulously. "I know you will stop them. Let's not forget she wishes to utterly destroy us and tear down everything we have. She must be stopped or they'll take our very lands."