The Madness of Gods and Kings by Christian Warren Freed Page A
Authors: Christian Warren Freed
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was no chance for her to sit on the throne. Not that she wanted to rule. Quite the opposite, Ingrid merely wanted Delranan to be free again with a just ruler in place.
“We can use this to our advantage,” she said, her mind already racing ahead.
Orlek wasn’t convinced. Nothing about the group suggested they were interested in helping the rebellion. “I agree but don’t see how. My guess is they are going to leave just as soon as the sun comes up and there’s not much we can do to stop them. Not unless we get attacked by Harnin’s forces first.”
She briefly toyed with the idea before discarding it. Bringing Harnin down on them wouldn’t solve anything. The latest reports from the field had Lord Jarrik and Inaella leading the two-thousand-man force hunting them down. She shuddered to think what the pockmarked woman would do if she ever got her hands around Ingrid’s throat. As much as it pained her to admit it, the war was not going very well. Her fighters were tired, sorely trained, and running out of the desire to carry on. The initial boost they’d gotten when she took the fight into the countryside was fading. She needed to come up with a victory fast or risk losing it all out of sheer indifference.
“Bring me Bahr. I have to try and convince him to help us. We are, after all, his people.” The dominant glimmer in her eyes was one he’d seen too many times before. It thrilled him in different ways. Perhaps hope loomed on the horizon after all.
TEN
Aurec’s Decisions
The last few battalions straggled into the night’s encampment on weary legs. On the move since dawn, they were the rearguard and forced to endure endless leagues of stop-and-go movement. The elastic tendencies of an army on the move was well known by every infantrymen ever made, and none appreciated it. Stretching moments of standing still followed by having to hurry to catch up to the unit in front of the column drove many of the younger soldiers mad. Only the generals on their horses seemed unaffected.
Fires raged, having been set by the vanguard and logistics battalions Rolnir pushed to the head of the column. He believed in taking care of his men and that meant having warmth and hot food waiting for them when they reached the camp each and every day. As was his custom, he waited on foot for the very last man to pass before retiring for the night to a seemingly endless stream of meetings with his senior staff.
Normally the Wolfsreik operated alone in the field. He was the closest thing to a god the soldiers knew and that’s how it should be. King Badron’s decision to tag along with the main body during the Rogscroft invasion was frowned upon but he was the king. Rolnir was forced to shift tactics and endure what he considered pointless questioning from the king. The waste of man hours from standing in audience alone was infuriating. Thankfully King Aurec was the opposite. Here was a man Rolnir could enjoy working with.
That easy-mannered work relationship didn’t figure in to how he was going to explain to the freshly crowned king that the mountains were next to impassable. He smiled and waved at the last few ranks, reaching out to slap a few beleaguered men on their shoulders while shouting words of encouragement. Soldiers liked to feel appreciated. He had when he went up through the ranks. Every little thing to boost morale was being done. Most of these men were beyond sore, exhausted, and mentally fatigued. They only had so much left to give. Soldiers were hard men by necessity, but he felt he’d already asked for too much. Gloom cast over his face as he slowly headed towards the command tents. The Murdes Mountains loomed over them majestically in the background.
One minor problem lost amidst the horrors of war. What did I do to get myself in this situation? Life used to be so simple, now I’m mired in an unending nightmare from which there is no escape. At least the Pell are on our side. Fighting them once was bad
“We can use this to our advantage,” she said, her mind already racing ahead.
Orlek wasn’t convinced. Nothing about the group suggested they were interested in helping the rebellion. “I agree but don’t see how. My guess is they are going to leave just as soon as the sun comes up and there’s not much we can do to stop them. Not unless we get attacked by Harnin’s forces first.”
She briefly toyed with the idea before discarding it. Bringing Harnin down on them wouldn’t solve anything. The latest reports from the field had Lord Jarrik and Inaella leading the two-thousand-man force hunting them down. She shuddered to think what the pockmarked woman would do if she ever got her hands around Ingrid’s throat. As much as it pained her to admit it, the war was not going very well. Her fighters were tired, sorely trained, and running out of the desire to carry on. The initial boost they’d gotten when she took the fight into the countryside was fading. She needed to come up with a victory fast or risk losing it all out of sheer indifference.
“Bring me Bahr. I have to try and convince him to help us. We are, after all, his people.” The dominant glimmer in her eyes was one he’d seen too many times before. It thrilled him in different ways. Perhaps hope loomed on the horizon after all.
TEN
Aurec’s Decisions
The last few battalions straggled into the night’s encampment on weary legs. On the move since dawn, they were the rearguard and forced to endure endless leagues of stop-and-go movement. The elastic tendencies of an army on the move was well known by every infantrymen ever made, and none appreciated it. Stretching moments of standing still followed by having to hurry to catch up to the unit in front of the column drove many of the younger soldiers mad. Only the generals on their horses seemed unaffected.
Fires raged, having been set by the vanguard and logistics battalions Rolnir pushed to the head of the column. He believed in taking care of his men and that meant having warmth and hot food waiting for them when they reached the camp each and every day. As was his custom, he waited on foot for the very last man to pass before retiring for the night to a seemingly endless stream of meetings with his senior staff.
Normally the Wolfsreik operated alone in the field. He was the closest thing to a god the soldiers knew and that’s how it should be. King Badron’s decision to tag along with the main body during the Rogscroft invasion was frowned upon but he was the king. Rolnir was forced to shift tactics and endure what he considered pointless questioning from the king. The waste of man hours from standing in audience alone was infuriating. Thankfully King Aurec was the opposite. Here was a man Rolnir could enjoy working with.
That easy-mannered work relationship didn’t figure in to how he was going to explain to the freshly crowned king that the mountains were next to impassable. He smiled and waved at the last few ranks, reaching out to slap a few beleaguered men on their shoulders while shouting words of encouragement. Soldiers liked to feel appreciated. He had when he went up through the ranks. Every little thing to boost morale was being done. Most of these men were beyond sore, exhausted, and mentally fatigued. They only had so much left to give. Soldiers were hard men by necessity, but he felt he’d already asked for too much. Gloom cast over his face as he slowly headed towards the command tents. The Murdes Mountains loomed over them majestically in the background.
One minor problem lost amidst the horrors of war. What did I do to get myself in this situation? Life used to be so simple, now I’m mired in an unending nightmare from which there is no escape. At least the Pell are on our side. Fighting them once was bad
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