The Crown of blood

IV

The functionary took Ullsaard through Aalun's apartment to a small room filled with papers and tablets. The prince stood at a desk in its centre, a large map spread across it. He looked up with a smile as Ullsaard entered.

"Thank you, Renio, please close the door," Aalun said. He saw Ullsaard's downcast expression. "Do not be so glum, my friend. We can work this situation to our advantage."

"Really? As I see it, I have wasted the better part of the summer coming here, for nothing."

Aalun wagged his finger.

"Not at all, Ullsaard, not at all. Just after you left, my father acceded to the governors' demand that something be done about the grain problem. The king has tasked me with resolving the matter."

Ullsaard slumped into a chair beside the desk.

"Grain problem? I've been overlooked for what will likely be the best command of my life and you want me to worry about grain?"

"Stop sulking and listen to what I have to say," snapped Aalun. He visibly calmed himself. "Moving Cosuas to the Greenwater gives us an opportunity; one that will be even more to your liking."

Ullsaard leaned forward.

"I'm listening."

"The king has not said anything about how to resolve this grain problem, so I am of a mind to side with Murian. For the moment, it is impractical to continue the Mekha expansion, so I am going to issue orders for you to bring back your legions. You'll return with them to Askhor, and with their presence I will be able to put pressure on my father to change the succession."

Ullsaard rocked back.

"You want me to use my legions to threaten the king? It's unthinkable!"

"Nonsense! It was part and parcel of politics when the empire was being built. And it's not a threat, it's a reminder. I did not bring all of the governors here in the expectation that they would side with me in this argument; I did it to remind my father that though he rules Greater Askhor, he cannot govern by himself. As he has grown older he has become more convinced that the empire works simply because he says it will. The truth is the governors support him for as long as he gives them enough freedom to do what they want and gives them no reason not to support him."

"And how do my legions fit into this… reminder?"

"You have a genuine grievance to air. Two grievances, in fact. Firstly, there is the practical matter of the grain supply. If the situation deteriorates over the winter, as I suspect it will, you will be left in a very precarious position. Who can say what the legions will do if you are forced to reduce their rations? On top of that, I have been doing some reading of the old laws. Did you know that a general with one hundred thousand defeated enemies has a right to nominate a campaign of his choice for a season?"

"I didn't know that."

"Of course not; it is in the interests of the king and the governors that you remain ignorant of your powers. In fact, they've probably forgotten that right exists. It comes from when Ersua and Maasra were being conquered. There was no distinction between governors and generals back then, so to prevent it becoming a free-for-all with the legion commanders going after the same prizes, the king decided to introduce this law as a reward for those that were most successful. In short, if you followed your orders and won a few battles, the king would give you free rein for the next summer, stopping the other commanders from taking a bite out of your pie."

Ullsaard rubbed his chin thoughtfully and imagined the possibilities of being given freedom of command for a whole summer.

"I can certainly see how that would be motivating," he said. Ullsaard smirked at another thought. "And if my men were to know that was the case, you can be sure they would press me hard to take them somewhere more profitable than Mekha."

"Yes, that is a good point," said Aalun.

"But why did they stop offering this right? What was true then must still be true now."

Aalun sat down behind the desk and swept his hand over the map, encompassing the provinces of Greater Askhor.

"Your predecessors used to rule the territories they conquered in the name of the king. Whatever they could take they could keep, as long as they gave a fair share of the proceeds to the Crown. But the empire grew and new provinces had to be governed by men with minds more suited to the civic and mercantile than the military, so the king offered to buy the provinces from his commanders and appointed governors to run them. That is the reason why generals like you still have partial ownership of the lands you bring into the empire; just over a hundred and fifty years ago a contract was sealed between the Crown and the legions. That agreement is still in effect."

"And that's when the generals gave up the rights to hold a governorship? That's why I can never take civilian authority?"

"Unless you are of the Blood, like me or Nemtun," Aalun replied. He gave a lopsided smile. "The Blood can do whatever we damn well like. It is our empire, after all."

Ullsaard nodded in appreciation of what Aalun was telling him. Perhaps Ullnaar's choice to become a lawyer was the smarter career move than merchant or soldier.

"Which of your legions do you trust?" asked Aalun.

Ullsaard was insulted by the question.

"They have all sworn oaths of loyalty!"

Aalun shook his head, pushed the map to one side and placed a wax tablet on the desk.

"I did not ask which of them were loyal to Greater Askhor. I asked which of them you trust. For all of my talk of reminders and rights, let me clear what I am proposing. You are going to bring several tens of thousands of armed men into Askhor, set up camp within sight of the capital and tell the king that you want to launch a campaign into Salphoria."

Ullsaard blinked with astonishment to hear the plan put so boldly.

"I see that you are starting to understand," Aalun said. "While I might talk about 'reminders', you were more correct when you said it was a threat. If my father senses any weakness in you, he will exploit it, and you will be ruined."

The general took a deep breath.

"I have always been a good soldier," he said slowly. "From legionnaire to general, I have done my duty to Greater Askhor. I have held my tongue when my superiors have erred, and I have followed orders that I have known were wrong."

"All the more reason that you should now get the recognition, power and reward that is owed to you, Ullsaard." Aalun stood up and came around the desk to lay a hand on Ullsaard's shoulder. "I know this can be troubling. I have spent a considerable time and no small amount of effort to bring you this opportunity, but I would not force you into any course of action. When we are finished talking, I will sit down at this desk and write your new orders. It is your choice what they will be. If you remain unconvinced, I will simply order that you return to Mekha, send Cosuas to the Greenwater and continue your campaign. If that is what you want."

What do I want? Ullsaard asked himself. Everything he had learnt in life was about obedience: don't speak out of turn; follow orders; bring honour to the legions; respect the Crown and the Blood; do your duty to the empire. Even his mother had always told him to shut up and not ask awkward questions. What Aalun proposed ran counter to all of that, and the more Ullsaard thought, the more the prince's plan seemed like foolishness. Yet also the more he thought about it, the more Ullsaard realised that he wanted this. It wasn't what he thought was for the best, it wasn't the most sensible course of action, but it was what his instincts told him he needed. Aalun was handing him an opportunity on a plate. He would never get another chance like it.

"The Fifth and Tenth are both Enairian legions," he said slowly. "They'll follow me anywhere. I raised the Thirteenth myself and they'll do the same. The Eleventh and Fifteenth are Cosuas's men. Ersuans mostly. You should send them with him to the Greenwater."

"Good, good," said Aalun. He sat down and started scratching notes on the tablet with a bone stylus. "What about the Twelfth and Sixteenth?"

"Mixture of Okharans, Maasrites and Anrairians. Most of the First Captains are men promoted by me, so they'll follow happily enough. I think the legionnaires will follow their purses more than anything else."

"They certainly have something to gain from this," said Aalun, still writing.

"I have a concern," said Ullsaard. The chair beneath him creaked loudly as he leaned back, his enthusiasm evaporating. "I can't march over thirty thousand men from Mekha to Askh without being noticed."

"You will be following orders, plain and simple," said Aalun, waving the wax tablet at Ullsaard. "If anybody tries to stop you, tell them to piss off and mind their own business; and that includes Nemtun and any of the other governors."

Ullsaard's eagerness was drying up quicker than a puddle under the Mekha sun.

"If I do all this, and the king says no, what then?"

Aalun dropped the tablet on the desk in a gesture of irritation.

"My father cannot say no," he said. "He cannot simply ignore you. That leaves him with two options: submit to your lawful rights or break the law."

"He could change the law, take away those rights."

"Stop worrying about things that will not happen." Aalun laid his hands flat on the desk and looked straight at Ullsaard. "This might seem new and devious to you, but men in your position, men in all positions of power, have been doing this sort of thing for generations. Take Murian today, for example. His point about the grain shipments through Magilnada was an implied threat. He might well have said 'Don't forget that I can starve half the empire if I choose, so help me out with this problem.' The king needs the grain supply, and he needs the loyalty of the legions as well. He has more to lose by refusing you than by indulging you."

Though Ullsaard found it hard to accept this reasoning, he trusted Aalun to know about this sort of politics. There was only one other thing that caused him to hesitate.

"You know that I could never raise a weapon against another Askhan," he said.

"Of course not!" said Aalun. His look of revulsion would have been no greater if Ullsaard had suggested the prince perform a sexual act on his sickly brother. "Implied threat, Ullsaard. Implied."

Finally satisfied, Ullsaard stood up. He shook hands with the prince and turned to leave. As he grabbed the door handle, he looked back at Aalun.

"Is this politics or plotting?" Ullsaard asked.

The prince looked at him with surprise.

"Is there a difference?"

V

That night, Ullsaard slipped into bed beside Allenya. She rolled over and stroked his arm.

"You are tense," she said.

Ullsaard said nothing. He planted a long kiss on her lips. His attentions moved to her neck as his hands cupped her breasts. He stroked them gently and lowered his head to kiss them. Allenya giggled as his beard tickled her stiffening nipples. She threw an arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer, her other hand moving to lightly scratch the back of his thighs with her long nails.

He continued downward, ducking beneath the covers to kiss her belly before moving on to her thighs, placing delicate kisses in a trail from waist to knee. Allenya's hands pushed through his hair, tightening as his tongue delved into the bush of hair between her legs. His hands lifted her up, always strong but gentle, caressing her buttocks, running along the outside of her legs.

She pulled him up, rolling onto her back so that he could enter her. His lips found her mouth as he slid inside, and she clasped him tighter, pulling him down onto her. They embraced as he began to thrust slowly, her hips moving in time to his. Allenya felt his measured breaths on her cheek as he moved his head to kiss her shoulder. She planted her hands on the small of his back and urged him to go faster, wrapping her legs around him.

Harder and faster he thrust, still planting kisses on her; on her breasts, on her chin, on her forehead. With shuddering sighs they both reached the point of climax. Ullsaard clasped onto Allenya, holding her tight, until he was soft inside her. He rolled to his back and stared at the ceiling. She took her hand in his.

Not once had Ullsaard looked Allenya in the eye.

"You are leaving," she whispered. His only reply was a tightening of his grip on her fingers.