Several in the room glanced at Roland, who stood near Arutha’s shoulder. The Prince continued. “From Lord Dulanic, Knight-Marshal of Krondor: ‘While His Highness shares your concern, there is little to indicate the need for alarm Unless some intelligence can be produced to give credence to your fears of possible future Tsurani offensives, I have advised the Prince of Krondor to refuse your request for elements of the Krondorian garrison to be sent to the Far Coast . . .’ ” Arutha looked around the room. “Now the pattern is clear.”
Setting aside the parchments, Arutha pointed at the map affixed to the tabletop. “We have committed every available soldier. We dare not pull men from the south for fear of the Tsurani moving against Jonril. With the garrison strengthened, we will have a stable situation down there for a while. Should the enemy attack the garrison, it can be reinforced from Carse and Tulan. Should the enemy move against either castle, they leave Jonril at their back. But all that will fail should we strip those garrisons.
“And Father is committed to a long front and has no men to spare.” He looked at Charles. “Where would you expect the attack to come?”
The former Tsurani slave looked over the map, then shrugged. “It’s difficult to say, Highness. Should the situation be decided solely upon military merits, the Warlord should attack against the weaker front, either toward the elves, or here. But little done in the Empire is free of political considerations.” He studied troop dispositions on the map, then said, “Were I the Warlord, in need of a simple victory to bolster my position in the High Council, I would attack Crydee once more. But were I the Warlord and my position in the High Council precarious, in need of a bold stroke to regain lost prestige, I might risk an all-out offensive against the main force of the Kingdom, those armies under Duke Borric’s command. To crush the main strength of the Kingdom would give him dominance within the council for years to come.”
Fannon leaned back in his chair and sighed. “Then we are faced with the possibility of another assault upon Crydee this spring without recourse to reinforcements for fear of attack elsewhere.” He indicated the map with a sweep of his hand. “Now we face the same problem as the Duke. All our forces are committed along the Tsurani front. The only men we have available are those in the towns on leave, only a small part of the whole.
“We can’t maintain the army in the field indefinitely; even Lords Borric and Brucal winter in LaMut with the Earl, leaving small companies to guard the Tsurani.” Waving his hand in the air, he said, “I digress. What is important is to notify your father at once, Arutha, of the possibility of attack. Then should the Tsurani hit his lines, he’ll be back from LaMut early, in position and ready. Even should the Tsurani bring ten thousand fresh troops, he can call up more soldiers from the outlying garrisons in Yabon, fully another two thousand.”
Amos said, “Two thousand against ten thousand sounds poor odds, Swordmaster.”
Fannon was inclined to agree “We do all we can. There are no guarantees it will be enough.”
Charles said, “At least they will be horse soldiers, Swordmaster. My former comrades still have little liking for horses.”
Fannon nodded agreement “But even so, it is a bleak picture.”
“There is one thing,” said Arutha, holding up a parchment. “The message from Lord Dulanic stated the need for intelligence to give credence to our request for aid. We now have enough intelligence to satisfy him, I think.”
Fannon said, “Even a small portion of the Krondonan garrison here would give us the strength to resist an offensive. Still, it is late in the season, and a message would have to be dispatched at once.”
“That’s the gods’ truth,” said Amos. “If you left this afternoon, you’d barely clear the Straits of Darkness before winter shuts them off. In another two weeks it’d be a close thing.”
Arutha said, “I have given the matter some thought. I think there is enough need to risk my going to Krondor.”
Fannon sat up straight in his chair. “But you’re the commander of the Duchy’s army, Arutha. You can’t abandon that responsibility.”
Arutha smiled “I can and I will. I know you have no wish to resume command here once more, but resume command you will. If we are to win support from Erland, I must convince him myself. When Father first carried word of the Tsurani to Erland and the King, I learned the advantage of speaking in person. Erland’s a cautious man. I will need every persuasion I can bring to bear.”
Amos snorted. “And how do you plan on reaching Krondor, begging Your Highness’s pardon? There’s the better part of three Tsurani armies between here and the Free Cities should you go overland. And there are only a few luggers fit for coasting in the harbor, and you’d need a deep-water ship for a sea journey.”