“Do you think he made it out of the city?”
“I think so. I believe you forced his hand, Tristam. He most likely didn’t mean to trigger any attack until after the forest offensive began. He could have picked off or captured our own soldiers in the forest with his own, and we would have blamed the Demon Riders. Once we were sufficiently weakened, he would have sprung his trap. Our position now isn’t good, but at least we have our forces intact within the city.”
“What do you think Willem wants?” Tristam asked.
“He’ll tell us himself, soon enough.”
An hour later, several riders rode toward the city, escorted by a contingent of Edlan soldiers. They came to a halt just outside of arrow range and raised a flag of parley.
“Come with me, Tristam,” said Malikel.
Malikel assembled a contingent of ten guards, and Tristam took up ranks with them. The gate was pulled open, and they rode out. Tristam did his best to ride proud. Not the easiest thing to do when an entire army was spread out in front of him, but he had to trust his comrades on the wall behind him to watch for signs of betrayal. At least the skies were clear today, and they had an unimpeded view.
As they came closer to the other party, Tristam finally made out their faces. Lord Alvred, the Defense Minister of Edlan, led the party on a giant black war stallion. And next to him was Willem.
Traitor. Tristam looked over at Malikel, trying to see his commander’s reaction, but the fur lining of Malikel’s cloak blocked his view.
“Alvred,” Malikel said pleasantly. “I didn’t expect to see you again so soon. Was our hospitality not up to your standards?”
Alvred’s mustache twitched humorlessly. “We both serve our cities, Malikel. You know that as well as I.”
“If we’re dispensing with pleasantries, I’ll address my former Head Councilman directly,” said Malikel. “What do you want, Willem?” Malikel spoke loud enough to be heard by all nearby, and Tristam wondered whether it hurt his wounded ribs.
Willem, to his credit, didn’t look as smug as Tristam had expected him to, though he regarded Malikel with the confidence that came with knowing he had the upper hand. “You know you can’t win this, Malikel. We have more troops, and we have the strategic advantage now that we’re in position. You have no allies who will come to your help. We can either drag this out and let the people suffer, or we can solve things quickly.”
“What are your terms?” asked Malikel.
“You and the rest of the Council will sign a measure ceding power to me as Duke of Forge. I have no wish to harm any of you, though you will be required to live out your lives outside of the three cities.”
“Head Councilman wasn’t enough, Willem?” An edge finally found its way into Malikel’s voice. “You want to wield absolute power?”
“Our Council is fundamentally flawed. We spend most of our time in deadlock or undoing one another’s efforts. That’s no way to rule a city.”
“And, of course, you’ll be the one to lead Forge to a glorious future.” Malikel looked to Alvred and the Edlan officials behind him. “What are you giving Edlan for their help? Better trade?”
“Among other things.”
“And you’re confident they won’t stab you in the back once their soldiers have breached our walls?”
Willem drew himself to his full height atop his horse. “Do you think me so incompetent? I have safeguards in place.”
Tristam wondered what those safeguards might be. Willem must have cultivated favor with Edlan houses as well, enough so that they would support him against any possible double cross from Symon.
“Let’s not drag this conversation on,” said Willem. “Will you take my terms or not?”
“Of course not,” said Malikel.