An Aimless War (Greatest Thief 2)

Part Two - Leadership - Chapter Thirteen

Early the next morning, Tannix called a meeting with his mother, Captain Roland, and a handful of advisors. They gathered in an office that had clearly been Lord Tandrael's. Tannix cleared away the papers on the desk in order to unfold a large map of the kingdom.

Once again I settled back against the wall with Acen. There were other guards in the room. Lady Clairia had her own personal guards, and there were the usual castle guards. None of them looked quite as alert as Acen did, which shocked me because I wasn't sure he had slept the night before. He had certainly laid down on my bed, which forced me to sleep on the couch. But I doubted he had actually slept.

"Tandrin wants us to send ships here." Tannix started the meeting abruptly, and pointed at a spot on the map I couldn't see. "Lord Triben is apparently being overwhelmed by refugees from East Draulin and the coast. He wants to focus on holding the Tol River against Deorun."

One of the older advisors, a stern looking man with a wispy beard, interrupted. "The Tol River won't hold, not this time of year. Maybe in the flooding season, but right now it's hardly an obstacle. Not to mention Triben's lack of a proper army."

"The Zianna army is preparing to head out, and Lord Kitsi has already sent men. Our navy needs to patrol the coast. Both as backup for the armies, as well as to collect refugees and bring them to West Draulin. We have plenty of land and resources to support them," Tannix said. "We've already taken in a large portion of East Draulin's navy. Any ship that wasn't moored when the city was taken came to us, and plenty of smaller sailboats managed to get out. Roland, I understand you've been looking after them?"

Roland nodded. "The East Draulin Navy ships are settled in the port; their crews have been mostly staying aboard for now. I think they've eager to make a move. The fishermen and their families who managed to escape have been taken in free of charge by a handful of taverns in the Crelan district. A lot of richer ship captains have donated money to the taverns to help."

"That's a good temporary solution," Tannix said with a nod. "Long term, we can look into offering them employment or setting them up with houses, maybe even farms, at the city outskirts. You'll let me know if they need more money?"

"Of course," Roland said.

Another advisor, one of the few women in the room, said, "I can arrange employment offers and housing, Lord West Draulin."

"Thank you, Lady Ohra," Tannix said. He stood up straight and rolled his shoulders. "As of right now, until we hear from Tandrin and Esmeranda, that is West Draulin's role. Support Triben at the Tol River, watch the coast, and take in refugees."

"We should be more aggressive," another man growled. "Our navy could take back East Draulin."

"We don't know that, and we don't know what Deorun is planning. We'll wait for our orders from Zianna," Tannix said.

"We were attacked," the same man said. "West Draulin was specifically targeted. It stands to reason that these attacks are related to the assassination attempt last year, which you interrupted. Lord Tandrael's death could have been an act of revenge."

"I'm aware," Tannix said dryly.

"We should be moving against them, not sitting and waiting for orders from a barely-trained king and a reluctant second so—"

"Lord Naver." The instant Lady Clairia spoke, the man fell silent. "My sons may be young, but do not mistake their youth for weakness. Tandrin was trained to run West Draulin, so he is certainly capable of supporting Queen Esmeranda. Tandrix may be my second son, but he was also one of the most promising students to come out of the Order since his uncle Tandar. He is more than capable of leading our city through this war. Do not speak ill of either of my sons again."