Part 2 (1/2)

Claractus gave a harsh chuckle. ”Were this the case, Sire, I would have ridden all night. My news is not gratifying. I conferred, as instructed, with King Aillas, at the fortress Poelitetz. I expressed your views in exact words. He gave his response with courtesy, but yielded no substance. He will not vacate Poelitetz nor the lands at the top of the Long Dann. He states that he conquered these places from the Ska, who had taken them by force of arms from the Daut realm and into their owners.h.i.+p. The Ska, he points out, had maintained this owners.h.i.+p in the absence of challenge from your royal armies. Thus, so he a.s.serts, t.i.tle to fortress and lands have devolved upon the Kingdom of North Ulfiand.”

Audry uttered a sibilant e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n. ”Sarsicante! Does he hold my favor in such small regard, to flout me thus? He would seem to scoff both at my dignity and at the might of Daut arms!”

”Not so, Sire! I would be remiss if I gave that impression. His tone was polite and respectful. He made it clear that he guards Ulfiand not against Dahaut but rather against the possibility of King Casmir's aggressive intent, which, so he states, is general knowledge.”

”Bah!” snapped Audry. ”That is most farfetched! How could Casmir arrive on the Plain of Shadows without first defeating the entire armed strength of Dahaut?”

”King Aillas feels that the contingency, while remote, is real. In any event, he relies most strongly upon his first argument, to wit: that the lands are his by right of conquest.”

Sir Rudo cried out in scorn: ”An argument specious and incorrect! Does he take us for lumpkins? The boundaries of Dahaut are grounded in tradition; they have been immutable for centuries!”

”Precisely true!” declared Sir Archem. ”The Ska must be regarded as transient interlopers, no more!”

King Audry made an impatient gesture. ”Obviously it is not so easy! I must give the matter thought. Meanwhile, Claractus, will you not join us at our breakfast? Your dress is somewhat at discord, but surely no one with a conscience will cry you shame.”

”Thank you, Sire. I will gladly eat, for I am famished.”

The conversation s.h.i.+fted to topics more agreeable, but the mood of the breakfast had been roiled and presently Sir Huynemer again condemned the provocative conduct of King Aillas. Sir Rudo and Sir Archem endorsed his views, each advising a stern rebuff to put the 'young Troice upstart' in his place.

Audry leaned heavily back in his chair. ”All very well! But I wonder how this chastening of Aillas is to be accomplished.”

”Aha! If several strong companies were dispatched into the March, with clear indications that we intended to take back our lands by force, Aillas might well chirp from a different branch!”

King Audry rubbed his chin. ”You feel that he would yield to a show of resolution.”

”Would he dare challenge the might of Dahaut?”

”Suppose that, through folly or recklessness, he refused to yield?”

”Then Duke Claractus would strike with his full might, to send young Aillas and his Ulf bantlings bounding and leaping across the moors like so many hares.”

Claractus held up his hand. ”I am chary of so much glory. You have envisioned the campaign; you shall be in command and lead the charge.”

Sir Huynemer, with raised eyebrows and a cold glance for Claractus, qualified his concepts. ”Sire, I put this scheme forward as an option to be studied, no more.”

Audry turned to Claractus. ”Is not Poelitetz considered impregnable to a.s.sault?”

”This is the general belief.”

Sir Rudo gave a skeptical grunt. ”This belief has never been tested, though it has cowed folk for generations.”

Claractus smiled grimly. ”How does one attack a cliff?”

”The sally port might be rammed and sundered,”

”Why trouble? The defenders at your request will be pleased to leave the portcullis ajar. When a goodly number of n.o.ble knights -- say, a hundred or more -- has swarmed into the yard, the portcullis is dropped and the captives are destroyed at leisure.”

”Then the Long Dann itself must be scaled!”

”It is not easy to climb a cliff while enemies are dropping rocks from above.”