Part 2.
Janek's house was not that much further down the street and to Crais' relief it was reasonably cool inside.
He followed Janek into the kitchen. While Janek prepared some food, Crais leaned arms akimbo against the counter where he had a good view of the door and the two windows.
"So, what's this about then?"
"You don't mince words."
"Waiting too long for information might get you killed," Crais said matter- of-factly, "Care to enlighten me on the situation?"
"Can we eat first?"
Crais grew impatient, "I want to get back to my ship as soon as possible. We can be busy and talk at the same time."
Janek shrugged his shoulders, such impatience but they needed his help.
"They came from the north about 6 monens ago," he started while stirring the brew, "Shang'ar was the first city they attacked. They had walked up to the city with a band nearly a thousand men strong. Before the city-gates they proclaimed that should Shang'ar surrender to their authority they would spare the city and their inhabitants. The elders of Shang'ar laughed at first. What was a ragtag band going to do against the might of the city and what did they intent once they had control of it?
The terms were simple: surrender and the city would be left intact and its citizens not harmed. They asked a stipend of 40 percent of all profits, every 20th adult male would be taken to their stronghold plus a number of women.
Not surrendering would mean that they would attack, raze the city to the ground and take everyone still left alive as slaves to their stronghold. They gave the city three days to think this over.
The terms were so preposterous that in a council meeting the elders decided to put a militia together who could enforce the guards to the city and expel the band. They were expected to outnumber the band outside by at least five to one.
They were able to raise a sufficient number of men who were prepared to fight in defence of the city.
When the three days had expired the leader of the band again stood in front of the city-gates. The elders stood above him on the battlements and shouted down that they would never surrender and were prepared to fight.
The leader of the band turned on his heels and walked back to his men. The elders turned to each other and laughed. What were they going to do against city-walls and a fighting force five times their size?
Soon it became apparent what they had in mind. A huge machine was brought out of the forest where they had been hiding it. It was positioned at a fair distance from the city-gates and then the leader dropped his upraised hand. The machine spewed large balls over fire, which dropped over the city- walls. Whatever it hit burst into flames. Water could not douse it. People were incinerated on the spot. The people could only open the gates wide and flee the city. There was nothing they could do against it. Staying within the city-walls would be certain death.
When the people streamed out of the gates those who were still standing of the guardsmen and the militia vaulted a brave attack at the marauding band but to no avail. Their archers took most of the men out; the rest was hacked to pieces. Afterwards, as they had promised, the band took the remainder of the people who had survived as slaves. The city was razed to the ground. There is nothing left to remind us of the great city Shang'ar"
Janek had fallen silent. He was still stirring the brew in the pot but Crais doubted if he saw it.
Crais had heard of weapons of destruction of that kind. There was hardly any protection from their might. The only weakness was the carrier, whether machine or personally held, if that could be destroyed the threat was over. It could be done but it normally wasn't easy to get near it. Its devastation was such that even the Peacekeepers had not considered using it even though they possessed the knowledge of its workings.
Crais coughed, drawing the man's attention, "How did you come by this information?"
Janek roused himself and looked sadly at Crais, "My brother lived in Shang'ar. He and several lived to escape and tell the tale. He died soon after arriving here because of his injuries."
"I'm sorry," said Crais softly, he knew what is was like to lose a brother, "I think the marauders left those men alive on purpose." Janek looked up at him with a questioning frown.
Crais continued, "They let the men escape deliberately. They're scare- tactics. I assume that the other two cities surrendered without putting up a fight?" When Janek nodded, Crais said, "By letting those men "escape" they were assured of it. No city would want to face devastation on such a scale. Had nobody survived they could never have taken over the other cities as easily."
Crais started pacing the floor, then faced Janek, "Does anyone know how far away they are from this city?"
"There are only rumours. Some say they are only weekens away, others have them standing at the city-gates tomorrow."
Crais gave a rueful smile, "That is to be suspected."
"Will you help us?"
Crais didn't take long to consider, "Yes, if I can."
There was hope on Janek's face, "Will you bring your forces in to help us?"
There was a tightening of Crais' jaw-muscles. "I have to make some things clear for you before you accept my help. In the first place, if you really knew how the Peacekeepers work and I think you know their reputation, I could see it in the faces of the people when I pass them, you wouldn't be so willing to have them join in. The Peacekeepers would help you get rid of the marauders, eventually, then they will demand their price and that might be higher than the price the marauders are asking from you now."
Janek was confused, "You talk as if you are not a Peacekeeper, yet you wear the uniform."
Crais gave a weak smile, how much would he tell him? "You are right. I was a Peacekeeper but I am not a Peacekeeper any more. The only assistance I might be able to offer you is to give my expertise of leading you, as you put forward earlier in the evening. The actual fighting and defending have to come from people like you who don't want to be enslaved."
Janek looked down in despair, "So, there is only you?"
"Yes," Crais said calmly, "If you can provide me with the men brave or foolish enough to fight then I am willing to lead them and hopefully defeat the marauding band. They have to be willing to accept my command without question. If you can't get the men together than forget we had this conversation and I will go back to my ship and everything will be as it was this afternoon."
"Why would they not accept your command?"
Crais threw his hands up in exasperation, "Janek, I do not doubt your bravery nor your determination to free the land of the marauders but your honesty…"
"My honesty…" spluttered Janek.
"Yes, you can't tell me that you trusted me when I walked into the guesthouse earlier in the day."
"Well, I didn't know you…"
Crais' face turned thunderous, "You know about the Peacekeepers, your whole city knows about them and their reputation. Only after I had the fight with the men in the bar were you willing to ask for my help. After the fight the barman finally gave me something to drink that was cold instead of warm. After the fight… you want me to continue? Before the fight nobody would talk to me if they could help it. I have noticed the stares people gave me when I walked through the city. They will not trust Peacekeepers. They see a Peacekeeper's uniform and it is an almost a "lock your children away"- policy. And then you ask me "why would they not let you lead"? Janek, if we are to work together then we have to trust each other and not be encumbered by pleasantries. Is that understood?"
Janek looked down. Bialar was right, he should not have asked such a naive question.
When he looked up at Crais again he saw him waiting for an answer. "You are right Bialar. It will not happen again in future."
He saw a slight smile appear on Crais' face, "Good, because if we stick with pleasantries instead of the stark naked truth we will all be dead." He waited before continuing, "So, is there a possibility of getting enough people together?"
"I have been trying to get people together. It is difficult, they are all afraid."
"As they should be but how many are willing to stand and fight?"
Janek shuffled his feet and a feeling of dread came over Crais, "How many, Janek?"
"Twenty but they are all willing…" he stumbled.
"Twenty? Against, what, a force of over a thousand?"
Janek looked down dejectedly, "Twenty is all I could muster."
Crais took a deep breath, "Well, let's meet them then and maybe we can get some more."
Janek looked up with hope in his eyes, "You mean we can do it?"
"We might. It depends on all the information we can get. Oh, and I would look after the stew if you want to offer some for to me to eat tonight."
He smiled when he saw Janek busy with the stew, his mind taken off the problem for the moment and tending after something as silly as not burning the food. Crais sat down at the table and contemplated the situation.
Dinner was good, especially after weekens of food-cubes and near starvation. Janek went back to their discussion before they had something to eat, "Do you think it could really work?"
Crais thought about it, "I have heard reports of weapons like that and there is not a lot of defence against it but as with all weapons there has to be a flaw. Of the twenty people you've mentioned is there anyone from Shang'ar?"
"Why yes, two actually."
"Good we might need their reports on what has happened at Shang'ar. It might show us a way how to defeat the Marauders. Let us concentrate on those reports first, after that we can decide on a course of action. Also, tomorrow you will have to show me the layout of the city and the surrounding area. If they come here we need to know how we can anticipate where the attack might come from. Can you get the two men to come round tonight?"
"I… think so."
"Fine. After we had a word with them and have seen the lay of the land, then we talk to the other eighteen."
Janek's house was not that much further down the street and to Crais' relief it was reasonably cool inside.
He followed Janek into the kitchen. While Janek prepared some food, Crais leaned arms akimbo against the counter where he had a good view of the door and the two windows.
"So, what's this about then?"
"You don't mince words."
"Waiting too long for information might get you killed," Crais said matter- of-factly, "Care to enlighten me on the situation?"
"Can we eat first?"
Crais grew impatient, "I want to get back to my ship as soon as possible. We can be busy and talk at the same time."
Janek shrugged his shoulders, such impatience but they needed his help.
"They came from the north about 6 monens ago," he started while stirring the brew, "Shang'ar was the first city they attacked. They had walked up to the city with a band nearly a thousand men strong. Before the city-gates they proclaimed that should Shang'ar surrender to their authority they would spare the city and their inhabitants. The elders of Shang'ar laughed at first. What was a ragtag band going to do against the might of the city and what did they intent once they had control of it?
The terms were simple: surrender and the city would be left intact and its citizens not harmed. They asked a stipend of 40 percent of all profits, every 20th adult male would be taken to their stronghold plus a number of women.
Not surrendering would mean that they would attack, raze the city to the ground and take everyone still left alive as slaves to their stronghold. They gave the city three days to think this over.
The terms were so preposterous that in a council meeting the elders decided to put a militia together who could enforce the guards to the city and expel the band. They were expected to outnumber the band outside by at least five to one.
They were able to raise a sufficient number of men who were prepared to fight in defence of the city.
When the three days had expired the leader of the band again stood in front of the city-gates. The elders stood above him on the battlements and shouted down that they would never surrender and were prepared to fight.
The leader of the band turned on his heels and walked back to his men. The elders turned to each other and laughed. What were they going to do against city-walls and a fighting force five times their size?
Soon it became apparent what they had in mind. A huge machine was brought out of the forest where they had been hiding it. It was positioned at a fair distance from the city-gates and then the leader dropped his upraised hand. The machine spewed large balls over fire, which dropped over the city- walls. Whatever it hit burst into flames. Water could not douse it. People were incinerated on the spot. The people could only open the gates wide and flee the city. There was nothing they could do against it. Staying within the city-walls would be certain death.
When the people streamed out of the gates those who were still standing of the guardsmen and the militia vaulted a brave attack at the marauding band but to no avail. Their archers took most of the men out; the rest was hacked to pieces. Afterwards, as they had promised, the band took the remainder of the people who had survived as slaves. The city was razed to the ground. There is nothing left to remind us of the great city Shang'ar"
Janek had fallen silent. He was still stirring the brew in the pot but Crais doubted if he saw it.
Crais had heard of weapons of destruction of that kind. There was hardly any protection from their might. The only weakness was the carrier, whether machine or personally held, if that could be destroyed the threat was over. It could be done but it normally wasn't easy to get near it. Its devastation was such that even the Peacekeepers had not considered using it even though they possessed the knowledge of its workings.
Crais coughed, drawing the man's attention, "How did you come by this information?"
Janek roused himself and looked sadly at Crais, "My brother lived in Shang'ar. He and several lived to escape and tell the tale. He died soon after arriving here because of his injuries."
"I'm sorry," said Crais softly, he knew what is was like to lose a brother, "I think the marauders left those men alive on purpose." Janek looked up at him with a questioning frown.
Crais continued, "They let the men escape deliberately. They're scare- tactics. I assume that the other two cities surrendered without putting up a fight?" When Janek nodded, Crais said, "By letting those men "escape" they were assured of it. No city would want to face devastation on such a scale. Had nobody survived they could never have taken over the other cities as easily."
Crais started pacing the floor, then faced Janek, "Does anyone know how far away they are from this city?"
"There are only rumours. Some say they are only weekens away, others have them standing at the city-gates tomorrow."
Crais gave a rueful smile, "That is to be suspected."
"Will you help us?"
Crais didn't take long to consider, "Yes, if I can."
There was hope on Janek's face, "Will you bring your forces in to help us?"
There was a tightening of Crais' jaw-muscles. "I have to make some things clear for you before you accept my help. In the first place, if you really knew how the Peacekeepers work and I think you know their reputation, I could see it in the faces of the people when I pass them, you wouldn't be so willing to have them join in. The Peacekeepers would help you get rid of the marauders, eventually, then they will demand their price and that might be higher than the price the marauders are asking from you now."
Janek was confused, "You talk as if you are not a Peacekeeper, yet you wear the uniform."
Crais gave a weak smile, how much would he tell him? "You are right. I was a Peacekeeper but I am not a Peacekeeper any more. The only assistance I might be able to offer you is to give my expertise of leading you, as you put forward earlier in the evening. The actual fighting and defending have to come from people like you who don't want to be enslaved."
Janek looked down in despair, "So, there is only you?"
"Yes," Crais said calmly, "If you can provide me with the men brave or foolish enough to fight then I am willing to lead them and hopefully defeat the marauding band. They have to be willing to accept my command without question. If you can't get the men together than forget we had this conversation and I will go back to my ship and everything will be as it was this afternoon."
"Why would they not accept your command?"
Crais threw his hands up in exasperation, "Janek, I do not doubt your bravery nor your determination to free the land of the marauders but your honesty…"
"My honesty…" spluttered Janek.
"Yes, you can't tell me that you trusted me when I walked into the guesthouse earlier in the day."
"Well, I didn't know you…"
Crais' face turned thunderous, "You know about the Peacekeepers, your whole city knows about them and their reputation. Only after I had the fight with the men in the bar were you willing to ask for my help. After the fight the barman finally gave me something to drink that was cold instead of warm. After the fight… you want me to continue? Before the fight nobody would talk to me if they could help it. I have noticed the stares people gave me when I walked through the city. They will not trust Peacekeepers. They see a Peacekeeper's uniform and it is an almost a "lock your children away"- policy. And then you ask me "why would they not let you lead"? Janek, if we are to work together then we have to trust each other and not be encumbered by pleasantries. Is that understood?"
Janek looked down. Bialar was right, he should not have asked such a naive question.
When he looked up at Crais again he saw him waiting for an answer. "You are right Bialar. It will not happen again in future."
He saw a slight smile appear on Crais' face, "Good, because if we stick with pleasantries instead of the stark naked truth we will all be dead." He waited before continuing, "So, is there a possibility of getting enough people together?"
"I have been trying to get people together. It is difficult, they are all afraid."
"As they should be but how many are willing to stand and fight?"
Janek shuffled his feet and a feeling of dread came over Crais, "How many, Janek?"
"Twenty but they are all willing…" he stumbled.
"Twenty? Against, what, a force of over a thousand?"
Janek looked down dejectedly, "Twenty is all I could muster."
Crais took a deep breath, "Well, let's meet them then and maybe we can get some more."
Janek looked up with hope in his eyes, "You mean we can do it?"
"We might. It depends on all the information we can get. Oh, and I would look after the stew if you want to offer some for to me to eat tonight."
He smiled when he saw Janek busy with the stew, his mind taken off the problem for the moment and tending after something as silly as not burning the food. Crais sat down at the table and contemplated the situation.
Dinner was good, especially after weekens of food-cubes and near starvation. Janek went back to their discussion before they had something to eat, "Do you think it could really work?"
Crais thought about it, "I have heard reports of weapons like that and there is not a lot of defence against it but as with all weapons there has to be a flaw. Of the twenty people you've mentioned is there anyone from Shang'ar?"
"Why yes, two actually."
"Good we might need their reports on what has happened at Shang'ar. It might show us a way how to defeat the Marauders. Let us concentrate on those reports first, after that we can decide on a course of action. Also, tomorrow you will have to show me the layout of the city and the surrounding area. If they come here we need to know how we can anticipate where the attack might come from. Can you get the two men to come round tonight?"
"I… think so."
"Fine. After we had a word with them and have seen the lay of the land, then we talk to the other eighteen."