Steven Burke - The Fallen Guardian

“Fetch General Chad,” ordered the king to one of his hidden guard. He knew that he needed the advice of his faithful leader of his massive army. As the guard left, he continued to ponder the options before him. After a few moments, a stout dwarf entered the throne room with a gruff look on his face. He had long red hair along with an even longer red beard. As he approached the king, he bowed to one knee and waited for the command to rise.

“You may stand, my old friend,” ordered the king warmly.

“What may I do for you, my lord?” asked General Chad. He did not like to waste time and knew that the king admired him for his direct approach. What he did not understand was why the king needed to counsel with him when he was busy shoring up the defenses against a possible attack.

“I find myself in a difficult situation, my good friend. I have learned that King Jarvis is under attack and that the battle for Nairi is growing in intensity. I have made a pack with Queen Daria’s general to send aid to them when the need arose; however, I do not want to weaken our defenses by sending valuable troops to their deaths in a cause that is not ours.”

“I can understand your hesitation with regards to the people of Nairi, but what about dwarves at Mount Carrick? Shouldn’t we at least dispatch some help for our brethren?”

“I sympathize with your sentiment about the plight of King Jarvis, but that is exactly where my dilemma lies. If we send a detachment down there, we will be left vulnerable. What if the high elves succeed in taking Nairi? What would stop them from attacking us next? I cannot afford to lessen our ranks needlessly when there is a very real threat to our island kingdom.”

“My lord!” interjected a voice directly behind where the general was standing.

“What is it?” bellowed King Edric. He did not like to be interrupted, especially with the subject matter they were discussing.

“I apologize for the interruption, my lord, but I have news from several of the scouts,” replied the messenger bashfully.

“There is no need to apologize; please tell us what they have learned,” the king said with a more sincere tone this time.

“King Jarvis is completely surrounded by a vast goblin and rock troll army, but he has managed to fend them off thus far. We have just found out that the elves are under attack by the high elves in the north while a massive orc army approaches from the south. Even more troubling is the fact that there is another orc army heading for Mount Adem as we speak. It appears that the peoples of Landen and Aran have been left alone for the time being. This is our report, my lord,” said the messenger with a very low bow.

“What in the name of the gods is going on? The whole land of Tuwa is engulfed in a war that does not make any sense,” said the king in utter disbelief. “You may leave us!” The messenger stood up at once and departed.

He was surprised by how his king took the news. He thought that there would have been a call to action.

“General, what do you make of this news?” the king asked while regaining his composure.

“I think it is a clear sign that we are to send aid to our brethren in the south. We need not worry ourselves about men or elves. They are good people, but they cannot be trusted. For all we know, this whole series of confrontations is their doing,” replied the general.

“I agree with you that these tragic events that are unfolding are likely the doing of men and elves, but I still do not see why we should weaken our defenses to send aid to those who would not do the same if the roles were reversed. I believe that we can hold this island if we retain all of our troops for our defenses.”

“King Edric, you and I have been friends for a long time. I know that you are genuinely concerned for the welfare of our people, but entrenching ourselves will not keep the armies of orcs, high elves, goblins, and rock trolls from converging on us. They will leave us be until they have defeated the others and attack us last because of our apparent complacency. They will crash on our island fortress like the violent waves of the eastern sea. We will not be able to fend off such a massive assault for long and will die just the same.” He had a strained look on his face as he pled with his king to see reason.

“I simply do not share your appraisal of the situation. If we send out our army now, their armies will attack us and we would be finished. I truly believe that we would live longer if we stay out of these horrific affairs of middle Tuwa. By staying isolated from the politics and bloodshed, their armies will leave us alone.” He truly felt that he was right and that over time his point would be proven.

“I think that we do agree on one point, and that is we have different ideas about what the best course of action is. However, you are the king, and your wish is my command. What is your final word?”

“General, I order your soldiers to strengthen our island defenses. We will outlast this war that has been brought upon our brethren by the folly of men and elves.”

“What word would you send to King Jarvis and King Kasim? What should we tell them when they ask for help?”

“Well, we have heard nothing from King Kasim yet, so we need to reply to King Jarvis right now and then copy that reply in the way of a preemptive letter to King Kasim.”

“What exactly do you want to say to them?”

“Tell them that we too have an army on our doorstep and that we will have to be prepared for an attack. We will not be able to spare any of our troops because of the need to be ready for the impending assault. Wish them luck, and let them knows that we are still their brethren.”

“It will be done according to your command. I take leave of you so that I can carry out your orders. I will send the messages immediately and then prepare the defenses for an attack.”

The general saluted the king and did an about-face. The king watched him skulk away as if he had been scolded for misbehavior. Edric knew that his friend would understand in time that his plan of defense was the best possible course of action. He really believed that his people would rally behind this decision. He felt very strongly that public opinion would turn on him if he sent the army into distant lands to die for a cause that was not altogether clear. The issue that will be tricky would be the option to send supplies to aid those fighting to defend their homes in the south. At first, the king thought he would send supplies to the people of Nairi, but then he found out about Mount Carrick being attacked. He then decided that if the war spread to other allies he would have to send them aid as well. This generosity would cost his people in the end. They would need all of the troops that he could muster and the supplies to support the army while defending their homes. He simply did not see the benefit of aiding others at the cost of his own peoples’ welfare.

The general called an impromptu meeting of his commanders and captains. He wanted to fill in the leadership about what the king had decided and his reasoning for his choice to defend the island. General Chad had begun to devise a plan in his mind while waiting for the leaders to show up to their secret meeting. He had determined that the king was clouded in his judgment at the moment, which meant that he needed to have a backup plan that could be put into action quickly. The difficulty with this line of thinking was the fact that he would have to hide what they were doing. The king could not get wind of what they were planning because he would make them undo whatever they had decided to do. The general sat on his balcony that overlooked the northern part of the lake, mulling over possible scenarios in which he could successfully place his troops so that when he finally convinced the king he was right, they would be able to spring into action right away.