Richard Tuttle - Island of Darkness

“Sorry, sir,” the officer said disrupting the general’s thoughts. “I should have warned you about that rough spot in the street. Are you all right?”

“Fine,” snapped the general. “I am just fine. Lead on.”

Although the general could not see it, the officer was grinning as he continued to lead the general through the city. The next thing the general noticed were the tradesmen that dealt in weapons. Thousand upon thousands of new arrows were piled high in front of the shops. New swords, axes, maces, and pikes were stacked thickly along the sides of the stalls. The general shook his head and followed the officer.

The general continued following the officer while seeing everything that he could. He noticed a lot of warriors were out of uniform, and he wondered why. He finally decided to ask the officer.

“Why does General Manitow allow those soldiers to appear in public without their uniforms?” he asked. “I thought the general was more intelligent than that. Doesn’t he realize what that does for the morale of his troops?”

“The people without uniforms are not Imperial Guards,” answered the officer. “They are part of the Citizens’ Brigade.”

“What is the Citizens’ Brigade?” asked General Romero.

“They are normal citizens,” answered the officer. “They only take up arms when the security of the city is threatened.”

“Preposterous,” the general shook his head. “What is the purpose of such a foolish thing?”

“The purpose, General,” smiled the officer, “is to enlarge the army of Alamar by five times.”

“Five times?” echoed the general as he halted in the street and stared at some of the warriors passing by. “Are you telling me that there are four thousand citizen warriors defending Alamar?”

“In addition to the one thousand Imperial Guards,” nodded the officer as he urged the general to keep walking. “Many of them are quite skilled. In fact, the Citizens’ Brigade often defeats the Imperial Guard when games are held. They are quite impressive. Ah, here we are.”

General Romero looked up and saw the headquarters of the Imperial Guard. The officer escorted him into the building and along a corridor to the office of General Manitow.

“The general is not in at the moment,” announced one of the sentries outside the office.

“I will let General Romero get situated,” answered the officer, “and then I will go find him. Right this way, General.”

The officer ushered General Romero to a chair and then retreated from the room.

The officer closed the door to General Manitow’s office, leaving General Romero alone. The officer immediately went to a room across the hall and entered without knocking. General Manitow looked up expectantly as the officer entered.

“Did General Romero get the tour?” asked General Manitow.

“The full tour,” grinned the officer. “He nearly stumbled in the market place and actually stopped and asked me about the Citizens’ Brigade. I feel confident that his impression of Alamar has changed drastically since entering through the gates.”

“Excellent,” smiled General Manitow as he rose. “Wait outside my office to escort him back to the gates. If I do not mention that he is defecting, make sure that your path to the gates takes in the harbor. There are two Khadoran ships in today. I would like him to see them on his way out.”

The officer nodded and grinned as General Manitow crossed the room and opened the door. He stepped to the door to his office and opened it. He closed the door quickly and marched to the chair behind his desk. He sat down and locked eyes with the Omungan general.

“General Romero,” greeted General Manitow, “welcome to Alamar. What is the purpose of your visit?”

“Straight to the point as usual, Manitow,” noted General Romero. “You should learn to ease into such negotiations.”

“Negotiations?” echoed General Manitow. “What is there to negotiate?”

“The surrender of Alamar?” tested General Romero.

“I think not,” General Manitow shot back. “You may have more men at the moment, but that is sure to change soon. Alamar is built for defense. We will never surrender. If that was the purpose of your visit,” Manitow said as he rose from his chair, “I will have you escorted back to the gates.”

“Why the rush?” objected General Romero. “Surely the war can wait a few minutes while we discuss things?”

“You may have idle time,” General Manitow said as he towered over General Romero, “but my time is at a premium. In addition to my army, I have to rule over the citizens of Alamar. I know the citizens are only trying to be helpful, but you should try managing thousands of people who want to help the war effort.”

“I heard about your Citizens’ Brigade,” replied General Romero. “Is it any good?”

“The Citizens’ Brigade is a potent fighting force,” declared General Manitow, “but that is not what I was talking about. I was talking about the women and children who want to pamper my soldiers by bringing them food, or singing them songs, or help in any way they can. I was talking about all of the Khadoran ships waiting off the coast for a chance to dock. I was talking about people listing their homes for visiting Sakovan dignitaries. You can’t imagine how much time all of this takes.”

A deep frown fell over General Romero’s face. He looked up at General Manitow with confusion.

“Khadoran ships?” asked the Omungan general. “What does Khadora have to do with Alamar?”

“You don’t know?” asked General Manitow. “They hide more from you than I imagined. The Sakovans and Khadorans are allies. The only thing stopping the Khadorans from invading is that the Star of Sakova feels that we do not need them. All they do now is send shiploads of food and supplies.”

“Incredible,” sighed the Omungan general. “Alright, Manitow, sit down and let me get to the point for which I came.”

General Manitow hesitated a moment and then made a show of sitting down impatiently.

“Thank you,” General Romero said. “Somehow your people continue to manage to destroy my siege engines. It is getting quite tedious now. I am willing to make you a generous offer.”

“And what is that?” asked General Manitow.

“Share some of that Khadoran food,” smiled General Romero, “and I will order a retreat. We can both put this foolishness behind us.”

“I see no reason to feed my enemies,” declared General Manitow. “If you wish to retreat, you are free to do so.”

The Omungan general stared at Manitow with disbelief. The Omungans were offering to turn away from Alamar, and Manitow was acting as if he could not care less.

“We can’t retreat,” snapped General Romero. “We have no food. Look, I am offering to end this siege. What is a little food to you when you have so much? Your people won’t have to man the walls any more. Your city can get back to normal.”

“And let your army return to Okata?” General Manitow shook his head. “I cannot allow that.”

“What are you talking about?” bellowed General Romero. “What do you care about Okata or western Omunga? They have nothing to do with you.”

“That is where you fail to grasp what is going on,” retorted General Manitow. “There is no Omunga any more. There is Okata and Tanzaba, and there is the Sakova. I cannot allow your army to return to defend Okata, because that city will fall soon. The Sakovans like your army right where it is.”

“You can’t be serious,” gasped General Romero. “How could the Sakovans defeat the west? Where did they get their armies?”

“From Omungan cities,” answered General Manitow. “You know, General Romero, a country can only expect so much from its citizens. The Katana left the people of Omunga to starve to death. He showed how little he cares for them. Do you find it so surprising that so many Omungans have defected to the Sakova? My own citizens here in Alamar demanded to join the Sakova. They were willing to fight my Imperial Guards to defect. I imagine that the citizens in all Omungan cities would react the same, except for Okata. That is where the real battle will take place. So now you know why I cannot allow you to retreat.”