The Emperor And The Temple Ch 23

""It burns! The City burns! I see it in my dreams!"

Those were the words of the jester Joris on the night, many moons earlier, when news of the Emperor's quest first reached Casbur. He was a fool of course; Charton's disgraced minister who sold the poor of the land into slavery and once held magnificent balls at his residence during a time when plague afflicted the people. He was famously gelded by Charton's queen and later her daughter Zantina also grew tired of him, even in his final role as court clown. But perhaps he did have some supernatural insight in one final matter. For indeed, reader, the city did burn but not, as you may have thought, at the hands of the invading legions.

When the messenger Han reached the Emperor at the City of The Goddess - the same night he knelt before his Mistress in her tent - Casbur was already under siege by the armies of Nadam, Artur and the Helenes. The Falcons brought up their whale guns to face the city walls; two huge artillery pieces that had been dragged by men and beasts from the ships at Cana along the Road of Lakes. Many times, the great warrior Harl and his small force had tried to attack the guns as they travelled but Nadam, perhaps the canniest of all the Emperor's generals, had kept them well defended. Finally, as Harl's desperation increased, Nadam had dared to use the guns as bait, drawing his enemy into a position of weakness where a full defeat could at last be inflicted. Death or slavery was the reward for those five hundred who stood against Nadam, and Harl himself received the collar of Ahirik, placed around his neck by Lady Beshara herself, cooing in delight and anticipation. At least he was spared the brand.

Alas, the walls of Casbur were no match for the whale guns and within days a breach of several hundred paces was opened up. And then one morning, as the sun rose in the sky, the armies of the Empire lined up for the assault.

The force defending Casbur was light in numbers. For years King Charton, father of Zantina, had maintained only a small army, preferring to sell his young men and women to Cargian slavers for gold, silver and a promise of peace. Much good had it done him in the end. Zantina, with goodwill from Alfard and Taneric to the north and with Harl as her instrument, had restored some strength to Casbur. But now, with the walls of the city opened, and with her men outnumbered several times, she gave the fateful order.

Artur saw the smoke even before the command to attack had been given that morning and knew immediately what it meant. He shouted over to Adrenus of the Helenes, "Look! They burn the grain stores! Attack now! Do not wait!" And Artur himself drew his sword and ran to the front of the Foreign Legion, not stopping, sprinting for the breach and shouting to his men to follow him. And follow him they did, running hard over the broken ground, anxious that if they did not catch up, their General would face the men of Casbur alone.

At the shattered walls of the City, the defenders fought bravely as behind them the fires burned. Soon, the smell of roasting meat drifted across the Emperor's armies and they realised, with horror, that even the animals of the City were being culled and destroyed in the flames. With an urgency born of panic, Falcons, Helenes and Foreign Legionnaires threw themselves into the fray but Casbur held for the best part of the day until finally, its numbers severely depleted, the army of the Eastern Queendom gave way and the City was overrun.

****

The day after the Battle of Casbur, Artur, Nadam and Adrenus stood within the great hall of the Citadel and stared as men of the Foreign Legion dragged away the carcasses of two great cats.

"The Queen's pets," explained Artur to his companions, "They fought as hard as any man of the City, but in the end they could not protect their mistress."

"They will likely be cooked," said Adrenus, in disgust.

"Artur," said Nadam, "We must face the reality of our situation. What is it you called this, Adrenus? The victory of Pyrrhus."

"Of who?" said Artur.

Adrenus shrugged, "A name from the most ancient and forgotten times. Evidently a leader who won a great victory but was____"

"But was less than happy with his position subsequently," finished Artur. "So what is to be done?"

"We must not move our armies to the Emperor," said Nadam. "Messengers report that he needs only food, not more men."

"And we cannot stay here and starve," said Adrenus. "So, I have already decided; the Helenes shall go south, back to our ships. Perhaps on the way we will meet food wagons travelling north. If so, we will take what we need and let the rest continue. Lady Beshara has expressed a wish to join us; we will take her with us."

And with that Adrenus clasped hands with Artur and Nadam before turning and leaving the hall. For a few moments there was silence and then Nadam spoke out, "Rats leaving a sinking ship, eh? You see, Artur, we of Ephirum have our own sayings to suit each occasion. They will find no food on the Road of Lakes. Princess Kasmine remains at large and rumour has it she amuses herself by attacking food supplies as they travel north; an easy target even for her small force. But Artur, you should know that I too have made a decision."

"You will also take the Falcons south?"

"No. North! To the forests, to Vosgir."

"I do not recommend such a course, Nadam."

"Why not? In the forests we will surely find food. Deer, boar and wild fowl to hunt. And Vosgir itself will be poorly defended, with so many Sons of The North by all accounts trapped in the City of The Goddess. And, Artur, we know that this land of Casbur cannot sustain two legions so late in the summer and with all its crops destroyed. Perhaps alone you can make something of this place."

"I fear you will perish in the north, Nadam."

"Ha! Better to take the risk than to remain here and remove all doubt. Even going south has grave risks, Artur, for we well know there is no comfort to be found there. And never let it be said that the Falcons turned away from danger. Death or glory, eh, my friend? My men are already being prepared on the north field. I will take my leave of you now."

The two generals embraced.

"It was an honour to know you, Nadam."

"And for me, Artur. But surely we will meet again in Ephirum one day. Have faith in whatever god you wish to serve! Or is it a goddess, Artur?"

****

When Nadam walked away, the great hall of the Citadel was empty save for Artur. He stood by a window and looked out over the Detz river, noting that the sky had turned grey and a steady drizzle was falling, quenching the last embers of the fires from the previous day. With all the men of Casbur fighting at the broken walls, the flames had spread into the tight streets of the city, destroying many buildings. The colourless sky and grey stone of Casbur darkened Artur's mood and he descended to the courtyard below, which he found deserted save for the centurion Marwan, standing with a small group of his men over the bloody remains of the Sunerian tigers.

"Marwan, where is the Legion?" demanded Artur.

The centurion shrugged, "They go from house to house in the City and in the countryside around, searching for food and women. They help themselves to both."

"Did you command them to do this?" said Artur.

Marwan shrugged again, "I did not stop them, My Lord."

Artur noticed a low door at one side of the courtyard, where a single guard - a man of Kartig by his appearance - slouched against the wall, attempting to stay sheltered from the rain.

"The dungeon?" he asked

"Yes," replied Marwan, "She is there. We have kept her for you."

The sentry barely acknowledged Artur as he entered and descended the steep candlelit steps. His eyes adjusting to the dim light at the bottom, he saw a row of cages formed from thick iron bars, each barely tall enough for a man to stand, the floor covered in a thin layer of straw. Only one of them was occupied. A young woman was huddled in its corner, her arms wrapped around her folded legs, clothes ripped and face bloody. Her head rested on a bar of the cage and although her eyes were open she appeared to stare only at the wall opposite and did not move as Artur entered.

He looked at her for a few moments, shocked by her condition, and then said, "I am Artur, commander of the Emperor's Foreign Legion."

Zantina turned her head just enough to lay eyes upon him.

"Yes," she said, "They told me that a man of the south leads an army of the Empire, but I could barely believe it. Now I see that it is indeed true. Have you come to gloat, Artur?"

"Do you not remember me, Zantina?"

She glanced at him, suspicious, and then turned her head away once again. "Should I?" she asked.

"At the court of King Osta. When we were children. Have you forgotten?"

"I remember an Artur. Some years older than me; playful, honest, noble. You are not him."

He was about to remonstrate, to assure her that he was indeed that same Artur, but then he realised the true meaning behind her words and said only, "Zantina, promise me you will behave and I shall move you to confinement in your rooms. It will be more comfortable."

"Promise? Oh, Artur, I would slit your throat at the slightest opportunity. Let me be! I shall waste away here in this cage. It is as good a place as any."

He turned back towards the steps in despair but, as he began to cimb, Zantina said "Artur!" and he looked back at her in hope.

"Artur, your sister Hanja.....if she knew.....if she could see you now....she would die of shame!"