248 Cold War

On top of a small hill in central Medala's countryside, two delegations of nobles met in a meeting that would determine the fate of their countries. In the distance flowed the silver waters of the Argu River, right through the city of Odeana. Once, it had been one of many prosperous cities along the banks of the river. However, now it lay in ruins, its walls broken and turned to rubble in several spots and much of its outer city a smoldering pyre. In front of this city's gates stood an army of Medalan warriors, its brave defenders, and opposite, on the muddy plains that once used to be fields, their enemies, warriors just the same.

Since morning, Pacha's eyes had swept past the same scenery countless times. All throughout the day, the officials from both sides had exceeded each other in their attempts at flattery, fancy speeches and the like. In the end, the victory in terms of shameless talk had clearly gone to Amautu's people. It seemed like the great scholars of the north could spin the story of an afternoon walk into an endless epic. They had even held an entire, formal banquet atop the hill, without ever talking about the relevant issues. While Pacha had been raised to value proper etiquette and had come with good intentions, he began to lose his patience. Even so, Amautu's servants continued without pause.

\"In the name of King Amautu Secundu Pluritac, King of the North and second prince of the Medala Empire, this council has come together to determine-\"

\"To determine who gets what.\" Driven beyond his limits, Pacha interrupted the servant to finally get to the point. \"Everyone knows why we are here and we have spent all day on nothing but ceremony. Is this really necessary?\"

\"Ceremony is what distinguishes humans from beasts, King Pachacutec,\" Amautu answered in a dry tone. \"Though this king would not expect a barbarian to understand.\"

\"There is a limit to everything,\" Pacha said as he ignored the insult. \"We have been standing here and waiting for your servants to finish their fancy talk since the break of dawn. Maybe we should first solve the issues at hand? After we are done with our work, King Amautu can have his servants stand around and make up new rules for walking and breathing for as long as he wants.\"

For a while, the two brothers stared each other down, Amautu with cold eyes and Pacha with barely contained anger. However, the King of the Center didn't mind the tension. After all, Amautu wasn't any larger or more impressive of stature than Corco. And while Corco only hid his real strength behind a harmless facade, Amautu had always been a true weakling. In fact, the second prince was even proud of his lack of prowess. With their difference in stature and charisma, any outside observer would always judge a wordless contest as Pacha's win. Thus, it was no surprise that Amautu soon looked to the side and gave in.

\"Fine, barbarian. This time, King Pachacutec called for the meeting. Thus, we will follow what goes for rules in the central kingdom for today only. Speak your mind, and make your offer to this king.\"

Whatever snide remarks Amautu had for his brother, Pacha had more important issues to worry about. With threats all around him, he couldn't afford to bother with petty squabbles. Ultimately, Amautu was the smarter one anyways. Pacha had never won a war of words against him, and he wouldn't try now, not right before such important negotiations.

\"Good. In that case, King Amautu and his men are advised to retreat from Odeana and cease your occupation of the central kingdom's lands, so we may punish the traitorous Lord Instea and restore justice within Medala.\"

\"Hah!\" Amautu's dry laugh told everyone present that he was anything but happy with the demand. \"Lord Instea has decided to join the northern kingdom of his own volition, as has the entire House Instea with him. Even more, our actions were approved by the Triumvirate Meeting. All of our actions are within the laws set down between the three kingdoms and thus legitimate. If anything, the central kingdom's troops are the aggressors. They have attacked their former subjects with no justification. If the lords can be called traitors for choosing to serve another king, what would be the point of our laws?\"

This time, it was Pacha's turn to pretend offense.

\"If this hero's central kingdom had broken any rules, the Ancestral Hall would have admonished those actions by now. However, the hall has done no such thing, and instead has spoken out against the greed of the southern and northern kingdoms, who take lands from their fellow Medalan lords like common bandits.\"

\"Since this king is a man of honor, this king will not slander his ancestors.\" Amautu frowned, barely able to retain his composure. \"Yet every man can think of the Ancestral Hall's words whatever he may.\"

This sort of restraint was the reason Pacha liked his talks with Amautu far more than those with Corco. If he had made the same shameless remark to the southern king, Corco would have spit in Pacha's face and cursed out his family with an endless litany. In the end, it would only serve to embarrass Pacha and the Ancestral Hall in front of the servants. However, Amautu was far better behaved, almost too much for his own good. He would never directly state the obvious bias of Grand Ancestor Viribus. His indirect complaint about the Ancestral Hall's judgment was as far as the northern king would be willing to go. Thus, Pacha could be far more shameless here.

\"Whatever you say – King Amautu – will not change the facts. Our men have breached the walls of Odeana twice already, and the city has burned once. At this rate, it is only a matter of time before your defenses fall. Give up the city or it will be a pointless drain of resources for both our sides.\"

Faced with Pacha's reasonable complaint, Amautu still retained his unreasonable frown.

\"Of course. The Kingdom of the North will cede Odeana, as soon as the Kingdom of the Center agrees to hand over House Pluritac's Argu Basin estate in return.\"

\"Only in your dreams, brother,\" Pacha replied, now enraged himself at Amautu's shamelessness. The Argu basin was a large plains south of Medala's capital, and the reason for House Pluritac's centuries of continued control over Medala's political landscape. After all, the basin contained the largest and most profitable silver mines in the entire empire. When the borders for the three new kingdoms had been drawn, Pacha had been left with the Pluritac family's richest lands, the mines chief among them. Of course, Amautu would be greedy to see them in his own hands. But of course, Pacha would never agree.

\"If you want the mines, come and take them yourself. Why not send your great beast soldiers across the lands of Pachacutec to occupy them? Do you have no trust in them?\"

Ever since the start of the war, a group of Amautu's warriors had stood out during the battles. In all their the fights, they had appeared far stronger than the average cultivator, and fearless like enraged animals. Although he was deriding them in his words, Pacha was eager to find out more about these strange new warriors who had given his men so much trouble. Yet his brother didn't fall for the unsophisticated ploy.

\"How this king applies his troops is no man's concern. And if he wishes to take Odeana, King Pachacutec could follow his own advice and simply take it by force.\"

\"Yet the difference is that our troops are about to take the city either way. Why not make things easier on everyone and give in when the odds are against you?\"

Again, Amautu laughed his joyless laugh.

\"Hah, if the central kingdom only lusted after Odeana, there would still be a chance we may agree. However, regaining this one city is not the goal of this campaign, is it? If the south cannot regain Lord Gratidia's lands as well, this king would still retain full control of the Argu River's water traffic. No matter what we do, you will continue to fight us until the northern kingdom retreats back to the north of the Argu. If we give in early here, we only speed up your campaign, and our own demise. Why would this king ever play along with such games?\"

\"At the very least, there is a need to talk about peace,\" Pacha insisted. \"On both sides, good warriors of House Pluritac are dying for no reason. And while they do, that southern bastard reinforces his position more and more.\"

\"At least King Corcopaca is a legitimate heir to the emperor. At least he is in control of his own house and estate, rather than play puppet for his greedy relatives. This king would rather see Corcopaca as emperor than a bastard as his equal.\"

There it was at last: Actual emotion from Amautu. Yet it wasn't the brotherly solidarity the young king Pacha had hoped for. All he could hear in Amautu's voice was scorn and rage. His own muscles tensed to mirror Amautu's, yet he somehow retained his calm, at least for now.

\"Brother, if you are so adamant about this hero's demise, why even agree to these negotiations, and why drag them out until now? What are you planning here, other than to annoy me?\" Pacha asked with a growl. \"Why are you holding us here for this long with your pointless rites? Are you setting up an ambush, or an assassination?\"

\"Are you getting nervous, King Pachacutec?\" Amautu asked with that smug look of superiority Pacha had seen far too much throughout his youth. \"Maybe... are you worried about Lord Ichilia taking control over your men while you are away? After all, I heard that the King of the Center's power is challenged by his own uncle, and not even his own troops truly support him.\"

Blood boiled as Pacha's fist clenched further. Just as he was about to explode, he looked to the side, where he met with Pallatio's warning look. All throughout his struggles for power, the servant was the only one who had remained loyal to him. As usual, Pacha decided to trust his one true advisor. Just barely, the hero king managed to tame his temper.

Although he wanted to beat the little northern king who thought him and his ploys oh so clever, Pacha understood that a deadlock in their war would only further help the southerners. He needed to earn Amautu's goodwill, at least enough to break his firm alliance with the south. Though of course, Pacha wasn't smart enough for an elaborate ploy to trick Amautu to his side. Thus, he tried his luck with the only thing Amautu wouldn't expect: Pacha told the truth.

\"Brother, there is no need for so much animosity, is there? After all, we are still brothers, despite everything.\" While Pacha sighed, tired of the constant battles with his family, Amautu answered only with a sneer. Even so, Pacha continued, undeterred.

\"I understand that you have your reservations about my status. But no matter what you believe, we are brothers. Through our mother, if nothing else. And you are correct: Ever since I became a candidate to sit the silver throne of Medala, House Ichilia has done nothing but attempt to control me and gain power of the empire, with me as its puppet ruler. However, today is my chance to break this bond, break this dependency and destroy House Ichilia's attempt to overthrow House Pluritac. In the war against the south, I showed distinction, though we failed to achieve victory in the end. My actions convinced many lords of my abilities as a general and leader. Most of them were long unhappy with Ichilia's control. With a combination of their forces, the strength of House Pluritac and the advice from our foreign friends, I have more than enough strength to stand up to our uncle. Even better, Divitius Ichilia lost two of his dependencies to the north – to you – while he failed to support me in my war against the south. In fact, I could frame my retreat in the south with the excuse that I had to turn north to save my uncle's hide. If I, after he has failed in every regard, manage to negotiate a decent peace for the central kingdom, House Ichilia's grasp on even its closest dependents will waver. Soon, House Ichilia will shrink back to the standing it deserves: an ordinary estate, nothing more.\"

\"Why talk about these matters here? This appears to be an issue for King Pachacutec, and irrelevant to the northern kingdom.\" While he still refused to negotiate, Amautu's tone was a lot less rough compared to before. By now, he would have calmed down, and his cold brother would have begun to calculate the odds.

\"Maybe, but we can come to an agreement that works for both parties. Again, I know you have some alliance with the south. But if you believe them to be no threat to your kingdom, you would be wrong. Unlike you, I have seen them fight. They are much more dangerous than you can imagine, brother.\"

\"However strong their warriors may be, there is no reason to fear the south, not for this king. They are far away, with an entire kingdom between them and us.\"

\"Borders are only for soldiers,\" Pacha tried again. \"The southerners have moved their commoners into both the northern and central kingdoms. They have begun to infiltrate every major city of the north with their people and goods. And they have begun to funnel coin from those cities back into the south.\"

\"They control only the commoners,\" Amautu scoffed in response. \"Why would the commoners be of value? If they gain too much of our coin, we can simply take it back from them. While your central kingdom has strengthened its grip on its warriors and lords, this king's northern kingdom attracts scholars and other learned men from all over Medala, through its sophistication alone. If the south aims for the weak, lowly groups at the bottom of society, let them. They will find no greatness there.\"

\"Yet their goods still drain our treasuries, no matter how cheap the people may be. And do not forget what the king of the south has said about your Chutwa scholars. Remember that his goal is the eradication of scholar culture within Medala.\"

Just as Pacha was about to give up, he was reminded of Corco's words during his return banquet. Back then, the southern king had challenged a scholar in a debate and riled up the lords against the invasion of Chutwa culture in their estates.

While Pacha agreed with Corco's sentiment in regards to the growing influence of the scholars, it was a strong card to play against Amautu, who was so utterly convinced of Chutwa's superiority. Just as expected, a myriad emotions played on his brother's face, before he stood up straight, an invisible weight lifted from his shoulders.

\"Maybe there is more to talk about after all.\"

Pacha really wanted to breathe a relieved sigh of his own, but he had to keep up the poker face. Now that the first step had been done, peace negotiations looked promising. At last, two years after Emperor Titu's succession, the kingdoms of the Medala Empire would no longer be at war.

However, the end of this war would only start a second one, an invisible contest in the shadows. The heroes of this new war would be the spies and informants in the dark alleys of the empire's cities, as well as the diplomats in the backrooms. For now, the fate of Medala was in their hands.