“Are they still expanding their territory, or were they stopped?”
“Slowed, but not stopped. The Narthani kept pushing on their neighbors, but there’s been no further major loss of land to the Narthani in the last twenty years, at least according to reports we got before the Narthani stopped all communication between the clans and the rest of Anyar. Not that there aren’t still battles, but the neighboring peoples had stopped them on Melosia.”
“And elsewhere?”
“The news there is not so good. Those spawn of the Evil One found their way blocked to the west and the east, so decided to look for easier prey. They had been a land power, then they built a huge fleet of ships and invaded the Kingdom of Rustal in the eastern part of the Ganolar continent. In less than two years, the Narthani subjugated the entire kingdom.”
Yozef remembered the map again. Rustal, a realm about the size of Canada.
“Rumors are that resistance still exists in the mountains and colder, more southern parts of Rustal, but most of the population and all of the best lands are now part of the Narthon Empire. The only reason the Narthani didn’t continue to conquer the entire continent is probably because they found the lands too poor to justify further conquest. In addition, immense mountain ranges block access to the western part of Ganolar, and there are easier victims elsewhere.
“About the same time this was happening, the Narthani trading ships came to Preddi. The city was the main Caedellium port for trade with the rest of Anyar. All believe there were enormous bribes paid to the Preddi Hetman and other leading Preddi families. Whatever the reasons, the Preddi were fools and allowed the Narthani to build a separate Narthani compound near the city. The Narthani provided the trade goods at unreasonably low prices and gave the Preddi complete control over supplying these goods to the rest of Caedellium. As you can imagine, the Preddi became enormously rich, and I’m afraid the Preddi Hetman and his family dreamed of using this wealth to expand the Preddi Province at the expense of their two neighbors, the Selfcell and Eywell clans.”
Yozef remembered enough Earth history to suspect where this was going: playing the clans against one another, if he was right.
The abbot shook his head. “Inter-clan fighting became more severe, and the Preddi overreached. A simultaneous attack by both Selfcell and Eywell put Preddi in danger of being dismembered by their two neighboring clans.”
England and India! This history sounds like how the English and the East Indian Company manipulated the Indians to fight one another, and the English took over the continent with minimal military forces of their own.
“Let me guess,” said Yozef. “The Narthani helped the Preddi.”
Sistian eyed Yozef. “Yes, though at a cost. At first, the Narthani insisted this was an internal Caedellium matter, and they were just there for trade. Finally, the Narthani were ‘convinced’ by the Preddi that trade would suffer or even be eliminated if the fighting continued. We hear that the Narthani agreed to assist by providing troops to help defend the Preddi—”
“And in return,” Yozef cut in, “they would be allowed to increase the size of the Narthani compound and permanently keep troops to assure the security of their compound?”
Sistian squinted at Yozef. “Why do I have the feeling you already know this story?”
“While I don’t know the particular details of this story, something similar has happened elsewhere on Anyar, according to the histories my people are taught. Not to us directly, but what we know of from histories of other peoples. Let me guess what happened next. The Preddi agreed. The Narthani presence increased, and the fighting continued.”
“Yes, and not only between Preddi and Selfcell or Eywell, but also between Selfcell and Eywell. All three clans slowly bled themselves for several more years, with the Narthani presence increased as the Preddi leaders saw their power slipping away. When the Preddi finally came to their senses, it was too late. As if ‘magically’. . . ,” the abbot shook his head, “a Narthani fleet appeared and landed thousands more soldiers. The Narthani crushed the Preddi clan. Though exact further details are clouded by lack of information or enough eyewitness testimony, within a year we believe there were fifty thousand Narthani in Preddi, including thousands of soldiers. The Selfcell and Eywell clans were so weakened by years of fighting, they evidently felt they had no choice when given ultimatums to ally themselves with the Narthani.
“It seems the Eywell clan was more enthusiastic about the alliance. Unfortunately, when Selfcell appealed to the other clans for aid in resisting the Narthani, no clan agreed to help. I’m friends since my youth with Culich Keelan, the Keelan hetman, and I know he’ll never forgive himself or the other clans for not recognizing the danger at the time and coming to Selfcell’s aid.”
“So, what’s the status at the present?”
“There followed a period of relative quiet. There was little reliable news out of Preddi or the other two clans. We believe many more Narthani were brought in—soldiers, tradesman, farmers, and slaves.” The sour expression from Sistian accompanied the last category.
“We now believe there are at least a hundred thousand Narthani in Preddi, so there’s no doubt they see their presence as permanent, and I am afraid, as does Hetman Keelan, that this is only the beginning.”
The abbot looked at Yozef curiously. “How would you predict this story will continue, based on what you say has happened elsewhere on Anyar?”
Yozef rubbed the back of his left hand against his cheek. “If I had to speculate, I’d say the Narthani tightened their hold on the other two clans at the same time, pretending any conflicts between those two and their other clan neighbors are not their concern. They will claim to be interested only in protecting the territory they already have. I expect they have also sent envoys to many of the other clans, trying to convince them of their limited intentions and possibly offering more bribes. One purpose would be to discourage the other clans from uniting against them.”
Sistian’s hands clenched. “I see our separate histories do follow similar paths. Maybe it’s the nature of people, which sometimes makes one wonder how much free will we have and how much is predestined.”
Yozef offered, “Or maybe free will is the province of the individual and not the group?”
“I suppose that option should give me some succor, yet somehow it doesn’t. Anyway, yes, you’re correct. There were initially Narthani delegations visiting various clans openly, but that stopped a year ago, although there are rumors some coastal clans still have occasional Narthani visitors. Even that seems to have stopped in the last few months, and about the same time, small raids began into Moreland Province, along with Eywell riders seen in remote parts of northern Keelan. I know Culich is afraid this is only the beginning.”
“And how does all this affect Keelan?”
“Keelan is committed to defending not only its own territory but also the two neighboring clans. Keelan, Gwillamer, and Mittack Provinces are part of a Tri-Clan Alliance. It was formed many generations ago to discourage aggression from neighboring clans. There was a time when Caedellium was plagued by territorial fighting and extended blood feuds across clan borders. Now we have an All-Clan Conclave yearly in Orosz City to settle such issues, but the alliance between Keelan and Gwillamer and Mittack is more obligatory. Keelan is required, by formal treaty and honor, to assist Gwillamer and Mittack should they be attacked. The original treaty didn’t envision a foreign invader like the Narthani and their Caedelli allies, but I know our three hetmen are interpreting it that way. The immediate possible threat is from Eywell Province, which borders on northern Keelan and is not far from Gwillamer.”