“You’re getting old, Vangey,” the man at the doorway said gravely.
“Old and forgetful,” Vangerdahast replied, raising the bottle and not bothering with a glass. “Perhaps I should start considering my own replacement, eh?”
Dauneth was staring at the man by the door. When he could finally speak, he asked, “But-but-if you’re here, then what’s going on at the court? Who’s trying to rule Cormyr?”
“A lot of folk, lad,” the Royal Magician said with a smile. “A lot of folk. The reasons lie in the past, but to see the unfolding of their fruit, we must adjourn to the palace. Bring your sword. By now they’ll all be waiting for us there.”
Chapter 32: Gondegal
The Year of the Dragon (1352 DR)
The watch fires burned in a rough crescent along the hilltops south of Arabel. Each fire marked a thousand men, Purple Dragons, local militiamen, adventuring bands, and mercenaries. All were poised and ready for the assault on the rebellious city, come the dawn.
Mabel itself lay like a sparkling gem against a dark and dusty field of paddocks, tilled fields, and caravan grounds. Within its walls, the city blazed with light-the light of its own watch fires, of torches and lanterns, and of candles and magical radiances. Despite their shine, the surrounding watch fires would be visible in the city like a row of low, reddish stars. Neither the people in the city nor in the camps were getting much sleep this evening.
In the largest camp, the king’s pavilion rose like a hulking purple mountain against the stars. Beneath its highest peak, the war leaders were gathered. Paunchy Baron Thomdor and balding Duke Bhereu anchored one end of the table, their faces hard twins of concern. Aside from a narrow aisle left bare along either side of the table, the room was crowded with chairs occupied by mercenary captains, militia leaders, and war wizards. Their attention was on the long, linen-covered table littered with papers, messages, reports, and diagrams. In the center of its clutter, wrought by magic but appearing as if sculpted of alabaster, was a three-dimensional model of Arabel itself.
At the table’s head, in a low, carved throne of duskwood, sat King Azoun IV himself, seventy-first of the Obarskyr line, face furrowed, hand reflectively stroking his beard. The Royal Magician, Vangerdahast, stood to one side of his liege. He was the only one presently on his feet, and when he was addressing the gathered commanders, he would stalk the length of the table. For the moment, he stood bent over Azoun’s right shoulder, looking every bit like the king’s pet raven, perching.
“We know he’s in there?” said the king, eyeing the sparkling white model of the caravan city.
“He, his men, and those who have flocked to his banner in the past three months,” Thomdor replied grimly. His forces had spent those three months chasing the self-styled bandit king over most of northern Cormyr. Eight days ago their prey had alighted in Mabel, crowned himself Gondegal I with a crown snatched from a Sembian tomb, and dared any other man to take that crown from him.
No one knew Gondegal’s origin, though he claimed the blood of kings ran in his veins. One thing was certain, as even Thomdor had to admit: He was a determined and charismatic leader of men. Time and again the baron had drawn up for an attack, only to have the forces he faced melt away into the fog and the forest. And with every near defeat, Gondegal’s legend grew, and with those exciting tales had grown his supporters. On the first of the year, he was unknown. Now, three weeks after Midsummer Eve, he had encouraged Arabel to revolt once more and made it the seat of his own nascent empire.
In his declaration, Gondegal had laid out his new, nameless kingdom as running from the Wyvernwater northeast to Tilver’s Gap, and from the desert of Anauroch southeast deep into Sembian territory. In reality, he ruled only as far as his sword would reach from the saddle of his ever-moving war-horse, but that did not lessen the effrontery of his demands. The Purple Dragon would not allow half its territory to suddenly cleave to a new ruler… even one as charismatic as Gondegal.
That declaration had been seven days ago, and for seven days, Mabel had held its breath as the “new king” readied his defenses. For seven days, the forces of loyal Cormyr, bolstered by allies who stood to lose land to Gondegal’s kingdom, tightened the net around Mabel.
“Whoever he is, he’s served in uniform somewhere,” said Duke Bhereu, pointing to the alabaster model of the city. “He’s worked wonders in a handful of days. All three gates have been fortified, and he’s built outrider towers to cut off blind spots along the walls. Guard patrols have been doubled, water taken in from rivers in every jug and cask for miles around, and ballistae have been spotted in the major towers! This is no uprising of frustrated merchants, this foe knows his business.”
“And all he need do is hang on to the city long enough to cement his hold on it, and he has us,” added the baron grimly. “He literally only has to repel the initial assault. If we settle into a long siege, we’ll be hurting Mabel itself.”
“And what of the people of the city?” asked the king.
“Mabel has revolted so many times before that they have it down to an art form,” said the duke bitterly. “The merchant livestock and caravans have been pulled north, and the paddocks are empty. Gondegal will likely have mages in the outbuildings, or missile-armed troops. Most of the townspeople have emptied their basements and are willing to wait out the duration there. The temples have been stockpiling food and water for a long time, it seems, and triple guards stand over all the wells.”
One of the mercenary captains, a rough barbarian from the lands north of Phlan, broke in with a snarl.
“Bah! Then let us burn this ready fortress to the ground and slaughter all within its walls. Let their pyre be a warning to others who might think to thwart your king’s will!”
A silence descended on the table as if a lid had banged closed. Vangerdahast broke away from the throne and drifted down along the table until he stood next to the barbarian captain. The mercenary looked to other faces for support but found none. All he saw was shock and indignation.
Vangerdahast put a heavy hand on the barbarian’s shoulder. “The reason,” he said, pressing down with a grip like the tightening gauntlet of an armored giant, “is that the folk in that city are Cormyreans, regardless of who leads them. They will be treated as loyal citizens of the realm until such time as they choose to actually raise arms against the Purple Dragon.”
“But if they are in rebellion, haven’t they…?” asked the mercenary wincing, his words cut short by the increasing pressure on his shoulder.
“They are our people,” said the wizard through clenched teeth. “Half the army would desert if they had to fight their own brothers and cousins. We will treat them accordingly.”
He released the mercenary captain, who exhaled and rubbed his shoulder. The mage had more power in his hands than mere wizardry.
“As has been said, Mabel rebels with astounding regularity,” said the king softly. “Yet it has always returned to the shelter of the Purple Dragon’s wings. One thing the long history of this land has taught my family is that creating grudges only perpetuates our difficulties.”
He met the eyes of the mercenary captain and added, “Let me remind everyone present that this attack is no excuse for pillaging and looting. No one is to set any fires except by order. If the person fleeing from your sword is a civilian, he is a target you will not strike at, molest, or maim ‘accidentally.’ I’ll consider that clearly understood by all of you, see that your men also clearly understand the punishment they’ll face if they forget such things.”