019 The Conclave (Patreon)

The Conclave

• 06.03.1624

Faywyn.

THE sun had just risen above the horizon, its warm glow heating up the verdant bailey as Levi entered the great hall of the Keep. The room was already occupied when he entered, his councillors all gathered around a large wooden table at the centre. As the earl took his seat at the head of the table, with the duke sitting opposite him, he could feel the tension in the air lighten by a small margin.

Following behind him, Sarah, the Keep’s housekeeper, dropped a small pile of scrolls on the table by his right before leaving to take a seat on a smaller, separate table just off to his left; a few sheets of paper, an inkhorn and a quill sat on the table before her, primed and ready to be used. Levi cleared his throat, his voice echoing in the quiet hall. 

"We have gathered here today to discuss a few matters of great importance,” he said plainly, “much of which I am sure we are all cognizant. But first, I would like us to welcome a new member into our ranks. Everyone, meet Madam Eliza, the owner of Faywyn’s very own tavern. I am sure quite a few of you here might already be acquainted with her, and I did mention she would be joining us the week prior, just before I departed for Towleigh, but I believe a proper introduction is still required. She is here as a representative of the Creed of the Twins to facilitate cooperation between Souville’s provincial authority—that is, us—and Lady Vaiu, the Matriarch of the Creed of the Twins.

“Thank you for having me, My Lord,” the middle-aged woman said, nodding slightly towards Levi. 

“The pleasure is mine,” the earl replied before gesturing towards the others gathered around the table. “Now, from right to left, we have Viscount Lancelot of House Dragoon, My Hand, Steward Robert of House Dywn, Faywyn’s Master of Coin, Knight Commander Ser Carter of House Twine, Master Gunner Ser Turiel of House Liss, Knight Lieutenant Ser Mannon of House Liss, and Knight Lieutenant Ser Justin of House Sider.”

The men all nodded stoically towards the woman as their names were mentioned. Levi smiled at the display, fully aware of, and in support of, the fact they scarcely had any trust for the spy he had knowingly invited into their midst. 

“And of course,” the earl said, theatrically gesturing towards the duke seated directly opposite him, “my honourable father, Lord Aden von Grifenburg, Duke of Faywyn and Governor-protector of Souville province.” The duke squinted suspiciously at the earl. Levi simply smiled in response. “As per his own wishes, he would be in attendance today solely as an observer; and as per our most recent praxis, I will preside over today’s meeting as well. I am sure you all know who I am, hence, I would forego further introductions in favour of getting to the meat of today’s topic. To begin, the massacre of Longboat, Mells and South rock village has to be addressed. Already, I have ordered a bounty for the heads of the perpetrators; one hundred silver Thales for every dead man. A gold Royal for each one caught alive. Steward Robert has been instructed to set aside three hundred gold Royals to facilitate this … Ser Justin—”

“Yes, My Lord?”

“You will be tasked with leading a delegate of men to announce this bounty to all the mountain tribes that would tolerate your presence. The additional men would mainly be for your protection, hence, I would advise you to pick individuals you believe would be valuable towards that end. Should any of the tribes present an overly hostile front, you are to retreat from their territory immediately. Forcing the matter could prove unwise.”

“As you will it, My Lord,” the knight replied, bowing.

“Ser Mannon,” the earl said turning to face the older man, “from today henceforth, you are Faywyn’s new Captain of the Watch. Given Baron Ralph, your predecessor, left the post in shambles after taking with him the vast majority of the former town watch, your first task as Captain is to supervise the training and reorganisation of the new watch. I hear spiteful murmuring amongst the townsfolk; the displaced villagers seem idle and might be constituting a nuisance. Levy as many of them as you can into your ranks and put them to work immediately. Speak to Steward Robert after this meeting on the matter of financing your new ward.”

“As you will it, My Lord,” Ser Mannon replied, smiling. 

Levi turned his attention back towards Ser Justin. “Upon your return, you are to also take up the position of Mallowston’s Captain of the Watch, after which you are to select a suitable replacement to take over all the tasks you are currently handling. Come the day of your preferment, you would seek out Lancelot to oversee the restructuring of the Mallowston’s watch; the viscount is, as I decided prior, from now henceforth saddled with the responsibility of governing the town in my absence.”

“Any objections?” the earl asked, his gaze panning across the table. “Very well. Now, unto the matter of Tristan’s army at our borders to the west. Madam Eliza, on behalf of the Creed, has been so kind as to share important information pertaining to this matter; for one, the whisperings that the Lion of Khule intends to move his army inland via the Strega has now been confirmed. Knights, peasant conscripts, and mercenaries are beginning to march east to Ricos from Thernas, Khule, Haris and Wirborough in droves. Stores of war materiel are being mustered to be stockpiled at the town’s harbour at this very moment. According to Steward Robert’s prediction, The majority of the army would likely arrive at Ricos and be ready to move in two to three weeks. Any suggestions on how we should deal with this matter?”

“My Lord, if I may,” Ser Turiel said.

“Feel free,” Levi replied, leaning back in his seat as his gaze caught that of Aden fixed upon him.

"Our first priority has to be to defend our people and our territory,” the master gunner said. “We'll need to have patrols on our borders to keep us informed of the enemy’s movements and make sure our garrisons are well stocked and defended. We'll also need to mobilize our own army and prepare for battle. Although the enemy outnumbers us nearly four-to-one, our men are reasonably well-trained and motivated to fight, unlike the bulk of the enemy forces which is mostly comprised of levied conscripts sent marching out of their homelands."

There were a few nods of agreement from the arrayed council members. The earl smiled in satisfaction.

"But we can't just wait for the Quiltonnians to attack us," the knight continued. "We need to take the fight to them, disrupt their supply lines, and weaken their army as much as possible before they reach our borders. To that end, I suggest we send out raiding sorties via the Strega to harass the enemy at their harbour and after they disembark. Madam Eliza could help us with gathering intelligence on their movement and plans in concert with our own scouts. We'll also need to levy a few more peasant fighters to bolster our numbers."

Levi nodded, before turning his gaze towards the viscount. “Do you have anything to add, Lancelot?”

The man shook his head. “Ser Turiel has made some valuable suggestions; in fact, prior to this meeting, myself, Ser Turiel, Ser Mannon, Ser Carter and Ser Justin had convened to discuss this matter and we came to a similar conclusion,” Lancelot said. “All I can advise is that should we have the resources to spare, we stockpile what weapons and supplies we can spare to ensure the men can fight for as long as they have to.”

Levi nodded again before turning to face the duke seated across from him. He smiled as the duke’s left brow rose in a questioning gesture. “You see,” the earl said as he suddenly rose to his feet and began sauntering around the table, “while all you have said hold some indisputable truths to them, you have still failed to address the core matter at hand; which is, how do we maintain absolute sovereignty of these lands? Preparing for a siege in the manner which you propose, even if it manages to protect us from Tristan’s army would mean we would be confining ourselves to hiding behind our walls for weeks, months, or even years!

“Given the state of affairs in the rest of Algrim, it is impossible to know when our fellow Algrian lords might deign it important enough to come to our aid should we be besieged. As we all know, aside from the royal family who are currently indisposed we have very few allies among the aristocracy. In fact, I can imagine no less than half a dozen powerful nobles whose faces would brighten with glee at the news of something horrible befalling us; one prominent example is Duke von Berat of Stotford who had to relinquish Souville province to my father here when the king sought to dilute the stifling grasp the old houses had on the realm. The only reason I believe the von Berat has not sent an army marching west yet to reclaim these lands now that the king is deposed is his ambitions for the throne itself. 

“We cannot, under any circumstance, allow Faywyn to fall under siege.”

The hall fell silent. “...What would you have us do, My Lord,” Lancelot sighed, exasperation flashing in his gaze. 

The earl turned to smile at his viscount. “Tristan plans to bring his army to our gates via the Strega does he not? Then why don’t we simply prevent him from doing so; forcing his entire army to march through the boggy, wooded borderlands with all their siege equipment and artillery could present us with an invaluable opportunity.”

“And how would you prevent the duke from using the Strega?” Aden asked, speaking for the first time since he entered the hall.

“Simple,” Levi quipped, “we take the ships moored at Ricos and destroy the ones we can’t bring back with us.”

Disclosable Information

Hierarchy in Udorian Knightage from lowest to highest

Esquires

• Scutifer(Shield-bearer)
• Armiger(Heraldry/Arm-bearer)

Knights

• Knight Errant/Bachelor
• Knight Chevalier
• Knight Lieutenant 

Seneschals

• Captain of the (City/Town)Guard/Watch
• Master Gunner
• Knight Commander
• Knight Banneret/Banneret

Hierarchy in Udorian Aristocracy from lowest to highest

• Landed Knight
• Baron
• Viscount
• Earl
• Count(Marquess)
• Duke
• Royalty

Ser Justin Sider

Madam Eliza