Three Must Decide.

Part 20 Riding with possible friends

Chapter note. the first 3 chapters have introduced you to the Three. Each faction is controlled, to a degree, by a real life person so decisions have to be made.

Hidden consequences.

Negotiating hard at the wrong time and with the wrong people can be devastating.

Decisions.

The Grand Duchess had to decide if she would send troops with Ehmet.

Ehmet had to decide if he would March straight on or pause to re group

Read on to see what they have decided.

Marquess Diegou had made arrangements so that his contingent of the True Order and his few retainers marched out almost at the rear of the Crown Princes colounm. He had though to wait longer but had decided against it as it could have been seen a suspicious and besides it seemed unlikely that Ehmet would allow those who had only recently been enemies to travel unmarked at his rear. So they marched close to the camp followers but some way in front of the last of Awoken Sun. Those knights were beyond impressive. Diegou  spent months with the True Order men at arms and had been impressed with their armour and weapons, but these knights, armour, and matrial weapons supparesed even the True Orders. Their rituousness was more than a little irritating, but he allowed it as those in the Awoken Sun were renound for their service to the gods and the pilgirms that worshipped them.

Camp had been made the evening before, and Ehmet had advised they would wait where they were for two nights. To allow the column to rest and supplies to be replenished. Warden Remon Gold seemed to be master of logistics partly born from his garrison commands during the civil war. Remon, no longer a soilder was clearly a close advisor of the High Prince and well respected. To Ehmet, that organisation was essential for the continued movement of the army because it was vast. Much larger than Diegou had expected. He had known the approximate numbers, but seeing the whole force together brought home the shear size of it.

Now Diegou was walking back past the last camps of the True Order  and in to the the realm of the camp followers and this gathering of people from all sorts of life and occupation appeared to be as large as the body they followed. The camp followers were not allowed in to the armys parimiter and it was made abundantly clear that the army would not protect them if they became a target yet the followers had grown in number as Ehmet had marched through Drathan, crossed in to Vasted, reached Greenvale and now marched to Dannamore Hold. Diegou was heading in to the followers camp like he had every few days or when ever the huge coloum rested for more than just a night because there he had discovered make shift establishements that he could relaxe in, entertainment and conversation with people he more closely related to than most of the soldiers he had now spent many months with.

He soon saw the site of the familiar large red big top tent that was by far the most popular place to find food drink and entertainment. It was well past dusk, but the summer night was warm, and the sky was clear and full of stars. Diegou entered the tent with his most trusted retainers and was almost immediately greated by the land lady who descreatly asked for and reaceved payment for having held a table for the Marquess in one of the most coverted positions. He made his way to the table with the landlady and his retainers making a path, and he soon sat comfortably with drinks and food arriving. This evening was different from the others as he was not only meeting two of his closest friends. Valter and Annet Reeve had grown up with Diegou their parents had served his father and now they had become, through their friend Diegou leading members of his house and while he had been away had kept his home in order. Now Diegou, having only had a couple of tiring nights under his own roof had sent for them so that, for the first time in a long time could sit and talk freely before he would send them home to continue their duties for him.