Stalemate | A Rise To Power

𝘒𝘢𝘦𝘭

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It took him fourteen days to gather his armies and get back to the towering walls of Northstone Castle. His soldiers had taken many prisoners of war and they all walked in single file, most with their heads down but some observing or glaring at everything. Kael let them go past to the dungeons while he looked up at his castle—Northstone Castle, the gem of the North.

Kael jumped off his horse and passed it to a stable boy before walking in. Jax followed behind him,  bruised and weary from the battle before. Jax had lost Ulysses in the crush of bodies and confusion of the East's arrival, and Kael saw that he was disappointed. He wasn't injured but was covered in blood and had a dent in his chest plate; Kael, on the other hand, had been ambushed by a Southerner on their way back and had a cut running down his face to show for it, something that would turn into a scar overtime.

Landon and I now share something, at least.

He walked across to Ethelind's chambers, ignoring the ache of his tired limbs and the complaining of his legs as he pushed himself up the polished wood staircase. Ethelind was seated behind her desk, her fingers tapping a piece of parchment as she considered what to write next. She perked up at the sound of his footsteps, her gaze taking in his battered armour and bleeding cheek, then a smile took her lips.

"You're back," she remarked.

"I am. But we lost about five thousand men and we estimate Southern casualties at about three times that number," Kael said.

"And Aldric is gone," Ethelind replied.

"And Aldric is gone," Kael echoed.

I still have Landon. And he has the fox, Kael thought. The fox that was meant to spark affection in him, teach him how to care for something again. Kael had no other children and only one living nephew, who was a prisoner of war, and one niece, who had disappeared. Landon was the only heir he had left.

"Adebiyi sent knights to help the war. Why?" Kael didn't doubt for a second that Ethelind had had a hand in it. It was one of the reasons why he had left her behind, knowing how easily she would take care of his business. She was a skilled warrior, but she was of more use to him as a negotiator and manipulator.

"He is now our ally after I offered him a quarter of the South on your behalf."

Kael was quiet as he took the information in. "I never agreed to that."

"I know. But I had to do something. Plus, I couldn't ask you since you were away."

"Fine." Kael saw logic in it. The East would be useful, and if it meant that they would have to lose some of the South when they acquired it, then it was a price he would pay. "How much did he offer?"

"He's sending a thousand of his elite praetorian guard, and has paid us forty thousand Milates." She smiled. "We could build a whole fleet with that, or pay for agricultural developments."

Kael nodded. "Did anything else happen while I was away?"

"There has been talk of Damek Westerling."

"Damek?" Kael's mind went blank. He was so tired that it was hard to keep focus.

"My uncle." She lifted her eyebrows. "He took my grandmother's surname, Westerling."

"Ah, yes, the old prince. Lucian's brother, right? Owner of Lakewood Moat."

Ethelind nodded. "He is mobilising an army. I suspect he plans to come after the throne that he believed was always his."