Chapter 1: From the Ashes, Part 4 - An Unexpected Visit
The morning breeze lightly caressed Tantalos’s face as he looked down upon the gentle plains along the north bank of the Anas River. He could see plainly that the representatives from the Qart-Hadast had already arrived; they set up modest white tents, arranged in a semi-circle facing out towards Tantalos. Before the tent Tantalos could see the glimmering red of a small fire. Around the fire he could see a group of people; they were talking to one another. Tantalos looked upon all this with a shudder. Somewhere down there was his man, the liaison to the now Kingdom of Lusitania. The liaison was appointed by the Qart-Hadast to secure the lucrative trade deals and alliances which they once held with the Turduli, but were nullified when the King of the Turduli ceded his power to the Lusitani.
Tantalos took one deep breath, and led his horse down the hill and towards the riverbank below. He was flanked on his left by Luxinios, the one-time king of the Turduli. Luxinios was accompanying Tantalos firstly because he could actually speak the confusing language of the foreigners, and Tantalos actually trusted the man’s translations. Secondly, Tantalos brought Luxinios along because being the king of the Turduli; Luxinios had had extensive experience with the Qart-Hadast, and knew how to deal with outsiders, and was used to their strange customs.
On his right was Baitesir, his most trusted advisor. At 35 years of age, he looked no different than when he was twenty, thin and handsome, with long, dark hair, and dark eyes. However his youthful looks were matched with an exceedingly capable mind, and Tantalos often looked to his close friend for advice, and that level headed insight was what Tantalos was hoping for today.
The party reached the base of the hill, and finally attracted the attention of the Qart-Hadast group. From the mass of guards, diplomats, translators, and their respective retinues came but three men. The first was a man in his mid thirties. Not fat, but corpulent to say the least, with balding black hair and a clean shaven face. Adorned on his slightly stubby fingers was an assortment of rings, mostly of silver, but some of gold too. He wore a linen tunic ending at the knees, and leather sandals. To his right and left were taller, meaner looking men, with iron swords hanging conspicuously at their hips.
Tantalos dismounted from his horse, and Luxinios and Baitesir did likewise. The two parties came together in between the in between both camps. The corpulent man in the center of the Qart-Hadast trio stepped forward and bowed before Tantalos, his two guards quickly followed suit.
Tantalos stood and stared blankly at the three men, before Luxinios kindly crept up behind the King and whispered, “It is customary for men in these parts to bow to one another when they greet.” Tantalos nodded and started to bow, followed quickly by Luxinios and Baitesir.
Then the man took another step forward and began speaking. Tantalos once again stared blankly as the foreign words breezed effortlessly past his ears. Finally the man stopped speaking. Tantalos turned towards Luxinios, who began to translate what the man said: “He said, ‘greetings oh King, my name is Shafat. It is a pleasure to be able to talk with you this day so that the trade agreements we once held with the Turduli may be resumed. I’m sure you are as eager as I to re-establish those agreements, for they were quite profitable to both the Turduli and us. But that is for later. For now, I can see that you and your people are wearied from the day’s journey. Please, set up camp, and when that is done, come join us by the fire where we can take a mid-day meal together. Then later in the day we shall begin the negotiations.’” Luxinios fell quiet. Tantalos looked to towards Shafat, who looked to be serenely awaiting a response from the King. Tantalos turned towards Luxinios, “Tell him that we are delighted by your proposal, and will indeed eat with you as soon as we can get our camp set up.” Luxinios nodded, and soon began speaking to Shafat in his own tongue. Meanwhile, Tantalos turned to his men, and ordered them to begin unpacking and setting up camp.
The coolness of the morning had burned off entirely in the mid-day sun by the time the work was finished. Sweat shimmered in the sun as the Lusitani men hurried to raise the tents, and secure everything down. The smell of cooking meat wafting through the air only incited the men to work harder, and the work was soon finished in good order. Some of the men outright sprinted over to the fire to get their share of the food. Soon the serene silence of the scene was replaced by the boisterous uproar of contented men as the food was served and the wine began to flow freely.
Soon the men stopped eating, and began socializing with one another. It was at this moment that Luxinios took Tantalos aside and began to speak: “Alright, we’re doing fine so far. Soon, we shall meet and confer with these people, and Shafat will produce several items which you will need to sign. Whatever he is proposing now is beneficial for the two of us, but know this: do not grow accustomed to these people, for they care naught for you. Their only concern is profit, and if your kingdom becomes unprofitable to them, they will leave you with nothing. At the moment, you are in no position to defy any of their proposals, however, be prepared for anything.”
Tantalos thanked Luxinios for his advice. In short order the men began to finish their meals, and Tantalos, aided by officers on both sides, soon managed to corral the retinues from both sides into the center of camp, where they were facing each other, with a wide gap separating them.
Then Shafat came forward into the empty space, flanked by the two guards from before. Tantalos met Shafat and also came out to meet Shafat, flanked by Luxinios and Baitesir. Shafat began speaking to the assembly, and as he spoke, Luxinios translated what he was saying for the benefit of the Lusitani: “Friends! Welcome all! Come, gather ‘round and listen to what I have to say, for on these plains this day I feel the beginnings of great things will be set in place. We are here today to renegotiate a trade deal which we the Qart-Hadast once maintained with the Turduli. I know many of you once benefited greatly from that trade, and many more are eager to re-establish it. Well, I can assure you that we would like just as much as you to continue to profit from that trade. So then, let us get down to business, shall we?”
Shafat turned to a man on his left, and spoke to him in a low voice. The man nodded and then walked away towards the Qart-Hadast tents. Several moments later he returned with several pieces of parchment in his hands each filled completely with Carthaginian writing. The man handed a couple of the pieces to Shafat, who turned once again towards the Lusitani and began to speak, Luxinios translating again.
“These articles I hold here in my hand confirm and mete out our trade agreements. In this we agree to allow any trade ships, marked to be coming from a Lusitani port to be forthwith allowed into any given Qart-Hadast port. In exchange, it also states that any registered Qart-Hadast trade ships are to be allowed free access to Lusitani ports, and to have the right to sell their wares.” Shafat fell silent, and was met with applause from both sides of the camp. Shafat’s retainer then handed him a stylus. Shafat took the tool and then turned to speak once again. “I will sign this agreement on behalf of the people of Qart-Hadast. By making my mark on this formal agreement, I agree to the terms written herein, and therefore opening free trade between our peoples.” Then Shafat turned to the agreement, now placed on a table, and signed the parchment. Shafat rose and handed the stylus to Tantalos who also made his mark on the parchment, exactly as Luxinios had shown him before. The signing of the agreement was met with applause by both camps.
Tantalos was ready to dismiss his men and return to his camp, but suddenly Shafat once again turned to his retainer, and took in hand the rest of the parchment. He turned back and began to speak. “In addition to the agreement in free trade between our two peoples, the rulers of our great Empire see the potential in your kingdom, and have made it apparent to seek a stronger bond between you, the Kingdom of the Lusitani, and we, the Qart-Hadast. In my hand I hold an agreement of alliance between the two nations. In this agreement, both nations are to allow free passage of the other’s military forces on their land. Also in this agreement is a promise to come to the aid of the other nation in the event of war with any nation. As before, Shafat took the stylus, and with the setting sun before him, he made his mark on the agreement. Then Tantalos did likewise. Then Shafat turned to the assembly and said, “Thank you, and may this agreement be the first step in an everlasting friendship between our two peoples.”
Tantalos rose from the table as the sun began to fall behind the hills to the north. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Tantalos noticed one of his retainers look towards those hills to the north. Then another did likewise, followed by another. Soon some began to tap others on their shoulders, and began pointing towards those hills to the north. It began to distract his men to such an extent, that Tantalos finally glanced up to see what they were looking at.
In the field of vibrant oranges, purples, and blues of the setting sun, Tantalos could see the silhouettes of a great body of people. Some he could see were on horses and others on foot. Tantalos stared at them for another couple minutes before he said, quite calmly, “Men, go to your tents, gather your weapons and armor, and prepare for a battle.” It took the men a few moments to gather what their King had said, but in soon after they all, nearly in unison got up from their seats and began scrambling to their tents. Tantalos watched the mass begin to make its way down the hills and towards the camp, and he hoped his men could be assembled in time. In short order, men began moving out from their tents, and began to assemble in a semblance of a formation.
Soon the entire body was out on the exterior of the camp, arranged in a long, stable line, swords drawn, and spears pointed towards the mass, which was now only a hundred meters from the camp. Tantalos’s men began chanting to steady their nerves, as the mass of men began to inch their way towards the men. Now out of the sun, Tantalos could distinctly see the banner of the enemy forces: “The Green Boar, so it is the Paesuri who are attacking us,” Tantalos thought to himself, “But why would they come all the way out here to attack us?”
Now the two forces were standing face to face, and from the Paesuran force emerged one man. He walked towards the Lusitani, and held his hand up, to signal that they came in peace. Tantalos noticed this, and ordered his men to stand down. A sigh of relief exuded from all three forces as the Paesuri came forward to meet the Qart-Hadast and Lusitani. The man who stepped forward from the crowd was Indortes, the King of the Paesuri.
Tantalos had had several meetings in the past with this man. He was proud and arrogant; however this was met by the strength and force of will to match. Meetings between the two kings had never went well, for Indortes only met with Tantalos when he had a demand to make, and this put Tantalos ill at ease.
Tantalos approached the Paesuran king as he was busily ordering his men to set up their camp. He noticed Tantalos’s approach, and greeted the King boisterously. “Tantalos my friend!” he exclaimed, “What a coincidence meeting you here!”
“What do you want,” Tantalos replied, flatly.
“What, can’t two great friends such as us meet up in neutral territory without having some secret agenda?” He replied, incredulously. “Besides, a little bird told me that you were meeting with a dignitary from Qarthadastim. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t treated unfairly by those greedy outsiders!”
Tantalos glared at the King, and then replied calmly, “Your spies serve you well, oh King. It is true that I traveled here to meet with leaders from Qart-Hadast, in fact I just did, and I would ask that you keep your business to yourself and mine to me, thank you.” Indortes glared at the Lusitani king, but said nothing. Tantalos grinned and strode away from the clearly insulted Paisuran.
Tantalos began striding over to the fire that everyone seemed to be hanging around now. The Qart-Hadast men took a great stag freshly killed and placed it upon the fire. Soon the area began to fill with the smells of roasting meat, and Tantalos suddenly noticed just how hungry he was. Finally the meat was cooked completely and the men, Paesurans, Qart-Hadast, and Lusitani alike started shoving and jockeying for position, each hoping to get the best cut of meat possible. Once each man got his fair share they all retreated into little groups which were scattered across the camp. Most group were composed entirely of men familiar to one another, however there were some too who were more sociable than the rest and soon became acquainted with the groups from the other kingdoms.
Tantalos was seated before his tent, alongside Shafat, Luxinios, and Baitesir. Most of the conversing was between Luxinios and Shafat, who, while they never before had met, were indeed quite familiar with one another, operating in the same circle, and so were now catching up on old times, jabbering endlessly in Shafat’s native tongue.
Tantalos looked up to see Indortes striding towards their circle. Tantalos sighed deeply and rose to get up. “Ah, Tantalos!” The Paesuran king yelled, “Just the man I was looking for! Allow me to speak with you for a moment…privately.” Tantalos relented, and then led him into his tent. Once Tantalos sealed the flap behind him, Indortes began to speak.
“Well, I’ll speak plainly then. I’m sure you’ve guessed that it’s not by mere chance that I came here, I have a reason. My spies did inform me some time back that you were planning to meet with the Qart-Hadast to make some sort of trade deal. Now we all know that Qart-Hadast trade on the Turduli coast is one of the most lucrative deals in the area. Now here’s what I want. I want a cut of that trade profit.”
“That is out of the question,” Tantalos said bluntly.
“No, no, now hear me out King. I don’t want too much. And you’ll still maintain wealthy profits, but I want some of it, so what say you?”
“No, you will have none of it.”
“Now you listen here! You are in no place to negotiate. We the Paesurans are the most powerful Kingdom around. I’d love to maintain our good relations, and carry things out in a peaceable manner. But if you don’t grant me your profits, I’m going come in, and I’m going to take it from you, and then you’ll have nothing left, and your little kingdom is just going to be a memory.”
“My answer still remains the same: no, I will not, nor will I ever agree to such an outrageous demand.”
Indortes’s eyes narrowed as he glared at the Lusitani King. Tantalos could see the man’s hands shaking, and the whiskers on his face bristled in rage. “You will regret this,” he said, struggling to maintain his composure, “this isn’t over!” With that, he sharply turned around towards the opening in the tent, his wool cape flowing behind him as he strode out angrily. Tantalos followed him out, and watched as the man started ordering his men to pack up and prepare to leave. The Paesuran men were very sad to leave, but soon the camp was packed up, and whole group left, back over the mountains.
Everyone was very confused, but Tantalos preferred not to comment on what had just transpired. He was truly worried about what the future held, for the Paesuran King said he would come and take it, Tantalos knew that the Lusitani were the weaker of the tribes, and he hoped that they would be able to hold on at least until the deranged King came to his senses.
***
Several weeks past, and still nothing happened. Tantalos was back home in Oxtraca, finally reunited with his wife, son of fifteen, and now his newborn son Ditalkos, for his wife had finally conceived once again. In fact, Tantalos had made it back from his summit just in time to be with his wife for the birth. He was amazed at how much his son had grown in the past five years. Just yesterday he was talking to a powerful noble to discuss a wife for his son. She was ten years old now, a five year gap between the two. It would be another couple years before the two were officially wed, but that time would come, soon enough.
Tantalos was seated in his throne in his palace, his wife at his left, and his son to his right. He looked to his wife and smiled, when suddenly the door before him opened and a guard approached the throne. Behind him was a young man. “My lord,” the guard said, “this young man has something to speak, will you hear him?”
Tantalos brushed the guard aside and spoke directly to the man. “Speak, man. What is it you have to say, do not be afraid.”My name is Cado. I am a shepherd from the northern parts of the kingdom. Trust me when I say, oh King, that what I say is completely true, I have seen it with my own eyes.” Tantalos nodded to show he understood, and Cado continued, “It was a day like any other day. I was sitting on the hill by my house as always, watching my herd, when suddenly; to the river to the north I could see a great party moving rapidly towards out village. As they came closer to the bridge by our river, some of the leaders from the village rode out to meet them. I watched as the leaders were cut down with no remorse. Then the party fell upon the village and indiscriminately killed everyone in the village. Soon they began burning the entire village to the ground. It was all I could do to get out alive; I may be the only one who survived the attack.”
Latronos was obviously very interested in the tale, and interjected once Cado feel silent. “Perhaps it was just another Celtiberian raid. They have grown more frequent in these last few years, especially on small villages such as those. Tantalos nodded, but Cado shook his head.
“No, it was no Celtiberian raid, for just as I was leaving, I managed to catch a glimpse at the banners. The banners held a green boar on them.”
“The Paesurans!” Latronos exclaimed!
“Yes,” Tantalos replied, “A horrible tragedy, but not unexpected. How long ago did this occur?”
“Just a few days.”
“It was good of you to come here, Cado, you will be well rewarded. Guards, see to it that this man is well rewarded. Latronos, you’d better come with me, we have a lot to do, and not much time in which to do it!”
The Kings of Land's End: A Lusitani AAR
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Iberes have always been an interesting faction to me. Barbaroi still, but interesting nonetheless.
*Lurking*
Originally Posted by Scud
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