The Wintershall Tales

The dinner that night took place in a reception hall below the royal chambers.  Fortitude was dressed in the royal colours of Archesia and he sat beside the King at one end of a long banqueting table. 

Adela sat in the first place around the table to Fortitude’s right.  She was wearing a sumptuous blue and scarlet gown of Han silk.  To Fortitude she seemed impossibly beautiful. 

Seated around the rest of the table were the rest of Fortitude’s companions.  With them were Carolus, Martyn Darkling and ten of the King’s personal retinue.

The King was in a garrulous good humour.  Much of the conversation focussed on how the new empire would work and how it would grow in future with the support of Archesia and Gavin.

Fortitude listened to the King’s ideas and plans.  Seated in this place, with Adela to his right and with a glass of particularly fine wine under his belt, the plans seemed achievable and even glorious.  He found himself nodding strongly and lifting his glass more than once to the King’s good health and glorious future.

Conversation was bright and good-natured and everyone was relaxed and joyous at what felt like a fine ending to what had been a most remarkable series of adventures.  It was almost with regret that silence fell when the King rose from his seat and lifted his glass for silence.  When he spoke, his tone was light but full of vigour. 

“My friends,” he said.  “Your deeds speak more than my words ever will.  I will therefore not belittle them by attempting to recount them.  I’m sure that historians more eloquent than I will make a much better fist of it.  I will, however, give you my heartfelt thanks.  The Kingdom has become an empire and, as a result of you and your efforts, we have a good chance at lasting peace with the Han for many long decades to come.”

There was loud and slightly drunken cheering at this.  The King waited for silence then resumed.  “It is with this in mind that I want to confirm or announce a number of matters.”  This got everyone’s attention and they became quieter and more attentive.  “I know that Prince Fortitude will have his own offices and rewards for all of you but there are some of you that I wish to specially single out,” the King said.  He gestured first at Carolus.  “I hear that you will be Chancellor of Archesia, and that your new church will have its high temple here.”  Carolus gave a smile that indicated no small measure of satisfaction as he inclined his head to the King.

The King turned his attention to Martyn Darkling.  “And you sir,” he said.  “I know from my discussions with Fortitude and Carolus that you have given much wise advice and support to this campaign.  I understand that you will be First Councillor of Gavin and that your people will be joining you there to create a new church to the Dark Lady.”

Martyn turned apologetically to Fortitude.  “Yes, it is true,” he admitted.  “I had meant to tell you personally, highness, but you have been away the last two days attending to the goblins.”

Fortitude rose and warmly shook Martyn’s hand.  “I’m so pleased.”

The King waited for Fortitude to resume his seat then continued.  “As for you Fortitude, you will be King here in Archesia and I and my house will protect you and your kin for as long as the Empire of Bayonnar prevails.” 

Fortitude nodded sombrely.  He was mindful of what the King had done for him and of his promises.  He intended to be true to his word.

The King then looked around at the rest of Fortitude’s companions.  “As for the rest of you,” he said.  “I will leave your new lord to provide for you.  There are just three awards that I must make to settle previous debts.”  He turned to Dunstan.  “My Lord Dunstan,” he said.  “Your father is Margrave – a title of some ambiguity and unclear pedigree.  I declare that when you succeed to the seat of Skenfrith you and your line will be Earls from that time and forever more.”

This good fortune delighted Dunstan and he bowed almost to the floor.  “You honour me, sire,” he said warmly.  “I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

The King then turned to Celia.  “And you, Lady Celia.” 

Celia inclined her head gracefully. 

“You and I have talked this afternoon about how the temple of Kyril might aid us in maintaining and growing our empire.”  This caused a stir as everyone stared at Celia.  The King ignored them and continued.  “In return for past and future services, and subject to the approval of the Baron of Winterslow, I confer upon you the lands that were held by the Dierdrakin and the Lunars in the north of Winterslow including that mountain wherein your God Kyril does reside – now and in perpetuity.  This will take effect once the Lunars and Dierdrakin have shifted south to Archesia and Gavin.”  He paused and a smile flickered over his face.  “Lady Celia,” he said.  “I look forward to our working together.”

Everyone stared at Celia and wondered exactly what deal it was that she had made.

The King’s gaze fell on Nan.  “And you lady Nanya,” he said solemnly.  “You have delivered the Goblins to me at great personal cost.”  He paused and stared at her thoughtfully for a long moment.  “Tell me Nanya,” he said finally.  “Will you continue to direct the goblins for me?”

Nan froze and tried to think of some way out of answering the question.  “Umm,” she said.

The King pursed his lips nonchalantly.  “Well Nanya?” he said.  “Will you continue to ensure the goblins exist as a force that can serve me?”

Nan blanched.  “Well you see…” she began then faltered.  She stared at the King.  “Your majesty,” she said finally and a little weakly.  “I suppose I don’t mind the goblins generally, but I really really want their leader Ginty dead.”

The room suddenly fell completely silent as everyone stared at the King and waited for his response.  “Well,” he said finally.  “I suppose the question is would the goblins still support our cause if Ginty was dead?”  He looked around the table for answers.

Martyn Darkling cleared his throat at that and spoke.  “I don’t see why not, your majesty,” he said.  “They are simple creatures driven by their stomachs and vindictive nasty little natures.  The Dierdrakin have kept nearly a thousand of them in our army for centuries with nothing more than meat and drink.”

The King considered this then turned back to Nan.  “Very well,” he said.  “So long as you can control and keep the goblins for us, you can do as you wish with their prince.”

Nan’s eyes shone and she stood and bowed deeply.  “Thank you, your majesty,” she said.  “Then yes, I’ll ensure the goblins keep serving you.”

The King smiled approvingly.  “Good.  Then, in return for your past and future services I give you two things.  Henceforth you shall have the rank of Baroness and you shall hold the office of Surveyor General in the Bureau of Clerks.” 

Nan blinked and her brow furrowed.  That was a very strange office but the King lifted a hand to forestall any comment from her.  “I think that your new responsibilities in surveying and measuring different parts of my lands and estates will tie in nicely with the work that High Priestess Celia has agreed to do for me in the coming years.”  Nan’s frown lifted as she guessed just what service Celia had offered the King.

The King then grinned at the others.  “As for the rest of you.  I leave your rewards to Fortitude.  Let us return to our celebration and drink to our continued good fortune.”

Glasses were raised and emptied and conversation slowly resumed.

The King rose some time later and slipped out to talk with one of his officers.  Once he was out of the room, everyone began pestering Celia with questions about the deal she had made with the King.  “Wait and see,” was the only answer she would give.

Marcus took advantage of the King’s absence and lifted a hand for silence.  “Hey I don’t know about the rest of you,” he said gesturing down the table at Fortitude.  “But I’m not waiting for our divine overlord here to give me rewards.”  Everyone stared at him curiously and he grinned impishly back.  “Dunstan and I have done an initial estimate of what the Goblins came back with from Han.”

The room was now completely silent and Marcus paused for effect.  “The only question is, who does it all belong to?  I mean, we’ve worked and fought together now for almost a year and some of us haven’t been paid in months.”

Fortitude laughed.  “I say we split it evenly between all of us.”  He darted an inquiring gaze at Nan.  “What do you say?”

Nan shrugged.  “Fair enough,” she said.  “Just tell me how much I’m worth.”

Marcus’ grin became jubilant.  “Near as Dunstan and I can guess, we’re each better off to the tune of about three thousand golden crowns.”

There were gasps of amazement all around the table.  Three thousand gold crowns was a fortune greater than anyone had ever heard of, or imagined.  It would buy estates greater than the wealthiest duke.  Three thousand gold crowns would probably buy a good-sized town.  Each and everyone one of them was rich.

Marcus nodded and stared at Nan with a certain relish.  “Those little goblins may be a pain but they pay their way.”

Nan forced her mouth closed.  Maybe it was the wine, but she just could not muster her usual dislike for the little creatures.

***

The next day was hectic.  The goblins were due that night and the city was in an uproar as arrangements were made for their arrival.  The simultaneous preparations for the forthcoming coronation and wedding increased the chaos. 

Towards nightfall, Fortitude sought out Gordon, Brian and Doug.  He found them running around playing with scissors in Aidan’s room.  All three were bleeding freely but were giggling and whooping happily nonetheless. 

He made them put the scissors down and led them to the top of the city wall.  The rest of Fortitude’s companions were already there, waiting for him.  All two thousand of the Lunar guards were arrayed along the wall.  Everyone wore their armour and the wall bristled with crossbows and pikes.

Fortitude took advantage of the last remaining rays of sun to look out over the landscape below.  There was still no sign of the goblin horde but he could see a few isolated plumes of smoke rising to the west.  It appeared that Aidan had managed to successfully curtail the worst of the goblin excesses.

The King’s army camp was to the north.  The palisade was complete now and archers were visible standing shoulder to shoulder behind it.  It looked like the King was adequately prepared for whatever the goblins might do.

Once Fortitude was sure everything was ready, he sat down to wait.  The others sat around him and speculated idly about the future.  Quite a bit of time was spent discussing improbable schemes for spending their newfound fortunes. 

Nan sat a little off to one side.  Though she had revised her more violent opinions about the goblin race generally, she was still determined that Ginty would not survive this night. 

As the sun set, she carefully, almost obsessively, oiled and checked her short bow.  She then slowly and repeatedly checked her arrows to ensure they were straight and sharp.

***

The goblins arrived in a huge mass around the eleventh hour that night.  They spilled up and stopped just short of the city wall in a vast sea of little furry bodies.  Lanterns spaced around the city walls showed them all quite clearly.

Aidan was standing in the middle of them brandishing a large flagon of something.  He was clearly drunk and looked like he had been having a great time. 

Ginty was being carried on a litter next to Aidan.  Once the goblin horde halted, he lifted a hand and silence fell over the fields below the city.  He cleared his little throat noisily. 

“Where is the Big Goblin Princess?” he shouted imperiously up at the city wall.  “I want her trussed and brought to me now.”

Fortitude’s goal was to avoid any public action that might spark a goblin riot.  He hoped to talk Ginty into the city by himself where Nan could do what she wanted with him quietly and privately.  With this in mind he leaned over the wall and called down.

“Hello, Prince Ginty,” he cried.  He gestured back over his shoulder.  “The Big Goblin Princess awaits you inside.  Come in and I’ll show you.”

Ginty’s face narrowed suspiciously.  “No, bring her out here.  She’s mean and sneaky and might try to do me in.  Bring her out here where I can ravage her in front of all my followers.”

Fortitude cursed under his breath and opened his mouth to try another tack.  Before he could say anything though, Nan stepped up to the wall and stood below a lantern staring down at Ginty.  The bow was still in her hand, but she held it out of sight below the top of the parapet.  There was an arrow loosely notched in it.

Tens of thousands of hairy little arms whipped up and respectfully thumbed noses at Nan.  “Oooooh,” she heard from thousands of throats and a sea of voices whispered together.  “The Big Goblin Princess.”

Nan ignored them and called down maliciously to Ginty.  “Hello Ginty, you disgusting little rodent.”

Ginty’s leered back up at her.  “Yup, that’s me,” he called back proudly.  “Come down and give us me conjugals.”

Nan considered the distance between herself and Ginty with a degree of vexation.  He was probably fifty yards away and that was too far to be a certain shot.  She bared her teeth in an approximation of a smile.  “Why don’t you come up here and get me,” she called back.  “Tell your goblins to make a pyramid.”

“No, you come here,” Ginty replied.

“Tell you what,” Nan called back reasonably.  “Let’s meet half way.  You come up and I’ll come down.”

Ginty considered this then nodded.  He gestured at the mass of goblins below him and pointed at the wall.  “Make a pyramid,” he cried. 

The goblins poured forward and began forming a huge hairy pyramid that sloped all the way from the top of the wall down to where Ginty was waiting.  Ginty called up to Nan.  “Come to me, my big bald goblin.”

Nan feigned fear.  “How do I know they’ll support me?” she said indicating the mass of wriggling writhing goblins below.  “Come half way and when I see they’re supporting you, I’ll come down.”

This was good enough for Ginty.  He gave his bearers a wave and they started up the goblin pyramid.  Fifty yards became forty, then thirty then twenty. 

At twenty yards, a little moan of irrational joy escaped from Nan’s throat.  She lifted her bow in a single fluid motion and a cathartic smile appeared on her face as she pulled the arrow back.  She paused for a single ecstatic second then released.

Ginty had just enough time to lift an arm futilely when the arrow took him in the eye.  Its impact flipped him off his dais and onto to the mass of goblins below.

With cries of fear and astonishment the entire goblin pyramid collapsed.  Hundreds of goblins hit the ground and began to scatter leaving Ginty’s body twitching in the semi-darkness below.  Nan slowly and with a look of rapturous joy carefully drew another arrow and fired.  The second arrow buried itself deep in Ginty’s chest.  He convulsed once then lay still.

The mass of goblins fell silent and stared between Nan and their fallen prince in wide-eyed amazement.  The air was completely still and there was no sound at all around the wall.

Fortitude tensed unconsciously.  “Oh great Loki, no,” he moaned.  “This is going to get messy.”  Along the wall, Lunar guards readied weapons.

“Oooh,” said Gordon loudly looking most impressed.  He“She killed Ginty.”

Down below, the goblin leader Splint stared between Nan and Ginty in amazement.  “That wasn’t very nice,” he called up in a tone that suggested awed wonderment.

Brian swallowed loudly.  “It was sneaky and mean,” he affirmed back to Splint and darted an admiring look at Nan.

Doug nodded.  “She’s always been sneakier and meaner than everyone else,” he shouted down while keeping a respectful and fearful eye on Nan.

Next to Splint below, the goblin prince, Glibb frowned as he stared at Ginty’s lifeless body.  “And she likes shiny things and hurting things for no good reason,” he observed slowly.

Gordon nodded with wide-eyed admiration and called back from the top of the wall.  “Yup, she’ll kill you soon as look at her.”

There was a mass intake of breath from the goblin horde gathered around.  “Oooh,” they went as a mass.

Nan began to giggle uncontrollably.  There was a goblin examining Ginty’s body and, without even consciously deciding to do so, she notched another arrow and fired.  The little goblin jerked soundlessly as the arrow pinned him, still standing, to the ground behind.

“Ahhh,” went the goblin horde.  The entire mass unconsciously took a step backwards.

Gordon nodded.  “She’s the sneakiest, meanest, most cunning, most vicious, most nasty goblin I’ve ever seen,” he exclaimed approvingly.

Brian raised a hand.  “She should be Big Goblin Queen,” he suggested in a high pitched excited voice.

Doug nodded and stared at Brian fearfully.  “Just don’t say it to her face or she’ll kill you.”

Something snapped in Nan’s mind at that moment.  She screamed insanely and tried to throw herself at where Brian, Doug and Gordon were standing.  Marcus, William and Fortitude leapt on her and wrestled her to the ground.

“Queen, Queen, Queen,” a group of goblins began to chant down below.  The entire mass of goblins quickly picked up the chant.  “QUEEN, QUEEN, QUEEN,” they cried with fervent enthusiasm.  Glibb, Splint and Flipp were staring up at Nan with open admiration and a hint of respect and they joined the chanting as loudly as their followers.

On the wall, Nan let out a scream of incoherent rage and began flailing around.  Fortitude finally knocked her out and instructed two Lunars to bind her and carry her to her room.

Once Nan was gone from the wall, Fortitude stared down again at the chanting goblins.  “Well I’ll be damned,” he said to no one in particular.  “I think that sorts out the loyalty of the goblins.” 

He stared down at the mass of hairy bodies for several long minutes, then called down to Aidan.  “Send up Glibb, Splint and Flipp,” he called.  “I need you too, Aidan,” he added.  The three goblin leaders dutifully came forward with Aidan.  The goblins formed another pyramid long enough for their leaders to reach the top of the wall.  Fortitude also beckoned Doug, Brian and Gordon over. 

When Aidan and the six goblins were finally standing in front of him, Fortitude addressed them.  “Do you all accept Nan as your Big Goblin Queen?”

“Of course,” said Splint hastily.

“We wouldn’t dare cross her,” said Glibb nervously looking over his shoulder.

“Tell her we love her,” said Flipp with a fearful smile while offering Fortitude a burned chunk of meat.

“Good,” replied Fortitude ignoring the burned offering.  “She’s given me her first commands.”

“Ooh,” said all six goblins present.  Aidan snorted but said nothing.

Fortitude pointed at the mountains filling the night sky to the east.  “You’re to go to those mountains there,” he said.  “You will live there away from human lands where you will eat and live as you always have, but you’ll provide service to your queen when she requires it.”

Splint and Flipp nodded.  “Of course,” Glibb replied compliantly.

Fortitude winked at Aidan.  “Aidan here will be the Queen’s ambassador.  He will visit you and tell you her commands.”

Aidan grinned and stared around fondly at the little goblins.  “I’ll need beer and a lot of that peppermint flavoured liqueur,” he said.  “A whole lot of it.”

“No problems,” Fortitude replied.  “You’ll have as much as you want.”

Aidan rubbed his jaw happily.  “All right!” he exclaimed.  “And my parents never thought I’d amount to anything.”  He stared out over the wall at the mass of chanting goblins below.  “Ambassador to the goblins,” he said.  “And as much as I can drink.” 

Fortitude bit back his first reaction and turned to Gordon, Doug and Brian.  “And as for you little guys,” he said.  “You’ll be my representatives.  You’ll work for Aidan and, if you do what he says and keep him happy, you’ll get five shiny copper bits every week.”

The three goblins let out a loud ‘hurrah’ and began dancing around joyfully.

Fortitude edged over to Aidan.  “I think you should move the goblins towards the mountains now.  Follow the road and I’ll have some scouts catch up with you tomorrow to take you somewhere far away from human habitation.”

Aidan adopted what he imagined was the measured and wise air of an ambassador and nodded.  “Sure thing,” he said.  “I’ll get them going now.”

Aidan was as good as his word.  While Fortitude stood the guards down and the city returned to normality, Aidan got the mob moving.  The chant of “QUEEN, QUEEN, QUEEN,” slowly but surely shifted eastwards towards the mountains till it disappeared finally with the coming of dawn.

***

It was six days to the coronation and wedding.  Every day was full of details and every day sped by in an exhausting blur.

Nan remained in her room the first few days then emerged in a surprisingly good humour.  When Fortitude finally got her alone Nan assured him that she was quite over her hatred of the goblins. 

“Look I got Ginty, didn’t I,” she said.  “I feel much better.  As for the other goblins, they’ll do what I say now.  I’ve currently got at least three thousand golden reasons to forgive them and I suspect the King’s plans will see me get more in the years to come.  I say let them live.”

For once Nan’s attitude was light and there was a conviction to her words that suggested she meant them.  Fortitude decided she was telling the truth. 

He muttered something encouraging then departed to attend to yet another arrangement for the forthcoming ceremony.