Two Kingdoms 48 - Dancers

[DoctorM]

TWO KINGDOMS 48 - DANCERS

This is the forty-eighth part of an AU construction about a Gwynedd where the duel at Kelson Haldane's coronation went very differently indeed. We are now nearly three years into the Gwynedd Wars-- Charissa's new kingdom at Valoret against the Haldanes in the south and the kingdom of Torenth in the east. This episode follows perhaps a few weeks after "Saints". As always, comments and suggestions are very much appreciated.

****

It's a midsummer morning in Tolan-by-Sea, and Baron Rheljan has come to see the Queen.

Charissa is up on the dais at the far end of the  great hall, and it's a long walk for Rheljan. There are banners with the new royal Leopards of Festil hung on the walls, and the Shadow Queen has brought in all her inner circle for the meeting. Men from Queen's Moors, Tolan Guard, and the Grey Death's Slayers are all there as her guards this morning. She has her husband next to her on the dais, and this morning she's in a pale grey khilat with the high collar worked in silver trim.

Rheljan advances down the long Komnene carpet with his retinue following along in a solemn line. There are two young officers immediately behind him in surcoats worked with the FitzEwan arms. One of them is carrying a pair of document cases with crimson ribbons and heavy wax seals. The other is carrying the baron's longsword in a polished scabbard, and half the eyes in the room are fixed on the sword.

All through the room and around the dais there are half-seen motions. This is a Deryni court, but this morning there are messages passing back and forth with small flickers of fingers gloved or bare. Out there along the edges of the crowd al-Fayturi and Rizak and Brennan de Colforth are passing silent orders to the guards: Be ready.

The Shadow Queen tilts her head as Rheljan approaches. She's half-smiling. Rheljan is in his best finery, and she can read the cut and fabric the way Christian reads maps. Rheljan's wearing clothes made in the South— Nur Hallaj, she thinks. Nur Hallaj for the tunic, Andelon for the boots. That says as much as the finger-speaking going on around the hall.

She looks out into the crowd and catches a set of green eyes. Her fingers flutter for an instant over the arm of her chair and she sees Kyri nodding. No secrets at court, Charissa thinks. No FitzEwan secrets, anyway.

She feels a fingertip brush over the back of her hand, and she looks over at her husband. Christian is watching Rheljan's party. He touches her hand again. Brother, his finger traces out on her skin. On the left. That would be Rheljan's brother Murdo. The baron has brought family.

Rheljan stops and bows. It's well-practiced— just the right distance to say that he's deferential to a queen, but well aware of his own standing. He looks up at Charissa. "Your Grace," Rheljan says. The bow is perfectly measured: polite and proper, but saying nothing at all. And no one could fault Your Grace as an address. It recognizes Charissa as duchess of Tolan and Marluk and leaves the question of royalty... open.

Charissa nods. "My lord Rheljan," she says. "Welcome to Tolan-by-Sea. Three years now we've been allies, and today I finally see you in the flesh. We're glad to have you here."

Rheljan's face is carefully arranged. "We share one common enemy, Your Grace, and we've both fought against him these last three years. We each have interests to defend."

"I understand that we're fighting parallel wars against Wencit, my lord. Two different wars, one goal. I think it's difficult for people not to say that we're allies, at least in this particular war." She looks out at the Tolan and Marluk generals she's brought in. "We're fighting together in Gwernach, it seems. You do have my thanks for that."

Rheljan nods. "Gwernach, Your Grace, is on King Wencit's way west. If he wins there, he'll have to come through Rheljan to reach towards Valoret. If I'm defending Gwernach, I'm defending my own lands."

The baron looks to the faces on the right of the dais. His son-in-law's man Gwyllim is there. Of course he is. Bran Coris isn't about to not have a voice at this meeting.

Charissa tilts her head. "My lord Rheljan," she says, "you and I share an enemy. Your messenger birds flew in here requesting an immediate audience. And you came so quickly— as if your horses had wings." She smiles at that: let's see what Rheljan can infer.

Down on the floor, Aurelian and Kyri and Ratcliffe are smiling, too. "So let's talk about this. Are you here to talk about the fighting in Gwernach or about what we're doing as allies?"

"Your Grace— cooperation isn't the same as an alliance. I told you once that I'd fight Wencit. Three years since you took a crown, and I've fought the Torenthi through all of them. Wencit is a monster, and I don't want to live under his rule and I don't want those Torenthi locusts devouring everything in my lands and despoiling everything this side of the mountains."

The Shadow Queen is looking at the baron. "All that is understood, my lord. Cooperation isn't an alliance.  Wencit would never understand that, of course. Not many people would." She shifts her gaze to Gwyllim. "There are people who might say that it's His Grace of Marley to whom you owe your loyalty."

Rheljan takes a breath. "My son-in-law has offered me concrete support in the wars, Your Grace. And he is the father of my grandson. I don't want Brendan displaced from what'll be rightfully his one day."

"Well, that's admirable enough. Bloodlines matter." Her fingers flicker on the chair arm. Down along the carpet Ratcliffe nods briefly. Two of his men fade back through the crowd towards the doors. 

Charissa nods over at her husband. "Kheldour here has just come back from Gwernach and Kulnán. I want the two of you to talk about the war out there. We'll need all to be on the same page when we tell your son-in-law where his ambitions stand."

She looks at Gwyllim and the corners of her mouth draw down. "His Grace of Marley and Eastmarch is my captain-general, after all. I suppose we'll keep him informed about everything, or at least nearly."

Rheljan draws himself up. "Your Grace... I asked for this meeting because I've had word from the south. We need to speak about that."

"South meaning the Forcinn and the Moorish lands, my lord?" The Queen is smiling one of her more dazzling smiles. "Or south meaning Coroth and Rhemuth?" Which is only another way of saying No secrets at court.

Rheljan bows again. "Your Grace... We FitzEwans have held Rheljan for almost a century and a half. We were given the title for services in a war with Torenth long, long ago. We've held it all those years for the Haldane kings. This is no secret. We were the Haldanes' men. You know that."

"I know that things change. I know that a lot of things have changed since I went to Rhemuth three years ago. So tell me, Baron Rheljan, are you having second thoughts?"

"It's a lot more complicated than that, Your Grace." Rheljan is starting to stammer. "I asked for this meeting because—"

There's a flurry of movement down by the door. Christian's hand moves to the hilt of his kinzhal. Tolan Guard men face outward and Brennan de Colforth flicks his fingers: Let her pass. The Duchess of Marley and Eastmarch is here, and she's brought her son. Her face is all confusion and anger.

Richenda stops and stares at the baron. She takes in the retinue and the queen's guards. "Father? Why—? What are you doing here?"

Young Brendan Coris has pushed through the guards almost to the edge of the carpet. He looks stunned. "Grandfather!"

Christian leans forward and catches young Coris' eye. He smiles and holds a finger to his lips. He finger-speaks to the boy: Not now. Just wait. It's going to be alright. Brendan stops and draws himself up. He's a duke's son, and he's been taught to remember that. He's proud of himself, too, for having Christian teach him the rudiments of finger-speaking.

Rheljan looks at Richenda and holds up a hand. "Not here, daughter. Not now."

The baron grimaces and turns back to the Shadow Queen. "I've had word from Rhemuth," he says. "They sent me this." he reaches back to one of the young officers behind him and takes one of the message cases. He passes it on to one of the Moorish guards at the foot of the dais. The Moor bows and hands it up to the Queen, "Shadow Lady," he says.

Kyri looks back and forth from the Grey Death and Ratcliffe to the Queen and her husband. She guesses at what it all means. She presses her lips together. Charissa never likes to be surprised, and she rarely is. So the question is who's known what here, and when they knew.

Charissa is opening the case. There are heavy, rolled sheets of parchment inside, each one splashed with heavy sealing wax. One of those will have a lion on it: the Haldane Great Seal. There's an autograph signature, and she wonders if the Haldane boy really did sign it himself.  She holds up the roll. "Do tell," she says.

Rheljan draws in another breath. "It's a summons from King Kelson— from Kelson Haldane. He's formally calling up all his liege-men. This one's for me. I'm to call all my banners and rally to him at Rhemuth. To march against you."

The crowd is murmuring down there. Richenda looks stricken. There are places being changed, too. Tolan Guard and Queen's Moors are shifting forward.  There are extra grey-clad Slayers silently taking up posts at the doors.

Charissa looks down at the Grey Death. "Tell me, my lord Inquisitor— you'd think the Haldane boy would've called up his vassals three years ago."

Aurelian shrugs. "Duke Nigel did it in the Haldane boy's name," he says. "That was a few months after you took power. There was a lot of, let's call it, hesitation. You remember what it was like that first winter. Everyone waiting to see who'd jump first and where they'd go."

"This is individual," Christian says. "He wants a clear answer. He wants Marley to know, too. Marley makes it personal for the Haldanes. They hate Bran as much as they hate Wencit. Maybe as much as they hate you."

The Queen runs her eyes over the crowd. Richenda is frozen in place. Kyri is looking up at the Queen with a knowing half-smile.  "Exactly," Charissa says. "He wants your answer, my lord Rheljan. Young Kelson doesn't believe in parallel wars. That idea lasted for three years, but it's gone. He's getting ready to outlaw you. You do know that."

Next to Charissa, Christian sighs and grins at Rheljan. "Rhemuth in the summer is no place to be. Too hot, too humid. You're a lot better off here, my lord."

Rheljan turns back to his aides. He slides a look at Gwyllim before he hands the roll to one of the Queen's Moors. He's looking hard at the Queen. "It's not just calling me to his standard. The second letter is in King Kelson's— Kelson Haldane's —own hand. I'm ordered as his vassal to pull all my troops out of Truvorsk. Everything goes back west over the mountains. I'm not to keep anything in Truvorsk. I'm not to worry about Wencit; I'm to focus on you. You're what he cares about first. I'm ordered to march my troops from Truvorsk down to the Corwyn border and put my men under Alaric Morgan's command. I'm to give over the keys to my southern border holds to Morgan's men. I'm to expel any of Marley's men on my territory and arrest their officers."

Gwyllim is drawing himself up in anger, but Christian shakes his head. "Tais-toi. Tais-toi."

Charissa looks at the second letter. "You're being punished, my lord Rheljan. You're being set up for a treason trial, and you're being stripped of everything you've won. Marley's being punished, too— he's already been condemned for treason and rebellion, and he does see himself as Duke of Truvorsk one day. Just as...well, you'd like to see your grandson holding a lot of Truvorsk one day."

"Your Grace understands my position here."

"I understand that your parallel war idea doesn't work any more. I understand that you have to make choices. The music's playing, my lord Rheljan. Pick a partner for the dance."

Rheljan looks over the room and the silent faces of courtiers and officers "That's why I'm here, Your Grace."

Charissa unfolds herself from the chair. Her voice is very quiet. "Are we going to need swords here?"

Rheljan nods.  He's looking up at the Leopard banners and at his daughter. "I think we are, Your Grace."

Charissa's face has nothing in it. "How many blades do you think we'll need, my lord?"

"Just one," Rheljan says. "Just one at first. Then a second one."

Aurelian and Ratcliffe both have their left hands free. If you're Deryni, you can just hear the slightest hiss of power in the corners of your mind.

Rheljan reaches back to his second aide. He takes the sheathed longsword without taking his eyes off the Shadow Queen. He draws the blade and bows his head. He holds the sword upright, his hands just under the cross guard. Out there across the carpet, Richenda gasps.

"Not yet," Charissa says. "Not quite yet. You have things to say to me first. You're no fool; you know what they are. We have no secrets here, my lord. Say it."

Rheljan closes his eyes and opens them again. He draws his shoulders back. "Your Grace," he says, "I am Deryni. My house is Deryni. My daughter and my grandson are Deryni. I have hidden these things, and I most abjectly beg your pardon for that. This is something you need to know. But yes, I'm Deryni, and I'm not ashamed of it. Is that what you need?"

Young Brendan Coris stares at his grandfather and his mother and the Queen. Christian looks down at the boy. "Be brave," he says. "Be brave. This will be alright. I promise you that." His fingers flicker at his side. I'll be here for you. I'll tell you everything. Be brave.

Rheljan reverses the sword again and stares at the Queen. "I, Richard FitzEwan, Baron of Rheljan, do from this day forward pledge myself and my House to your service. You are Charissa first of her name, Queen of Tolan and the West, Duchess of Tolan and Marluk, Countess of Gwernach, Lady of the North, and Protector of the Realm. To you I pledge my service— my sword for your defense, my spear for the throat of any who would do you harm, my substance for your support, my counsel freely given, my loyalty to you and to your crown and House. You are my Queen, and from this day forth I do become your man in all things." He bows his head in salute.

Kyri looks over at Marley's woman. Richenda is crying silently, and tears streak down her face. There's an edgy silence in the hall, and then a handful of cheers.

Charissa reaches back and Christian places his kinzhal unsheathed in her hand.  She steps down the few wooden steps to the floor and crosses to Rheljan.  She holds the blade out towards Rheljan. "Well, it took you long enough. But I admire your bravery this morning.  I really do. Now kneel."

Rheljan drops to one knee. Charissa lays the flat of the kinzhal on each of his shoulders.  "Today you become one of us. You've fought well against the Torenthi, and I expect to have you as a general for Tolan and the West. Rise, Richard FitzEwan, now hereditary Count of Rheljan." She grins down at him. "I never liked earl as a title. So I'm making you a count now. And I think I'll find a couple of towns in Truvorsk for you on your own, Bran Coris or not. I'll explain it all to your son-in-law for you."

Rheljan rises to his feet and nods. "I've chosen my partner for the dance, Your Grace." He makes a wry face. "It's my daughter and my grandson I'll have to explain everything to."

"Christian and I can help with young Brendan," Charissa says. "You're on your own with your daughter. I'm the Witch Queen, but I know my limits." She looks over at Kyri and then through the crowd for Colforth and Ratcliffe and Aurelian. She brings the kinzhal up over her head. "Tolan! Festil! We have a new Count of  Rheljan with us today, and we'll need him to defeat Wencit. My lords— let's fight a war."









 

[drakensis]

It is sometimes frustrating not to see what's happening from the Haldane perspective, there is so much we don't know.

I doubt Kelson and Wencit are allies, even if they have mutual interests when it comes to Charissa. I'm not sure what Kelson expected to happen here - he is young and certainly can make mistakes but he has good advice. He must have expected something like this to happen.

With that said, he may have felt pushed to do this by other concerns. He does have to balance other interests, after all.

[DoctorM]

I think we're seeing how awkward a 3-cornered dance can be. Kelson is looking to crush Charissa's regime at Valoret before he has to fight Wencit. Charissa  wants to finish with Wencit, or at least drive him back east to where Lionel is busily undermining Wencit. Wencit wants Valoret first, and then Rhemuth.

Rheljan got away with defending his own lands and moving into Torenthi territory for 3 years without having to guess whether he needs to proclaim loyalty to Charissa or Kelson. And now he's been pushed towards the Queen.

Kelson is young, and he's spent three years watching Gwynedd fall apart. He's trying to put it back together, but he is inexperienced. He wants all the lords to make a choice-- Lion or Leopards. And so many of the lords aren't going to like being told to choose a side...or be punished for the first choices they made.

It is sometimes frustrating not to see what's happening from the Haldane perspective, there is so much we don't know.

I doubt Kelson and Wencit are allies, even if they have mutual interests when it comes to Charissa. I'm not sure what Kelson expected to happen here - he is young and certainly can make mistakes but he has good advice. He must have expected something like this to happen.

With that said, he may have felt pushed to do this by other concerns. He does have to balance other interests, after all.

[DerynifanK]

I was disappointed in this turn of events. Actually the Haldanes have been virtually nonexistent in this, rarely mentioned and nothing positive. I can understand Richard doing whatever he needs to do to protect his lands and his people. I realize Kelson is  young and he has had to deal with a lot. But he has good advisors and I don't think he would have issued such drastic demands to Richard without meeting with him and hearing his position.The demands are virtually taking away his lands and are guaranteed to drive him to choose Charissa. I just don't see Kelson or his advisors making that big a mistake.

[Evie]

It wouldn't be the first time (at least in the canonical universe) that Kelson ignored good advice in the heat of anger. *coughTalacaracough* So I can imagine something similar going on here in this AU universe if he's fed up enough, especially given his age and relative lack of experience. I suppose every young person has to make at least one questionable decision that is likely to turn back around and bite him on the butt.

[DoctorM]

I think there is some context here. Rheljan is Marley's father-in-law. Trying to force Rheljan out of newly-won lands in Truvorsk is also a way of punishing Marley, who's probably Villain #1 in Kelson's eyes (changing sides, fighting against Cassan and Kierney and Claibourne). With Warin de Grey's revolt in Corwyn seemingly failing, it's time for the Haldanes to deal with Charissa. They want to bring all the waverers back to their banner. For better or worse, Rheljan is being an example.

I was disappointed in this turn of events. Actually the Haldanes have been virtually nonexistent in this, rarely mentioned and nothing positive. I can understand Richard doing whatever he needs to do to protect his lands and his people. I realize Kelson is  young and he has had to deal with a lot. But he has good advisors and I don't think he would have issued such drastic demands to Richard without meeting with him and hearing his position.The demands are virtually taking away his lands and are guaranteed to drive him to choose Charissa. I just don't see Kelson or his advisors making that big a mistake.

[DerynifanK]

I just don't think Nigel or Alaric would let him make this big a mistake. I do think Kelson would have met with him or communicated with him first. Just my thoughts

[Jerusha]

And what will Richenda do now....

[DerynifanK]

Poor Richenda. Her losses, problems and pain just seem to multiply

[tmcd]

I've not read all the installments, and many I read some time ago, so I'm sorry if I missed something. Also, DoctorM has already commented. Fools rush in.

What occurs to me is that three cards for the Haldanes to play are Legitimacy, Inheritance, and Law, and in medieval thinking, that's a powerful hand to play.

I suspect that nobody on the Haldane side has any illusions about Rheljan ever becoming loyal, what with being Marley's father-in-law and not making a move to be loyal in 3 years. But another powerful card is Just War, casus belli: it's not enough to have law on your side, it's important to be seen to have law on your side. The goal might have been to drive Rheljan into open rebellion, on the grounds that there's nothing to lose, but also so that Kelson would have more more cause and ability to call men to punish a rebel. In our England, for example there was a 40-day limit on knights' service for external war, but not defence, so that might help Kelson keep men in the field longer.

But Rheljan is near the joint between Charissa and Torenth. Attacking him there might make the three-way really messy: Kelson et al march against Rheljan, then Wencit hits from the east, then Charissa piles on from the northwest, then Wencit hits Charissa, I hit Krako, Krako hits Tepo, Tepo hits me. There's too many bosses. We can't get anything done. Right, Spocko? ... wait, that was Bela Oxmyx from original Star Trek.

I would instead expect the Haldane side to attack Charissa on her western side, rather than her eastern side. That could force her to divide her forces well apart, increasing the odds of her being defeated in detail on one side. (Edit to add: for an example, if the siege of Helm's Deep had taken longer, the forces there would have been held back from aiding Minas Tirith when it was so strongly attacked by the forces of Sauron.) And also that would not expose the Haldanes to Torenthi forces. Disadvantages could be (1) that might be seen as the obvious move, but you don't want to advance on an obvious line of attack (she reinforces the castles to slow down the Haldanes, which frees a lot of men to fight Wencit), (2) the danger of Torenth or Charissa winning a lot more against each other than the Haldanes manage, making one big enemy instead of two divided ones, (3) Corwyn and some forces have to get split off to the east anyway, because the Haldanes dare not move all their armies to the west, because Charissa and/or Wencit could devour them from the east. I agree with @drakensis above, "I doubt Kelson and Wencit are allies", or if they nominally are, they're both expecting to be betrayed immediately by the other.

But I can mock my analysis using a quote from Deryni Checkmate: "And that's what the king just doesn't seem to understand", said a bright-faced young knight looked barely old enough to have won his spurs. "It's all so very simple. Kelson knows how Wencit will move once the thaws begin. Why doesn't he just---"

Edit to add: Or, as @Evie suggests, maybe Kelson might indeed have come down with a severe case of rectal-cranial insertion.

[DerynifanK]

In this 3 way dance, the Haldane have been rarely mentioned and we really don't know what is happening with them. Although I understand that the focus of this is Charissa.

[Evie]

Pfft! Those Haldanes, they're unimportant. Who really needs them? 

(J/K, DFK, don't kill me!  )

[revanne]

I am enjoying another point of view, and I have to confess to liking Christian quite a lot.

It's good to be reminded that right is almost never entirely on one side in human affairs - which goes for Deryni too.

[DerynifanK]

I like Christian too. I have even come to like Charissa to some degree. But if this supposed to be a 3 way dance, I feel we should hear more about the other dancers. We don't really hear anything about the Haldane point of view, a little more from Wencit but not a lot

[DoctorM]

I like this analysis. I can see that I may have to look in at a few briefings where the maps are unrolled and lots of plans are set forth in the three capitals.