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Post by Kortelan on May 17, 2007 22:57:53 GMT -5
"Yes I do. First off on the issue of Authority it is clear by the letter of Rubanya that you are the leader of the Imperial Army, but Ersolan has asked to regain his old position of Gurikan ya Rizado and his men are willing to follow him and have requested to be reassigned to the Rizado Kajakan Tros. Now that being said I have two things to talk about. Number one is the rest of our foe. I say we should parley with them and see if they will surrender and then have them join my forces. That way your army will be intact going back to Rubanya. My force will stay here because we think that Krumluk will come here to gather reinforcements. And my force here will stop him dead in his tracks. If he goes straight to Rubanya then we will be able to attack him from behind or even convince him we wish to join him and then at night attack them from inside the camp as they sleep."
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Post by Ekanor Falan Korinyva on May 19, 2007 23:23:29 GMT -5
"WHAT!" Korinyva says in absolute shock, "This is outrageous! Those are Imperial troops. They can't just decide to quit the army and join... and join the what was it, the Rizado Kajakan Tros? That's your personal bodyguards isn't it? You don't need three kantoro of troops for your bodyguards! You're just trying to find a way to defy the decision of the Imperial Regent! And since you mentioned it, I have had a parley with Ekanor Falan An Op who commands the garrison here and he is not willing to give in without orders from Ulor Tremalkan. Let me remind you that you are a civilian. You have no authority to give orders to Imperial troops or to be anywhere in the chain of command of the forces here. Neither does Ersolan. I'm going now to send a message to Imperial Regent Rubanya. If you wish to reconsider, you need to do so before I finish writing the letter because it will go out by Imperial Courier immediately and will reach him by tomorrow.
Korinyva turned and departed in an huff without waiting for an answer. His officers went with him.
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Princess Evanit
New Member
This moment in history will forever change our world.
Posts: 31
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Post by Princess Evanit on May 20, 2007 1:51:50 GMT -5
Just as Korinyva is leaving, Princess Evanit arrives hurriedly with bodyguards and ladies in waiting trying to keep up with her.
"Hello. I'm here for the meeting. Did I miss anything?" she asks innocently, glancing in the direction of Korinyva as he and his officers walk away.
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Post by Kortelan on May 20, 2007 11:19:32 GMT -5
Kortelan looks and her glaring a bit. "Yes you did. Great timing." He walks out "Ersolan, gather the men and Lorgen. We are going to the garrison's fortress. And someone get my horse."
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Princess Evanit
New Member
This moment in history will forever change our world.
Posts: 31
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Post by Princess Evanit on May 20, 2007 13:07:54 GMT -5
"Well then!" Princess Evanit says, mostly to herself. Seeing that the meeting is over already, she turns and goes back to her camp.
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Post by Gamemaster on May 21, 2007 0:58:34 GMT -5
Ersolan assembles the men of the three kantoro from Kajakan Tros. There are about a thousand of them.
Lorgan assembles his hundred horsemen and one of his men brings Ulor Kortelan his horse.
When Ulor Kortelan is ready, the force advances towards the main gate of the garrison fortress. A thin line of troops from Slythia are all that is in the way and they are making no effort to block the way of Kortelan's forces.
"Shall I tell them we want to parley?" Ersolan asks.
(OOC: The use of the white flag to symbolize a parley, truce or surrender is unknown in the Zekresh Empire. It was almost certainly unknown in ancient times on Earth as well.)
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Post by Kortelan on May 21, 2007 19:28:44 GMT -5
Kortelan nods. "Yes tell them that we do indeed wish to parley. If they are smart they will realize that this parley could keep them alive."
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Post by Gamemaster on May 21, 2007 20:49:42 GMT -5
Ersolan rides past the Slythians and rides right up to the main gate of the garrison fortress. As the guards in the fortress move into positions, Ersolan holds out both hands to show that he is holding no weapons.
Kortelan can hear Ersolan calling out to the men in the fortress and one of them answering him.
Then Ersolan looks back and waves to Kortelan to come forward. Lorgan also comes forward.
Ersolan says, "They will parley with you. They have gone to fetch the garrison commander."
After a few minutes of waiting, a man dressed in armor like an Imperial Army officer is seen on the wall above the main gate. He calls down to those below.
He speaks Zekresh fluently, almost without an accent, but the trace of an accent he does have is Vummese, "Ulor Kortelan, I am Ekanor Falan An Op. I am the commander of the garrison here. What do you have to say to me?"
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Post by Kortelan on May 21, 2007 22:02:59 GMT -5
Kortelan looks up at the man. "Hello Ekanor Falan An Op. First off let me tell you I admire you and your men. By refusing to give up even now when it is clear there is no way to win you have all shown bravery and courage that befits men of the Imperial Army. But enough of what you no doubt consider mere flattery. I am sure you and your men realize that when Korinyva and his men regroup they will attack you and while you will probably kill many you will be killed in the onslaught. Your men have shown so much bravery, courage, and loyalty that I have been moved to offer you a deal. If you agree to fight along side my men I will spend my last breath if needed to insure you are not killed by Rubanya's men. Ekanor Falan An Op, you will be an adviser on my council of war that I am in the process of making. I am giving you a chance to live without surrendering and losing your dignity and honor. All I ask is that you agree to fight under me. What do you say?"
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Post by Gamemaster on May 22, 2007 2:23:08 GMT -5
"Why would I join you?" Ekanor Falan An Op says, "And I have nothing to fear from Rubanya. He ordered me to obey the Ulor and I have done so. As for your idea that we are about to be overrun, you are speaking nonsense. I can hold this position against all the troops out there and more. Your men don't have food for a week. Do you seriously expect to beseige us here? We have our own wells and vast stockpiles of food and supplies that we laid in during peacetime in preparation for a possible siege. The only reason your rabble were able to kill any of my troops is that Ulor Tremalkan insisted upon remaining in his palace instead of coming here, despite my advice. First I had to come out of the fortress to put your men to flight to save the Ulor, then I had to leave a kantora outside the walls to guard him when he still wouldn't come inside the fortress. But that's over and done with. We have a few less men in here now, but that only means our supplies will last even longer than if the whole garrison were here. If you think you have the upper hand here, that just shows how little you understand military affairs."
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Post by Kortelan on May 22, 2007 8:55:23 GMT -5
Kortelan smiles. "If that is how it is so be it. You are considered a traitor to the empire and Rubanya will do what ever it takes to crush you. And by the way I am the Ulor of Kajakan Folon as well as Kajakan Tros. I have the scroll that Rubanya appointed me this position if you don't believe me. So if you were truly following the Ulor you would be listening to me. Since you refuse my offer of help I now go to help plan you and your troop's demise." He turns around and motions to his troops to do the same. "Come on let us go back to Korinyva. We have much to do."
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Post by Gamemaster on May 22, 2007 9:49:25 GMT -5
As Kortelan is leaving, Ekanor Falan An Op calls out, "What are you talking about? You're the Ulor of Kajakan Tros, not Kajakan Folon."
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Post by Kortelan on May 22, 2007 17:16:18 GMT -5
Kortelan rains his horse around to pace the fortress. "Wrong. When we were informed of Tremalkan's betrayal to the empire I was appointed Ulor of Kajakan Folon as well as Kajakan Tros. Currently I am the Ulor of both of them. There was an order to make sure you were informed of that fact and I was told you continued to follow Tremalkan even after you were informed. That marked you and your men as traitors. If you agree to fight under my banner I will use my power as an Ulor to pardon you and your men from your betrayal and you will have your normal status as fighters for the proper emperor, Rubanya."
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Post by Gamemaster on May 24, 2007 0:04:03 GMT -5
Lorgan says, "What are you calling Rubanya the Emperor? I thought he was only the regent for..."
He is interrupted by a voice from the twenty feet up on the fortress wall.
Ekanor Falan An Op says, "I am no traitor. I have heard it said that you and your men claim that you are Ulor of both provinces. But I have not been told this by Ulor Tremalkan or Gurikan Falan Gamuk, my regional commander, or the Imperial Regent, Rubanya Cledman. An officer in the Imperial Army does not relinquish his command to anyone except upon orders of a superior officer or a senior civilian leader who has authority over the army such as the Lord Chancellor, the Imperial Regent or the Emperor himself. After the Imperial Regent's decree, I now also accept orders from Ulor Tremalkan."
"I hope the day has not come that an Imperial Army officer would surrender his command to a civilian just because the civilian claims to have authority over him. Not even if his command was only a tent with three soldiers in it. Still less when the command is four kantoro, a fortress and an entire province. I have heard tales which I don't know whether to believe that say that the garrison in Kajakan Tros was taken over by armed force and that both the garrison commander and the second in command were killed in the process. I have heard other reports that all the officers were massacred. I have heard that a man named Ersolan seized command in this manner, possibly with the Ulor's approval, or perhaps not, and marched his troops into our province. I have eyewitness reports that his men came into our province in the manner of an invading army, plundering and looting as they came. I had specific orders from Ulor Tremalkan, my lawful superior, to resist by armed force any attempt by Ersolan and his men to take over the government of this province. Ersolan and his men marched immediately here to the capital and proceeded to carry out acts of theft and assault on the civilian population. He claimed that he was authorized to take over the government here by his Ulor, the Ulor of a different province, an Ulor who to my knowledge has no authority here and may have been involved in an insurrection against the Imperial Army garrison. Should I have handed over this garrison and several thousand troops to him?"
"It is true that he said you had been appointed Ulor of Kajakan Folon as well as Kajakan Tros. The story was not and still is not the least bit plausible. There is no Ulor who rules more than one province. It's unheard of. I don't think it has ever happened in the history of the Empire. But even were it true, it was obvious by his methods and his manner of speech that Ersolan was never in the Imperial Army, much less an Imperial officer. Should I take his word for it? He appeared and still appears to be an outsider at the head of mutinous, undisicplined troops who are on the verge of turning to bandits. There is still the matter of the officers of the Kajakan Tros garrison. I know from reports of civilians that not a single real Imperial Army officer marched with Ersolan. What has become of them? And if it is true that I am supposed to obey orders of a new Ulor, why has no news of this come to me from Ulor Tremalkan or by courier from Rubanya or from Gurikan Falan Gamuk? Instead, I have only orders from Rubanya to obey Ulor Tremalkan and orders from Tremalkan to resist Ersolan. When Ersolan launched a murderous attack on the Ulor's palace, I rescued the Ulor. When the Ulor ordered me to detach a kantora of soldiers to guard the palace, I did so. Shortly afterwards, a hositle force, including Ersolan and his men, have besieged this fortress so that we have no further news nor any means of communication with anyone."
"This man Korinyva comes here claiming that he should have command of this garrison. He says nothing of Ulor Kortelan having authority here, only himself. He waves a piece of paper that he claims is a decree from Rubanya, but how can I know if this is true? I have heard of an Ekanor Falan Korinyva. I have not met him, but I have heard of him. I have heard that he is a man known for exceeding his authority. He what we call in the army a 'rank climber' whose desire is not merely to serve the Emperor with honour, but to advance in the ranks above other men whether he merits it or not. He is the garrison commander of Slythia, a position which gives him no authority here. I notice that he has very few Slythians with him for a man who is supposed to be the commander of the Slythian garrison. Has there been another mutiny? I don't know. I do know that Empire was on the verge of civil war before this happened and no one could be trusted."
"If any of my lawful superiors give me an order, I will follow it, even if that order is to hand over this garrison to you. But until I receive such an order, this garrison will treat you and all who have attacked us as enemies of the Empire."
"I know the penalty given to traitors. I have seen it carried out. Yet you cannot scare me by throwing that word at me. I have done my duty the only way I could have done it. I am still doing it. I will continue to uphold the honour of the Imperial Army and defend the authority of the Emperor until the day I die and your ability to hasten that day is not so great as you imagine."
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Post by Kortelan on May 24, 2007 0:19:39 GMT -5
Kortelan nods at this man. "Very well. If you must know the leader of the garrison in my province was corrupt and because of my stance against corruption we arrested him and while trying to arrest him his second in command try to kill my bodyguards, who reacted in the only way they could and in the ensuing fight the second in command was killed. I then appointed the only man I knew who had the ability to replace the commander and that was Ersolan, who then did the only thing he could and replaced the officers because of threat of mutiny. They are all still alive just relieved of their position. The garrison has never known discipline which shows why they acted in that horrible manner. I can provide proof that I was appointed Ulor of here if you are willing to come down and see it. If you do come down I swear on my life that no harm will come to you from any man I command." He looks at Lorgan, "After what Rubanya has said we must assume that the in prisoned Emperor is dead and therefore his hair, namely Rubanya, is now the Emperor."
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