King's Valley (The Saga of the Two Kingdoms Book 1) by Younce M.G

Author:Younce, M.G.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-12-22T00:00:00+00:00

17

A SOLDIER'S STAND

Reloor stood in the central square in the city of Leighton. Leighton was the largest town in Arthendel, both in terms of size and population. The population of the once bustling city was now, however, missing. Reloor oversaw the capture and removal of the citizens to ensure that everything went smoothly. Not one of the city's nearly twenty thousand residents had been killed or injured in the massive raid, and all were now on their way to the valley. Once they arrived, the number of people crowded into the valley and inside the castle's outer walls would more than double. As more people continued to arrive, Reloor knew that feeding and controlling them would become increasingly difficult. The conditions in the valley would be horrible and unsanitary. People would eventually become sick. Some would die. All would be outraged. An uprising would be inevitable. He had already tried to explain this to King Aramus, but it had fallen on deaf ears.

Reloor was confident that he and his men could ultimately maintain order in the valley. Aramus's plan to train the prisoners as soldiers, however, was something he had much less confidence in. He had hoped that once Aramus began to see the people of his kingdom filling the courtyard, the king would change his mind. Aramus had barely even glanced out a window as the courtyard began to fill, and had seemed completely oblivious to what was happening to his own people.

Reloor was a soldier. His first duty was to follow orders. Not doing so was something he had never even considered. His second duty was to serve the people of his kingdom. He had never imagined that his two most important duties would ever be in such direct contradiction.

As he looked around the empty city of Leighton, it was clear that his second duty was no longer even relevant. He could not continue to follow orders and still serve his people. He knew that many of his men were coming to the same conclusion.

The central square of the city was huge and impressive. Statues erected in honor of past kings and heroes were spaced throughout the square. After the end of the last war with the Northmen, King Hoban had commissioned a statue in honor of Reloor's father. Ballach had been Captain of the Guard and Commander of the Army under King Hoban for twenty-seven years. He had been a hero during the war, and it was widely believed that the armies of the north would have overrun Arthendel had it not been for his leadership. Ballach fell during the Battle of Vosten Hill, and his death served to rally the exhausted and outnumbered men of Arthendel to victory. Reloor succeeded his father as commander and led the army to victory in three more battles during the ensuing couple of months before the demoralized Uragoth finally gave up and withdrew from Arthendel, fleeing back to their lands in the north.

To say that Reloor admired his father would be like saying the ocean was slightly damp.

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