Innocent Sorrow: A Tale of Twisted Hearts Book One

Chapter Sixteen

Between Feli and her father, they were able to give an almost perfect sensory view of the river border between Reicks and Beldan. Those very plains were ones Feli knew intimately with the help of Feliks who had been raised among the wild flowers and Haydn who had lived long enough to see the landscape change and shift. Though many were still disgruntled where Feli was concerned, they knew well not to speak out against her when in the presence of her Father and their own King. For two days, things went smoothly as they redrew maps, fought over military and trade routes and forged their alliance. Beldan may not have had the numbers to compete with Reicks or Nyek but they had the talent when it came to traversing the plains and hot weather of their home. Reicks had the tactical training but lacked knowledge of real combat which Nyek excelled in. In terms of skill, Reicks was probably the best of the three countries but with Nyek’s knowledge of warfare and their sheer numbers, the situation was still bad no matter how they looked at it. Their saving grace was the fact that they had home advantage. Harold and Gregory knew their lands and their people whereas Natalia was sending her own troops in blindly. It may not be ideal but it was the one thing that might allow them to win if all else failed.

During the time they spent planning; Feli explained what had happened in the previous war to her Father but chose to leave out details concerning Feliks and Haydn. To gain some support for her lack of hatred towards Alexei, she asked them to think of what it might have been like for the man to live under the rule of people like Aleks and Natalia. Her father easily accepted her as the Spirit of Fire but had trouble relying on her and seemed frustrated by her sudden lack of decorum. Her mother on the other hand remained silent throughout the discussion and had only offered halfhearted words of support before leaving the room. Since none could deny her status and with the odd support of Haydn which most likely stemmed from his wish to keep the container of Feliks beside him, Feli was able to move with ease and her words were accepted at face value.

“I say we set up a mix of Reickian and Beldanian archers at the top of the mountain pass. If they try to go through the gorge, we can pick them off.” Feli pointed to the Bragdon Mountain Range that acted as a natural barrier between Nyek and Reicks. The only way through was the gorge that acted as a pass. It was normally used for trading with the Nomads on that side of the Nyekian portion of the river. Gregory nodded slowly to her daughters words. “Yes, if we send the archers there, they could hold the high ground but then who would protect the castle here?” Many voices rose up to agree with her father and Harold nodded seriously. It was Nathanial, one of the Knights of Beldan who had arrived with half the Beldanian Military the day before, who spoke up. “With all due respect my Lord’s, the point is not to sit at the castle and wait for them to lay siege but to stop them before they ever get close enough to consider such.” Feli smiled appreciatively at the man whom she had not seen in years. He looked older now for he was about ten years her senior but his cobalt eyes that shone with pride and his easy smile that never betrayed his true emotions was the same as ever. This was certainly the man she once viewed as a brother and when he patted her head, she was easily reminded of her days as the prince of Beldan. Harold nodded tightly, letting out a sigh. “You are right…it may not make us feel secure but it doesn’t change the fact that you both are right.” He looked at his own military leaders and motioned for the leader of the archers to step forward. “As you have just heard, I want you to get to work with the leader of the Beldanian archers and set up posts at the top of that gorge. As Feliciana said, if they try to come through, pick them off.” The man saluted quickly and hurried from the room, eager to get preparations started.

Gregory spoke up again once the archer was out of the room. “As you know, when I asked for Nathanial to come here with reinforcements, I also had him order the border patrol to return to the castle. I will be keeping the other half of my army there until they are needed this way we have well rested soldiers should we need them.” Harold nodded in response and clapped the man he had come to see as a friend on the shoulder. “Thank you, I just hope that those precautions turn out to be unnecessary.” Feli could see the worry lines growing deeper on Harold’s forehead and knew this was taking its toll on him. Looking around, she could see everyone looked tired and haggard while the candles hand burnt down to nearly nothing. Looking back at her father, she sighed. “We need rest. These men have been up for at least three days, some of them probably more. An hour of rest isn’t enough. We can’t plan properly when we are this exhausted.” Harold and Gregory looked at her before looking around at their men. Everyone had bags under their eyes and Feli’s skin looked translucent she was so tired. The only one who seemed unaffected was Haydn who leaned against one wall with his arms crossed over his chest. When he caught the two Kings’ glances, he raised a brow and spoke up. “It’s true, they need rest. I’ll go compile more notes from the Great War while you all rest. We will meet up once again at the crack of dawn.” As he finished his sentence, the men in the room seemed to sag with relief. They couldn’t even walk from the room; instead they shuffled and murmured amongst themselves. When the room was vacated except for Feli, Harold, Gregory and Haydn, the Spirit of Earth spoke up again. “Exhaustion is the best way to get one killed in times like these. Sleep well, we will plan more later.” And this is how it went for the next few days. They would stay up for two to three days straight then be sent to sleep for a few meager hours only to repeat the process. Most of the men were able to handle it but Feli’s body was weakening quickly and she was losing weight. It was her mother who finally stepped in.