sighed. “Please, Your Grace.” The voice turned away from her. “I know that you are a proud Lenay. I mean no offence. But I also know that you are a true Verenthane, and a man of great culture and knowledge. I tell you only that it is no easy thing, Your Grace, for a proud people like the Larosa, and for the broader alliance of the free Bacosh peoples, to come to a land like…like Lenayin, for assistance.”
“I quite understand, Duke Stefhan,” said the archbishop. “Lenayin is a fair land, but we cannot possibly hope to match the measure of sophistication and artistry of a great people such as the Larosa.” Sofy blinked in startlement. The archbishop truly believed that?
“I'm so pleased you understand,” said Duke Stefhan, with the air of a man ever-so-relieved not to have been misunderstood.
“Dear Duke,” said Dalryn laughingly, “of course I understand! Baen-Tar is but a small island of aspiring civilisation in a sea of barbarity! We try, my Duke. The holy fathers try so hard to bring civilisation to the masses, and in the larger townships I am pleased to say that we make progress. But the rural folk resist so, and they are fierce in their savagery. The king will simply not allow us to take stronger measures of persuasion, no matter how often we may ask it of him.”
The duke laughed appreciatively. Sofy felt suddenly cold.
“Oh, I do have dreams, my Duke,” Dalryn continued, with the weary amusement of a man confronted with a long and endless task. “I dream that perhaps, in several centuries from now, Lenayin may aspire to become even half of the great, civilised kingdom that Larosa presently is. But I understand that it must pain you to be forced to seek such an alliance, and on such terms. How could it not?”
“Your Grace is most civilised, and most understanding,” said Duke Stefhan. “Your dreams for your kingdom are worthy. Indeed, my people say that is the truest calling of a Verenthane to pursue the greatest and most noble tasks, even if they may take many lifetimes to complete. We in the free Bacosh now endeavour toward such a grand task—firstly, to reunify the Bacosh, and secondly, to rid ourselves of the threats and barbarism of pagans and demons alike.
“One must deal firmly, Your Grace!” There came the smacking sound of a fist driven into an open palm. “The gods’ word is final and the gods’ word is law. The gods do not negotiate with their lessers. The threat must be removed. And one day it shall, by any means at our disposal. If Lenayin is to become the great civilisation of your dreams, Your Grace, you should learn this lesson. Be strong with the pagans—force is all they understand.”
The cold in Sofy's veins grew worse. Her stomach tightened, and she felt ill. She stuck a knuckle in her mouth and bit to refocus her mind. She couldn't believe she'd been so stupid! Sasha had been right all along.
The archbishop made an appreciative noise. “And the girl, Duke Stefhan? You have been spending quite some time with her the last few days. Is she adequate?”
“She is pretty enough, one supposes,” the duke said regretfully. “Our heir will not be offended by her looks at least. But she is so simple, Your Grace. Simple, childish and headstrong, with none of the sophistication of a cultured Larosan lady.”
“But one must make allowances, Duke Stefhan. Her upbringing was not the equivalent of the royal Larosan court. And she is the youngest daughter, and spoiled.”
Time seemed to stop. Sofy could not deny what her ears were hearing, even though her dazed and horrified mind refused to accept it. She stood paralysed, clutching the silver tray with numb fingers.
“This is true, Your Grace…but again, please understand that it shall be a sacrifice to the dignity of the heir. To marry such a girl, for the sake of an alliance, shall be distasteful.”
“The Larosa require the services of the army of Lenayin,” the archbishop replied, somewhat sternly. “Lenayin may be uncivilised, my Duke, but when held in tight rein beneath Verenthane command, the pagans can certainly fight…and, I might add, our Verenthane soldiers are perhaps unmatched in human lands.”
“I do not doubt it, Your Grace.”
“And Lenayin requires the alliance to bring them fully into the brotherhood of Verenthane kingdoms. Remember that it is not merely your Larosan king that you serve, Duke Stefhan—it is the gods. The gods shall be strengthened in Lenayin by