The Pen and the Sword (Destiny's Crucible Book 2) by Olan Thorensen Read Free Book Online

Keelan
hetman and one of his main advisors, although unofficial.
    “Fragmented
reports indicate a high number of Buldorian casualties and relatively few
islanders. Whatever happened, it was a rout, and the Buldorians withdrew and
headed for home.”
    “Do
you see any relation to our conclusion that the Keelanders and their allies are
the most organized and potentially troublesome for our overall mission?”
    “Nothing
we can definitively determine,” replied Hizer. “It may just be bad intelligence
on their defenses, mistakes on the part of the Buldorians, or who knows what
else?”
    “What
about trying to put more agents in place in Keelan?” asked Akuyun.
    “Worth
considering, but there’s the danger of alerting them to those already in place.
We’d need to balance the potential gain of more information versus the losses
if they realize our agents are among them, and they root them out.”
    “For
more information alone I’d be hesitant, but I’m inclined to be in favor of more
Keelan agents in place, if we decide to eliminate their hetman.”
    “That’s
my own thinking,” said Hizer. “Once we move on Moreland, everything will change,
anyway.”
    “All
right. See if you can insert a couple more agents into the Keelan capital.
Obviously, these will have to be capable of more direct action than the others,
in case we move against their hetman.”
     
    Sowing
Confusion
     
    The
two men stopped when a work crew of twenty men rounded a corner. The brown
tunics and the leather collars identified them as slaves, either Preddi or
imported from other conquered peoples. They weren’t shackled, and a single
guard led them, signaling they were docile enough not to require more security
or supervision.
    “Sir!”
exclaimed the infantry non-com soldier with cavus rank markings. “Sorry, sir.
Didn’t see you coming.”
    “No
problem, Cavus . . . Keznak, isn’t it?” said Akuyun.
    “Yes,
sir!” said the non-com, thrusting out his chest farther at the mission
commander who knew his name, though they’d never spoken.
    “Carry
on. I’m sure you have important work for these men. I’m always glad that experienced
soldiers like you are with me on missions.”
    Hizer
smiled, as the non-com hustled the slaves off. “Of course, Okan, if he was that
valuable, his unit would have him leading twenty men typical of the cavus rank,
not slaves.”
    “Yes,
but he’s still valuable, no matter what his assignments, and there’s no reason
for him not to think the officers don’t appreciate his efforts, no matter high
how their positions.”
    They
walked out to the end of a pier and watched a recently arrived cargo ship being
unloaded of general supplies, mail and dispatches from Narthon—and a new
shipment of gunpowder, if Akuyun remembered the manifest summary he’d seen
first thing that morning.
    “Well,
I think we’ve put off enough sitting on our butts at our desks for today. I
have some paperwork to do, before riding with Zulfa this afternoon to witness a
field exercise, so we’d better head back,” said Akuyun. “While we do, anything
new from your agents?”
    Hizer
was an assessor, tasked by the Narthani High Command to give independent
evaluations on mission progress and commanders’ performances. While not in the
formal chain of command, Akuyun had asked him to serve as the intelligence
coordinator for the mission, a somewhat unusual arrangement, but within the
scope of Akuyun’s and Hizer’s assignments, as least as they both agreed to
define those scopes. Akuyun’s query involved efforts to suborn Caedellium clans through deception of true
intentions by means of disinformation, false rumors, decoy military movements,
bribes, facilitation of conflicts between clans, promises of substantial
long-term rewards for cooperation, and implied threats for non-cooperation
following the inevitable Narthani victory.
    “Nothing
new,” said Hizer. “We’ve both seen Admiral Kalcan’s reports of the