Tyrant of the Ruined Sun
Chapter 96 - 96: Hamilcar's Expedition 9

Hamilcar's call to assemble the war council spread instantly through the camp, as everyone who was summoned rushed to his tent, and among those who were currently hurrying in that direction was non other than Barrafin; Patriarch of the Dolgun clan.

Yet he looked so different from the proud, confident man he was a few weeks ago. His back, once so straight and upright, like a valiant spear, now hunched ever so slightly as though an unimaginable weight stubbornly clung to it. His steadfast smile, one that shined true even in the most hopeless of situations, empowering his allies with boundless confidence, had now all but disappeared from his facial dictionary, leaving his face vacant of any semblance of joy. But worst of all, were his eyes. His once lively eyes now looked as destitute as the deserts of the Eclipse Empire, all but abandoned by the youthful light of hope they once held.

Yet despite all that, his steps still carried with them a sense of dreadful resolution; as he was all too familiar with the horror that is the outcome of his potential failure. Since after all, he had witnessed it with his own two eyes on that hellish night. He had witnessed the premium price these demons of the north wrung from the writhing bodies of the Olgan people.

Reaching the tent's entrance he took a deep breath to steady his nerves, before entering. But the instant he did his heart skipped a beat in both fright and frustration, as two very different gazes locked themselves upon him.

The terror coursing through him came from non other than that devil they name Hamilcar, as his piercing eyes instantly trained themselves upon him the moment he appeared. While the irritation painfully plowing it's way through his aching skull came from the expectant and hopeful looks assaulting him from most of the various Patriarchs that were gathered here.

It was no secret that Hamilcar greatly appreciated Barrafin, and so most Patriarch worth their salt came to curry his favor no matter the cost, forcefully and completely unwillingly hoisting him into a leadership position, making him the de facto leader of the Murathicus Patriarchs who defected to the Eclipse Empire's side.

'Damn cowards! They barely dare to even breath before that demon, while behind the scenes they constantly urge me to voice out all their complaints, like a pathetic gaggle of powerless wives complaining to their husbands about their supposed injustices! Where in the name of all the gods have the noble and proud Patriarchs they supposedly were gone?!' Barrafin hatefully raved in his mind, wanting to tear his hair out.

Taking another deep breath to steady his squirming heart, Barrafin respectfully saluted Hamilcar, saying in the common tongue of the continent "Please excuse my late arrival."

"Excused." Hamilcar replied, before continuing with a grave tone that left no room for excuses or disagreement "But only because this is your first offense. Their will not be another."

"...Understood." Barrafin answered, lowering his head further down in apology, yet he still caught from the corner of his eye a few of the Patriarchs subtly grinning in mockery at him, but he didn't bother with them as he took his designated seat, near the middle of the table, right next to the Eclipse Empire's officers.

A seating arrangement personally designed by Hamilcar himself, that was truly wicked in it's maniacal machinations.

Hamilcar obviously sat at the head of the table, with the ever loyal Avestan to his immediate right, sitting one seat higher than that lunetic Orhan, while that eerie Archon sat to Hamilcar's immediate left on the other side, then came the rest of the officers in the decreasing order of their rank. And only then did the Patriarchs finally sit, and in the same decreasing manner as before, with the less loyal, powerful and useful you are, the further toward the tent's entrance you sit.

It was a subtle, yet ingeniously effective power move that put everyone in their figurative place on the pecking order.

"Since everyone is now present, let us begin the meeting." Hamilcar announced, as he looked at Avestan and nodded.

Standing up, Avestan looked at everyone and simply declared "His lordship has decided that we will no longer indulge the Northern Coalition's forces with this tedious and continuous cat and mouse game we have been playing, and that we shall finally crush in one final decisive battle."

The imperial officers instantly cheered with eager faces, while the Patriarchs displayed a myriad of expressions, ranging from equally excited to melancholic to defeated and already resigned to whatever their fates might be.

After the massacre that masqueraded as a battle in the Olgan Clan's territory, and then the subsequent annihilation of said clan, all the patriarchs of the north were faced with an impossible choice. Surrender and survive or resist and perish.

Many, like Barrafin bowed for fear of sharing the same fate, but others, such as the Dolgun and Olgan Clan's arch nemesis the Tamarthul Clan, refused to do so and they quickly formed an alliance called the Northern Tribes Coalition, under the command of the only great clan of the northern territories, the Enkada Clan.

"But before we discuss the coming battle, Lord Barrafin how goes the current recruitment efforts?" Avestan asked, turning his attention to Barrafin.

The 'recruitment efforts' that Avestan mentioned were in reference to the ongoing talks to sway the last few remaining neutral clans to join the Eclipse Empire's side instead of the Coalition's. And as the current representative of the Murathicus Patriarchs now aligned with them, Barrafin was naturally given this role in the hope that these final disputed patriarchs would be more easily convinced if one of their own spoke to them.

"My apologies, lord. Despite my and sir Komak's best efforts, we have still not received any truly committal replies from the clans we have contacted." Barrafin stood, and quickly explained.

"And why is that? Are the conditions we offered them unsatisfactory or maybe even worse than what the Coalition's side is offering?" Avestan asked with narrowed eyes.

"No, that's not at all the case." He quickly denied it, then continued "Though, yes... some of the patriarchs we've spoken to do seem to want to keep their options open and wait for more favorable provisions to be provided by either side; but most, especially those of the smaller clans, seem to be quite fearful to join any side and simply wish to remain out of the fighting all together."

Frowning Avestan angrily asked "So there are still fools who don't understand the current situation?!"

Barrafin quickly wanted to defend his fellow country men, but before he could, Hamilcar's commanding voice cut him off.

"Barrafin." He called "I estimate that within a couple of weeks at the latest, we will face off against the coalitions forces in a decisive battle to determine the fate of these lands. You have until then to gain a definitive say from these clans to where loyalties position lay. If not, then they will meet the same fate as the Olgan Clan."

A razor sharp chill sliced through the backs of all the gathered Patriarchs, as sweat instantly formed on their backs and foreheads. Yet gritting his teeth, Barrafin quickly argued "No, my lord, please don't! I will do whatever it takes to have them join us, but I fear two weeks might be too little time, just the travel time of the emissaries to deliver the message might take upward of eight days for some of these clans."

Hamilcar frowned hearing those words, yet then one patriarch instantly jumped, like a shark who smelled blood in the water. "Lord Hamilcar, please allow us to perform this task."

"Indeed, lord. I assure you satisfactory results within the allotted time frame." Another endorsed, as they both cast victorious or taunting glances at Barrafin, clearly happy with themselves.

But looking at these eager fools, Barrafin couldn't help but inwardly shake his head in lamentation for his people. As even now, when the wolf was not only at their door, but had even broken in and forced them to work for him, they couldn't unite.

As even though Barrafin was the official leader of the gathered Patriarchs, in actuality he didn't control all of them, with quite a few, such as these two who just spoke out being the most vocal in their opposition of him.

These Patriarchs, unlike his ilk who joined under the merciless might of reality crashing upon them, forcing them into submission; these men before him forsake their people for either ambition to rule beyond what their small clans offered them, or to escape the shackles of isolationism imposed upon them by the old ways, simply yearning for the unknown hidden beyond the mountains, and to incorporate themselves into that vast world, and he couldn't blame them for it. After all, even he himself was originally tempted by this sweet dream in the beginning.

But if the rest of the world is like what he'd already seen and heard from these invaders, then he'd like to beat his past self for his naivety. After all, a world capable of birthing such monstrous men and woeful war machines was basically no different than an infernal hellscape.

Turning his gaze to the eager new comers, Hamilcar thought for a moment, then said "Very well then, you may take on the previous mission of Barrafin. Discuss your next actions with Tomak Takal when we're done here."

The two quickly bowed with beaming smiles, their joy as palpable as the cloth on their skin, all the while casting gloating glances at Barrafin, who couldn't care less. If anything he was glad to be rid of that dreadful task.

Yet before he could fully immerse himself in this newfound sense of relief, Hamilcar returned his menacing gaze back to him and said in a tone that plunged his heart into a metaphorical ice bath "I have a new job for you Barrafin. One that is better aligned with your expertise."