The Land Below our Feet III (Legacy)

SHAME

The middle-aged captain of the Crimson Guard stood immobile on the bridge that overlooked the city gates as the long lines of foreign guests flowed steadily beneath the threshold towards their correspondent realms.

-Finally! They are all gone! – The officer exclaimed deliberately aloud in an underlying contemptuous tone, as the Argantean King coincidentally approached him from behind – Mostly… One more to go, and we’ll be back to normal at last.

-Well, you might want to sit down while you wait, just in case – The monarch calmly suggested, stepping next to him, and drumming his fingers on the railway – Because it could take a while before we can safely return home.

-Alright then, whitey boy… It is done – Greghan informed him. Abruptly changing the subject and dragging his words with an obvious lack of conviction – A garrison has been stationed right at the mouth of the Daarvaq river, just like you wanted. Now, may I ask why you are prioritizing the delta over the piers?

-Because Tainshan ships don’t need any docks – King Ghroghl explained in a somber voice – They are so light, and they possess such a shallow-draft hull that they can navigate upstream without trouble, so I’d bet they won’t even bother attacking the ports at all.

-Are you telling me that they are going to try and sneak into our borders using the delta like a bunch of rats instead? – The Crimson soldier concernedly inferred – Isn’t that a little too low?

-Maybe. But there is no etiquette in war… At least not where we come from anyway – The Argantean gravely breathed out – And I am sure that they are going to use every trick up their sleeve to land the first punch and get the upper hand however they can.

-Even when they must resort to shameful gimmicks and cheap gags – The warrior spat out, shaking his head in evident disapproval – What a surprise! You people are truly a despicable kind.

-There is no shame in doing whatever it takes to feed your own, Greghan – The foreigner carelessly shrugged off, ignoring his tone – The difference lies in what you are willing to live with in the end.

-Yeah, and you should know that firsthand, don’t you? – The captain mockingly scoffed – Let’s not forget how quick you were to turn your back on the ideals your predecessors had fought so hard for.

-I chose to give up my relatives´ wishes and overlook their deaths for the greater good and the promise of a stable life for my realm – The monarch hissed at him – If that makes me a traitor in your eyes, then so be it… Like I said, I can live with it because my people survived.

He took a breath, calming himself and composing a serene smile as he tapped his finger repeatedly on the sturdy balustrade.

-Now, believe me when I tell you that Ulgiak is completely fine with massacring entire nations if that will get him the new home that he so desperately wants for his own – The ruler bitterly barked – I’ve seen it! He’s way past any sense of decorum… Or honor. At this point, there is just one thought fueling his mind.

-And what’s that? – Greghan wondered aloud in a pensive voice - Keeping the Tainshan legacy alive, perhaps?

-No, he stopped caring about that a long time ago – The Argantean sadly chuckled – Right now, he simply wants to avoid the humiliation of being called a fraud.

-So, this IS about shame after all – The captain sharply commented –He might not have a problem with using a few shady methods, but he certainly does when his credibility is questioned.

-Well, we can’t blame him for wanting to put the perks of those cleverly constructed watercraft into use, can we? – The foreigner casually disagreed – You call them shady… I call them resourceful. And I bet you would call them brilliant if your precious Commander was the one behind those stunts… It is not like he hasn’t used that kind of deception in his favor before.

-As a means of defense, never to attack anyone! – The warrior heatedly responded – But you wouldn’t understand it… Not when this is your first time standing on this side.

-Maybe – The ruler pondered – However, as I said, everything is a matter of perception, and perception is subjective… I may not know a lot of things, but I know this: When you fight violence with yet more violence, boundaries will most likely become blurry at some point, so there are no absolutes in war…

-And therefore, there's no right or wrong – The captain finished saying for him with palpable scorn in his voice – Is that what you’re trying to say, kid? Are you going to try and justify your brother and uncle’s actions using that twisted logic now?

-I’m just saying that nothing is ever entirely black or white – Ghroghl responded, raising his hands in the air before him – It’s all about optics… And motive. No one ever pictures themselves as the villain of the story, do they? Everyone seems to believe that they are doing the right thing in their minds.

-So, when Njál and Ozhvar came here and incidentally slaughtered our people while trying to invade our land, they weren’t doing anything wrong, according to you – Greghan puffed out – Is that right?

-Hey, I know that their course of action was beyond… Heinous, to say the least – The ruler cautiously spoke, eyeing him with heedfulness – But the evil that they did doesn’t automatically turn them into the heartless monsters that you’d like to think they were.

He paused, staring pointedly at the speechless warrior for a moment, then redirecting his attention to the crowd below.

-The truth is a million times sadder and a lot much worse – The Argantean sighed – Both were simply a pair of flawed humans trying to achieve their goals in the way they thought it was best at the time… That is the dangerous part.

-And the reason why you are telling me all this is because you think Ulgiak sees himself as the hero of this story – The soldier deduced – Just like your relatives did once.

-I don’t think so, I know it – Ghroghl winced. A worried murmur slipping through his lips in an almost inaudible breath. His thoughts traveling back to the last time he’d spoken to the large Tainshan man – And if he really has found Selahrian´s map, then this mistaken perception of his will only be confirmed in everyone’s eyes.

“Is this a courtesy visit, or the prelude to one of your infamous attacks?” – The young Argantean had asked the unexpected visitor as he stepped into his palace’s hall.

“Let’s call it a neighborly inquiry, shall we?” – Ulgiak had suggested with a forced smile – “Now, would you be a good boy and help a friend out”?

“You and I both know that our people haven’t truly been neighbors for years now” – The monarch had told him, with an equally exaggerated smirk – “And that the Tainshans´ behavior hasn’t exactly been the most amicable one… Why would you expect any support from any of us when you have been blatantly raiding every helpless little village in the vicinity that you could possibly find?”

“Except for yours” – His guest had boldly pointed out, waving his callused finger at him – “Don’t you forget about that”.

“Oh... Mine is far from helpless” – Ghroghl had replied with a defying nod – “And a little more extensive than a village, I must add… But you are most welcome to try”.

“King Groghl… May I call you that?” – Ulgiak had sung in a feigned respectful tone – “I assure you I have no interest in raiding your barren land”.

“King Ulgiak” – The Argantean had spoken in a matching voice – “You may call me whatever you like, I honestly don’t give a damn.

He’d paused, giving him a confident grin while scanning the intimidating man from head to toe before casually sitting back down.

“Now, we are both relatively new to this job that unexpectedly fell into our laps. But I know a desperate man when I see one. My late family made quite sure of that” – Ghroghl had resumed telling him – “I know why you’re really here for… And thankfully, there is plenty of Emerland for everyone. So, there is no reason for you to meet that same tragic demise!”.

“So, what are you suggesting here, kid? – Ulgiak had bitterly cackled – “That we trade? That we cut a deal with them, the same as you did?”

“Why not?” – The Argantean had shrugged off carelessly inspecting his nails – “It worked great for me!”

“I wonder what your dead folks would think of this arrangement you’ve settled with their own murderers…” – The Tainshan leader had rumbled in disgust – “What a shame!”

“Well, luckily, they don’t get a say in this anymore, do they? They’re all dead” – Ghroghl had retorted, his expression then softening somewhat – “Listen, I know you fear that, with the state of your soil, you have nothing to offer anymore, but there is always something left to trade with, there’ll be something that they’ll want, you just need to figure it out!”.

“I won’t bargain with a bunch of savages, kid!” – The hardened man had yelled, waving his hand towards the beach, where the rest of his enormous fleet waited – “Don’t you see? I promised these good people salvation... A true dreamland! And they have been following me around without complaints for years waiting for that! I must deliver them there! It is time!”

“And there is more than one way to accomplish that, Ulgiak! But it took us centuries of bloodshed to fully get it” – The Argantean had blurted out back then, out of frustration – “Even when Selahrian tried to warn us about it from the very first start”.

The realization of his mistake had hit him even before the last words had completely left his mouth, and he had regretted uttering that stupid sentence many times since that ill-fated day as he lay in bed, praying that there was no truth in the ancient tales he’d heard countless times as a child, the same as Ulgiak had.

Because he’d seen the flicker of hope in his interlocutor’s eye. He knew that he would never let go, not while he was still alive… And it was all his fault.

-Selahrian´s map? – Greghan´s voice brought him back to the present as he abruptly shook him forcefully by the arms – What the hell are you talking about?