Derick had a grouchy look on his face. The Toledian army had come al right, but the expected relieve of their duties had turned out to be just another way of more fighting. Derick's armies were positioned in a triangular shape around the hill it had occupied before the Toledian army came. They had been ordered to guard the valley in which the hill stood while the Toledians recovered from the harsh journey.
'The harsh journey' Derick thought 'had led the Toledians through all the lands which Derick's army cleaned from Orcs months ago'. They probably hadn't seen any Orc force larger than twenty or so of the green creatures. Derick currently had stationed himself in the North-most camp. He could have stayed in the base camp on the fortified hill, but that would have meant he would have to be in the company of the Toledian general. And this was something to be avoided at all cost.
At least when they were positioned on the hill food hadn't been an issue, because of the easy access to the forests near the base of the hill. But now high in the passages of the mountains, they were lucky if they could catch a rabbit or other small creature. Derick's troops were living on the marching rations they got from the Toledians, while the latter ate deer and other game from the forests. Derick remembered only one occasion on which the Toledians had brought them food. Two of them came walking in with two deer and a couple of smaller animals. Hardly enough to feed more then two hundred men, but Derick thought it was the intention that counted.
He didn't think the Toledian general had sent the men to bring them food, because he was as ignorant of other peoples suffering as he was admitting to his own needs. The Toledian general was an old follower of the Emperor when the latter wasn't dubbed in his function yet. The Toledian probably had something to do with the fact that the Emperor was chosen, because after the crowning ceremony the Toledian received the functions of count of Toledia as well as a high position in the army hierarchy. The choice of the new Emperor had not been a great surprise, because he was the first born son of the old Emperor, but because the old Emperor had died rather suddenly, he had not formally named his predecessor. Some of his other sons as well as a few cousins had claimed their rights to the throne.
One of the candidates actually had a chance, because he claimed to be the first born son of the old Emperor, who was born before the Emperor married. A Bastard son of course, but tradition didn't state the first-born son had to be a legal one. In effect the current Emperor had needed al the support he could get to claim his throne. As Derick was considering this, a new message arived from the Toledians. The message contained orders to prepare an expedition to investigate any possibilities for advancing further into enemy territory. According to army hierarchy, the Toledian general couldn't order Derick, as he had the same rank. But the fact that the Toledian had the civil rank of a count meant that if Derick defied him, he would be executed in a most painful way when they returned home. If they returned home Derick thought bitterly.
Derick read the orders more closely. When he realized the intentions of the Toledian he could not believe his eyes. Derick should get about one third of his army and take them further north until they had reached mount macabre. This would mean a two hundred mile forced march through Orcish territory with less than three hundred men. And when they arrived they would have to build a large fortress capable of providing shelter for the entire Toledian army. Derick ordered a messenger to get Anglus. He sat back in his chair cursing and swearing. Every insult he knew wasn't sufficient to describe the intelligence of the Toledian.
Anglus entered without asking and almost jumped into the chair. Derick handed him the orders. Anglus eyes went from left to right while he read the message. His face turned whiter with every line. When he finally gave back the papers his face turned red with anger, which in the end looked just as unnatural a color as the white it had been moments ago. 'No!' said Anglus. Nothing more, nothing less, but it was enough for Derick. They would not follow the orders. Not him, not Anglus and not anyone they commanded.