Jack stood out on the ledge next to Dawson, letting the magic ebb from his veins as his pulse and breathing slowed. He had no idea what had just led him to snap like he had at Urien, but having done it, he felt better for some reason. It wasn"t that he wasn"t grateful for all of their help. Quite the opposite. But when it came between Urien"s opinion of what should be done and what would actually get Jack the result he was looking for, then picking what would have the best chance of saving Eleanor was always going to take priority, even if it meant pushing back against those who had made this attempt even possible.As he stood there, Rose walked up and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Hey.... You okay?" She asked. "I"ve never seen you be like that before."
Jack stared down at the camp, and sighed.
"I"ve never been like that before, even in my last life. I... don"t really know where that came from, but I am not sorry that I said what I said." He said, crossing his arms in thought. He turned to her.
"You think I went too far?" He asked.
Rose furrowed her brow for a moment in thought, before finally shaking her head.
"Nothing you said was untrue. I think under different circ.u.mstances you would have said the same thing, but in a calmer manner, but considering the circ.u.mstances, I don"t think how you handled it was too much." She said. "Urien is pragmatic, and means well. He knows you are both as well. Just talk to him once all of this is done. I"m sure things will be fine."
Jack sighed again, and nodded.
"Yeah, alright."
As he said this, Farlo stepped out of the cave entrance, his face an inscrutable mask. He walked within a couple paces of Jack and Rose, before stopping to appraise them. After a long moment of looking at each of them, he spoke.
"Given the circ.u.mstances, I suppose it is appropriate I let you both know that the remainder of the party have agreed to hold talks with the gnolls, with the express requirement that I am one of the three representatives present. They have indicated that Jack must also be one of the three. The third they leave up to our joint discretion." He said. He looked at Rose.
"I have a mind to bring her along with the two of us. Do you have any opposition, Jack?" He asked.
Jack shook his head.
"I"m not against it, but it"s her call. I cannot speak for her." He said. He turned to Rose.
"So how about it, Rose?" He asked.
She nodded without hesitation.
"I"ll come." She said.
Farlo nodded, then turned back to Jack.
"It"s settled then. After you then, Jack." He said, motioning down the gradual slope of the ledge ramp.
After an announcement from Dawson to the village below that the group"s representatives were on the way down, Jack, Farlo, and Rose descended the long circular ledge towards the ground at the far end of the gnoll camp. As they did so, a small contingent of gnolls dressed in what looked like finer clothes than the rest separated from the village to meet them, flanked on both sides by a pair of armed gnolls, all of which were visibly smaller and less aggressive looking than any of the one"s Jack had seen them fight previously. He suspected these were either gnolls too young to be considered full fighters, or too weak to be frontline.
The two groups met at the base of the ledge ramp. The young gnoll guards flanking the representatives looked both alert and nervous, with the one nearest Jack very visibly shaking despite obvious efforts not to. The representatives, however, seemed unbothered, and after a brief exchange of pleasantries motioned for the three of them to follow their group into the village proper for their discussions. The delegation led them through the edge of the village to the center, weaving and winding through dozens of closely packed homes. Out of the windows of many Jack could see the looks of frightened faces, many of which ducked out of sight when he glanced their direction. Some gnolls still remained outside, armed and appraising the three of them with fear and distrust. Of those visible, both inside and outside, Jack couldn"t help but notice that nearly all of them appeared to be either young children or immature males, old men, and women. There were only a couple fighting age gnoll men, and all of them were visibly wounded.
They"re just like us, Jack thought, but said nothing. He wondered how he and the others must look to these creatures given the circ.u.mstances. Under slightly different circ.u.mstances, he could imagine a reality where the roles could be reversed. When faced with that kind of experience, would he be looking at them any different than they were looking at him?
The procession finally stopped in an opening near the village center that could probably be considered the equivalent of the town square. Once there, Jack saw a ring of six seats, three on each side, set a couple paces apart and facing each other. Once they reached the seats, the guards protecting the gnoll delegation separated and stepped away to the edges of the clearing. The largest of the three gnolls, a creature nearly a foot taller than Jack despite his stooped posture, motioned towards one set of chairs. Jack nodded, and the three of them took a seat, with him in the middle. The gnolls took seats opposite, with the largest taking the middle. The stooped gnoll stroked the place on his greying muzzle where a beard would have been as he appraised each of them in turn.
Once everyone was seated, a grim silence settled between the two groups, until it was finally broken by the largest gnoll.
"Vell, I muzt zay, vhen I voke zhis morning, zhis iz not zhe day I expected." He said. He let the words hang in the air for a long moment before he finally continued. "I veel it iz reasonable to ask for zhe names of zhose with vhich ve are parlaying."
"I"m Jack." Jack said, resting a hand on his chest. He motioned to his left and right. "And this is Rose, and Farlo. I"m the one responsible for this expedition, although Farlo here is in actual command of most of the forces."
The head gnoll nodded, then did the same.
"Gragh"mah is my name. This is Shegh"fan, and Harg"shez. Ve are, outzide of zhe chieftain, zhe ones in charge of zhis tribe."
"It is a pleasure to meet you all." Jack said.
Gragh"mah looked at Jack for a long moment, before finally saying, "we shall see."
He cleared his throat, then spoke again.
"We are prepared to cease hostilities, as it seems, are you. Considering the fact that you are seeking talks now, there are only two possibilities. Either you do not have the numbers to pursue the fight further, or you believe more can be gained from future cooperation than the annihilation of our tribe."
He paused for a moment, seeming to gauge Jack and the others" reactions, before continuing.
"Lacking the ability to know for sure which it is, I shall take the more generous interpretation. We the elders are willing to seek cooperation. In fact, the path of war our chieftain has led our people down has been opposed by the majority of us from the start. But that counts for nothing when the chiefdom is seized by a leader with more powerl.u.s.t than sense, and more prowess than any who would dare oppose him. So we have been forced to play along with his whims, as even more and more of our number meet unfortunate ends." He said, his face grim.
"But he is still in charge at this very moment. Where is he? And what"s stopping him from coming in here and overrulling you all as soon as he sees what is happening here?" Farlo interjected, leaning forward.
"The shaman spends much of his time in trance. That he doesn"t spend in trance he spends toying with that blue devil he took from the last raid." Harg"shez, the smallest of the three gnolls, replied.
Jack and Rose both sat forward at the mention of Eleanor.
"That"s Eleanor!" Rose said.
"Oh, you know this creature?" Gragh"mah asked.
Jack looked at Harg"shez.
"Where is she?" He asked.
Harg"shez sucked his teeth.
"Chieftain"s had her bound in his bedchamber the last few days. Reckon that"s where she still is." He said.
Jack returned his attention to Gragh"mah.
"That girl is the main reason we"re here." Jack explained. When Farlo loudly cleared his throat, Jack backpedaled and added, "well, one of the main reasons."
"I see." Gragh"mah said, steepling his fingers. "Well, she is of no interest to any of the rest of us. She is solely his concern, and no one else"s."
"But I don"t understand. If you"re not the one"s in charge here, how can you make any deals with us?" Rose asked. "What good does Ellie being no concern of yours do us if the shaman still rules the tribe?"
"That is a valid question." Farlo said, agreeing.
"I see your concern." Gragh"mah said, nodding. "Well, let me allay those concerns by stating simply that our ability to keep any agreements we make here will hinge on us being in charge at the time they are meant to take effect."
"Which means for you to keep your word, the shaman will have to be removed from power." Rose said, filling in the blanks.
"That is an accurate conclusion." Gragh"mah agreed.
"And that"s where we come in. You are willing to agree to terms, so long as one of the terms we meet is ensuring your current chieftain is dealt with." Jack said.
"In so many words." Shegh"fan, the third gnoll emissary said, speaking for the first time.
"I personally agree to that term." Jack said. "I have a score to settle with Rawgh"faz, and if removing him makes the rest of this work, all the better." He said, sitting up in his chair. "But before we continue, now that I"ve made that concession, I need to know what we"re getting in return."
Gragh"mah chuckled.
"Not one for delicate negotiation, I take it." He said.
He leaned back in his chair.
"Very well. In exchange for the removal of Rawgh"faz from power, your party"s support in eliminating any loyalist troops he has here in the village, and your support of our claim as ruling elders, we will offer the following concessions- First, all prisoners taken by the shaman and his loyalists will be released to you, including your blue devil. Second, as a show of good faith, any wealth taken from the shaman"s personal h.o.a.rd, or that of his loyalist subordinates, is yours to keep as plunder. Third, our clan will agree to cease raiding non-gnoll settlements, on the condition that our tribe is provided resources and support for agricultural development. This support will serve to remove the need for us to raid in the first place, as in most cases before Rawgh"faz, raiding was done solely for survival necessities, rather than prisoners or plunder."
The gnoll steepled his finger again, and looked from one to the next at each of them.
"Are these terms agreeable?"
Jack looked to Rose, who nodded, and then to Farlo, who was looking hard at the gnoll trio. Finally, after a long moment, he nodded as well.
"The Green Brotherhood and all affiliated parties accept these terms." He said.
"And Rose and I accept them as well." Jack said.
Gragh"mah smiled widely for the first time.
"Excellent."
He stood up from his chair, followed closely by the other two.
"Shall we get started?"