The son of the devil

Bad news

It was soon a month since Vlad awoke in the new life. He recovered, even though he was still feeling short of breath some days. He was able to walk up and down the endless stairs leading to his room. He even considered asking Tanase to help him in getting started a training regimen in which he could develop his endurance and dexterity better.

He was currently busy contemplating the gardens while seated on a bench. The large dark circles around his eyes were starting to fade and his gaunt face was starting to fill.

There were some things that bothered him, like some dreams he was having, his lack of explanation for how he got here. But what was bothering him the most was the recent development in court. The Divan boyars started losing their patience about him disregarding their requests of dismissing his army.

He was starting to wonder if he wouldn’t be better just getting the army over and make some of the distinguished heads roll on the ground as a lesson to the rest. A couple of them stood at the forefront of his thoughts. But for now, he decided to bide his time, letting them play their cards and see where that would lead. If he learned something since he reached this place, it was not to trust anyone. Maybe except for his old and ever talkative guard. Speaking of which, he was approaching.

By the way his eyes were shining on his scarred face and the limber in his steps, he was in great mood. Once in front of him, he bowed, while the scars around his lips shifted, making Vlad realize he was smiling. He didn’t know why that unsettled him so much.

“Master, there are some bad news and some good news. Which one should I start first?”

Vlad hesitated for a moment before responding.

“Say the bad ones first. At least the good ones will sweeten the blows.”

The old man fidgeted for a moment, playing with the sword in his hand.

“Vladislav finally decided to make his move. He’s helped by a contingent of troops sent by the voivode of Transylvania. And Albu and three quarters of the Divan decided to side with him.”

“Really? A bit early for me to be ready to act as I’d have wanted. How many troops are estimated to be under his command?”

“As I heard, he has about four thousand of his own men. The voivode gave him another three thousand and, if the great boyars join him, about ten thousand more. Roughly seventeen thousand. But that could vary depending if other country boyars decide to join him. If they do, than that number could swell to about double that.”

Vlad smiled, shaking his head.

“And I have a lousy number of barely five thousand. Tell me Tanase, how am I to defeat an army that exceeds mine by at least three to one? During Albu’s last attempt, we got lucky, but now how am I supposed to win?”

“Well, there’s a way, but I don’t know if I should mention it. Not by the way you reacted the last times I mentioned it to you.”

“The marriage, again? What is so special about that girl that you keep mentioning her to me every chance you get? I’m not in mood for loving right now. As you mentioned just now, the country is on the verge of civil war once again.”

“No, but you could use her father’s troops. Just consider it, at least. She’s young, good looking, coming from a good family. What more could you want?”

Vlad smiled looking at the old man.

He was hell-bent on seeing him married no matter what. If the country burns, tough luck. At least his master would be married to a great woman and if lucky, soon to sire some descendants. At that thought Tanase cleared his throat as he stood straighter looking at his young master. He looked a bit different since he woke up after the last battle. Not at the face or anything like that. But the way he acted, the way he moved and talked. Maybe that battle was the turning point in his life. Previously he was but a spoilt brat walking around acting cocky. That changed recently. For the better, from what he could see. Only if he would accept to get married.

Vlad cleared his throat, making Tanase get his head cleared of the thoughts running through his mind.

“Uh… what?”

“Didn’t you hear what I just said? I asked you to get the Divan ready for a meeting tonight. Nobody is to be missing. Any of those missing will be considered traitors and executed together with their families. No more walking on eggshells. Summon the commanders to me in half an hour. Get moving.”

Vlad walked towards his room to get ready, while Tanase stood there for a moment before walking towards the barracks, the scars around his lips trembling.

When the commanders arrived, Vlad was seated on a heavy armchair, holding a sword over his knees. He looked at the floor in silence, making them feel uneasy under the heavy silence that enveloped the room. Nobody dared break the silence.

Finally when nobody came anymore, Vlad raised his face and looked at each of them for a few moments, measuring them from head to toe. The ones under his scrutiny felt squirmy, but tried to suppress the urge to take a piss. After all, they were more than twenty grown men that passed through life and death battles. And in front of them was a young man, barely out of his childhood.

Vlad started to smile once he was done with the initial show of presence. He didn’t know why he did it, but he found out he liked making them feel uneasy. Maybe not the smartest move considering the situation he found himself in, but to hell with it.

Holding the sword in his left by the scabbard, he stood facing them. Feeling a presence at his right, he turned his head and smiled seeing the reassuring ugly face standing beside him.

“Tanase, is this all? Barely twenty out of what? Fifty?

“Forty three, master. The others are uncounted for since last night. Didn’t answer the call this morning.”

Vlad nodded, while pursing his lips and blowing out the air he was holding in his lungs. He ignored the stab of pain when he did it.

“So what should I understand from this? More than half of the commanders left. How about the ordinary troops? How many left out of the previous five thousand? More than half, too. Right?”

One of the commanders nodded.

“Indeed, your highness. Out of five thousand, we’re left with seven hundred twenty four men. Including us, that would be seven hundred forty five.”

“f**k!” Vlad couldn’t stop himself from swearing hearing the current report. He slumped back in his chair with eyes closed, gritting his teeth.

“Seven hundred! I have seven hundred to face almost twenty thousand! We had slim chances when there were five thousand. Now? Resisting with only seven hundred is a joke.”

Standing, he turned to Tanase.

“Tell me, how can I resist like that?”

“Honestly, you can’t. But, you still can get the troops we talked about earlier.”

Vlad laughed, but there was no joy in it.

“Yes, I can get them. But what is the point of it now? We can only prolong the inevitable and drag more to their grave. So, no point in doing that. Tonight, I’ll step down the throne and walk away.”

The commanders looked at each other, sighing in relief. So, they won’t have to lose their lives fighting for a lost cause.

With a waive of his hand, Vlad dismissed them. With a final bow, they left. He felt the heavy hand on his right shoulder squeezing reassuringly. He patted it back.

***

He felt frustrated looking at the slim silhouette encased in mail in front of him. The sword hanging at the hips by a leather belt adorned with silver was clinking with every move. Only the blue eyes, as determined as ever, were visible on the face from under the mane of blonde hair hanging over the shoulders. The rounded helmet was under the left arm.

He was almost proud by the pose, but not enough to get him to forget the recent interest in the boy holding the throne.

“Father, I told you to get his consent, not to force his hand!”

The eyes were flaming looking at him and he smiled looking at her losing control. Maybe it was more than a simple childish infatuation. But, there was still time to fix it at the meeting that night.

“Well, say something! Explain why did you have to do that? It’s not fair and you know that.”

“Child, you’ll understand later. Later, you’ll see what your father did was for your own good. Now, go! At eight tonight we’ll attend that Divan meeting together.”