Page 158 of The Infernal Battalion

“Terms?” Raesinia blinked. “You’re going to surrender?”

“It seemed to the representatives of the people to be the prudent course, for the good of the Vordanai nation,” d’Andorre said.

“Obviously the situation has changed,” Marcus said. “The Borelgai alliance—”

“Will not be enough,” d’Andorre said. There was real emotion in his voice. “The emperor will be here before aid can arrive. Do you know what will happen if he takes Vordan City by storm?”

“Do you?” Raesinia said. “I don’t know what he’s promised you, but you can’t be naive enough to imagine that Janus will let you keep your fancy new title. Or that he’ll pay any mind to the Deputies-​General once he’s crowned himself by force.”

“He hasn’t promised me anything,” d’Andorre said. He blinked, and Raesinia was shocked to see tears in his eyes. “Your Highness. Please believe I do not expect to benefit from this. Once we surrender, I would be a threat to the emperor. Exile is the best I could hope for, along with many of my colleagues.” He paused to collect himself. “But I will not allow this city to be destroyed. The revolution and the coup were bad enough. If we surrender, the emperor will be merciful. If we force him to fight, God alone knows what he will do.”

“Janus wouldn’t destroy Vordan City,” Marcus said. But there was a note of uncertainty in his voice that Raesinia well understood. I would have said Janus would never turn against us. But maybe it’s not Janus in control anymore.

“The Deputies feel that the risk is unacceptable,” d’Andorre said. “I will not demand that you surrender yourself, Your Highness. But we will not spend more Vordanai lives to save your crown. Take your fleet, return to Borel, and let the people of Vordan have peace.”

*

“The hell of it is, I think he’s sincere,” Marcus said, when they were back on the Dominant. Raesinia paced the short length of the chart room, while he sat at the table.

“He is,” she said. “At first I thought he was reaching for power, but it’s worse than that. He thinks of this as a self-​sacrifice. He’s doing what has to be done for the good of everyone else.” She ground her teeth.

“It is noble, from a certain point of view.”

“Leave it to the Deputies to finally do something for the right reasons when it’s totally the wrong thing to do.” She looked up, heart pounding. “It is the wrong thing to do, isn’t it?”

“Of course,” Marcus said.

“I’m serious,” Raesinia said, rounding on him. “Should we be considering d’Andorre’s point? Am I such a better ruler than Janus that it’s worth sending people to die for me?”

“Raes.” Marcus stood up and came over to her. She leaned forward against his chest as he put his arms around her shoulders. “It’s not just about you. You said it to d’Andorre—​do you think Janus would put up with the Deputies-​General? If we give in, everything the people fought for in the revolution will be lost.”

“The people were willing to make Janus First Consul,” Raesinia said.

“Because he was good at winning battles,” Marcus said. “That doesn’t make him a good king. And we both know that’s not the important point here. It’s not just Janus we have to worry about.”

The Beast. Whatever that is. She imagined a vast monster descending from the north to swallow Vordan whole.

After a few moments of silence, she pulled away from him and took a deep breath.

“Thank you,” she said. “I didn’t mean to... I don’t know. I just thought...”

“I understand,” Marcus said quietly.

And he does, Raesinia thought. On a battlefield, soldiers followed orders, and officers gave them, but they didn’t decide whether to fight, whether it was worth it. That was reserved for queens and generals.

“All right,” she said. “So d’Andorre and the Deputies are wrong. What are we going to do about it?”

“We could probably take the city, if we had to,” Marcus said with a frown. “Unload the troops downriver, storm the water batteries from behind. Once we have men-of-war in the harbor, the Deputies would have to give in. But...”

“That would be worse than surrendering to Janus,” Raesinia said. “If I have to take my own capital by storm, then I’m the usurper. Besides, between losses and desertion, we’d have no chance against Janus when he got here.”

“Agreed,” Marcus said. “So we have to get d’Andorre to change his mind.”

“There are troops already in the city,” Raesinia said. “What if you appealed to them, asked them to arrest the Deputies?”

Marcus sucked a breath through his teeth. “It’s... possible. But I think they’d be just as likely to arrest me. These aren’t veterans from the Murnskai campaign who know me. They’re fresh recruits.”

Raesinia nodded. “And if they split, then there’ll be fighting in the city, and we’re back to the first option.”