Tulon, messenger that king sent with the diplomat party, has a habbit to see things in a bit more righteous way than it realy is. But he is nice about it.
Messenger Tulon had returned early. General Onul, ruler of all dwarvenkind remembered name of this specific messenger. For the General it was but a minor detail, however it meant a great deal for the messenger. And Tulon had been sent out with a very important task. Had he came back late, it could be attributed to accidents, difficulties or simple laziness, however, for him to come back early meant something else. Tulon faced something he couldn’t deal with on his own. At worst, it meant a complete failure of given task. At best, it was something that required General’s personal attention. Either way, Onul would need to deal with it, and time was a precious thing for any ruler. Old dwarf looked at a pile of parchment sitting on his golden table. He didn’t like the table; gold always was cold to touch. He liked what was on it even less – letters from and to nobility. Many nobles had to be convinced to approve his deals with dynasauri. He sighed and turned towards massive gold door that protected his privacy.
-Let him in. - General shouted to guards on the other side of the doors. Fist sized locks whirred quietly as guards opened the way for Tulon to walk in. Messenger walked in quickly and fell on one knee.
-I have news, sir.
-I figured that much from your early arrival. You were supposed to come back with diplomats I sent. The question is, are these good news you bring, or bad ones?
-That depends on your choice, sir. I left a man in my stead, so work continues if we’ll ever require it. Local lands are being surveyed over there as we speak. However, while on my search for a perfect spot for new fortress, I found a thing that had to be reported without delay. It seems that merchants whom were transporting coal caravan hadn’t all died at the hands of purple xelics. They chose to guard the shipment until a search party arrived to investigate their disappearance. For that purpose, they started a fortress in nearby caverns. They seemed eager enough so change their merchantilistic lifestyle for something closer to the ground though, and probably intend to stay to protect those roads from further attacks.
-So very nice of them, although that causes some diplomatic problems, as agreement with dynasauri is yet to be confirmed. How were the negotiations going when you left?
-Dynasauri are warriors at heart. The way they see it, they get a discount to various goods, and tribute of their choice in exchange for allowing best metalworkers around to move closer to them. As I was leaving, they were only arguing on some minor details. Deal is as good as done.
-Well, if anyone asks, that fortress got there after the deal. No need to mention anything about it to anyone who is not going there right now. As for the settlers you chose, they will join those merchants that are already there. I’ll want you to go with the migrants though and tell their current leader that they have my blessing to build and prosper, as long as they trade with dynasauri. And should they seem reluctant to accept this blessing, remind them that during this time of peace our army has grown so very large. Before you go though, - General Onul pulled an emerald incrusted ring from one of his fingers, extending it to surprised messenger – you have done well, Tulon and I did promise you a reward. You’ll be my special messenger, for more discrete tasks. You will be rewarded for as long as you continue your good work.
-Thank you, General. It shall be done by your will.