Elantris - Brandon Sanderson [249]
“I hear there are resistance fighters in Duladel,” Shuden suggested. “They harass caravans occasionally.”
All eyes turned toward Kaloo, who raised his hands palms forward. “Trust me, my friends, you do not want their help. The men of which you speak are mostly former republicans, like myself. They can duel one another with fine proficiency, but a syre isn’t much good against a trained solider, especially if he has five friends beside him. The resistance only survives because the Fjordells are too lazy to chase it out of the swamps.”
Shuden frowned. “I thought they were hiding in the caves of the Duladen Steppes.”
“There are several pockets of them,” Kaloo said smoothly, though Sarene detected a hint of uncertainty in his eyes. Who are you? she thought as the conversation moved forward.
“I think we should bring the people into it,” Lukel said. “Telrii has indicated that he intends to maintain the plantation system. If we encourage the common people to our cause, they should be willing to rise against him.”
“It could work,” Eondel said. “Lady Sarene’s plan to sharecrop my peasants has given them a taste of freedom, and they’ve grown far more self-confident over the last few months. But, it would take a great deal of time—you don’t train men to fight overnight.”
“Agreed,” Roial said. “Telrii will be Derethi long before we finish, and Hrathen’s proclamation will be law.”
“I could pretend to be Derethi for a while,” Lukel said. “If only while I’m planning the king’s demise.”
Sarene shook her head. “If we give Shu-Dereth that kind of foothold in Arelon, we’ll never be free of it.”
“It’s only a religion, Sarene,” Ahan said. “I think we should focus on real problems.”
“You don’t think Shu-Dereth is a ‘real problem,’ Ahan?” Sarene asked. “Why don’t you try and explain that to Jindo and Duladel?”
“She’s right,” Roial said. “Fjorden embraced Shu-Dereth as a vehicle for domination. If those priests convert Arelon, then Wyrn will rule here no matter who we put on the throne.”
“Then raising an army of peasants is out?” Shuden asked, bringing the conversation back on topic.
“Too time-consuming,” Roial said.
“Besides,” Kaloo noted, “I don’t think you want to throw this country into war. I’ve seen what a bloody revolution can do to a nation—it breaks the people’s spirit to fight one another. The men in the Elantris City Guard might be fools, but they are still your countrymen. Their blood would be on your hands.”
Sarene looked up at the comment, made without a hint of Kaloo’s normal flamboyance. Something about him made her increasingly suspicious.
“Then what?” Lukel said with exasperation. “We can’t fight Telrii and we can’t wait for him to convert. What do we do?”
“We could kill him,” Eondel said quietly.
“Well?” Sarene asked. She hadn’t expected that suggestion to come out quite so early in the meeting.
“It has merits,” Kiin agreed, showing a cold dispassion that Sarene had never seen in him before. “Assassinating Telrii would solve a lot of problems.”
The room fell quiet. Sarene felt a bitter taste in her mouth as she studied the men. They knew what she knew. She had determined long before the meeting began that this was the only way.
“Ah, one man’s death to save a nation,” Kaloo whispered.
“It seems the only alternative,” Kiin said with a shake of his head.
“Perhaps,” the Dula said. “Though I wonder if we aren’t underestimating the people of Arelon.”
“We already discussed this,” Lukel said. “We don’t have enough time to rally the peasants.”
“Not just the peasants, young Lukel,” Kaloo said, “but the nobility. Have you not sensed their hesitance to back Telrii? Have you not seen the discomfort in their eyes? A king with no support is no king at all.”
“And the Guard?” Kiin asked pointedly.
“I wonder if we couldn’t turn them,” Kaloo said. “Certainly they could be persuaded to see that what they have done is not right.”
“You” had become “we.” Sarene’s brow furled; she almost had it. There was something familiar about his words….
“It’s an interesting suggestion,” Roial