He clears his throat and takes another pull before continuing. "The gauntlet was thrown and the challenge accepted as each kingdom mustered troops and spells for the coming fight. It was going to be glorious." He coughs and regains his momentum. "From the very beginning they fought without regard to ethics. One of our impetuous Avians had left himself open to attack and no less than four of the dire provinces took advantage. The first month of the war left us at a distinct disadvantage. However, we were nothing if not tenacious!"
"We fought back with muscle, stealth, and magic. The very air shimmered with the power of the spells used to divine their strengths and, eventually, to weaken their resolve. The shadows shrank in fear of the masses of thieves and assassins that covered their lands striking down resources, warriors, and mages alike. Massive armies strode the ground like opposing forces of nature and the sounds of their collision rent the very land apart!!"
Another drink and his tankard is empty. He motions for another and clears his throat before beginning his tale once again. "It seemed that the enemy could not attack a target without bringing two or three compatriots into the fighting. Every time the news showed an attack it was followed by two or three more on the same target. In response we had decided that the best tactics would be the same tactics. When one of their provinces suicided against our people, we returned his attack twelve-fold in the course of a single month."
"By February YR 7 we had completely shut down the production and offense of their biggest attackers. At this point we recieved a threat from a lazy attacking province; the result, predictably, being his volunteering as our next target. They offered us a mutual peace to end the war and yet in the same day a massive four province force tore into one of our provinces with horrible destruction. Days later their cowardly king renounced his throne and loyalty and fled like a whipped dog. Soon afterwards the blowhard walled up his province against further attacks and hid along with the only province that had actually tried to fight back. It was a glorious month!"
His vision clouds over for a moment as he regains his composure. "Many in our kingdom, and in my province in particular, paid for these victories with their lives. The price for some was almost too heavy to bear. On March YR7 hundreds of my best troops, wizards, and peasants lost their lives to massed assassinations and magic. This was a taste of what others had been going through this whole time and we had finally felt the brunt. The best was yet to come however. On April YR7 seven more provinces fled this kingdom of cowards instead of surrendering. The joy felt throughout the kingdom was enormous! They had gone from 24 provinces to 16 in only four months."
"It took an entire month, during a cease fire, for the remaining battered provinces to regain their wits about them long enough to elect a new king. His hand was holding a white flag within minutes of gaining the oft disregarded title." He takes a breath, orders meat and bread, and smiles with contemplation. "The moral of the story is: The only thing needed for Evil to triumph is for good kingdoms to get overconfident."
The fire merrily eat its ration of fuel. The old knight thoughtfully eats his meal. And the inn cheerily invites other travelers in.
