“Good. And really, what’s the point of wrecking your own tax base? All right; if a bonded Company or one of its members surrenders, they are permitted to leave the battlefield unmolested and report to a neutral point. They’ll get ransomed by the Guild; that’s why the individual members pay their dues every year. You know about the individual Code, so I won’t go into that.” Tarma leaned against the sand-table. “They won’t switch sides in mid-contract, they won’t follow a mutiny against their employer, they won’t fight a suicide-cause, but they’ll do their damnedest to get their employer out of a bad situation in one piece. Because of the twin Codes, bonded Companies are more reliable and trustworthy than unbonded. That’s why they’re expensive.”

Daren examined the table again. “I’ve got a bad situation here. I think maybe I’d better take out a loan, or go find a buyer for some Crown properties and go the distance for two bonded Companies.”

“What would you do if I set up the situation like this?” Tarma moved two of her counters away and placed them farther along the Border.

Daren studied the table again. “Hire one bonded and one free-lance, and see if I couldn’t negotiate with my neutral neighbor to take a stand. Those two Companies are threatening his territory, too.”

“Good. What about this?” She pulled the counters off the table entirely.

“The bonded foot and the free-lance guerrillas. Then I’d arrange things this way—” He set up his counters against hers, accepting the two mercenary counters from Kerowyn. “—and I’d put the free-lancers right here. They’re not going to pillage my countryside because that’s all rocky hillside; once I move the sheepherders out, there’s nothing there to pillage, which means every profitable move for them to make will be against the enemy and not against me.” He moved around the table, and looked at the situation from Tarma’s angle. “What’s more, they can’t mutiny, they’re on the end of the supply line and all I have to do is cut them off. I think they’re relatively safe to trust there.”

Tarma studied his setup, and smiled, slowly. “Excellent. Let’s play this and see how it runs. Kero? The first move is yours.”