“Here they’ll still be close to their bases and they can use the railway and the Snake River to bring up supplies. I’m going to fight one or two battles, making them come to me because they’re in a hurry, bleed them, and then withdraw westward north of the Columbia, harassing them with the river to guard my right flank, and ultimately joining up with the force the High King is putting together back around Goldendale in Aurea County. You will hold this city and your keeps; if they leave enough men to invest you closely . . . Good.”

“Good?” someone asked.

“Good because anyone sitting in front of your gate is out of the fight just as much as if you’d chopped his head off. Or better, because the enemy still has to feed him. If they don’t invest you closely, come out and raid their lines of supply. And we’re going to scorch the earth; I don’t want one kernel of grain or one sheep left for them—”

That led to howls; they subsided quickly faced with the obvious necessity, especially since the Count backed her energetically, along with de Grimmond. When they were listening again she continued:

“That’s why we’ve built all those castles; castellation makes an attacker’s life a misery. We’ll draw them west, and each mile they advance will make them weaker and drive them mad with frustration, like chewing on meat full of gristle. Then, when they’re stretched out and worn down, the High King will bring all our forces against them in a position he chooses and that they can’t get around. By then they’ll be desperate, with winter coming on and a hostile wasteland behind them; they’ll have to go all-out to beat us so that they can get at our supplies. They won’t be able to refuse battle, which means that they’ll have to fight on our ground and our terms. We estimate that His Majesty, Artos, will be able to muster around eighty-five thousand for the decisive battle. If we win that, we win the war—though it won’t be over that day. And that, gentlemen, is our strategy.”

And I hope nobody is stupid enough to ask exactly where and when Artos plans to hit them. Athena, gray-eyed Defender of the Polis, you who love the warrior’s skill and care and craft in defense of home and hearth and those we are sworn to protect, let this work!