Depthless Hunger

Chapter 204: A City Falls Without a Blow Struck

With a violent barbarian standing in the background, negotiations proceeded with surprising ease. Kai had met with representatives from the mines, who indeed seemed much better off than the slaves in most other city states. The workers didn't love the merchant nobles, but they were afraid of what the revolutionary army might do if it arrived and didn't want him to overthrow the city.

They were more amenable to the real plan.

In theory, both sides agreed on a new contract, in which the mine workers would be granted a percentage of rising profits, better working conditions, and certain guaranteed rights. In exchange, they agreed to reduce wages when the profits ratio fell and offer no support to the revolutionary armies moving across Krysal.

Both sides negotiated intensely, yet they kept glancing toward Kai. They knew that any contract came down to enforcement and they were wondering if he understood that.

When it was finally done, Kai made a short speech about how they should all get along and left. On the way out he saw the crystallier couple again, watching nervously. It looked like they wanted to speak to him, and they had their own conversation solely in exchanged glances before the wife spoke up.

"Do you really think this will work? The deal will fall apart as soon as you leave."

"They seemed to negotiate seriously in there," Kai said. "Do you think the terms are unfair?"

"They'll never stick with fair terms," the husband told him. "And if they associate you with them, they'll just be more motivated to renege on the deal."

"Workers are already being executed across Krysal and when I arrived you were blockading them in their mines. I think that ship has sailed."

He could tell that the crystallier couple thought he was naive, but they couldn't deny his point about rising tensions. In any case, Kai pretended to have no second thoughts and joined in the official celebration marking the agreement. The soldiers retreated, the workers began working again, and both sides sharpened their knives.

For his part, Kai stuck around as the merchants of the city attempted to distract him with luxury. Many vied to host him, some explicitly offered him deals, and a few attempted to throw women at him, then men. Kai refused every offer from the nobility, even though he no longer viewed himself as committed - he and Yurwa had spoken plainly about that.

There were some very grateful women working in the mines, however. Kai had cynically planned to make a point of refusing all offers from the lower classes, but he actually found himself fond of some of them. Unlike the workers he'd known near Yulthens, here the workers hadn't been choking on brutality their entire lives. They had hopes for the future and even believed that they could be real citizens of Teraklis, if only they could gain enough leverage.

So what he'd planned as a diversion ended up as a couple of actual dalliances with the women there. They both knew it was only temporary and there was a sort of freedom in that. It might lack the warmth of his relationship with Juray, but there was passion and relief. He almost dragged things out with them because he was enjoying himself, but he had to follow the plan.

And so he spent less time in the mines, pretending to grow bored and be drawn in by the luxury. With every passing day he let himself ignore the workers. He no longer mentioned the contract or asked if it was being followed to the letter.

Eventually he left, and they all thanked him for his help. Then, less than a day after he officially departed, the merchants broke their agreement and began imprisoning workers who had been part of the negotiations.

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That was when Kai returned and started the avalanche.

He had debated how best to make his statement: Infernotoad's Burst had the appeal of a massive flaming boulder, or he could have used acid for more visible damage. In the end he decided that an avalanche was already dramatic enough and just used his bare hands, since that allowed for better control of the falling rocks. By the time it was over, two of the primary mines had been absolutely buried without a soul being harmed.

All of the merchants gathered to discuss the matter, as he had known they would. The crystallier couple stood guard at the doors, but when Kai walked up to them they stepped aside. He strolled into the chamber and slammed his copy of the contract down on the table in front of all the merchant nobles.

"This is the enforcement mechanism." Kai didn't shout, in fact he lowered his voice as he spoke into the stunned silence. "I've just collapsed two of your mines, which the workers predict will take months to excavate. That hurts both sides, but the workers are willing to pay that price for a fair deal."

"This is absurd." It was the woman who had called for his death before, so Kai gave her a savage grin that cut off whatever she had been about to say.

"Didn't you all shake hands and agree that you'd made fair terms? If you ever decide to break the contract again, I will be back. Each time, another mine goes down, until I level the entire mountain if need be. Now, think hard about whether or not the terms you negotiated are really so bad."

All around the room, the merchants stared at him and swallowed. No doubt the stories about the revolution, both real and rumored, were running through their minds.

"You think I'm a barbarian who relies on brute force." Kai shrugged. "I am. Just remember that you're no different: you thought you could break your deal because you have the power here. If you want to take that path, you'd better make damn sure you actually have the upper hand."

He spun on his heel and left the room in silence. It wouldn't last forever, he knew that, but for one moment he'd put the fear of hell into the council.

When he started to walk away, the crystallier couple followed him. He stopped at the gate out and turned back to them, waiting expectantly.

"They might fear you for now," the husband said, "but for how long? If you ever die, or leave, your 'enforcement mechanism' will vanish. What then?"

"Isn't that up to you?" Kai looked between the two of them. "You're the hammer that they use to break any resistance. You said you owe them debts, but who enforces those contracts?"

"We are citizens of Teraklis. We don't want to see it destroyed."

"Then see that you actually work together instead of attacking one another. Trust me, the conflict you have here is nothing compared to the cities where crystallier heads are going on spikes. A wise man once told me that war is an expensive business. Think about how much your city might benefit from avoiding the violence to come."

The pair glanced at one another, then the wife spoke up quietly. "When you arrived, we didn't really believe that you wanted anything but violence. They said you wanted to destroy Krysal."

"Does Krysal mean just the merchants, or all Krysali?" Kai smiled at the two of them. "I'm glad we didn't have to kill each other. Despite what I said, most likely I won't be back. Actually enforcing the peace will be up to you."

With those words he turned and left them. He could tell that they were still a little skeptical and thought he was too much of an idealist. Well, Kai was perfectly willing to look naive in order to keep the last part of the plan a secret a little longer.

He had truly destroyed the entrance to two crystal mines, but not before extensive work within the tunnels. His dalliances in the mines, though they had been fun, had been a front to allow him to spend more time there. With his help, the miners had broken through from one of the other mines and now had total access to the allegedly closed mines.

Not only that, they had as much acid as he had been able to expel. They were already familiar with acid cultivation, because they had to import it from other city states, so they had begun to manufacture their own crystal weapons.

Truthfully, these workers didn't seem nearly as angry as the others, and they did seem to have a better position in life. They had actually urged him not to kill the merchants or fight the crystalliers, just help them gain enough leverage to stay at the bargaining table. Now they had the threat of his return on their side, and even after that threat was gone, they would have greatly increased strength. And maybe, if he had made any difference, the crystalliers wouldn't be so eager to attack.

It was far more than he could have imagined doing a year ago, but it wasn't much. Kai left the city of Teraklis and hoped that it would make it through the spreading revolution intact. If he'd taken one city state out of the war, that was more than he could have accomplished with force alone.