Herald of Steel

Metztil called for a meeting with the elders the very next day arrival after getting back, wishing to discuss Alexander's offer.

"Chief, this was not what was promised to us."

And after hearing the details of it, the first to raise the objection was a young middle aged looking man with a thick mustache, "The Helvati people have been wishing for much more."

Named Tepin, this was Metztil's biggest rival.

And towards this troublemaker, Metztil let out an impatient chirp, swatting his palms in a hurried manner,

"Everyone knows that deal was nothing more than hyperbolics. I will not bother wasting any time arguing with you on the details. Alexander has already drawn out his red line. Just tell me, do you agree or not?"

"....." The council of elders did not expect Metztil to be this impatient and turned to look at each other to see what the other thought.

Preferably they would have liked to sleep on the matter for a few days. After all, they had just been informed of the matter and it did not seem prudent to jump to answer so quickly.

Hence the eldest and most respected of them, an elder woman who was also the former chief shaman coughed up in a rough, gravelly, voice,

"Do not be so hasty my child. This requires careful consideration. Let us wait a few days. Talk to the other tribes. We will be deciding on the future of the tribe after all…. perhaps even life or death.

"

Metztil visibly frowned after hearing this.

Because although it sounded all good and sensible, he knew a major source of his troubles originated from this old hag, who was Tepin's mother.

Without her considerable backing, Metztil would have made a move on the man long, long ago.

Needless to say, he had no goodwill towards her advice.

So, just like his wife advised, Metztil insisted,

"We do not have the time to wait and discuss things like a bunch of old coots. Alexander plans to strike the enemy within this week. We need to be there by then. Yes or no, we must agree here and now."

Metztil used the time limit set by Alexander to pressure the elders into giving him an answer here and now. Because he knew the more he waited, the more complex a web they could spin for him. For a straight forward man like him, that could only be disadvantageous. ʀά₦ỔꞖĘ𝓢

Not to mention, he, by principle, did not like dragging his feet- endlessly talking and discussing like these elders.

As a man of action, he much preferred to resolve things the old fashioned way.

Metztil's not so subtle jab at the former chief shaman's age did not go unnoticed by any, and the old lady's wrinkled face darkened to form a greater frown.

No woman liked being poked about her age, and that went for even someone as old as her.

So the elder lady was about to chastise this younger generation for such a rude comment when suddenly another man interrupted with a generous hum,

"Mmmm… I too agree with the chief. Although this is not exactly what was promised to us, the deal is not too bad either. If we were to overreach, we might risk losing it all. Then we will have no place to hide our tears."

The one to express such unconditional support was Metztil's only staunch ally in the council, a tall, slim man with a small stumble named Yaotl.

"The people deserve better. This is not what was promised to them." However, the support was instantly and loudly attacked by Tepin, suppressing the much less influential man.

Then ignoring the sullen man, the moustached man turned to almost glare at his chief,

"Metztil, like my mother said, we should at least discuss the matter with the tribes. It will hardly take more than a day or two. We can even send runners right now!"

Tepin very much wanted to contact these external tribes because among them were a lot of his supporters. He had promised their chiefs various benefits such as tributes and women to back his claim of replacing Metztil.

Thus naturally he was anxious to contact his donors and summon them for this great meeting.

And when Metztil brought up the matter of being short on time, the clever man snorted disdainfully,

"We have not even agreed to the deal but you are already sitting and standing to that man's order Metztil. Heh, I never knew you were such a lackey of those outsiders."

"Bam! You…. what did you say, Tepin? What did you say? I dare you…. " The mere insulation that was expressed by these words was enough to send the much more passionate Metztil into a blind rage, gnashing his teeth while looking at Tepin as if he could swallow the man whole.

In the Helvati, fist fights and even full fledged brawls were hardly uncommon during such meetings and there were even records of chiefs simply killing their advisers, or vice versa during such incidents.

And for now, it looked like Metztil was ready to repeat exactly that, clenching his fist and getting to pounch on the man.

Too bad, this was also exactly what Tepin wanted.

Once such a fight broke out, the ensuing chaos would naturally mean the breakdown of the meeting for today.

It would be very hard for Metztil to reconvene the elders anytime soon.

These old foxes could use a hundred different excuses like feigning illness, promise of other appointments, or simply forgetfulness to dodge Metztil.

Today they had been unable to do such a thing because they were too curious to know of the deal's results. They had to come lest they get left out of some important decisions.

So the Helvati people got to witness a rare sight where the elders were gathered in one place.

But if Metztil were to start a brawl, that very somber atmosphere of the meeting would shatter. And by the end of throwing all the punches, kicks, and jabs, most men would be too busy nursing their broken, bloody for a few days to care about any meetings or deals.

A few days that Tepin could very well use.

However, just as Metztil was about to pounce into the trap, he was saved by the unlikeliest of allies.

"Now now… calm down. Tepin, that was highly inappropriate of you. Metztil is still your chief. This is no way to talk to him! You should apologize."

The rough, wizened voice of the old ex shaman was like a cool, temperate breeze blowing over the incensed Metztil and it made him feel suddenly very calm.

Or perhaps the more accurate word would be 'surprised', because this was the first time he had seen the mother son duo disagree when going up against him.

It made Metztil wonder if it was a 'good cop- bad cop' thing.

Tepin pretended to be the bad man pushing Metztil towards the edge, while his mother swooped in like a hero at the last second to save the battered chief.

Such a thing would not be their first rodeo.

All such surprises were however quickly erased as Tepin's mother quickly spoke up, now turning to Metztil to lightly chide,

"But what Tepin said is indeed right. Who is this Alexander anyway? Why should we dance to whatever he says? He needs our help far more than we need his!"

Ah, here it came.

Although it might have seemed like she had just saved Metztil, she was actually sending the man a warning.

By clearly buttressing her son's words, she was saying that Metztil should agree to delay the decision, or next time, he would not be so lucky.

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"..." Metztil had hardly ever won against his mother son pair, their eloquence, and scheming proving too strange and mysterious to see through for this simple chief.

So other than producing a bitter face, he could do little and began to resolve himself to the fact that his scheme had failed.

Once Tepin got his way and the other tribes got involved, they would surely drag their feet until the deadline passed and use that excuse to easily depose him.

The thought made Metztil extremely aggrieved, as he saw all the power, wealth and women he had turning to dust before him, before and he and his family joined that pile, to be then all be blown away by a gust of wind.

Then moments later that regret turned to anger, and unnoticed by anybody, hidden by the table, his hands grabbed for the dirk on his waist.

If he could not stay in power by diplomacy, he would do so with force.

He had held off on doing something so radical because Tepin and his other allies also processed a significant force themselves, and the last thing Metztil wanted to do was start a civil war involving not only the Helvati, but many of the other surrounding tribes as well.

It would have been a tribal 'world war'.

And other than considering the devastaion such a huge scale conflict would cause, severely weakening or even destroying the natives as a separate identity, the much greater reason behind Metztil's benevolence was becuase he thought he had very little hope of winning.

However now with Alexander joining the equation, the calculus had suddenly changed!

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