Vlad the Impaller Chapter 6

 The Lord reigns again.

6.

“Go in peace, Lord Vlad. The land does not need more wars. Nor cowards.” John reminded Lord Vlad then when they met outside of the court of the King.

“There was no war then, and will not be now. The cowardice fought when I was not there.” The Lord rode back and headed back to the Ottoman guards there at the border.

“I have returned and will not need to ride with me to my house.” Lord Vlad told the Ottoman. “My land is in a disarray and my presence will put a stop to that. Your column will not --- add to my ---credence as Lord. They will be seen as invaders. You must not act against my people, or we will have war then.”

“Our task was to deliver you safely back to your home. Until we do that, you are under our protection. We meant not hard to your people or invade your land. We are not barbarians.” The Kolagasi of the column told Lord Vlad.

“I know and you are doing a fine task there but we are in Wallachia. I need to be seen by my people as their ----leader.” Lod Vlad was plain in his words.

“I can understand your words, Lord Vlad. We will remain here and if you are in any danger, we will respond immediately.” It was an assurance but the Lord was glad that the column was obliging to his request. Lord Vlad rode on alone. It was an unusual sight but the people of Wallachia favored their Lord.

John Hunyadi sent words to Basarab II on the return of Lord Vlad II.

“Where is John?” Basarab II roared out.

“The Volvode of Transylvania was told not to get involved in the conflict here. As we speak, most Wallachians are celebrating the return of their Lord. Even the guards ----” The aide to the Volvode stopped then.

“I am the Volvode. Why are they not serving me?” Basarab II was upset.

“Volvode, the ---peasants are braver now ever since the peasant revolution then at Bolbalna.”

The first peasant revolt in the territory of modern Romania broke out due to the efforts taken by the bishop of Transylvania to collect the church taxes. Led by Anton Budai Nagy, the rebellious peasants, who called themselves "the commune of the rightful Hungarian and Romanian inhabitants of this part of Transylvania", established a fortified camp on the Bobâlna hill early in 1437. They fought two important battles against the noblemen;[164] the first one, at Bobâlna, was won by the peasants, and the second one, near the Apatiu River, had no clear winner. The leaders of the noblemen, the Saxons, and the Székelys, however, set up a "brotherly union" to join forces and crushed the peasants' resistance by the end of January 1438.

“They are --- they should be put down as in the last one. I am the Volvode.” Basarab II was frantic. “Where is the old man? I want him here now.”

The older adviser of Lord Vlad was brought to see Basarab II.

“You know your Lord well. Tell me what will he do when he returns?”

“My Lord will reclaim his right as Volvode. He will have his army with him.” The older adviser told

“His army? He does not have one. He rides with the Ottomans. They are not his army; they are his ---” Basarab II was unsure of the situation.

“Maybe, your lord had handed over Wallachia to the Ottoman. We will be ---” Basarab II motioned that possibility. “He is a traitor to the Wallachian’s then.”

“My Lord will not give the land and his subject to the Ottoman. I have served him long and knew his desires and --- loyalty as I knew yours.”

“Hell will be your place, old man. I will not –” Basarab II was upset and yet he felt fear. “You will ride to see your previous Lord. Tell him --- I did not let him return. He will ---”

“Lord Vlad II will challenge you.” The old adviser looked to the pretender on the seat. “The peasants will support him.”

“Hold your tongue, old man, or I will remove it.” Basarab II knew that his position was precarious and the only sensible thing to do was to avoid bloodshed.

“It will be as you have said. I will step down. He may come and take the land.” Basarab II relinquished his rank. “And get the lover of his with the son to return here. Tell him they were not harmed at all. At least not by me.”

Mircea II and his mother were never harmed. The family was loved by the people there and even the guards were loyal to the Lord himself. They may be the army of the Volvode but they knew which Volvode was theirs’, and not the pretender with the rank.  The family was sent off to a humble house a distance away with two servants in attendance. It was John’s idea that they were to remain hostage should Lord Vlad return. Well, the Lord did return but there was no negotiation of peace; only handover.

“Mother, Father is back. He returns to claim back his land.” Mircea II rushed to his mother. “We will be back to our home soon.”

“Mother, will father dislike me for failing to defend his land?” Mircea II looked to his mother.

“No, my son. Your father loves you. He will understand why you could not do what was then. He is still your father.” The mother looked at her son. “I wondered if Vlad is returning with him.”

“I don’t know, Mother. I did fail him, my father. How can I --- be a Volvode when he is no more when I have failed now.” Mircea II brooded on their plight of his. He was the eldest and rode with his father many times, but in battle, he was not allowed. He was told that he was young and his time was to come when he reached that age. His time came before he was ready and he failed.

“I will kill Basarab II now to redeem my failure.” Mircea stepped to the door and was blocked by Janus; the companion of his brother.

“Stay your step, Master Mircea. You cannot kill the Volvode alone. Your father will not have his son to be a killer.” Janus looked at the other. The previous companion of Vlad had requested to be a servant to the family there. He spent his time practicing when he had done the chores. It was his way to clear his mind.

“Janus, Vlad may be back.” Mircea shared the news with Janus. “We will be together once more.”

“Together, huh?” Janus smiled. He did not tell the other that he had joined the Hungarian army. He was joining King Ferdinand’s army.

“I am happy for you.” Janus excused himself and went to see his father. He met the other half from the house.

“Janus, I was coming to the house to see the Princess Cneajna. .” The older man had traveled on foot and needed the respite to regain his breath. “Is the Lady there?”

“Yes, Father. She is there.” Janus replied to the older man. “Father ---”

“Janus, do you know the Volvode is coming back? He may be in the town now.” The older man placed on a weak smile. “Vlad ---”

“Father, I am leaving,” Janus uttered it out.

“What? To where? Did you join the army? Why do you serve the Hungarians? You could have waited. Did you do that against my wishes?” The older man looked at his son. “Do you still think of me as your ---”

“Father---- I am still your son,” Janus replied to the older man. “I just had to grow up on my own. I have been with the Vlad family for too long. I want to be my own man.”

“And you joined the army? Which one?”

“The newly formed ---”

“Black Army? On your mother’s grave, I swore to care and protect you but now you ---- do this. What are you thinking about?”

“To protect my people and this land,” Janus replied once more. “The Black Army is ---”

“A group of mercenaries in the employ of the King. They are not an army. They are paid ---killers.” The older man said. “John Hunyadi raised that army with the wealth of the people but not for them.”

“Father, the land needs an army that will deal with the Ottoman. I will be the pioneers in it.” Janus was insistent and left.

(This early standing mercenary army appeared in the era of his father John Hunyadi in the early 1440s. The idea of the professional standing mercenary army came from Matthias' juvenile readings about the life of Julius Caesar; Extract from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Army_of_Hungary)