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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Rhialto" data-source="post: 2581006" data-attributes="member: 630">Deacon Fevre nods.   "This follows suspicions of my own.  It appears our 'friends' in the North wish to play on the younger dwarfs' sentimental regard for their old homeland.  I think if we send them Lukar's head, they'll see we aren't sleeping..."  Anguis steps forward.  "Noble Julius, hear me out.  Let the viper think we mark him not.  Return to negotiations tomorrow.  Offer once again rich rewards for an immediate end to this revolt.  But make this clear--Lukar must answer for his crimes.  I wager he will fuss, and fidget, and try to pretend we are offering poor meat when we are clearly offering sirloin.  And then, as his followers doubt him--as they see their leader will throw away their lives to guard his own--THEN we reveal him for the caitiff he is.  If Orr is with us, in one stroke, we shall hoist Kalur on their own poitard!  We will gain the love of these dwarfs, with our fairness and our justice, and we will reveal Kalur for the den of double-dealers that it is."  Anguis snorts.  "I've no doubt should they even half succeed, the Kalur troops would come offering to let them join that fair and august nation, where a dwarf may stand tall, provided he stands on the backs of his fellows.  I fear the younger of them forget why their parents left that place.  Oh, that place is overripe for conquest--tis almost a rotten fruit."     Deacon Fevre calms himself.  "But I have other matters to speak on.  I was considering Lukar's story, and a part of it rang false.  The captain ordered barracks built in an area where  they were ill-suited, probably because he felt the inhabitants were in no way suited to dispute his right of eminent domain--badly done, but a fairly common occurence.  He gives notice of this with one day to evict, then demolishes the area--worsely done, but the acts of an abrupt heedless man that match with the first.  He then has his men fire on a child who is playing on the field, killing it.  No.  This does not match the first two actions, it passes from the ill-thought to the monstrous.  It may have happened as Lukar said it, but my heart misgives me.  That and the reports of a human walking freely among the dwarfs have me thinking that while the captain put the over-heavy burden on the camel's back, 'twas Lukar and some co-conspirators that placed the straw that broke it."  He turns.  "This is, of course, speculation, that wants any proof, I'm afraid.  But still--if we can end this matter to our liking it bears looking into."</blockquote>

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