"Depends on what?" Dom asked.
"What is best for the Tribe." She replied, "What do you believe the options are?"
"You do as Zanug stated and move the tribe further inland." Dom replied, "You stay where you are and plan for a counter attack or defensive situations. Or the other option is."
"Yes." She interrupted, "The other option is what we are discussing."
"You merge in to Riverside." He continued.
"I appreciate the help you have given." Zanug stated, "However, we will loose our identity, this shouldn't be an option."
"Without us, you wouldn't exist anymore." Tomyris stated.
"That is not the point though is it." Zanug argued back. "I appreciate the help, but it is not the point."
"Stop arguing please." Chief Banas grumbled, "I am not a Chief, I am a Horse Archer who married a Chief. I want to continue his legacy, as does Zanug. Zanug is a herder, he is not a Chief."
"I need to wait for my advisors opinions." Dom replied, "But I believe either Zanug's option or Mine are the only ones, staying here is too risky. I have discussed this with my Commanders and I don't believe that any of us are currently prepared for a large scale war."
"I agree, which is why I need to work out the positives and negatives for both cases." She replied.
"Regardless, we need to get the camp packed up and a decision made." Zanug mumbled, "If we are saying that we are not staying, then we need to be ready to go."
"I'll get the men to help." Gan Ning stated, getting up from his feet. "We have done everything we can for you, the decision is yours. I don't want to overstay my welcome. Chief Banas, it has been a pleasure getting to know you, Zanug thank you for the help."
Gan Ning left the tent and started barking orders at the men that he saw. Tomyris and Dom sat on one side of the Hut, whilst Chief Banas and Zanug sat on the other, with Gan Ning leaving it had stopped Riverside having the majority in the hut and it eased the tension a bit.
"Tell me more about Riverside again." Chief Banas asked.
Dom explained the outline of Riverside and the plans for the two stages of development that Lucius and Subutai had devised and explained to him. He also explained the geographical benefits of the location, with only the east side being open, with the forest and mountains to the north and west and the river to the south.
Dom further went on to explain their military growth and the speed at which is was growing, with almost twenty new Warriors a day, as well as the huge influx of Villagers. He outlined their strength, but didn't outline their weaknesses. He also explained the positive atmosphere and that everyone was treated with respect and equal within Riverside.
"If you did decide to join us, you would be welcome. We are in need of experts with cattle such as Zanug and the other Herders, and the Horse Archers would be a welcome addition to Military." Dom continued, "I understand that you are used to a nomadic life, and a move to Riverside doesn't fit in with that, but in these troubling times, larger numbers are better."
"Thank you Lord Lazarus." Chief Banas replied, "I think Zanug and I need to have a conversation and work out what is best for the camp, as we represent both the Military and Civilian sides of our Nomadic Camp."
"One final question from me for now." Zanug added, "What happens to us? Do we just become civilians or do we gain high positions such as ours here?"
"What position?" Chief Banas replied, "You manage the herders."
"I have respect here at least." Zanug grumbled back.
"I can not make promises yet." Dom replied, "I need to speak with my advisors, but I would suspect that you could join in a position similar to Octavian that you have met, in charge of the Horse Archers. Whilst you Zanug could become a key voice within our farming community, I am sure that your knowledge would be a huge help."
Chief Banas and Zanug thanked Dom, as he left the tent with Tomyris. They headed towards the south of the camp, seeing that hut's were being taken down and packed up on to simple carts. Some of the Shepherds had pulled together the sheep and goats and were getting them ready to be moved. The Horse Archers were working with the Riverside Warriors to pack down the remaining huts and help load those few that were still unwell on to some carts.
"Riders approaching." Dom heard a call from one of the Spartans on the perimeter. He looked and saw there was a collection of Horses and Donkeys on route to the Camp. Dom recognised the Donkey's as Riversides new speciality, so knew that they were traveling from the Town. The Riders soon approached, and Dom recognised Shang Yang on the central horse, escorted by some of Subutai's Warriors and the entertaining site of two new Spartans riding on Donkeys.
"Good Afternoon Lord Lazarus." Shang Yang announced as he arrived. "I have seen the fruits of your labour back at the camp site. Quite the capture of Warriors and Materials, I believe we will have lots of fun transporting all of the bronze swords back, I do believe they are a bit of an antique for Riverside, but I am sure we can find use for them."
"Good to see you as well Advisor Shang Yang." Dom replied, "Did Commander Subutai have time to fill you in on our situations?"
Shang Yang dismounted from his horse and walked beside Dom as they headed back towards the Chief's hut. Hoping that Chief Banas had made a decision by now and they could get a move on back to Riverside, either with their new allies or not.
"He has, I believe it was a cultural misunderstanding primarily, but you should accept the surrender of the Shang Dynasty Sword Militia. They can be used as Town Guards, or we could split them and retrain them in to our other units when we have the capacity to do so. Some may even wish to return to the lands and could become ideal labourers and farmers in our every growing Town." Shang Yang replied, "He has also explained your discussions for this Nomadic Camp. I agree with both of your opinions and believe they should either move or merge in to us. The addition of these fantastic Horse Archer's would be great for us, these women are impressive warriors and I haven't seen many female Warriors myself."
They soon reached the Chief's Hut and were welcomed in. Dom entered first, followed by Shang Yang. They took their seats opposite Chief Banas and Zanug, and were then soon joined by Gan Ning and Tomyris.
"This is Advisor Shang Yang." Dom introduces, "He is a key member of our little town and has come to support us with any advice needed. Regardless of what option you choose today, we will support you to the best that we can."
"Thank you." Chief Banas replied sadly, bowing her head in respect to the stateman. "We have come to a decision and appreciate your patience."
As Dom heard her speak, he suddenly had the gut feeling that they would go for option one and move away to pastures new. Chief Banas seemed deeply troubled and even though she had recovered from the poisoning, she seemed to have aged. Shang Yang however had a glint in his eye as he watched her speak.
"We have decided to migrate to Riverside." She continued, "However, I hope that you can make promises that we can retain our identity."
"I believe that is doable." Shang Yang replied before Dom. "Your identity is important, and what Lord Lazarus is building in Riverside allows many different cultures and people to become one. You would be a welcome group and I am sure that the rest of Riverside will be pleased at your arrival."
"We can discuss more whilst we travel." Chief Banas said as she stood up, "I think that for now we should depart before Tongpai Town realise that something is wrong when they receive no reports."
"Agreed." Dom said as he stood up, leaving the Hut followed by the rest of the group.
"Members of our Nomadic Camp!" Chief Banas shouted to the gathered Tribesmen who were getting on their horses and prepared to move out. "Myself and Zanug have discussed and believe it is in the best interest for us to join our new allies in Riverside permanently. This will give us better chance to grow and also live a much easier and more enjoyable life. Riverside is still growing and we can become a big part of its story if we join them now rather than later. Let's begin our last migration."
There were cheers from the Horse Archers who had thought in the battle the night before, they had seen the overwhelming victory and had become friends through battle with some of the Riverside Warriors.
"Let's move out!" Dom shouted as they started to march to the south towards the camp.
"Quite a successful few days." Shang Yang commented from the horse next to him, "Over eighty new Swordsmen, around forty Horse Archers and a large amount of new Villagers. Plus what ever buildings they have brought. I'd say Tomyris's expedition has become as successful as Gan Ning's."
"With Commanders such as those two and Subutai to lead them, we are in safe hands." Dom agreed.
"And with Sub-Commanders such as Octavian, Alexander and now Banas, I think we will be a force to be reckoned with in know time." Shang Yang agreed.
[Congratulations on completing Quest 3 - Conquer a Town
Quest Difficulty - D-S
Total Score - S
You have conquered the Nomadic Tribe of Chief Banas, but you have done this through the ways of a friendship rather than against an enemy. You could have taken advantage of their weakness and defeated them, potentially getting a similar score. However by completing the quest through these means you have also gained all of the loot and buildings, plus an additional influx of population to Riverside]
[Mission Rewards have been placed in your personal chest]
Dom was pleased that he had completed another of his quests, and was grateful that the Game had accepted this as a way of conquering the Town and not just through fighting. He wondered if the next conquest would be through war or words. He only had two quests remaining from the five that he had requested, the first was to upgrade the Town Centre, which meant upgrading more of his buildings to a higher level. The second quest was to find three locations, he had found and names two of them, the Yellow Plains and the Red Woods, and remembered that Tomyris and her group had found a Sea before they discovered the Tribe.
"Tomyris." Dom said to her, as she rode the horse she was given just behind him, flanked by Gan Ning and Banas.
"Yes Lord Lazarus." She replied with a smile, relieved that they had gained new friends and helped the struggling tribe.
"How far was the Sea you discovered from the Camp?" He asked.
"If we travel by horse, we could make it there and back before it's dark." She replied after thinking for a few seconds.
"Shang Yang, please can you make arrangements with Subutai once we return to the camp to escort both the prisoners and the Tribesmen back to Riverside. I shall head with Tomyris and some of the Warriors to the Sea to complete our other Quest." Dom replied.
"Of course." Shang Yang replied, "A trip to the Sea sounds healthy, I am saddened to say I have never been to one, but I have seen some beautiful lakes in my time. I am sure I can see it soon."
Dom veered away from the group, following behind Tomyris. They were escorted by ten of the female Horse Archers who were now the Riverside's Horse Archers, as well as ten Spartans who were now on Horseback. Hector and Gregorios also joined, with Hector acting as the Flag Bearer and Gregorios as Dom's personal guard.
They travelled for a couple of hours at a comfortable pace, making sure not to tire the horses and resting frequently so they could drink from the River that they had now reached, as well as graze on the long grass and flowers that were on the banks. Eventually they made it to the Sea, and Dom was amazed at the beauty of it.