But first, you and I must come to an agreement. I'm listening." With a final nod, Leofric sat down and closed his eyes. He waited in silence, but only for a moment. "What do you want?" he finally asked. "How about this: I want you to be my man." "Your man?" Leofric laughed. "Man?" "You may be the strongest of the Aelf, but you are still a man. And for now, I don't want to fight you. Not yet. But I will not allow you to lead the Danes to war." "But how can I not lead the Danes to war? If Rhedyn is marching to war, then so must I!" "You don't have to—but you can. I forbid it." "Forbid? What madness is this? Who in Hel can forbid anything from the gods?" "I'm not afraid to break the rules of their playtime, Leofric. You and I know that the laws of the gods are meaningless, just one more piece of illusion crafted by my brothers to help control mankind. You and I know that what rules mankind are men." "What do you mean?" "I will explain. First, I must ask: Do you want to lead the Aelf to war?" "Of course! I am a great warrior! My deeds are spoken of by men everywhere. Why do you ask this question? Of course I want to lead the Aelf to war. What else could a warrior desire?" "Then you're out of luck. You'll lead the Aelf to war no matter what." "How?" "You're a man, remember?" "But..." "And in the games of the gods, what will win over what?" "Winner takes all." "But Aelf can't lose! What can win over what?" "The laws of the gods," the Aelf admitted, shamefaced. "Exactly. What can win over what? And as the god of war, I can tell you: In all of the gods' little games, the law of winner takes all prevails." "No!" Leofric exclaimed. "It is so," Rhedyn agreed. "If one side must lose, then so must he who is strongest. Win or lose, the one who is strongest will be stronger than any other. And so, no matter what we do, no matter what we say, you'll win the Aelf to your cause—and the world to war." "You mean..." "Yes, you'll win them to war...as long as they want war." "Ah, but what about the law? 'Winner takes all'..." "You are no god, remember? So think, Leofric: What will follow from a land at war? Do you want to kill more Danes than you have already? Do you want to take your brother's wife as your wife? Or do you want to keep your brother and live in peace with a brother who is your equal? Peace is the only way for the Aelf to be strong. Peace allows us to trade goods. Peace will make us great again—greater than we have ever been." Leofric pondered his situation. He knew he was speaking against the will of the gods, but they had never told him to live in peace with Rhedyn. "I don't understand why you want this," he said, finally. "You're lucky, Leofric. In life, I do not make the rules." "What does that mean?" "It means, no matter what, Aelf cannot be free in their souls. They are as they are because of how they were born and raised. You want to be free? I'll help you. And I can show you more ways to be free than any man." "Free?" "Free from your brother and his wife. Free to live your life, not theirs." "Why?" "Aelf is at a turning point," Rhedyn said. "It is time for the Aelf to embrace change." Leofric laughed. "Then the Aelf, too, have the gods playing a game with them!" "You mock me." "I'm not mocking you. But I don't understand. If you wish to lead the Aelf, why do you even want to deal with Rhedyn? Aelf was a much better fighter when they went it alone." "Yes, I'll admit it: The Aelf have been through some hard times recently. But Leofric, Rhedyn would listen to you as no other Aelf." "He would listen to me? Why?" "You have strength and you have cunning. You are a far better warrior than I. Yes, the great Aelf would listen to you." "Oh?" "But as for Rhedyn, I have a few ideas about him. He would be much more willing to listen to you." "To me? But I'm only a small voice." "Then speak it loudly." "Why would he listen to me?" "Because, by the time we're through, you will lead the Aelf to war, and Rhedyn will rule by your side. You'll be his second." "Will I?" Leofric sounded skeptical. "Yes. I'll put your name to the Aelf—even though I know you don't want it. The Aelf will call you War-Leofric, and the Danes will sing songs about you." "Do you hear yourself?" Leofric laughed. "I'm just a small voice in the dark." "You mock me." "Never. I'm only saying that I'm not as powerful as you think. But—and I know you won't believe me—I'm not stupid, either. You asked me about the law, and I agree that you're right. Winner takes all, the winner will have more. And the winner has the right to rule. It doesn't matter who it is—the Aelf, the Danes, even the gods. A winner is always a winner. Even a losers are a losers. But I'll tell you something—something none of them will ever admit, even in their fantasies." "What is it?" "You have a choice, Leofric: I don't know if you're a great strategist or a great strategist—or anything else, really. I don't know much about you or what you're really like. But I do know this. You could be a real power in the world. No, it is impossible for you to be the first man among men—unless I decide it is so. But you could be the first Aelf king. You could rule everything—the Aelf, the Danes, even the gods." "You're mad," Leofric laughed. "But if it makes you happy, I'll pretend to be mad. Or maybe I'll pretend to be mad for just a few moments. A few thoughts, maybe." "But there is still the law, you remember. It won't matter who the Aelf choose—the stronger will be the one who leads them. If they want peace, they'll have peace. But if they want war, then who will be greater than Rhedyn? And who will be the lesser?" "I never thought of the danger, but you're right. The Danes will be destroyed. They will be pushed from these lands. And we shall be destroyed, too. We who live here. If we fight, we die." "Exactly. But if the Aelf stand with the Danes, then they, too, will die." Leofric sighed. "I will try to remember that you may be the greatest strategist of the gods, but you're also mad. You have never been a strategist and never will be." "Wonderful!" Rhedyn laughed. "You may be the god of war, but you're also a snob. So, before I explain more of my strange strategies, let me ask you another question. Do you love me?" Leofric didn't answer. "What? You don't like the question? I asked you something serious." "You are crazy, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. I like this game, but you're right: I don't have to answer to you. If you're playing the game, then perhaps you must." "Good. So I will answer. Aelf have always been men, and we have always loved fighting. We can still love fighting—if Rhedyn is our leader. You will get used to us. We have survived when we were not in conflict with each other, and we can survive without war." "Aelf will not survive for long if you choose war. Rhedyn will win a war of conquest—perhaps in the next few years, perhaps not in his lifetime. He is young." "Not so young." Rhedyn smiled. "And even if he succeeds, the Aelf will not survive. I have much to tell you about Rhedyn