Rezon looked at Gad, who seemed to agree. “You have convinced me. As you said, we will need to be prepared to hold the outer wall as we advance the catapults and rams.”
“It has all been arranged,” Gad assured him.
“Good. Even the archers?”
“Five hundred strong,” Jael replied.
“Wonderful. I am dreaming of entering the city. I hear it’s such a nice place to live.”
“You shall have the grandest estate we can find within the walls,” Gad promised.
“Estate?” Rezon asked, feigning surprise.
Gad flinched as if he had said something wrong.
Rezon sneered. “No, my dear captain. I do not intend to have the largest estate. I will leave that to Jael of Maharai.”
Jael folded his arms across his puffed chest. Gad now appeared to be confused.
Rezon leaned closer to the captain and said in an earnest, breathy tone, “I intend to occupy the temple itself.”
Jael let out a loud, approving whoop. The sound of it echoed off the walls of the city.
Just a day’s journey away from Ramathaim, four units of ten Gideonites readied for the night by finishing their evening meal, gathering firewood, stoking campfires, and posting guards to watch over the camp until morning. From a distance, Jasher’s advance group observed their preparations through numerous spyglasses. They knelt on the ground, talking in whispers.
Jonathan stowed his spyglass in his shoulder bag, grateful that the Gideonites had chosen to camp on the road rather than in Hasor. Inviting them to depart will give me great pleasure, he thought.
“What are your orders?” Amon asked the general.
Jasher paused, and then said with determination, “We will confront the group now. If they surrender, I’ll send them home to the mountains of Gideon. If they do not… we will end it.”
Amon motioned for Sodi, one of the other Gideonite captains in the advance group, to bring up his men. Sodi scuttled forward, taking a knee next to the general. Pointing to the village, Jasher ordered the captain to sneak off to the south and then approach the encampment by staying close to the western wall of Hasor.
“Sodi, I need you to obtain that western position, in sight of their camp, and wait,” Jasher instructed. “I will bring a company of one hundred and fifty right up to the camp, with the banners of Gideon out front, followed by Daniel and Uzzah. Captain Amon will take a position opposite you, with Captain Mehida to protect my flanks. Captain Ezra of Daniel will support. When the situation appears to be under control, join me.”
Sodi bit his lip and gave a seemingly reluctant nod before accepting the assignment. The hesitation surprised Jonathan. He glanced over at Jasher, but the general was intent on the enemy encampment. Jonathan felt certain Jasher had not noticed Sodi’s reaction. He wondered at Sodi’s strange behavior.
At Jasher’s direction, the captains left with their units to take up defensive positions. While the remaining group waited for Amon and Sodi to signal their readiness, Jasher instructed the women present to stay behind with another one of his captains. Both Abigail and Rachel agreed to remain by the road with the main army.
It took some time for the captains to get in place, but once they were, Jasher called for his men to march. The eastern hills swallowed the sister suns as the army stomped their way to the Gideonite camp, intentionally drawing attention to themselves. Standard bearers took special effort to wave their flags in such a way as to make them easily discernible from a distance. Jasher even had one of his soldiers hail the Gideonites, telling them of their approach.
Jonathan saw that several armed men in the enemy camp formed a line between two tents, and one of them, a Gideonite captain, stared intently through a spyglass back at the approaching group. The captain seemed puzzled. He lowered his spyglass for a moment to speak to another soldier. That soldier disappeared into the center of the camp, and then a horn blasted in the air. Seconds later, men swarmed around their leader with weapons drawn, shields at the ready. Still staring at Jasher through the glass, the captain made some unheard comment to a soldier on his left, and then shook his head as if he could not believe the scene before him.
Jasher’s men closed in, the standard bearers falling in behind. He hailed the Gideonite captain in the camp, but the nervous soldier did not return the greeting. All forty Gideonites in the camp stood as silent as trees.
“Greetings, Captain of the Host of Gideon. I am Jasher of Bezek. I come in peace and wish to have a word with you in private, if we may.”
Again, the other captain did not speak. He stowed his spyglass, then fiddled with the pommel of his sword.
“What is your name?” Jasher asked with authority.
“I am Izri of Bethara.” He paused, eyes darting between colored banners. “A captain of Gideon. I serve faithfully under General Rezon, according to the will of Emperor Manasseh.”
Although directed at Jasher, Jonathan felt the sting of Izri’s accusation. He put a hand on Pekah’s arm, preventing him from drawing his weapon. Pekah’s face was red.
Jasher replied with an eerie calmness in his voice, “I am a general of Gideon, and I serve the best interests of Gideon and his peoples.”
Izri still did not tell his men to stand down.
Impressed by Jasher’s approach, Jonathan listened as the general masterfully controlled the situation. Jasher could have just commanded the captain to submit, but instead, the general rehearsed everything that had transpired over the last several days. By the end of the tale, all the Gideonites in the camp had sheathed their weapons, including Izri. Many of the soldiers appeared eager to join with Jasher and his men. These Gideonites stepped back toward the camp, allowing their leaders to work out the tension felt between the two groups.
“Will you join me?” Jasher asked.
Izri still stood between two other armed men, one of whom was also a captain. Izri acted as though he wanted to negotiate. He tapped on his breastplate under his folded arms. The captain next to him shifted on his feet, glancing nervously about. All heads turned to see Amon and Sodi approach.
Amon and Sodi commanded their troops to stand down, and most of their weapons were stowed. Sodi, still holding his sword, marched to the front with Amon, taking a spot next to Jasher. Jonathan made room for both of them. His interest piqued, Jonathan watched the general. Jasher still waited for a response from Izri.
Sodi and Izri made eye contact for the first time, an almost imperceptible signal passing between them. Jonathan pulled back, not able to tell what it meant. The exchange reminded him of the encounter in Geber Pass, and his palm found the pommel of his sword.
Jonathan looked at Amon.
“Yes, I saw it,” Amon whispered.
“Do they know each other?” Jonathan whispered back.
“It appears so.”
Jonathan’s eyes rested back on Izri with some suspicion. Izri’s hand was now on his weapon, but he remained as stiff as a statue and did not look at Sodi again.
Izri’s eyes were fixed on Jasher-a cold, empty stare, as if he were looking at the general, but not actually seeing him. Jonathan stiffened. He gripped the hilt of his weapon, ready to pull.
As fast as a lightning strike, Sodi swung his weapon high into the air, and then slammed the blade down on Jasher’s right leg. Pandemonium ensued as Jasher fell to his knee with a yell. Amon leaped toward Sodi, his sword thrusting forward. The sharp tip of Amon’s steel blade struck Sodi square in the chest, splitting his leather breastplate and killing him instantly. One of Sodi’s men took a swing at Amon, but Jonathan was able to block the blow. He then dispatched the man with a single stroke. He held his ground, hoping to prevent any other would-be attacker from within Sodi’s unit.