Princess Anjali's Courageous Fate

"These are my most prized possessions," the wizened old man said as he opened a brass chest. In the box were several gold coins, and a pair of emeralds. "The coins were minted in my homeland when it was free, before our people were conquered by the Sodomites."

"And why would you give *those* to me?" the king asked incredulously as he eyed the coins and jewels with disdain.

"Because I want you to help me restore my homeland to freedom," the old man replied. "These coins were minted by my forefathers, and they will serve as an inspiration to our people to rise up against the Sodomites like they did hundreds of years ago."

"Your forefathers are long dead," the king replied angrily. "You have been here for 300 years! And now you want something from me for your country that has no chance of ever being restored? You are insane!"

"But this is not about restoring my homeland, it is about your need for an excuse to invade Vendya," the old man countered. "You have been preparing for this invasion for many years, but you lack one thing: an excuse to attack."

The king knew that his visitor was right. He had been planning this invasion for almost two decades with his war cabinet, and had assembled an army large enough to conquer all of Vendya should he decide to do so. But he also knew that despite their isolationist policies, his own people would never allow him to invade a neighboring country without a good reason. His council had suggested one possibility - that the Vendyan king was not very bright or able, and thus needed guidance from someone more capable, namely them. But they had also pointed out that this was just speculation, and would never be accepted by others as a legitimate excuse for invasion. They needed something else, preferably something that could never be refuted by anyone.

He then remembered what his most trusted spy had reported - that there was unrest among some of their local leaders who wanted independence from their government in Avignon. His spies had discovered evidence of communication between these rebels and members of his own court. If those rebels could be given weapons and other supplies from his country, then he might be able to convince his people that it was necessary for him to invade because he needed to protect himself from enemies within his own borders! He could justify invading Vendya once it became clear that he had enemies within his own borders! And if need be, he could accuse the Vendyan king of being behind these activities after the invasion began! The only thing left was to find out how much gold and assistance these rebels would need so that they could overthrow their weak leader!

"If I give you these coins," he said cautiously as he looked at the old man's tired face, "what do you want in return?"

"I want you to send weapons, food and supplies secretly into Vendya when we invade," the old man replied calmly. "It is important that your involvement remains secret until after we remove their weak ruler."