brnicholas wrote:I have a great deal of difficulty seeing a negotiated settlement to this war in the natural lifetime of Andrin Calirath. I think that between them mul Gurthak and Harshu have burned that bridge, dynamited its foundations, and sown fields of trap spells on both banks and in the river to keep anyone from rebuilding it.
The only way I can imagine such a thing happening is if Shylar and Jathmar are standing on Sharona arguing that the Arcana government can be trusted before negotiations start. That requires the Arcanans to return them to Sharona and given the military advantage Shylar and Jathmar's knowledge will give Sharona that is a desperation move I can't see any Arcanan government making (even one completely dominated by the Olderhans).
Nicholas
There have been negotiated settlements on occasions when even more offense has been given than we have seen in the multiverse in real life. Sometimes mutual exhaustion has to set in first, but it does happen.
What military advantage are you referring to? Shylar and Jathmar certainly have been in no position to do any spying. By the time they could be returned at this point, Sharona will already know everything military Shylar and Jathmar could tell them and more.
As for the rest, they would be able to relate how they.were treated and what they have learned about Arcanan society. In fact, I could see Arcana returning them as a good faith step leading to a raproachment. Once Sharona gets past the reality that they were lied to about Shylar and Jathmar's fate, it might even work. Stranger things happen all the time.
Don