Chapter 207: The Butterfly Effect 2

Regarding his counterpart with conflicted disquiet, Wallenstein’s demeanor betrayed his profound discomfiture towards the man who, until mere hours ago, had beamed at him with trusting affability – General Tilly himself.

“Wallenstein! I…I had placed such faith in you…yet how could you commit these treacherous acts?!”

Surrounded by soldiers while bristling with apoplectic fury, Tilly’s wrists were shackled by magic-sealing manacles – his slightest movements scrutinized by the ever-vigilant Hestia maintaining an enchanted perimeter.

Meeting his erstwhile comrade’s incensed glare, Wallenstein could only respond with remorseful resignation:

“…Forgive me. But I could discern no other recourse amid our present exigencies.”

“You…you would turn traitor against your own liege, then?! Despite being the foremost beneficiary of His Majesty’s boundless munificence – you would forsake those sacred obligations?!”

“Not at all – I merely endeavor to honor this nation and its peoples through the sole prudent avenue remaining to us. Surely you cannot dispute the Empire’s increasingly ruinous trajectory, my friend? Persisting upon this path only consummates our total dissolution into a hollow, barren husk.”

“And so you threaten our sovereign with naked steel – the very liege whose favors so enriched you?! Recant this madness, Wallenstein! You remain a subject sworn to uphold your sovereign’s edicts while guiding him towards righteousness – not to presume deposing him through insurrection!”

Despite the leveled pikes surrounding him, Tilly bellowed his defiance with fearless conviction.

Though troubled by their sovereign’s excesses, he clearly discerned a subject’s obligatory boundaries with uncompromising certainty.

Regardless of whether the ruler’s dictates aligned with one’s personal principles, a liege’s unambiguous authority superseded all subordinate remonstrances.

A loyal subject’s sole rightful recourse involved counseling such wayward sovereigns through humble supplications – not outright insubordination and sedition.

Regrettably however, the Wallenstein confronting Tilly no longer embodied that archetype of stalwart, unwavering allegiance.

“Remain imprisoned for the interim, good general. Out of abiding esteem for your principles, I shall ensure your life is preserved. Now then…”

“This traitor – this vile usurper! Release me forthwith! Wallenstein! Wallensteiiiiinnnn…!!”

Tilly’s impotent roars receded behind them as Wallenstein emerged before his assembled martial host whose ranks now swelled far beyond General Tilly’s original contingents.

Through subjugating the recalcitrant while co-opting those adhering to his insurrectionist cause, Wallenstein’s offensive force now totaled over 40,000 – the empire’s de-facto remaining military might.

With the Holy Roman Emperor effectively bereft of any credible counter against such an overwhelming onslaught, Wallenstein unsheathed his blade to address his troops with thundering solemnity:

“Assembled soldiers and citizens of this glorious Empire – let it be known throughout this realm!”

Indeed, beyond the amassed regiments, innumerable onlookers and opportunists congregated as well – virtually ensuring Wallenstein’s declarations would rapidly disseminate across every corner of the land.

Thus emboldened, the upstart lord proclaimed his audacious intentions with clarion lucidity:

“I, Wallenstein, embraced military service solely to honor the divine Lord’s radiant beneficence towards this realm and its peoples! Out of unstinting devotion, I marshaled my personal assets alongside those granted by the sovereign – leading our illustrious Imperial armies to unblemished victory after resounding victory! Yet despite my constant fidelity, the Empire’s fortunes only deteriorate further with each passing day! Interminable famines immiserate our wretched populace while that delusional monarch in Vienna perpetuates our tragic disunity through his unyielding obstinacy!”

This scathing indictment coupling justifications for his prior Imperial service alongside vehement condemnations of the Emperor’s obdurate negligence resonated profoundly with the gathered masses – eliciting roaring ovations from soldier and civilian alike.

Indeed, Wallenstein’s excoriations accurately articulated the endemic grievances afflicting every Imperial subject despite their martial conquests.

Perpetual crop failures precipitated widespread deprivation – yet the ruler in distant Vienna persisted in callously persecuting religious dissenters rather than addressing these existential crises.

At first, merely venting their accumulated resentments against such convenient sectarian scapegoats provided cathartic solace.

But as the grim realities endured without amelioration, the people eventually recognized their so-called ‘heretical’ brethren as equally immiserated victims tragically akin to themselves.

Capitalizing upon that widespread disillusionment, Wallenstein proclaimed with electrifying zeal:

“Thus I, Wallenstein, hereby publicly decree – in service to the benevolent Lord’s radiant glory, I shall unsheathe my blade against this misguided sovereign leading our great nation towards utter ruination! Any who espouse the divine cause of righteous justice, take up arms and follow my campaign’s inexorable advance!”

“Hurraaaaahhhh…!!!”

“All hail Lord Wallenstein!”

“Judgment upon the tyrannical usurper!”

“In the Almighty’s hallowed name!”

Predictably, this rousing oration galvanized frenzied adulations from the rapturous throngs despite the audacity of its outright sedition.

Though doubtlessly embellished by pre-positioned instigators, numerous authentic ovations rang out as well – for Wallenstein’s grievances indeed resonated authentically with their suppressed yet profound discontents.

While open defiance courted mortal retribution under normal circumstances, the people too remained human:

Wearied by privation, haunted by anxiety over this inexorably darkening trajectory – they innately yearned for positive changes redressing these systemic injustices however perilously initiated.

Furthermore, many of these particular troops harbored vested personal interests – having sworn fealty to Wallenstein specifically as their immediate benefactor ensuring their sustenance despite the surrounding destitution.

Thus fortified by both popular and military endorsements, Wallenstein’s insurrectionist host commenced decisive maneuvers towards the ultimate objective:

The Empire’s pulsating heart – and the locus of its ‘fell’ ruler’s tenuous sovereignty – the capital city of Vienna itself.

His march constituted a brazen ‘return’ to that very origin point through the most uncompromising ‘defection’ possible.

“Wh…what did you say? That…that cannot be true, surely?! Wallenstein would never dare such unthinkable…”

“Y…your Sublime Majesty…Lord Wallenstein now leads a force of over 40,000 troops converging upon this very locale as we speak!”

The despairing courier’s bowed cadence elicited the blood draining from Emperor Sigismund’s ashen countenance as he cried out in stricken denial:

“Th…this is utter madness – some garbled misinformation, clearly! Inconceivable that Wallenstein would turn his blade towards me…! N…no, contact General Tilly forthwith! Ascertain the veracity beyond all doubt!”

“General Tilly has already fallen prisoner to the rebel host, sire! At this juncture, all effective military authority now answers solely to Lord Wallenstein!”

“Wh…what did you say…?”

Utterly staggered, the hapless sovereign collapsed limply against his throne’s unyielding rigidity as this unimaginable cataclysm manifested without prelude.

Until this very moment, Wallenstein’s insurrection remained an utter improbability within Sigismund’s reality tunnel – the commander having exhibited zero insubordination or personal ambitions throughout his celebrated Imperial service.

Naturally, centralizing such unilateral might always harbored inherent risks – prompting Sigismund’s contingencies to counterbalance Wallenstein’s ascendancy through General Tilly’s parallel assets.

Yet that stratagem demanded opportunities he currently lacked to properly reinforce the latterly-appointed general beforehand.

Cruelly taking advantage of this temporary power vacuum, Wallenstein overtly rebelled at the instant rendering his sovereign most vulnerable and defenseless against such cataclysmic upheavals.

And now those unsheathed blades pointed directly towards this citadel hosting the ‘tyrannical’ ruler in question – steadily advancing with each inexorable footfall.

“Wallenstein…that treacherous dog dares defy his sovereign’s rightful dominion…?!”

As outraged disbelief congealed into righteous fury, Sigismund clutched his ornamental ceremonial sword to commence frantic mobilization efforts:

“Summon every able-bodied conscript from the castle garrison and city militia immediately! Any who can wield steel shall take up arms – for I shall personally execute this vile rebel Wallenstein with my own two hands!”