Deleted Scene–The Council Retreats

As a writer, there are times you write things that just can’t stay in the story. They aren’t bad, they just mess up the pacing or don’t quite fit with the main story you are trying to tell. I do this rather frequently. Instead of just erasing these parts forever, I like to save them as kind of a “deleted scene.” Here’s one from the second book that I would like to share with you. *Spoiler Alert* While this story doesn’t have any horrible spoilers regarding Keys of Aviandria, it does take place near the end, so you may be able to deduce a few things from it. Also, if you have not read Gateway to Aviandria yet, it will spoil a few things for you from that book. Read at your own risk.

The Council Retreats

Waiting is difficult under the best of circumstances, and it was wearing on everyone. Even Dillyn, who was hardly ever bothered by anything was starting to show signs that he could use a distraction. After a bit of contemplation, I had come up with just the thing. 

“I might need your help with something. I want to take the council on a retreat,” I announced on a day when I had both Alder and Dillyn together with me for lunch. 

“A retreat?” Dillyn’s eyebrows rose just a bit, but his smile only grew. “I didn’t realize they were under any threat. So, what are we retreating from?” 

I winced slightly. I should have realized that the modern idea of a retreat wouldn’t translate well into Aviandrian vernacular. I couldn’t help laughing at the thought of what must be running through these two military leaders’ minds. “It’s not that kind of retreat. It’s more of a way to get them away from their regular routine into a fresh place where they can have fresh thoughts. People in my world do this kind of retreat when they want to get away from all the distractions of normal life to really focus on a specific goal or something like that. That way they can put all their focus and energy into one thing for a little while.” 

“Ah,” Dillyn was fast to catch onto the idea. “So, we are retreating from the things that would keep us from accomplishing that goal. I suppose that makes sense.” 

Alder was nodding. “So what would this ‘retreat’ entail?” 

“I’m still trying to work that out exactly,” I sprinkled a bit of salt on the boiled potatoes I had on my plate. “It’s just I’ve been thinking about how something made the time go all weird the last time I was back home. I want the council to be better prepared in case something like that happens again. That way, they won’t have to worry.”

“So you think one of these retreats can help do that?” Dillyn seemed interested. “Like the special training sessions we give to our ranking officers at times?” 

“Yeah, something like that.” Now that the others were on the same page, I was feeling a bit more confident. “I was thinking maybe something like a camping trip for them. For the first part, we could organize some activities that encourage them to work together to solve problems and overcome obstacles. Most of these would be physical in nature, but later in the evenings, we can do some mental exercises too. After a couple of days of that, we can transition them into using the skills they have learned to solve puzzles and simulations of situations that might be more likely to show up in real life. What do you think?” 

The silence seemed to stretch on forever as I waited for their response, though it was really probably only a couple of seconds. Did they hate the idea? Was it the worst thing they had ever heard of? Why was I so nervous? These were my friends. It wasn’t like they would ever tell me my idea was stupid. At least, not in those words. 

“Actually,” Dillyn finally spoke, “I think that sounds like an excellent idea. As I said, sometimes we do trainings like this in the military, but I had never thought of applying it to the council. I don’t see why it couldn’t work though. In fact, it might be just what some of our council members need, though I’m not sure they’ll see it that way.” 

I let out the breath I had been holding. Such a silly thing to be nervous about. “So you’ll help me then? 

“Of course! This sounds like it could be fun. In fact, I think we already have some of what we need already set up, and I don’t think it would be too difficult to modify some of our training programs and procedures to fit the needs and capabilities of the council.” Already Dillyn’s mind was forming plans. It looked like my own plan to distract him from all the waiting was working. 

“Of course, as a member of the council, you’ll be participating too.” I had to clear up one little thing. “It should be easy for you, but I don’t want you bailing the others out all the time. They need to work at this.” 

Dillyn put on his best air of innocence. “I wouldn’t dream of it! I’ll treat them as if they were my own troops.” 

I turned to Alder who had been mostly quiet during the conversation. “What do you think? I could use your help too.” 

“I’d be happy to help, but there’s only so much I can do at the moment.” He looked toward his wrapped-up leg. 

“We’ll schedule it for after you’re fully mobile again.” I didn’t think that would be all that far away. He was recovering quickly, and it was getting harder to keep him off his feet. He was anxiously counting the days before the doctor said he could remove his splint. Hopefully, it would be in the next couple of weeks. “In the meantime, you can always help us plan.” 

“In that case, you can count on my assistance.” Alder’s smile was real. “It will be nice to feel useful again.” 

“Perfect.” I couldn’t help but feel a bit pleased with myself. Now all that was left was to inform the council of our plan. 

“A retreat?” Thrombun, one of my council members looked alarmed. “What are we retreating from? Are we in danger?” 

 I had just told them of our plan, and their reactions were very similar to Dillyn’s. In retrospect, I probably should have avoided using the word retreat, but it was too late now. 

“We are retreating from everyday life,” I hoped I would be able to reassure them enough they would be willing to go along with this. “There’s no danger.” 

I continued to explain it as I had to Alder and Dillyn. The council only relaxed slightly. They didn’t exactly say anything against it, but they certainly didn’t look as enthusiastic as Dillyn had been. I think it was the idea of camping that had most of them hesitating. 

“Traditionally, we have all our meetings and training in the council chamber,” Keagan, our council’s law expert, pointed out. 

“But there’s no law against doing it somewhere else, is there?” I doubted there was, but it would probably be best to double-check. 

“Not exactly, but I’ve never seen it done otherwise.” Keagan looked defeated. He knew I wasn’t going to take that as a good excuse. 

“Wouldn’t it be much more practical to stay here and take a walk?” our financial guru, Willamsby asked.

“That would defeat the purpose.” They just weren’t getting it. “The point of a retreat like this is to get out of one’s regular surroundings and switch things up a bit. Don’t worry. It won’t be that bad. Sometimes these things can even be fun.” 

I don’t think they believed that last part. If this were something we had to vote on, I might have had to give up the plans then and there. Fortunately, this was something I could require since it had nothing to do with policy or the welfare of the kingdom. “Tell you what. If it turns out to be terrible, we’ll never do anything like this again.” 

“I wonder what all the other countries would think if they ever find out about our retreat,” Thrombun thought out loud. He was our councilor in charge of diplomatic relations. 

“You never know. They might just decide to try it for themselves.” I doubted that, but I had to say something to ease his mind. 

As the scheduled day grew closer, the retreat became a regular topic of conversation in our council meetings. 

During one council meeting, a week or so ahead of our scheduled date, Thrombun raised his hand. “I do have a bit of a question, so I thought it best to ask. What exactly does one bring to retreat? You see, I’ve never really retreated before, so I really don’t know what I will need.” 

“Good question.” I didn’t bother to tell him that he wasn’t going to retreat, he was going on a retreat. “We’ll supply most of what we will need, but I’ll make a list of personal items you might want to have. I’ll get that to you by tomorrow.” 

At last, the day arrived, and I waited in the grand entryway with Dillyn as the rest of the council slowly trickled in. It was still early in the morning, and many of them weren’t naturally early risers. This was, perhaps, the first challenge of the retreat. 

“Are you ready for this grand adventure?” I asked as the last of them joined us.

I got a few groggy murmurs and nods. Only Thrombun really answered. “I think, if everyone is in agreement, we are all here and should be able to depart now. Let’s retreat!” 

I held back a smile at his way of putting it. They were still having a hard time separating going on a retreat, and the act of retreating from a foe. However, it wasn’t worth stressing over. 

As we made our way out into the early morning light, Dillyn and Alder fell into step next to me. “You know,” Dillyn leaned close and kept his voice low, “we really should come up with a different term for this. I know it’s not the same thing, but if word gets out that I’m retreating for no apparent reason, it’s not exactly going to look good on my record.” 

I laughed. “Something to take into consideration. I would hate to have our general get a bad reputation.” 

The soldiers assigned to help us with the retreat had worked hard to make sure everything was prepared, but they had been instructed to leave the final set-up of the camp to the council members. This was to be their first task. Perhaps it wasn’t a particularly hard one–at least half of them had set up a tent before–but you might have guessed they were being asked to set up an entire strategic fortification. I shook my head as I listened to their debates and arguments about where the tents or fire should be, and the proper method for doing both. Was this going to work? Would we really be able to get past this kind of stuff in just a few days? Perhaps not entirely, but hopefully, this would at least help. 

“Alright, everyone, you have one hour before we start our next activity.” I decided to give them a time limit. Otherwise, this was going to take all day. 

The panic escalated, but an hour later, the camp was set up in a mostly workable way, and they were ready. After a few more hours, I suspected many of them were beginning to believe I was insane for making them endure the things we subjected them to. 

“Is this really necessary?” Keagan asked as he fingered the blindfold around his eyes. 

“Yes, it’s part of the rules.” I knew Keagan loved rules, so that was something he’d likely understand. “You’ve got to learn to trust the other members of the council. They’ll help you get through the course if you listen well to them.” 

“Most irregular,” the councilor mumbled, but he allowed himself to be led away by one of the others. 

The day continued similarly, with a variety of activities, all of them challenging the council to work together. By dinner time, they seemed to have improved their coordination moderately. I knew the next and final challenge for the day would likely be their hardest. 

“I hope you are all hungry.” I prepared myself for the reactions I was sure to get at the next announcement. “You are all going to be preparing your dinner tonight. We have all the supplies right here, and Milanya has assured me this isn’t a difficult meal to make. There are instructions written out. Good luck.” 

The reactions were much as I had expected. There were a few moans and groans, but mostly shock. Most of these men had never had to cook in their lives. Even Dillyn, whose mother had confided to me at one point that she had given up trying to let him help in the kitchen due to it being too hazardous, had a challenge in this one. However, by the end, they had put together a mostly edible meal. 

The next day was similar. We woke early, and the council spent the day in tasks and activities that stretched their problem-solving and ability to work smoothly with each other. I could tell it stretched many of them to their utter limits, both physically and mentally. 

“Retreating really is a lot of work.” Thrombun sat down and wiped his sweating brow with a handkerchief during one of the breaks between activities. “I’m glad we don’t have to retreat frequently.” 

I hid a smile at the way Dillyn winced at this. “I think you are doing a wonderful job at retreating.” 

And it was true. They were getting better and better at getting through the activities. They were learning to communicate and accept and evaluate each other’s suggestions. What pleased me perhaps just as much, is that they were all learning to put forth suggestions, something that I felt many of them had been hesitant to do at first. Gallis had never asked for their suggestions, only demanded their support. 

That night, after the council had made their dinner, we gave the council some mysteries to solve along with the necessary clues. By the end, they were regular detectives. We practically had to force them to bed. 

We returned to the palace the next morning. We weren’t entirely finished, but I wanted them to practice their new-found skills in a more familiar setting. 

“Today, we are going to do some simulations,” I told them as we sat around the table in the council chamber. “These are all things that could possibly come up. I’ll be working with you for some of them, but for others, we’ll pretend I’m either gone or unable to assist for some reason. For those, you will need to try and solve the problems without me.” 

None of my councilors looked incredibly comfortable at the thought, but at least they didn’t look panicked like they would have a week ago. 

The first two simulations started out a bit rocky, but as we went, their confidence grew. They were finally talking things through among themselves without me having to guide every discussion or ask every question. This was how a council was supposed to run.

“I think this is actually working,” I told Alder and Dillyn during our lunch break. “I’m beginning to feel almost useless. I think if I disappeared, they’d hardly miss me.” 

“Wasn’t that the goal of this entire retreat?” Alder was trying to sound cheerful, but his smile didn’t reach his eyes. 

“Yeah, I guess it is. It’s exactly what I wanted to happen.” Part of me was still amazed it had actually worked. “Now, if I left and never came back, Aviandria could at least move forward without falling apart.” 

Alder’s brows knit together a bit. “You wouldn’t though, would you?” 

“Leave and not come back?” Did he really think I would do something like that on purpose? “Not if I can help it. I love Aviandria.” 

That night, as I contemplated everything we had done the last three days, I realized that it was true. I really did love Aviandria. I loved the place, I loved the country, and perhaps most of all, I loved the people. Was that why I had felt so strongly about this council retreat? Just the thought of being trapped away from Aviandria made me shiver. Now, however, if that happened, I would at least have the comfort of knowing Aviandria and her people were in good hands. Now, when I had to go back to take Chris and Brittany back, I might actually feel ready. 

Have you ever been on a retreat? Did you find it helpful?