Aldo raised his hand. “I have a different idea.”
“What’s that?”
“The Lorkon have gathered an army only a couple of hours away from where Lahs has gathered yours.”
“Do the Lorkon know we have one as well?” Dmitri asked.
Aldo shook his head. “Not that I can tell.”
“Good. We can have Lahs and Brojan attack the Lorkon army right as Kelson is approaching the fortress and you and I are heading to get Arien.”
Just then, someone pounded on the door to the cabin. Aldo rose to open it, and Brend rushed in.
“They’ve rejoined us! And brought a few more men!”
Dmitri stood. “Who?”
“Those who left when we found the women—they got here as fast as they could. Left their wives with family. They’re willing and able to help.”
“Thanks for bringing word,” Dmitri said. “Express my gratitude and make sure they’re well rested. We’ll definitely be using them.”
Brend left, and Dmitri sat down again. “We’ll have them go with you, Kelson.”
Kelson nodded.
Aldo cleared his throat, sitting down as well. “Sire, I don’t think I’ll go with you to get Arien.”
Dmitri knitted his eyebrows, watching the older man closely. “Any reason why?”
“I mentioned that August Fortress feels different, right?”
Dmitri inclined his head.
“I think I need to help those who are heading to it as much as I can, and also to keep my eye on the overall picture. I’ve found a lookout point opposite the fortress where I’ll be safe while watching the progress of Kelson’s group. I’ll also be able to see the town center, so I will alert you when and if the Lorkon head that way.”
“All right. I see the benefit in doing that. You’ll have to show me exactly where Arien is being held, though.”
Aldo nodded. “Of course.”
Dmitri got to his feet and started pacing, needing to think out loud. “All right. So let’s make sure we all know what’s happening. Kelson, you and your men will go toward the fortress right away.” He looked at Aldo. “How long does it take to get there from here?”
“Three or four hours on foot. With the horses, an hour, if they go quickly.”
“We’ll have you leave at once, Kelson. But stop when you reach the edge of this forest,” he pointed to a spot on the map, “and wait for further instructions.”
Kelson acknowledged that he understood, and Dmitri continued.
“I’ll send word to Lahs and Brojan to begin the attack as soon as they can. In the meantime, Aldo, will you key to the city and let us know how the Lorkon respond to news of the impending war? After the armies advance their attack, we’ll have Kelson and his men head to the stronghold.
“While they’re doing that, Aldo, again report any activity on the part of the Lorkon, and key back immediately. Instruct me on how to use the key, then show me where Arien is, and we’ll part ways. Kenji, Early, and I will rescue Arien, and Aldo, you’ll head to your lookout point.”
Dmitri blew out a long breath of air and sat down again. “Did I miss anything?”
“I don’t think so,” Aldo said.
“All right, then. Kelson—take your men now. Aldo, key to the city. I’ll send word to Lahs and Brojan.”
***
Dmitri followed his best friend out the door, then waited until Kelson had rounded up the men and given them their new instructions. Dmitri thanked them all and said a few words of encouragement. He instructed Kelson to take Arien’s Minya with them, then sent that group on their way. He and Aldo watched as the men rode into the forest that separated the cabin from August Fortress.
Dmitri turned to Aldo, grateful for a moment alone with the elderly gentleman. Kenji was resting in the cabin, wanting to preserve his strength. “I owe you a great deal of gratitude, Aldo, for everything you’ve done.”
Aldo smiled briefly, then knit his eyebrows. “I’d tell you I was just doing my job, but that’s not true. Knowing that Arien is in potential danger has been nearly unbearable. And my brother murdered?” A dark expression crossed his face. “I’ll do anything to pull these Lorkon down and protect those I love.”
“I know what you mean.” Sadness filled Dmitri’s heart when he thought of Ezra, and that sadness doubled when he remembered his father and mother-in-law. “You heard of the king and queen?”
Aldo’s eyes filled with tears. “Yes.” He shook his head. “I’ve felt so very torn over the past couple of days. I wish I’d been there to say good-bye to Roylance. He was my best friend. But I couldn’t leave Arien where she was—even for a moment. I needed to protect the future that is represented in her.” He turned from Dmitri, taking out a handkerchief.
An intense feeling of gratitude flooded through Dmitri. This man had proven his loyalty over and over again. What would Dmitri and the rest have done without him? He put his hand on Aldo’s shoulder. “Again, thank you.”
Aldo nodded, but didn’t say anything for a moment. Then he put his handkerchief away. “All right. Enough blubbering. We’ve got work to do.”
Dmitri watched as Aldo pulled the Key of Kilenya out of his pocket. He’d need to learn to use it soon. The man inserted it into the lock on the cabin door, turned it to the left, and said, “August Township.” He pushed the door open, and on the other side was a dusty, deserted street instead of the cabin’s interior. The fortress was just visible over the tops of buildings that lined the street. Aldo turned and said good-bye, then shut the door behind him.
Dmitri waited a moment before entering the cabin, wanting to be sure the link had closed all the way. He pushed the door open and smiled when he saw the table and chairs. That key was amazing!
Kenji lifted his head from where he’d rested it on the table. He gave Dmitri a wave. “Ready?”
“Yes,” Dmitri said. “Have Early send a message to Brojan and Lahs, telling them to start the attack on the Lorkon army as soon as they can, and to rush it.”
Kenji nodded and jumped up, leaving the cabin. Dmitri gave the place a look-over, making sure nothing of his was there, then stepped outside and took his and Kenji’s horses around to the back of the cabin, where they’d stay until their owners returned.
Then the two men waited.
***
Ten minutes later, Dmitri looked up in shock when Aldo’s Minya appeared next to him with a flash. The little Minya looked to be exhausted and was hunched over. He was old, much older than even Aldo, and most likely didn’t have a lot longer to live.
He barely rasped out the message. “Aldo says two of the three Lorkon just rushed out of the city and are heading toward the battle. They must’ve heard it was about to start. Now only the Lorkon leader is in the town center, and he seems to be waiting for something. Possibly an attempt to rescue the princess.”
“That wouldn’t surprise me.” Dmitri nodded his thanks to the elderly Minya and turned to Kenji. “Would you have Early send a message to Kelson to go ahead with the Shiengol rescue?”
Kenji did so, then Dmitri and the Makalo again waited. This time, things took much longer, and Dmitri had to get up to pace. What if it didn’t work? What if the Lorkon leader refused to leave the city center? What if he took Arien away again, forcing Dmitri to go even longer without seeing his wife?
Thirty agonizing minutes later, the door to the cabin popped open, and Aldo rushed through. “He’s gone—the leader is gone. You must come now!”
“Where did he go?”
“He spotted Kelson’s group, and for some reason, he took off in the other direction.”
Aldo held the door—and the link—open, and Dmitri and Kenji dashed through into a darkened building. The windows had been smashed out, and glass lay across the floor.
“Where are we?” Dmitri asked.
“Down the street from the town center. Don’t worry about the glass—this happened days ago. I’m heading to my lookout point. You go get Arien and the babe.” Aldo pointed at a lar
ge building on the left, of which only the top was visible. “That’s the town center. Unless I’m mistaken, she’s in one of the back rooms. There’s only one door and one way to that room. You’ll have to be incredibly cautious not to get trapped by the Lorkon.”
Aldo motioned to Early, who was flitting in the air. “May I take your Minya? I’ll need to communicate with you and Kelson, and mine is hurting too badly to help right now.”
Kenji gave Early instructions to go with Aldo, and Dmitri and the older man embraced. They wished each other good luck. Aldo gave Dmitri the key, along with very brief instructions on how to use it, then dashed off down the street, disappearing between buildings. Dmitri was surprised the elderly man could move so quickly.
He pocketed the key, turning back to Kenji. “This is it.” He frowned, trying to decide how best to proceed. The Lorkon wouldn’t have left the building completely unguarded—he was sure of that. Then Dmitri remembered that Kenji had special abilities. “Can you check to see if there are any living creatures around us?”
Kenji nodded, his face brightening. “Yes.” He peered out the window, then pulled his head back inside. “There’s a bush just outside the door. Not as powerful as a tree, but it’ll still work.”
Dmitri motioned for Kenji to go. “I’ll keep a lookout.”
Kenji crouched low by the door and pulled it open, then jumped behind the bush. Dmitri watched with interest as the Makalo put his left hand against one of the bigger branches and closed his eyes.
A moment later, he opened them. “There are Dusts and Yoons patrolling the streets around the center. It’ll be tough, but not impossible, to get past them.”
“Did you see a good way to go?”
“Yes. Follow me.”
Kenji jumped out from behind the bush and dashed around the corner of their building. Dmitri followed, keeping low.
Kenji led him past a couple of buildings and down an alley, where they had a view of the town center and the Yoons and Dusts that surrounded it. The building had decorations all over it—a trident with a sun over its base, which was the symbol the Shiengols used to represent themselves.
“What would they want with Dusts?” Kenji asked in a whisper.
Dmitri watched one of the little beasts with fascination. He’d only seen a couple of them before, and was still getting used to the three-foot-tall creatures whose hands changed into whatever they needed. In this case, the Dust’s hands were formed like a small bucket and shovel. It appeared to be searching for a place to start digging. “I’m not sure. I always thought the things were useless.”
“Same.” Kenji peeked at the little creatures. “The Yoons, however, have a purpose.”
Dmitri nodded. He was very familiar with the three-armed animals—barely the size of a small cat. They walked on hind legs, and used their two main hands to open and get into things. Their third arm was on their back, near the base of the spine, facing forward like a scorpion tail. Its main function was to sense magic and how to break it. His father had used them all the time to access private and magically sealed locations. “Maybe the Lorkon are trying to find the secrets of the Shiengols?”
Kenji snorted. “And I say good luck with that.”
Dmitri turned. “Okay. Dusts and Yoons. Yoons are no danger to us—we can get past them easily enough.”
“And depending on how well the Dusts have been trained, we shouldn’t have a problem with them, either.”
“They can be trained?”
Kenji nodded. “One-on-one, they’re not a problem. But in large groups, they could actually prove to be a challenge. A small one, mind you.”
“You’ll have to fill me in on the particulars later,” Dmitri said. “For now, we need to find a way around them.”
“We’ve got the key—why not just use it to gain access to the town center?”
Dmitri’s felt his face light up. “That’s a great idea! I forgot about it.”
He turned away and strode down the alley, pulling the key out as he approached a door. He put the key into the lock, said, “August Fortress town center,” turned the key to the left, and slowly pushed open the door.
The town center was well lit, which surprised Dmitri. He’d been expecting shadows and monsters and traps to keep him from finding his bride. And it was completely empty. He held the door open for Kenji, then shut it quietly behind them, putting his back to it and getting his bearings. The room before them was probably not as amazing as the actual fortress would have been, but it was still majestic. The sun trident adorned nearly every surface.
Tapestries on the walls bore the same symbol, and the dark woods and light stone of the furnishings and walls complemented each other.
“Aldo said she’d be in one of the back rooms, right?” Kenji asked.
“Right.”
“Should we separate?”
Dmitri shook his head. “No, I don’t want to run the risk of not being able to find each other later.” He glanced at Kenji. “What sorts of other things can you do as a Makalo?”
Kenji’s expression dampened. “Not much, actually. I wasn’t one of the lucky ones. I didn’t inherit a lot of the magic most Makalos pass through their generations. I can light my finger, though, if I concentrate really hard on it.”
“We’ll keep that in mind,” Dmitri said, “in case the lights go out.”
He led Kenji to the left, opening the first door they came to, which revealed a long hallway with many more doors leading from it.
“I suggest we be systematic—searching each room one at a time, and any rooms attached as we find them.”
Kenji nodded, and they started.
About halfway down the hall, Dmitri heard a scuttling noise behind them. He spun and saw a Yoon entering the hall. The creature stopped, staring at the two with its huge, luminous eyes. The arm on its back froze in place, pointing at them. Then the thing started chittering noisily and scurried out of the room.
“Uh-oh,” Dmitri said. “I get the feeling it’s not going to help us.”
Kenji wrung his hands. “Probably not.”
Just then, a siren sounded throughout the town center. It blasted along the hall, nearly deafening Dmitri. He made eye contact with Kenji, then the two ran as fast as they could, popping doors open, trying to search the hall before reinforcements arrived. The last door revealed a narrow room with a staircase at the end.
Closing the door behind them, the two dashed across the room and were about to start up the stairs when Early appeared with a flash and delivered a message from Aldo.
“Things aren’t looking good—the war has started, and hundreds have died already. The Lorkon only arrived a couple of minutes ago, but it seems they are undefeatable. And Kelson and his group have come into a few problems—it looks like they’re struggling with something, though Aldo isn’t sure what. Also, the Lorkon leader is doing something in the city—placing things all over. Again, Aldo doesn’t know for what purpose.”
Dmitri thanked Early for the message. “Please keep the updates coming.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Kenji said after Early left.
Dmitri shook his head. They had to find Arien before anything more happened! Along with the desire to rescue his wife, he felt a strong urge to hurry and help his friends.
They dashed up the stairs and burst through a door at the top, revealing a small hallway. The siren blared even more loudly.
The hall was filled with Dusts.
Dmitri jerked to a stop—the creatures surrounded one of the doors at the end, barring passage. They snarled, but remained motionless, long-fingered hands at their sides.
“Oh, Dusts,” Kenji said. “This’ll be easy.”
Dmitri hesitated. “I hope so.” He waited several seconds more, but the Dusts didn’t do anything. “Let’s go.”
He pulled his sword out of its sheath, and Kenji drew a dagger. They looked at each other, then charged down the hall toward the Dusts, yelling.
Just then, the hands o
f the Dusts in front of the group changed into huge shields. Dusts behind them changed their hands into long spears which protruded between the shields, and Dusts at the very back suddenly held swords.
Dmitri and Kenji skidded to a halt before reaching the creatures. “Wow,” Dmitri said. “I think they’ve been trained.”
“Definitely. I’ve never seen Dusts organize themselves like this before.”
Dmitri took in a breath. “All right. Let’s get started!”
With a clash of weapons, the two jumped in between the Dusts, Dmitri barely avoiding getting stabbed by a couple of spears. He was right—these Dusts knew how to handle and hold weapons. But even though they were formidable in a group this large, they were still no match for a fully trained adult. And Dmitri was that.
With a roar, he swung his sword around, swiping and knocking Dusts out of the way as he charged for the door. He blocked and parried with the creatures, keeping his back to Kenji, who fought on the other side.
One by one, the Dusts started falling.
With a flash of light, Early appeared next to Dmitri. “You must hurry! Aldo says to hurry!”
Without further explanation, the Minya disappeared, and Dmitri and Kenji fought faster and harder. With one final push, they reached the door, the hall behind them littered with injured and dead Dusts.
Dmitri unlatched the door and shoved it open.
The inside of the room was dark, and he had to wait a moment for his eyes to adjust. When they did, he saw a feminine figured huddled against the opposite wall.
“Arien!” He rushed around furniture and dropped to his knees next to her, cradling her in his arms.
Her body trembled. She looked up at him, eyes bloodshot, auburn hair plastered to her head. “Dmitri?” With a gasp, she reached one hand around his neck and pulled herself closer, the other arm holding a small bundle. “Oh, my Dmitri.”
“I’m here, love. Are you all right? And the baby?”
“Fine. We’re both fine. Just exhausted.”
Dmitri kissed her forehead, tears springing to his eyes. “You’re safe now.”
She cleared her throat and motioned to the other side of the room.
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