"Unless you were close to using them for another purpose," nodded Garth, "but why would the Federation strike Alcea before they had solidified their power here in Zara?"
"They have just about everything they need to wage war," answered Morro. "I heard that Karamin and Vinafor have recently joined the Federation. That does not leave enough non-Federation soldiers left to worry about. Tyronia is not about to attack the Federation, and the horse countries are incapable of even reaching here. Still, I think you might see the fall of Tyronia soon. The Federation will want their horses for the war."
"So we still have a little time left," stated Natia.
"Would they attack Tyronia?" asked Tedi.
"They might," shrugged Morro, "but they probably won't have to. The preferred method of expansion by the emperor is through deceit. He will find someone high-ranking up there to idolize him and then he will just eliminate anyone who stands in between his chosen one and the throne."
"And if they do need to attack," sighed Garth, "they just sent thousands of soldiers through the Ramaldi Pass. The attack might be much closer than we expected."
"In the very least," Tedi interjected, "they might have some of the ships set sail early to stage them closer to Alcea. If they do that, getting the Remora through their lines might get a bit tricky."
"Meaning we need to get our mission completed quickly," agreed Garth.
"Does that mean that you will not help with my problem?" asked Morro.
"We can't stay around here forever, Morro," Garth replied. "I will give as much thought as I can to a solution, but we must get back to Alcea to share what we have learned. If we fail to do that, our journey will have been for naught. That is not to say that we are not favorably disposed to helping you, but our priorities are different at the moment."
"Is that the truth?" asked Morro. "Is it necessary for all of you to return to Alcea? Could not one of you carry the word?"
"Try to understand us, Morro," Kalina said compassionately. "We not only need to carry the information back to our people, but we need to stand by their sides to destroy the emperor's people who are trying to kill them. Just as you yearn to help your people, so too do we. If we asked you to come to Alcea and fight by our side instead of staying here and freeing the Dielderal, what would you say?"
Morro dwelled on the question for a fair bit of time before nodding. "I understand," he said sadly, "but your answer is not pleasing. Were you to ask me to fight by your side across the sea after freeing my people, I would gladly do so."
"Then we feel very much alike," smiled Garth. "I think your plan, while extremely dangerous, is an admirable one. Were he alive today, I think your late elven friend would be proud of you."
"He would be," Morro smiled thinly, "and he would lead the Dielderal into battle the moment I told him the children were safe. Now I do not even know if the Dielderal have the courage to go to war even when their bondage is lifted. That is another part of my plan that I have no answer for."
"I think the Dielderal would be ready to stand up and fight," smiled Garth. "Their young prince is an elf to be proud of."
"Saratoma?" frowned Morro. "You know of him?"
"We had three of our people in the Elfwoods recently," answered Garth.
"I had heard that," replied Morro, "but I did not know that they had the opportunity to speak to anyone. I heard that the king summoned soldiers to take the three captive, but something went wrong."
"That is true," agreed Garth, "but they had accomplished what they came for by then. They got to know Prince Saratoma rather well. He is a fine young man and will lead his people well."
"Unlike his grandfather," scowled Morro. "That old man deserves to die with the emperor."
"You are too harsh on him," Garth said. "King Elengal is only trying to keep his people alive the best way he knows how."
"The way he knows how is to have his son dragged off and executed," snapped Morro. "I should have killed him before I left Elfwoods."
"You were there when it happened?" asked Kalina.
"I was there," snarled Morro. "Prince Ellak was the friend that I was speaking of earlier."
"Was he Saratoma's father?" asked Kalina.
"Yes," replied Morro, "and he had the true Dielderal spirit within him, but his father needed that spirit broken. I can never forgive that old man for what he has done."
"If it is any consolation," Garth said compassionately, "I do not think he can forgive himself, either."
"How can you stand up for him when he had soldiers come to seize your three men?" asked Morro.
"King Elengal has only been able to see one path for the survival of the Dielderal," answered Garth. "He has followed that path no matter how much it hurt him, but I think that may have changed."
"Nothing could change Elengal," scowled Morro.
"I think Prince Ellak's son did," Garth smiled thinly. "I have reason to believe that King Elengal knew that the four humans I sent in to rescue the elves were imposters. I think in the time between his summoning the soldiers and the time that they arrived, Prince Saratoma was able to make King Elengal see a different path."
"Is Prince Saratoma strong enough to lead the Dielderal if I accomplish my plan?" asked Morro.
"I think he is," nodded Garth. "He has already stood up to his grandfather with warriors ready to rebel."
"He has?" Morro brightened. "What happened?"
"My people asked him to stop," answered Garth.
"Why?" frowned Morro.
"Because the time is not yet right," answered Garth. "When the rebellion comes, it must succeed or your people will be devastated. You will need to find a way to coordinate with Prince Saratoma before either of you do anything."
Garth felt movement in his pocket, and he quickly placed his hand over the pocket to stop the fairy from emerging.
"Excuse me for a moment," Garth said as he rose from the bed and walked out of the room.
Morro frowned and followed Garth's departure with his eyes. He then turned around and looked at Kalina questioningly.
"There are times when he just has to leave quickly," she smiled and shrugged. "He will be back soon."
Garth climbed the mound of sand and swiftly climbed out of the hole to where the horses were kept. He took his hand away from the pocket, and a little blue head appeared.
"Are you trying to imprison me?" scowled the fairy.
"I was with someone that I am not ready to share your existence with," Garth replied. "What is your urgency?"
"Oh," brightened the fairy, "I forgot."
Without an explanation, Bitsy leaped from his shoulder and darted up the slope to the cave entrance. Garth stood in the dark and wondered what the fairy was up to. A few minutes later, Bitsy returned with Runt, and they each settled on one of his shoulders.
"There is a problem with the Remora," reported Runt. "Captain Gomery says that he can complete the repairs for most of the damage, but the keel is cracked. The Remora cannot return to Alcea. He requests that you find another ship."
"Can it sail at all?" asked Garth.
"As long as the seas are calm," answered Runt, "but that is not possible on a long voyage such as the one needed to return home. We will need another ship."
"Send word to Captain Gomery to continue fixing the Remora," instructed Garth. "I will see if I can find another ship. In the meantime, he should have his men ready to leave at any moment. If we do find a ship, I will need sailors to sail it."
"Your message will be delivered promptly," Runt replied enthusiastically.
Both fairies leaped into the air and disappeared. Garth waited for a short time, but Bitsy did not return. With a heavy sigh, Garth returned below to break the news to the others.
"Is there any chance of stealing or buying a ship in Zara?" Garth asked Morro when he returned to the room.
"You might buy a boat maybe," answered the elf, "but not a ship. As I said before, there is a shortage of ships on the Sea of Tears. As for stealing one
, I have never tried, but I would not give high odds on success. Why do you ask?"
"I get the feeling that we will need one to return home," Garth replied.
The looks on the faces of the Knights of Alcea revealed that they understood that there had just been a major change in plans. Morro looked around the room questioningly and then sighed.
"I think I will go downstairs and do some exploring," he announced. "That will give you time to discuss whatever it is you need to talk about."
When no one objected, Morro left the room, leaving the four Knights of Alcea alone.
Chapter 39
Mission Failure
The Knights of Alcea waited in Morro's room in the lost city of Aranak for several minutes after Morro left before speaking.
"What is wrong with the Remora?" Kalina finally asked. "I thought they were going to be able to repair the damage caused by the collision."
"They discovered that the keel is cracked," explained Garth. "While they can make the ship sailable, a rough sea will sink it. It is Captain Gomery's opinion that we would never make it home. He needs another ship."
"And how are we going to get one?" asked Natia. "It is not like stealing a horse."
"Maybe we can find one in one of the port cities," Tedi said optimistically.
When Garth didn't reply to his comment, Tedi frowned deeply.
"What?" he asked. "We should be able to steal a ship."
"Without the Zarans noticing?" asked Garth. "I do not think that is feasible."
"Well," mused Tedi, "they might eventually notice it missing, but we would be on our way home by then."
"How long do you think it would be before they noticed it missing?" asked Garth.
"I think we could get a day's head start if we are lucky," shrugged Tedi. "That should be enough to keep ahead of them."
"It is five days of sailing just to cross the Sea of Tears," Garth replied glumly. "By the time we reached the Needle, they would be ready to sink us."
"I have never seen you so pessimistic," retorted Tedi. "You have always acted as if we could accomplish anything we set our minds to. If stealing a ship is not the answer, what is?"
"I don't know," Garth admitted.
"What about the fleet that Morro mentioned?" asked Kalina. "There are a hundred ships just inside the Needle. Can't we steal one of those?"
Garth raised an eyebrow as he considered the thought. "That is a thought," he finally said. "A more interesting thought would be the destruction of that fleet."
"The entire fleet?" gasped Tedi.
"Why not?" smiled Garth. "If we can manage to destroy the Zaran fleet, we would buy a great deal of time for Alcea while the Zarans try to build replacement ships."
"Can it be done?" asked Natia. "How does one sink a hundred ships at once?"
"That is a question to ask of Captain Gomery and Max Caber," answered Garth. "Tedi, go find Morro and ask him to rejoin us. I am going outside to send Bitsy off to the others with that question."
Tedi lit a torch and left the room. He headed for one of the stairways leading off the indoor corridor. He called Morro's name as he descended the stairs, but there was no response from the elf. When he finally reached the bottom of the stairs, Tedi found himself in a grand common room. Many of the tables were still set as if waiting for customers to come in, although the ones closest to the stairway were missing cups and utensils. The Knight of Alcea imagined that those tables were where Morro had gotten the supplies in his room.
Tedi approached the windows and thought that they were dirty at first, but he soon realized that sand had completely filled the street outside the inn. He shook his head at the thought of an entire city being inundated with sand in the blinking of an eye. Turning away from the windows, Tedi walked through the kitchen in search of the elf, but Morro was nowhere to be found. Beyond the kitchen he found another stairway leading down. He moved down the stairs cautiously and heard a noise in the distance. He called Morro's name again, and the thief returned the call. Following the sound of Morro's voice, Tedi found a stone tunnel in the far end of the basement wall.
"In here," called Morro. "I could use your help."
Tedi could see flickering light at the far end of the tunnel, and he headed towards it. When he emerged out of the tunnel, he saw Morro perusing piles of crates.
"What is it?" asked Tedi as he held his torch high.
"Supplies," grinned Morro. "I have never explored this deep before. I found a crate of wineskins, and they still look as if they will hold water. They will come in handy when we transport the children."
"What did you need my help for?" asked the Knight of Alcea.
"I want to move some crates," Morro replied. "I can't do it alone."
Tedi propped his torch up and helped Morro move several crates so that the thief could investigate those underneath. The elf grinned in delight as he pried the crates open.
"Trail rations," he announced gleefully. "I wonder if they are still good?"
"Rations last a long time," shrugged Tedi, "but I would use caution. Twenty years is a long time for something to sit."
"True," nodded the thief, "but it raises a thought in my mind. We will need to preposition food and supplies here long before the children arrive."
"You might want to leave such planning for later," advised Tedi. "Garth wants you to join our group for a discussion. He sent me down to find you."
"Alright," nodded Morro as he took a few samples of the rations and resealed the crate.
The thief and the gypsy walked back through the tunnel and climbed the stairs to the top floor. By the time they arrived, Garth had already returned from outside.
"You wanted to see me?" asked Morro.
"I want to see the fleet that you saw from the Pyres," stated Garth. "Will you guide us?"
Morro looked at the faces of the Knights of Alcea without comment. He sat on the bed with a pensive expression and stared at the floor for several long moments.
"If you are thinking of stealing one of those ships," he finally said, "I think it is a crazy idea."
"Why is that?" asked Natia.
"Those ships are for transporting troops," answered Morro. "If you stole one of them, you would never get through the Needle. The catapults would rain death down on you before your made it half way."
"Why would they do that?" asked Garth. "The Zarans are sending ships to Alcea all the time."
"Not that kind of ship," replied Morro. "They send cargo ships, not troop transports. If we go to Giza, I could check and see what the latest bulletins are out of Despair, but the last I heard there was a blockade set up outside the Needle."
"When was that?" Garth asked.
"Over a month ago," answered the thief. "I think it was meant to stop your group from leaving Zara, but I am not sure."
"How do you know so much?" Natia asked suspiciously.
"Information is the main thing I steal," smirked Morro. "While I may steal goods to keep my position within the thieves guild secure, information on the Federation is what I desire most. I have cultivated sources in every city I have worked in. I get to read every bulletin the emperor sends out to all the garrisons, although I am sure there are some that are not widely distributed."
"What do these bulletins say about us?" asked Kalina.
"Pretty much what I have already told you," replied Morro. "They are searching for most of your people around Elfwoods and Bloodwood, although there was one cryptic bulletin about Waxhaw."
"Cryptic in what way?" asked Garth.
"It didn't specifically mention the foreigners," replied the elf, "but it indicated that something had happened that might be similar to a problem in Lanoir. The message was cryptic, as it did not elaborate on what actually happened, but its tone was very serious. Now, I have never heard of a place called Lanoir, so I assumed it was the name of a city in some distant land. Is that true?"
"It is a province not a city," nodded Garth. "The serious incident was the killing of a K'san
."
Morro whistled in appreciation as he looked at Tedi. "You were not kidding when you spoke about killing a K'san. I am impressed."
"This news presents us with a problem," Garth said glumly as he directed the conversation back to the issue of ships. "Our mission is to gain information and return to Alcea with it. It is beginning to look as though we will be incapable of fulfilling our obligation."
The Knights of Alcea fell quiet, as each of them contemplated never seeing Alcea again. Garth stared at Kalina, waiting to see her reaction. Her eyes moistened as she thought of never seeing Arik and Tanya again, but she nodded silently in acceptance of the situation. Not returning to Alcea had always been a possible result of the journey, but finally facing it was still hard for her to accept.
Garth looked at Tedi and Natia. Natia's face was drawn, but she looked lovingly at Tedi as if it was his place to comment. Tedi stared at his staff where it touched the floor. At first his eyes were sad, but as the silence continued, his facial features hardened. Finally he looked up and met Garth's eyes.
"We may be stuck in this strange land," he said venomously, "but that does not make us powerless. If we must spend our lives here, let us bring havoc and destruction to the enemy. Let them know that the Knights of Alcea infiltrated their borders and destroyed their plans."
"I concur," nodded Garth.
"What about the others?" asked Kalina.
"I will release from service any man who wishes to take his chances assimilating into the Zaran populace," declared Garth, "but those who remain with us will be committed to carrying the fight to the enemy."
"I do not know what the Knights of Alcea are," Morro stated softly, "but I would be honored to join with you and take the place of any man who decides to leave your group."
Garth looked at Morro appraisingly. "You need not wait for an opening to join us," Garth declared, "but you might want to think about it before you make your decision. While I encourage individual initiative, I am the leader of this group, and I will not tolerate dissension. There may come a time when you do not like the path that I have chosen. If you cannot put your personal feelings aside and follow my directions, it would be best if you remained separate from the group."
Final Voyage of the Remora Page 48
