Council of War

by Richard S. Tuttle

  "You have a mission for me?" the fairy chirped.

  "A short one," smiled Garth. "I need a fairy to return to Alcea."

  "We cannot fly that far," frowned Bitsy. "My wings would grow tired before I was halfway there."

  "Not you," smiled Garth. "I am thinking of sending Squirt, and she will be traveling by ship. Her wings will not get tired."

  "Squirt has not been seen for weeks," frowned Bitsy. "She is searching the Sea of Tears for Captain Gomery."

  "I am afraid that Captain Gomery is dead," Kalina said soothingly.

  "That is what I told Squirt, but she insists on searching until she finds his body," replied the blue fairy. "Fairies do not abandon their missions for any reason. She will search for the captain until she finds him."

  "Send Runt," suggested Kalina. "He knows everything we have learned so far, and he can report to King Arik when he arrives in Alcea."

  "Very well," nodded Garth as he pointed to the ship at the end of the pier. "That ship is going to Alcea," he said to the fairy. "I want Runt to hide on it. He is not to be seen by anyone until he reaches Alcea and then he is to report to the Bringer personally."

  "I will see that your order is carried out," saluted the fairy.

  "One more thing," Garth said before the fairy departed. "If possible, I would like to know the contents of those packages waiting to be loaded on the ship. It is too dangerous to do now, but once the ship is underway, a fairy should be able to access them privately. That will require an additional fairy to accompany Runt until we learn what is in the packages."

  "We think they may be magical Doors," clarified Kalina. "If they are, both King Arik and we have to know about it."

  "I will send Peanut with Runt," promised Bitsy, "but Peanut will only have until the ship leaves sight of land before returning to us."

  "They will have five days before the ship leaves the Sea of Tears," nodded Garth. "Get them ready and then return to me."

  The fairy saluted again and then darted into the sky.

  "If the Zarans do have portals," frowned Kalian, "that will change things drastically."

  "Indeed," agreed Garth. "There will be no advance notice by seeing the ships on the horizon. There will be no guarantee that the attacks will even occur along the west coast of Alcea. The Federation could set up Doors all over Alcea. It would be devastating to any defense Arik is arranging. They could even have Doors inside our major cities."

  "Let's get away from here," suggested Kalina. "Someone is bound to ask why we are hiding in the alley. Let's try to find Smokey while we ponder about portals."

  Garth nodded silently and led the way out of the alley. The Knights of Alcea move through the streets of Giza in a random roaming fashion as they each dwelled on the implications of what they had seen. After an hour of walking, Kalina gasped softly as they neared a corner. Garth looked up and saw a feeble man hobbling along the street. Kalina was about to call his name when Garth pulled her back around the corner.

  "That was Tyroma," she said to Garth.

  "I know," Garth whispered. "Further along the street were four soldiers watching him."

  "The soldiers are watching everyone in this city," frowned Kalina. "Why do these four disturb you?"

  "I am not sure," Garth admitted, "but they do disturb me. Their gaze did not appear to be mere curiosity. I think they were following Tyroma."

  "Why?" questioned Kalina. "Do you think they suspect he was involved in the attack on the fleet? That is ridiculous. They would have him in a cell."

  "Yet Giza is a far distance from where the fleet sunk," stated Garth. "Judging from Tyroma's condition, he did not swim here."

  "Alright," conceded Kalina, "but he could have been rescued by a ship. How would they know that he was not one of those assigned to be aboard the fleet?"

  "A valid question," Garth replied. "Let's follow him until we can speak to him alone. Just in case?"

  "Agreed," Kalina said.

  The couple moved into a doorway and hid while the sailor hobbled past. Tyroma walked with a severe limp and his arms swung at an odd angle. The man's head never swiveled, and his eyes appeared hollow as he stared straight ahead. Tyroma walked right past the Knights of Alcea without seeing them. A moment later the four soldiers appeared. Garth threw his arms around Kalina in a loving embrace, and the soldiers snickered as they passed by.

  "Take to the skies," Garth suggested softly as he leaned out to make sure that no more passersby were approaching. "Keep track of where he is going."

  Kalina nodded and then her body shimmered and disappeared. In her place was a magnificent eagle, and it launched itself into the sky. As the eagle flew upward, Garth stepped out of the doorway and peered at the backs of the soldiers. He saw Tyroma make a right turn at an intersection, and he ran across the street and up to the next intersection. He peered around the corner and waited for Tyroma to appear a block away. It took the sailor a long time, but he finally appeared. He passed through the intersection, but Garth made no move to follow. A few moments later the four soldiers also crossed the intersection. Garth raced up another block and waited again, but the sailor never appeared.

  Confident that the soldiers had not seen his face, Garth headed towards where he had expected to see the sailor. When he reached the intersection, he turned left into an empty street. His eyes scanned the buildings on each side of the street, seeking one that a sailor might visit. Halfway along the block, he saw a deteriorating inn. He continued past the ill-kept building until he reached the next intersection. There was no sign of the sailor or the soldiers. High overhead the cry of an eagle caught Garth's attention. He looked up and saw the eagle circling over the old inn.

  Garth turned around and headed towards the inn. He presumed that the soldiers were probably sitting in the common room waiting to see if the sailor went out again. Alongside the inn was an alley, but it was not wide enough for a horse to fit through. Garth knew that there would be no stables behind the inn and probably no rear door either. He eased into the alley and moved halfway along it. Putting his hands on one wall and his feet on the other, Garth started climbing upward. When he reached a window on the second floor, he peered inside and found the room empty. The Knight of Alcea quickly entered the room and stood silently, trying to detect any sounds coming from the other patrons.

  Hearing nothing, Garth eased the door open and slid into the hallway. He moved stealthily along the hall, pausing to listen at each door before easing it open and checking the room. Only one of the rooms appeared to be rented and no one was in it when he looked. When he reached the end of the hall, he turned around and walked back to the center of the building and started checking in the other direction. The second room he checked had someone inside. He heard a voice murmuring, but he could not understand the words. Carefully he eased the door open and saw Tyroma on the bed. The sailor was mumbling to himself. Garth entered the room and quietly closed the door.

  As Garth crossed the room, an eagle flew in through the window and landed on the floor. It glimmered briefly and Kalina appeared in its place. Tyroma gasped loudly and his eyes grew large. The sailor's face was a mask of horror, and Garth was afraid that he would cry out, inadvertently bringing the soldiers up the stairs. He moved quickly to the bed and placed his hand over Tyroma's mouth. The sailor tried to cry out, but he could not.

  "Be quiet," whispered Garth. "There are soldiers downstairs. They have been following you. We will get you out of here. Tell us what happened."

  "There are more than just the four downstairs," interjected Kalina. "There are over a hundred soldiers in a square a block away."

  "No matter," replied Garth as he removed the hand from the sailor's mouth. "We will get Tyroma out of here safely. Tell us what happened to you."

  Tyroma's eyes darted from Kalina to Garth and back again. Garth recognized the fear in the man's face before Tyroma's mouth opened to yell for help. Garth blasted his fist into the side of the sailor's head and knocked him unconscious.


  "Why did you do that?" frowned Kalina.

  "He is afraid of us," answered Garth. "He was going to yell for help. Something is not right here. Interrogate him."

  "Interrogate him?" echoed Kalina. "You know that I don't like to do that."

  "Do it," insisted Garth. "I think we have stumbled into a trap. There is no time to lose. We must know what he knows."

  Kalina objected no further. She placed a hand on the man's unconscious head and cast a spell. It took only seconds for her to retrieve what she wanted to know, and she was about to break the spell when her face was bathed in a glow of horror. Garth watched as Kalina's eyes grew wide with fear. He told her to break off the spell, but Kalina did not even acknowledge her husband. Her hand began trembling violently, and Garth knew that she was in trouble. He drew his knife and plunged it deep into Tyroma's heart. Kalina gasped loudly and swayed into the wall behind her. Garth leaped over the bed and caught her.

  "It is a trap," gasped Kalina. "More devious than you can imagine. I must leave you alone in your escape. Be quick about it."

  "Alone?" frowned Garth. "I am not going anywhere without you."

  "I need to become an eagle again," Kalina explained quickly. "Soldiers are already rushing here. Your only hope of escape is if I create a magical diversion elsewhere in the city."

  With that, Kalina's body glimmered and disappeared. An eagle leaped off the floor and flew out the window. Garth wasted no time. He knew that he could not go down the stairs, and jumping into the alley right now would be suicide. The first place they would look is out the window. Garth dashed into the hall and turned to the right. He heard the soldiers downstairs rushing towards the stairs. He ran to the end of the hallway and jumped upward, his hand sending a wooden ceiling panel flying into the attic. He silently thanked the elven thief for introducing him to such escape routes, but he did not try to enter the attic. Instead he opened the door to his right and slid into an empty room.

  Garth moved across the room and stood alongside the window. He heard the soldiers barge into Tyroma's room, and he pictured one of them sticking his head out the window to check the alley. Boots slammed along the hallway and doors burst open as the soldiers got closer. Eventually, one of the soldiers shouted when he saw the hole in the ceiling of the hallway. Garth heard the soldiers overhead and he peeked out the window. The alley was clear, and the Knight of Alcea eased himself out the window. Just as he was letting go to drop to the ground, Garth heard the door to the room burst open. He knew that he would never make the end of the alley before an arrow struck him down.

  As soon as Garth's feet hit the ground, he raced for the closest end of the alley. He heard a shout behind him, but he didn't turn around to look. He kept his eyes on the end of the alley and frowned in amazement at his bad luck. An old man turned into the narrow alley and walked towards him. Garth had planned to dive to the ground when he heard the snap of the bowstring, but he could no longer do so. The snap came a second later, and Garth waited for the impact. Suddenly, a dark gray blur flashed before his eyes. The Knight of Alcea saw Smokey leap over the old man and Garth and then he heard the yelp of pain as the arrow hit the dog.

  Time slowed down for Garth as his heart filled with sorrow for the dog. Another snap of a bowstring sang out, but it came from in front of Garth, not behind him. The arrow sailed over his head, and he heard a cry from the enemy soldier, yet he did not know who had fired the arrow. The old man stopped short, his mouth hanging open in fear and sweat pouring down his face. The man clutched his chest and stumbled to the ground. As Garth raced by the fallen man, he saw Morro standing at the mouth of the alley with a bow in his hand and another arrow nocked.

  "Hurry!" urged Morro. "This place will be crawling with soldiers in less than a minute."

  Garth turned to look for Smokey and the old man, but Morro grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the alley.

  “They are all dead," stated the elf, "and we will be too if we do not run."

  Chapter 2

  Diversion

  The eagle skimmed over the rooftops of Giza as it headed towards the southwest corner of the city. Spying a tall building in the last block before the city wall, the eagle dove to the rooftop and landed. A moment later, Kalina stood looking down on the large cradles of the shipyards. Without a second thought, she raised her arms high in the air and called forth a frightening magical power. A tremendous bolt of lightning streaked down from a cloudless sky and smashed into one of the ships being built. The wooden frame of the ship exploded in a shower of wooden splinters, and the cradle blew apart like a child's toy being hit with a hammer.

  Shouts and screams split the air, but the Alcean mage was not done. She raised her arms again. Another tremendous crack split the air as a lightning bolt slammed into the second ship. She was pleased to see that the workers were running away from the shipyard. This mission was not meant to be one of death, but rather one of destruction and diversion. Without hesitation, she brought forth the third and fourth bolts of lightning, smashing the remaining two ships under construction. She glanced down at the shattered ruins of the Giza shipyards with satisfaction. Kalina saw that people had already noticed her. Many people were pointing up at her, and soldiers were racing towards her building. She pivoted swiftly and gazed at the wall of the city. Bringing forth a fifth lightning bolt, Kalina guided it to the top of the wall. Whistles screamed from every quarter of the city, but the blast of the lightning and its thunder overpowered all other sounds. The lightning smashed into the stone wall and sent rocks flying high into the air. A large cloud of dust and mortar welled into the air over a hole in the wall that was over twenty paces wide. Her task complete, Kalina turned and walked calmly towards the stairway leading down into the building. As soon as she had gone far enough away from the edge of the roof to ensure that those below could no longer see her, Kalina cast the spell to transform into an eagle. The eagle launched itself off the opposite side of the roof and skimmed over the rooftops.

  * * *

  As soon as Natia and Tedi had left Garth and Kalina, Natia tugged on Tedi's sleeve and halted.

  "What is it?" Tedi asked.

  "You can check the common rooms without my help," answered Natia as she nodded at a distinguished man leaving the Palace Keep. "I want you to meet that man and inquire about any DeCardia figurines he might have."

  "Why?" Tedi asked suspiciously. "What are you up to?"

  "I have an idea," grinned the gypsy princess. "I remember him as a man who bought two of the figurines. Ask him if you can buy them from him for five-hundred gold apiece."

  "Are you crazy?" balked Tedi. "A month ago you sold them for two-hundred gold a piece and that was robbery. What if he says yes?"

  "Then buy them," answered Natia as she shoved a gold pouch into Tedi's hand. "I doubt that he will actually be willing to sell them, but your offer will have increased their value. That is all that I need to happen. Go before he gets away."

  Natia gave Tedi a push towards the retreating man. Natia dashed into an alley, and Tedi turned to stare at her in confusion. She waved for him to get going. Tedi sighed with a lack of understanding and turned to pursue the man. He managed to catch up to the man without it appearing to be deliberate.

  "Excuse me," Tedi said as he drew alongside the distinguished man, "but I heard that you had recently bought some figurines by the great artist DeCardia. Is that true?"

  The man stopped and starred at Tedi for a long time without answering. "What is it to you what I spend my money on?" he eventually asked.

  "I am seeking to buy a couple of the figurines," replied the Knight of Alcea. "I have looked all over, and I cannot find any for sale. I am willing to pay quite handsomely for a pair of the figurines."

  "Oh?" brightened the man. "And what would a handsome price be for two DeCardia's?"

  "Five-hundred," smiled Tedi.

  The man smiled appreciatively, as if congratulating himself on a fine investment.

  "Each," Tedi added with a bigge
r smile.

  The man's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Five-hundred each?"

  Tedi nodded. The man's lips pressed together in consideration as he stared at Tedi. For several long moments neither man spoke as the Zaran considered collecting a tantalizing profit from his investment, but the man smiled as he shook his head.

  "I think they will become much more valuable than that," he replied. "I suppose you feel the same or you would not be chasing people down in the streets to buy some."

  Tedi chuckled inwardly as he dropped his eyes to the street and nodded sadly. He looked back up at the man with an expression of disappointment.

  "You wouldn't happen to know anyone who might consider letting his DeCardia figurines go?" Tedi asked.

  "I am afraid not," the man smiled broadly.

  As Tedi stood dejectedly, the distinguished man turned around and walked away in a different direction than the one he had been taking. Tedi frowned in confusion as he watched the man walk away. When the man was out of sight, Tedi returned to Natia.

  "He refused to sell," Tedi stated.

  "I figured that he might," replied Natia, "but it didn’t matter either way. If you were forced to purchase them, I would have just resold them at the new price. You can go check the common rooms now. I have something else planned for today."

  "And what would that be?" asked Tedi.

  "I suspect that word of your offer is now spreading throughout the city," grinned the gypsy. "In a little while, I plan to visit an old friend. I will meet you back at the Palace Keep tonight."

  Natia stepped out of the alley and walked away. She made directly for the government building and stood across the street as if she were waiting for someone. As she waited, Natia noticed that the streets were exceptionally quiet for a large city. She had noticed this when they entered the city, but she had assumed that it was because of the early hour. Now she suspected otherwise. A few shops were open, but most were not. There were no street hawkers and no beggars. Most of the people walking around the city were soldiers, and there were hordes of them. She suddenly felt a chill race down her spine and wondered if being on the street was a wise idea. Just as she had made her mind up to call off her mission, she saw the distinguished man turn the corner and head for the government building. She eased backwards into an alcove and waited.