"How did you find out about this?" asked Tedi. "I mean, if they don't want anyone to know about it, could it be just a story to frighten you away?"
"No," Edmond shook his head. "Korocca is not fond of outsiders owning land, so I decided to try Zarocca. Their attitude towards foreigners is not much better, but the upper reaches of the Cyranak River are heavily wooded and sparsely populated. As the horsemen of Zarocca have little love for forests, I thought it would be the perfect place to acquire some land. At first they just said no, but when I pressed the issue, one of them told me about the ogres. I, of course, did not believe him, and I told him so. Eventually, he took me to a large open pit where they burn the bodies. I saw the creatures myself."
"When did the Forest of Death become enchanted?" asked Kalina.
"The stories began right after the day the world shook," answered Sidney. "I remember going through it when I was a youth with my father, and it was not different from any other forest."
"The Collapse," Kalina said softly as she nodded her head. "That alone would explain why no one ever escapes the Forest of Death."
"People do escape from time to time," commented Edmond, "but they appear insane when they escape. I find it hard to believe such creatures could remain a secret for such a long time."
"There is more to the Forest of Death than just ogres," stated Garth. "The sailor who died in there was killed by his horse. It was a horse that was already dead when it bit him."
Sidney's brow creased with shock while the queen's face paled considerably.
"Already dead?" asked Edmond. "How can that be?"
"The creatures come back to life," explained Kalina. "It is a magical place. Only decapitation can ensure that the creature remains dead. The dead sailor also came back to life, but it wasn't truly him. Our men had to sever his head."
"I do not wish to live near that place," declared Queen Romani. "I will take my chances with the Federation."
"The ogre bodies that you saw," Garth asked Edmond, "were they decapitated?"
"No," Edmund answered, "but they were dead."
"It is similar to the revenant spell of Sarac," Kalina explained to Garth, "but it is also different. I suspect it is not the creatures who are enchanted, but rather the place. Once the ogres leave the bounds of the Forest of Death, they are merely ogres."
"If you will excuse me," Queen Romani said as she rose. "I am not feeling well. Perhaps I will take a nap while you get our guests settled in, Sidney."
Sidney rose promptly and moved to the queen's side. He looked at Edmond and his son nodded in response to the unspoken question.
"I will take Queen Romani to her room," Sidney stated.
"And I will get you settled in," Edmond declared.
Edmond showed the visitors to their rooms. Morro was housed separately, and Tedi and Natia together. Garth and Kalina got the third room, and Edmond excused himself.
"I feel for her," Kalina said softly. "Her whole world has turned upside down, yet she is courageous in trying to act calm through the impossible tumult."
"You said that we would check on Colonel Pfaff," frowned Garth. "How are we going to do that?"
"I will do it," answered Kalina. "I can fly down there and find the colonel and get a report for the queen. It will do much to assure her that not all is lost."
"That is a dangerous action for such a small problem," worried Garth.
"Don't worry," Kalina smiled. "I will avoid all roads and cities. I will fly over the Great Meadow and approach Waxhaw in the dark. There will be no one to shoot arrows at me."
"Can't we send a fairy to do it?" asked Garth.
"A fairy will not be able to speak with Colonel Pfaff," Kalina shook her head. "At least not without exposing herself, and I do not think we want to allow that."
"I agree," Garth sighed as he nodded in acceptance.
"There is something about fairies that is disturbing me though," Kalina said pensively. "Ogres existed in the Sagina Universe. That is the same Universe where fairies originated. If there are ogres in the Forest of Death, there may be fairies in there as well."
"What is wrong with that?" asked Garth. "They are all sworn to King Arik."
"The fairies in this land have never heard of King Arik," retorted Kalina. "What if the Federation is already familiar with fairies? What if they have managed to bend the fairies to their will?"
"Slow down," urged Garth. "You are going too fast for me. You are talking about the possibility of fairies existing in the Forest of Death. What does that have to do with the Federation? The Forest of Death is not part of the Federation."
"Are you sure?" asked Kalina. "Who then is enchanting the forest?"
"Can't it be enchanted from a long time ago?" asked Garth. "Does there have to be someone in there holding the spell?"
"It could be an old enchantment," conceded Kalina, "but I don't think it is. A spell such as the revenant spell breaks when the caster dies. While it is possible that a magician cast the spell and moved onward, I highly doubt it. I think the spell is a form of protection to keep people away. Also, don't you find it odd that the ogres have been attacking the horse countries for years, yet there have been no reports of ogres attacking people on the Federation side of the forest?"
"That is strange," sighed Garth, "but maybe the ogres live in the northern part of the forest."
"Perhaps," Kalina said. "We will not answer these questions without going there, but that will have to wait."
"Perhaps I should send Bitsy to find Karl and the others."
"I wouldn't," Kalina responded. "The last thing I would want to see is a dead fairy come back to life. Karl will send Peanut when he thinks it is safe to do so."
"He did give Peanut precise instructions for returning to him," conceded Garth. "When are you leaving for Waxhaw?"
"Right away," answered Kalina. "I will try to be back in two days, but do not worry if I am late."
* * *
The eagle flew high over the southeast corner of the Great Meadow. Off in the distance it could see the outline of Sebastian Pass, but it was too far away to see the soldiers blocking it. In front of the eagle was the Lombardi River, and the bird kept a fair distance away from it. On the northern side of the river, the forest stretched past the borders of Vinafor and intruded into the Great Meadow. The Eagle banked sharply to the west and paralleled the river. As the sun began to slide into the distant sea, clouds began to roll in from the coast. The eagle dropped below the clouds and angled southwest towards Waxhaw.
The sun slid below the horizon, and the eagle banked once more in a more southerly direction. That was when the arrow streaked past it. The eagle instantly banked to the right and dove steeply towards the grassland beyond the trees. With the wind screaming past it, the eagle banked again and shot upwards and away from the forest. It soared up through the clouds and headed out to sea. A couple of hours later, the eagle glided into Waxhaw from the sea. It landed on the roof of a low building and transformed into Kalina.
The Knight of Alcea hung from the edge of the roof and dropped quietly to the ground. Kalina's first stop was the gate of the Royal Palace. She asked for Colonel Pfaff and got blank stares in return. The next two hours were spent canvassing the inns near the palace and the city center. Many of the soldiers knew Colonel Pfaff, but they either did not know where he was, or they were unwilling to share the information. Kalina started to get a bad feeling about her mission. As she walked out of an inn, someone grabbed her hand and pulled her into an alley. Kalina immediately erected shields around her as she broke free of the man's grasp. The man reached out for her again and his hand hit the invisible shield. Only then did she notice the man's face. Kalina dropped the shield.
"You scared me," Kalina said softly.
"I am sorry," Colonel Pfaff responded as he held one hand with the other. "I did not want anyone to see me talking to you. What was it that struck my hand?"
"Perhaps the wall of the inn?" smiled Kalina. "Why are you afraid
to be seen with me?"
"I do not know you," answered the colonel. "I believe that I saw you once in the Ramaldi Pass, but you have been asking for me all over the city. Why?"
"I have come from Queen Romani," answered Kalina. "She is worried about you. I told her that I would find you and make sure that you are safe."
Colonel Pfaff looked nervously out of the alley. He nodded down the alley and then turned and walked away. Kalina followed him deeper into the alley and stood in the dark waiting for him to speak.
"It is not safe to mention her name in this city," he said softly. "King Daramoor would have your head if he thought you favored her return."
Kalina noticed the slight curl of the colonel's lips when he mentioned King Daramoor, as if uttering those two words was a sin. "Then I shall not mention her name again. What am I to report to her?"
"There is much that I would like to share with her," replied the colonel. "Do you have a room in the city?"
"Not yet," answered Kalina. "Should I get one?"
"Yes," nodded the colonel.
"Would it seem out of place for you to be in the Waxhaw Wheel House?"
"I can manage to get in and out unseen," promised the colonel. "Get a room and then come to the stables and tell me which one it is."
Chapter 20
New Beginning
"I hope you are being careful," Kalina said to the officer. "If just one of the soldiers you have recruited is a spy, you will be hung before you can be of any help to Queen Romani."
"There are only a few men who know my true identity," replied Colonel Pfaff. "I have modeled the organization after the thieves' guild. I use the name Crusher when recruiting, and we do background checks on everyone before approaching them.
"Those checks rely on government files," warned Kalina. "Those files can be altered to help someone infiltrate your organization."
"That is possible," conceded the colonel, "but I have worked my way into the confidence of King Daramoor. My association with him gives me an uneasy feeling, but whenever I start to feel uncomfortable, I remind myself that I am needed to restore the queen to the throne."
"What happened to the major who was Daramoor's lackey?"
"Major Garibaldi?" grinned the colonel. "He was promoted to general and sent to Despair. He is now a devoted lackey to Emperor Jaar. Daramoor was furious about it, but he was unable to do anything about it. The emperor uses him as a threat to keep Daramoor in line."
"I had heard something similar to that," nodded Kalina as she glanced out the window and saw that dawn was approaching. "Unless there is something else you wish to convey to the queen, I need to be going."
"You know as much as I do now," Colonel Pfaff shook his head. "Will you be coming again in the future?"
"I cannot say," answered the Knight of Alcea. "I suspect that visits will be infrequent, and you can never know who might be coming to visit."
"I understand," the colonel said as he rose from the chair. "Please give my best wishes to the queen. Tell her it may be a long road before she returns, but the way will be paved for her."
"Just don't act before she sends word," cautioned Kalina. "The timing must be coordinated."
The colonel nodded and slipped out the door of the room. Kalina was weary from lack of sleep, but she had promised to return as quickly as possible. Gazing longingly at the unused bed, she decided to leave immediately. She waited a few minutes after the colonel had left before leaving the room and heading to the alley alongside the inn. After making sure that no one was around, she transformed into an eagle and took to the sky.
Remembering the close call on the way to Waxhaw, the eagle headed out to sea rather than risk flying over the forest. Only when it was well clear of the coast did the eagle bank lazily and head north over the sea. When the sun rose an hour later, the warmth and glow of its rays invigorated the eagle. When the sun was high in the sky, the eagle banked to the right and flew northeast. The dry grasslands of the Great Meadow soon appeared below the bird, and it began to grow weary once again. As the afternoon wore on, the eagle began to fly without thought, more like a mechanical creature than an intelligent one. It's eyes lazily scanned the ground below out of habit more than curiosity. Towards dusk, the cooling air felt brisk, and it shook the eagle out of its stupor. The bird started searching for a safe place to sleep. It had not seen a creature below, but the brown grass was tall enough to conceal almost anything. Warily the eagle intentionally lost altitude as it soared over the expansive Great Meadow.
Closer to the ground, the eagle saw that the tall grass was bent in areas. It was a sure sign that large creatures had been moving through the grass. Without a tree in sight, the eagle continued its flight. Suddenly, the eagle shot skyward as something large moved below. It automatically banked in a circle, and surprise shot through its body. Moving through the tall grass below was a herd of unicorns. The eagle focused on the path of the herd and calculated where it would be in a minute or so. With the calculation complete, the eagle dived towards the ground. As soon as it landed the eagle blurred and transformed into Kalina.
The timing was close, and Kalina had just completed the transformation when the first unicorns appeared. Winnies of alarm ripped through the quiet air, and the unicorns turned and fled before Kalina could approach them. Disappointed and tired, Kalina only gave a brief thought to transforming back into an eagle. She was tired and groggy, and in the end she decided to sleep. She matted down the grass to create a bed and then cast a physical shield around herself. While she would be able to maintain the shield through her sleep, she would not be able to slip into a deep state sleep. Still, she thought, some sleep was better than none. She was too tired to continue the journey, and the sky was going dark.
When Kalina awoke, the sky was gray, but lightening. A soft tapping filled her mind, and she turned towards the noise. A black unicorn was trying to nudge her body with his horn, but he kept hitting the invisible shield. The other unicorns near the shield all leaped away when Kalina moved, but the big stallion stared at her with curiosity. Kalina used mind speech in an attempt to communicate.
Hello. I am called Jenneva. Who are you?
The stallion raised his head and looked right and left before returning his gaze to Kalina.
I mean you no harm. Two of my closest companions are unicorns.
The black unicorn backed away slowly, and the other unicorns turned and fled. Cautiously, the black unicorn turned and disappeared into the tall grass. Kalina frowned and sat up. She banished the physical shield, rose to her feet, and stretched. She could hear movement all around her, but she could not see any of the unicorns. She tried calling out again with her mind.
Will you not talk to me? I am your friend, not your enemy.
Several derisive snorts came from the grass, but no one responded to her call. She knew that unicorns understood verbal speech as well as mental speech, so she chose to speak out loud.
"I am not from this land. The unicorns I know are from Monoceros. Those unicorns are not afraid of me."
There were several snorts of alarm from the grass, immediately followed by a white mare poking her head into the little clearing that Kalina had made.
You are from Monoceros? Does it still exist?
"Very much so. Kaz and Yorra just took their babies there to meet their people. What is your name?"
I am Yurl. I know some who were born in Monoceros. They say that the elves enslaved them. Are you an elf?
The black stallion slowly moved alongside Yurl, and other unicorns stuck their heads through the grass to look at the stranger.
"I am a human. While it is true that elves once tried to enslave the unicorns of Monoceros, that is no longer true. The unicorns of Monoceros are free, and they are respected by humans, elves, and dwarves alike."
The black unicorn turned his head as if he were conversing with one of the herd. When he looked back at Kalina, a deep voice boomed in her mind.
Who leads the tribe from Monoceros?
"Larastrides is the Shamora. Kaz is the Shamta, and Yorra is Kaz's mate. Kaz and Yorra are my closest friends. They live with Alex and me."
Alex?
"My mate."
Why would unicorns choose to live with humans? Are they outcasts from their people?
"Hardly. As I said, Kaz is Shamta, and he is well respected by all in his tribe. Kaz and Yorra choose to live with us because there is a bond between us. We have spent many years with each other. How is it that you know of Monoceros?"
There are some among us who were taken along with the elves that enslaved them. They were brought to this land by ship, but they fled, and my tribe gave them shelter.
The lighter voice of Yurl entered Kalina's mind.
Where are Kaz and Yorra? Why are they not with you?
"A number of reasons. The Federation will soon attack the people of my land. We have traveled far to get here and spy on those enemies. We did not want to subject Kaz and Yorra to such a long sea trip. It seemed wiser to leave them in Alcea."
So you are afraid that they could not defend themselves?
"Certainly not. Both Kaz and Yorra are mighty warriors. For over twenty years Alex and I have ridden them into battle, and we have always been victorious. There are a large number of people in our group. The ship was too small to bring unicorns for all of them. We also did not know if we would ever return to Alcea, and they were newly made parents."
You care for them that much that you would exclude them from this mission because they might die? That does not speak highly of your chances for success.
"It turned out to be a wise decision. The ship we were to take home has been destroyed."
The deep voice boomed again. It was wise. The humans and elves of this land do not know that we exist. You could never have traveled on a creature with a horn.
"Actually," smiled Kalina, "the unicorns of Monoceros know how to hide their horns. They also know how to fly. Those are spells that your people once knew ages ago. A dear friend of mine reintroduced those spells to the unicorns."
The black unicorn cocked his head and stared at Kalina. You can show us how to fly?
Council of War Page 25
