Council of War

by Richard S. Tuttle

  "Would it have mattered?" asked Fakir.

  "It would have to me," Kalina replied sadly. "For three years I have wondered what became of you. It hurts me that you found me and said nothing. You were like a father to me."

  "And you are like a daughter to me still," smiled Fakir, "but you have much to accomplish and very little time to do it. There was no need to fill your head with distracting thoughts."

  "Dismount," ordered Kalina as she swung off her unicorn.

  Fakir Aziz looked down at Kalina for a moment and then nodded slowly. He dismounted, and Kalina walked over to him and hugged him tightly. The three men in the park stared at them, but Kalina did not care. She held her old tutor tight for several moments before finally breaking the embrace. She wiped a tear from her eye and looked at the old man.

  "Not too handsome," she quipped, "but better than a dog."

  "Sometimes we cannot be too choosy," chuckled Fakir. "You must tell Alex how much I enjoyed my time with him. He has a soft heart for such a stony warrior."

  "He will be pleased to hear your words," smiled Kalina. "Who are your friends?"

  "Men who have been wasting their talents," Fakir answered dismissively.

  "And you have a task for them?" probed Kalina.

  "We each have our own path to tread," Fakir replied ambiguously.

  Kalina nodded knowing that the Mage would reveal no more about his future, but that didn't necessarily hold true for her future.

  "You managed to get our people through the Forest of Death," inquired Kalina, "can you tell me how to get twenty thousand Occans through there?"

  "I can tell you not to try," frowned Fakir. "The Occan countries stretch around the Forest of Death, not through it."

  "True," frowned Kalina, "but the desert blocks the path to the Federation."

  "Aranak is not the only jewel that was buried beneath the Sands of Eternity. I must go now. Others wait for me."

  "I understand," said Kalina. "I only have two more questions. I will accompany you to the park while I ask them."

  "Only two more?" chuckled Fakir as they started walking towards the park. "I seem to remember an insatiable thirst for answers."

  "Well," grinned Kalina, "I will save some for the next time we meet."

  "If it should come to pass," frowned the Mage. "What are your questions?"

  "You put spells on all of our weapons. I recognize one as a tracking spell, but the other is not familiar to me. What is it?"

  "Not all of your weapons," replied Fakir. "Only the edged weapons. They were insufficient for the tasks set out before you. The other spell rectifies that deficiency. Only immortals should live forever. What is your last question?"

  "What is the key to Alex?" asked Kalina.

  "Tuna," chuckled Fakir. "You should have gotten that without my help."

  "You always did like food," Kalina laughed as they approached the three men with the unicorns. Kalina looked at the men and saw them staring at her. "I am Kalina Shado, gentlemen. Who might you be?"

  "Kalmar of Herinak," the Koroccan mage replied with a friendly bow and a smile. "My associates are Theos of Ur and Zynor of some strange place in Zarocca that no one has ever heard of."

  Kalina smiled broadly, but Fakir's eyes narrowed.

  "You were nosy as a child, too," he scowled at Kalina as he mounted his unicorn.

  "My master always taught me to question everything," Kalina grinned. "Safe travel, gentlemen. May we meet again."

  The three men mounted their unicorns, and Fakir Aziz immediately departed. The others had to quicken their steps to catch up to him. Kalina watched them ride away and then mounted Yurl and returned to where she left her friends. As they continued the journey towards the city gates, Kalina closed her eyes and pictured tuna.

  "Garth is already waiting for us," she announced softly. "He is about a league outside the city."

  * * *

  Driven by Federation soldiers, thousands of horses clogged the Kanton Road heading south out of Ur. The five Knights of Alcea moved off the road, and Garth stared at the dust clouds ahead of him as far as he could see.

  "We will not make any headway against this flow," Garth said to the others. "Perhaps this is a good time to take a meal break."

  "Let's take it far away from the road," frowned Natia. "The soldiers are eyeing our mounts like they want to seize them."

  "They mistake them for Occans," Kalina said. "I would prefer to keep going if we can. Let's head into the woods for a while and then parallel the road. The going will be slower, but we will still make progress towards our destination."

  Garth nodded to Karl, and the Cordonian hunter took the lead. Several hours later the walls of Ur came into view, and Karl headed back to the Kanton Road. A lingering haze of dust was the only remembrance of the passing herds of Tyronian horses.

  "They are stripping this country of its horses," scowled Natia. "They will probably starve them as they do their citizens."

  Tedi glanced at the gate guards ahead and then looked imploringly at his wife. "Be careful of your tongue. This is not the same Ur we visited the last time we were here. This is now a Federation city."

  "Where are we going in the city?" asked Karl.

  "We will go to Sidney's estate," answered Garth. "We need to make contact with Captain Marez. He is the man leading the patriots in Ur. We have never met him, so finding him may be difficult. We do not want to ask too many questions and bring attention to him."

  Kalina blinked as something tugged on her memory. She stared blankly at the road ahead for a moment and then looked at Garth. "Sidney knew a Captain Marez, but he was not a soldier. He was captain of a ship."

  "Could it be the same man?" asked Garth.

  "I doubt it," answered Kalina. "The captain was an old man, but he might be a relation. It is a place to start looking."

  "Natia and I will nose around down by the docks," volunteered Tedi. "We will come out to the estate when it starts to get dark."

  "I will start with the taverns frequented by the soldiers," offered Karl.

  "There is little need for any of us to go out to Sidney's right away," stated Kalina. "There is plenty of daylight left."

  "Then you and I will have a meal at one of the inns," nodded Garth. "It will give me a chance to judge the temperament of the new Ur."

  The Knights of Alcea passed through the gates and into the city. They split up immediately and went their separate ways. As Tedi and Natia got close to the docks, Tedi led the way into an alley. He dismounted and rummaged through his pack. He extracted a cloak and put it on.

  "Find a safe place for our mounts and join me on the docks. I will be in plain view when you get there."

  "What is the plan?" asked Natia.

  "I am going to be a scholarly student writing about the merchant fleets of Ur," grinned Tedi as he held his staff as if it were a walking stick. "We can ask about the old sea captains and see what we stumble upon."

  "You are not old enough to play the part," scoffed Natia.

  "So people will laugh at me for putting on pretensions," shrugged Tedi. "They will think I am trying to emulate one of my tutors. The important thing is that I will not appear to be a threat to anyone. They will talk freely."

  "I will find you," replied Natia, unconvinced that the act would pass inspection.

  Natia rode off with the unicorns, and Tedi walked towards the wharves. His first stop was where a group of fishermen were cleaning the day's catch. He started asking innocuous questions, but the fishermen seemed bothered by his questions. After a few grunted answers, they ignored him. His next target was a group of men mending nets. They were less congenial, and when Natia arrived during the questioning, she decided to leave Tedi to his interrogations. She walked away and entered a tavern.

  The tavern was doing a thriving business, considering that the sun was still high in the sky. The room was crowded, and most tables were packed with men swilling ale and talking loudly. Natia spied a table with two old men talk
ing softly, and she opted to sit with them. They both smiled at her as she sat down, but they soon returned to their conversation about the dead fishing spots in the Gulf of Ur. A young woman came to the table, and Natia ordered a mug of ale. The gypsy princess listened to the conversation of the old men for a while and then commented on what they were talking about.

  "Why do fishing spots go dead?" Natia asked.

  "Over fishing," one of the old men said. "The younger fishermen have not learned to spread their fishing out to many places to let the remaining fish spawn. In my day we knew better, but you can't tell these young ones anything. They already know it all."

  "Isn't that the truth," laughed the other old man. "You can't tell them anything that they don't already know better."

  "My uncle used to talk about the great fishing in the Gulf of Ur," Natia offered as the serving woman placed a mug of ale in front of her and scooped up the coin. "He was called Captain Marez. Perhaps you have heard of him?"

  The two old men stared at Natia with deep frowns. One of them shook his head at the gypsy princess.

  "Captain Marez was no fisherman, lass," he said. "He might have known a bit about smuggling, but he never fished a day in his life."

  "And I don't recall him having any brothers or sisters," the other old man added suspiciously. "What are you on about?"

  The serving woman stared at Natia and then hurried away from the table. Natia smiled weakly at the two old men.

  "My mother used to call him uncle," Natia said. "Perhaps it was just a term of endearment."

  "Now that I can believe," guffawed one of the old men. "I bet he had nephews and nieces in a lot of ports."

  "I take it that he is dead now?" frowned Natia.

  "Deader than a day old mackerel," replied the old man.

  Behind Natia's back, the serving woman threw off her apron and disappeared out the back door of the tavern. Natia endured the two old men staring at her for a few moments and then downed her ale and rose to leave. She smiled at the men and quickly left the tavern. Outside she saw the sun had started its decline. She looked around for Tedi, but he was not in sight. Armed with the knowledge that the old Captain Marez had been a smuggler, Natia decided to try her luck at another tavern. As she walked along the wharf, she saw the serving woman talking to two Federation soldiers. A chill raced down Natia's spine as the soldiers looked at her and started walking towards her.

  Natia casually turned into an alley and ran as soon as she was sure that the soldiers could not see her. She reached the end of the alley and turned the corner. Pausing to catch her breath, she peeked around the corner and saw the two soldiers racing towards her. She turned and ran. She saw another alley entrance ahead and she raced towards it. She darted into the alley and slammed into two more Federation soldiers. As she turned to run away, she felt something slam into her skull. The walls of the alley began to twirl around her as she fell and then blackness filled her vision.

  Chapter 42

  Althea

  Garth and Kalina were enjoying an evening meal in a respectable inn when Tedi found them. He made straight for their table and sat next to Garth. Garth and Kalina looked at the gypsy prince and knew immediately that something was wrong.

  "Natia has gone missing," Tedi said anxiously. "Before you offer false hopes and make statements about her independent spirit, I know that she is in trouble this time. I found the unicorns and they told me that she left them shortly after we split up."

  "How long has she been missing?" asked Garth.

  "Several hours," answered Tedi. "I have searched the whole wharf area. I have been in every tavern and inn in that area of the city. I even checked the shops to see if maybe she was looking for a diversion. Plus, we promised to be back at the estate when it got dark. The sun is setting now. She would not have left me alone on the docks this long."

  "Where was the last place you saw her?" asked Kalina.

  "A block from the wharf. She went to find a safe place for the unicorns and then was supposed to join me on the docks. She never arrived. The unicorns were stabled less than a block from where we split up."

  "We will find her," promised Garth as he pushed his plate away.

  "Go find Karl," ordered Kalina. "Bring him to the docks when you find him."

  "I don't want to waste time hunting for Karl," objected Tedi. "Every moment is important to Natia."

  "Go find him," Kalina insisted. "His gift may help locate her."

  "Go," urged Garth.

  Tedi nodded and left the common room. Garth looked at Kalina questioningly.

  "Can't Fakir's tracking spells be used?"

  "Possibly," frowned Kalina, "but I don't know the key for Natia."

  "Let's head for the wharf," Garth said as he rose. "We can discuss gypsy food when we get there."

  The two Knights of Alcea rose and left the inn. They made their way to the wharf and strolled around the area casually while Kalina tried concentrating on different food items and casting a tracking spell. Nothing worked. A while later Tedi arrived with Karl Gree. Karl closed his eyes and concentrated on Natia, but he sensed nothing.

  "Let's try the other end of the wharf," suggested Garth.

  The sky grew dark as the Knights of Alcea walked to the other end of the wharf. Once again Karl closed his eyes and pictured the gypsy princess. He rotated in a circle and suddenly opened his eyes.

  "I am not sure," he said softly, "but I want to walk more in this direction."

  "You have the lead," said Garth.

  The Alceans walked away from the harbor along a seldom used road that paralleled the western wall. After two blocks they moved into an old part of the city where most of the buildings appeared vacant and abandoned. Karl stopped and closed his eyes again. He rotated and ended up facing west, the wall of the city a mere block away.

  "She is down this street." Karl's voice was laced with uncertainty, but he started walking westward. Garth halted him with a hand on his arm.

  "It is time for the fairies," Garth said softly. "If she is in this section of the city, we must be careful. It is not a place where people walk casually, and it is a dead-end street. No one would be walking on it to go somewhere else. Let the little people scout it out."

  Tedi was bursting at the seams. He wanted to race down the street and find his wife, but he forced himself to calm down. He roused Button while Garth and Karl woke up Bitsy and Twerp. Garth spoke softly to the fairies and sent them on their way. Garth walked away from the group and went to the next intersection away from the water and returned before the fairies.

  "The next street is similar to this one," he reported. "No one is around."

  A few minutes later the fairies returned.

  "We found her!" report Bitsy.

  "She is bound and gagged," added Twerp.

  "And there are four soldiers guarding her," stated Button. "Two outside the building and two inside."

  Garth turned and walked to an alleyway. Everyone followed.

  "Show me, please," requested Garth.

  “I will show you," chirped Twerp.

  The fairy instantly created a vision of the run-down building. Two Federation soldiers stood outside the building, but not near the door, Instead they were lurking in the shadows where they could watch the door. The vision flew over one of the soldiers and in through a window. Zigzagging along a corridor it came to a door with two more soldiers standing outside it. The fairy dived for the floor and shot through a crack at the bottom of the door. As it rose up from the floor, Natia came into view. She was on a bed, bound and gagged. Her weapons were piled nearby on the floor. The vision faded, and Garth turned to face his fellow Knights.

  "Let's do this the simple way. The fairies will put the soldiers to sleep. Tedi, you go in and get Natia and bring her back here. Karl, you and I will approach the building from both sides. We will do nothing unless something goes wrong. Kalina, you stay here and watch out for patrols. If any patrols come by, either warn us or cause a distraction to le
ad them away. Questions?"

  "Let's go," Tedi said anxiously.

  Everyone nodded and Garth sent the fairies on their way. Garth waited a few moments and then tapped Tedi on the shoulder. The gypsy prince headed down the deserted street.

  Tedi did not look back to see if Garth and Karl would follow. He knew that they would be where they needed to be. When he reached the building, he saw the bodies of the two soldiers. He quietly mounted the short flight of steps and entered the building. Following the path the fairies had taken, he turned the corner to find two more bodies on the floor. He opened the door and saw Natia. His heart beat quickly as he raced across the room and slit the ropes. Natia's eyes opened wide in fear, but she recognized her husband, and her face was smiling when he removed the gag.

  "I thought I would never see you again," she said as she leaped out of the bed and hugged Tedi.

  "Talk later," he said softly. "The guards are only sleeping."

  Natia broke the embrace and quickly grabbed her weapons and slid them into their sheathes. Together they raced back through the abandoned house and into the alley where Kalina was waiting. A few seconds later, Garth and Karl joined them.

  "What happened?" asked Tedi.

  "I was in a tavern talking to two old men," explained Natia. "I asked about my uncle, Captain Marez. I learned that the old man had been a smuggler. He is dead now, and he didn't have any brothers or sisters, but that is not what caused the trouble. The woman serving us overheard the conversation. When I left the tavern, I saw her with two soldiers. She pointed at me and they chased me. In trying to lose them, I ran into two other soldiers. Then my world went blank. I guess they hit me on the head. When I woke up, I was in that room, bound and gagged."

  "Perhaps we should leave the city quickly," suggested Tedi. 'When they find out Natia has escaped, they will seal the city."

  "I am not so sure," frowned Garth. "Something is not right here."

  "What do you mean?" asked Tedi.

  "Why take Natia to an abandoned building?" asked Garth. "Ur has dungeons aplenty. And why was she not interrogated immediately?"

  "I was unconscious," replied Natia.