13 Day War (26 page)

“I know too little of their magic,” Jenneva replied with a shake of her head.

“Because fairies are fearless.” chirped Bitsy.

Alex smiled and turned his head to find Bitsy sitting on a shelf behind him. He picked her up and deposited her on the map.

“It is rude to spy over one’s shoulder, Bitsy,” quipped Alex. “If you wish to join the conversation, stand where we all can see you.”

Bitsy beamed with the attention given to her, but a dark shadow soon loomed over her head. She looked up nervously to see Alex holding a massive book above her.

“What are you doing?” trembled Bitsy as she scooted away. “One slip of that book and you would doom me. I would be like an ant under your boot.”

“So much for your theory on fearless fairies,” chuckled Alex. “Tell me, Bitsy, why would your people not be affected by such a spell?”

“I don’t know,” the tiny woman responded as she watched Alex return the book to the shelf behind him. “Maybe fairies don’t often think of the consequences of their actions. Humans always seem to dwell upon such things.”

“She might have something there,” mused Jenneva. “Bin-lu is certainly no coward. He has undertaken missions that would cause most men to tremble in debilitating fear, but he had the inner courage to see them through to completion, yet according to his report, this spell of fear paralyzed him.”

“I am not following you,” frowned Natia. “What is your point?”

“Bin-lu accepted missions that scared him,” explained Jenneva, “but he conquered his fears before encountering the source of them. In essence, he dwelled upon the upcoming fears and conquered them. In the case of the mage tent, he was not prepared for the fear and it overwhelmed him.”

Alex frowned doubtfully. “I am sure that Bin-lu felt fear going into that tent without the aid of any spell. If he did not, he would be a fool, and Bin-lu is no fool.”

“He had accepted a certain level of fear,” countered Jenneva, “and he was prepared for it, but he was not prepared for the spell.” Jenneva sighed. “I wish his report had detailed his feelings more. I would like to know what thoughts went through his head before Shrimp snapped him out of the spell.”

“You think Shrimp broke the spell?” asked Tedi.

“It sounds like it to me,” answered Jenneva.

“This does not explain why Shrimp was not affected by the spell,” interjected Alex, “but it does cause me to question the effectiveness of the spell if one is prepared for it. Could this same spell account for the Federation soldiers’ avoidance of the black-cloaks?”

Jenneva raised an eyebrow and nodded. “It could. A subtle aura of fear would cause the soldiers to avoid contact with the mages. Is that significant?”

“I think it is,” replied Alex. “It would explain why the black-cloaks were using it when Bin-lu attacked. It was not necessarily that they were expecting an attack, but rather a standard procedure used to keep everyone at bay.”

“That makes sense,” agreed Jenneva. “If each black-cloak kept such an aura around himself, he would not want it to dissipate while he was asleep. To make up for that, they would keep one black-cloak awake at all times, casting a collective aura for himself and all of his sleeping comrades. That might also explain why black-cloaks always seem to travel in pairs. They never want that aura to dissipate.”

“And a collective spell for eight black-cloaks would be considerable,” nodded Tedi. “I think I can begin to understand what Bin-lu must have experienced. I am not sure that I can overcome such a spell.”

“We need to approach this problem carefully,” warned Alex. “King Arik cannot stand the loss of any more Knights of Alcea. He takes these deaths rather hard. We need to understand exactly how this spell works before thinking that we know a way around it.”

“What are you proposing?” asked Jenneva.

“I am not sure,” admitted Alex. “There are three Federation teams arriving today. Of the three, only Team Gortha needs to be attacked right away. Perhaps we should all go to Gortha together.”

“The Federation teams will start arriving in Targa tomorrow,” warned Tedi. “We can’t fly down to Sordoa and be back up here tomorrow. It will take all day just to get down there.”

The door to the library opened and Prince Oscar walked in. He set a pair of boots on one of the tables and approached the Knights of Alcea. He looked at the map and then the Knights.

“You are all up early,” he remarked with a smile. “What are we planning?”

“We are discussing the fear spell,” answered Alex. “What news do you have today?”

“The Federation armies are discovering the loss of their Doors,” answered Prince Oscar. “Kolling, Omirro, and Ross all discovered that their portals are gone. These men are no fools.”

“As Clint has warned,” nodded Alex. “Is that it?”

“There is nothing else of significance out in the field,” the prince replied. “I will have written reports soon if you would like to read them.”

“I would,” answered Alex. “Why did you say out in the field? Are there problems here in Tagaret?”

Prince Oscar frowned deeply and nodded. “Healers all over the city sent messengers to the palace during the night with pleas for assistance. It seems as if some sort of plague has broken out in Tagaret. It couldn’t have come at a worse time, especially with everyone already being rather irritable.”

“Can it be contained?” asked Jenneva.

“I do not know,” answered Prince Oscar. “It appears to have broken out all over the city at the same time. The worst part is that Zalaharic has left the city. Perhaps you could help out, Jenneva?”

Alex raised an eyebrow. “Where has Zalaharic gone?”

“He slipped out of the city yesterday,” revealed the prince. “He felt a duty to aid Podil with the wounded unicorns. The king is not aware that he is gone.”

“I will do what I can,” offered Jenneva.

Alex started pacing the floor. He halted near the boots and picked them up to admire the workmanship.

“Get healers from Elderal,” Alex said softly. “I have need of Jenneva for something more important.”

“More important than Tagaret?” challenged Prince Oscar. “Maybe I didn’t explain the severity of the problem. The plague is affecting the whole city. That includes the Targa army. The army is supposed to march out of the city in four days. If the plague is not contained soon, it will not be able to leave the city. That will leave just the Rangers and the Red Swords to go up against Team Miram. They will be outnumbered five-to-one.”

“What do you need me for?” asked Jenneva.

“For Gortha,” answered Alex. “I think we need a mage present when we approach the tent of the black-cloaks. We need someone powerful enough to stand against eight battle mages in case we are trapped by the spell of fear.”

“Let the black-cloaks wait,” decided Jenneva. “Prince Oscar is right. We need to get this plague under control, and we need to do it quickly.”

Alex nodded in defeat. He turned his gaze to Tedi and Natia. “Do not attack the black-cloaks. Remove the Doors from Gortha and Pontek once the armies are out of the area, but do nothing more until you hear from us.”

“No harassing or slowing the armies down?” frowned Tedi.

“No,” Alex replied. “The Federation team out of Pontek will be handled by Prince Darok and his dwarves. There is no need for you to be involved in that. As for Team Gortha, I do not want them harassed until their black-cloaks are dead. What you can do, however, is concentrate on Team Caldar. First, verify if Wylan and Sheri were able to eliminate their black-cloaks before they died. If they were successful, do what you can to slow General Omirro down. We will deal with General Ritka and Team Gortha later. Read whatever Prince Oscar can give you on Force Sordoa before you leave.”

“I understand,” nodded Tedi. “We will get ready to leave and then check with Prince Oscar.”

The gypsies left the library, and Prince Oscar huddled with Jenneva as they laid out a plan for combating the plague. Alex returned to pacing the floor, seemingly unaware that he was still holding the boots that Prince Oscar brought into the room with him. As the Knight of Alcea was deep in thought, Prince Oscar reached out and pulled the boots from Alex’s hands. Alex looked up in a start.

“They were not meant for you,” chuckled the prince. “These are the boots for a king.”

“They are finely crafted,” Alex admitted with admiration for the shoemaker who had created them, “but I can’t picture Arik wearing them. The gold trim alone would put him off. Arik does not care much for the trappings of wealth.”

“I agree,” Prince Oscar responded, “but they were a gift from a citizen, left at the gate this morning. Arik will no doubt wear them at his next public appearance and then store them in a closet somewhere.”

“What citizen would offer such an ostentatious gift?” asked Alex. “Surely, the citizens of Tagaret know that Arik is not the type of king who covers himself in gold.”

“The citizens of Tagaret are well familiar with the king’s taste,” answered Prince Oscar, “but these boots are from a Cordonian who has recently moved here. The man is the finest shoemaker to ever grace this city, and he charges the least for his wares. The king has already fielded complaints from the other shoemakers. They claim that Artimor is selling his footwear for less than they could make it.”

“Is he?” asked Alex.

“I don’t know,” shrugged the prince. “His prices are cheap, but he does a tremendous amount of business. I imagine that he can charge less because of the volume. I bet half the army uses his services, and it only takes so much profit to pay the rent. I suspect the other shoemakers are merely jealous. You should see this Artimor while you are in the city. You look like you could use a new pair of boots.”

“Maybe I will,” sighed Alex. “I will have precious little else to do with my time while Jenneva travels around the city with you.”

“Hopefully we will nip this plague in the bud,” smiled Jenneva. “Busy yourself with Oscar’s reports. I am sure that he won’t mind.”

“Not at all,” smiled Prince Oscar as he held the door open for Jenneva. “I will tell the guard at my office to expect you.”

Alex watched them leave and then returned to pacing the floor. Thinking that he was alone, the tiny voice startled him.

“You want to kill those mages,” declared Bitsy. “I can tell. What is stopping you? You are as fearless as a fairy.”

Alex halted and turned to stare at Bitsy. The tiny, blue woman still stood on the map of Alcea. Alex smiled at her.

“You know me too well, Bitsy, but while your skills are impressive, I do not think that you can handle eight battle mages by yourself.”

“And why would I have to?” asked the fairy. “If there is only one mage awake, and he is the one holding the fear spell over the tent, I could just put him to sleep.”

Alex raised an eyebrow at the fairy. “We are not sure that fairies are immune to the spell. What if Shrimp was some weird exception that the spell did not affect?”

”Then I will become afraid before I enter the tent,” shrugged the blue woman. “If that happens, they will not know that I was ever there. I will flee and we can try something else.”

“Or the black-cloaks will detect you,” frowned Alex. “We still do not understand their capabilities very well.”

“None of my people have been detected yet,” retorted Bitsy. “We have entered temples and even the Black Citadel. The black-cloaks have not discovered us yet. Why not give it a try? There is nothing else to do while we wait for Jenneva.”

Alex grinned and nodded. “Perhaps fairies are fearless after all. Let’s go down to the stables and see if Kaz and Yorra have arrived yet.”

* * * *

The unicorn glided to a stop in the small clearing and Podil dismounted. She nodded to Zalaharic as she let her eyes look over the bodies on the ground.

“I wasn’t aware that you were coming, Zalaharic,” Podil said in greeting. “What is the situation?”

“I am not here officially,” Zalaharic replied, “but I saw that I could get here quicker than you. I could not allow the four of them to lie here untended any longer than necessary.”

“The four of them?” echoed Podil. “I was led to understand that only the unicorns were alive.”

“That is what Twerp believed at the time he sent the message to Tagaret,” stated Zalaharic, “but he was wrong. Technically, at least. Wylan is close to death, and Sheri is not responsive.”

“Not responsive?” questioned Podil as she knelt next to Sheri.

“I have never seen anything quite like it,” commented Zalaharic. “It is as if she is in a frozen state, her life put on hold awaiting some signal to awaken, but I cannot imagine what such a signal would resemble. I have chosen to leave her until last. Her health does not appear to be degrading, and the others need immediate assistance.”

“Tell me how I can help,” Podil said as she rose to her feet and turned away from Sheri.

“Sinora will need further healing,” explained Zalaharic, “but she is stable for the time being. I am most concerned about Wylan and Wesik. Wylan has lost a lot of blood, and the arrows damaged him internally. I am not yet sure of the exact degree of damage, but he could use some more Kioji tea. I did not expect four severely hurt patients, and I have used up my supply. Did you bring some with you?”

“I have some,” nodded Podil. “I will make the tea up immediately. What about Wesik?”

Zalaharic sighed, and Podil sensed the weariness in him. She knew that the flight from Tagaret must have taken the best part of a day. She also knew that Zalaharic would not have given thought to resting while others remained untended.

“Wesik is bad. His flank was hit with a spell of fire, and it has burned through flesh and muscle. It will take a great deal of effort to heal such a wound, and even then, I do not know if he will ever walk again. He is also blind. A spell of brilliance must have struck him squarely in the face.”

You summarize well, elf. Waste not your time on me. A unicorn who can neither see nor run is hardly worth restoring to life. Tend to the others.

“I am the healer here, Wesik,” retorted Zalaharic as he placed his hand on the unicorn’s head and called forth a spell of sleep. “You stick to what you know and let me handle what I was trained for.”