Army of the Dead (42 page)

“We are neglecting the most important questions of all,” Yltar said softly. “Where are the Motangans heading, and how did they learn of their destination?”

“You think they are heading for Angragar?” questioned Rejji.

“They could just be following the river,” shrugged Yltar, “but then why not engage Fakarans where they found them? I believe they have a destination in mind and are anxious to reach it.”

“The only destination that would interest them is Angragar,” frowned Wyant.

“Then how did they learn of its location?” prompted Yltar.

“Why is that important?” puzzled Yojji. “If they know the location of Angragar, who cares how they found out?”

“Because Yltar thinks that they do not really know the location,” interjected Bakhai.

The shaman turned and grinned at the Astor’s brother. “You will make a fine Head Shaman one day,” he said to Bakhai. “You understand the importance of questioning all things.”

“Let me be the first to admit,” frowned Wyant, “that I have no idea what you two are talking about. Explain it so that Fakaran tribesmen can understand.”

“Let’s suppose that Cardijja thinks he knows where Angragar is,” explained Yltar. “He is moving his massive army as fast as he can towards that goal. He ignores the prods and jabs we inflict on his forces and continues to press onward.”

“That pretty much explains the behavior of his army right now,” nodded Blaka.

“Now let’s suppose that Cardijja’s information is wrong,” smiled the shaman. “Or maybe the information is merely too generalized to actually help him find his goal. Perhaps he knows that Angragar is somewhere east of the mountains and he is pushing to cross them before he engages us.”

“Are you saying that we can still mislead him after he crosses the mountains?” asked Rejji.

“Perhaps,” shrugged Yltar. “That depends upon where Cardijja received his information. If he only knows the general location of Angragar, he will once again actively engage the tribes after he crosses the mountains. He will try to chase them to see which way they go.”

“That could work to our advantage,” brightened Yojji. “We would have his armies between us and the mountains. That is a fight that the tribes would welcome.”

“Unless he truly knows where Angragar is,” frowned Rejji. “We cannot afford to wait to find out where he is heading.”

“Correct,” nodded Yltar. “Which is why we must find out what Cardijja knows.”

“And how are we going to find that out?” scowled Blaka. “Do we just send one of us down to ask him?”

The Qubari shaman did not answer. He turned and stared at Bakhai. Bakhai’s eyes opened wide in confusion as the shaman stared at him, but he finally understood what was expected of him. He inhaled deeply and nodded.

“I will go,” Bakhai announced.

The leaders of the free tribes gasped at Bakhai’s offer, but Rejji walked over to his brother and put his arm around him.

“I will send somebody with you,” whispered Rejji. “Do nothing foolish, but find out where Cardijja is heading.”

* * *

Lady Mystic and Xavo entered the harbor of Meliban. Motangan soldiers immediately began to converge on the docks with a few black cloaks taking the lead. Lady Mystic hastily wove an air tunnel and directed it towards the black cloaks. She announced who they were and nothing more before dropping the air tunnel. When they approached the dock, a soldier threw them a line and helped tie the boat to the dock. Xavo helped Lady Mystic out of the boat and then stepped to the dock himself.

“What are you two doing here?” questioned one of the black cloaks. “Where have you come from?”

“We have come from Motanga,” Lady Mystic answered. “As to what we are doing here, that is none of your business. Where is Premer Cardijja?”

“We will ask the questions,” retorted the Motangan mage. “We were informed that the elves have taken over the Island of Darkness. How is it that you two have managed to leave?”

“You are rather well informed,” frowned Xavo. “We managed to escape while Vandamar was falling. As for who is asking the questions here,” he continued with scorn, “I am a disciple of Vand. As such, I will not tolerate your attitude. What is your name?”

“I am Veritago,” the mage’s chest swelled with pride. “I am in charge of Meliban.”

“Good,” Xavo nodded curtly, “then you can escort us to our quarters. We are tired and hungry and in need of bathing.”

“First I must inform Vandegar of your presence here,” balked Veritago. “We have been instructed to inform the emperor of any significant developments.”

“You will do nothing of the kind,” scowled Lady Mystic. “Using an air tunnel over such a great distance can be disastrous. Have you not been informed of the dangers?”

“Dangers?” the mage echoed suspiciously. “We use the air tunnel all the time. What nonsense are you spouting?”

“It is obvious that the twelve mages from here never returned,” Xavo said softly to his partner. “This is most serious.”

Veritago’s eyes narrowed as he watched the two newcomers talk privately. While Xavo’s voice had been lowered to almost a whisper, the Motangan mage could hear them perfectly well.

“That explains much about their ignorance,” Lady Mystic nodded to Xavo. Raising her voice to a normal volume, she turned to gaze into Veritago’s eyes. “You will contact no one until we have talked,” she said authoritatively. “There are dangers that you are obviously unaware of. Lead the way.”

Veritago frowned with skepticism, but he turned and led the way to the Kheri Inn just across the street from the administration building. He loudly ordered two rooms for the visitors.

“Have two baths drawn,” added Xavo. “I will discuss developments with you while I bathe. There is too much danger for the news to wait too long.”

Veritago passed the order on to the Motangan innkeeper and followed Xavo up the stairs. Neither of them spoke as Xavo undressed and a soldier filled a tub with hot water. When the soldier was gone, Xavo stepped into the tub and began to wash away the salt spray encrusting his body.

“Many things have happened in the past few days, Veritago,” Xavo began. “Rather than bore you with what I know, tell me what you have been informed of. I will then fill the gaps in your knowledge.”

The black cloak hesitated, but Xavo appeared so at ease that he could not imagine any subterfuge. He mentioned the most important news that he had already heard. It included the loss of Duran, the defeat of Doralin, the fall of Motanga, and Vand’s instructions to Cardijja to find Angragar.

“You are fairly well informed,” Xavo nodded when Veritago had concluded. “What is missing from your knowledge is the corruption of the air tunnel spell. While it is still useful for short distances, it is extremely unwise to use it over any great distance. The elves have found a way to spread a compulsion spell through any air tunnel that they can detect. We advised the twelve mages sent to Vandamar about this problem and sent them back here. I am concerned that they never arrived.”

“A compulsion spell?” echoed Veritago. “How does that affect us? There are no elves in Fakara.”

“There you are wrong,” Xavo shook his head. “There are elven mages attached to each of our enemies’ armies. Did you not know that the elven princesses actually were raised here on the mainland?”

“I had heard that,” nodded Veritago, “but I thought they had fled to Elvangar.”

“Fled?” balked Xavo. “One can hardly accuse them of fleeing when they have just recently conquered the Island of Darkness.”

“Maybe so,” replied Veritago, skepticism still evident in his voice, “but we are still under orders to inform Vand of any major happenings.”

“Then you must do so,” shrugged Xavo as he watched the mage’s demeanor soften.

“Then I will do so immediately,” declared Veritago as he rose and turned to leave the room.

“You are going yourself?” Xavo said with shock. “I cannot imagine that you would not send someone else. Who will be in charge of Meliban while you are away?”

“Away?” questioned Veritago. “What do you mean away?”

“Well,” Xavo shook his head in confusion, “I just explained why you must not use an air tunnel over such a great distance. Word of our arrival must be sent to Vand the old-fashioned way. Someone will have to go to Vandegar. I did not think that you would actually go yourself.”

“Travel to Vandegar?” balked the mage. “You can’t be serious? Do you know how far that is?”

“I have been there,” smiled Xavo. “It is an impressive temple, much larger than the one in Vandamar.”

“You have been to Vandegar?” Veritago asked with suspicion. He knew that Xavo had not been to the mainland since the invasion began. “Before the invasion?”

“Quite a bit before the invasion,” nodded Xavo. “You seem surprised. Did you think that one became a disciple of Vand merely for being a good mage? I have served Vand in many ways, most of which you will never hear about.”

“I was unaware,” replied Veritago with genuine awe. Only spies and assassins had been allowed to leave the Island of Darkness before the invasion. The mage suddenly had a newfound level of respect for Xavo. The revelation lent great credibility to Xavo’s knowledge and words.

“I suggest that you send a man of lesser importance than yourself,” smiled Xavo, feeling that he had finally set the hook. “Or you could just let Lady Mystic and me deliver the news. We are heading for Vandegar in the morning.”

“You are going to Vandegar?” inquired Veritago. “The trip is not safe. Cardijja lost fifty thousand men getting the emperor to Vandegar, and I cannot afford to offer you troops. Our soldiers are needed to guard the caravans going to Premer Cardijja.”

“We will not need troops to escort us,” Xavo waved off the suggestion. “It is important that the emperor get news of this air tunnel danger. Somebody must deliver the word, and it is important enough that I feel a personal need to do it.”

“And what should I do when Vandegar contacts me?” frowned Veritago. “They do so on a daily basis.”

“Do not answer the calls,” warned Xavo as he stepped from the tub and began drying himself. “While they may get angry with you right now, I will explain the situation when I arrive in Vandegar. The danger of someone in Vandegar falling under an elven compulsion spell is too severe to be taken lightly.”

* * *

Xavo and Lady Mystic rode out of Meliban early in the morning. They did not speak until they were well away from the city.

“It has been a long time since I rode,” commented Lady Mystic, “and even that was just for sport. How far is Vandegar?”

“It doesn’t matter,” shrugged Xavo, “we are not going there. For either of us to show our faces at Vandegar would be suicide right now.”

“Then what are we doing in Fakara?” scowled Lady Mystic. “I would have preferred to stay on the island over this despicable wasteland.”

“We will go to Vandegar eventually,” soothed Xavo, “but we cannot just yet. Vand must be desperate for allies before we attempt to show our faces there. In the meantime, we will do our best to make him desperate.”

“And how do we do that?” asked Lady Mystic. “By stealing two of his precious horses?”

“I didn’t steal them,” grinned Xavo. “Veritago freely offered them. I think he was relieved that we had offered to go to Vandegar so that he didn’t have to sacrifice any of his men.”

“I am sure,” chuckled Lady Mystic. “And just what did you tell him last night? His attitude changed dramatically.”

“That is not important,” shrugged Xavo. “What is important is the level of supplies present in Meliban. I thought there would be much less than what I saw walking around the city last night. Cardijja has been wise in loading up on supplies and not depending on regular shipments from Duran.”

“Yet he had sent ships to Duran for more supplies,” Lady Mystic pointed out. “Why if he was not in need of them?”

“Need is relative,” replied Xavo. “When you have three major armies drawing on the same supply depot, a wise man anticipates shortages. I think Cardijja complained about shortages in order to build his own supply depot in Meliban. We must do something about that.”

“You want the two of us to attack Meliban?” frowned Lady Mystic. “Inconceivable. In addition to ten thousand soldiers, there were more than a hundred mages there. Do not get cocky, Xavo. We are mortal.”

“Very mortal,” nodded Xavo. “I do not plan to take on the whole Motangan army, but I did find out the route that the caravans use. If we can attack them before they reach Cardijja’s men, we can accomplish something useful while we wait for the right opportunity to go to Vandegar.”

“It would be nice if we could get the tribes to attack Meliban,” mused Lady Mystic. “Do you know how to contact the Fakarans?”

“No,” Xavo shook his head, “but I can contact Emperor Marak. He will know how to reach the Fakarans. I doubt that they know of the amount of supplies in Meliban. If they did, they would have destroyed the city already.”

“Let’s get further away before we do that,” suggested Lady Mystic. “The Fakarans are just as likely to kill us as anyone else. I doubt they would even give us time to talk our way out of an attack.”

“You are more right than you know,” sighed Xavo. “To the tribes, we are just another couple of black cloaks. Perhaps we should find something else to wear. I could pass myself off as a trader and you as my wife.”

“Now that sounds interesting,” grinned Lady Mystic.

* * *

“All of the bridges over the rivers have been destroyed,” reported General Chen. “Our position is untenable. The Khadorans have hundreds of siege engines pounding our armies from across the Khadora River. We have to pull back until we can determine a way across the river.”

“It takes time to build siege engines,” scowled Premer Shamal. “We have been ordered to make haste to Khadoratung. Get the mages to come up with a way to get us across.”

“We have only a handful of mages left,” General Chen shook his head. “The battle at the third trench took a terrible toll on them.”

“It was necessary,” shrugged Shamal, “just as it is necessary to cross this river. Emperor Vand has lost his patience. He wants Khadora conquered quickly so our armies can cross the Fortung Mountains and search for Angragar.”