Alutar: The Great Demon (26 page)

The other three dwarves rose and joined the king. As if it were a prearranged signal, thousands of other dwarves rose to their feet and grabbed their weapons.

“What about the bodies?” asked Prince Darok.

“It’s a bit late to be asking that question,” chuckled the king. “Fear not, son of Dorgun. I have men lined up along the Blood River with nets. The humans in Valdo will never know about anything that happens up here in the mountains.”

Prince Darok nodded and fell in alongside the King of Tarashin as the dwarves moved out of the cold camp and headed towards the entrance to Camp Destiny. The dwarves moved slowly and silently as they neared the enemy camp. The dwarven sentries posted to keep watch on the humans made way for the gathering dwarven horde. King Drakarik signaled for his best two archers to come forward, and they immediately appeared beside the king. The king placed his hand on one of the archer’s shoulders as his head swiveled to make sure that his forces were in position. He waited patiently as he watched the moving shadows. When he detected no further movement, he gently patted the archer.

“Make the first shot count,” the king said softly. “We have no time for retries. Let me know when you are ready.”

The two archers nocked arrows to their bows as did the rest of the horde. When they were ready, they softly informed the king.

“Do it now,” the king said to the archers.

Two arrows streaked out of the woods and two black-cloaks tumbled to the ground. Before the first Federation soldier could react to the attack, hundreds of arrows streamed into the small camp. Every standing soldier was killed in the initial onslaught, but the camp was still not secure. Hundreds of dwarves charged out of the forest, their battleaxes raised and ready for the second stage of the attack. They rushed the barracks where the other soldiers were sleeping. The snap of the bowstrings had awakened some of the sleeping soldiers and they raced out of the buildings, but they were unprepared for what awaited them. The dwarven battleaxes sliced through flesh and bone and then the dwarves entered the barracks and completed the annihilation of the small Federation camp. The dwarven leaders stood and stared at the gaping mouth of the tunnel leading into the hidden valley. With a nod from King Drakarik, Floro cast a vertical physical shield and placed it flush against the mouth of the tunnel.

“How long can you hold it?” asked the king.

“It will not be measured in time,” answered the Tarashin mage. “It will be measured by impacts. Each physical strike against my shield will weaken it. The harder the strike, the more severe the weakening. Have no fear. I will have advance notice of its weakening, and we have many mages to take my place.”

“There is no magical shield in place,” commented Doryelgar. “That means that the black-cloaks can still cast magical spells out of the tunnel towards us. Should I put one in place now?”

“Not yet,” answered King Drakarik. “There should be no black-cloaks coming our away until dawn, and they will be coming then because we summoned them. Rest while you can.”

“Summoned them?” questioned the dwarven mage from Talman. “Why would we summon them?”

“We want their mages in the tunnel when the real action starts,” King Drakarik replied with a mischievous smile. “The black-cloaks have the ability to spoil our surprise, but not if they are caught in the tunnel when the true attack begins. To summon the black-cloaks towards us, you will cast some offensive spells into the tunnel. That is sure to bring them running.”

“Why wait for dawn?” asked Doryelgar.

“So we can see those trying to come at us from another direction,” answered Prince Darok. “We are expecting them to fly over the peaks of the Barrier. We need for it to be light enough to see them. Relax until dawn, Doryelgar. You will surely need all of your strength at that time. The dawn will be the beginning of a very long day.”

* * * *

The Federation colonel rode eastward along the Southland-Tagaret Road. Baron Timor rode alongside him, and six warriors of the Army of the West rode behind him.

“I can’t believe that you let me keep you jailed for so long,” said the baron. “Why didn’t you tell my men who you were?”

“I had no idea where I was,” answered Colonel Donil. “Your guards refused to tell me even the name of the city I was being held in. Besides, if I said the wrong thing, I could have jeopardized General Forshire. As much as I wanted to get back to Zara, I would never put him in danger just to save myself.”

“Your loyalty is noted and commended,” stated the baron. “Still, I feel somewhat guilty about your treatment. My men simply took you as another runaway. I will have to change the attitudes of my people when we get back. How much farther do we have to go?”

“Not far,” answered Colonel Donil, “and we would be wise to start traveling silently. Other people could be using the portal.”

“That is the reason for our trip,” the baron said softly. “When we get done, no one will be coming through it again.”

The colonel nodded silently, and the small group moved onward without another word. Colonel Donil had no trouble spotting the location of where the Federation army emerged from the forest. The foliage was torn and trampled, and the colonel turned off of the road and proceeded northward. He led the group in a slow ride through the forest and eventually waved for a halt. He dismounted and tied his horse to a tree. The others followed his example. Moving stealthily along the trail towards the hunter’s cabin, the colonel took care to keep to the shadows. When the cabin finally came into view, the colonel froze, his hand raised in warning. Coming towards the cabin from the other direction was a tall black figure.

The demonkin halted at the doorway to the cabin, his head swiveling in an inspection of the area, as if he sensed intruders. Colonel Donil stiffened, General Forshire’s warning about the priests flooding into his mind. For a moment, he thought they had been discovered, but the priest seemed to lose interest in his search. K’san stepped through the doorway and disappeared from sight.

“A demonkin,” hissed Baron Timor. “Dare we try to seize the door while he is in the cabin?”

“He will not be in the cabin,” answered Colonel Donil. “The cabin is not large enough to interest the priest. He has gone through the portal, and I am going through after him.”

“You must not, lad,” warned the baron. “You do not understand the powers of those creatures.”

“I am not going to confront the priest,” explained Donil. “I am going because the demonkin presents the perfect distraction for me to return to Zara unnoticed. The attention of the sentries will be focused on K’san. I should be able to go through the portal and sneak out of the tent unseen.”

“You are crazy, lad,” protested the baron. “Even if you enter the tent you described, you would be seen exiting it, distraction or no.”

Colonel Donil smiled and gazed up at the sky. “Not exactly,” he said. “It is still nighttime in Zara, and I have slit one of the seams at the back of the tent.”

“Even so,” argued the baron. “I am not authorized to send you back to Zara. And what good would it do to have you there? I am sure that Clint has already learned about the coming attack on Tagaret.”

“So that is his name,” grinned the Federation colonel. “It suits him. Baron, I was posted at the Imperial Palace in Despair to spy for General Forshire. I am the only member of the A Corps with a reason to be on the grounds of the palace. I must go back and fulfill my duties. I am of use in Zara, but not here in Alcea. Please get word to Clint that I am back at my post at the Imperial Palace.”

“But you have been gone for days,” retorted Baron Timor. “Your absence must have already been noted.”

“Not true,” countered the colonel. “Only one man in the entire palace would notice my absence, and he helped me come here. I will be fine, Baron. After I go through, waste no time thinking about me. Seize the portal and make sure that it cannot be used again, and do it quickly. The demonkin might need to return to Alcea.”

Without waiting for a response, Colonel Donil moved forward. The others followed. The colonel entered the small cabin and walked to the portal. He cracked the door open and peered into the tent. He could see nothing but a slight slash of light coming through the door he held open. If the black priest was lurking on the other side of the door, Colonel Donil would die, but he was determined to return to his post. He opened the door just wide enough to squeeze through. He slipped into the tent and quickly closed the door. As he stood in the dark letting his eyes adjust to the dimness, he realized that there was no going back now. Either he managed to slip out of the tent unseen, or he would be tortured by the palace guard.

As the colonel stood in the darkness, soft voices came from the front of the tent. He realized that the priest had already left the area, and that the guards were talking about him. With no time to waste, Donil moved to the torn seam and dropped to the ground. He cautiously stuck his head out of the tent and scanned the grounds, but it was too dark to see anyone. Throwing caution aside, he inhaled deeply and crawled out of the tent. Moving directly away from the tent, he made the relative safety of some hedges and let out his held breath as he turned to stare back at the tent area. Feeling as though he had returned unobserved, he gasped as he turned around and saw a Federation colonel before him.

“Donil?” questioned Colonel Taerin. “How did you return?”

Colonel Donil breathed a sigh of relief, but it took a few moments for his trembling body to simmer down. “Don’t scare me like that,” he said softly. “Did anyone else see me arrive?”

“I didn’t even see you arrive,” answered Colonel Taerin. “I was merely strolling around the grounds when I noticed someone near these hedges. Come. Let’s retire to the bench and discuss your journey.”

The two colonels retreated to the bench by the waterfront and sat down.

“The portal goes to Alcea,” revealed Colonel Donil. “Emperor Jaar is making another attempt at sacking Tagaret.”

“General Forshire already told me as much,” frowned Colonel Taerin.

“How did he know?” asked Colonel Donil.

“He went through the door,” answered Colonel Taerin. “He stayed only long enough to confirm his suspicions. He had come to Despair looking for you, but when he came back through the portal, he was in a hurry to leave. I feel as if I am missing a large part of this puzzle. Do you know what is going on?”

Colonel Donil looked at the other colonel for a moment before answering. “I like you Taerin,” he eventually said, “but I am not sure how safe it is to share information with you. As it stands now, we are at odds with one another. I wish that were not true, but it is. What is it that you need to know?”

“If the Federation’s massive attack has failed as dramatically as I have been led to believe by General Forshire,” Colonel Taerin began, “why in the world would Emperor Jaar be sending another army there? And why only twenty-thousand men?”

“The Alceans knew about the first invasion,” answered Colonel Donil. “They had time to plan a reception for the Federation armies. This time the emperor hoped to act in secret. That is why even you were prohibited from entering the tent. No one was to know that these armies were being sent to Alcea.”

“So General Forshire’s intelligence foiled the first invasion?” asked Colonel Taerin.

“His and others,” nodded Colonel Donil. “I am not privy to all of the information that the Alceans gathered in their time here, but they seem to be very good at finding out secrets.”

“But the information alone could not possibly result in such a catastrophic defeat as I have been told,” Colonel Taerin shook his head. “The Alceans were still vastly outnumbered.”

“And underestimated,” agreed Colonel Donil. “I think the Federation has consistently underestimated the Alceans. I suspect that they still are.”

Colonel Taerin gazed out at the sea as the sky began to lighten. He mulled Donil’s words and began to wonder where his own loyalties resided. He knew that he did not care for sending more troops to attack Alcea, but how should he react to Alcean troops attacking Zara? It was his homeland after all.

“What do you know about the Alcean Rangers?” Colonel Taerin asked. “Could they possibly be present in Karamin?”

Colonel Donil’s gaze narrowed as he stared at the other colonel. Finally, he decided to push Taerin to see where he stood.

“I am not privy to any of Alcea’s secrets,” he declared, “but if the Rangers are in Karamin, then Karamin will be leaving the Federation soon. There is no finer fighting force than the Alcean Rangers. It is getting close to the time for you to make a decision, Taerin. Are you a lackey of the Federation, or are you a Baroukan? Soon it will not be possible to be both. Where do you stand?”

Colonel Taerin bit his lower lip and shook his head gently. “I do not know, Donil. I really do not know. I love the Barouk that existed under Jaar’s father, but I also love the Federation that was started by Jaar’s father. Neither of them seem to be what they once were. Is it possible to love your country and still wish to see it fall under the boots of another?”

“I don’t know, Taerin, but that is not how I see it. I see Alcean boots on the neck of the Federation, but I see their helping hands stretched out to the countries that have suffered under the likes of Emperor Jaar. I guess that is the difference between the two of us. I see the Alceans as liberators, and you are still seeing them as conquerors. You need to travel to some of the cities of this great Federation and see the misery and despair that the people live in. It is not something that an officer should be proud to be a part of.”

When the first rays of sunlight splashed upon the eastern face of the Barrier, Doryelgar stared into the black maw of the tunnel leading to Camp Destiny. With a nod from King Drakarik, the dwarven mage sent a series of fireballs streaming into the darkness. He watched as the glowing orbs grew smaller and smaller until they vanished from sight. He felt the vibrations of his spells and envisioned the fiery balls impacting the floor of the tunnel. He wondered how the battle mages on the other side of the mountain would react.