Alutar: The Great Demon (7 page)

“If I were to surrender Force Cordonia right now,” the Baroukan asked, “would you let my men get back to Despair right away? I will take the Imperial Palace by force and hold it for the heir.”

“A noble gesture,” Clint smiled weakly, “but that would do little good. The usurper will not have been discovered using your methods. While you might disrupt the plans of our enemy, he would still be free to plot and scheme against the heir. You really could not even be sure of the forces under you.”

“I can be sure of the Baroukans under my command,” retorted General Ross.

“And maybe even the Aertans under General Alden,” nodded Clint, “but what of the others? Besides, we are still trying to avoid as much bloodshed as possible. No, General, your time will come after we have crushed the Federation completely. You will both have nations to rebuild, citizens to feed and heal, soldiers to nurture towards a peaceful culture. Your tasks will be immense, but they will be tasks of rebuilding, not destroying.”

“So we sit and do nothing while our homelands are in turmoil?” scowled General Alden. “That is not what a general wants to hear.”

“Nor a prince,” Clint said sympathetically, “but you do not have to be mere bystanders. Both of you have much to offer in terms of advice. It is hard for us Alceans to know who to trust and who not to trust. We need to crush those who are allied with Alutar and spare those who will be beneficial to the rebuilding. That will be almost impossible to do in the heat of battle, but if we plan in advance, you can help us save many lives.”

“You mean like who favors the Federation over the Empire of Barouk?” asked General Ross.

“Exactly,” nodded Clint. “Take for example General Antero of Aerta. Where does he stand, General Alden?”

“Antero is a decent man,” answered the Aertan heir, “but he is loyal to a fault. As long as my father rules Aerta, Antero will obey his every order, no matter how distasteful it is to him personally. Were my father no longer in the picture, I would not hesitate to keep General Antero as the Commanding General of Aerta, but you cannot trust him while King Anator lives.”

“Then we shall spare him, but not trust him,” agreed Clint. “Is there anyone under him that would prove loyal to you? We need someone to get the 33
^rd
Corps of General Hedstorus out of the city of Giza or there will be much bloodshed within the city.”

“Bloodshed within the walls of Giza?” balked General Alden. “Who are you going to get to fight 20,000 Federation soldiers inside a walled city? Do you expect to successfully siege a city on the Sea of Tears when all supplies can be sent in by ship? That would be foolish.”

“Three-thousand Red Swords will lead twenty-thousand Occan Lancers into the city,” declared Clint. “And before you tell me that the city will be sealed, we already have hundreds of men living in Giza who are ready to lay down their lives to open the gates.”

General Ross whistled appreciatively. “You have given this some thought, but how do you plan to get Occan warriors into Aerta?”

“We have a path mapped out through the Sands of Eternity,” answered Clint. “One of our magicians has created a series of lakes in the desert to allow for daily stops. Food has already been prepositioned. And before you warn me about the garrison at Olansk notifying Giza of the coming army, let me tell you that the commanding officer of the Olansk garrison reports directly to me. The A Corps holds Olansk.”

General Ross actually laughed. “You are using the prisoners from the Federation’s cells to enable an attack on the Federation. I admire your ingenuity, General Forshire. All the while, the other Federation generals have been laughing at you as if you didn’t have a clue, but you have known all along what you were about. I think I could learn a thing or two from you.”

“I wouldn’t mind visiting you when this is all over, Ross,” Clint said seriously. “I have come to know some fine people during my stay in Despair and other parts of Zara. I look forward to the day when trade ships ply the waters between our two nations. It will be a much finer world when that is finally possible.”

Ross and Clint smiled at each other and then turned to look at the Aertan general. Alden sat silently staring into the flames of the fire. For several minutes they all remained quiet until Alden suddenly blinked and sat upright. He looked around to find the other two generals staring at him.

“Is there something wrong, Alden?” General Ross asked softly.

“No,” General Alden shook his head. “I was just chewing on Forshire’s attack plan and realizing how successful it might be. Antero’s first reaction would be to call on Farmin for assistance, but an army from there would take over a week, even at a forced march. Even a cavalry detachment would take three days. By then it would all be over.” The Aertan heir turned his gaze to Clint and asked, “Will your forces kill my father?”

“I will not lie to you, General,” Clint replied. “Your father is one of the decision makers of the Federation. He will not be allowed to live, but that is not to say that we will kill him. I believe he will be eliminated by the Federation, but I do not know if that will be before the attack or not.”

The heir nodded sadly. “My father and I have never seen eye to eye. I abhor his methods of ruling, but he is still my father. I will miss him. If King Anator is dead, General Antero will follow my orders. Will that help lessen the destruction of Giza?”

“Very much so,” answered Clint, “but General Hedstorus might see the king’s death as an opportunity to put a Federation man on the throne in your absence. We need to get Hedstorus and his army out of Giza before the battle begins. If we can meet his army in the open and destroy it, we might not need to forcibly enter Giza.”

“Hedstorus has an ego the size of Aerta,” interjected General Ross, “but he is a fearful man. The way to get him out of the city is to make him afraid of being there.”

“That is helpful,” stated Clint. “I think we can do something with that. General Alden, if you could write a few notes for me and seal them with your seal, I also think that will be helpful. I will try to get my people to cause as little damage to Giza as possible.”

* * * *

The unicorn glided through the night sky over Candanar and landed outside the city of Zinbar.

“This is where we part company,” Garth said to the fairy. “Keep the spy asleep, but get him close to the palace. And make sure that you are not noticed.”

“Child’s play,” huffed Bitsy. “He will be waiting for you exactly where you asked me to put him.”

Garth watched as the Federation spy was levitated off the unicorn by the fairy. The man was dressed completely in black, and he had a golden Badger brooch pinned to his tunic. Garth watched the body float over the wall before heading for the city gate.

The gate guard did not bother to question Garth but merely nodded as the merchant passed through the gate. It was about an hour before dawn, and Garth recognized the drowsiness in the guard that normally assails sentries in the wee hours of the morning. He had no sympathy for the man and would have berated him if the man had been under his command. The Knight of Alcea pushed the thought from his mind as he slowly rode towards the royal palace. When he reached the drive to the palace, he halted in the center of it. The distant palace guards were no more attentive than the gate guard had been. They both saw Garth halt some distance away from the gates, but they showed no interest in asking why he was there.

Garth made a show of moving his head from side to side as if looking for something. It was only when he dismounted that the guards took any real notice in him. When he strung his bow and nocked an arrow, the two guards cautiously moved forward to peer through the gates. Garth pivoted sharply to the right and let his arrow fly. A cry of death rose out of the bushes, and a whistle blew loudly.

“Halt!” shouted one of the guards. “Slowly place your bow down and then raise your hands high so I can see them.”

Garth turned to see the two guards at the gate as he placed his bow on the ground and then raised his hands. Each guard had an arrow nocked and aimed at him. The sounds of boots running in the distance became steadily louder, and a dozen soldiers soon surrounded Garth. Garth’s weapons were stripped from him and his horse was led away. The soldiers asked no questions, but they seized Garth and led him into the palace and deposited him in a cell. There he waited for over an hour before someone came to speak to him.

“I am Major Tindale,” the officer said. “You have been arrested for firing an arrow towards the palace. Who are you?”

“I am Garth Shado. I am a Special Agent for Sidney Mercado, and if your men thought I was firing towards the palace, they should be severely punished, or perhaps they should be better trained. Have they even searched the bushes to find my arrow?”

The major smiled. “Do you know what you were firing at?”

“A Badger,” answered Garth. “When Edmond Mercado heard that I was coming this way, he asked me to be on the lookout for any of them lurking about. He feared that King Bartomir’s life might be in danger.”

The major said nothing. He simply turned and walked away. A few minutes later, two soldiers unlocked the cell and led Garth to a sitting room. They immediately left and the major and King Bartomir entered the room and closed the door.

“I understand that you saved my life this morning,” the king said to Garth.

Garth immediately bowed to the King of Candanar. “I am glad that I was able to be of service.”

“And what should your reward be?” asked the king.

“I seek no reward, Your Highness. Edmond speaks highly of you, and I consider it a duty to protect those who favor the Mercado family.”

“Have you seen my son in your travels?” asked the king. “Prince Bultar left here in the company of Edmond Mercado.”

“No,” answered Garth. “Actually I haven’t seen Edmond, either, but he left a note for me that was delivered to Olansk. I imagine that Edmond is at his father’s estate in Ur, but I am not sure.”

“Strange that Bultar has not sent a message to me,” mused the king. “You said you came from Olansk. What is the news from that area?”

“Not much is new,” reported Garth, “but the garrison in Olansk has been greatly increased. There are thousands of troops there as if they were expecting an attack, although I can’t imagine who would want to attack Olansk. There is not much there worth having.”

“Or forming up for an attack,” frowned the king. “The major tells me that you carry many weapons on your body. That is quite unusual for a merchant. Do you perform other services as well?”

Garth smiled inwardly. The king was actually thinking of hiring Garth as an assassin.

“I am a Special Agent,” answered Garth. “I often carry very expensive items, and I have to be well armed and proficient with my weapons to protect my cargo. I understand what the presence of a Badger means, King Bartomir, but I am not the person you are looking for.”

The king sighed and nodded. “Would you happen to know of one?”

“I can offer some advice,” replied Garth. “I have heard that the Badgers will work both sides of a coin. There is nothing to stop you from hiring them to remove the person who hired them in the first place.”

“But that will not stop them from trying to kill King Bartomir,” objected the major. “The Badgers always complete their contract.”

“The Badgers only get half up front,” Garth pointed out. “Contact them to remove the threat to your life. Tell them that if they are successful, you will purchase the contract on your life and pay them the balance to void it.”

“Clever,” smiled the king. “Will it work? Will they do such a thing?”

“They may kill people,” answered Garth, “but they are a business like any other. When you offer them money, they will listen. Do not think that you can merely buy the contract, though. They have a reputation that is key to their business. They will not cancel a contract for gold alone, but if their client is dead and unable to fulfill his obligation, they will sell the contract to someone who wants it. Then as the holder of the contract, you can pay the balance and void it. It should work.”

“But that would mean inviting the assassins into the palace where they would be free to attack the king,” objected the major.

“They do not need to meet the client personally,” replied Garth. “You can act as the emissary, Major.”

“Now I am doubly indebted to you, Garth Shado,” smiled the king. “Will you stay in the palace as my guest?”

“I am deeply honored, Your Highness, but I am running late already. I was planning to catch a few hours of sleep and press onward. Perhaps the next time I pass through Zinbar?”

“The next time then,” nodded the king. “Arrange your schedule to allow for several days here. I will treat you like royalty.”

Garth bowed to the king, and Major Tindale led the merchant out of the room to where his weapons waited. The major assigned a soldier to take Garth to his mount and then returned to the sitting room and closed the door.

“You were very fortunate tonight,” the major said to the king.

“Indeed,” agreed the king. “I like the advice of Garth Shado. I want you to arrange to employ the Badgers to assassinate King Anator. I also want some spies sent to Olansk. Aerta is up to something, and I want to know if that army garrisoned there starts moving in this direction.”

* * * *

The five Federation soldiers wore the patches of the 29
^th
Corps of Aerta. They rode into Valdo through the western gates, the gates that led to Blood Highway. The citizens of Valdo paid no attention to the soldiers, but the Spinoan soldiers watched them pass with a mixture of confusion and curiosity. A few of the Spinoan soldiers actually followed the Aertans to find out where they were going. When the five men dismounted at the stables of an inn and entered the common room, the Spinoans followed. The five Aertans sat at an empty table and ordered meals and a pitcher of ale. They seemed unaware of the crowd watching them until a bold sergeant approached them and stood near their table.

“The 29
^th
was sent to Sordoa alongside our 21
^st
,” stated the sergeant. “Why are you back and they are not?”