"That would hardly do any good," Tabansi shook his head. "Who do you think runs the games? I would love to take revenge on them, but they hold the power."
"Perhaps that will change," smirked Chike. "I have a task for you. Several tasks as a matter of fact."
"Excellent," grinned the spy. "I am anxious for some more gold."
"Do you know an officer named Belon?" asked the Borundan.
"Aye," nodded Tabansi. "I know him well. He runs an elite group of soldiers whose main duty is protection of the royal family. He also uses those soldiers as enforcers for the men who run the games. He has threatened my life more than once, but if you want him killed, I am not the man to do it. I like your gold, Chike, but I want to live long enough to spend it. Belon's men obey him without question. If he told them to kill me, not a one of them would ask why, and each of them would revenge Belon's death. I am not quite ready to die yet."
"I don't want Belon killed," replied Prince Zinan. "I want to meet with him alone, but on my terms."
"What are your terms?" The spy's eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"Does he ever spend the night outside the palace walls?" Chike asked.
"Once a week," nodded the spy. "He has a woman that his wife does not know about."
"That is what I had heard," nodded the dark prince. "Do you know where and when?"
"That is only a secret from his wife," laughed Tabansi. "Everyone else knows. Surely, that is not the only reason you came to see me?"
"Hardly," Chike shook his head as he placed a small pouch on the table, "but that information is vital to my plans, and I will pay you well for it."
"His tryst is tonight, as the fates would have it," Tabansi grinned as he picked up the pouch of gold. "I will take you there myself later. What else do you need?"
"I have a long list of assignments for you," declared Chike. "By this time next week, you will be a very wealthy man, or a powerful one."
"Powerful?" Tabansi's eyebrows rose. "That would mean more than gold to me. How can you make me powerful?"
"That depends," Chike replied cautiously. "What is your loyalty to the Crown?"
"My loyalty is to me and those who pay me," smirked the spy. "I care nothing for the pampered rulers who run this country. Tell me how I can have power."
"I have a number of things to accomplish in a short period of time," proposed the dark prince. "If you can accomplish everything on this list, I will guarantee that you become a man of great importance in Laborg."
Tabansi accepted the list and began to read it. His brow creased with confusion.
"Some of this makes no sense," he said. "You want me to protect the bridge over the Vine River, but no one in Vineland would attempt to destroy it. Everyone's prosperity requires trade, and that bridge is vital to the city."
"If no one attempted to destroy it," smiled Chike, "then your task would be easy, but that will not be the case. An attempt will be made to destroy the bridge. Soldiers will be the ones to destroy it. Are you enough of a leader to gather people to defend the bridge?"
"Citizens against soldiers?" balked Tabansi.
"Yes," nodded Chike. "You want to have power, don't you? First you must be able to lead in order to get it. Are you capable?"
Tabansi sat quietly for a moment. The thought of uttering false bravado entered his mind, but he quickly dismissed it. Such words would not impress Chike, and the spy knew it. If he truly wanted the power that was being offered, he had to be sure that he could deliver what was on the list.
"I can do it," the spy finally said. "It will take a great deal of organization, but I can do it."
"What about the rest of the list?" asked the dark prince.
Tabansi reviewed the list again and nodded. "The bridge is the hardest," he replied. "Once I get the people together to accomplish that, the rest is easy."
"Good," smiled Chike as he placed a large pouch on the table. "This will help you attract the people you need, but you must keep the items on the list secret. Trust no one with knowing more than any one item on the list. If word leaks about your preparations, the soldiers will be down on you before I can help you."
"And when will you help me?" asked the spy. "How long must we hold the bridge?"
"A couple of days at the most," answered the dark prince. "An event will take place sometime during the next week which will surprise the world. There will be much confusion when it happens, but you will understand much earlier than anyone else exactly what the event portends. It will be your signal to prepare."
* * *
The room where Belon slept was above a butcher shop. The shop had closed hours earlier, and the stairway was unlighted. The stairs creaked slightly as the shadow moved slowly up them, but no one heard the noises. The dark prince slid the door open and peered into the dark room. He could barely make out the two forms sharing the bed with the aid of the scant moonlight flowing through the window. Stealthily the dark prince crossed the room and stood next to the bed. He gently placed a hand on Belon's head and felt memories surging into his mind. His lips curled upward as he was pleased with what he had learned. Belon had had a long and illustrious career, but he also held many secrets within his mind. The high officer had far more to hide than the mere using of his men as enforcers for a local gambling ring. The dark prince discovered several offenses that would surely result in the officer being hanged if King Gregory should discover the infractions, but the list did not stop there. Belon appeared to have swindled everyone that he had ever come into contact with, including the gambling ring. The dark prince was pleased to learn that the rumors he had heard had more than a grain of truth to them. Belon was the perfect man for the dark prince's mission.
Prince Zinan slipped out of the room the same way he had entered it. He closed the door and retreated down the stairs. In the morning he would catch Belon on his way back to the palace and strongly suggest that they have a little talk in private.
* * *
Prince Zinan rode into the army encampment and dismounted outside the tent of General Wikner. He did not wait for the guards to pull the flap open for him, but rather opened it himself and walked in. General Wikner was meeting with several of his officers and looked up in surprise.
"We will continue the meeting later," announced the general. "Think about the problem I have presented and be ready to propose solutions when we meet in an hour."
The officers glanced at the prince and bowed respectfully before filing out of the tent. The general retrieved a decanter of wine and poured two cups.
"The king rode through yesterday," declared the general. "He saw nothing to upset him."
"I know," replied Prince Zinan. "I passed him on the road to Laborg. Is your army ready to move?"
"It is always ready," assured the general, "but there is no reason to move just yet. Are you expecting trouble?"
"More than you can imagine," sighed the prince. "I tried to persuade the king not to go to Laborg, but he refused to listen to reason. I feel certain that our king will be assassinated in the next three days."
"Then he must be stopped at once," gasped the general. "Didn't you explain the danger to him?"
"Most explicitly," nodded Prince Zinan. "He would not hear of it, nor would his personal detail listen to reason."
"I will send men after him immediately," as the general moved towards the tent flap.
"No," Prince Zinan commanded. "You will not send anyone. King Garrick was quite incensed that I was interfering in his diplomatic mission. If you sent men to remind him of the threat that I have already warned him about, you would undoubtedly be dismissed from your position, and I cannot allow that to happen."
"I cannot stand by and do nothing," argued the general. "If I must lose my position to save the king, then so be it."
"Borunda values your service greatly," declared the prince, "and we are going to need your skill in the coming days. I am not expecting you to do nothing about such a serious threat to the king, but I will not let you se
nd riders after King Garrick in a futile bid to advise him of the threat. I have already covered that quite fully."
"Then what can we do?" asked the general.
"Mobilize your armies, general," ordered the prince. "Get them moving on the road to Laborg with great haste."
"You want me to take my armies into Odessian territory and threaten Vineland?" frowned the general. "You can't be serious?"
"I am quite serious," affirmed the dark prince, "and I will take full responsibility for this action. The Odessians will protest our actions, but their protest means little to me where the life of my cousin and king are concerned."
"Agreed," the general sighed nervously. "We can deal with their hurt feelings afterwards. What about Vineland's reaction?"
"That is the key to everything," stated the prince. "My hope is that they will feel threatened enough to abort the assassination."
"Abort the assassination?" echoed the general. "Are you telling me that King Gregory is the one authorizing the assassination of King Garrick?"
"Of course," responded the prince. "Did I not make that clear earlier? If it were not the government of Vineland threatening King Garrick, I would not be so concerned. Hopefully when they get reports of your armies on the move, they will think better of their vile plans."
"They certainly had better," scowled the general, "because if the sight of my armies does not stop the assassination, the might of them will extract revenge from their hides."
"Precisely why you need to get your men moving right away," nodded Prince Zinan. "I do not want them far behind the king, but not close enough so that my cousin gets wind of it. He is stubborn and would order you to retreat and then we would not be a deterrent to King Gregory."
"You can leave it to me," promised the general. "My men will advance with all due speed and still never be seen by the king's party. Will you be riding with us, or are you going to return to Tarent?"
"Return to Tarent?" questioned the dark prince. "Certainly not. I will be riding at your side, General. Whatever happens in the next few days, we will bear it together."
* * *
Just below the crest of a large sand dune three Odessian scouts watched the Borundan army march over the border and proceed north on the Dulga-Laborg Road.
"They are making no secret of their incursion," commented one of the Odessians. "What do you make of it?"
"The army is larger than any that I have ever seen," frowned another Odessian. "Wherever they are going, they mean to crush their opponent decisively."
"We cannot take for granted that Odessia is not their target," remarked the leader. "One of you must ride to Natura immediately. Stop for nothing but to change mounts. Alert everyone between here and Natura, but do it without stopping. If the people cannot hear your shouts, let them learn of the danger another way. It is more important that King Rihad learn of this as soon as possible."
One of the scouts rose and ran down the back of the sand dune. He leaped onto his Odessian beauty and galloped westward.
"Where do you think they are going?" the other scout asked the leader.
"My gut tells me that Laborg is about to fall into the hands of the Borundans," answered the leader. "War has come to the Land of the Nine Kingdoms."
Chapter 45 - Unfinished Business
Unfinished Business
The Odessian warrior galloped across the sand and raced into a small oasis. He dismounted before the horse had come to a complete stop and ran towards the yurt reserved for the royal family of Odessia. The warrior burst into the yurt to find Prince Umal sitting with a foreigner. He bowed low, not only to show his respect, but also to regain his breath. The Odessian prince looked up with a mixture of curiosity and concern.
"What urgency causes your haste?" asked Prince Umal.
The warrior locked eyes with the prince and then glanced at the foreigner. The warrior's fingers moved swiftly alongside his leg with a question about the identity of the visitor.
"Sandar is a guest from Arin," Prince Umal declared. "There is no need for secrecy among our friends, besides he understands the horse language very well. Speak what you have come to say."
"Legions of Borundan soldiers are marching through Odessia," reported the warrior. "It appears that they mean to attack Laborg, but we cannot tell if they will be satisfied with only one country. Our eastern armies are preparing to defend the Natura-Laborg Road."
Prince Umal's eyebrows rose in surprise. "And we thought that Arin would be their first conquest," mused the prince. "Is there still time for me to enter Vineland before the Borundans seal it off?"
"Doubtful, my prince," the warrior shook his head. "If they seek to conquer Laborg, they must control both bridges over the Vine River. The only way into Vineland now would be through Caxon, and there is no telling how long that will last. Eventually the Borundans must also close off that access as well if they are to subdue the entire nation of Vineland."
"Then we have little time to waste," Prince Umal said as he rose to his feet. "Come, Sandar. It is time to put into practice what you have learned in the horse camp."
"You are not joining the eastern army to rebuff the Borundans?" asked the Odessian warrior.
"No," replied the prince. "The Borundans are not foolish enough to attack Natura. I could understand the allure of Oran to them, but not Natura. The Borundan armies are on the wrong side of Odessia to worry me where our nation is concerned, but I do have a different concern that is affected greatly. I have friends in Vineland who must be warned to flee before the bridge at Caxon is closed."
* * *
In Kyland, the Salacian prince strode into the armory and looked for the officer in charge. When he found the man, he approached him.
"You have a driver who makes regular runs to Anatar," stated the prince. "I need to know when he is next expected."
"We have many such drivers, my prince," answered the officer. "We ship about a dozen wagons a week to Anatar."
"This driver is neither Salacian nor Arin," replied the prince. "His name is Kerzi. Can you check your schedule and determine when he is due into the city?"
"There is no need for me to check," replied the officer. "Kerzi's wagon was loaded less than four hours ago."
"Four hours ago," echoed the prince. "He usually loads in the morning. Why would he begin a trip so late in the day?"
"He has not left yet," declared the officer. "To make it easier on our men, I now have the drivers leave their wagons here. We load them as we can and then notify the drivers when their loads are ready. No doubt Kerzi will depart first thing in the morning. Is there a problem with this particular driver, my prince?"
"No," Prince Derri shook his head. "Kerzi is an excellent driver. I just needed to get a message to him about a friend who is in need of help."
The officer's eyebrow rose as he watched the prince turn to leave. Members of the royal family were not known to be messengers for drivers.
"Let me get his records," offered the officer. "I can tell you where he is staying while he is in the city."
Prince Derri waited anxiously for the officer to return, but he was in good spirits about not having to wait for Kerzi to arrive. If the old man had still been days out of Kyland, Prince Derri would have had to leave without talking to him.
"The Golden Shield," announced the officer as he returned. "That is where you will find the driver Kerzi."
"Thank you," smiled the prince as he turned and departed the armory.
Prince Derri walked swiftly to the Golden Shield Inn. He found Kerzi, Talot, and Monte in the common room and promptly joined them at their table. Before he could even speak to welcome them to Kyland, the innkeeper hurried over to welcome the prince to his inn.
"Welcome to the Golden Shield, my prince," smiled the innkeeper. "May I have the honor of serving you?"
"Just an ale," answered the prince, anxious to speak to his friends.
The innkeeper frowned with disappointment but he hurried off to procure an ale for his
prince.
"I am glad to catch you in the city," Prince Derri said softly. "I just received word from Anatar that Zalman was murdered."
"I thought he was being safeguarded in the palace?" frowned the merchant.
"He was," replied the Salacian prince as the innkeeper arrived with a large pitcher of ale and a mug.
"Will there be anything else, my prince?" the innkeeper asked hopefully.
Prince Derri sensed the innkeeper's disappointment. He turned and looked into the man's face and smiled.
"This will do nicely, good innkeeper," smiled the prince. "Sometimes rumors spread through Kyland like wildfire. Is it true that the Golden Shield has the best ale in the city?"
The man's face beamed with pride, and he grinned broadly. "I do a little something special to spice it up," he nodded. "Would you care for a dinner to go with it?"
"I would not wish to steal from its flavor," smiled the prince. "I think I will just sit here and savor the pitcher. Thank you."
The innkeeper smiled, nodded, and bowed before retreating towards the kitchen.
"Nicely done," smiled Kerzi. "I guess I should be glad that you traveled as Kenra the last time we rode together. I can see how much notice we would have had otherwise."
"Prince Antion and Jared must be warned," interrupted Talot. "If the dark prince's hand can reach into the royal palace in Anatar, it can reach anywhere."
"You are absolutely correct," nodded Prince Derri. "King Caedmon has asked me to travel to Vineland to inform Prince Antion. He is afraid that Zalman may have inadvertently given up the location of Jared and his son."
"A valid concern," nodded Talot. "There are precious few people who knew where the two of them were, and Zalman was one of them."
"Zalman did not even know," frowned Monte.
"He knew enough," retorted Talot. "He knew of Audric and he knew that they went to find him in Vineland. The Borundans are not stupid. They can fit together the pieces of a puzzle."
"Who killed Zalman?" asked Kerzi.
"They don't know," frowned the prince. "It was a high officer in the Arin army that physically pulled Zalman's head off, but King Caedmon is convinced that someone was just using the officer's identity. It appears quite similar to the problem they had with that prince from Caroom last year."
Evil Within Page 54