by Guy Antibes
Honor nodded. “Mostly Trak. The rest of us helped.”
“I’d like to hear more of your tactics when we camp. You might find Misson up ahead, but we have to remount and catch up to my wagon,” Niamo said, giving Trak a curt bow.
Garono patted Trak on the back. “Sounds like excellent work. The General has dismissed you, my friend.”
Perhaps the General didn’t believe him, but it seemed that Senior Dalistro did.
“Let’s find Misson,” Trak said, stalking back to the flyer. He didn’t expect to be hailed as a hero, but the General didn’t even thank him. Maybe he could understand the snub better from Misson.
They flew a few stories up in the air, sliding over the forces. Honor and Rasia looked for Misson, but only Honor knew what the man looked like.
“Over there. Head right,” Honor said. Trak turned his head and saw a group of riders and thought he recognized Misson’s erect riding posture. “Make a spot for us.” Honor gestured with her hands over the troops. Trak chanced a look towards Misson, some paces behind them. The riders began to move more quickly through the walking troops.
“Trak! I thought you were embedded with the Toryans. It’s so good to see you. I can now properly thank you for saving my father and Valanna.”
Trak blinked as his former tutor hugged him so hard he could barely breathe. “It worked out all right.”
Misson raised an eyebrow. “Not really. Rather tragic if you ask me. We had to console a grieving Valanna all the way to Mozira until she heard you had escaped from the Magician’s Guild.”
“Uh, how are they both?” Trak could feel the flush of embarrassment rush up his neck and into his cheeks.
“They have had their trials moving up along the eastern side of the plains. They headed on the other side of the Central Ridges, and we think that they have crossed the Glazia as the General ordered. Now he’s ordered them back across the river. We meet every night to go over the current situation. I’m sure you are invited.” His smile faded. “Are the Kandannans licking at your heels?”
Trak shook his head. “We turned them back.”
“They underestimated us. Trak, I should say,” Honor said. “We attacked them and killed off most of the magicians and officers, perhaps all of them. The two Toryans that came with us are herding them back to Kandanna.”
“How many were there?”
“More than five thousand, less a few hundred magicians and officers.”
“I’ll bet my father is rubbing his hands with glee.”
“Not the General,” Trak said.
“He didn’t show the excitement that I feel?” Misson grinned at him.
Trak shook his head. “Hardly said a word.”
Misson clapped Trak on the back. “That’s Adolphus. Don’t mind him. You just see how your efforts change our strategy tonight.” Misson rubbed his chin for a moment. “In fact, I predict that the trap the rebels have set for us will be used against them. Our men better be ready for a forced march.”
“Where are Ben and Neel? Did they make contact with you?” Trak said.
“Ben is flitting around somewhere.” Misson waved his hand a bit dismissively. “Asem and Neel are probably close to returning from a little trip to the Eastern army. They won’t be back until tomorrow at the earliest.”
At least the General used his friends. That meant trust to Trak and he felt better about deserting the Toryans and hoped that Tembul was succeeding in herding the Kandannans back to their country. Toryan troops would probably help prod them along when they marched closer to the funnel.
Misson gave the reins of his horse to another officer and joined them in their flyer leading them to his personal camping space some distance ahead. “I always wanted to ride in one of these,” he grinned as the wind caught at his hair. “I will offer you well-deserved hospitality,” he said when they touched down in a meadow surrounded by tall thin trees. “The General will have his tent set up on the other side of the trees. We always camp where there is water. You have a choice of a stream or one of two ponds for washing up. I suggest you make a good impression on the General. I lent some clothes to your father, but I think you’ve grown enough since I saw you last that you probably fit into them better than he did.”
“I have something clean enough,” Trak said. Misson had a knack for making Trak a bit ill at ease. He always thought it was part of his training, but maybe he just intimidated everyone.
~
Trak had to endure not only reliving his effort to stop the Kandannans, but also detailed questions thrown at him by the General’s officers at a dinner regarding the sealing of the Southern Pass. Honor sat with Kulara, both looking bemused at all the attention he received. He put his finger in the stiff collar of the outfit that Misson had forced him to wear, wishing that he could be sitting around a campfire with the regular army.
Ben begged off the meeting. When Trak met him earlier, he looked somewhat worn out from his trip with Asem’s wife. He had enough energy to get his own debriefing from Trak before retiring early. At least Ben understood Trak’s feelings and looked happily surprised by the outcome.
When the dinner scraps had been carried away, maps were spread over the table.
“Where was the last position you saw the Kandannan army?”
Trak leaned over. “We did most of the damage to them here. They were out of sight from the western side of the promontory when I left Tembul and Sirul to harry them home.”
“Like sheep dogs,” an officer said chuckling, earning a glare from the General.
“Even if they turned around and headed our way, they are now too far to attack us from the west, aren’t they?” the General said, looking around the table.
“A bird from Colonel Mirona.” An officer laid tiny rolls of paper in front of the General on the map.
“Why birds when Asem and Cardswallow will be here tomorrow?” Misson said, scratching his head, letting his longish hair wave down the side of his head,
Niamo glared at him. “Birds are still faster.” Niamo examined the three rolls of messages. “Ahah!” The General grinned. “Did you know there is a Far Eastern army? They are ours. Major Hustria, a police commissioner of all people, raised an army of five thousand souls. Most of them are retired army, like the men Mirona picked up on his way north. The Colonel is recrossing the Glazia, or should have done so by now. He has left half of Hustria’s forces in his place to stop the rebels should they decide to flee east.”
“So we can–” Niamo raised his slab of a hand stopping Misson’s comment.
“I am somewhat confident we will say the same thing and, this time, I will speak.” The General glared at Misson. “You really need to do something about your son, Garono.”
The General put both hands on the table and leaned over the Halgo River valley.
“We let the rebels go right to the top of this little plain, where the river empties into the Glazia. Mirona now has a creditable number of fighting men and attacks them from the east. We will split up our own force, now that we don’t worry about getting ambushed by Kandannans, with one army attacking the rebels from the west and I will lead our main force right up the river valley for a final confrontation. If we are successful here, then we won’t see much fighting in Espozia’s streets,” the General said. “Questions?”
An officer spoke up from the back. “What if they cross the river?”
Trak couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “They won’t if Major Hustria’s force moves up ten leagues or so and sits on the other side of the river.”
“Can you think of a better scenario, gentlemen?” The General rubbed his hands together after giving Trak a dirty look. “Now what can go wrong?”
~
Trak laid back on his cot in the late afternoon. He now slept in a large tent with Ben and Neel. What could go wrong? How many times had he heard that in the last day? The General kept strategizing with his remaining officers. The rest had headed northwest with a third of the army.
&nbs
p; He narrowed his eyes, trying to make out the weave in the tent’s roof. That led him to think of robes. Riotro entered into his mind. What about him? No one had talked about any kind of strategy to be employed fighting a Black Master on the other side.
What if Riotro stopped the Loyalist army just as Trak had turned back the Kandannans? The General thought in terms of foot soldiers and cavalry. He didn’t really use magicians as offensive forces but for their shields and ‘tricks,’ as he called them.
That would be a mistake. He ran through his actions against the Kandannans and thought up defenses, as if he fought on both sides. But now, the General fought a war on three fronts. Where would Riotro show up? What if he learned the lift spells that the Bitriums used in their towers? He had to know about flyers by now.
Trak rose from his cot and took out a laptop desk and began to write notes. He recorded a few scenarios and then thought about what would happen if Riotro had significantly more power than he did. The man certainly had more experience, yet he hadn’t shown it while the General moved his forces north to Espozia. One encounter and Riotro had left exhausted after pouring out his energy. Maybe Riotro had found a way to save his powers for a massive confrontation at the end of the Halgo River valley.
He spent another hour and emerged from the tent with a fistful of plans and counterplans. The General refused to see him alone, but a staff officer insisted that he attend the night strategy session. Trak grit his teeth. Didn’t the General trust him?
He sought out Senior Dalistro, who sorted through a tall stack of papers in his tent. The man stood as Trak entered.
“Ah, you see the affairs of the country can’t wait for the armies to resolve the conflict,” he said with a weary smile. “It makes me feel good to see you again, Trak Bluntwithe. How can I help you?”
“The General won’t see me.”
“I am not the head of the military, Trak.”
“No, but you are a wise man and know as much about strategy as the General. I’ve seen it in our meetings.”
Garono put a finger to his lips. “Don’t let Adolphus know.” He chuckled a bit and cleared off a space on his desk. “Why don’t you enlighten me? You have continued to consider Adolphus’s question, haven’t you?”
Trak nodded. “I have. He completely disregards the peril of dealing with a Black Master.”
“He has a number of magicians at his disposal, including Purples.”
Trak shook his head. “I can defeat all of them. That’s not bravado, sir. I’ve already done it. I had to think of what I might do to the General’s forces. Remember, I have already stopped an army, with a little help from others.”
“You don’t lack confidence, lad.”
Trak stopped and didn’t see any mockery in Dalistro’s face. “Neither does Riotro. Here are my scenarios…” Trak spent the next half hour going over every point he had made on paper. Garono challenged his thinking again and again until he put his hand on his forehead.
“I yield!” Garono said. “You have convinced me. Let’s see how the meeting goes tonight. If, as you suggest, Adolphus doesn’t grasp your concept, I will take him aside and make him see the error of his ways. I’ve known the General for many years and I think I can convince him.”
Trak felt a shock of relief. “Thank you. I know most of these strategies place a heavy burden on myself, but I am willing to do that. Once Espozia is back in your hands, I need to go back to Kizru.”
“Ah, yes. The quest to Bennin.”
Trak didn’t tell him about Able’s imprisonment.
Senior Dalistro continued, “I wish I could go with you. I’ve never been to that country and would like to see a totally foreign culture before I die.”
“If we could only switch places.” Then Trak noticed the pile of paperwork on Garono’s desk. “Maybe not,” he said after pointing to the stack. “I’m not a paperwork person.”
Garono laughed. “Maybe not now, but I suspect your time will come.”
~
Trak tried to bring up his ideas, but one person after another interrupted him. He looked across the map table at Garono, who shook his head. Obviously, this wasn’t the time. Trak found it hard to stand patiently as he continued to listen to strategies relying on the force of arms, with little regard to magic.
“Follow me,” Misson said, leading him unobtrusively out of the meeting. “My father and I discussed your ideas. Makes me proud of you, since you and I have talked a number of times about thinking like your enemy, but the officers think like Adolphus does.”
“But—“
Misson, put his finger to his own lips. “Adolphus already knows of your plans and will call you when he is ready. Don’t fly tomorrow, so you can be available. The General will be worked on a little in the morning by my father, as he has been in the past.”
Trak spent a fitful night wondering if his excitement of the day before was an illusion. He reviewed all of his strategies over and over in his head until he finally fell asleep.
~
“Rise up, young one,” Ben said, kicking Trak’s feet. “You went to the tent early, but I know you didn’t sleep for some time. What is bothering you?”
Trak talked to Ben about his ideas as they ate breakfast. He enjoyed sharing this time with his mentor, even when Ben pointed out problems with his thinking. Trak made sure to tuck those ideas in his mind.
When he returned, Trak found his papers and made more notes on the back.
“Well, we have a visitor,” Neel said. He threw a bag of possessions on his cot. “Come outside and let me give you a proper hug, then tell me all of the gruesome details. I’ve kept my ears closed since returning to camp.”
Trak followed Neel outside the tent and gave his father a hug. “I’m glad to see you.” He noticed Asem standing behind Neel. “And how are you doing? I’ve spent some time with Honor and Rasia, so I know what happened to you after I fled Bitrium.”
Asem narrowed his eyes, but kept a smile on his face. “Valanna is doing well. She suffered a wound rescuing Nullia, the Purple who fled Espozia with you, a week or so ago, but she recovered enough to be out when Neel and I left our message. We couldn’t stay to meet her.”
Trak looked at Neel, who nodded. “You might still meet her at some time during this campaign.” Neel shrugged his shoulders. “I heard you took care of the Kandannan army all by yourself.”
“Not by myself.” Trak felt his neck heat up with embarrassment. “I had lots of help. Ask Honor.”
Neel nodded. “I will. Now we are famished and need to eat before Asem meets his lady love.”
Neel and Asem looked like they had struck up a friendship, even though in Pestle they would be enemies.
They strolled through the camp. Kulara picked them up on the way to the officer’s mess area where magicians ate as well.
“Ah, Master Bluntwithe. We haven’t had a chance to talk since you’ve joined us. Perhaps Asem and I can fill you in on how we used our flyer, if you tell us what you’ve done.”
They sat on folding tables and chairs on grass that had been pounded flat by the all the activity.
“We do mostly reconnaissance,” Kulara said. “Asem or another magician provides a shield—Ben told us that you discovered the same thing.”
“So has Valanna, we were told,” Neel said. “The shields that you have used protect you from fire and lightning bolts. We used them because Toryans can bring down flyers with spells. It seems that there might be Kandannan or converted Toryan magicians in Riotro’s army. A magician we talked to in Colonel Mirona’s camp said Nullia had been brought down by black-robed magicians.”
Trak pursed his lips. “So that was where Valanna was injured, in the rescue?”
Asem nodded.
“I would have never thought she’d be capable of such a thing,” Trak said. “She used her power without…without confidence, before.”
“She did,” Kulara said. “But that is in the past. War changes a lot of people, and I think she start
ed adapting to a more perilous environment when we landed in Bitrium, but especially after she spent a few seasons with Misson and then on her own campaign.”
“We’ll find out when we join forces at the Halgo River,” Neel said. “Can you wait that long?”
Trak felt embarrassed talking about a relationship that didn’t really exist. “It is not a matter of waiting,” he said. “I don’t really know her now, I guess. There used to be something between us, but I’m too confused to know what it is.”
“Put it aside for now,” Asem said. “We have to make do fighting our own war. Niamo has no feel for conducting a war between magicians.”
Trak picked up on the frustration embedded in Asem’s statement. “I came up with some strategies to use when we confront Riotro. He may do any number of things, and I’ve tried to come up with a counterstrategy to each one. The General didn’t want to hear about them, but I had a long talk with Senior Dalistro. He seems to agree with what I said and thought he could convince his friend.”
“We’ll see about that,” Kulara said. Frustration filled her voice as well. The topic must have come up before.
Trak explained to them his approach in much the same way that he did with Ben. Dalistro had battle perspective, but Ben, Neel and Asem evaluated his magical strategy.
“Isn’t that too heavy a burden on you?” Kulara said. “You will fly this way and that way.”
“That’s why I need two strong magicians with me; a good magician with wind and a similar magician with shields. Then I can fight, my way.”
Asem flashed a smile. “If what you say is true about your work against the Kandannans, then I think you should follow that path regardless of what the General says.”
Neel nodded in agreement. “Who are the strongest magicians?”
“Let’s see, Honor is strong, but not as much on shields and wind. Ben can throw good spells, but he lacks stamina. He is old enough to be your father and my grandfather,” Trak said.
“I am adept at shields,” Neel said.
“And Valanna is exceptional with wind,” Kulara said. “She puts my abilities to shame.”