"I like it," declared Fredrik. "The deceit is not meant to harm anyone. In fact, it is meant to save their lives. While the people will not believe the story, when they learn that the priest is dead, they will waver in their faith rather than riot. That should be all the time you need to present the truth to them."
"The god of war, Thun, has ordered the destruction of Balmak," declared Mitar Vidson.
Everyone around the table turned and stared at the Ranger. Mitar grinned broadly.
"Now when you tell people that you heard that the god of war has ordered the destruction of Balmak," he chuckled, "you will not be lying. The only lies in this city will belong to me and the clerics within that temple."
King Arik sighed and nodded. "Do not use the Sordoan army to spread the rumor," he said. "Keep them removed from the situation until they are needed for riot control."
"Agreed," nodded the governor. "Between the three mercenary companies, there are more than enough men to get that rumor all over the city tomorrow."
* * *
Dressed as a courier for the Continental Shipping Company, Mitar Vidson made his way through the sunny city streets of Trekum. Everywhere he went he heard the rumor spreading. Groups of people gathered in the streets and the marketplace and argued heatedly. Surprisingly, most of the arguments centered around a single question. It was a question that no one had anticipated the night before in the meeting with Governor Mobami. What the citizens were arguing about was whether or not the old gods were still relevant. That Thun had actually called for the removal of Balmak was not an issue. No one truly believed it, but still the rumor spread faster than the runoff in a thunderstorm.
Mitar turned off the main street and made his way to a blacksmith near the Temple of Balmak. The smith was not at his anvil, but was sitting in the back of his shop with three other men. Their voices were not raised, but the tone of the conversation was adversarial. Mitar gripped the small package and headed towards the group. The blacksmith saw the courier approach and got to his feet to accept the package.
"Perhaps we should ask the Continental man," the blacksmith said to his friends. "They get around quite a bit."
Mitar handed the package to the blacksmith and raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"Do you think Balmak has come to replace the other gods?" asked the blacksmith.
"They are housed in Thun's old temple," interjected one of the other men. "It doesn't make sense that Thun would allow that if he was still alive."
Mitar stared at the men for a moment before responding. "It seems to me," mused Mitar, "that the gods don't control who occupies any particular building. The temples are erected by men to worship the gods. If the citizens of Trekum no longer worship Thun, what use is there in having a temple devoted to him?"
"That doesn't answer my question," groused the blacksmith.
"I do not think that Thun can be replaced," answered Mitar. "Surely the god of war would not yield to another without a fight."
"Blessed sword!" exclaimed one of the men. "He has a good point. Thun would put up a tremendous fight if someone were trying to take his place. Maybe there is something to the rumor after all."
"Nonsense," scowled the blacksmith. "Thun's temple was empty before Balmak came along. The people don't believe in war anymore."
"War is as old as man," smiled Mitar as he turned to leave. "It will always exist."
The four men started arguing again, but Mitar left them to it. He was amazed at how effective the mercenaries had been. Everyone was discussing the rumor. He decided to swing by the temple one more time to see if anything had changed. From his prior visits, he knew that the discussions going around the city were having no effect on the clerics. In fact, no crowds gathered to talk within eyesight of the temple. It was as if the citizens dared not mention Thun where any of the clerics could hear them. Mitar smiled with satisfaction.
The Ranger walked casually past the rear door of the temple. Two burly guards stood outside the door acting as bored as a man could be. Their eyes stared at the ground, and they didn't even bother to note his passing. It was a sure sign that no alarm had been issued by the clerics. Mitar Vidson turned the corner and headed back to the warehouse to pick up another package.
Before Mitar reached the next street, a rider came charging past him. Mitar turned and watched the rider's progress with curiosity. The rider slowed as he reached the end of the temple and leaped from his horse. He led the horse towards the back of the temple, and Mitar grew increasingly interested. He turned around and began retracing his steps. When he rounded the corner, he saw the man's horse being held by one of the brutes guarding the rear door. The horse was lathered from a long, hard ride, and Mitar suspected that a message of some importance was being delivered. The guard holding the reins appeared bothered by the additional duty. He glanced at Mitar, who was still approaching the rear door.
"I am on my way to the blacksmith down the street," offered Mitar. "Do you want me to take the horse to the stables there?"
The guards looked at each other and shrugged. The man holding the horse stepped forward and handed the reins to Mitar.
"Make sure that he finds his way to the stables," the guard said gruffly.
"Of course," smiled Mitar. "You would know where to find me if it didn't. I will see that he is cared for."
Mitar led the horse away at a slow pace. When he reached the blacksmith shop, he noticed that the man's friends had departed, and the blacksmith was back at work. The smith saw Mitar coming and came to meet him.
"He's been ridden hard," the blacksmith commented.
"A visitor to the temple," declared Mitar. "The guard asked me to deliver him. Make sure he is well cared for."
"Of course," the blacksmith replied as he took the reins.
Mitar didn't stay to talk. He made his way back to the warehouse as quickly as he could. Several Rangers were in the warehouse, and he pulled one of them aside.
"The temple just received a messenger, Steffen," explained Mitar. "I want to know what that message was. The man's horse is at the stables two blocks south of the temple. Take a couple of men and watch the stables to see who comes for the horse. Follow him and get him alone somewhere. If you can't get anything out of him, send for Fredrik."
"Done," Steffen replied as he waved two Rangers to join him.
* * *
The messenger led his horse through the streets of Trekum, unaware of the men watching his every move. When he reached the Oasis Inn, the man put his horse in the stables and entered the building. Steffen signaled one of his men, and the Ranger ran off to get the Royal Sorcerer. Steffen followed the messenger into the inn, while the remaining Ranger went around to the front door of the inn before entering and registering for a room.
The messenger sat in the common room and ordered a meal. Steffen sat at the next table and did the same, while the other Ranger sat across the room nursing a mug of ale. The messenger appeared very tired, and his movements were sluggish as he ate. It was an indication to Steffen that the man had had little sleep in his attempt to speed the message to K'san. As the messenger finished his meal and stood up, Steffen's fingers moved rapidly. The other Ranger immediately rose and climbed the stairs as if heading to his room for the night.
As the messenger registered for a room, Fredrik and the third Ranger entered the common room. When he was done registering, the man headed for the stairs. Steffen moved swiftly and beat the man to the stairs. He ran up the stairs two at a time and turned right into the corridor when he reached the second floor. The messenger paid no attention to Steffen. He wearily made his way up the stairs and turned left. He also paid little attention to the man coming towards him as he opened the door to his room. As soon as the door was opened, the Ranger shoved the messenger inside and clasped his hand over the man's mouth. Steffen flowed into the room as the other Ranger held the messenger immobile. Steffen tied the man's hand and feet, while the other Ranger quickly gagged him. The whole episode was completed in s
econds. Within a minute, the third Ranger escorted Fredrik into the room and closed the door.
* * *
The warehouse was full of warriors. Besides the Rangers, members of three mercenary companies were present. Each of the warriors was outfitted for battle, and the king looked solemn as he finished drawing a chalk diagram of the temple on the floor.
"This is not going to be a quiet battle," announced King Arik. "K'san received a message today advising him to increase his security. In the last hour we have noticed four men stationed on the roof of the temple. That is in addition to the two men guarding the rear door. That makes six men that we would need to kill to gain a quiet entrance to the temple. I do not think that is going to happen. Inside is not quite as bad. Prince Midge reports that there is a black-cloak just inside the rear door and two men who appear to be patrolling the corridors. There are over a hundred men inside the temple, so when they hear us coming, you can expect strong resistance."
"Are the mercenaries going to join in the attack now?" asked Captain Azule. "Is that why you called us to this meeting?"
"No," Arik shook his head. "What I want the mercenaries to do is create a perimeter around the temple once we go in. I want to make sure that there is no outside help. You are to do so without harming anyone if possible, but do what you must to ensure that no reinforcements arrive."
"You are expecting the citizens to rally to K'san's side?" asked Captain Grecho.
"It is not that I expect it," answered the king. "It is more of a fear. We had planned on a silent assault, which would have meant that no one would know about the attack until morning, but that is beginning to seem unlikely."
"There is still a possibility of a quiet entry," offered Fredrik. "I learned quite a bit from Balamor when we traveled with the Mage. I am not sure how good I am with illusions, but I am sure that I can create one good enough to buy us a little time."
"What illusion can you produce that will captivate the attention of all six sentries outside?" the king asked doubtfully.
"How about one of K'san approaching the rear door?" grinned the Royal Sorcerer. "Wouldn't the clerics bow out of respect?"
"That could work," Mitar nodded exaggeratedly. "The sentries certainly would not be looking around much with the priest before them."
"It might work," conceded the king. "We also have Prince Midge and Nixy available to put two of the sentries to sleep. That will leave only four of them to take out by other means."
"If you can hold their attention for a minute or two," chirped Prince Midge, "Nixy and I could immobilize the four on the roof. It does not take long to cast the sleep spell, but the sentries must not notice us."
"Then we have a plan," declared Fredrik. "I will take care of the two sentries at the rear door. The next question is how do we get inside?"
"One merely has to knock on the rear door," answered Sergeant Musaraf. "The sentries knock in a particular pattern, but I know what that pattern is. We have managed to get spies into the temple before. Unfortunately, none of them survived very long."
"What if the pattern has changed?" asked Mitar.
"It changes often," replied Sergeant Musaraf, "but we monitor it daily. "Today's pattern is three long and two short knocks."
"Then we have a plan," stated King Arik. "The mercenaries will still form a perimeter around the temple. As K'san has been alerted, we should expect some surprises even after we get inside the temple."
Chapter 29
Blind Defense
K'san stepped out of the darkness and walked towards the rear door of the temple. He had not progressed more than a couple of steps before one of the sentries gasped. He fell to his knees and bowed his head to the ground. The second sentry was only a second behind in mimicking his partner. With both men's eyes averted, K'san glanced upward towards the roof. It was too dark to actually see the figures up there, but he maintained the gaze anyway as he walked closer to the door.
Up on the roof, the four sentries had gathered near the rear edge of the roof when they heard the gasp from below. When K'san lifted his eyes to stare at them, the four men dropped to their knees and bowed. Prince Midge and Nixy wasted no time in attacking. The two leftmost guards were put asleep first, their bodies relaxing somewhat but not moving enough to alert the other two. As soon as the second set of sentries were put to sleep, Prince Midge cast a tiny fairy light, which might have been impossible to see if Fredrik had not been watching for it.
Down below, K'san smiled when he saw the flicker of the fairy light. He extended both arms before him and pointed at the two kneeling guards. Blue streaks erupted from his fingertips and soared into the men. The guards were instantly frozen in place, unable to move or speak. K'san flicked a wrist over his head, and the illusion of the priest vanished. Fredrik halted before the door and waited for the others.
Out of the darkness behind the temple, thirteen figures raced to Fredrik. Mitar Vidson stood close to the door with a thin reed to his lips. Steffen knocked on the door in the manner prescribed by Sergeant Musaraf, and the door opened almost immediately. Mitar blew through the reed, sending a myric quill into the black-cloak that had opened the door. The Rangers flowed into the temple followed by King Arik and Fredrik.
The Rangers immediately broke into three teams, one for each floor of the building. While the team assigned to the ground floor checked each and every room before proceeding further, the other two teams moved forward to find the stairs. Arik and Fredrik followed the upper-floor groups. Just as they reached the stairs near the center of the building, a roving guard entered the corridor and saw the intruders. Steffen tossed a Lanoirian star into the man's neck before he could shout out an alarm. Another Ranger grabbed the sentry's body and dragged it under the stairs.
The two Ranger teams moved up the stairs, while Arik and Fredrik pressed onward towards the front of the temple. They were almost to the large room at the front of the temple when distant shouts rang out. Arik grabbed a star from his pouch.
"Move quickly," urged Fredrik. "We do not want to be caught in a narrow corridor. My spells would be ineffective."
The king and sorcerer ran towards the large room. The temple came alive with distant sounds as clerics emerged from their rooms and the fighting began. The sounds came simultaneously from above and behind the king, and that suddenly bothered Arik. Such a coordinated reaction meant that either all of the clerics were light sleepers, or K'san had been expecting an assault.
The fast pace of their entry into the large room probably saved one of them from an early death. As Arik and Fredrik raced into the room, two magical projectiles soared towards them from the direction of the altar. Arik dove for the floor, curling his body into a ball as he glanced towards his right. K'san and a black-cloak were near the altar with their arms extended. In the center of the room were a dozen clerics armed with swords.
"It's a trap," Arik called to Fredrik. "Deal with the warriors."
The king came out of his roll and jumped to his feet. The dozen clerics charged towards him, but he threw his star at the black-cloak instead. Arik saw the black-cloak clutch his chest as the king drew his sword. K'san unleashed another projectile at Fredrik, but the mage was shielded.
"It's King Arik!" shouted one of the charging clerics.
K'san's attention was immediately drawn from Fredrik. He stared at the king with hatred on his face. "Get the mage and leave the king to me."
Arik immediately felt a lightheadedness affecting him. His motion seemed to slow as the clerics in front of him turned towards Fredrik. With a sense of detachment, King Arik saw flaming projectiles streaming into the clerics. He heard ghastly screams, but his expression of shock was more about the Sword of Heavens slipping from his hands, and not because of the battle raging around him.
Fredrik fired fireballs volley after volley as Jenneva had taught him. He felt the power surge draining his strength, but there was no alternative. The twelve clerics had to die quickly if he was to be of any help to the king.
King Arik felt useless as he tried to fight the priest's spell. His legs began to feel rubbery, and his head began to swim. He knew that he could not win in a test of wills with the priest. Remembering Tanya's advice, the king closed his eyes and concentrated on the queen. When he felt his knees hit the floor, he imagined that he was kneeling before her in a proposal of marriage.
"Pick up your sword!" shouted Fredrik. "You are free now! Attack him!"
The king's head suddenly cleared, and his eyes sprang open. The bodies of the clerics were scattered over the floor, wisps of smoke rising from the corpses. Arik grabbed the Sword of Heavens and raced towards K'san. He saw the priest snarl in frustration as he turned his attention to Fredrik. The priest's arm came up and lightning bolts flew across the room. The king did not divert his attention as the air crackled around him. He swung his sword with all his might, hoping to open a small cut that would allow a myric quill to poison the priest's body.
The Sword of Heavens struck the priest in the side, opening up a large gash. K'san groaned with pain and stared uncomprehendingly at the king. King Arik pulled the sword back as K'san staggered backwards a step. Arik stepped forward and swung again, this time aiming higher. K'san's arm rose reflexively, and the Sword of Heavens cut clear through it. As the priest's arm fell to the floor, Arik whirled, bringing the sword around in a powerful sweep. The Sword of Heavens struck the priest's neck, and K'san's head separated from his body. The king stared in confusion as the priest's body collapsed to the floor. He shook his head with disbelief, but the sounds of continued battle jarred him to his senses.
King Arik turned to tell Fredrik that they must help the Rangers. At first he did not see the Royal Sorcerer as his eyes scanned the room. Finally, he saw Fredrik crumpled in the corner. The king raced across the room and knelt by the mage's side.
"What happened?" Arik asked with concern.
Knights of Alcea Page 37