CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

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Alaric

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21st of Decepter, 935 PC

Alaric stared at the Yilan warrior as she swept her hand across the map on his battered table. Her name was Narah Loe and she was shaped like an hourglass which seemed quite fitting given that her magic allowed the sands of time to pass through her fingertips. She wore her short black hair in a bun on top of her head. It contrasted her pale skin hardly. Many of Narah’s features were harsh. The angles in her face, her movements, her tone. He liked her for it. Not the kind of person to make foolish mistakes. He had not yet seen the Naturalist use her magic, but he knew that a single lay of her palm on another person could age them as many years as she chose. Naturally, Narah was obsessed with all things time; efficiency and punctuality being her primary interests.

Narah’s brother, Shade, had been traveling with Alaric for over a moon but she had only arrived in Thronerock the day after he and Therrin had returned with Coyne. Since then she had spent most of her time in her room down the hall. It had only taken a handful of minutes of explaining his circumstances with his informants and the Lotus Queen’s advancements in alchemy for Narah to insist that she reorganize his crumbling plan. By the end of her own spiele highlighting the missions she had planned for the Yllan army, he was confident that if anyone could formulate a plan to bring down all three pillars of the Lotus Army and get the Marsallas back on such short notice, it was Narah Loe. Still, his paranoia had worried him as he waited for her to finish. It was unusual for Alaric to give such trust to someone he was so fresh to, but Narah had impressed him so thoroughly, so quickly, practically from the moment she sat down in his corner booth across from him. Her attention to detail. Her focus on efficiency. Her enthusiasm for his cause. She was the perfect soldier. And the rulers of Yile had agreed. That’s why Narah was a captain in the Yilan army before disappearing to fight for Alaric. However, unlike Diedro, Narah has managed to fake her own death and slip away in the night, leaving her previous group to mourn her loss, not wanting to hunt her down and kill her.

Now, she was in charge of laying out her plan in terms his ragtag group of Purists could understand and execute without too many mistakes. His council and more important soldiers had gathered around the table in his room inside the inn. The same table Nathaniel had been pinned to and bleeding on not long before. The smell of blood and vomit still lingers in the air but was being masked, to a degree, by the smell of pork and vegetables on the numerous plates around the room.

The Yilan took control of the discussion with confidence after taking a few bites from her plate of food.

“Alright,” she said sternly as she walked toward the table. “I’ve studied this map several times now and I think I have a route charted for each of the four teams.” You should shower this woman with gifts for taking so much stress off of you. There were blank stares throughout the room. Until tonight, Alaric’s plan had only consisted of three groups. The Marsallas being captured changed that. “By the way, if you haven’t already heard, we are adding a team, pulling some men and women from each group and sending them to Northcrest and the Deep Frost to retrieve the Marsallas.” She glanced around, seemingly expecting some kind of militaristic acknowledgment of her statement. There was none.

“Who?” Elgar asked. One of Alaric’s Botahana Browns hung from his lips, an ashy orange tip shining bright in the dim room.

“The Patterson brothers, Camila, and Yormir Huff will all be joining Wicket as he leads that team.”

The room stared at Wicket. The charmer nodded uncomfortably at Narah. She continued her breakdown of her plan.

“And how do we know the Marsallas are there?” Tripelthin asked. His tone gave Narah even less respect than it gave Alaric when the advisor belittled his opinions.

Narah was not phased. “Well, we don’t. But it’s where she keeps all her high-priority captives. We have to send a team there to be sure.”

King spoke to the room though his question was directed more at Alaric. “Elmeney Marsalla is a Purist. Will the Lotus Queen have not harvested her magic?”

“She may very well have, but we are assuming she will see the value in using both alchemists to help her own,” Alaric said from his place by his dresser. “And if she hasn’t, we can still manage with just Idliock.”

“How close is he to finishing the new lotus magic?” Wicket asked, referring to Donovan Rellin.

Alaric shook his head. “There’s no way to find out now. Even if one of my informants tried to tell me I wouldn’t believe them. Best we assume he’s close. And with the Marsallas potentially being forced to help him, he could be even closer. Or worse, pursuing something even more heinous.”

“Forgive me, but speculation will not get us anywhere,” Narah said.

Alaric gave control of the room back to the strategist. She scanned the room and waited for everyone’s attention.

“Sampson and his team are heading to Locke and I will be leading my team to DuVale. No need to cover those routes. We are both informed and prepared.”

Tripelthin approached the Yilan on her left and followed her finger as she traced a route she had inked onto her map. His round stomach rested just atop the table as he leaned forward slightly. Alaric looked at the golden pin shaped like a lotus flower on his hat. I hate that damn pin. Tripelthin wore the pin of the Lotus who had killed an old friend. And while Alaric understood the gesture, he hated looking at it. A constant reminder of their savagery.

When Tripelthin spoke, his continued arrogance made Narah scowl briefly. “Are you sure the Widow’s Den is safe for Elgar’s team?”

The strategist looked at Elgar, now leaning against the half-empty bookshelf in the back of the room. He had one of the few remaining books in his hands but Alaric knew he couldn’t read it. A secret the brothers shared about the man. Doubt there’s any pictures in there, Elgar.

The blonde looked as though he was disinterested in the entire conversation, but he nodded and said, “I’ve got some commoners that are gonna meet us with a barge along the Candlebury River. We’ll only be in the den a few days at most.” If a team fails you, it’ll be his. Relying on commoners at this point is dangerous. Three hells, relying on anyone outside this inn is dangerous now. Alaric almost opened his mouth but stopped. Arguing with him over it won’t do much good though. Once you’re all on the road, he’ll do whatever he wants.

“I see,” said Tripelthin. He exchanged a nervous glance with Alaric. The Naturalist would be accompanying Alaric to Locke. There was no other place he would want his advisor, even if listening to the man’s advice made Alaric want to strangle him at times. Plus, Alaric did not want Tripelthin in charge of anyone. Handling the old wise old man was difficult enough for him. Tripelthin would roll over a weaker leader with ease.

Alaric turned to his plate of meat and potatoes and cut into the pork. He chewed quietly as he looked at the back of the room, spotted the boarded window. A light breeze crept through the room. You really must fix that, it’s been too long now. Have Garth do it. He shrugged and continued to watch the woman explain her plan.

“Jameson,” she said.

Wicket looked up from the map. “Yes ma’am.”

“Your route may look strange, but Alaric tells me you’ll have a man with you that can cut through the Eastern Wall like a knife.” Wicket nodded. “After that you’ll move through Harper’s Coast, hitting Hillsdale then White Hall. You’ll receive the names of your innkeepers and the ship captain in White Hall later this evening, when we get confirmation that they have been secured.” Narah’s tone left little room for rebuttals.

James turned away from the table and approached Alaric with wide eyes. “She’s strung tighter than a bow.” Alaric smiled.

“She’s a blessing is what she is.” He handed James the bottle of rum from the dresser. It was sitting on the small mirror Diedro had given him. “If everything goes as planned Iris won’t be in Northcrest,” he said.

Narah was still talking to the others behind them. Her words spewing from her mouth at a blistering pace and with a confidence that insinuated everyone else would know the plan as well as she did before they departed.

James took a long swig from the rum and wiped his mouth with the back of his wrist. “Let’s hope.” There were bags under his eyes, his hair was considerably thinner than when the two men had met years before. Years of stressful hiding will ruin even the most handsome of men. Alaric ran his hand through his own graying hair.

A stronger gust of wind swept through the room. Narah slammed her hands down on the map as the wind tried to carry it off the table.

King laughed as he looked at the broken window. “You live in filth, Sampson.”

“Loves this shitty place for some reason,” Elgar chimed in.

Alaric placed his utensils on the plate gently, wiped the corners of his mouth with his fingers, then stepped past James. “I love this place because it allows me to partake in less than admirable behavior with no questions asked,” he said. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out multiple pieces of hard candy. “And when you are trying to plan the downfall of the most powerful woman in the kingdom, you have to do a few things that people may ask questions about if you aren’t properly hidden in the shadows.”

Elgar rolled his eyes.

King said, “And the hog downstairs is quite delicious.” There were nods and grins around the room. Narah was noticeably not one of them.

Alaric approached the table and tossed one of the hard candies to his strategist. “Would you mind marking Northcrest, please.” The Yilan placed the wrapped candy beside an island off the east coast of the main continent. By the time Alaric had marked the other three locations they were attacking the candies made a diamond shape on the map.

Tripelthin asked, “Do we know where she will be?”

James responded from his place by the dresser. “She spends most of her time in the Floating Tower now… in DuVale. It’s like her nest. But she makes her rounds all across the kingdom so be aware.” The grins all around the room slowly turned to frowns and solemn stares as the Purists thought about what the Lotus Queen did on those trips. He’s too ashamed to say what she does out loud. Rips Purists apart. Steals their magic. Leaves their ruined bodies behind.

Tripelthin looked at Narah and King. They were the ones going straight into the enemy’s jaws. Narah spoke before the concerned man could say anything.

“I know the Pillikin Coast well. I’ve seen the tower plenty of times.” She paused. “Getting up there is a whole different story, of course, but we will be safe until we get there.” That I would bet my life on.

Alaric spoke to the room. “Pay attention.” The others fell perfectly silent. “I realize we’re not slated to depart Thronerock for another tenday, but we must leave now. Things have gotten too dangerous. Even here. I’ll be damned if we are delayed by some meaningless fight with The Hounds of Haldar if they come back with larger numbers.” There were grumbles around the room. “Listen closely. The Lotus Army has gotten to our commoners and probably hundreds more throughout the empire. No one is to be trusted for any longer than it takes to use them for what they’re providing. Kill them when you’re done with them if you suspect they’re working against us . Three hells, kill them whether you suspect anything or not if you don’t wish to spend time debating over it.”

Alaric pointed at the map after his soldiers confirmed their comprehension. “Get a good look at where the pillars are. Narah has outlined routes between the groups for you to use if for some reason you have to get to other locations.” He traced a few of the lighter drawn routes. “Study them.” He glanced at each of his soldiers. “And remember, for this to work we will have to stay on schedule. We hit one pillar at a time. The Floating Tower will be first, on the twentieth day of Janus. No sooner.” He looked at King as Narah swept the hard candy off the map. He stopped her from tossing it back to him and pointed at her. She unwrapped it and tossed it in her mouth with a smile. “Between Garth, Shade, and Diedro, you should be able to seize her. Bring the bitch back to me safely. Remember. She no longer has the scroll with the formula, but she surely knows it by heart. Use Coyne to wipe it from her mind as soon as you can.”

He caught a glimpse of King as he scanned the room. The Prosperist was making an uncomfortable face and rubbing his throat until Alaric spotted him. He spoke quickly. “Why not just kill her?”

“If it was that simple I would have done it myself years ago,” Alaric said. “She and Rellin know more about souls than just how to isolate one and extract pure magic from it.”

“What do you mean?” King asked.

Wicket spoke. “We have to find her soul. It ain’t in her body. The boy has to dig through her mind to figure out where she’s hidden it.”

Narah interjected, clearly annoyed that they were wasting time on something she already knew. “We expect much of the Lotus Army to come to their queen’s aid when the nest is destroyed. They’ll flock from the Iron Palace first. We believe.” She looked at Elgar. “You’ll strike on the twenty-second day, when their defenses are down.” Elgar nodded. Alaric grabbed the hand candy from its place on the city of Iron Helm. His brother had leaned away from the bookshelf, waiting for the candy, but Alaric dropped it back in his breast pocket. Elgar frowned.

“Shouldn’t we draw their troops from the nest by attacking elsewhere first?” Elgar asked.

Narah shook her head. “They don’t operate like that. As soon as we struck elsewhere, the nest would be on high alert. They’ll sacrifice any other location to protect her.”

“It’s true,” said Wicket.

“University da Mi’lier in Locke is next,” Alaric said as he scooped up the third piece of candy. “Tripelthin and I will strike there two days later.” The trip from Thronerock to the capital city was easily the shortest and quite possibly the safest. It was due south where the Lotus Army’s forces were thinner than they were in the north. Alaric intended to use the extra time they’d have to stop by The Emerald Wood in hopes of finding Urman Gant. Unlikely he will still be there, but I wouldn’t mind paying Kathar a visit. If we can round him up, Urman will come walking right to us in hopes of saving his old friend. “We hope to find Rellin in the university and bring him here. But truth be told, he’s not as important as Iris. If any of you encounter him and cannot capture him, kill him.”

“And then there’s the Deep Frost.” Narah looked at the nervous charmer as she picked up the last piece of candy and tossed it to Alaric. “There’s really no way of setting an exact day for you since we don’t know how long it will take for you to find the entrance. But the sooner the better. Strike as soon as you find it.”

James made a face that left the rest of the room staring at him blankly. He wiped his forehead. “I got it.” His voice wavered as he spoke.

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Alaric closed the door and locked it before walking back to the table. Only James and King remained in the room with him. The others were off to prepare for their departure hours later.

“James, are you alright?” asked Alaric as he rolled up the old map carefully.

The charmer rubbed his hands together nervously. “I reckon there’s a lot ridin’ on whether I get them alchemists outta that glacier alive or not.” He took a swig from Alaric’s rum.

“Indeed,” said King as he took a sip of the rum from his own metal cup. “But as the Yilan said, we don’t know they are there for sure. Perhaps we will stumble upon them in DuVale. They were taken from Tevron after all. It’s much closer than Serelle.”

Wicket wiped his mouth with the back of his wrist and laughed silently. The look on his face made it clear he fully expected the Marsallas to be in the Deep Frost. “Iris ain’t no fool. She knows all she has to do is keep them folks underwater in that impenetrable fortress until she can stomp out our resistance. She’ll kill the woman and keep the commoner husband alive to bid her doings.”

“Precisely why Ashe is going with you. The Deep Frost is anything but impenetrable for him,” Alaric said.

King looked intrigued, curious as to who this Ashe Patterson fellow everyone had been mentioning was. “Is this man truly that remarkable?”

Alaric nodded. “And then some.”

“A shame I’m not traveling with him. But if I’m to make my own legacy I can’t travel with a man that can apparently overshadow The Creator herself.”

Wicket chuckled. “Legacy. Ain’t thought about my legacy in a long time. Guess that’s cause I ain’t got much of one.” He leaned toward King and poured some into his cup.

Alaric glanced out the boarded window. Diedro and Shade were doing last minute surveillance to check on any signs of Hounds or Lotus in the city. For all that is good, let it be clear for a few more hours. Nathaniel’s words about the Lotus Queen coming for Cora were still running through his mind. He looked at Wicket. I can’t tell him she may come for his daughter. He won’t leave her behind. Tripelthin’s words consumed his mind now. Means to an end. If Iris is preoccupied with the girl she may be more vulnerable to Narah’s attack. She wouldn’t harm her. Only Wicket would be crushed. And he is a lousy father anyway. His mind drifted back in the conversation between the other men.

“Are you sure you can lead men with your mind so troubled?” King asked Wicket after downing some of the rum. He held his fist to his mouth and burped. He winced.

The charmer reached into coat pocket and pulled out a deck of cards. He rippled them with his thumb. “Never been much of a leader, but if that’s what I gotta be, I will. Just nervous.”

“As are we,” Alaric said. “As are we.”

King removed the dark green kufi from his head and placed it on the table. Gold embroidery swept along the hat in a swirling fashion. He undid a small button that held a hidden compartment closed on the inside of the hat. “Mr. Wicket,” he said as he pulled a small spearhead from the compartment and handed it to James. “A gift from me to you.”

The charmer placed his deck of cards on the table and examined the gift. “That’s mighty nice of ya King.” He looked up. “What is it?”

Alaric returned from the dresser he had tucked the map in and placed the walnut box full of Botahana Browns on the table. He gave each man a cigar then took his seat. He waved his hand at King to tell him to continue.

“That is called a soquet where I come from. It is a blessed thing, created to hold good fortune. It has been in my family for two centuries. I’d like you to have it now.” Him and his gifts.

“Like a good luck charm,” James said.

“But far stronger than luck.”

James held the spearhead in front of the candlelight. “It don’t look too remarkable.”

“Ah, it does not… much like you right now. But like you, it is full of something special. When you believe you have no other choice but to fail, hold that close to your heart. It will guide you.”

Wicket reached under the table and lifted his backpack to his lap. “I’ll put it right here.” He unfastened a small compartment on the front of the bag, then looked at Alaric. “I have something for you.” Finally, I was beginning to think he may not hand it over. “I’m sorry I didn’t give it to ya sooner. It’s just hard thinkin’ about what we have to do.” He pulled a book from the backpack and laid it on the table. He took a puff of his cigar and then handed it to Alaric who put it away.

Alaric said, “I must admit, I’ve been waiting on this for a while.” The title of the book read, Olt’s Guide to Alchemy. Alaric had known Wicket had the book for quite some time, but only for the last few days had he expected him to hand it over. How Wicket had stolen the book from Iris, he would not say, but it didn’t truly matter. As long as Alaric had what was inside the book on his journey to Locke, that was all he needed.

“Yeah, been holdin’ onto this thing for years.”

“Hers I assume?” King asked.

Wicket nodded.

“What relevance does it bring?” King asked.

Wicket opened the book slowly, gently. Laying between the pages was a quill, it’s barb a light green, faded slightly by time. It’s white afterfeathers looked stiffer than usual having laid inside the book for so long. Wicket lifted it with such grace an angel could not have done so better. He held it to the light, a small dollop of something gold covered the tip of the shaft. “A Rewanese alchemy quill. She used it to write her formula. Only thing that can pull the letters to the surface of concealer parchment.”

“Incredible,” King said. “And the Manaya, woman. She will be the one to read it?” Manaya Flame, Tripelthin’s body guard and one of the few remaining people in the empire that could read Rewanese. She was also a Perceptionist capable of seeing the that which could not be seen. Once the message was pulled from within the concealer parchment, she would be able to read it. A thorough process indeed. But I’ve gathered everything necessary to get that formula.

Alaric nodded proudly. “Just have to get the formula from Urman now.”

“No simple task,” King said. No simple task indeed.

“There’s more,” Wicket said as he put the quill away and closed the book. He ran his finger down its spine. He stopped about a fourth of the way from the bottom and peeled a small bit of the leather back slowly. The unsuspecting eye would have never even noticed the seam. He pushed his fingertips up the spine until a key appeared where the leather had been folded out of the way. He handed it to Alaric. Well, this is a surprise.

“What’s this?” Alaric asked.

“It will get you into the real lab, her lab,” James said. “Don’t waste your time wandering around in the one the other students used. There ain’t nothing useful in there.”

I don’t like him keeping secrets from me. “Were you planning on telling me this before King warmed your heart so nicely?” Alaric looked at the key intently.

“Course I was, just wasn’t in no rush.” Struggling with the fact that we intend to finish the relationship he wishes he still had. Understandable. But it will happen.

Alaric grinned. “Tell me more about this lab.”