“I will try,” nodded Caldal as he opened the door to the palace.
The elves hurried up the staircase and along the corridor to the Emperor’s office. The sentries outside the office nodded politely and opened the door for them. They walked into the office and found a number of people already assembled. Mistake and MistyTrail smiled at the elves as they entered. There were two soldiers dressed in black and silver, the emperor, a person in a black hooded cloak, a sailor wearing black and silver, and a young woman in a simple white robe.
“Welcome,” smiled Emperor Marak. “Our group is now complete. Let me introduce everyone so that we can get to know one another. Our new arrivals are elves from Elvangar. Eltor is on the right; Caldal on the left.”
Everyone stood and turned to face the elves.
“Most of you have already met Mistake and MistyTrail,” the Emperor continued as he nodded towards the two women. “Ophia in the white robe is a mage. Gunta and Halman here are two of the soldiers of my Torak clan, and Captain Mynor is the finest sea captain that I know. He will not be traveling with us, but he needs to know what we discuss here today.”
“If he is for our transport to Elvangar,” interrupted Caldal, “Eltor and I are quite capable of sailing on our own. We just need a ship.”
“Elvangar is not his purpose,” promised the Emperor, “but Motanga might be. I am not yet sure what role he will play, but I think it prudent for him to be aware of what is going on.”
Caldal nodded sheepishly and turned to see if Eltor was glaring at him.
“The last member of our expedition is Axor,” the Emperor continued as he nodded to the hooded man. “He is a Chula shaman from the Pfledor tribe.”
“With the exception of Captain Mynor,” asked Eltor, “are we all going to Angragar?”
“Yes,” answered Emperor Marak. “We will also be joined by others as we get closer. We will meet up with some Fakarans after we cross the Fortung Mountains. A contingent of Sakovans will also join us in Fakara. They will be traveling there by ship.”
“Who is coming from the Sakova?” asked MistyTrail.
“Lyra and three others,” answered the Emperor. “I do not know the identity of the others. It will be whoever Lyra decides.”
“And Rejji?” asked Mistake.
“He and three others will meet us in Fakara,” nodded Emperor Marak. “Again, I do not know who he will choose.”
“This seems like a lot of people just to read scrolls,” frowned Eltor. “Is all of this necessary?”
“That is not the only reason for our trip to Angragar,” replied Emperor Marak. “I believe that the Torak, the Astor, and the Star must journey there together. I am not sure what will happen, but I could not ask Rejji or Lyra to travel without protection. The party is as small as I could make it.”
The door to the office opened and an Imperial soldier entered. Instead of approaching the Emperor, he turned and walked the length of the room to the door leading to the living quarters of the Emperor. He opened the door and walked through it, closing it behind him.
“Are we going to meet Rejji in Ghala?” asked Mistake.
“Much has happened in Fakara since you left, Mistake,” smiled the Emperor. “Rejji has already built two more cities. The city of Meliban now sits at the mouth of the Meliban River, and the city of Taggot was built at the mouth of that river. It is not yet determined where we will meet Rejji. If you will excuse me for a moment, I must attend to something.”
Emperor Marak walked across the floor and opened the door to the living quarters. He passed through the door and closed it.
“I assume that this is important?” asked the Emperor.
“I would not interrupt otherwise,” answered the Imperial soldier.
“Very well, Fisher,” nodded the Emperor. “What is it?”
“There have been random murders throughout Khadora,” answered the Torak spy.
“I have heard reports about them,” nodded the Emperor.
“Yes,” continued Fisher, “but you did not hear that the assassins were hellsouls.”
“Hellsouls?” Emperor Marak echoed with surprise. “They should not be outside Angragar. How did they escape?”
“They are not from Angragar,” replied Fisher. “They are from Motanga, and there are more coming, many more. I am sure you will understand their purpose.”
“To create havoc throughout the country,” nodded the Emperor. “They will do exactly that, too.”
“Vand has also discovered your use of air tunnels,” Fisher continued. “He will seek to use them for himself. He may also try to disrupt your use of them.”
“How could he possibly know about our air tunnels?” asked the Emperor.
“I do not know,” admitted Fisher, “but it gets worse. An air mage from Raven’s Point is missing. Where she normally takes her morning stroll, patches of ice were found in the sand. I suspect that she was abducted so that Vand can learn the workings of the air tunnel. Your communications may no longer be secure.”
“That changes much,” frowned Emperor Marak. “We have become very dependent upon those air tunnels. If he can intercept our messages, we will suffer great losses. It will even be worse if he can disrupt our ability to send messages. We must discover an alternative method of communications.”
“I will travel to the mage school when I leave here,” offered Fisher. “Perhaps they can figure something out.”
“Good,” nodded the Emperor. “Any ideas on how we can combat the hellsouls? Rejji’s staff and the Sword of Torak appear to be the only weapons that can kill them.”
“I am working on it,” answered the spy.
“Alright,” replied Emperor Marak. “The group in my office is going with me to Angragar. I want to be kept current on what you discover. We can use Fardale to channel messages. Check in with them once a day.”
“Do you trust the elves?” asked Fisher. “That Caldal is one that I would watch.”
“He is headstrong,” shrugged the Emperor, “but I think his heart is in the right place. He is just trying to protect his people. I do not hold that against him.”
“You would be wise to be cautious with him,” warned Fisher. “If he thinks you mean harm to the elven people, he will strike without a second thought.”
“I suspect that Eltor would as well if they truly thought I was their enemy,” nodded the Emperor. “I hope to prove to them that I am not.”
“Keep Gunta and Halman close at all times,” advised Fisher. “I do not want to lose the Torak over some petty misunderstanding.”
“And I thought your concern was for me personally,” Emperor Marak chided sarcastically.
“It always is,” grinned the Torak spy, “but this is more important than even you now. The whole known world is riding on your shoulders, Marak. Always remember that your death means the death of thousands. Do not tempt fate.”
“I will try not to,” promised the Emperor. “I offer the same caution to you, my friend. I would not have been able to do what I have done without your help. Keep yourself healthy.”
Fisher nodded and opened the door for the Emperor. He would wait a respectable time before leaving the living quarters himself.
Emperor Marak reentered his office and walked to his desk. The chatter that had existed in the room died as he entered and everyone looked expectantly at him.
“Are there any questions about this journey?” asked the Emperor.
“When do we leave?” asked Eltor.
“We leave at first light,” answered Emperor Marak. “Anyone that needs to requisition weapons should do so today. We travel with only what we can carry on our horses. We will not have a pack train, so keep it light.”
There were no further questions and everyone left the room. Mistake and MistyTrail joined up with the elves as they walked down the stairs.
“Are you two alright with this plan?” asked Mistake. “You have been out of sorts lately.”
“We are,” smiled Eltor. “Please understand that this is hard on us. Our laws prohibit what we are doing now. We will be punished when we return to Elvangar.”