He did not know if the door had to remain closed for any period of time, so he waited a few moments before opening it again. When he stepped out of the closet, he noticed that there were now three doors, and each of them bore the mark of one of the Three who had been prophesized. He had come out of the door with the sign of the Torak upon it.
Ignoring the other two doors for the moment, Fisher moved to the spy hole and peered through it. Seeing no one in the library, Fisher flipped the latch and entered the room. He closed the bookshelf behind him. As he exited the library to see which temple he was in, several guards spotted him and immediately surrounded him, their long spears pointing at the spy’s chest.
Fisher raised his hands in surrender as the spears poked him towards the center of the corridor. Before he could open his mouth to protest, someone hit him over the head from behind. Fisher sank into darkness.
Fisher was not sure how long he had been unconscious, but he could tell that it was dark out. He groaned and felt his head for a lump as he studied the small cell that he was in. He rose to his feet and stretched his muscles as he pictured the men who had captured him. The long spears suggested the Qubari jungle, but the men had not been dressed in loincloths. Fisher was still pondering his location when the cell door opened. The guard glared at Fisher and waved his spear for the prisoner to leave the cell.
Fisher walked slowly and deliberately out of the cell and saw that three other guards were waiting for him. The guards herded Fisher along the corridor and into a large room. That was when Fisher realized where he was.
“Fisher!” greeted Bakhai. “Welcome to Angragar.”
“Thank you, Bakhai,” smiled Fisher as the guards backed away and stood against the wall with their spears held vertically. “I guess I didn’t have the proper password?”
“We were not notified that you were using the doors,” shrugged Bakhai. “What brings you to Angragar?”
“Actually,” admitted the spy, “I just discovered the doors and was exploring where they led to. I did not realize that I would come out in Angragar. How do they work?”
“They work by the will of Kaltara,” smiled Bakhai. “I know no more than that. How did you discover the doors?”
Fisher truthfully revealed his following of Marak and his knowledge of the construction of the temple in Khadoratung. He did not mention his discussion with the Chula, as it was not pertinent to the question.
“I suggest that you return to Khadora and refrain from using the doors until you have talked to Emperor Marak,” frowned Bakhai. “I think your actions will point out the need for security around the use of the doors. They can be a liability to us as much a benefit.”
“I will return immediately,” Fisher nodded as he rose.
One of the guards stepped forward and led Fisher out of the room. He escorted the spy to the temple and into the library. The guard then turned around and walked out. Fisher thought it was odd that the guards knew about the doors, but obviously did not want to see how they were accessed. Fisher shrugged and unlatched the bookshelf. He backed into the alcove and pulled the bookshelf closed. That is when he felt the blade of a long sword rest upon his shoulder and threaten his throat. Fisher’s hands rose into the air and sighed with defeat. Hands reached out and turned the spy around so that he was facing his attackers. Suddenly, light flared to life and Fisher stared into Gunta’s face.
“Fisher?” frowned Marak. “What are you doing here?”
Fisher sighed and explained the whole thing over again. Marak opened the door with the mark of the Torak on it and ushered everyone through it. In Changragar, they continued through to Khadoratung. When they reached the capital city, Emperor Marak entered the library and sat at one of the tables. He invited Fisher to sit with him.
“I should have realized that I could not keep a secret from you for long,” smiled the Torak. “The problem is, now we know that others can stumble across the doors. We must make preparations to secure ourselves from their use by enemies.”
“Then perhaps this day has proved worthwhile after all,” Fisher replied sheepishly. “If it is any consolation, I have arranged for a new spy to go to the Island of Darkness. His only purpose is to notify us of the time of the attack.”
“We have already had an attack,” reported Emperor Marak. “The Sakovan city of Duran no longer exists. That is why I left the palace in such a fashion.”
“Then it has begun,” Fisher nodded slowly. “I would like permission to use the doors. It will help me gather information.”
“Consider it done,” nodded Marak, “but always remain aware that your entry to the doors must be stealthy.”
“After today,” frowned Fisher, “I shall never make that mistake again.”
Chapter 7
Death of a Mage
Shouts rang out from every direction as the search spread outward. This was the second day of searching for the dark mage, and the patrols had kept Aakuta on his toes. Aakuta crawled to one side of the large tree in the forest and stuck his head out to see what was going on behind the temple.
A large column of soldiers was standing at attention. Aakuta started counting them and then realized that there were ten soldiers for each mage standing in front of the soldiers. He counted the mages instead and frowned when he realized how many soldiers were being added to the search. He would have little chance of avoiding them this day.
Aakuta grunted with pain and pulled his head back behind the tree. The pain was more intense now that the curse had been lifted. Aakuta had known the moment that Dobuk released the curse. His body instantly screamed from every pore. Old wounds that had been dull and almost forgotten screamed anew. Without Lady Mystic’s potions, he would have already killed himself.
Aakuta frowned when he thought about the potions. Lady Mystic had been far off in her estimate. While she thought one potion might last an hour, each had actually lasted for four hours. The problem Aakuta faced now was that he had just consumed the last of the potions. He had only four hours to find a way out of his predicament before he became totally insane and took his own life.
Aakuta felt the effects of the last potion kick in. A warm glow flowed through his body, and his nerves dulled as the aches and pains subsided. He sighed with relief.
The noise behind the temple increased dramatically and Aakuta peeked around the tree again. His brow creased heavily as he saw the soldiers breaking up into groups. The mages were taking control of their soldiers and pointing the direction to start the search. Several of the mages pointed towards the forest where Aakuta was hiding. Aakuta knew that it was time to flee.
The dark mage pushed himself off the ground and stood behind the large tree. His eyes swept the forest as he plotted his path through the trees. He closed his eyes and memorized the path because there was no way that he would be able to see the trees later.
Aakuta called for his spell of fog and let it build around his feet. He knew that the fog would alert the soldiers to his location, but he had no choice. If he just ran, they would easily see him now that they had decided to search outside the city. Already the soldiers were getting closer.
When the density of fog had risen greatly, Aakuta snapped his wrist and sent the cloud outward in a circle. He immediately started running as the shouts of alarm drifted on the air. He kept his eyes open, not that it mattered much. The fog was so thick that he could not see his hand if he extended his arm out before himself. He counted numbers in his head and altered his course when he thought he was at the point to do so.
The fog was not the perfect plan for escape, but it was the best that he had at the moment. If he could put enough distance between the soldiers and himself, he could veer off to either side and circle around behind the searchers. Once behind them, he would seek a new place to hide.