StarWind, Ukaro, and Lyra exchanged glances. Ukaro nodded his head affirmatively and StarWind agreed.
“Can I assume from MistyTrail’s presence here that she has been briefed on our problem?” Lyra asked the Torak.
“She is here to help you with it,” nodded Marak.
“Then I see no reason to exclude Temiker,” Lyra decided. “He would not bring us such information if he had indeed been taken over by one of Vand’s mages.”
“So you already know about this?” asked Temiker. “Has the spy been uncovered?”
“No,” Lyra shook her head. “I mean, yes, we know about the spy, but we have no idea who it might be. StarWind was with me in Okata when the report was given to Vand. She is the only Sakovan that I can trust right now. Everyone else is suspect.”
“That is why I thought you could use MistyTrail’s help,” interjected Marak. “What steps have you taken so far?”
“Ukaro has developed a plan to hide our armies,” Lyra replied. “We have called a meeting for later tonight to present a false strategy to everyone. That will cause the spy to send the wrong information to Vand.”
“And gives us a chance to identify the spy,” added StarWind.
“What is the false strategy that you plan to unveil?” asked the Torak.
“We are going to say that we think Zaramilden will be struck next,” answered Lyra. “I will be ordering the bulk of armies to abandon Alamar and mass at Zaramilden. This will cause Vand to show his hand when the attack comes. He will be attacking an empty city.”
“We need to change your new strategy,” frowned Emperor Marak.
“Why?” inquired Ukaro.
“Vand will certainly attack Zaramilden if he thinks it is occupied,” answered the Torak, “but I want him to know that it is deserted. He is positioning supplies in Duran as we speak. That is the reason that the city was attacked so early.”
“Stockpiling supplies?” echoed Lyra. “Why?”
“Because it will be much closer to the fighting than Motanga is,” Marak replied. “He will not have to have convoys of ships crossing the seas while he is busy fighting us. It is a clever move on his part. Duran is so isolated that we would never discover its use. That is why he needs Zaramilden deserted. It is too close to Duran for him to risk having his convoys detected.”
“Are you sure about this?” asked StarWind.
“Positive,” nodded Marak. “There are three ships anchored there right now. They are already unloading supplies. The invasion will start soon.”
“So you plan to station troops in Zaramilden to foil his plan?” asked Temiker. “Is that why you want him to think it is deserted?”
“I am not sure yet what our reaction should be,” admitted Marak, “but we should not lead him to believe that we have massed out troops in Zaramilden. You must unveil a different false strategy.”
“Where else would we move our troops to?” StarWind asked.
“Khadora,” suggested MistyTrail. “Why not tell them that we think that Vand’s attack is geared to toppling the Torak? Marak’s visit today could be an appeal for Sakovan troops.”
“That could work,” Marak nodded. “At least it would make sense to someone like Vand who is always concerned mostly with his own security. It is natural that he would want to strike me the hardest.”
“Isn’t that what he is likely to do?” asked Lyra.
“I don’t know,” shrugged Marak. “We truly have no idea what his strategy is. At this point, that is not the question. First we have to deceive him so that Alamar can be properly defended. It is too close to Motanga for him to ignore it. That is especially true if he is planning on using Duran as a supply depot.”
“We need a plan to watch for the spy after the meeting,” mentioned Ukaro. “The strategy that Lyra unveils will be too important not to immediately transmit it to Vand.”
“You think the spy knows how to use an air tunnel?” asked Lyra.
“I would assume so,” nodded Ukaro. “We already think that they may have learned the spell on the Island of Darkness, but even if they didn’t, a mage in our midst would learn it easily.”
“Plus they would not risk the spy by making him return to Motanga to deliver his news,” added Temiker. “If not an air tunnel, the spy will have some mechanism for transmitting the information without leaving.”
“Finding the spy will not be easy,” frowned StarWind. “After the meeting our people will disperse quickly. There is no way that we can watch everyone.”
“Give them a reason to stay behind,” suggested MistyTrail. “Maybe have a party following the meeting. Most people would stay to enjoy their friends, but the spy would be anxious to get his message off. I think very few people would leave right away.”
“That might work,” StarWind nodded appreciatively. “We all know that we may not make it through this war. This could be the final party before the war begins. No one should be in a hurry to leave.”
“And they will dribble out when they do leave,” nodded Marak. “I think it could work.”
“With the Star’s permission,” offered Ukaro, “I will quickly return home and gather some Chula shaman to help with this effort. All anyone will notice is a larger number of cats around the palace than usual.”
“Have them remain hidden if possible,” nodded Lyra. “My people are aware of the Chula capabilities. They are not stupid.”
“But this spy is not one of your people,” grinned Marak. “He or she only appears to be Sakovan. I would suggest that at the meeting you mention that everyone will have his or her orders tomorrow. When the spy is discovered, he is to be allowed to transmit the false information. Then Lyra can come up with an assignment that will keep the spy busy and away from the action. We do not want Vand to know that we have discovered the spy.”
“I do not like the thought of letting the spy live,” frowned StarWind, “but your point is valid. We can use him to send more false information in the future.”
“Gather your shaman,” Lyra instructed Ukaro. “They can offer prayers to Kaltara while they wait for the meeting to end.”
Ukaro nodded and left the room to head for the temple and the secret door that would eventually lead back to Changragar. Lyra made notes on the points of the new strategy she wanted to explain to her people. The others in the room watched Lyra writing the notes and offered suggestions.
“Don’t forget to tell them about the elves not joining the war,” mentioned MistyTrail.
“Do we really want to share that with Vand?” frowned StarWind.
“We do,” chuckled Marak. “It is a lie. The elves are completely with us. They will strike when Vand expects it the least.”
“Excellent,” grinned Lyra. “My sadness will be profound when I explain that to the audience tonight. I pray that Kaltara will forgive the lies that I am about to speak.”
“You are lying only to your enemy,” countered Emperor Marak. “The rest of your people will know the truth soon.”
* * *
The Sprite glided over the glassy sea, its black sails invisible to anyone along the coast of the Island of Darkness. Captain Mynor gazed skyward and smiled at the cloud cover blocking the stars.
“Just a little while longer and you will be stepping into the jaws of the beast,” he said softly to Fisher.
The spy finished pulling on his red Motangan uniform and turned to the captain for inspection.
“Looks good enough to fool a blind man,” quipped the captain. “There is not enough light to actually see it right now. How it looks in the daytime is what really matters.”
“I just hope it dries by then,” frowned Fisher. “The air feels like rain.”