Richard Tuttle - Winged Warrior

“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.”

“You could go ashore naked,” suggested the captain. “I have a wax sack that will keep your uniform dry if you don’t submerge it.”

Fisher stood staring at the bow for a moment and then nodded his head. “An excellent idea,” he replied as he started to strip off the uniform. “Even if it does rain, a uniform soaked with saltwater would be a giveaway.”

The captain nudged the navigator and told him to fetch the waxed sack. The seaman returned quickly and handed the sack to Fisher.

“Are you sure that you can make your way back here tomorrow night?” asked Captain Mynor. “I could come back a second night if you miss the rendezvous.”

“No,” Fisher shook his head. “Tomorrow night for sure. If I do not show, return to Khadora. I will not endanger your ship and your crew by making you come here three nights in a row. How do you know where we are? I cannot even see the shore.”

“We charted this island,” grinned the captain. “I know exactly where I am. In just a minute, we will be coming close to a long sandy point that stretches away from the city. That is where we will drop you off. I am not even going to slow down as we pass the point. You will get ready over the rail and jump when I tell you to.”

“Alright,” nodded Fisher as he carefully tied the wax sack closed.

“Tomorrow night,” continued the captain, “we will sail by the exact same way, only we will be trailing a line in the water. You grab that line as it goes by, and we will pull you in. Can you handle that?”

“I can handle it,” agreed Fisher as he saw palm trees off the port beam. “It is smart not to break the wind in your sails this close to the island. That would be foolish.”

“Aye, lad, it would be,” smiled the captain. “Get over the rail. The point is coming up.”

The dining hall was packed with Sakovans as everyone sat and listened to Lyra reveal the new strategy that she was going to implement. The crowd verbally showed their disappointment about the elves not joining in the struggle against Vand. MistyTrail felt sorry that her friends were being deceived, but she knew that thousands of lives depended on the spy delivering a false message. The glares that she received from many of the Sakovans hurt her feelings, though.

The Sakovans were surprised to learn that the bulk of the armies were being sent to aid the Khadorans, but most of them accepted that it was logical for Vand to attack Khadora. What caused the crowd to become extremely vocal was Lyra’s statement that Alamar would be abandoned when it was clear that they could no longer halt Vand’s advance.

“You can’t do this,” StormSong yelled loudly from the back of the room. “The people of Alamar have become our brothers and sisters. You can’t just abandon them. It is not right.”

“We are not abandoning them,” insisted Lyra over a roar of jeers. “There will be a noble defense, but let’s be practical about this. Without the bulk of our armies, Alamar cannot be saved.”

“What about our mages?” shouted HawkShadow. “Surely they can halt the advance.”

“The mages will also be going to Khadora,” answered Lyra as she sighed and shook her head. “At least most of them will. They are needed up there.”

Temiker frowned as he watched his niece perform a task that he knew she hated. She had grown to love the Sakovan people, including those who used to be Omungan. Her only pleasure in life seemed to come from making them happy, and now she was intentionally misleading them to the point where they were ready to rebel against her.

“That is unacceptable,” HawkShadow shook his head vigorously. “The citizens of Alamar are Sakovans now. We have all pledged our lives to protecting our brothers and sisters. I formally request leave to help defend Alamar. I will not leave those people to be crushed under Vand’s boot.”

“I am with HawkShadow,” declared SkyDancer. “I offer my life in defense of Alamar.”

“And mine,” added FalconEye. “Let the armies go to Khadora, but I am staying here.”

“I suspect you will find that all of us will stay in Alamar,” shouted StormSong. “Lyra, what has gotten into you? The words you are saying cannot be yours. Rethink your policy.”

Lyra felt the meeting slipping from her grasp. If she allowed the dissent to continue, she would lose the chance to send the disinformation to Vand.

“Quiet,” Lyra shouted sternly as she banged on the table. “I will have quiet.”

The crowd quieted down, but many of the Sakovans stared at Lyra as if they did not know her. They had never heard her shout before, and pounding her fist on the table was just not her style.

“I admire the spirit of everyone in this room,” Lyra said calmly, “but many of you are forgetting something very important. You are forgetting the Scroll of Kaltara.”

Hushed murmurs rippled through the room, as many people knew what was coming next. Lyra never thought she would see the day when she threw this into the faces of the Sakovans, but she knew that she had to.

“Kaltara has anointed me as the Star of Sakova,” Lyra declared. “You know that means that Kaltara has placed his trust in me. There were times before when the Sakovans have turned away from their Star. Are you ready to once again slap Kaltara across the face? Are you now willing to turn your backs on the one sent from God?”

The murmurs continued quietly, but no one rose to speak. Lyra’s eyes scanned the large crowd. Some people glared back at her, but most of them averted their eyes when she looked at them. Lyra felt so ashamed and dirty for doing this to her people, but she could not stop now. When it was over there would be time to cry about how she lost the faith of her people.

“The strategy session is now over,” declared Lyra, “but before you leave this room, I have another announcement. I know that many of you are not happy with my plans. You probably will not feel inclined to an evening of cheer, but there will be a party in this room in just a few minutes. I think it is important that you all have one last good time with your friends and relatives, and tonight is that last chance. One caution, however.”

She saw that she had the group’s attention, but she worried that many would want to leave the party before it started. She didn’t want that to happen.

“I will start issuing final orders to each of you individually in the morning,” Lyra continued, “so do not drink too much. Each of you should be ready to ride out of here at sunup. An assignment list will be posted later this evening with the times that each of you are to report to my office. I will not stay for the party as I think it is best if you enjoy it among yourselves. I know my presence at this time would dampen your spirits. May Kaltara watch over each of you in the coming days.”