Richard Tuttle - Island of Darkness

Several hours later the wagon jolted to a halt. The kitten immediately rose and stretched. It hid in a dark corner as the soldiers reached into the wagon and removed the shovels. Calmly it waited until it heard their voices and the sound of digging. The cat moved to the rear and gazed out. Five soldiers were digging individual graves while the other seven were relaxing. Some of them were stretched out on the ground with their eyes closed.

The kitten leaped out of the wagon and landed soundlessly. It looked around until it found where the Imperial Guard horses were tied and then it padded softly in that direction. Before it reached the tree that the horses were tied to, the kitten hid and transformed into Ukaro. The Chula shaman walked softly to the horses and untied their reins. The horses were skittish as if they sensed something abnormal in the Chula. Ukaro’s split lips smiled and then opened wide as he let out a low growl. The horses panicked and fled while Ukaro stepped into the darkness behind a nearby tree.

The soldiers noticed the noise and turned to see their horses running away. Several of them raced after the horses while the others looked on in confusion. Ukaro waited patiently for the soldiers to resume their digging. He watched the chasers go by and wished them luck with their task of retrieving the horses. When there was no further attention directed his way, Ukaro moved silently to the wagon. He climbed onto the seat and grabbed the reins. He felt the horses begin to fidget nervously. With a light slapping of the reins, he urged the team to begin moving.

The wagon creaked terribly, and Ukaro held his breath as they moved slowly away from the soldiers. As soon as Ukaro heard the first shout of alarm from the soldiers, he growled mightily at the horses. The team panicked and began running as fast as the wagon would allow them. Almost immediately, Ukaro tried calming the horses even as he fought the reins. A few minutes later he managed to get the team under control.

* * *

StarWind’s eyes popped open and she sat up quickly. She jumped to her feet, and a Sakovan star slipped into her hand. She turned and saw StormSong standing just outside the clearing. The tall Sakovan warrior signaled for the spymaster to move to the opposite side of the clearing. StarWind immediately complied, even as her mind was trying to analyze the sound that had awoken her. She moved into the darkness outside the clearing and waited.

Suddenly, she heard the noise again. It was a faint noise, but one that was unmistakable to a Sakovan. She waited patiently for the chokas to arrive. When the large warbirds came into view, LifeTender was astride one of them. StarWind deliberately stepped into the path of the giant warbirds.

“Why are you here?” asked the Sakovan spymaster.

“We had a message from Temiker,” LifeTender said as she slid off the warbird. “I must inform Lyra right away.”

“Inform me of what?” Lyra asked groggily as she moved from one of the wagons towards the healing mage.

“Our caravan to Alamar was ambushed on their way home,” reported LifeTender. “Only FalconEye has survived and his condition is not good.”

“So Alamar is already closed to us,” Lyra sighed with frustration. “How could they have reacted so swiftly? What else did my uncle have to say?”

“Several things,” reported LifeTender. “The attack was not by the garrison soldiers at Alamar. It was a group from Okata. General Manitow has ordered them arrested.”

“So Alamar will still receive us?” asked StarWind.

“Maybe,” frowned LifeTender. “The situation there is volatile. The citizens carried the bodies of our dead to the marketplace and mourned them. They appeared genuinely distressed by the loss of our people.”

“You mean they will miss their food shipments,” snipped StormSong. “That is what they cry for, not Sakovan dead.”

“Temiker doesn’t think that is the case,” LifeTender continued with a slight glare at StormSong. “While the citizens did speak loudly about the end of our food shipments, they also paid tribute to our fallen warriors. Even the Imperial Guards knew better than to interfere.”

“That is saying a lot,” StarWind interjected as her eyebrows rose. “It sounds like General Manitow is walking a fine line. He is allowing the citizens to mourn the enemy, and he is arresting those responsible. That will not make the Katana happy.”

“General Romero is arriving within the week with his army,” LifeTender continued.

“Who is he?” interrupted Lyra.

“He is one of the Katana’s generals,” answered StarWind. “There are four major generals in Okata, Didyk, Romero, Kapla, and Valdey. Those are the men who control the armies that will invade the Sakova. The rest of the generals are much like Manitow. They control regional armies centered in the main cities. They are more likely to be defensive and try to thwart any Sakovan offensives.”

“Continue,” Lyra said to LifeTender.

“The Imperial Guard stole the bodies from the marketplace this evening,” the healing mage continued. “They had planned to bury them and burn the wagon, but there is a complication, and this is why Temiker felt I needed to reach you tonight. There is a Chula shaman who plans to get the wagon and the bodies and return them to the Sakova. Temiker does not want the man hurt. He stresses that Ukaro is an ally.”

“Ukaro?” echoed Lyra. “He is here in the Sakova?”

“Marak mentioned that he was sending a shaman to help with the Omungan crops,” StarWind offered.

“Yes,” nodded Lyra, “but I hardly expected Ukaro to be the one. Marak is a friend indeed.”

“You know this Ukaro?” asked StormSong.

“Yes,” nodded Lyra. “I met him during my visit to Khadora.”

“There is something that you are not telling,” accused StarWind. “Why is this Ukaro so special?”

Lyra realized that she had overreacted to the news. She was not about to reveal that the shaman was Marak’s father.

“Ukaro is the head shaman of the Zatong tribe,” answered Lyra. “His presence here is a bold statement of Emperor Marak’s support of our cause. He must not be harmed or challenged in any way.”

“Why have you brought three chokas?” StarWind asked LifeTender.

“MeadowTune suggested it,” the healer answered. “She feels that the knowledge of General Romero’s army coming to Alamar presents a serious threat to Lyra’s life. She would like the Star to return to StarCity, but she knows that Lyra will refuse. As long as Lyra is going to the city, she wants the journey to be swift so the Star can leave before General Romero gets there. She wants us to go on ahead of the caravan to Alamar. Temiker has promised to get horses and have someone wait outside the city so we do not need to ride the chokas close to the walls.”

“We?” questioned StarWind. “You are a healer. You are not one to go to an Omungan city. She should have sent a warrior or a spy.”

“We,” nodded LifeTender. “I want to help FalconEye. Temiker and Ukaro have saved his life, but he is still in danger. I can help him.”

The clearing fell quiet as everyone waited for Lyra’s response. Finally, the Star of Sakova nodded.

“MeadowTune is correct,” she stated. “StarWind, you will accompany me and LifeTender to Alamar. StormSong, you are to stay with the caravan. Try to push them so they get to Alamar well before General Romero.”

“We are still going to send food to them?” scowled StormSong. “We will just be feeding Romero’s army. It is better that they starve and return to Okata.”

“The caravans are continuing,” Lyra said emphatically. “Let’s go.”

Lyra, LifeTender and StarWind mounted the chokas and disappeared into the night.