Richard Tuttle - Star of Sakova

Jostin bowed swiftly and took off at a run. Lyra returned to her desk and paced furiously back and forth until Temiker arrived.

“Trouble?” he asked looking around the office.

“Malafar is missing,” Lyra stated. “I think you may have been right about his suicidal tendencies. Temiker, I am worried about him. Jostin can not find him and I am afraid when we do find him, it will just be his body.”

“Calm yourself, Lyra”, soothed Temiker. “Even if he is thinking along the lines you are worried about, I am not sure that he will do it. Many people stop just before the deed is done and realize what they are doing.”

“Perhaps,” Lyra began to reply when StormSong came into the office. Lyra looked sharply at the warrior and thought briefly before speaking, “StormSong, I want you to organize a search for Master Malafar. Take him into custody when you find him, but do not harm him. Gather as many people as you need to search as quickly as you can. I want him found fast.”

“What is he resists?” StormSong asked.

“Do not harm him,” instructed Lyra. “He has done nothing wrong, but I want him in custody.”

StormSong nodded and spun out of the office.

“What did he say?” prodded Temiker.

“He is full of guilt,” sobbed Lyra. “I tried to talk him into starting an academy here, but he would have nothing to do with it.”

“Did he just leave?” questioned Temiker. “I mean did he just get up and walk out of the office?”

“No,” responded Lyra. “StarWind and HawkShadow came to report on their trip to Campanil and he ushered them in and sat in the back while they spoke. I am afraid that I got so wrapped up in the report that I forgot about him. When the meeting was over, I noticed that he was gone.”

“Maybe he just got tired of waiting,” suggested Temiker. “Was it a long meeting?”

“I am afraid it was,” admitted the Star. “I needed to know every little detail. Darn, I should pay more attention.”

“Easy, Lyra,” Temiker said as he put his arm around Lyra to comfort her. “He may have just gone to one of the gardens to think. Let them search before you get so riled up.”

“You are right of course,” sighed Lyra, “but I cannot help but think the worst. He was so remorseful and full of guilt. He blames himself so much that he could never believe that we forgive him.”

“That is easy to believe,” soothed Temiker. “Malafar has always been hard on himself, but that is nothing new. You are getting worried over nothing.”

“You are probably right, Uncle,” Lyra sighed. “You would know him best. Will you wait with me until the search party finds him? I would like you in on the discussion this time. Perhaps together we can get through to him.”

“Certainly,” smiled Temiker. “He will not be able to resist the two of us together,” he chuckled.

Lyra’s spirits lifted somewhat, but she still paced around the room with agitation. Suddenly, she stopped short next to the chair at the rear of the room and bent over to pick up a piece of paper that was lying on it. It was a very small piece of paper and she broke into hysterical crying as she read it. Temiker rushed over and pried the slip of paper out of her hands and read it. He stared at the three words for a moment and then turned the paper over looking for more. The reverse side was blank.

Lyra raced to the door of her office screaming for Jostin. Temiker moved up beside her and put his arm around her and she flung it off hysterically. Jostin came at a run and slid to a halt before the Star. He looked expectantly at his beloved leader and waited for her to stop crying long enough to give him his orders.

Lyra shook her head wildly as her whole body quivered. She finally managed to squeak out the words, “Tell StormSong to hurry. Now!”

Jostin took off like a rabbit and Temiker forcibly dragged Lyra to a chair and made her sit. With his strong hands on her shoulders he held her down until she ran out of tears and her body subsided.

“Why are you so upset?” he inquired softly. “I would think you would be happy to find such a note. It means that you must have gotten through to him when you talked.”

“No,” insisted Lyra, “it means he is going to kill himself.”

“Am I missing something here?” quizzed Temiker with a perplexed look. “The note merely says that he loves you.”

“Exactly,” sobbed the Star of Sakova. “My father has never told me that he loved me. Don’t you see?”

Temiker stared at Lyra with his mouth gaping open and nodded slowly as the realization of her words hit home. Malafar had never had an easy time of expressing his feelings, even as a child, unless the emotion was anger. Still, he found it hard to imagine that his brother would leave in the middle of a meeting and go out and kill himself. There should have been no urgency for his need and the note, and the fact he remained for part of the meeting, indicated that he wanted to finish the conversation with Lyra.

“What was the outcome of the trip to Campanil?” Temiker suddenly asked.

“What difference does it make now?” snapped Lyra. She shook her head and sat in the chair behind her desk. “I am sorry Temiker,” she apologized. “I know you are trying to distract me, but I guess I am not as easily distracted now as I am when practicing.”

“No,” Temiker said urgently. “That is not why I asked. Something made Malafar act as he did. I suspect the meeting with StarWind and HawkShadow may contain the clue we seek.”

“Clue?” a confused Lyra asked. “I do not understand.”

“Just tell me about the meeting,” insisted Temiker. “It will help as a distraction as well and that cannot hurt.”

Lyra nodded and started giving Temiker a summary of the conversation. She did feel a little better when she diverted her mind from Malafar and her shaking stopped completely.

Temiker listened to the narration and tried to put himself in Malafar’s place. He was sure that he knew his brother well enough to know that Malafar did not often act on impulse so he listened intently. Unexpectedly, he interrupted Lyra’s narration, “Darn.”

“What is it?” she asked immediately.

“He is not going to kill himself,” explained Temiker. “At least not the way we are thinking.”

“Temiker!” Lyra shouted with impatience.

“I am getting there,” frowned Temiker. “I think he is going to assassinate the Katana.”

“Why?” puzzled the Star.

“Because the Sakovans cannot and the Omungans will not,” offered the mage. “It makes sense. Malafar sees no future for himself and his hatred of Alazar must be intense for destroying his family and his life. Perhaps he sees this as the only way he can repay both Alazar and the Sakovan people. Ferde will explain that Malafar is not Sakovan after it is over and the war will be averted. Alazar will be dead.”

“So will Malafar,” Lyra snapped. “And Ferde may say nothing leaving us with a war.”

“True,” agreed Temiker. “He knows he will die in the attempt, but I am sure he figures that he will avert the war by killing Alazar.”

“Well at least we know what he is up to,” Lyra said calmly as she gathered her emotions, her face taking on a look of determination. “He forgot about my ability to command the Sakovan people. He will never be allowed to leave StarCity. That will make it hard enough for him to commit any assassinations.”

“Don’t rely on the defenses of StarCity to detain him,” warned Temiker. “I would wager that he is already out of the city and on his way to Okata. Any good mage could get out of here undetected and Malafar is a good mage.”

Lyra stood stunned as StormSong whirled into the office. “He is gone,” she reported. “He is not in the city. He has vanished into thin air.”