“Ah, Lord Marak, come in,” offered the Star of Sakova from behind her desk in her office. “I do hope you are not going to ask permission to go along with StarWind and HawkShadow to Campanil. You have already risked too much to help us and I could not afford to lose my new ally.”
“Actually,” smiled Lord Marak as he sat in the chair Lyra indicated, “I am preparing to leave for Khadora and wanted to finish up a few things before I left. I thought perhaps that I could entice you into helping me.”
“I would help in any way that I can,” agreed Lyra. “What type of help do you need?”
Marak reached inside his uniform and pulled out a long, narrow pouch. “You will need someplace to store the grain at Campanil,” he declared as he emptied the contents of the pouch on Lyra’s desk. A dozen small sparkling diamonds reflected the light from the window, creating a mosaic of rainbow colors on the wall. “I would like to buy one of the farms that was destroyed in the blaze. These gems should more than cover the cost of a farm or two and you can use the buildings to store the grain rather than try to take all of your wagons into the city. StarWind can tell the Mayor where the grain is stored and make arrangements to distribute it.”
“An excellent idea,” remarked Lyra, “but you do not need to buy the farms. We have plenty of money.”
“I presumed as much,” nodded Lord Marak, “but I would like to make the investment anyway. If I ever get into a situation up north where my crops are destroyed, it would be good for me to have farms that my enemies do not know about. Use the name of the Ksaly Corporation as the owner. It will keep people wondering who owns it.”
“Ksaly?” chuckled Lyra. “What does a Khadoran know about one-legged birds?”
“I have a very resourceful young woman as my Bursar,” explained Marak. “The corporation has holdings in Khadora as well. We will also be setting up offices in Alamar to facilitate the grain shipments from Khadora. That is where I need your help. I want you to establish an Air Tube to Fardale so I can instruct my Bursar to get things going so that it does not have to wait for my return. I am afraid that I just missed the rendezvous with my fishing boat and it will be some time before another is scheduled. If I could purchase some horses from the Sakovan people, I would be most appreciative. I think it will be quicker to go overland for the return trip.”
“I will set up the Air Tube if you can direct me how to do it so that it connects with Fardale,” grinned Lyra, “but the horses are out of the question. I have decided to gift you with four chokas, two breeding pairs. Your journey back will be swifter than you had planned. They are young enough to accept you as their masters, but that also means that they are not well trained. I hope that is acceptable?”
“Acceptable?” echoed the shocked Khadoran Lord. “You have my undying gratitude. I will guard them well, Star of Sakova.”
“Wonderful,” smiled Lyra. “Let’s get your message off then.”
***
StarWind and HawkShadow sat on the bed in the small rented room in the Wayward Inn located in the Merchant’s District of Campanil. HawkShadow stripped off his multicolored robe and tossed it over a chair. “At least the purchase of the farms went without a hitch,” sighed the Sakovan assassin.
“Yes, but getting in to see the Mayor is going to be a bit of a problem,” countered StarWind. “I did not expect the increased security that we have found.”
“I guess with the Katana’s assassin still on the loose,” HawkShadow reflected, “the other officials are taking their security seriously. I hadn’t really expected him to see an unfamiliar merchant anyway. We will have to sneak into his mansion.”
“I don’t see how we are going to do that with it surrounded by Imperial Guards,” mused StarWind. “If we kill any guards getting in, I do not think the Mayor will believe that we are peaceful.”
“True,” frowned HawkShadow. “I do not see any alternative though. We are not going to get in through the front door. We have already tried that and been rebuffed.”
“Well we knew this would not be easy,” StarWind sighed as she stripped off her gray tunic. “Let’s get into some dark clothes and see what openings present themselves.”
HawkShadow nodded as he rummaged through his pack for the black clothes he had packed. “You know that if this attempt fails,” warned HawkShadow, “we will not leave Campanil alive.”
“That is the risk we accepted,” agreed StarWind as she pulled on black pants. “We never expected to live forever. Maybe Kaltara will throw a little luck our way.”
HawkShadow finished dressing and hefted a coil of rope and slung it over his shoulder. “If it comes down to discovery or killing a guard,” he stated, “you know what I will do.”
“The same as I,” agreed the Sakovan spymaster as she hefted a rope of her own. “Shall we?”
HawkShadow nodded and leaned out the window of their room, which faced an alley. He looked both ways before easing through the window and waiting outside for StarWind. She followed silently and the two Sakovans stole up the alley. It was well past bedtime for all but the most nocturnal of citizens and the streets were empty except for Imperial Guards. The patrols were sparse in the Merchant’s District with the majority of security centered around the government buildings. While this made their trip towards the center of the city rather uneventful, it also made entrance into the Mayor’s mansion all but impossible.
The two black-clad warriors reached the center of the city and halted in the darkness of a doorway. They looked out across the park and studied the movements of the patrols for a long time.
“There is a pattern,” offered HawkShadow, “but it does us no good. They have it arranged so that there is always a patrol visible. There is not a chance that we can make it across the park. We will have to work our way around to the other side and see what that looks like.”
“The other side has a high wall,” informed StarWind. “We will be blind to who is inside if we have to scale it.”
HawkShadow shrugged and nodded and led the way back out of the City Center. StarWind followed silently as they circled around the blocks of government buildings, keeping well away from the areas that were heavily patrolled. Eventually they came out to a broad avenue with large oak trees on one side and a high stone wall on the other. The solid expanse of wall was broken every so often by a stone pillar that rose slightly higher than the wall. HawkShadow scampered up a tree and peered in both directions for a time before dropping back to the ground.
“The patrols turn around at the ends of the wall,” he mentioned. “They do survey its length, but I do not think any of them will actually march down here unless there is a disturbance.”
“I am more worried about what waits for us on the other side,” whispered StarWind. “Once we drop into the grounds, we will be exposed if we try to climb back out. We could be trapped in there.”
“It is likely that there will be patrols inside the wall,” agreed HawkShadow. “That is probably why they don’t need a lot of scrutiny out here. Do you have a better idea?”
StarWind shook her head and lifted the coil of rope off her shoulder. With a signal to HawkShadow, she dashed across the avenue and placed her back to the wall alongside one of the pillars. HawkShadow darted over as StarWind tied a loop in one end of the rope and tossed it over the top of the pillar. HawkShadow grabbed the free end and tugged once before scampering up the rope. StarWind followed right on his heels and pulled the rope into the mansion grounds as she landed on the other side of the wall.
The two black-clad warriors crouched next to the wall and surveyed the estate. The ground along the wall was peppered with low shrubs, but nothing large enough that would impede the view of the patrols. The landscape between the duo and their target building was flat and open, broken only by a small grove of trees halfway across the broad expanse. A pathway ran between the grove and the building and another between the grove and the wall. HawkShadow peered at the mansion and tried to estimate how long it would take to dash across the open ground and throw his rope over the balcony railing and climb up. His estimate of their success was not good, but he tied a loop on his own rope anyway. Too much was riding on this mission for them to turn and run. A war could be avoided and they had to try their best to get to the Mayor.
With a sudden tap from HawkShadow, StarWind flattened herself to the ground alongside the Sakovan assassin as a patrol rounded the corner of the distant building. HawkShadow could see the two distinct paths the patrol could chose from and hoped they took the one closer to the building as the near one would bring them dangerously close to where the Sakovans were, almost assuredly leading to their discovery.
The patrol chose the path along the wall and HawkShadow cringed as he lifted several stars from his pouch. “We have no choice,” he whispered to StarWind. “If they get the chance to alert the others, we will be dead in minutes. I will take the lead two and you get the other two.”
StarWind did not reply as she extracted stars from her own pouch and prepared to kill the Imperial Guards. HawkShadow slithered away from StarWind to put some distance between them before the patrol arrived. He was just about to toss his first star when an Imperial Guard stepped out of the small grove of trees and called to the patrol. The patrol halted not twenty feet from the prone Sakovans and turned towards the Imperial Guard who had hailed them. The lone guard approached the patrol and started issuing terse commands, pointing and gesticulating towards the front of the estate. The patrol leader saluted and led his team on the run in the direction the lone guard had pointed.
HawkShadow slid back to StarWind and whispered to her, “That guard must have seen us enter from where he was in the grove. I do not understand what is happening or why he sent the patrol away. Should we kill him and make a dash for the building?”
StarWind studied the guard, who was standing on the path starring in their general direction, but not right at them. She squinted and cocked her head as she watched the guard smile broadly. He waved his hand to summon the Sakovans out of their hiding spot and StarWind stood up and walked towards him. HawkShadow’s eyes widened with shock and his mouth refused to close as he watched his partner give herself up to the enemy. His arm drew back, star in hand, to wipe the smile off the guard’s face as he watched StarWind approach.
“HawkShadow,” she called softly, “hurry up. There is no time to waste.”
HawkShadow’s arm froze before releasing the star. With a great deal of skepticism, he rose and followed StarWind towards the Imperial Guard. He heard StarWind speaking to the guard and hastened forward.
“I don’t know if I can divert them again when you are done,” the guard was saying, “but signal me and I will try. Don’t dally because that patrol’s confusion will only last for a while.”
“Get yourself out of here, Fisher,” ordered StarWind. “You are taking too big of a risk. Either the Mayor will give us safe passage out, or we will not be leaving.”
HawkShadow halted alongside StarWind and gazed at the Imperial Guard with shock. “Fisher?” he questioned. “How in Kaltara’s name did you get in here?”
“Why would anyone keep an Imperial Guard Captain out?” grinned Fisher. “Hurry along. Another patrol is due shortly and the first may return unexpectedly.”
HawkShadow nodded, pushed his questions out of his mind, and raced for the building with StarWind close behind. He swiftly tossed his rope over a balcony railing post and tested its firmness before climbing up. When StarWind reached the top, HawkShadow hauled the rope up and dropped it to the floor. Looking back towards the grounds, he noticed Fisher had already disappeared and he turned his attention to the door barring his entry into the building.
StarWind flashed a thin piece of metal, but HawkShadow shook his head as he eased the unlocked door open. The black-clad duo stepped into the room and slid the door closed. HawkShadow waited stiffly for a few moments as his eyes adjusted to the darker interior and then scanned what appeared to be a bedroom. A lone figure occupied the bed. StarWind shook her head and led the way to another doorway leading into the main part of the mansion.
Torchlight penetrated the darkness as StarWind cracked the door open. She peered into the hallway before easing through the door with HawkShadow right behind her.
“How do you know where to go?” HawkShadow whispered.
“I don’t,” admitted StarWind, “but I do know that the Mayor lives on the third floor. The first floor is for offices and the second hosts guest bedrooms. We have to find some stairs.”
HawkShadow nodded and swiftly led the way down the hall, his figure moving like the shadow of a hawk, giving credence to his name. As they reached the end of the hall where it intersected with another corridor, HawkShadow heard someone approaching and backpedaled to the nearest door and tried the doorknob. It was locked.
As he raced to try another, he saw StarWind produce a star and shook his head at her. The second door was also locked and HawkShadow sped back to the intersection of corridors, as the footsteps grew louder. He silently signaled his intentions to StarWind and waited until she acknowledged him before crouching down next to the wall. The Sakovans waited in silence as the footsteps approached. A shadow of the approaching figure, cast by the light of the torches, preceded the man and HawkShadow timed his lunge carefully. Just as the man reached the intersection, HawkShadow flung his body forward from his crouched position.
The man never saw HawkShadow and stumbled over the assassin’s body, crashing loudly to the floor. StarWind leaped to the fallen man and hit him over the head with the butt of her knife. HawkShadow jumped to his feet and ran to the nearest door in the new corridor and tried the doorknob. It was locked and he was about to try the next door when StarWind appeared at his side with a thin piece of metal and proceeded to pick the lock. HawkShadow left StarWind to her task and returned to pick up the unconscious man and carry him back to the door. StarWind had the door unlocked and was easing the door open when HawkShadow returned.
“It’s some kind of storage room,” she whispered as she looked at the stacks of furniture. “Just put him on the floor.”
HawkShadow deposited the still form on the floor and the Sakovans returned to the hallway and their search for stairs. The new corridor appeared much like the last and StarWind stopped to ponder which way would be more likely to contain stairs.
“At the end of this corridor will be the front of the building,” HawkShadow whispered. “We must have missed the back stairs somehow. Either that or there aren’t any.”
“There must be,” frowned StarWind. “Let’s head back the way we came. I do not want to risk the front of the building. There will surely be guards there even at night.”
HawkShadow nodded in agreement and they started retracing their steps back the way they had come. He moved swiftly but silently with StarWind right behind him. They passed the door of the room they had used to gain entrance into the hallway and continued along the torch-lit corridor. HawkShadow halted abruptly in front of a door and StarWind had to brace herself on the wall to avoid colliding with him. He reached out and turned the doorknob and eased the door open. With a grin he nodded to StarWind and proceeded through the door.
“All of the other doors were evenly spaced apart,” explained HawkShadow as he started up the stairs. “This would have had to have been a pretty small room if it wasn’t stairs.”
They reached the third floor and emerged into another hallway, but this one had fewer doors than the downstairs corridor. “Now what?” HawkShadow quizzed.
StarWind glanced in each direction. There were only a few doors along the hall facing the outside of the building and the inside of the building was void of openings except for the door they had exited.
“My guess is that his suite takes up most of the floor,” mused StarWind. “We need to find a door towards the center of the building. Do you want to split up?”
“No,” HawkShadow replied softly. “Pick a direction.”
StarWind nodded and headed in the same direction they had gone downstairs. Again they came to an intersection of corridors, but this new corridor halted abruptly at a door.
“This must be it,” she whispered as she tried the doorknob.
The knob turned and she eased the door open to reveal darkness. The corridor continued for a short distance, but no torches lit the way. The Sakovans crept forward in the dark and came to another corridor. StarWind led the way as they proceeded through the suite and came to a stop before a set of ornate doors. She looked to HawkShadow and he just shrugged. Silently her hand went to the doorknob and turned it. She felt a whisper of wind as she entered the large bedroom, which was illuminated with a pale light. She looked up and saw a skylight, its panes open to the night air.
“It might have been easier that way,” grinned HawkShadow softly.
StarWind shook her head and surveyed the room. A huge bed occupied the far wall and she could only detect one person in it. Two other doors led off from the room and they were both closed. She motioned to HawkShadow and he moved towards one of the doors while StarWind approached the bed. She studied the sleeping form briefly as she heard HawkShadow tapping wedges under the doors to make sure they remained closed. Finally, she looked around for a dark place to stand in. Next to a tall hanging closet was a patch of blackness and StarWind merged into it and nodded to HawkShadow.
HawkShadow circled the bed so that the Mayor was between StarWind and himself. With a sudden move, HawkShadow rolled the Mayor’s body to face StarWind and placed a knife to the man’s throat.
“Now that we have your attention,” HawkShadow whispered, “we want to talk with you. We do not intend any harm to you, but if you try to call the guards, I fear that we will do what we must to escape.”
“And will you do what you must when you are done talking?” the Mayor blustered.
“Actually,” HawkShadow smiled, “I was kind of hoping that you would help us leave after the talk. We have not come to do harm, rather we have come to avoid unnecessary bloodshed. We believe you would desire the same.”
“Who are you?” questioned the Mayor. “And what do you want?”
“If you agree to talk with us and to remain so that you cannot see me,” offered HawkShadow, “I will let you sit up without the presence of my knife at your throat. Are you agreeable?”
“I have little choice in the matter it would appear,” conceded Mayor Ferde. “Besides I am curious why someone would sneak into my house to speak with me. You have my attention and I will not call the guards unless I feel threatened again.”
“Fair enough,” StarWind stated from her position of concealment. “We really mean no harm to you. We tried to see you officially, but I am afraid we were denied.”
“The Imperial Guards have suggested that I see nobody who is unknown to me,” returned the Mayor as he tried to see into the darkness where StarWind was hiding. “There is a fear of assassination roiling through the country since the Katana’s death. It appears that the Sakovans will finally show their true colors.”
“You are quite correct,” chuckled StarWind, “but the colors you see will surprise you. The troubles in Omunga are not due to the Sakovans, Mayor Ferde. In fact, the reason for our visit is to explain just that to you. We are Sakovans.”
An audible gasp escaped from the Mayor’s lips and StarWind could see him quiver. “You and the rest of Omunga have been fed a load of clova chips,” StarWind continued. “The attack on the watula fields was the work of an Omungan, a man named Harac. He was merely a hired hand, but we know who hired him. His job was to make you believe that the Sakovans had burned your fields.”
“How do you know this?” asked Mayor Ferde. “Who is behind it and why should I believe you?”
“The proof resides in your own Records Bureau at the Imperial Headquarters here,” answered StarWind. “As for who is behind it, I am afraid that you will find the answer displeasing, for it is the same person responsible for the Katana’s death.”
“Malafar?” asked Ferde as he tried to peer into the darkness to see StarWind. “Why would he want our fields burned?”
“Malafar was a dupe,” explained StarWind. “He was forcibly abducted from his Academy and drugged until he could be controlled by the true aggressor.”
“You speak craziness,” Ferde said, shaking his head. “You expect me to believe that all of these things are somebody else’s fault? What do you hope to gain by this charade?”
StarWind tossed a folder onto the bed. “Read that,” she instructed. “The details of the raid on Campanil were copied from your own official reports. The proprietor of the Hog’s Tail can tell you about Harac. If you have enough clout in the Capital, you can inquire of the guards at the mage cell block about Malafar’s confinement and release.”
Mayor Ferde struggled to read the papers in the dim light and was slightly shaken when HawkShadow handed him a candle and allowed him to light it. For some time the Sakovans were silent while the Mayor read the reports. Ferde occasionally emitted grunts of surprise or shook his head with disbelief. Finally, he laid the papers on the bed beside him.
“A fairy tale,” he concluded. “Even if these facts are correct, you are expecting me to believe that the First Minister would destroy his own country to gain his advancement. It doesn’t make sense. We found people murdered in those fields with Sakovan stars. How do you explain that?”
The night air sang as StarWind’s star flew across the room and imbedded in the post of the Mayor’s bed. “Look at a real Sakovan star,” she suggested. “You read the report describing the stars found on the bodies. All Sakovan stars have five points, and only five points, because they represent the Pentagon of Life for Sakovans. Our religion is based on the five Principles of Kaltara. Harac was not very efficient in his masquerade.”
Ferde pulled the star out of the bedpost and examined it. “Alright,” he conceded, “suppose I buy into the fact that the fire was not set by Sakovans. It is still hard to believe that Alazar would do this. He is the Katana now and I could not go against him if I wanted to. What is it you expect me to do?”
“I am not sure,” admitted StarWind. “We do not want war with Omunga and we know that you are one of the vocal voices calling for it. Alazar is only too happy to hear you shout for war. We need to remove Alazar from power because he will not stop until he gets his war, but we need to do so in such a fashion that the Omungan people are not offended. Our war is with Alazar only and not the Omungans. Do you understand?”
“It is obvious that you believe the facts you have presented to me,” agreed Ferde, “and so I believe your intentions. I will not take part in killing the Katana even if you are right though. I still must check out these facts before I am convinced of the truth of what you are presenting.”
“Understandable,” nodded StarWind although the Mayor could not see her. “I ask for nothing more than your honest investigation and a halt to calling for war with us until you are satisfied with the results.”
“You have presented a rather compelling case,” admitted the Mayor, “and at great risk to yourself. I will check it out thoroughly.”
“Excellent,” smiled StarWind. “I have heard that you are honest and will accept you at your word. The Sakovan people have given a gift to the people of Campanil to help alleviate their hunger in the coming winter. We have brought forty wagons of watula to Campanil to replace what you have lost in the fire. We hope it will serve your people well.”
“Forty wagons?” echoed Ferde with obvious surprise. “How? Where?” “How much?” he added with a frown.
“There is no cost,” laughed StarWind. “It is stored in the buildings of one of the farms that was burned. I suggest you keep its location secret until you can safely bring it into the city, otherwise people may riot when they learn of it. I have a personal gift for you as well. There is man named Klaarg who has worked for Alazar doing his dirty deeds. We have heard that he can be found in Gatong. If you were to have him arrested by troops loyal to you, I am sure that he can tell you much more about Alazar’s plot than I can.”
Silence fell over the room for a while as the Mayor digested the information StarWind had presented. Finally he nodded his head in satisfaction. “Very well,” he stated. “I accept the grain with great gratitude on behalf of the people of Campanil. I will cease my calls for war and discourage others from doing so while I investigate your claims. I will have this Klaarg arrested and interrogated as well. If your story bears out, I will do whatever I can to see that war does not come, but I will not raise a hand against the Katana.”
“If you find our story true,” pushed StarWind, “will you call for war if we truly do assassinate the current Katana? If the Omungans refuse to remove him from power, then we must, for he will not stop his plans short of our annihilation.”
The Mayor shook his head vigorously. “I do not want to know of your plans for assassination,” he scowled. “I love Omunga and therefore must support my Katana. Do not ask these things of me because I cannot give them.”
“I am not asking your permission,” corrected StarWind. “You and the rest of Omunga have been fed a lot of nonsense about what the Sakovans have done. If the Omungans refuse to act against Alazar though, we must, and that will lend credence to the lies already spread. Those who seek war will have a stronger voice then. I would prefer that you remove Alazar yourself after you are convinced of his deeds, but at least do not allow a war to come out of it if we must do it. This man has stolen your country.”
“I need time to think on this,” frowned Ferde. “First I must verify your story. I warn you, if it is false, expect me to lead the charge to war. If it is true, however, I will lead the charge towards peace. As for Alazar, I do not know. If he has assassinated the old Katana, then he deserves to die, whether he used Malafar or not. Give me time to dwell on this.”
“Fair enough,” conceded StarWind. “You can get word to me through the bulletins. If you will help quell the calls for war afterwards, run an advertisement asking for a translator. If no advertisement appears, I will know your answer. Now can you help get us out of here or must we sneak out as we came in?”
“I will get you out,” Ferde stated as he scribbled a note on a pad he picked up from his nightstand. “This will explain that you were guests here and that you are leaving early to travel to Okata. It will get you past the guards out front. I trust they are all still alive?”
“Yes,” sighed StarWind. “There is a man on the second floor locked in a storage room, but he has nothing more than a headache. I apologize for hitting him, but we did need to see you.”
Ferde nodded as he handed the note and star over his shoulder to HawkShadow. “I would like to meet you in person someday when this is all over,” he said pleasantly. “You believe in Sakova as I believe in Omunga and your courage has been shown. There might be much we can share.”
“Perhaps that will happen,” StarWind smiled. “Please lie face down while we leave.”