“I am not going alone,” Tedi smiled thinly. “You are going with me.” Tedi turned to the dwarf and the black-cloak as he mounted his horse. “I am going to see General Ritka,” he called to them. “Nothing has changed until you hear from me.”
The black-cloak nodded in understanding, and the two riders turned their horses and headed into the valley.
“Will your soldiers attack me?” asked Tedi as they rode into Hendy Valley.
“Not unless they have cause to,” answered the colonel. “While you are riding with me, no one will disturb you, but I cannot speak for their reactions after you kill the general. The command tent will have four guards stationed outside, and Ritka might bring them inside if he understands who you are. I will try to protect you, but they may ignore me when they see Ritka dead. Some of the men are fiercely loyal to him.”
Tedi merely nodded, and they rode on in silence for a while. Tedi glanced around the encampment with curiosity, and the soldiers gazed back at him with an even greater curiosity. He could only imagine what they might be saying to one another about the strange visitor. They had to know that he was an Alcean.
“I really must apologize,” Colonel Pierce said softly. “You must think me a fool, but I never imagined that you would simply ride into camp. Perhaps it would be better if I found another way to accomplish this. I have no right to ask for your life to save my men.”
“With luck,” Tedi replied, “only General Ritka will die this day, but I can make no promises. If your men attack me, I will vigorously defend myself. Do what you can to stop your soldiers from trying to kill me.”
“I can keep the men away from you except for the four guards,” promised the colonel, “but they will be more than sufficient to kill you. Ritka chooses the best for guard duty on his tent. Let’s turn around.”
“Turning around now would cost you your life,” Tedi pointed out. “General Ritka would surely hear about you riding through the camp with an Alcean at your side. What do you suppose his reaction would be?”
The colonel glanced around and saw everyone staring at him and Tedi. He shuddered as he realized that the Alcean was correct.
“I’ve really made a mess of this, haven’t I?”
“You appear to be a good man, Colonel,” Tedi replied. “You are doing your best to save the lives of your men, and that is exactly what a good officer should be doing. I can kill General Ritka in a manner that will be deniable, but if the guards attack me, everyone will know that I killed them. That will make my exit from your camp a dangerous proposition. In any event, you do not want to remain inside the tent with me. Lead me to General Ritka and then depart.”
The colonel had taken a sudden liking to the Alcean, but Tedi’s casual boasting of killing the four guards after being told that they were the best in the 21st Corps rankled Pierce. He sighed deeply as he tried to think of a way out of the mess he had created. All too soon they arrived at the large command tent and dismounted. The colonel glanced at General Stemple’s tent next door and wondered if the Aertan general could order the guards to remain outside. It was worth a try, but Pierce was not sure if they would obey Stemple.
Colonel Pierce led Tedi to the tent flap of the large command tent. The four guards glared at the Alcean, but they made no move to stop the colonel from escorting Tedi into the tent. General Ritka looked up with annoyance on his face, but that expression soon turned to confusion.
“Who is this?” scowled General Ritka.
“He may have information about the Alceans that is vital to our plans,” declared Colonel Pierce as he led Tedi towards the table where the general was sitting. “I will go get General Stemple. I am sure he would like to hear what this man has to say.”
The general opened his mouth to object, but the colonel was too quick. He exited the tent and left the Alcean and the general alone. Ritka looked at the Alcean with distaste.
“I do not permit weapons in my presence,” spat the general. “Lose the staff and sit down.”
Tedi smiled and nodded. He dropped the staff on the ground and sat across from the general, whispering softly to himself as he sat.
“What did you say?” demanded the general.
“It was a prayer,” smiled Tedi as his hand moved silently under the table where the general could not see it. “I understand that the dwarves have demanded your surrender, General Ritka. Is that true?”
The general frowned in confusion. He silently cursed the colonel for not explaining who the Alcean was or why he was being presented to the general.
Tedi held a smile on his lips as he eased the myric-quill-filled reed out of the small quiver at his waist. The shot would be a simple one, but the trick would be in getting the reed to his lips without the general shouting for the guards. He needed a distraction, and Tedi had alerted Button to provide it.
“Just who are you, and what do you know about the dwarves?” asked the general.
“My name is Tedi,” answered the Knight of Alcea. “I know that dwarves can be a merciless foe, but…”
“Tedi?” shouted the general. “I thought I had recognized your voice. You are one of them! Guards!”
Tedi cursed as he quickly brought the reed to his lips and blew the myric quill into the general’s neck. He had forgotten that Doryelgar had magically sent the conversation into the valley while General Ritka had been in his tent. He should have used a false name instead of his own.
The tent flap flew open, and Tedi tumbled out of his chair, stretching to reach his staff. He heard the pounding of the soldiers’ footsteps as his fingers wrapped around the staff.
* * * *
Colonel Pierce raced to the smaller command tent and barged inside when he saw no guards outside of it. General Stemple looked up with a start, but his face soon took on a questioning expression.
“Did you do it?” the general asked.
“I could not,” replied the colonel as he waved the general to his feet. “I had planned to lure Ritka to the southern exit from the valley and have the Alceans oblige us, but I have managed to botch everything. The one called Tedi is with Ritka right now in his tent. He will kill Ritka, but I am afraid that the guards will intervene. I need your help to save Tedi’s life. Come quickly.”
General Stemple had already risen from his chair, but he now hesitated.
“An Alcean assassin?” he mused. “How are we going to explain aiding his departure from the camp? Have you thought this through?”
Colonel Pierce fidgeted nervously. “I haven’t had time to think it through,” he admitted, “and we don’t have time now. If we don’t move quickly, both Ritka and Tedi will be dead, and I was seen escorting the Alcean into the tent.”
“We might be able to get around that,” suggested the general.
General Stemple clearly was not done with his words, but the colonel could brook no further delay.
“I vowed to get Tedi back out of this camp, and I will not abandon him. If you will not help me, I will do what I can on my own.”
The colonel whirled and pulled the tent flap away.
“Wait,” the general called after him. “I will help. I merely wanted to think things through before acting.”
“We are out of time,” sighed the colonel as he gazed at the large command tent and saw no guards in front of it.
The colonel raced towards the large command tent with the general right behind him. Pierce threw open the tent flap and stared uncomprehendingly. Bodies littered the floor of the tent, but a lone figure stood and stared defensively at the tent flap, his staff held ready to attack. General Stemple nudged the colonel from the rear, urging him into the tent. The two officers entered the tent and let the flap close.
“What manner of man are you?” gasped the colonel. “No man should have survived an attack from the four of them.”
“I am a Knight of Alcea,” Tedi stated confidently. “The guards are not dead. I was able to subdue them without resorting to fatal means. They will be fine when they wake up, but I would prefer not to be here when that happens.”