“I found that out,” frowned Fisher.
“Vand also has thirteen mages with him here,” stated Xavo. “Their leader is Pakar, and each of them is greatly accomplished. We will try to keep them out of the battle, but there are no guarantees. The two of us can only do so much, and our main goal is Dobuk.”
“You are going to confront the Great Demon?” Fisher asked with awe.
“Someone must,” sighed Xavo. “I do not want to think of my daughter being forced to deal with him.”
“How have you learned so much?” questioned the Khadoran spy.
“We have used air tunnels,” offered Lady Mystic.
“I thought we were not supposed to be using them except in an emergency?” frowned Fisher. “If they are safe to use now, you could send this information to Marak, and I could stay and help you.”
“We are only using the air tunnel to hear conversations,” Xavo shook his head. “No one can detect that, but it would be disastrous to try sending a message. Get on your horse and get the message back to the Torak.”
“I have no horse,” sighed Fisher, “and I came from the Fakarans. From what I have heard around the camp, I will not be able to escape to the west. Everyone knows that the Khadorans are coming towards us from the west. Amusingly, no one is expecting any attack from the east. They are in for a surprise. The Fakarans are twice as strong as the Khadorans and probably better suited to fight in this terrain.”
“Don’t be too sure about the surprise,” warned Lady Mystic. “Those demons might notice the Fakarans coming towards us.”
“The important thing is get word to someone out there that the size of the defenders is ten times larger than they expect,” stressed Xavo. “They need to know about the skeletons.”
“Can they be killed?” asked Fisher.
“I don’t know,” admitted Xavo. “It is my feeling that anything alive can be killed, and that includes the dead warriors. There is some life form that is allowing them to move and fight.”
“I would suggest decapitation,” interjected Lady Mystic. “It works on the hellsouls, and I have to believe the life forms are similar.”
“A valid guess,” nodded Xavo, “but, again, there are no guarantees.”
“Is there anything else that I need to know before I leave?” asked Fisher.
“Know that Kaltara will win this war,” smiled Lady Mystic. “Go quickly.”
Fisher stared at Lady Mystic for a short moment and shook his head in wonder. He smiled and bowed in respect to the Emperor’s daughter as Xavo unsealed the door and checked the corridor outside.
“Be swift, my Chula friend,” Xavo said in parting.
Fisher nodded and stepped out of the room as Xavo closed the door. He watched in amazement as the door suddenly disappeared, leaving a blank wall in its place. The spy moved swiftly to the stairs and made his way down to the ground level. He moved to the front doors and stepped out into the sunshine. The same two guards looked suspiciously at him.
“I had hoped that it was your body that had dropped from the roof,” the obstinate guard snarled offensively.
“Actually,” Fisher smiled, “it was the body of an officer that refused to let me speak with Premer Tzargo. The Premer was not amused by the antics of the pompous fool.”
The guard swallowed hard as Fisher grinned and moved quickly down the steps. The spy moved quickly, but casually through the throng of soldiers as he tried to figure out how he could steal a horse to make his escape. He was sure that horses would not be given to just any soldier who asked for one. In fact, horses were at a premium in the Motangan camp as the army was strictly infantry. Surely the keepers of the horses would demand some type of authorization from an officer before they allowed a horse to be taken, and Fisher had no time left to walk back to the Fakarans. He had to secure a horse. Fisher walked towards the eastern perimeter as his mind dwelled on the problem. He soon found himself near Savesto’s camp and moved towards it.
“Did you get roped into another assignment?” asked Savesto.
Fisher snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the Motangan soldier.
“Actually, I did get an assignment,” he answered, “and we are in a great deal of trouble.”
“Trouble?” the soldier echoed worriedly. “What kind of trouble?”
“I am not supposed to divulge such information,” Fisher replied guardedly.
“But we are your friends,” protested Savesto who was eager to hear the latest rumors. “You can trust us.”
“Can I?” Fisher asked.
“Of course,” the group answered in unison.
“We like you, Aki,” Savesto said with sincerity. “If you are in trouble, we can help. What is the problem?”
“The Khadoran armies are much larger than we expected,” Fisher said conspiratorially. “There is a great deal of concern inside the temple that the dead warriors might not be enough to destroy the Khadorans.”
“The whole country of Khadora would have had to come eastward to defeat the dead warriors,” retorted one of the soldiers.
“Exactly,” nodded Aki. “Every able man in Khadora is on the way here. I have been ordered to get Premer Cardijja’s army to come here immediately.”
“That’s great,” exclaimed Savesto. “I don’t have a problem with a few hundred thousand more warriors joining the fun. What is the problem with that?”
“The problem,” Aki said with an air of failure, “is that I neglected to get authorization to use a horse. There is no way that I will reach Cardijja in time for his armies to get here.”
“That is no problem,” shrugged one of the men. “Just go back and get authorization.”
“You don’t understand,” Aki shook his head. “The mood inside the temple is murderous. An officer made a suggestion that Premer Tzargo did not enjoy. He was immediately decapitated and thrown from the roof.”
“I saw that,” volunteered Savesto. “I wondered what the poor soul had done.”
“Nothing more than speak when the Premer preferred silence,” Aki replied. “There is no way that I am going back inside the temple and ask for authorization to use a horse.”
“But the reinforcements won’t make it in time if you walk,” frowned one of the soldiers.
“I know,” Aki nodded in defeat, “but what can I do?”
“You can steal a horse,” declared Savesto.
“And get executed?” balked Aki.
“You won’t get executed,” smiled Savesto. “We will help you. We know some of the boys that work the corrals. We can distract them while you get the horse and ride out.”
“Are you sure about this Savesto?” one of the soldiers asked nervously.
“If we don’t get reinforcements,” stated Savesto, “there is a decent chance that we will die in the coming battle. I’ve got a fair bit of gold with me that I am willing to give up to stay alive. What about the rest of you?”
“Gold is no good to a dead man,” shrugged one of the soldiers. “Count me in. How do you plan to do it?”
“Everyone knows that I am a unlucky person,” grinned Savesto. “One of you will happen to go down to the corrals and mention that I have a lot of gold and that I am gambling it away. That should draw most of the guards away.”
“What about the rest?” asked Aki. “Surely some of the guards will stay there.”
“The rest of my boys will hang around the corrals,” answered Savesto. “They will offer to take the guards’ places so the guards can come and take my gold. If necessary, they will start a fight with the guards to distract them while you steal the horse.”
Aki pulled a knife and cut his pouch free. He handed it to Savesto, and the Motangan whistled at the weight of it. Other soldiers handed over their gold and soon Savesto had quite a large pile.
“Let’s do it,” Aki said confidently.
One of Savesto’s soldiers ran ahead as the others walked slowly towards the corrals. Before the group reached the corrals, a soldier who had been running towards them halted in front of them.
“Is it true?” he asked the soldiers. “Is Savesto gambling all of his gold away?”