"I'm still not entirely happy with her," Tarrin admitted. "But that's one of the matters we've already settled between us."
"So everything's alright?"
"More or less."
"Are you here to stay, boy?"
Tarrin shook his head. "There are some very serious things happening, Karn. The Dals are only the half of it. There's an army marching on Suld, an army trying to destroy it. That's why I'm here."
"I didn't hear anything about that," Garyth said. "The men down Watch Hill way have been helping the Rangers, and they're passing along news."
"They don't know about it yet," he answered.
"Then how do you know about it? If you don't mind my asking," Garyth said quickly.
"I know alot of what's going on, Garyth," he said wearily. "If only because I'm probably the cause of it all."
That made the three of them stare at him. "What are you talking about, boy?" Karn asked.
"Have you ever heard of the Firestaff?"
"Of course. It's an old legend-" Karn's eyes widened. "You mean it's real?"
"Very real. Everything that's happening here with the Dals, the Ungardt, the wars and the chaos, it's all because of the Firestaff. It's why I'm here too."
"You're looking for it?" Garyth asked.
Tarrin nodded. "There's an army trying to destroy Suld to stop me, because if they destroy Suld's Tower, they can disrupt the Weave and kill most of the Sorcerers. That would finish me along with the rest of them. The Dals are an element of that plan, to weaken the army and make it easier for the other army to take Suld."
"You mean all of this is aimed at you?"
"I'm not quite that arrogant, Garyth," Tarrin smiled wearily, working himself around carefully to his real objective, seeing if Garyth and the villagers would help with Torrian. "Their real objective is to destroy the katzh-dashi. But they really want to stop me, because they're afraid I'll find it before they do. Destroying the katzh-dashi is the key to their success. That it will kill me with the rest of them is simply an added bonus."
They sat there a long moment, absorbing that. "What are you going to do?" Garyth asked.
"We've already planned a counter," he replied. "I have to take Torrian, no matter what it costs. Even if I have to raze it to the ground," he said with a grim look. "I have to break the Dal lines of supply and communication, and those run through Torrian."
"You? Take it alone?"
"Garyth, I can destroy the entire city if I have to. It's within my power," he said bluntly. It wasn't a brag or a boast, it was a simple statement of fact. "I'd rather avoid that, though. I don't relish the idea of slaughtering innocent Sulasians."
That seemed to take all three of them aback, staring at him wildly. Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to say something like that, but the damage was done.
"L-Lad, I'm sure you believe what you're saying, but certainly there's another way," Garyth said carefully.
"Unless you have an army around here, I don't see another way," he said bluntly. He had put it all out there on the table now. He just needed Garyth to see it.
"We have alot of men around here, lad, men willing to give back some of what the Dals handed out to them," Garyth told him.
"I don't have time to mass an army of villagers and teach them how to fight as a group, Garyth," Tarrin said urgently, hiding his relief and elation at that statement. He had been depending on just that, but he didn't want to look like he was eager to drag the men of Aldreth into a war.
"How about a brigade of Rangers?"
Tarrin stared intently at Garyth as Jesmind and Jasana came in. Jesmind had cleaned up and changed, even combed her hair, and she sat down next to where Tarrin was standing calmly. Jasana sat down on the other side of him, and immediately reached for the untouched food on the table, food that wasn't even there a few minutes ago.
"I told you, the Rangers are operating in this area," Garyth told him. "About five hundred of them. They've been wreaking havoc on the Dal supply lines running on both sides of Torrian. If I send out the word, I could get them to gather, and they could help us take Torrian back from the Dals."
"Us?"
"I have some issues with the Dals," Garyth said flintily. "They have some blood to answer for."
"Yes!" Jak said fiercely.
"And not just us. Nearly every man in Aldreth and Watch Hill would pick up a bow and march. All they need is the word, and a sense that they'll be able to succeed. I think we can give them both now." He looked at Tarrin intently. "If you can do magic like you boast, we have a good chance. The garrison in Torrian is about a thousand men. I think we could mass a force equal to that size."
"A force of farmers, not infantry," Tarrin countered, making sure Garyth understood the gravity of the situation. "I don't think the Rangers would like it if we sent them in to do all the dying."
"How about a pack of Were-cats to bolster that?" Jesmind offered. "If both mother and Tarrin called, we'd get at least twenty."
"I doubt they're close enough, Jesmind," Tarrin said. "I have to get to Suld. I can't wait more than a couple of days."
"I know of eight that are within two days of here, Tarrin," Jesmind said. "Since I moved here, a few of them have moved their dens, and the rest are watching the Dals to make sure that no more Goblinoids march into our territory. Rahnee, Kimmie, Mist, Singer, Jeri, Shayle, Nikki, and Thean are all close to here." She gave him a rueful smile. "Shayle, Nikki, Kimmie, and Thean like to visit me. Jeri and Singer's dens were always close, Mist's new den is pretty close, probably because of me, and Rahnee moved closer because Jeri and Thean are nearby. They're both males."
Tarrin considered that, considered it carefully. Ten-no, eight-Were-cats were an awesome force. They were the equal of a hundred human men in a battle, mainly because the average human soldier had no way to harm a Were-cat enemy. Tarrin didn't count Mist or Jesmind, because they had children. And he doubted that Mist would leave her child undefended to come fight. Add them to the Rangers, who would know how to fight as an infantry, the farmers, who were all very good shots with a bow, and his own magic, and they had a solid force that could succeed.
"How quickly could they get here?"
"How easily can you contact mother?"
"Easily."
"Then they'll be here not long after you tell her to call them."
"Then that's what we'll do," Tarrin said. "Garyth, call your Rangers. I'd rather take Torrian without burning it to the ground."
"I'm glad I came today," Garyth chuckled. "When I heard that Tarrin killed the Dals here, it made my day. Now my whole ride is looking better. What kind of plan did you have in mind, lad?"
"I'm not very good at plans, Garyth, especially when I don't know what I'm working with. Let's see what we've got before we decide what we're going to do."
"Fair enough," Garyth smiled. "Now then, on to a more serious matter."
"What?"
"Breakfast. I'm starved," he said eagerly, reaching for the ham steaks.
Tarrin gave him an amused look, then they all joined him in breakfast. The talk about the table during the meal was aggressively trivial, as if the decision they had just made could be addressed later. Tarrin was assaulted by questions of what had happened after he left, what had gone on out in the world, so he was more or less obliged to give them an abbreviated tale of his journey after leaving Aldreth. He was very general, glossing over most of it, focusing on places and events rather than the real happenings, with all the moral and humanitarian questions they would raise.
After he told them about crossing the desert, Jasana slapped him on the wrist with her little paw. "You lied, papa!" she accused.