“Excellent,” RavenWing smiled. “May all our news be good this day.”
“I am afraid that is not the case,” frowned StarWind. “I have reports that GoldenEar has been terminated. He was a valuable source of information from Okata.”
“When did this happen?” RavenWing asked.
“Several days ago I believe,” reported the Sakovan spymaster. “He had a son named Mekin and I have received reports that the Imperial Guard has issued orders to arrest him as he tries to reach the Sakova.”
“Then the boy is coming here?” quizzed RavenWing. “That is rather unusual. Has he ever been here before?”
“No,” StarWind declared. “It puzzles and bothers me. Mekin should not know where we are unless his father was lax in security. If GoldenEar was lax, it may bode ill for the safety of StarCity. He was a long-established asset and well informed.”
“I wish to have someone else take your place with HawkShadow,” RavenWing stated. “You are needed here right now.”
“That is not practical,” sighed StarWind. “I wish to be in both places, but we have located Temiker and I have arranged to meet him on the way to our confrontation with the assassins. I plan to enlist his aid in using magic to even the odds for HawkShadow. This will be a serious confrontation.”
“You are right,” agreed RavenWing. “I have others who can handle the Mekin boy and it will take days for the Imperial Guard to mobilize if they are indeed coming here. MoonFlow can handle the spy network in your absence as she usually does. Abayo, have a safe journey.”
“Abayo, RavenWing,” nodded StarWind.
***
“Welcome General Kapla,” greeted the First Minister from behind the desk in his office. “Please have a seat.”
The general nodded formally and sat stiffly in one of the upholstered chairs opposite Alazar. The First Minister of Omunga sat at his desk and smiled at the General.
“I want to thank you for your cooperation in supplying me with those reports,” charmed Alazar.
“It always a soldier’s duty to respond to a request from the Katana’s Council,” the general stated dryly, “however, I was disappointed that you chose to use that information to publicly humiliate the Minister of Defense. Minister Doharte is my superior and knowledge of my supplying you with those reports could adversely affect my career.”
“As First Minister, I can assure you that supplying the reports will not harm your career,” smiled Alazar. “If anything, it will enhance the opportunities available to you.”
General Kapla relaxed his overweight body and settled deeper into the chair. “It is hard to believe that I could be higher than a general,” he smiled. “It is the highest rank available in the army, but it is good to know that the First Minister will stand by me.”
“I favor those who aid me in preserving and protecting our nation,” declared Alazar. “Your career will never flounder while I have any say about it and I expect that to be for the rest of my life. There are few that know this, but I have been chosen as the Katana’s successor. I trust you will keep this information secret.”
The general was clearly impressed by this pronouncement and Alazar knew that a select few individuals would learn of it, but he was not concerned with it getting back to the Katana’s ears. The army in Omunga was rather closed-mouthed with those outside the military and the army did not talk with the Katana except through the Minister of Defense.
“I must explain myself, General,” Alazar continued. “I did not intend to embarrass Minister Doharte during the Council session, but the Minister does not seem to grasp the reality of the problems our nation is facing. The Sakovans have been a constant thorn in our side for generations. Past Katanas have allowed them to remain alive because they were thought incapable of causing us any problems, but I do not feel that is true anymore.”
“What has changed?” queried General Kapla removing his hat and ruffling his short gray hair. Do you really feel that an attack from them is imminent?”
“You a strategist, General,” smiled Alazar, “let me ask you a question. If you led the Sakovans, what would you do?”
General Kapla leaned back in his chair and stroked his double chin. “Probably nothing but maintain a good defensive posture. They cannot hope to beat us in a war and we are not currently pursuing them, so why agitate things.”
“Fair enough,” agreed the First Minister. “What would you do if Omunga was in the midst of a great war, either a civil war or with a neighboring nation?”
“That would be a different situation,” the general remarked. “I would use that opportunity to expand my land. Depending on the logistics of the Omungan war, I might try to seize a section of the coastline, which I thought would be defendable after the war. I might go for Alamar and maybe Tanzaba. Duran and Zaramilden are sea-locked and do not offer a means of support from the land side. But this is hypothetical of course. We are not in danger of going to war in Omunga.”
“Aren’t we?” quizzed Alazar. “Have you read the Khadora Report?”
“Briefly,” General Kapla replied with a quizzical look. “All I remember is that it details an internal struggle in one of the clans across the border.”
“Hardly internal,” lectured Alazar. “Perhaps I understand more of Khadoran culture than most Omungans. Khadora is a segmented society and as such as never been a threat to us, but that is changing. The clans of Khadora serve to keep their nation divided. They would rather war amongst themselves than bother their neighboring countries. This is why our policy has never considered them a viable threat. Lord Marak is changing the rules. Your analysts may look upon his victory as the end of an internal struggle, but they would be wrong.”
Alazar stood and leaned forward on his desk in an intimidating fashion. “Lord Marak was the son of a slave just a year ago. In that year, he waged war not only on his own clan, but on neighboring clans as well. At the end of his victory, he controlled practically all of the land along our northern border and this land came from many clans. Worse, he obtained this victory with the use of indigenous peoples.”
“The Chula. Yes I remember reading that,” frowned General Kapla. “Do you think they have ties with the Sakovans?”
“Certainly,” warned Alazar. “Those ties are surely informal, but they date back centuries, long before the Omungans arrived here. This Lord Marak has demonstrated that he has the capability to appeal to these barbaric savages. As you well know, the Sakovans have lacked a real leader ever since we originally attacked them.”
“I begin to see your concern,” admitted the general. “If he should unite the Chula and the Sakovans, they could cause some disruption for us.”
“Disruption?” Alazar shouted, momentarily losing his control. He eased back into his chair and stared at the fat general across from him. “There is more,” he continued quietly. “My resources in Khadora have told me that Lord Marak is not content with his gains. He has publicly stated that the whole culture of Khadora is wrong and that he wishes to change it. He wants to unite Khadora under one government, with one ruler, himself.”
“We would be forced to start paying attention to them then,” nodded the general.
“No,” Alazar said quietly, wondering what kind of fools the army bred. “We are forced to start paying attention to them now. If Lord Marak is allowed to unite Khadora and the Chula and the Sakovans, Omunga will cease to exist. There is no way we could ever hope to defend ourselves against them.”
General Kapla’s eyes widened. “Are you suggesting that we attack Khadora now?” he blurted. “Minister Doharte would never sanction such a war. The Katana would never allow it.”
“Then what is the answer?” asked the First Minister. “Do we, as patriotic citizens of Omunga, just sit back and wait for our great nation to cease?”
“No, we cannot sit idle,” General Kapla stated. “If you are correct, they could attack us from both sides and we would be crushed quickly. I must bring this to the attention of the Minister of Defense.”