"Where is that?" Sapphire asked.
"A castle overlooking the Petal Lakes," he answered.
"Castle Keening," Jenna told them. "Sitting on the road leading out of the Iron Pass."
"Well, it's empty now, and I'll bet Val's recalled all his troops that were within marching distance to Gora Umadar. Val's also been raising Demons by the hundreds to add to his army, and that's what Spyder and the gods are getting involved to stop. You know that all of this is about the Firestaff," he told her.
She nodded. "They took Jasana to make you give it to them," she said.
"I'm going to use that to get her back," he said. "The Firestaff only works on day every five thousand years, and I'm going to make sure I get to Gora Umadar on that day. The immediacy of the situation is going to give me a bargaining chip. It's the only time I think I could get that close to Val and face him directly."
"Why is that so important?"
"Because I want his attention on me," he told her. "I'm taking Jesmind with me. While I'm holding Val's attention, Jesmind is going to get out of there with Jasana. Only after they're clear will I pretend to be willing to give him the Firestaff, and that's where you're going to come in."
"Us? How?"
"At that moment, I'm going to need a huge distraction," he said dryly. "I think something along the lines of a powerful army arriving to do battle with Val's forces will qualify. With a little luck, I can escape in the chaos. Val has turned Gora Umadar into a void, but I know I can do other kinds of magic. I'm going to have Triana teach me some way to escape from Gora Umadar with a Druidic spell. That way, after Jesmind gets Jasana out of there, I can get out myself."
"Why not just go alone and use the same trick to kidnap Jasana back?"
"Because me being in the pyramid is going to distract them," he told her plainly. "You're going to need that kind of a distraction, sister. Val is a god. Don't forget that. If he catches you before you can get a chance to set up, he'll slaughter your army. But if all his attention is on me, you have a chance to get there and set up before he can respond."
"Besides, little one, I doubt that they would let Tarrin get that close to his daughter," Sapphire added. "They know he is a powerful magician. They will take no chances that he has a little surprise. And Val would be a fool to allow Jasana to leave without Tarrin remaining behind, so he must have someone with him to help him. But why Jesmind? Kimmie or Triana would be better."
"Jesmind is Jasana's mother," he said. "She will obey Jesmind without question. She won't even do that for Triana. And at that point, Jasana doing exactly what she's told could mean the difference between life and death."
"You have a point," Sapphire acceded.
"The only sticking point I have right now is how to get them out once they get out of the pyramid," he admitted. "There's going to be a hostile army between them and freedom, and they'll attack as soon as Jesmind comes out."
"I can take care of that, little one," Sapphire said. "Sandwing is very young, and his youth gives him both speed and brashness. And he a very small dragon yet, so he won't be so large as to cause any undue trouble."
"One of yours?"
"My youngest," she nodded. "The one that took so long to get word to me. He is as small to me as a baby is to you." Tarrin considered that, realizing that Sandwing was probably only about a hundred spans long, where Sapphire was five hundred. A much smaller, sleeker, and probably faster and more agile dragon, but still a dragon. Something not even the most fanatical Troll would dare to cross.
"That will work," he nodded to her. "The timing is going to have to be perfect, and your child may have to think on his feet, but it can work."
"Sandwing is a very clever dragon," she told him confidently. "He will do fine."
"Well, that takes care of the only real hole I had," he said.
"What's the rest of the plan?" Jenna asked.
He got up and started to pace. "Timing is going to be everything in this," he told them. "I asked Phandebrass to draw me up a chart so I'll know exactly when the conjunction happens. I have to get there before that happens, but not so late that it does happen while I'm there. I want Val watching the clock every second, desperate to get the Firestaff from me before the conjunction occurs. That's going to be the only window where I'll be able to extort demands out of him. With me right there and the Firestaff within his grasp, I'm confident he'll let Jesmind and Jasana leave as long as I stay behind. That's what matters. After they're out of danger, then I'll get out of there. Val and the others know I can do other forms of magic, but they don't know how strong I am with Druidic magic. With the void, I'm fairly certain they'll assume that they're preventing me from escaping using magic. I want that to be a nasty shock for them," he said with a grim smile.
"It is a plan with possibilities, little one, but it has a fatal flaw."
"The tundra," he nodded. "I know. There's nowhere to hide out there, and no way an army can approach without being spotted days before they arrive. That is where I'm hoping that Mother can help. She said the gods themselves were going to directly involve themselves in this. I think the best thing that they could do is use their power to transport the army right onto the battlefield. Their sudden appearance should create a nasty shock in our enemies, and if they're set up for attack before they leave, they can literally throw themselves at the enemy army before they so much as get out of their tents." He gave a dry, hollow chuckle. "If the Sha'Kar can Teleport several hundred people, I think the Elder Gods can Teleport an army."
"You are correct," the voice of the Goddess sounded from thin air, and then her animated icon appeared behind Jenna's chair. With her was the black-cloaked Spyder, and the two of them looked the unusual pair. Jenna immediately got up and offered the Goddess her chair, the chair of the ruler of the Tower, and she accepted it with a warm smile and a pat on Jenna's cheek, seating herself with Jenna standing to the left of her chair and Spyder to her right.
"Divine One," Sapphire said, standing up and giving her a surprisingly graceful curtsy.
"I'm not much one for ceremony, Sapphire," she smiled. "And call me Mother. It pleases me."
"As you wish, Mother," she said with an eloquent nod.
"That's a fairly cunning idea you have, kitten," she continued with a light smile. "It certainly would have a good effect for our side. The sudden appearance of the army and the sense of presence the Elder Gods would have over them will definitely get Val's attention, and that will give you the chance you need to escape. Let's not forget the element of surprise that will give us an immediate advantage. And I find that the rest of your plan has merit, kitten. It relies a little too much on luck, but for you, it's a remarkably well thought-out plan."
Tarrin flushed slightly.
"I know, it's a very tricky problem, and sometimes problems like that require a little unconventional thinking. The idea to transport an army right onto the battlefield is clever, my kitten. You've just revolutionized warfare. It's the ultimate surprise attack!"
"And it lets us amass our army wherever we wish," Sapphire added. "Suld may not be the right place for it. There are too many eyes here."
"There's no need to mass the army anywhere," the Goddess told the dragon. "If we do what Tarrin suggests, we can assemble elements of it wherever they may be, then bring them all together right before we move them to the battlefield. That way the disappearances of entire armies don't raise any suspicions, we don't strip any friendly kingdoms of all its protection while we're borrowing their armies, and we can get them all assembled and set up before we transport them to Gora Umadar. All we need to do is assemble the command staff in one place and let them work out the battle strategy. The common soldier rarely knows the full plan anyway. He merely goes in the direction his officers lead him."