Demonkin (37 page)

Sparky flew through the dark forest to the secret door of the dwarves. He eased into the spy hole and crawled into Tarashin. Not wanting the dwarves to see him enter the mine, the fairy decided to wait until no one was looking towards the secret door. While he was waiting, King Drakarik entered the chamber with a couple of visitors. Sparky swallowed hard when he recognized Garth and Kalina Shado.

“There is a spy hole,” the king stated, “but it is rather dark out right now. You will not be able to see much.”

“Will I be able to see enough to tell if anyone is near the door on the other side?” asked Garth.

“It is best to use a fairy,” offered one of the dwarves in the chamber. “They can fit through the hole.”

Sparky watched as Garth put his finger in his pocket. Sparky quickly crawled backwards, but he was not quick enough. Before he reached the valley end of the hole, Bitsy was butting heads with him.

“What are you doing here?” Bitsy demanded to know. “You are in my way.”

“Shh,” urged Sparky. “Now is not a good time to enter the valley. Just go back and tell that to Garth.”

“And forget to mention that you were blocking my way?” scowled Bitsy. “What are you up to? Is this another one of your pranks?”

“No prank,” promised Sparky. “I was just out there, and I saw soldiers.”

“What were you doing out there?” asked Bitsy. “I did not see Morro in the chamber, and I doubt he would let you go flying around the valley on your own.”

“He knew I was in the valley,” Sparky replied nervously. “Just go tell Garth that now is not a good time.”

“I have not seen any soldiers,” Bitsy replied defiantly. “I think perhaps you should tell Garth yourself. I cannot report what I have not seen.”

“No,” Sparky bit his lowed lip. “He will ask too many questions. You tell him.”

“Very well,” Bitsy grinned mischievously. “I will tell him that Sparky says there are soldiers out there.”

“No!” Sparky said worriedly. “He will be angry.”

“So you have done something that you shouldn’t have,” Bitsy replied knowingly. “I thought as much. Pranks are one thing, Sparky, but we do not keep secrets from Garth about important things, and this valley is important. You better explain everything to Garth, or Prince Midge will ground you.”

Bitsy started to back up, but Sparky called her imploringly.

“Wait. You win. I promise that I will tell Garth everything, but not in front of the dwarven king. I don’t want Morro banned from Tarashin.”

Bitsy hesitated, and Sparky pressed on.

“Distract them while I get out of here. I will meet Garth in Karicon’s chamber, but make sure that the king does not go there, too.”

“This had better be good,” warned Bitsy. “Garth wants to go into the valley while it is dark, and you are wasting time.”

“There is no need for him to do that,” promised Sparky. “Trust me just this once. Please.”

Bitsy did not reply. She backed out of the hole and flew to Garth’s shoulder. She whispered in his ear while everyone looked on with curiosity. After a few moments, Bitsy took to the air with an acrobatic leap off Garth’s shoulder. She soared around the chamber up near the ceiling and then darted down the tunnel. Everyone watched her display and their eyes followed her progress until she disappeared.

“I guess now is not a good time,” Garth said to the dwarven king. “I think I will go visit with Morro for an hour or so. I will come to your quarters before I venture into the valley.”

The dwarven king nodded in agreement, and Garth turned and walked away. Kalina hurried after him and caught up to him in the tunnel.

“Bitsy was awfully secretive,” Kalina said softly. “Is something the matter?”

“I am not sure,” admitted Garth. “We will find out soon enough.”

When they arrived at Karicon’s chamber, the door was closed. Garth knocked loudly on the door and heard someone moving about inside. Bitsy settled on Garth’s left shoulder and Sparky landed on his right shoulder. Garth glanced at the two fairies questioningly, but neither of them spoke. Garth knocked again on the door, and Karicon finally opened it.

“I was not expecting company,” Karicon said nervously as he glanced at Garth.

The dwarf saw the two fairies on Garth’s shoulders, and he gasped involuntarily. Garth immediately knew something was amiss. He pushed his way into the small chamber and looked around.

“Where is Morro?” asked Garth Shado as his eyes looked around the room.

“He is not here,” the dwarf replied nervously.

“I did not ask if he was here,” scowled Garth. “I asked where he was.”

Sparky leaped off Garth’s shoulder and landed on the Door, which Karicon had tried to hide by piling clothing on it.

“Come in and close the door,” Sparky said to everyone. “I have something to say that should not be said in public.”

Kalina moved past Karicon and the dwarf closed the door. Everyone stared at Sparky, waiting for an explanation.

“Morro and I snuck into the mystery valley,” declared the fairy. “We spent days in there mapping everything. Morro has recorded everything on paper for you to see.”

Karicon quickly reached under the table and brought out Morro’s map. He meekly handed it to Garth, who was staring unbelievably at the fairy. Garth glanced at the map and his eyes widened. Kalina moved close to Garth and also stared at the map. For several long minutes, the room was silent. The anger that had appeared on Garth’s face when the fairy had made his statement began to fade.

“This must have taken days to record,” Garth frowned. “Did I not say that no one was to enter the valley without my permission?”

“You told the dwarves not to enter the valley,” Sparky replied hesitantly. “Do not be angry. It was perfectly safe, and we got all the information you wanted.”

“Perfectly safe?” questioned Kalina. “I can hardly believe that.”

“What are these extra numbers for?” asked Garth.

“Those are the extra Doors,” grinned Sparky. “They are stacked near Door number twenty-four.”

“So they are not being used,” Kalina remarked with a raised eyebrow. “That is interesting. Are we sure that these are Doors?”

“I checked the number on each one of them,” Sparky said.

“Can we get to those spare Doors?” asked Kalina.

“You cannot,” answered Sparky, “but Morro can.”

Kalina looked at the fairy questioningly.

“And where is Morro?” Garth asked again.

“He is in Alcea,” declared Sparky.

“You had better explain yourself,” Garth scowled.

“Morro stole Door number twenty-five and took it through Door number twenty-four,” explained Sparky. “He knows that Kalina wants to be able to reach Alcea, and he wanted to please her.”

“Taking a Door to Alcea does not open up a portal that we can use,” frowned Kalina. “We would also have to have the matching Door where we can access it.”

“It is right here,” Karicon said sheepishly as he pulled the clothes off the Door. “Morro set up a code of knocks before he left. The Door is locked just in case something went wrong.”

“Like letting the Federation know that we have discovered their portals,” grumbled Garth. “What were you all thinking? Do you have any idea of the damage that might have been done? Not only will all of the Doors in Alcea be compromised, but they will use the extra Doors to attack the horse countries. The only thing stopping them from doing that now is that they might inadvertently warn Alcea about the Doors.”

“Does the Federation know that Morro has stolen Doors or used one of them?” Kalina asked.

“They do not know,” promised the fairy. “The stack is so high that the soldiers will not notice two of them missing.”

“Unless someone comes to inspect them,” sighed Garth. “Or they decide to use Door number twenty-five for some reason.”

“But we have a portal to Alcea now, Garth,” Kalina said with a smile. “That is worth a great deal to us.”

“Only if they don’t notice the missing Doors,” retorted Garth. “In addition to warning them of our knowledge, the loss will also tell them that we have penetrated their hidden valley. There is an awful high risk in keeping the Doors.”

“You can’t be thinking of putting them back?” balked Kalina. “The link to Alcea is priceless.” Kalina turned to Sparky and continued. “Why is Morro capable of getting the Doors and we are not?”

The fairy fidgeted, hoping Garth would ask a different question, and he could ignore the one from Kalina.

“Speak,” Garth growled at the fairy.

Sparky looked imploringly at the dwarf.

Karicon shook his head. “Morro made me promise not to reveal it. You had better answer the question.”

Garth glanced at the dwarf and then returned his glare to the fairy. Sparky sighed anxiously and nodded his head.

“Morro has a magical artifact that halts time. It is an hourglass, and while the sands are dropping, only he can move about. It doesn’t last very long, but long enough to grab a Door and either carry it away or go through Door twenty-four. That is what he did tonight. I was supposed to go with him, but something must have gone wrong. One minute I was in his pocket, and the next I was on the ground next to the stack of Doors. I am sure that he made it, though. The soldiers were not alarmed, and he was no longer in the valley.”

“Where did he get the hourglass?” asked Kalina.

“From the Mage,” answered Sparky. “It is an amazing thing. We used it to map the entire valley. That is why I said it was safe for us to do so.”

“We?” questioned Kalina. “You used the hourglass as well?”

“Just a couple of times.” The fairy nodded. “Near the tunnel entrance it was too far for Morro to run across. I used it and levitated him to a ledge above the camp. When he had thoroughly mapped the camp, I used it again to get him away from the camp. We were very careful.”

“Where does Door twenty-four go?” asked Garth.

“Mya,” answered Sparky.

“It will take him days to get the Door to Tagaret,” mused Kalina.

“If he survives to get there,” frowned Garth. “He is Dielderal. We have our people looking for Dielderal in Alcea. Most of them might not even ask questions before they slay him. He is more likely to die than succeed.”

“Don’t forget the hourglass,” interjected Sparky. “He can trigger it and get out of trouble. He will make it. I am sure of it.”

“We will know in a couple of days,” sighed Garth. “We might as well move that Door to somewhere where we can keep watch on it. Wherever it is, I will be sleeping next to it.”

“You take care of that,” said Kalina. “I need Bitsy to send a message.”

The Federation general dismounted in front of Orkare and Son in Olansk. He glanced up and down the street while the squad of soldiers escorting him dismounted and formed a protective shield around him. Nodding to the junior officer in charge of the detail, the general turned and entered the carpentry shop. The proprietor looked up from his work and saw the general. He wiped his hands on his work apron and hurried over to the desk to tend to the general’s needs. The general slid a piece of paper across the desk and watched the proprietor read it.

“You understand that there must be secrecy regarding this requisition?” asked the general.

Orkare looked up at the general and nodded vigorously. “Of course. I have already done work for the First Corps, General. I never gossip about my work, and certainly not when it involves the army.”

“As it should be,” replied the general. “I need this order filled as quickly as possible. Push all other work to the side until this shipment is ready.”

“It shall be as you wish,” assured the shopkeeper. “What about delivery?”

“My men will pick up the shipment,” answered the general. “How soon can you have it ready?”

“About a week,” mumbled the shopkeeper as he reviewed the requisition. The amount listed was quite generous, and Orkare was very pleased.

“I need it in three days,” replied the general. “If you are not capable of…”

“Three days,” the shopkeeper nodded vigorously. “I will work day and night on the order.”

“The specifications are tight,” warned the general. “Working quickly should not excuse the need for accuracy.”

“Have no fear, General,” stated the shopkeeper. “I am known for my accuracy. Every detail will be exact, and the order will be ready in three days. You have my promise.”

“Then I shall not delay the start of your work,” the general said as a farewell.

The general exited the shop and mounted his horse. His personal detail promptly mounted and surrounded the general as the group moved through the streets of Olansk and exited the city.

* * * *

King Arik and Queen Tanya entered the library in the Royal Palace in Tagaret. The king nodded to the assembled group and approached Alan Markel.

“Counselor,” began the king as he handed a list of names to Alan, “I need fairies sent out to these people. The message is that their presence is required in Tagaret. Unicorns will be sent for them within the day. Nothing more is to be said to them.”

“Nothing about how long they will be away from their homes?” asked the counselor.

“Nothing,” repeated the king. “Handle it directly after this meeting.”

“I will see to it,” vowed Tedi’s father.

The king gazed over the audience, checking every single person in the room before nodding to Zack Nolan, the head spy master of Alcea. Zack Nolan exited the library and returned moments later with a dark elf. Zack closed the door and stood in front of it so that no one could enter the library unannounced.

“I would like to introduce all of you to Morro,” the king said. “He is a Dielderal elf, and he arrived from Zara a few days ago. Tell us what the current situation is in Zara, Morro.”

The dark elf was nervous as he looked at all the high-ranking people in the room, but the king had warned him of what was to come. He rolled out a map of Zara on the table and everyone crowded around to get a look. Morro began the presentation by identifying each of the countries of Zara and explaining their relationship to the Federation. He tried to give them a feel for the geography of the continent and the natures of its peoples. He included a brief history of the land, ending with the misery of his own people in Elfwoods.