He had attempted for the first time to send a message further than he could physically see. He had used the screeing dish to guide his message all the way to the princess. He had lost hold of the particle container several times before he was finally able to guide it all the way to her. It had taken longer than he thought it would to guide it so far. He had finally been able to deliver the simple message, ‘Please be careful’. He hoped that it had been beneficial and not just a waste of time.
Perhaps the closer he got to the princess, the easier it would be for him to send another message. He quickly mounted Pennon, and they were once again hurrying down the road towards Candus. They needed to be swifter and travel longer each day if they hoped to reach the princess in time. Her heading towards the pass would make it that much harder for him to reach her and protect her.
A strange prickling sensation suddenly passed over him, making him shiver. Someone was watching him. He scanned the empty countryside, looking for the source of his discomfort. All was empty and quiet, but the feeling didn’t go away. He suddenly remembered what the keeper had told him and cast a quick shield of invisibility above him and the guardians.
The feeling instantly vanished. Traven frowned. It seemed as though the wielder leading the Balthan Army knew about him and where he was. He would have to be more careful going forward. At least he now knew what feeling to be weary of. He left the shield above his group for about five minutes before letting it drop. Fortunately, the feeling didn’t return.
He shook his head with frustration. Not only could he not get the image of the lifeless body of the princess out of his mind, he now had to worry about being tracked by the Balthan wielder. At least the threat was still distant. For now, he just hoped he could reach the princess in time.
24
Kadrak sat on his horse at the opening of the pass, staring forward at the immense pile of snow blocking his army from advancing into Kalia. He had camped at the base of the mountains with his army for the last five days in hopes that the snow would melt on its own. Unfortunately, the weather had been less than cooperative. A cold spell had set in, and very little snow had melted at all. The situation wasn’t any better than it had been when his army had first arrived at the pass.
The Royal Kalian Army had done well. The avalanche they had orchestrated had effectively stopped Kadrak’s army. He knew that the second group of soldiers would now have time to join the ones already camped at the western edge of the pass before he could attack them. He had watched from his screeing dish as they had left Candus earlier that morning. Not only would the full Kalian Army be in place to oppose him, but he had also seen that the Kalian wielder was heading towards the battle as well.
He had seen the pinprick of light indicating another wielder while he was screeing. However, as he had closed in on the wielder, the growing spot of light had suddenly vanished. The young boy must have learned how to shield himself. Kadrak wondered what the boy had been doing in the desert and what he was now trying to hide. Luckily, the young wielder was at least ten days away from the pass, if not more.
Whatever surprise the young wielder might have for him, he would face it when the time came. He wasn’t overly concerned. He still had hope that the young wielder would never reach the battle.
However, if the boy did reach the pass, he would rather not face the wielder and the Kalian Army at the same time. As soon as he had finished screeing, he had decided on what must be done. That was why he was sitting at the mouth of the pass, staring at the enormous mountain of snow blocking his way.
He was tired of waiting on nature to allow him to march to victory. He had waited long enough for the snow to melt. It was now time for him to take action. It was time for him to clear the pass himself.
Kadrak raised his hands above his head and concentrated. Time froze, and the air thickened. Behind him, his army stood frozen in silence, intently watching their leader. They would be reminded once again of his unmatched power. The air began to swirl far overhead. It continued to swirl faster and faster.
Time and sound rushed back as fireballs began to rain down from the sky. The snow hissed as each fireball slammed into the mountain of snow. As the fireballs continued raining down, he focused the light of the sun at the front of the snow. He slowly eased the beam of light and heat forward along the base of the pass, creating a narrow path directly through the center of the snow. As soon as the beam reached the end of the avalanche, he let it disappear along with the fireballs
He took a deep breath and steadied himself as he admired his handiwork. The mountain of snow had been reduced, and there was now a clear path straight through the center of it. It was not as wide as he would have liked, but he didn’t have the strength left to enlarge it. It would be wide enough for the supply wagons to pass through, and that was all that was necessary.
Kadrak raised his fist in the air. A thunderous cheer rose up from behind, washing over him. He smiled. His troops were ready and anxious for battle. When he had commanded that they assemble and prepare to march this morning, he was sure there were plenty who were confused and wondering if their leader had lost his mind. Everyone had known that the pass was still blocked.
It had been impassable, until faced with his power. Even nature could not stand against him. He basked in the cheers and adoration of his army for several more moments before dropping his fist. He immediately gripped his mount’s reins tightly and booted him. As his horse leapt forward, the cheers of his army increased as they too surged forward with exuberance.
Kadrak led the way through the narrow path he had cut through the snow. Walls of snow and ice rose several stories on both sides. He studied them out of the corner of his eyes, making sure that they would hold. Luckily the snow was compacted enough that it shouldn’t be a problem. The only drawback was the muddy ground underneath his horse’s hooves.
With effort, he kept himself perfectly straight in the saddle as he led his troops along the narrow path. It had been wise for him to wield the ambience from his saddle instead of dismounting first. He had used so much of the ambience that it had left him incredibly weakened. He might not have been able to pull himself up into the saddle if he had worked his show of power from the ground.
He tried to ignore the twinge of a headache that had set in and stayed alert in case there were any enemies nearby. Thankfully, he didn’t sense anyone ahead. He took another deep breath and closed his eyes. It was cold with the snow rising on both sides, but the cold was welcome. It helped to cool his overheated body.
As soon as he was past the avalanche, the path opened back up. While the tall mountains on the north and south kept him in shadow, there was plenty of space for the army to spread back out and march in their normal formations. He signaled for Gilrod to move to his side. His second in command hurried to fulfill his master’s wish and was soon riding next to Kadrak.
“What do you wish, Master?” Gilrod asked.
Kadrak smiled. While another perhaps would have heaped praises on him for his magnificent show of power, Gilrod was always ready to serve him. Gilrod knew of his distaste for false flattery.
“Can you figure out a way to collapse the snow banks and seal the pass off once all of the troops have passed through?” Kadrak asked.
Gilrod hid his surprise well. He looked back at the narrow path through the avalanche and thought for a moment. He then turned back.
“Yes,” he replied. “I think I could manage to collapse it and block off any chance for retreat.”
Kadrak smiled. Gilrod had quickly figured out the reason for the request. He didn’t care how Gilrod accomplished the task. He just wanted to know he could do it and was willing to do it.
“May I ask a question?” Gilrod said carefully.
“You may,” he replied.
“While I will not go against your command, I would like to point out that not only will blocking the path prevent our soldiers from retreating, it will also prevent us from receiving any supplies or reinforcements,” he paused for a second before continuing on. “I don’t doubt we will be victorious, but we currently only have enough supplies to last for about ten days. If the battle doesn’t go according to plan, I think it’s prudent to have other options.”
Kadrak stared back at the cunning man. He had said that he would do as he was commanded to, but he also had expressed that he didn’t agree with the command. Gilrod was loyal, but he wasn’t a fool. He understood the implications of a trapped army running out of food and supplies. What the man didn’t know was that galdak warriors would be in place to reinforce the army if needed. The battle would be won in a timely manner, one way or another.
“I can guarantee that we will win the battle before our supplies run out,” Kadrak stated confidently. “You know most of what goes on, but you don’t know everything,” he said, reminding Gilrod of his place. “If a retreat ever was necessary, I could clear a path back out of the pass, just as I did earlier. However, that will not be necessary. I want my troops to think their only way out is through the Kalian Army. I want them to think the only chance to restock supplies is through a quick and decisive victory. I want them to fight ferociously.”
“You are wise and powerful,” Gilrod said. “I will complete the task you assigned and let it be known that there is no path for retreating.”
“You must remember that I am not a fool Gilrod. I am confident, but I am not foolish. I do have a backup plan if necessary, but I hope the troops will have plenty of motivation to end the battle in a timely manner.”
Gilrod bowed deeply and headed back towards the opening of the path that Kadrak had cleared. Kadrak continued forward at the head of the army, riding alone once again. The army marched behind him, unaware that soon they would have no chance to desert or retreat. They would be surprised when they discovered that the pass was blocked but wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.
That’s how he wanted it. They would realize that their only hope for survival was through victory. He knew that the Kalian Army would prove to be a tougher foe than any he had yet faced. There were many troops, and they were very disciplined. If the battle was difficult, he didn’t want any of his own troops to have the option to retreat or sneak away. They would have to fight for their very lives, just as he wanted them to.
* * * * *
Gilrod waited next to the opening that led through the snow. He watched as the troops filed through and then formed back up in their ranks. He also counted all of the supply wagons carefully as they passed.
It wouldn’t be too hard to do what Kadrak had asked him to do. However, he was still leery of doing it. He knew of Kadrak’s immense power, but he also knew that his leader had limits. The most recent display of his power had truly been awe inspiring, but he had seen how much it had drained Kadrak. The wielder couldn’t defeat the entire Kalian Army by himself, no matter how powerful he was.
He supposed Kadrak knew what he was doing. He had said that he had something planned in case they weren’t able to win the battle quickly. Gilrod didn’t know what it was but assumed it had something to do with the wielder’s trips back and forth to the mountains near Beking.
He had never been able to discover what exactly his master did on the trips. He knew better than to try and have him followed, but it was obvious that he was meeting with someone. Who that was, Gilrod didn’t know. He had sent spies to search the area but none of them had found anything. A couple had even disappeared.
Kadrak had often returned from his trips with precious stones. Gilrod wondered if he had contact with a secretive smuggling ring. Perhaps he had placed assassins in Kalia. Regardless of what he had done, it was a secret that Gilrod hadn’t discovered as of yet. He didn’t like that. He made it his business to uncover secrets and know everything that was going on. He would discover this secret sooner or later. Perhaps if he continued serving Kadrak faithfully, the wielder might even come right out and tell him.
Gilrod turned his attention back to the task at hand. The last of the supply wagons finished making it into the pass. All appeared exactly as he had recalled earlier. The supplies would last about ten or eleven days. It would take the army five days to traverse the entire pass and leave the mountains behind. The army would be able to fight for six days at the most before the supplies ran out. He hoped that would be enough time for them to win the battle.
He grabbed one of his spies from the ranks of soldiers passing him and explained the situation. He needed someone he trusted on the other side of the avalanche. He also needed someone to take care of the extra supplies from Beking that would be arriving in two days. Once the spy understood what was needed, he waited patiently at Gilrod’s side until the last of the troops had passed. He then slipped into the narrow path and sprinted back towards Beking.
Gilrod gathered about twenty soldiers from the rear of the army and gave them their orders. They retrieved the necessary equipment and began to fulfill Kadrak’s command. Gilrod took a deep breath. He hoped the wielder truly did know what he was doing.
* * * * *
Kadrak smiled at the sudden sound in the distance. He could hear the snow collapsing down on the path, filling it in. A murmur slowly made its way up the ranks of soldiers as word passed of what had happened. He didn’t mind the talk. He wanted all of them aware of what had just happened and what it meant. He was sure Gilrod had helped to start the message that was quickly being shared from soldier to soldier. All of the troops would soon understand the importance of winning the coming battle quickly and decisively.
He turned his attention from the troops to the tall mountains looming on either side of him. He wondered if the galdak warriors were already in place at the far end of the pass. The avalanche wouldn’t have affected them at all. Shaman Azulk had assured him that the warriors would be in place in time. He supposed they had used tunnels. He wondered how many miles of tunnels truly existed through the mountains and how far they extended.