Star of Sakova Page 7

  Temiker paused in the shadows at the mouth of the alley and peered up and down the street he had to cross. The paused saved him from capture as three dark-clad riders galloped down the street heading for the nearest gate. The wizard wiped the sweat from his brow as he thought about his own stupidity. Horses. He had not counted on the invaders having horses and therefore swift access to all of the city gates. How could he have been so stupid, he berated himself? It didn’t matter which gate he chose now because there would be invaders at each of them.

  Temiker shrunk back into the shadows and thought about his predicament. He had some options still open to him, but he needed to think about how effective they each would be. Certainly he could fight his way out. He was quite capable of dealing out death and destruction to his enemy, but he had no idea of who they were or how many of them existed. He could not even be sure they were all dressed darkly and he abhorred the killing or maiming of innocent civilians. No, until he knew who his enemy was he could not fight his way out. He wondered how the Imperial Guard would react to the invaders gathering at each of the gates. Would the Guard attempt to disperse them or ask their business? Would the invaders wait within the city gates or directly outside the gates? If he managed to get out one of the gates, would he then be attacked outside the city? He could create another fog and slip out the gate unseen, but using that trick again would be setting off a signal that he was leaving.

  A smile split Temiker’s face and he peered out at the street once more. Seeing nothing visible, he sprinted across the street and down another alley. Swiftly and furtively, the wizard negotiated alley after alley until he was in the north section of the city. Standing in an alley not far from the North Gate, he summoned the fog around his feet and let it build to a thick roiling cloud. With a flick of his wrist he sent the cloud spewing forth towards the gate like an ocean wave descending upon a tiny isle. While he would have liked to watch the reactions of the invaders, Temiker turned and ran back up the alley. Shouts rang muffled through the mist as the bald mage crossed a street and headed along another alley.

  Temiker was getting winded from the run across town and paused in one of the muddy alleys to catch his breath. He gazed up between the buildings and saw the first hint of the morning sky. While dawn was still some time off, the darkness he was using so effectively would be receding quickly. Removing his white robe, Temiker dragged it along the muddy alley until it was filthy. He scooped a handful of mud and smeared some on his face and bald head. Donning his now filthy robe, the wizard took off down the alley again. Each time he waited to cross a street, he brushed at the mud on his head and robe. As the caked mud began to dry, portions of it flaked off. By the time he reached the south section of the city, it no longer looked as though he covered himself with mud, he just looked filthy.

  As he neared the South Gate, Temiker adopted a hunched-over walk and shuffled his feet awkwardly. He glanced anxiously about as he rolled his head from side to side as he walked. There were four Imperial Guards at the gate. There were also six men who could possibly be with the invaders, all of them darkly clad. Temiker hobbled across the street to the city wall and leaning against it, slid down to a sitting position. Rolling his head from side to side, he looked every bit a drunken beggar, yet not so drunk that the Guard would arrest him.

  Quietly he observed the invaders. Two groups of three men each stood in crude circles as if they were just early rising citizens who happened to meet and talk in the street. Temiker did not see any sign of the invaders’ horses. The Imperial Guard stood in two groups of two, boringly watching the comings and goings of the predawn city. One man in each group of invaders was constantly observing the area while the others just talked.

  Temiker closed his eyes and felt for the wind, felt it flowing briskly through the gate and dispersing as it caught the angles of the buildings. Lowering his normal voice about an octave, he formed the words and let them drift off into the wind, knowing the sound would become audible farther down the windstream.

  “Hey there! Did you see those men take those horses? I am sure they didn’t belong to them.”

  Both the invaders and the Guard turned towards where they heard the voice and looked. One of the observing invaders nodded with his head and sent two men running down the street and around the corner of a building.

  After a few minutes the two men returned shaking their heads. The beggar rose and hobbled up the alley he had come down before. Carefully working his way around to the building where the two invaders had gone, Temiker found six horses tethered to a post. Soothing the beast, the wizard picked one and untied it, leading it back through the alley towards the gate. Just short of the where the alley opened to the street by the gate, Temiker placed his hands on the horse’s head and cast a calming spell. The horse would remain quiet until Temiker retrieved it.

  The beggar hobbled out of the alley and back to his spot by the wall without anyone’s notice. Temiker realized that people had a tendency to categorize others and the beggar was beneath notice unless he became troublesome. Time was getting short for his escape when Temiker sent another voice along the windstream, this one with a sailor’s accent.

  “Bloody right! There is fireballs and magical missiles hitting the North Gate like we is under attack. I hear’d the Imperial Guard up there is getting their heads kicked. Someone says there is people trying to free some wizard or sumptin like that.”

  The invaders and Imperial Guards snapped towards the sound as one. The invaders ran towards where their horses were tethered while the Imperial Guards quickly conferred with each other. The invaders appeared back on the street with only five of them mounted and one screaming to the Guards about his horse being stolen. With hurried directions from the Guard in charge, two other Guards ran over to the invaders. Instead of talking with the victim of the horse theft, the Guards raised their pikes and forced two of the invaders to dismount. Taking the invaders’ horses, the two guards galloped up the street towards the North Gate. Cursing after them, the invaders were forced to double up on their horses and charge after the Imperial Guards to join the fight at the North Gate.

  Temiker smiled as the two Imperial Guards left, talking to each other in hushed tones. His ruse had performed better than he had expected. He had not expected any of the Guards to leave. Waiting just a few moments so the others were well away, Temiker raised his voice several octaves and sent his next message out.

  “Help! Help! He’s killing me! Guards! Help!”

  The Imperial Guards looked at each other as the woman’s scream called to them. One nodded his head and ran off towards the sound. Temiker waited only until the Guard was out of sight before sending another message in the same voice.

  “Oh my god! He’s killed the Guard! Help me!”

  Knowing that nothing moves an Imperial Guard quicker than one of his own in danger, the beggar was up and hobbling towards his new horse before the sound even died. Temiker swiftly mounted the horse snapping it out of the calming spell and was riding for the gate without even a thought as to whether it was manned or not; he knew it wouldn’t be. The wizard galloped out of the gate and took the shortest path for the forest. He knew his ruse would not last for very long though. The Imperial Guards would know they had been tricked, but they would have no idea about who tricked them or why. The invaders would be a little slower to put events together, but when they did, they would know in which direction Temiker had fled. He figured he had about half an hour head start on the invaders and he planned to use it wisely.

  Angling away from the coast once he gained the forest, the wizard proceeded until he found a stream. He washed his head and robe to remove the mud and cast a light fire spell on the robe to dry it. He rode the horse into the stream and turned him towards the coast. He rode all the way down the stream until he reached the beach and then turned south again. Keeping the horse just in the water, so that the surf would remove the signs of his passing, Temiker rode down the coast to a tiny fishing village.

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sp; The fishermen were all about and getting ready for a day at sea. The fishermen used small sailboats to ply their trade, usually only one or two to a boat. Temiker paused to watch their preparations as they carried nets and lines and stowed them aboard. He gazed at each fisherman for a short time until he found the one he was looking for, a sturdy fisherman who was going out by himself. He was old enough to have the endurance the wizard required and young enough to spurn his trade for a treasure. Temiker rode up and dismounted by the young fisherman.

  “Greetings,” Temiker said. “Do you know these waters well?”

  The wizard was aware that he had instantly become the center of attention as all work stopped and everyone turned to see what the stranger would say.

  “I should,” the young fisherman declared, “I make my living upon them. What’s it to ya?”

  “I wish to rent your services for the day,” smiled the wizard.

  “Ya do, do ya?” grinned the young fisherman expecting to barter a fair amount of coin for forgoing his daily chore. “Why would an old man want to go to sea?”

  “I am dying,” stated Temiker, “and I wish to return home to die. I need a good sailor to get me there. ”

  “You have a beautiful horse that can get ya there,” retorted the sailor. “She certainly looks strong enough to go a long ways.”

  “She is at that,” smiled Temiker. “A pity that I will have to leave her behind though. Do you think you can care for a horse as fine as this one?”

  The fisherman’s eyes widened as he took in the meaning of the old man’s words. The fisherman might be able to save enough to buy an old plow horse for a cart, but he would never own a good riding mare.

  “I will pay you coin for the journey,” sweetened Temiker, “and leave the horse with you. I have no need for gold or horses where I am going.”

  As Temiker expected, the young fisherman was beside himself with his good fortune. The other fishermen were babbling amongst themselves and the wizard listened to their remarks. Some felt as the young fisherman did, while others scoffed at the idea of a fisherman owning any kind of horse. There were a few older fishermen who voiced concern of a trick, but the younger fisherman had taken the bait and was ready to be reeled in.

  “Just what do I have to do to earn this gold?” the young fisherman asked.

  “Do you know of the island off the coast that is shaped like a butterfly and has two hills rising from it, one at each end?” Temiker asked.

  “I do,” replied the young fisherman while pawing his chin. “That is a fair ways out from here. Not many fishermen are willing to go out that far. Some say the Motanga hunt out there. Your gold and horse will do a dead man no good.”

  The Motanga were a reported civilization of intelligent ape people who supposedly lived on a very large island far to the East. Temiker believed the fairy tale was kept alive by sailors who lost their way at sea and were too embarrassed to admit it, so they made up stories about monster apes to turn the attention away from themselves. Still, that explanation would not suffice for a young fisherman.

  “That is ridiculous,” offered Temiker. “I was born and raised on that island and have only been here for about five years. My family lives still on the island and we have never seen any Motanga. If you do not wish to sell me your services, merely say so. Please do not invent children’s stories to turn me away.”

  The fisherman’s face reddened and Temiker could not tell whether he was angry or embarrassed. The wizard made like he was going to turn to leave the conversation and approach another fisherman when he felt the strong fingers of the young fisherman touch his arm lightly.

  “I will take you,” the young fisherman declared. “I am not afraid of the Motanga or anything else that sails the seas. My name is Gerock and I will be ready to go as soon as I remove my fishing gear from the boat and get another lunch ready.”

  Gerock started to empty his boat and the other fishermen returned to their chores, the excitement over. Temiker followed the young fisherman with the horse and when he found out which shack Gerock lived in, he tethered the horse out back of it. The wizard returned to the beach and watched the other fisherman set sail for the open water. Within a few moments, Gerock was ready to depart and Temiker boarded the small vessel. The fishing boat was a workboat and as such had no comforts at all. Temiker sat on an overturned bucket and smiled as he realized it had everything he required right now, a way to move over water.

  The wizard watched the great ball of fire slowly rising over the sea as the new day dawned. The other fishing boats were scattering in every direction, seeking out their own secret spots to harvest the best catch of the day. Some went north and some south. Some stayed fairly close to shore and some went further out to sea. Gerock steered past them all and four hours later, none of them were visible.

  “Gerock,” opened Temiker, “you said you knew these waters well. Do you know precisely where we are now that we cannot see land anymore?”

  “Actually,” replied Gerock, “We can still see land. See that point on the horizon?”

  Temiker followed the line of sight indicated by the fisherman’s finger and saw a tiny speck sticking up on the horizon.

  “That is the spire of the Sun God in Alamar,” explained Gerock. “It is the tallest point around and I use it whenever I go far offshore. To answer your question, yes, I know where we are.”

  “Are you familiar with a cove north of Alamar,” asked Temiker. “The cove that has a waterfall cascading into it?”

  The young fisherman looked at the wizard skeptically. “I have been there but once,” Gerock replied. “I was a small boy and went with my father. I had a wonderful time diving off the rocks alongside the waterfall. Why do you ask me this?”

  “That is where I would like to go,” Temiker smiled. “Will you take me there instead?”

  Gerock stared at the old man. “I knew there was something strange about you,” he declared. “What game are you playing at? I have never heard of anyone living on the butterfly island and you do not look as though you are dying. I will have no mystery out of you, old man. I can leave you out here for the sea to claim and no one will be the wiser, so you had better start being truthful.”

  “The truth it shall be then,” agreed Temiker. “I told you the story about the island so that none of the other villagers would know where we are going. I am indeed at risk of dying, but only if I do not get away. I have a rather large band of men hunting for me. I do not know who they are or why they want me, but I have barely escaped from them twice this morning. I did my best to cover my tracks to your village, but they may end up going there when they can find no tracks at all. If they do, they will find the horse I borrowed from them.”

  “You stole their horse and tied it in my yard,” shouted Gerock. “And you say you do not know why they want you? Are you crazy old man?”

  “Let me finish,” Temiker demanded. “You are protected from their wrath. That is why I approached you in front of the entire village. The worst they can do is take the horse back and I plan on paying you enough gold that you will not care. I will pay you enough to cover your earnings for a fortnight. You need not return to the village for days by which time they will have moved on whether they ever found your village or not. If they do get to your village they will know where I have gone, to the butterfly island. If they do not get to your village then you have gained the horse as a bonus. Either way you profit very well and your risk is limited to sea monsters.”

  “Okay,” Gerock sighed as he calmed down, “but that does not explain what you did to have them after you. I do not like helping criminals even for good pay.”

  “I am not a criminal,” the wizard stated. “I am a teacher, a teacher of magic. Last night I noticed many armed men gathering around my home and barely managed to escape before they broke in. I tried to flee the city only to find that they had men at all of the gates. The Imperial Guard did not know these men and have no quarrel with me. I could have gone to the Guard for
help, but I fear the invaders would have killed them and I did not want that on my conscience. I have broken no laws except stealing a horse of one of the invaders and I know he will not report it because they do not want the Imperial Guard involved. I am as curious as you are to find out why they are after me, but I do not wish to die to find out.”

  The young fisherman sat staring out to sea for a long time, digesting the wizard’s story. Finally he asked, “What is your name?”

  “I am Temiker,” the wizard replied. “I am the founder of the magic school in Alamar.”

  “I believe you,” nodded Gerock. “I have heard of you and you look as you were described. What happens when I return and they torture the truth out of me? How will that help you escape?”

  “These men do not want to call attention to themselves,” Temiker answered. “They will not use torture, but they may well question you and take their horse back, which you will graciously allow them to do. With your permission, I will implant a false memory in your brain to help me. When you return to the village, you will remember me dying on the voyage. You will remember my request to be buried at sea should that happen. Hopefully, that will be the end of their interest in you and me.”

  “This false memory,” inquired the fisherman, “will it affect me in any other way?”

  “No,” smiled Temiker. “It will not hurt you nor alter any other memories.”

  Gerock stared at the spire in Alamar, which was now off the port side of the vessel as they sailed north. After a long time of silence, Gerock turned to meet the wizard’s gaze. “I will do as you ask, wizard. I wish you safe journey and am only sorry that I will not remember you and this talk.”