Ancient Prophecy (21 page)

The General cleaned up the tray in the sink and returned the gold pieces to his pouch. He laid John’s gold piece on the desk and pushed it towards the painter. These actions bought him a little time to digest what Secor was telling him. He had tried to locate the two missing candidates and they could not be found, but he had no indication that they had been murdered. Still, Fernandez had never bought the idea of them willingly backing Mitchel.

“John,” the General probed, “even if I believe everything that you have said. What do you expect me to do?”

“I don’t know,” John sighed. “I have every trust in Suarez, but no one would believe this information if it came from him. I don’t know who I would even trust other than yourself. My main fear is the starting of another war. I don’t want to witness the deaths of thousands of soldiers on both sides. Perhaps I thought you could avoid that somehow. Either ignore the orders or delay the deployment of forces or something.”

General Fernandez stared at John Secor. “Do you know that what you are suggesting is treason?”

“It is not a treason against the country or the people,” declared Secor. “You’ve been very good with your emotions, General. You haven’t in any way indicated that you are readying for war, but I know you are. Targa knows you are. Can you really sit there and allow thousands of good men to die because you fail to see the truth when it is staring you in the face?”

General Fernandez smiled sadly at the painter as he rose from behind the desk. “John, do not speak of this to anyone else. I promise you nothing, but I know that you care for the Cordonian people. If you care equally for the Targans, I cannot fault you for that. Know that I care for the people, too. Go now, get back to your shop and keep quiet.”

The General showed John Secor to the door of his office and returned to his desk to dwell on matters of treason.

John was frustrated. He knew General Fernandez was a good man, but he also knew that he was a loyal military officer. John could not figure out which way he would go. Before John reached the Palace gates, two soldiers intercepted him. They told him that the President wished to see him. John had no choice but to follow. He couldn’t believe that Fernandez had betrayed him. He didn’t know if the General eventually would, but John could have been seized in the General’s office if that was the case.

John had been in the Presidential Palace many times and knew the layout fairly well. The soldiers were not taking him to any of the rooms where the President could normally be found. Indeed, the soldiers escorted John Secor to a cell in the dungeon and locked him in bracelets and anklets.

John did not have long to wait before President Mitchel showed up. What made John shiver, though, was the President’s companion. Dalgar produced a set of keys and entered the cell before the President.

“You seem to work for a great number of rulers these days,” spat John.

“I’m a popular man,” snickered Dalgar. “You avoided the Black Devils fairly well the last time, but now it is different. We have come to ask you a few basic questions. Answer them and maybe you’ll go free. Refuse and you will wish the Black Devils had killed you long ago.”

“You might as well kill me now,” braved John. “I will tell you nothing.”

Mitchel pulled a stool out of the corner and made himself comfortable. Dalgar flashed a knife off of his belt and laughed.

“I want the Book of the Beginning,” began Mitchel. “Tell me where I can find it and you can go free when we have retrieved it.”

John clamped his mouth shut and refused to talk. Dalgar took his knife and, starting at John’s neck, sliced the length of John’s arm, slicing clean through the fabric of the painter’s tunic and slightly into his arm.

John gritted his teeth to ease the pain. Mitchel repeated the question and Dalgar repeated the cutting on John’s other side. John’s tunic slid to the floor as blood dripped down both arms. John clamped his mouth shut so tight he felt his teeth would shatter, but he refused to utter a syllable.

“John, John,” whispered Mitchel, “it’s only a book. We know Jenneva has it. Just tell us where we can find Jenneva and we can stop all of this pain.”

John remained silent and Dalgar cut a deep slash across the captive’s bare chest. Mitchel was amusing himself by going through the contents of John’s pouch and picked up the vial. He held the vial up to the torch and gazed at it. He removed the stopper and cautiously sniffed the contents. He almost dropped the vial as the acid fumes seared his nostrils. “Well, well,” he chuckled, “what have we here?”

He handed the vial to Dalgar and the Black Devil torturer smiled. He took the vial and stooped to John’s feet. Slowly, he allowed a drop to fall on one of the painter’s toes and John screamed as the acid ate through his flesh. The second toe started John babbling and the third caused him to faint.

When John came to, Mitchel and Dalgar were waiting. The pain was still incredibly intense and Dalgar stooped at John’s other foot.

“When Dalgar is done with your feet,” whispered Mitchel, “he will begin on your hands. After that, who knows. Where does Jenneva live?”

Several hours later, the trembling mass of flesh that used to be John Secor, babbled answers to any question that was asked of him. Mitchel smiled as he rose from the stool.

“Take three men and go,” ordered Mitchel. “I want that book back here by tomorrow. And, Dalgar, don’t come back without it.”

“We still haven’t heard back from John Secor,” Prince Oscar said. “We don’t know if the Cordonians are going to coordinate their attack with Sordoa.”

“Do you really think the enemy will tell Secor what they are planning?” quipped General Clark.

“I don’t look at General Fernandez as the enemy,” interrupted Prince Oscar. “He is truly Cordonian and wouldn’t hesitate to attack Targa if he thought we meant harm to his country, but I think he is fair and open-minded enough to listen to John. John certainly will present enough information to cause the General to rethink his orders.”

“Even if he does,” added General Gregor, “he can not arbitrarily ignore his President’s orders. He is a military officer and has been trained to execute his orders, even if he disagrees with them.”

“General Gregor,” asked King Byron, “if you were in his exact position, what would you do?”

General Gregor pondered the Cordonian’s position. He had, in fact, been in a similar position when he learned of the fake King Austin. “If I was sure that the ruler was not entitled to his position, I would do what I thought best for the country, what I think the real ruler would want. I should add, though, that I would have to be convinced of the facts before I would ever even contemplate such a move.”

General Clark looked at General Gregor and his face flushed. “I have to apologize for my statements. General Gregor is correct. We both faced that decision not long ago. The real question is whether or not Secor managed to convince General Fernandez.”

“Well, it bothers me that John hasn’t gotten back to us,” said Prince Oscar. “John is a very capable man, but his words could be taken as treason if the wrong person heard them. I think I need to return to Kantor and check up on him.”

“Absolutely not!” exclaimed King Byron. “The Crown Prince does not go traipsing around in a foreign capital when the two nations are about to go to war. You wouldn’t even make it to the Royal Palace.”

“Alex had a very good rapport with General Fernandez,” stated General Gregor. “If any man could get to speak with the Cordonian General, it would be Colonel Tork.”

“I can’t say that I care much for the idea,” offered Prince Oscar, “but I would value his opinion on the Sordoan troop movements and other things that we are facing. Let me go get him. I’ll be right back.”

Oscar walked down the stairs to Lord Habas’s laboratory and through the Door to Egam’s cave. From the cave he passed through another Door to Jenneva’s study and found it empty. He looked out the window and saw Shanor playing outside with a monkey. Figuring that Alex might be out back again, he trotted down the steps and out the back door.

Alex and Jenneva were walking along the path and Oscar waved to them. “So, how is the new mother feeling?”

“Great, Oscar!” Jenneva answered. “The baby just fell asleep and I figured I would steal a walk with this handsome fellow who has been prowling around in the backyard.”

Oscar laughed. “It’s that handsome fellow whom I came to steal. The Sordoan Army is on the move and we could use Alex’s input. We also haven’t heard back from John yet.”

Alex frowned. “I don’t think General Fernandez would have imprisoned him. The General struck me as an intelligent officer. He may not have believed John, but he wouldn’t harm him for making statements and if I know John, he wouldn’t do anything but talk.”

“I agree,” replied Oscar. “I’ll try to get him back as soon as possible, Jenneva.”

“Hang on, Oscar,” halted Alex. “I am going to bring Kaz in case I need to get somewhere quickly.”

Alex kissed Jenneva goodbye and called Kaz. Together with Oscar they started for the building when Jenneva called to him. “What about Aurora’s baby?”

“The Spiders still haven’t been able to get near her,” called back Oscar.

Oscar, Alex and Kaz went through the Doors to the Royal Palace. Alex told Kaz where the stables were so that he could view some Targan horses and see what they were like. Alex and Oscar proceeded up to the meeting room.

When they arrived, Larc was drawing a map of the Sordoan forces and marking the location of the Targan forces as well. Alex greeted everybody and focused on the map. There didn’t appear to be any feint this time. The mass of the Sordoan forces were heading for Melbin. “What is their Navy like?” Alex asked.

“Not much to speak of,” answered Larc. “They have pressed a few freighters into service like we did in the last war, but I don’t see them launching a large naval attack.”

General Clark nodded approvingly. “The worst they can do is hide out and disrupt our Navy if we should attempt to sail south towards Trekum. This is going to be a land battle all the way.”

Just then Jenneva bounded into the room. “Oscar, you can’t just leave the problem to the Spid...I mean, Aurora is a magician. It will take a magician to get close to her.” Jenneva’s face reddened. She hadn’t thought that everyone present might not know about the Spiders.

“Jenneva, you need to be home with the baby,” argued Alex.

“Alex,” Jenneva retorted, “if you remember, a great deal rides on keeping her baby alive. You can stay with the baby while I go to Trekum. I won’t be long, but we cannot take the chance of something happening to her baby. Too many lives depend on it.”

“Let me go and get your baby,” offered Oscar. “I’ll come back here and nobody will be left alone. I’ll bring Shanor, as well. Jenneva is right. She is the only one who stands a chance of getting close to Aurora. I should have realized that right away.”

“Okay,” agreed Alex, “I don’t like the idea of you going to Trekum alone though, Jenneva.”

“Where does the Door come out down there?” asked Jenneva.

“At the Continental Shipping Company warehouse,” answered Larc.

“Okay, Alex,” decided Jenneva, “come with me as far as the warehouse and we’ll see what the situation is like. While it may not be safe for an armed man to walk around the city, no one will question a woman walking alone, but I will feel better with you nearby.”

“Well, you two had better come along, then,” stated General Gregor. “It is starting to get dark out and I think we are due for a storm. There is no sense in walking around in Trekum on a rainy night. The Door is in my office.”

“You’re right about the storm, General,” offered Jenneva. “It passed over Atar’s cove a couple of hours ago and it was heading this way.”

Alex and Jenneva followed General Gregor to his office and Prince Oscar left for Lord Habas’s library. He wondered how they could accomplish anything without the Doors.

Dalgar and his men lay in the bushes of the tropical jungle, the ground soaking wet and the leaves still dripping from a storm that had passed over not long ago. The Black Devil was clearly uncomfortable in the muggy atmosphere. He hated the jungle and cared even less for the animals that roamed through the dense foliage. After a while they had found the path lined with shells and coral and followed it towards the large structure, which appeared to be set in the side of a mountain. Somewhere in that structure Dalgar knew he would find the Book of the Beginning.

A young girl came skipping down the path and Dalgar motioned for his men to stay hidden. Just as she came abreast of Dalgar, he leaped up and swung his sword, slicing open her young throat. Before the girl’s body hit the ground, Dalgar heard a growling sound rushing towards him through the bushes. He called to his men and they jumped onto the path just as a large tiger came leaping out of the woods. The tiger connected with one of Dalgar’s men and both man and beast went flying into the jungle on the other side of the trail.

At that moment, Oscar walked through the Door into Jenneva’s study and heard the man’s scream. He ran to the window and peered out. Seeing Shanor’s bleeding body lying on the path, Oscar’s fist clenched in rage. She was obviously dead and Oscar’s attention was drawn to a human body falling out of the jungle onto the path, his throat ripped out and his body landing limp.

The tiger leaped out of the jungle and attacked another man. Prince Oscar did not waste any more time watching. He raced down the stairs to Jenneva’s bedroom and grabbed the baby. Even as he was hoisting the sleeping baby into his arms he heard the footsteps on the stairs going up towards Jenneva’s study. He had recognized Dalgar as one of the men and knew he could not use the Door. He would have little chance of getting to it. Frantically, he grasped for a solution to his dilemma. Prince Oscar turned and raced out the back door searching for Yorra. Alex had said that the unicorns could fly. Prince Oscar intended to find out how well they flew.

The back yard area was rather large with many paths and pools interspersed with jungle. He ran along the main path and tried to send a mental message to Yorra. He rounded a bend in the path and Yorra stood before him. Without further thought, he grabbed Yorra’s mane with one hand and threw himself on the unicorn’s back.