Sovereign of the Seven Isles 7: Reishi Adept (5 page)

“I had one of Kelvin’s explosive weapons delivered to the hidden fortress on the Reishi Isle a while back. Given Zuhl’s unhealthy interest in the Nether Gate, now seemed like a good time to detonate it.”

“You mean you just blew up the Nether Gate?”
she asked.

“No, but I’m pretty sure I just brought the mountain dow
n on top of it … along with a few thousand of Zuhl’s soldiers.”

Jack chuckled and started writing.

“Why did you wait so long?” Anja asked.

“I was hoping to kill Phane with it,” Alexander said.
“If there’s one thing I can be certain of, it’s that Phane will eventually wind up in front of the Nether Gate.”

Jataan nodded
.

Chapter
4

“I was afraid of that,” Alexander said, opening his eyes.

“What?” Anja asked.

“There’s an army camped around the Andalian Gate … and they’ve buried it,” he said. “Looks like we’re flying north.”

“Will that be fast enough?” Jack asked.

“I hope so,” Alexander said. “If they hadn’t piled several tons of dirt and rocks on top of the Gate, I’d be tempted to make a run for it in the night. As it stands, we’d never make it through.”

“It’
ll take at least four days to reach New Ruatha,” Kiera said.

“I could fly there in
two,” Anja said.

“Are you offering?”
Alexander asked, pointedly.

Anja frowned. “No.”

“Four days it is then,” Alexander said.

“We’
ll have to stop to feed the wyverns somewhere on the north coast,” Kiera said. “From there we can make Kai’Gorn by dark.”

“All right, if we have to stop on the coast, let’s
head for the shipyard Talia’s building in the Western Province.”

Alexander left Luminessence against the doorframe and stepped out onto the plateau high in the Andalian mountains that had been home for the past
few days. He offered his friends a smile before closing them inside, then he mounted up behind Kiera, double-checking his straps. Kiera signaled her wing rider and the two wyverns leapt off the mountaintop into the sky. Alexander felt the increasingly familiar thrill of falling and then the crush of gravity as the wyvern’s powerful wings thrust against the air, propelling them higher. He silently gave thanks that the weather was fair and warm.

It wasn’t long before the thrill
of flight gave way to monotony. Kiera flew high enough to be safe from any conceivable attack from the ground. While the world seemed to pass by slowly, the edge of the evergreen forest blanketing the Western Province passed beneath them soon enough. The sun was high in the sky when they landed in the makeshift aerie set a fair distance from the hastily constructed shipyard and the town that was rapidly growing up around it.

Handlers went to work unbuckling the saddles and feeding the wyverns as Alexander and Kiera dismounted.

“It’ll be a couple of hours before we’re ready to fly again,” Kiera said.

“All right
. I think I’ll go have a look at the shipyard.”

Alexander
opened the door to his Wizard’s Den and his friends filed out into the afternoon sun.

“I have to say, that’s a remarkably relaxing way to travel,” Jack said, taking in his new surroundings.

A few moments later, two Rangers arrived and reined in their horses. Recognition spread through the lead man’s colors.

“LaChance, right?” Alexander said. “You were Kevin’s
lieutenant.”

“
I was indeed, Lord Reishi. Regent Alaric sent me to assist General Talia. He promoted me to commander and assigned me to lead the incursion into Andalia.”

“Outstanding
, Commander. Why don’t you tell us about your progress over lunch.”

LaChance
summoned a wagon and Alexander and his friends piled in for the short ride into town. The place looked like it had been built yesterday. The main road was dirt with shrubs and grass still clinging to the space between the wagon ruts. The buildings, many of them still under construction, were built with freshly cut timbers. Tents picked up where the buildings left off, sprawling haphazardly off into fields littered with stumps.

The people were busy, bustling this way and that
; hauling wood to the paddlewheel-powered sawmill that straddled a nearby stream; clearing trees, both to create more space for the expanding population and to feed the shipyard’s insatiable demand for lumber; and working in every conceivable type of shop, from smithies to bakeries.

LaChance led them into one of the larger buildings and motioned to the table in the center of the main room.

“Welcome to my headquarters,” he said with an unabashed smile. “I know it doesn’t look like much, but a week ago this was nothing but a patch of dirt.”

“Sounds like you’re making good progress,” Alexander said.

“We are, and I expect that to accelerate now that you’ve given General Talia the order to move on Andalia.”

“That was quick,” Alexander said. “I just talked to him yesterday.”

“We received a message rider this morning,” LaChance said. “One of the things I’ve learned from working for General Talia is that he plans for just about every conceivable situation. I’m sure the moment you gave the order, he set his plan into motion. I’m expecting a fleet to arrive within the week loaded with soldiers, weapons, food, and gold.”

“Outstanding,” Alexander said. “How are things on the ground here?”

“I suspect it’s like most everywhere else … we have too much to do and not enough to do it with. I’ve put most of my resources into the shipyard, so the town is coming along more slowly than most people would like. Fortunately, the weather has been mild so the tents are adequate for now, but that won’t last. There’s grumbling about the working conditions, pay rates, the high cost of just about everything, and a thousand other things.

“Most of the people from the
Western Province are invested in defeating the Andalians, but a lot of the people from the shipyards we destroyed to the east aren’t happy and they mostly blame us. On top of that, I’ve got agitators from every trade guild imaginable stirring up trouble, threatening to go back to the Andalians, to stop working and even sabotage our operations. I’ve run off a few of the true believers, but it’s a fine line. On one hand we need the shipwrights; on the other, I can’t afford an outright revolt, so I’ve had to make a few examples.”

“
Have the Andalians moved against you?”

“Nothing significant. We’ve caught
a few spies, but I’m sure more have gotten messages out. My scouts tell me that a legion of Lancers is camped just east of the forest along the coast, but I think they’re just protecting what’s left of their shipyards.

“Fortunately, they can’t seem to let go of their
rhone. If they were a bit more adaptable, they might be a threat. Honestly, we couldn’t repel an all-out assault if they decided to attack on foot … at least not yet. We’ll be in a far better position once reinforcements arrive.”

“What’s Talia’s plan of attack?” Jataan asked.

“With the Lancers in northern Ruatha on the run, Mistress Constance will be sending me a wing of Sky Knights armed with firepots. I’ll use them to destroy the rest of the Andalian shipyards.

“We have ab
out thirty-five hundred militiamen, but none of them have much training, so we’re working to arm them with bows and train them to fight in units. Once they’re a bit farther along I plan on thinning the ranks of the Lancers to the east. Maybe draw them into the forest where we have the advantage.”

Jataan nodded
approvingly.

“General Talia is also sending
me a couple of bards and three men from the Elite Guard. I’m not sure what five more people can do that we can’t, but he wouldn’t be sending them if he didn’t think they’d be useful.”

“You might be surprised, Commander,” Jack said. “I’ll prepare a letter for the
bards. With a bit of guidance, I’m sure they’ll be able to help you with your trade-guild problem.”

“
I don’t see how, but I’ll take your word for it,” LaChance said.

The door opened and a man rushed in, stopping short and struggling to catch his breath. He was dressed in fine clothes, wor
e several rings and carried a walking stick with a polished silver pommel. His neatly trimmed silver hair formed a crown around his bald pate.

A m
oment later, another man bustled in, stopping in his tracks and looking to the first man for instructions. Receiving none, he waited patiently, if a bit nervously.

“Commander LaChance, you should have summoned me,”
the first man said, as if he were scolding a child. “I am the mayor, after all. I should be present to greet any guests of importance. So who do we have here? Message riders from Ruatha?”

LaChance regarded him calmly. “Mayor Humphrey, this is Lord Reishi, Sovereign of the
Seven Isles.”

The man blanched slightly, but very quickly regained his composure. “Lord Reishi, what an unexpected surprise.” Within a few words he seemed completely at ease. “I must thank you on behalf of all Andalians for you
r valiant efforts to free us from the yolk of Acuna tyranny.”

“Please, join us,” Alexander said, motioning to an empty chair while appraising the man’s colors. He found them wanting.

“How kind of you, Lord Reishi,” Humphrey said, turning to the second man before taking his place at the table. “Go see to the preparations for Lord Reishi’s quarters.” The second man didn’t hesitate, scurrying out of the room before Alexander could object.

Humphrey sat down
, placing his hands flat on the table. “This is very exciting,” he said. “We’re so proud of our burgeoning little community and the important role we have to play in the war effort. I trust that Commander LaChance has informed you of our progress, but I wonder if he’s made you aware of the many supply shortages our good people are suffering with. I would list the items we’re in need of but I’m afraid that would take too much of your time. Suffice it to say, we are short of everything … from food to iron.”

Alexander got the impression that the man could talk for an hour without taking a breath
, so he stopped him with a gesture.

“Mayor Humphrey, I’m sure Commander LaChance is allocating his resources as best he can.”

“Oh yes, of course, I don’t mean to diminish the important work the Rangers are doing here, and Commander LaChance has been more than fair … on most counts, anyway.”

Alexander waited without responding, watching a hint of duplicity ripple in
Humphrey’s colors. When it became apparent that Alexander wasn’t going to inquire about his concerns, he continued.

“You see, we have an opportunity that Commander LaChance has been reluctant to take advantage of, and I was hoping that you would see the wisdom
—”

“What opportunity?”

“Ah, yes, well … for quite some time, a resistance organization has been working against the Andalian government and the Acuna. Of course, the Babachenko labeled the leader of these freedom fighters an outlaw and a brigand, but now that open war has come to Andalia, they seem like a natural ally. Unfortunately, I’ve been unable to persuade Commander LaChance of the value of such an alliance.”

“What I told you, was that I’m not making an alliance until I meet the man first,” LaChance said firmly.

“While I see the potential value,” Alexander said, “I agree with Commander LaChance. What’s this man’s name?”

“He’s called Nightshade,” Humphrey
said.

Alexander schooled his expression, nodding to himself while watching the
mayor’s colors intently. Anja started to blurt something, but stopped when Jack spilled his drink, standing so quickly that he knocked his chair over. In the ensuing commotion, Alexander silenced Anja with a look.

“I’m so sorry,” Jack said, hurrying
to clean up the mess he’d made while Humphrey looked on disapprovingly.

“Have you met this man?” Alexander asked, drawing the
mayor’s attention back to him.

“No, never,” Humphrey lied.

“I see,” Alexander said, feigning disappointment. “That’s unfortunate. We can use all the allies we can get. Do you have a way to get word to this Nightshade? Perhaps he would agree to a meeting with me.”

“I do have a contact, but I won’t be able to meet with him until after dark,” Humphrey said.

“Also unfortunate,” Alexander said. “I have urgent business elsewhere, so we’ll be leaving shortly.”

“Surely your business could be delayed
for a day,” Humphrey said. “Nightshade could provide us with supplies and silver. His assistance might make all the difference in the fight for Andalia.”

“I’m afraid not, Mayor Humphrey,” Alexander said. “However, I’m sure Commander LaChance would be happy to meet with
him.”

“As I understand it, Nightshade is extremely cautious,” Humphrey said. “
So far, he’s been unwilling to meet with the commander … but I’m certain he would make time for you, Lord Reishi.”

Alexander pretended to weigh the man’s words but then slowly shook his head.

“I’m afraid my business is too urgent to be delayed. As much as I’d like to meet him, I need to be on my way.”

“Really, Lord Reishi, you must reconsider,” Humphrey said.

Alexander held the man with his blind eyes until Humphrey’s colors started to show discomfort.

“
No,” Alexander said, waiting for the man to open his mouth to protest again before continuing. “Now, if you’ll excuse us, I have some military matters to discuss with Commander LaChance.”

Humphrey looked taken aback. “But … I’m the
mayor. I should be present for—”