The Prophesy: Book 2 - The Right Hand of Destiny

 

The three princes progressed rapidly north, hopping from one hideout to another, their guide recognizing ever more of the countryside. The group made their way around Frisco, progressed further north, reaching Port after an hour of travel.

"We live across the bay; the inner bay is impossible to live in. It got contaminated beyond redemption during the Cataclysm", explained their young guide. "Even the seawater is dangerous, and many of us have horrible deformities due to the Atom God's displeasure. My parents' house is up in the hills, away from the sea, even if dad is a mariner. He says that those who are too lazy to move out of the sea's way pay the price of the God, and either burn or have deformed children, and that it is only safe to wet a ship to sea when the tide is coming in; when the tide goes out, it brings with it death, which it leaves behind on the exposed shoals."

"I see," answered Harp. "From what you see, is the tide coming in or going out?"

"The wind blows from the land, the shoals are almost bare, and the river is almost all exposed. It is going out, and it should be flat in about an hour, then it will reverse, and reach its maximum flow in four hours. We need to wait until then. The maximum depth will be reached in six hours, by then ships going to sea will have left the bay's mouth and those coming in will have been pulled out of it to have their keel washed down."

"OK. We need a place to rest and wait. Do you know if there are settlements on this side of the bay? We might as well begin the evacuation of the children while we are stuck in the area."

"There are the few villages we have seen along the coast, and Lem , further inland. It has an orphanage, if it what you have in mind."

"Good thinking. Does Port have an orphanage?"

"No, it is considered a military town, and children are burdens for these places."

"OK, to Lem, then, it should not take us a lot of time to reach."

The trip to Lem took around ten minutes, as they hopped like flying squirrels from tall tree to tall tree. The huge red pines offered a marvellous way to travel.

Lem turned out to be a village of about six thousand souls, mostly composed of adults, few children, and the orphanage, that was the biggest employer of the area. A tiny military outpost was found at the northern end. It became apparent to the four boys the sole role of that outpost was to prevent people from travelling on what was left of an Ancient road. The reason was clearly identified: A huge Atom God sign was literally engraved in a rock that blocked the passage. Go further at your own risk was also clearly inscribed just below the symbol. You could see, further down the road, trees that showed signs of the Atom God's grip, and, further down the valley, the outskirts of a Forbidden Forest.

"Aren't they living a bit close to a Forbidden Forest?" asked Paschal, uneasy.

"They have no choice, Prince Sitar. Many of them are rejected by society because they are deformed, and this is the last piece of land that can actually grow something for hundreds of miles, if ever anything does grow further north. The area further north was savagely hit during the Cataclysm. There were numerous important cities around, of which nothings but glowing ruins are left. Port was not where it is now; Van , Vic , and the entire bay area serving the two major cities have been melted down by the fury of the God. When the wind blows from the north, the number of child death increases dramatically, and parents have resorted to keeping their children inside the cave dwellings."

"Cave dwellings?"

"Well, yes, all the houses are dug in below ground so the Wind of Death does not reach it. Dad told me the people resorted to this when they noticed that caves offered a modicum of protection from the fearsome breath of the Atom God."

"Are you telling me these buildings we see standing are mock-ups?"

"In a way. They protect the entrance of the home from direct exposure to the invisible death. When the wind blows from the north, even in Port, there are storm horns that will bellow until the wind changes."

"This is so sad. Let's get moving we have a lot of work to do."

The four decided to move at the southern exit and walk in, rather than pop right in the middle of the village. Their first goal was reaching any member of an organized order, except the military! As they walked along the central street, named, as one would expect, Main Street (as if there were any other street in Lem), they looked at the different shop fronts, trying to decide which one would be of more use for their purpose. Sitar spotted an apothecary's shop, and further down, on the opposite side of the narrow street, an ironsmith.

"Which one, Harp?"

"The apothecary does not seem to have customers, contrary to the forge, that seems to be rather busy. Let's go to the drugstore. We will not be disturbing him, since he seems to be doing nothing."

The four boys walked to the storefront, and opened the door, which triggered an unnerving bell. The apothecary walked to the front from his backroom, wondering who would be visiting his shop.

"Good morning, Companion Apothecary. Is the Master present?" asked Harp.

"I am sorry, the Master died of Atom sickness a few years back. It was a major tragedy for the area. You must not be from the area, since I have never seen you before and you seem to ignore the greatest news of the past few years."

"This is too bad; the Apothecaries are few, and losing a master is hard for them."

"Yes, it is so true. What can I do for you, boys?"

"Before answering that question, do you have an up to date list of the members of your Guild, dating at most a couple of years?"

"Why, yes, it is in my office desk. I have not ordered an updated version since it is costly. Why?"

"Get it please. You should find in the list of names one Master Horatio, elf, assigned to a city in the Elvin kingdom, Sophia of the archduchy of the same name."

The companion was astounded; no one had access to the contents of the Book, except members of the Guild, and that little boy was not even of age to be selected by a diviner! Too shocked to offer any objection, he led the four boys to his laboratory, and, without even bothering to hide his moves, opened a secret drawer in a desk found against the back wall. He looked up for the Masters section with some excitation then, through the list of names, for Horatio. Four Horatio were listed, and one, an elf, was effectively Master Apothecary assigned to Sophia, Kingdom of Elves. The shock was total.

"How? How did you know?"

"We met Horatio some times back. He was invited at Our Court. We assigned to Horatio the responsibility of preparing the Guild to be on a war footing."

"What?"

"You heard clearly. I am Prince Harp, and this is my brother Prince Sitar, and my other brother Prince Enron. With us is our guide, which has no name, since he did not tell us yet?"

"Oh, sorry, Prince Harp! Given the day's events, my manners have taken a walk out on their own. My name is Rizzo Angostini, Apprentice Mage, as you already know."

"You wear the colours of an apprentice, Rizzo, so I do have to believe you. But why do you believe them?"

"Because I have seen Prince Harp at work at the college, and he presided our breakfast, above Nestor, the Great Grand Master of the Order, and Dean of the College of Magic. If he believes them, I would have bad faith not believing them too."

After giving it some thought, the Companion decided that the young Apprentice was trustworthy and to follow his lead in this matter.

"What can I do for you, princes?"

"We need to know the village hierarchy, because we are here for a serious reason."

"There are few involved. The Master Ironsmith is the most important; the village leadership includes him, the herbalist, which is now too old to get out of his house and has no apprentices, so I have to do his work plus mine, and there is me."

"What about the military guys?"

"They are under the command of a drunkard, who does the big bully, but spends most of his days the head in the wine barrel. The guards are more for show than anything. The last time there was an orc raid, which comprised an astronomical two orcs, they ran away! We had to fight them off ourselves!"

"What about the orphanage?" Enron asked.

"It is under the stiff hand of a bitchy old brood. I wish she would get sick, I would have an excuse to give her belladonna!"

"Damn! You sure do not carry her in your heart, since you would give her deadly nightshade!"

"Is it not ironic, since belladonna kills by creating a heart attack!"

"How is the ironsmith?" asked Sitar.

"He is gruff, but can be talked to."

"Could you introduce us to him?"

"Certainly, follow me."

The four boys followed the apothecary across the street. The ironsmith was heating his furnace and loading it with charcoal, readying it for the repair of a plough blade. A few customers, mostly farmers, were around, eying the sweating man at work. Some pots and pans were also awaiting repair on a table, and a bin of steel bits were awaiting their shaping into nails, as evidenced by another bin set beside it. A severely breached sword lay on a far wall, seemingly lost in the domestic hardware found pell-mell in the shop.

The apothecary walked toward the man, getting in front of the customers, some of which groaned openly.

"What do you want?" asked, roughly, the ironsmith, looking crossly at the Companion, as he signalled his helper to resume blowing air under the fire.

"I have visitors, and they have asked to see you."

"I don't have time for fancy pricks! Get out of my shop!"

Harp signalled to Sitar, who decided he had enough of the ironsmith's attitude. With a quick move, he took Excalibur out of its scabbard. The blade was out so fast it hissed like a snake ready to strike.

"Ironsmith!" thundered Sitar. "Look at that blade! Look at it! Do you recognize its quality? Do you know its name?"

"I do not give a damn about the blade's name, twerp! Get lost!"

Faster than the eye could follow, Sitar moved forward and slammed Excalibur through the ironsmith's anvil, slicing it in the middle. The song of Excalibur as it cut in half the hardened steel was resounding.

Turning to the awed customers, Sitar then pointed at the door with the blade and said, in a commanding voice: "Leave. The smithy is closed for the day! Bring your children to the agora in thirty minute or they die. This is an order."

"Who are you? No blade should have been able to do that! Especially not handled by a child!"

"Introduce us!" ordered Sitar, as he looked at the apothecary. Introductions were quickly dispatched, and the ironsmith wondered what had brought these people to his smithy.

"We need to evacuate the children" began Harp. "A major earthquake will destroy everything for hundreds of miles around, and we cannot take everyone with us. Children are your future. Give them a chance to live."

"How do you know?"

"Because he is a mage, above all mages, Master Ironsmith. He dominated the college of Magic this morning and won a fight against many black mages at the same time. The black mages are the ones responsible, and he has taken upon his shoulders to rescue and protect as many children as he can in the imparted time before the catastrophe hits and destroys everything." Angostini replied.

"How many?"

"Too many for me to count. And it was over so fast I couldn't believe it."

"I see, I will stand with you, Princes, and with you, apothecary, even if I know I will not see the dawn of another day. You are right; children are the ones to save. You will have trouble with the orphanage bitch."

"Let me use her as an example of what happens. She stands no chance." Sitar replied in a voice so cold the ironsmith thought his fires had gone out suddenly.

"Harp, how about calling the populace out using a voice amplified by magic?" Enron suggested.

"Won't this bring the soldier as well? The poor sods believe they have control in this place."

"Let them. If they want to play tough, they will find they have to look for a seamstress to close the lips of their gaping wounds. I am in no mood to play games with them, given the circumstances."

"Sitar, you are getting as bad as Harp!"

"I heard that, Enron!" said Harp, frowning.

Harp, quickly followed by the others, walked out and toward the centre of Lem. Reaching the agora, he focussed and, suddenly a commanding voice was heard.

"To all who wish their children well, bring them to the agora of Lem within fifteen minutes. After that it will be too late. No delays shall be admitted!"

With that, the group progressed toward the orphanage, which was ominously silent. Harp knocked, and after a few minutes for an answer, decided it was taking too long. He slammed Bata on the door, reducing it to dust, and entered the building. The hallway was dusty, ill kept, and the windows showed they had not been washed since the last rain. The group followed the footstep in the dust, and quickly came to a steel door, that was locked.

"Is that the cave?" asked Harp.

"Yes. It is how things must be done to keep the air out."

"Bye-bye door!" Bata began to cut through the thick steel with a beam of coherent light so bright most had to close their eyes not to be blinded. Only Harp, protecting his eyes with a filter, kept them open to check his progress. A few minutes later, the hot door fell backward, to be immediately banished by a quick wrist movement.

"Freeze!" ordered Harp. The rest of the doorframe cracked as it suddenly became colder than ice. "Now we get in."

The group descended in a smelly, dank, and dark stairwell, which turned twice on itself before reaching the bottom. Another door, made of a thick layer of redwood blocked the passage.

"Is this arrangement standard?" asked Sitar.

"Yes. We were in the airlock. Now we are going to enter the living quarters proper."

"No wonder we did not get an answer right away!" replied Enron.

"There should have been a doorman, or at least someone at the top waiting for visitors. Everyone does that, if only to be informed of an alert."

Harp tried to open the door, which was locked.

"Not again! Get lost!" he said, dispatching the door to a place he only knew about.

As the door vanished, a strong, disgusting smell assailed their nostrils. It combined the smell of rotten food, cooking, badly washed bodies, rancid piss, and dejections of all sorts. At the same time, their ears were met with a cacophony of sounds that included cries, yelling, imprecations, and other noises whose nature they could not even begin to guess the origin.

"If all orphanages are like that, I can understand why that poor mage wants us to handle them first. Who, in his right mind, would leave children in these conditions?" spat Harp. "Even orcs would balk at that place!"

The group entered the living quarters and began walking slowly, trying to keep standing on the slippery, dejection-covered, floor. They saw children everywhere, most nude, some with bits and pieces of clothes that hid nothing and showed the lack of maintenance by the holes and the rampant fleas and other insects that seemed to find refuge between the distasteful body covering and the poor children. Many had eyesores, leaking noses, and seemed to be covered by sores and burns caused by an irritant or other. Huge, desperate eyes watched them walk by; many children showed bald spots from staying on their back too long, while others rocked back and forth, totally oblivious to their surrounding. They saw a boy, on his back, pee on his body and rub it on in as if this was a normal occurrence. An older boy seemed to be playing with his genitals, ignoring anything, focussed as he was on his self-satisfaction and immediate pleasure.

Moving in deeper, they came to a bigger room, where a woman that seemed to come out of hell and wore just about nothing, was busy beating up a little girl with a whip, laughing at the acute cries of the child and telling her obscenities as she targeted her body indiscriminately.

Harp just about exploded when he witnessed this and bellowed, using magic to amplify his voice: "Enough!"

The matron turned around and looking at Harp, replied harshly, "No one talks to me like this. This is my home, and I do whatever I want!" Followed immediately came a resounding crack from the whip as she tried to hit Harp in the face. Sitar intercepted the coming leather and sliced it to tiny bits using Excalibur, thus disarming the ill intentioned residue of humanity. This did not calm down the house matron; she charged them like a ceros, only to be sent flying across the room by Sitar, in an application of a judo move long forgotten. She slammed into the far wall, and stood up groggily.

"Harp, take the children to the agora, I will guard that monster. Judgement is ours." Sitar said. "Bitch, your day of reckoning has come. You will stand in judgement in front of the village."

Enron, accompanied by the ironsmith and the apothecary, quickly exited the disgusting orphanage. Meanwhile, Harp and Rizzo explored the orphanage, finding the most disgusting living condition imaginable. Babies, five to a crib living in their own crap and pee; youngster barely able to crawl, others that showed such a level of malnutrition bones pierced their skin. Infections of all organs and marks of torture were visible on just about everyone. The more Harp saw, the more enraged he became. As soon as he got the message, he began the translocation of every child within the orphanage. It took twenty minutes to collect everyone.

Returning to Sitar, he took Rizzo by a hand and told Sitar to teleport the bitch to the agora. As soon as they had done so, Harp set a force field that would blow the place up as the magic core released its energy. It was done in such a way the crust would open right to the mantle. Once the trap was set, he took off with Rizzo, joining his brothers in the now filling agora.

Standing on a hastily materialised podium, Harp began talking, his voice resounding off the far mountains seen on the eastern horizon.

"Have you seen the state of the children we have rescued from the orphanage? Have you? What kind of people are you to let that bitch degrade children to that point? Have you no decency? Have you no sense of duty to protect children against abuse? We have come here to save your children against a major disaster; after having seen what I have seen in the orphanage, I wonder if you will even consider saving your own! Maybe we should leave your children here! If evilness and heartlessness were genetic, I would be amply justified to do so! Lucky for you, I know that, in most cases, negligence is a learned behaviour, so my offer to save your children still stands, if only by the skin of your teeth! Those of you that wish their children to stay continue living, put them with the orphans. The others, once this transport is gone, no crying, you will have made your choice. I have no time to explain and repeat myself. I have an entire country to save and precious few hours to do so."

At first, only a few parents dared to get close to the poor wrenches. But as more and more children came forward after hugging their parents and carrying those siblings that could not walk, the flow picked up, until as the time imparted came to an end, no children was left behind.

«Mom! Emergency transport! Get to Eloise. Healer, to Eloise on the double! Ready in five, four, three, two, one, transport!» As Harp thought the last command, every child in the agora vanished.

"Sitar, deal with the bitch, we have to leave."

"Certainly, Harp!" With a ferocious yell that would have scared the sabre-toothed lions, he began slicing the monster to bits, cleanly dismembering her before gutting her and finally slicing the trunk into thin slices, like it was baloney.

"Justice is done. She is lucky, I had intended to skin her alive, but we have no time for fun today."

"Thank you for the thought, Sitar," said Harp. Turning to the awed people he told them they could possibly escape the some of the devastation by moving up in the mountains, but that, wherever they went, the devastation would be considerable. Finished with his last instructions, he turned to Rizzo, and taking his hand, he jumped to the seashore in a single bound. Sitar looked at the ironsmith and the apothecary. With a flick of his hand he teleported them to the southern edge of the Elvin kingdom, with a letter Enron had materialised in their pocket. After that they joined Harp and Rizzo.

"What kept you two?" asked Harp as he discussed what would be the next objective in the area.

"We figured we might need their competence during the upcoming war; they would be useless to the fleeing populace, that is doomed, whatever your kind reassurance, Harp. So we translocated them to the kingdom, with their material. They have now shops within Roars, and patent letters signed by Enron giving them right to establish themselves there. Anyway, they were useful, and I believe in thanking those that are."

"Nice touch; I was too infuriated by the village to consider there might be good people amongst them. At least you fixed that oversight. Thank you."

"Where next?" asked Enron. We still have about three hours to spare before being able to cross into Port."

"The next ones are along the coast. They are the tiny settlements we have seen while frog jumping to this location. I have earmarked each one, so we can get back to them instantly. Let's get to the nearest, and progress from there. Once we have done as much as we can in the next three hours, we return here and then do the crossing."

"Fine with me, I like the plan. It maximises the benefit," Enron said, as Sitar nodded.

The next three hours were spent visiting tiny settlements, one after another, and collecting children. The sudden materialisation in the village square of four children did not go unnoticed, and sped up the response considerably. No one dared defy the boys, whose powers had been made so apparent by their actions. The average response time was around five minutes, and as soon as the children were gone, the adults would board their boats in an effort to maximise the distance between the shores and themselves. Everyone knew that the deeper the sea, the less likely a tidal wave was to damage a ship. A total of thirty-six villages and settlements were vacated, with the last being Reka , before the boys returned to the bay they needed to cross in order to enter Port.

***

The boys quickly hopped to the seashore, keeping an eye for crocodile priests, and focussed on the docks visible across the narrow opening of the bay. It was sext and the mariners had either finished pulling their ships on land or had gone to sea before the tide reversed, leaving it almost empty, save for a couple of late workers, who seemed to be running like mad to finish their work and return to the safety of their homes.

"OK, let's teleport at the furthest end of the dock, the one closer to the shore. No need to walk those planks if we can."

"Agreed, Harp. I do not trust them any. From how the people seem to keep away from some areas, I would not be surprised some of them are rotten or eaten by worms."

"There, you are off, prince Enron. These areas are contaminated. Nothing can live on them. They marked these areas by red and yellow markers that expand gradually. The last year I lived here, they cut the dock off and let it go to the sea because it had become useless. They spent the winter to cut down trees, make fresh planks and build a new dock, which they floated gradually, using the boats to pull it out. But you are right, the safest place is near the shore, since part of the dock never sees seawater except during storms."

The four boys quickly ported to the docks and Rizzo intercepted one of the last persons around.

"Excuse me, do you know if Thomasso Angostini is still here?"

"Why, yes, Mariner Angostini is here, he has his navigators' charter, which makes him in high demand, but he is here since his last ship shored up two days ago. Why do you ask?"

"I am his son, Rizzo. I need to talk to him on an urgent matter. Is he still living at our home?"

"Rizzo? You are the little Rizzo? I used to change your diapers! Come! Come with me! Bring your friends with you, I am sure this day will be a great day for Port!"

"I only wish. But let's get moving. Can you send a message to Walter? I want all members of the village to meet at my dad's place as soon as possible."

"Sorry, Walter died of the Sickness last year. He had gone in the woods to get some plants and the winds turned. I am sorry, Rizzo, your friend is no more. He was training to become an herbalist. I will holler for Bertrand, he is on our way to your place, and the little boy runs like the wind and is known by everyone."

"Remind Bertrand he is also invited. It includes everyone, because it concerns everyone."

"Even these lazy do nothing soldiers that seem to harass everyone?"

"No, sir," said Harp, forcefully. "As far as I am concerned they can drown. If you know of traitors within the civilian population, also ignore them. We will find other ways to get their children out of this mess."

After a nod from Rizzo, the man quickly walked towards Bertrand's family dwelling, and finding him sitting at the door asked he be replaced as guardian by a younger sibling, as he needed the boys legs to carry a message. It took him a few minutes to explain what was required and whom to talk and not talk to. After that the man tried to catch up with the fast advancing children, whom were already climbing up the long hill leading to the Angostini homestead.

***

The boys waited on the panting adult before opening the gate to the fence that delimited the homestead. The four boys gingerly walked up on the step and knocked, to receive an answer from across the door as a pair of eyes looked through a hole.

"Who is this?"

"Rizzo!"

"Rizzo? But he got taken away."

"Yes, I was, and who are you?"

"Sylvio."

"Sylvio, you were a little baby still in diapers when the diviner picked me up. You should be five, maybe six now?"

"Five, almost six."

"Can you open the door, Sylvio? I need to talk to dad."

"OK, but I have to ask for dad, the lock is too hard, and also, the chair I am on is too heavy to move."

"Please."

The eyes disappeared from sight; a noisy jump was heard as the floorboards cracked and running feet were heard moving away. Five minutes later heavier footsteps came to the door and another, darker pair of eyes peeked out.

"Sylvio says one of you claims to be my son Rizzo, lost to the diviners. I cannot believe until I get proof."

"Dad, the toy I loved most was a tiny ship you had made for me, named the Unicorn. The figurehead was a roaring white horse with a single horn sticking out of his forehead."

"You are indeed Rizzo! I have kept that toy in my bedroom since that fateful day, my son. Wait! I'll open up!"

A tumult could be heard as a chair was violently thrown out of the way, and locks and bolt were dragged. It took two minutes to get everything out of the way, but finally the door opened; Rizzo and Thomasso fell in each other's arms, in tears. Finally, Rizzo pushed his dad and spoke up, after wiping his nose with his sleeves.

"Dad, we must talk!"

"We have time, son! Come in, you and your friends."

"No dad we do not. I will come dad, but Sylvio, stay with Edwin, we are expecting every able body in the village to come, minus those that serve the king, the dark mages, and the soldiers. You know who they are. If you see any, close the door and lock it! Let's move to the great hall, it is he only place large enough to hold everyone."

The assertive tone of Rizzo took his dad by surprise, but he figured it had to do with his status as apprentice mage. He led everyone down into the safe level of the house, and called his family to join. Rizzo's mom looked broken, torn by an unbearable pain. Even after seeing Rizzo, she seemed to be distant, lost, her eyes empty.

"What happened to mom?"

"After we lost you to the diviners, we also lost one of your sisters to the Wind, and your mom got exposed to it as well. Not long enough to die, but long enough she can no longer bear children. It has been blow after blow. Your older brother died in a storm at sea, so now, there are few of us. She is afraid we will lose Sylvio in a couple of years to the diviners, which patrol the area at rather set intervals, and ask proof of death in the form of a body part to accept that a child has escaped their grip in death. She doesn't talk anymore, and must be prompted to do anything."

"You have aged considerably too, dad, yet it has been a little less then five years."

"The sea eats at a man, son. Each time we take to the sea, we get exposed to wastes that include products flowing down from dead forest, and from the Glows. Sometimes we get caught in a downwind from one of those places, and everyone gets sick for days. We go down in the hull, but it is an illusory protection. The Atom god will claim me shortly, like it does for all of us. My only regret is that Sylvio will not be old enough to run and survive on his own. The diviners will get him like they got you. And your mom, bless her heart, will also be left alone, to take care of your two youngest sisters. The problem is your mom is unable to care of herself. These bastards do not care about the need of others."

"Dad, I have yet to present you my companions of travel. They are here to help as much as they can. I have seen them do miracles. But first, let us wait for the arrival of everyone, so we do not lose time repeating ourselves. Time is limited."

Just as Rizzo said that, the first guests came and sat around on the floor. They looked questioningly at the Navigator, wondering who these four strangers were. Gradually, the room filled up, with children getting ever more noisy and turbulent. Finally, Sylvio came down with Edwin and Bertrand.

"I locked the door fully. The military are again doing their smart ass and doing a parade, so we should be in peace. Bertrand has managed to get everyone we wanted without attracting attention from the loud mouth that pretends to be a mayor, and from his goons." Edwin informed the master of the house.

"OK. Please, everyone, be quiet, I have great news!"

Everyone grew silent, and the Mariner looked at everyone.

"I have the immense pleasure to present to you my son, Rizzo Angostini, apprentice Mage, according to his clothes. He has returned from the grips of the diviners!"

A stunned silence followed by thunderous applause shook the house.

"He has asked me to talk to you. From his tone, it is urgent. Please listen to him. After all he is a mage, if only an apprentice!"

Rizzo stood up and began quietly to introduce his companions and relate the events that had occurred since the sun had risen over the horizon that same morning. Gasp, big eyes, and murmurs were heard from all quarters.

"Finally, ladies and gentlemen, I will cede the floor to Prince Harp of the Wolf Throne, Merlin of Atlantis. He has some vital information for all, and, although my mage capacities are limited, if not downright in their infancy, I have decided to vow my meagre services to his cause."

"I will be brief. Some time back a group of black mages undertook to twist magic in such a way that it is now impossible to repair; furthermore, the field is near bursting. You certainly have felt an increase in tremors. These are the signs of the impending catastrophe. I am offering you the same I have offered to all so far; to take your children to safety in the Elvin Kingdom, whose prince Regent is sitting beside me, as you now know. So far, each of the villages we have visited has released their children to us and they are now in Eloise, under my mother's protection. The villagers have also taken either to the sea or to the mountains to escape the disaster. To be honest, I doubt either solution is viable, but, as one young man said, better try something rather than sit still waiting for the end to come. You have ships. Set them at sea at the next tide, and leave. Try to go as far out as you can, so the sea reaches considerable depth. Bring food, especially fresh water; it may be a while before you can make landfall, and it may be difficult to find a place that has not been awash in the Atom God's waste. Mariner, we came here for another reason as well. We need your portulan. It will help us plan the upcoming evacuation. Any information you can give us is welcomed. Let me be blunt: after that Event, your portulan will be meaningless. The shores will have been washed by a tidal wave of such magnitude we have no idea of its height. That means the channels you rely on to navigate the inner waters will have shifted if not vanished entirely. So, do not feel like you are betraying a Guild secret."

"How much time do we have?"

"Four days at best. Do not wait; when I say at best, I am serious. It may blow up any time. What keeps it from doing so now is a thin layer of rocks that is cracking everywhere."

"Can you help us get rid of the mayor, his goons, and the soldiers?"

"Certainly. Sitar, I have work for you. Kill anyone in the village that is not a child. No quarters." Sitar vanished in the blink of an eye, to the surprised gasps of everyone.

"Will it take long?"

Even before Harp could reply, Sitar reappeared. "Done, twenty-five goons, fifty soldiers, a mayor and his wife, a black mage, and a dozen spies; also dispatched were fifteen magpies, that said their last words on the back of others. Sadly, I also had to dispatch some children, Harp. One was so intent on hurting others, I caught him burning his little brother with pieces of red-hot charcoal. Another was raping a little baby. I sent the others directly to mom."

"Good, Sitar. Has anyone any objection to his children joining our mom?"

"What about pregnant mothers?"

"Since we cannot dispatch a child not yet born, we dispatch the mother. Does that fit you?"

"Yes."

"Any other objection?"

Receiving none, Harp sent every child to Eloise. A few minutes later the house emptied rapidly, as each was intent on getting ready for the run of their lives. The Mariner fetched his portulan and gave it to his son.

"Keep this in my memory, my son. I know we stand no chance. It is nice for Harp to let others believe they have any, but I know deep inside we have none. It will keep people busy, and hope is a powerful driver. Princes, until we meet again in another life, I have to busy myself with preparing for my last trip. Do not go further north; it is all ice, there are no settlements, even if the portulan still shows them. All the bays have been iced over and the ice cap has reached Van ."

***

The four boys popped above ground, and quickly jumped to the anchor across the bay they had set up, before progressing rapidly to Reka. As they materialised in the agora, they heard soldiers marching from the south. Rather than bother getting rid of the nuisance, they jumped up into tall trees and watched them march below. As the group marched under them, Sitar noticed they framed a diminutive figure. They were escorting someone; further study as they were moving away revealed it was chained and held by a leash.

«They have a prisoner, and it's a child. Let's free him!» said Enron.

«I noticed. I have his magical signature. It will be easy to track.» replied Harp.

The boys waited for the last soldier to get out of view before moving in behind them, to Rizzo's surprise.

"What is going on?"

"Didn't you see the figure being escorted by the military unit?" asked Sitar.

"Well, yes, I did. But why are we following the soldiers?"

"We are going to free the child."

"You are going to be surprised. This is not a child, but a dwarf warrior. They have been harassing the king for about twenty years, ever since the king ordered some work from them and then refused to pay for it. They visited every settlement and told of the greed and stinginess of the king to one and all. They think they have captured him, but I'm sure he got himself captured intentionally, for the pleasure of humiliating them in public once more. The fact that the village is empty of inhabitants must infuriate him as much as it must worry the soldiers."

"A dwarf, you say? Then we must free him even more. He may be able to tell us where we may find who we need!" exclaimed Harp, jubilant.

"Hey, that's true, we need to find a dwarf, according to the Prophesy, adding another stone to the completion of the defence of the King of the Wolves."

Rizzo looked at them, not understanding anything they were talking about. Enron took pity on him and quickly updated Rizzo about the Prophesy found under Kantar. Meanwhile the group had kept on tracking the detachment and, suddenly, Sitar signalled for them to stop.

"They are entering that building, leaving only a couple of watchmen outside. Wait for me, I'll dispatch them shortly."

Rizzo watched, awed, from the bushes, as Sitar moved silently from bush to bush, taking advantage of every nook and cranny to hide from view. Suddenly he stood behind a guard, who promptly lost his head silently before falling to the ground. The other guard, merely feet away at the other corner, heard nothing, and, as he turned to talk to his comrade-in-arms, met death face to face. Sitar quickly dealt with the two other guards that were patrolling behind the house, and returned.

"No magic until the last moment, if we can, Harp. I have to confirm there is a black mage incorporated in that unit. He would sense its use. I would much like to do it so even the black mage knows nothing and is as baffled as the guards when they discover their prisoner is gone."

"We'll try. Next, let's deal with the door. Come to think of it, why bother with the door. These buildings may be facsimiles, but they still have windows. Let's just open one from the outside."

The boys walked to the rear of the building and Sitar used Excalibur to gently cut out a glass pane. This let them access the window locket, which, albeit rusty and unused, offered little resistance to traction. The window, a guillotine style, was a bit harder to move. Getting frustrated, Sitar decided to simply cut out the windowpanes entirely, thus giving the boys ample place to enter the building. The process required next to no magic, only careful moves from Sitar. Excalibur cut through the wood as if it was hot butter.

"OK. Let's get to the underground dwelling. I am sure the guards are well aware of the dispositions of buildings build downwind from Van. Walk on your toes. The wooden floors are like drums. Rizzo, stay here, and keep an eye on the outside, please. If you see anything, think 'alert!' and we will know something is wrong."

The three princes left Rizzo to his watch and progressed in the darkened house like shadows of death. They reached the front door undetected, and Sitar silently sent ad padres the guard. They then proceeded down into the lower keep, and entered the darkened hallway. Most of the guards were in the main living room, at the far end, but two men stood guard near a door, talking.

«I'll have some difficulty reaching them without being seen.» said Sitar.

«My turn to have fun. I doubt the noise of two arrows will be heard over the cacophony these happy campers are doing.»

With a rapidity honed out of long practice, Enron emerged in the hallway and two arrows left his bow, in quick succession, each hitting a guard at the Adam's apple, thus cutting any budding cry.

"Good, recover your arrows. Let's get the dwarf," urged Sitar

"Hold it, he isn't alone. The black mage is behind the door with him. Let me have some fun." With that, Harp slowly collected magic and, using Bata, sent it across the closed door. "OK, you can open it. Be as silent as a ghost."

Enron opened the door, kept silent by a very localized silencing charm whose signature would vanish entirely within minutes, gently. Sitar signalled to the dwarf to keep quiet. The three boys walked into the room to see the black mage turning his back to them studying assiduously a spider web.

Harp gently touched the leash's locket, and it opened, its sound muffled by his hand. Next came the locks of the chains, which were gently deposited on the floor. The dwarf's axe was leaning against a wall, and, as soon as he was freed, he went for it silently, intent on beheading the black mage. Harp signed an imperative no, and told him to follow them out. The group retreated silently up to the surface, and rejoined Rizzo at the window. Everyone passed outside quickly, and Harp rejoined the windowpanes, even taking the time to fuse the glass cutout. All five then quickly progressed out of the village, before taking a little break.

"How long do you think we have before the mage wakes up from that trance, Harp?" Enron asked.

"Another five minutes. Let's put it to good use, we can reach another village south before he even realises his prisoner is gone."

"I so wish I could be a fly on the wall to see his face!" Sitar commented.

"What did you do?" wondered Rizzo.

"We took this gentleman right from under his nose. All he will see is the chains on the floor, the missing axe, the closed door, which I inadvertently locked from the outside, and, once he is out of that room, two dead guards with nicely cut heads, and once they reach the ground floor, another head-short guard, and the front door locked from the inside. They will look for an entry point, but they will find none, since I sealed things when we left. I even took care of our footprints in the dust, and reset the cobwebs! By the way, Rizzo, here is a string of your cloth that got caught in the locket when you climbed out."

"You are bad, Harp!" laughed Enron. "They will be completely lost!" Rizzo replied, grinning from ear to ear.

"Back to our problem. We still have a string of villages to evacuate, and two major population centres, including the capital, Frisco. How do we proceed?" Enron wondered.

"Let's have a look at that portulan, if you don't mind, Rizzo?" asked Sitar.

The boys looked at the scroll, and Sitar quickly came up with a plan. "We need to go as far south as we can, and then move north towards here. We cannot deal with the capital right away, since we will have the king's units on our ass the whole way from here to hell. We do it last, including its immediate region. Let's even skip the village we see below. Just mark it for quick access, Harp. We even skip Lozenges on our first sweep. I am sure it has a high concentration of troops as well."

"What about the dwarves?" Harp asked.

"What about us? We are safe in our mines," replied the newest rescue.

"Maybe you were, but it will not be the case when that catastrophic earthquake hits. Your people will be buried alive. How many of you are there, anyway?"

"Around a hundred thousand."

"Feasible, if they do what we ask."

"Do what you ask? And what would that be?"

"Regroup for evacuation. We can mass-transit everything and everyone to the Elvin Kingdom, which, we hope, will be far enough to sustain minimal damage from the upcoming cataclysm."

"I doubt our king will like the idea, and he is a stiff necked bastard."

"I hope to never be talked about in those terms when I stop becoming regent and become king", replied Enron, acidly.

"Come on Enron, you know your people! There was an artificial selection to remove the stiff-necked individuals not so long ago!" insinuated Harp, with sparkles in his eyes, which induced laughter from Sitar, and a lost look in Rizzo.

"Let's move south while we get our two companions up to date on recent history, Enron. We have not been properly introduced, and that can be done while we hop around. Sitar, handle the front, Enron handle the rear; you two, with me, one holding a different hand. We have precious few hours to reach the southern tip of civilization. I'll explain as we go."

The group hopped from hilltop to hilltop, marking villages and settlements as they went. The eidetic memory of the four princes served them well, as they did not need to consult the portulan anymore. They reached the last known settlement around vespers, and quickly did a turn-around after evacuating the children to Eloise. A quick meal of the local food, rather spicy, and they resumed their task. Three hours later found them in the suburb of Lozenges, where they decided to take shelter for the night, in an open field. The dwarf, Selaric, was feeling like luggage, a burden to the princes, even if he understood part of the problem they had to deal with.

"Tomorrow, we evacuate as many children of Lozenge and area as we can, and then hop directly to our anchor near Frisco to do the same. If we do things well, we can do it quick and dirty."

"What do you mean, Harp?"

"How tired are you guys? We could do Lozenges at lauds, in three hours. Everyone would be asleep, and we could remove every child before parents even wake up. I don't feel like having to explain things again."

"Is it not kidnapping?"

"Yes, but what would you prefer, Selaric? Drowning?"

"Under that light "

"We should also remove the canines, we have done so silently in the villages we have evacuated, as well as the equines. I doubt any will be out at lauds."

"Sitar is right, they are our silent allies, we cannot abandon them in their day of need."

"Agreed, you two. Sitar, also evacuate the members of the professions we need to deal with the war effort: mariners, shipwrights, ironsmiths, herbalists, and apothecaries, woodsmen, carpenters, any you deem vital to our defence."

"At your command, Harp!" said, smiling, Sitar. "I will also get as many documents as I can to complement the library in Eloise. I am sure there is a library of some importance in Lozenges, given its size. I'll just bring the entire library building!"

"You can do that? If so, could you take the museum too?" asked, awed, Rizzo.

"Sure Rizzo! But why?"

"It contains a museum of natural history I have always wanted to visit; and a museum of Ancient Technology, even one that claims to have models of flying machines built by the Ancients themselves!"

"OK, you have me convinced. You are coming with me Rizzo, you know the town better than I."

"Let's rest; Selaric, you have first guard. Wake one of us in an hour," ordered Enron.

"Yes Sir!" replied the dwarf, used to military discipline.

Just as they were stretching on the ground, Paschal contacted them.

«I have finished evacuating the College and moving it to Lava Flows. Every building is now translocated, as well as everyone else. The only thing left to do is collapse the ward and move the magical core. I also found a deposit of mithril in the college vaults, somewhere around a hundred tons. Harp, you are going to be happy, I paid a visit to the Dungeons of the Dark and swindled their own reserve of mithril, adding another five hundred tons. I so hope their treasurer opens their vault before all hell breaks loose!"

The explosion of laughter from the three princes made their two companions wonder if maniacs waiting for a chance to gut them during the night framed them. It was only the quick explanation of what was transpiring that reassured them, and hey too joined in the hilarity.

"It's been a bad day for the black mages!" piped up Harp, bending over in laughter.

***

The evacuation of Lozenges went rapidly during the night, and an hour before prime, the boys were already in the vicinity of Frisco, beginning the evacuation of the orphanages. Paschal, with nothing else to do at the now empty college campus, joined them to speed up the process. In less than an hour, the children were moved massively to Eloise, as well as dogs, coyotes, and equines. Again, the members of the important orders to the war effort also woke up in a dorm in Eloise.

Things did not go well for Edward, that morning. He woke up to cries of "Death to the King! Kidnapper! Child murderer!" under his windows, as pieces of rocks, arrows, and other projectiles pelted his gates. Never had his army been taken so by surprise! Where did all these rebels come from? It seemed the rebellion had sprouted overnight, with no warning whatsoever from all the moles that permeated the capital. King Edward ordered for his dream weaver to show up; he did, severely beaten up, barely holding to his life.

"What the hell happened to you?"

"I got mobbed; of the unit that assured my protection, only one survived to the gate!"

"Did you even catch the cause of this civil unrest?"

"It seems every child has disappeared in the area! It is not new, I had reports coming from everywhere in the kingdom about entire villages emptying of their inhabitants; soldiers finding that the village they had order to control was now a ghost settlement, all ships gone. The only ones left were our moles, and even they lost their children, so do not count on them to be on our side! We have lost any way to blackmail them into submission. I have talked to the black mages incorporated in your units; they have no idea of what happened either. Stranger still is the disappearance of farm animals and food reserves. We have no grain, no pigs, no cows, no sheep left. Everything vanished, everything, even horses and dogs. The zoo even lost its coyotes! Also missing is a select cross-section of the population, mostly every single member of the orders that are vital to our war effort. We cannot even get a pot repaired!"

"How extensive is this phenomenon?"

"The last report I had was this morning, and it was from a soldier that had been running all night, along the northern coast-line, some eighty miles away. He said he saw no one except military units anywhere along the way. Stranger still, he reported just before dying of exhaustion that birds were flying inland in huge flocks, and that animals were acting strangely. Rabbits were out of their holes and ignored him completely. Snakes huddled in the open. Something big is going to happen, but what?"

"You said that dogs and coyotes have vanished. Are they not types of wolves?"

"Yes sire!"

"Then the Wolf king is here! Sound the alarm!"

"It's been ringing since prime, your Majesty! You have other issues to deal with: an enraged populace being one of them! If I were you, I'd consider getting out of here! There must be a good reason for all the ships to be out at sea along the coast!"

"What do I care about ships, fool! Without mariners, who will handle them? You probably would sink a rowboat on a flat sea! Get the astrologer!"

"Sire, he died before reaching the gate; the people recognized him and literally tore him to pieces," a guard said.

As the king looked at the man wide-eyed, a crash was heard outside, and orders fused:

"They have broken the gates. Fire at will!" immediately followed by the deadly song of bows letting loose their deadly load. Then came the clash of swords and the rising fury of a populace that had decided it had nothing to lose. Doors could be heard busting from the assault of the enraged; windows shattered, and smoke from burning drapes and furniture began to fill the palace.

Turning to Shane, the king gave a futile command: "Do something!"

"Sire, Shane is dead, he has let out his last breath as he finished his report. If you have secret passages to escape, use them now, time is short."

The king understood the validity of that recommendation and quickly pushed a brick on the left side of the fireplace, revealing a narrow passage.

"Come with me soldier, all is lost, and I will stand a better chance with you than alone."

The two men quickly entered the dark passage; and, as the king lit a torch, the soldier closed back the passage. Just in time, because the throne door burst open from the pressure of people fighting to get in, covering the click of the lock getting back in place and the brick moving. The king quickly disabled the mechanism, and led the guard down the darkened pass. They could hear the battle still going on in the different rooms of the palace, as well as orders being given by the royal guards. They quickly made their way to the deepest part of the building, reaching a quiet humid spot.

"This is the tricky part. We have to leave the passage, and open the tunnel that passes below the moat. It will be wet and slippery, since the roof leaks continuously. We will exit in the mountains, east of the city, and outside of the walls. Follow me."

The grid that kept the tunnel closed was locked with a key the king took from under his vestment; the lock was rusty and opened with difficulty, but, after some effort, the king managed to turn the key and open the gate. After passing through, the king relocked the gate.

"Better be safe, that way we have an obstacle between us and those enraged assholes."

The trek resumed and an hour later, the king again took the same key to unlock another grid.

"We have arrived. Beyond this grid is a natural cave whose opening is hidden by plants. We will find ourselves in a forest of redwoods, our back to the city, and facing east. I have a sword in this locker there, and a set of plainclothes. Hold the torch while I change to less conspicuous clothing!"

Ten minutes later, the king looked like any other peasant; he put his crown and sceptre of power in the locker, with tears in his eyes.

"I vow I will return!"

The two men then left the cave and began walking under the massive trees eastward.

***

Not too far from there, Harp and his group watched two men emerge from a cave.

"I wonder who they are. A peasant and a soldier do not usually travel together," wondered Enron.

"That is no peasant, it is the king, or should I say, ex-king Edward," informed them the dwarf. He seems to be on the run from his people. Maybe I should go collect his due!" replied the dwarf.

"And what is due?"

"A sceptre and a crown."

"He has neither."

"Let them walk away, we will go see that cave when they are out of sight."

"Fine, Harp. Not that I like playing collector, but I hate people that are so stingy they rob fine workmen of their due."

They watched the two move away, and shortly, they lost sight of them. They decided to wait another ten minutes just to make sure, then moved quickly to the cave opening. Harp used Bata to light up the place, and quickly spotted the locked grid. A bit of magic brought a satisfying click as the lock turned; the dwarf opened the grid, and Harp spotted the locker, hidden behind a false wall that had been hastily put back in place. The locker did not offer any more resistance to Harp than did the grid, and shortly. The content was visible to all. Ignoring the torn royal robe, the dwarf took the crown and sceptre, putting them in his knapsack.

"The king will be glad to recover those. At least the robber got robbed!"

"Give me a second, I will replace these impediments of power." Harp quickly placed a crown of thorns and a sceptre of wood in the box, before pushing the locker close and locking it back. Then he quickly pushed the locker back in its hiding place, and printed a wolf paw on the cover; then everything was set back in place and the group left the cave, closing and locking the grid back.

"If ever this place survives and Edward comes to collect his goodies, he will have a heart attack!"

"You are bad, Harp!"

"Yes, I know. Is it not fun? But let's get back to business. We got dwarves to save. Guide us to your mines and home, Selaric."