Otto handed one of the mithril patches to Wolfric who looked it all over. They were alone in the library. The king had called an early end to court so they could meet away from prying eyes. Even Borden, the captain of the palace guard, wasn’t with them.
That also let Wolfric shed the cumbersome robes of state and make do with a simple black tunic and matching trousers. There were times that the crown seemed to fit Wolfric well and others when Otto wondered if he was truly up to the task. Not that there was anyone else to rule the kingdom in his place.
A simple spell confirmed that they were alone. What they were planning was too sensitive for anyone unnecessary, especially nobles with a tendency to drink too much and run their mouths, to know about their plans. The chances of success were small enough as it was.
The silence and smell of books settled Otto’s nerves after the encounter with Annamaria’s baby. He could still smell the little thing. He suppressed a shudder and focused on the matter at hand. Lord Karonin had told him that the patches would work, but until they were tested, even she couldn’t say for sure.
“It seems... thin,” Wolfric said at last.
“It is thin. When it’s attached, the patch will fuse with the portal, becoming one with it and rewriting its magic.”
“And you’re certain this will work?”
Otto nearly laughed. Everything he was doing had never been done before, not even by the Arcane Lords themselves. “I’m not certain of anything. But I know that if we can’t seize control of the portals, we have no hope of winning the war and this is the best and only way I can think of to manage that. Should it fail, we’ll have to try something else.”
“Hardly an optimistic assessment of our chances.”
Otto took the patch back and slipped it into the leather binder. “I could lie if it would make you feel better. The truth, my friend, is that I’m making most of this up as I go. Did you find agents to handle the infiltration?”
“Five of my best, all loyal to the death and skilled at both stealth and combat. If anyone can reach the enemy portals, they can. Still, I’m surprised you didn’t want to send some of your wizards.”
“Despite their abilities, even the most experienced of the new recruits was working in a foundry six months ago. They know nothing about espionage, evasion, or anything else useful. They can’t even turn invisible yet. Better for everyone if we let professionals handle this mission.”
Wolfric nodded, seeming content to trust Otto’s assessment. “I ordered the area around our portal cleared as you requested. My agents will meet us there. What do you say we go test your theory instead of debating?”
“Excellent idea.” Otto tried to project more confidence than he felt. If the test failed, he’d have to go back to square one.
They left the library and made their way to the main gate. Along the way, a squad of Borden’s men fell in around them. After the debacle last fall, Otto had interviewed every member of the royal guard to make certain of their loyalty. He’d been delighted to find that only a handful were less than committed. Those five had been transferred to the First Legion to join the fight against Straken. The men hadn’t complained; in fact, some of them had been relieved.
The walk from the palace to the portal was a relatively short one which was why they hadn’t bothered with a carriage. The few people on the streets bowed as they passed, but when the group got close to their destination, the streets grew empty and silent. Directly in front of the massive mithril construct stood five men in basic mercenary gear, leathers, a variety of bladed weapons, and packs over their shoulders.
The men all touched fists to hearts when Wolfric arrived. Otto ignored the display and studied the portal. It only took a moment to locate the master rune. It was carved into the metal at the top of the circle. He took the patch for Garenland’s portal out of the folio and turned to address the infiltrators.
“Your mission is a simple one, simple but not easy. At the top of the portal lies the master rune.” Otto pointed it out just to be sure. “Your task is to place one of these mithril patches over it. If you can do it without being seen, so much the better, but once it’s done, only another patch can restore the portal to its original function. Understand?”
“How are we supposed to reach the master rune?” a slim, deeply tan infiltrator asked. “We can’t exactly lean a ladder against it and climb up.”
That brought a chuckle from the others and Otto offered an indulgent smile. Let them banter if it helped relieve the stress.
“You won’t have to climb up. Once the patch gets close, the ethereal attraction will draw it into place. Watch.”
Otto flicked his wrist and sent the square of mithril flying up toward the top of the portal. As soon as it got within a foot of the master rune, sparks shot out ahead of lines of energy that resembled lightning. The ethereal lightning dragged the patch into place. The instant it touched the portal, the patch seemed to melt into it and vanish.
To any non-wizard that would appear to be the end of the process. But in Otto’s magical vision, energy swirled and crackled up and down the portal, changing its flow in both directions. Most importantly, nothing seeped out toward Valtan. His power continued to flow smoothly into the portal. As far as the Arcane Lord would know, nothing had changed. He wouldn’t be able to sense anything until Otto activated the portal with the master key he’d gotten from Edwyn and then modified into something more than a ritual item. He could have enchanted anything of course, but he liked the idea of using the worthless trinket Valtan gave them.
“Did it work?” Wolfric asked.
“As far as I can tell, the patch did what it was supposed to do. We won’t know for sure until all the others are in place and I activate the new master rune. Are there any more questions before I pass out your patches?”
There weren’t, so Otto removed the Rolan patch and asked, “Who’s going to Rolan?”
The tan comedian raised his hand. “Oskar, my lord. I have the honor of infiltrating Rolan.”
Otto handed him the patch. “Now Lux?”
Another hand went up, this time a younger man, barely thirty. “Henry, my lord.”
Otto handed him the patch and the spy stowed it in his pack. The young man had an overconfident look about him. Hopefully he’d be up to the task he’d volunteered for.
“Next, Lasil.”
The eldest of the bunch raised his hand. He had already started on a beard that showed plenty of gray. “Luca, my lord.”
Otto nodded and handed him the patch. This one, at least, gave the impression that he understood the stakes.
“Next, Tharanault.”
“Holt, my lord.” The fourth volunteer, a man in his mid-thirties with a nervous, twitchy look about him saluted again.
Otto grimaced but handed him the patch. The final soldier, Korgin, wasn’t nearly big enough to pass as a Straken citizen which was fine since there was no way anyone would be able to sneak into Marduke. Otto had spoken to him a bit after he was selected for the mission and found the man as confident as he was obnoxious.
Otto handed Korgin his patch and said, “You’ll be going north with the army as my assistant. When the others have finished their missions, we’ll run an attack on the city walls. That will be your chance to sneak in while they’re distracted. I won’t lie, you’ve probably got the most dangerous task of all.”
“I’ll manage, my lord,” he said, accepting the patch.
“You all know your missions,” Wolfric said. “Good luck and heaven watch over you.”
The men offered another salute and all but one marched off to begin their missions. Otto knew the details of the various journeys they’d have to make by heart and had a rough timeline in his head, assuming everything went smoothly
Otto smiled to himself. When was the last time anything went smoothly?
He just had to trust that everyone else would do their jobs. That might be the hardest part of the whole thing.