Emperor Marak led the members of the Lords’ Council into the new Temple of Kaltara in Khadoratung. While the temple had been constructed quickly, the workmanship was impeccable. The temple was built from plans provided by the Qubari. The lords gazed around with appreciation as the Emperor led them to the prayer chamber.
“I should have visited sooner,” remarked Lord Patel. “This is an exquisite structure. Is it true that it is modeled after the one in Angragar?”
“It is an exact replica,” nodded the Emperor as he halted outside the prayer chamber and opened the door. “This chamber has no windows. I normally do not bother with a torch, but I think one is appropriate for this visit. Take one in with you, Lord Patel.”
Lord Patel took a torch from a holder outside the chamber and carried it inside. The other lords followed, and the Emperor entered last and closed the door. The chamber was large and circular. Marak walked to Lord Patel and took the torch from his hand. He placed it in a wall sconce and returned to the center of the room.
“Let us kneel and hold hands,” suggested the Emperor.
The lords formed a circle with the Emperor and knelt down. Most of the lords were slightly anxious about being in the temple, as religion had never been an important part of Khadoran life. They didn’t know how to act, and Emperor Marak sympathized with them. It was not long ago that he had those very same feelings himself.
“Kaltara,” Emperor Marak began, “I have brought the Lords’ Council of Khadora with me today to learn about you. They are to help me spread the word about you so that all Khadorans might praise you.”
“Welcome to my home, Torak,” boomed a voice. “Your heart is in the right place, but I question your methods.”
“I do not understand,” frowned the Emperor.
“The people must have faith in me,” replied the voice.
“I know,” replied Marak as he noticed the other lords staring at him in a curious manner, “that is why we have come.” Fearing that the others were being left out, Marak asked, “Am I the only one hearing your voice?”
“You are, Torak,” replied the voice. “If I speak to every citizen of Khadora, and they listen, that does not constitute faith. Oh, they may tremble at my voice and do what I wish for a time, but that is not what I seek. The people must believe in me, and that is your task.”
“I understand,” frowned Marak, “but I am not a priest. I seek your help in this matter. At least help me get things started. The Lords’ Council is critical for my efforts to defeat Vand. These men have come here willingly to learn about you. Help me teach them.”
The lords were frowning as they listened to the Emperor carry on a conversation as if he were talking to someone, but the chamber was silent except for Marak’s words. Doubt began to creep into their minds, even though they had the highest regard for the Emperor. Marak began to think he had made a grievous error.
“I will grant your request this one time,” the voice boomed so that everyone could hear.
Expressions of awe filled the faces of the members of the Lords’ Council as the lords finally realized that Kaltara did indeed exist.
“Has not the whole world heard the crack of the awakening of Angragar?” Kaltara continued. “The Sakovans heard it. The Qubari fell to their knees when they heard it. The Chula celebrated it, and Vand’s people trembled upon hearing it. Have the Khadorans been so long without faith that they do not know my hand when it strikes?”
Not a single person in the chamber spoke. The faces of the lords were open-mouthed, their eyes wide with sudden understanding.
“You have done well, Torak,” the voice continued. “I am pleased with the temples that you have built. Now you must fill them. Use these men that you regard so highly. Your time is very short. The evil comes soon. The Time of Cleansing is now upon you. Prepare to fight in my name.”
The torch blew out as a great gust of wind traveled around the circular chamber. High overhead, the darkness was split by a brilliant glow that illuminated the chamber, as the sun would have. The glow slowly began to fade, sending the chamber back towards the darkness. The lords let out a collective sigh as if they had all been holding their breath the entire time.
Without a word, the Emperor rose and retrieved the extinguished torch. He carried it as he moved to the door and opened it. Everyone filed out of the prayer chamber.
“I could never have imagined such an experience,” remarked Lord Chenowith when they had reassembled outside the prayer chamber. “I am glad that he chose to speak to us. I will be the first to admit that my doubt was growing in there.”
“Why did he call you the Torak?” asked Lord Jamarat.
“The time we live in was prophesized thousands of years ago,” explained Emperor Marak. “The rise of the Torak, the Star, and the Astor was foretold in those prophecies. Why I was chosen to be the Torak, I do not know, but it is something that I cannot turn away from.”
“And this Time of Cleansing?” asked Lord Quilo. “That is when this evil will come to fight us?”
“Exactly,” nodded the Emperor. “It will be soon. We have much to do to prepare for it. I will let you lords return to the palace,” he added after a pause, “I wish to inspect the temple alone.”
The lords nodded and proceeded out of the temple. The Torak walked blindly around the temple, supposedly on an inspection tour, but his mind was elsewhere. He was pleased that Kaltara had spoken to the lords, but he also realized that it was not likely to happen again. He still needed a way to get the Khadorans to revive their lost faith.
In his wanderings, the Torak ended up in the library. He was pleased to see that the shelves were lined with books. He suddenly stopped walking and stared at the section of the shelves that hid the secret doors in Angragar. With the urge of curiosity, he walked to the shelves and sought the secret lever. He was quite astonished when his hand came into contact with it. Looking around to ensure that no one was present, he pulled the lever. When the bookcase slid open, Marak slipped through the crack and pulled it closed. He shook his head in awe as he saw a single door in the hidden enclosure. Without a thought, he marched to the door and opened it. He stepped into the small enclosure and closed the door.
He cautiously opened the door and felt a coolness invade the small space. He exited the closet and walked to the spy hole behind the shelves. There was no one present in the library. He turned around and saw that two doors were behind him, the one he had just exited, and another. With a grin on his face, Emperor Marak released the catch on the bookshelf and walked into the library of the Chula temple. He closed the bookshelf and left the library.
A short distance away from the library was an office that was reserved for the priest. Marak walked to the office and peeked through the open door. A Chula shaman was in the room and his head immediately swiveled towards the door, his long mane swaying violently.
“Did I make too much noise looking in on you?” grinned Marak.
“You were silent as always,” grinned Ukaro as he crossed the room and hugged his son. “It is impossible to sneak up on a Chula shaman, though. We have a sense about things around us. How are you? Where are your shadows?”
“I am fine, Father,” answered Marak. “Halman and Gunta are still waiting for me outside the new temple in Khadoratung.”
“In Khadoratung?” the shaman frowned questioningly. “But how?”
“I am not sure myself,” shrugged Marak. “I was touring the new temple and found that one of the secret doors existed. I passed through it and came out here. There is now a second door in this temple.”
“Kaltara is aiding you,” smiled Ukaro. “It must be that you will have need for such travel.”
“I suppose,” frowned the Torak. “Something is bothering me, Father. I took the Lords’ Council to the prayer chamber in Khadoratung to meet Kaltara. He was reticent to speak to them, although he eventually did. How am I to convince others to follow Kaltara if He only speaks to me?”
“He does not only speak to you,” smiled Ukaro. “I think His hesitancy is that you may not demand that He speak to others. He will do so as He sees fit.”
“There is still the problem of convincing others,” sighed Marak. “I don’t know how to do it.”
“Stop worrying about it,” soothed Ukaro “Just do it. It will come to you. You must have faith in Kaltara before you can give it to others. He would not task you to a job without providing the skills necessary to finish it.”
“Alright,” nodded the Torak. “Your advice has always been good for me.”
“I see that you are making great progress with your Khadorans,” stated the Chula shaman. “We have noticed the difference already.”
“We have made progress,” replied the Torak, “but there is still more to do. One of the problems remaining has to do with the borders between the Chula and the Khadorans. Some lords have laid claims to Chula land.”
“That is to be expected of a people who have always sought our lands,” shrugged Ukaro. “What will you do about it?”
“I am not sure yet,” answered Marak. “I may ask the Chula to give up some lands to solve the problem. I will review each claim personally.”
“You have the right to do so,” frowned Ukaro, “but use it wisely. Such decisions could foster bitterness if not done carefully. The goal is to unite your peoples, not drive them apart.”
“I understand,” nodded Marak. “I should return to Khadoratung. Give my love to mother.”
“She will be sorry to have missed you,” Ukaro smiled warmly.
The Emperor returned to the library and passed through the secret doors to the temple in Khadoratung. Gunta and Halman were waiting anxiously outside the temple.
“At last,” sighed Gunta. “I do not care to be apart from you for so long.”
“If I am not safe in the temple of Kaltara,” smiled Emperor Marak, “where can I be safe?”
“Between Halman and me?” grinned Gunta.
“I always seem to get attacked when you two are around,” chuckled the Emperor. “We are returning to the palace where I also do not need your protection. You should take some time off for yourselves. Have a meal and rest a bit.”
“After you are safely inside the palace,” declared Halman.
Emperor Marak nodded, and the three Torak warriors walked from the temple to the palace. Marak’s shadows escorted him to his office and then left. The Emperor walked to the large wall map of Khadora and stared at it. He tried to envision the attack that Vand would throw at him, but he soon realized that looking at just Khadora prohibited him from seeing the whole story. He made a mental note to order a map of the land stretching from the ancient city of Angragar to the southernmost point of the Sakova. A knock on his door drew his attention, and he granted authorization to enter. An Imperial Guard entered and waited for permission to speak. Marak nodded.
“There is a merchant at the entrance to the palace that demands to speak to you,” declared the guard.
“A merchant?” frowned the Emperor. “Did he say what he wanted?”
“No,” the guard shook his head. “In fact, the guards are at a loss as to why he would wish to speak to the Emperor. He is not a well-known merchant that might sell goods to the palace. He runs a small stall in the marketplace. Should I turn him away?”
Marak stood silently for a moment, wondering if it might be an assassination attempt. Finally, he shook his head.
“No,” answered the Emperor. “Treat him with the same respect that you would extend to a lord. Bring him up to see me.”
The guard nodded and withdrew from the office. Marak walked to the window and gazed out at the city of Khadoratung. He knew the visitor would not be Fisher in one of his many disguises because he had already spoken to his spy. Marak subconsciously fingered the pouch that held his Sakovan stars while he waited for the knock on the door. He did not have to wait for long. The knock shattered the silence of the office, and the Emperor gave his approval for the merchant to enter.
Marak turned to face the door as a tall, lean man was shown in. The man’s face showed the strain of many years in the sun, but he was not yet old and frail. The man’s tunic was clean, but showed obvious evidence of many repairs. Marak surmised that the man’s stall was not very productive. The man bowed with respect, and the Emperor nodded for the guards to leave. The merchant waited for the doors to close before speaking.
“Thank you for seeing me,” the merchant bowed. “I am called Pialorta. I am but a small merchant in the marketplace here in Khadoratung.”
“Welcome, Pialorta,” smiled the Emperor as he walked behind his desk and waved at the chair before it. “Sit down and tell me what has brought you here today.”
The merchant moved hesitantly to the chair and finally sat down, but Marak could tell that the man was extremely uncomfortable in the presence of the Emperor.
“I truly do not understand why I am here,” confessed the merchant. “In fact, I was sure that I would be turned away when I asked to speak to you.”
“Then why did you try?” asked Emperor Marak.
The man chewed on his lower lip as he stared across the desk at the most powerful man in Khadora. His hands began to shake. Several silent moments passed between the two men before the merchant spoke haltingly.
“You will think me a fool, Emperor Marak,” the merchant began, “but I was instructed to speak to you.”
“Instructed by whom?” questioned the Emperor.
“By God,” the merchant swallowed hard. “I cannot explain this very well, but I was standing at my stall in the marketplace when suddenly I grew very dizzy. I shut my eyes to clear my vision and heard a booming voice inside my head. My eyes flew open and I was amazed at what I saw. It was not the busy stalls of the marketplace, but a lush green valley with animals frolicking in the meadow and a cool clear stream running before me. It was a most relaxing sight.”
“What did this voice say?” prompted the Emperor.
“He introduced himself as Kaltara,” the merchant continued, pleased that the Emperor had not immediately called the guards to have him evicted. “He told me that my merchant days were over. He said I had a higher calling in this life. He instructed me to visit the Emperor who was known to him as the Torak. I know that your clan name is Torak, so I assumed that you were indeed the Emperor that I was to seek. If not you, who could God have meant for me to speak to?”
“I am the Torak,” confirmed Marak. “Did Kaltara tell you what it is that you are supposed to do?”
“No,” the merchant shook his head. “I was too afraid to ask at first.”
“At first?” echoed the Emperor.
“Yes,” the merchant nodded vigorously. “I was afraid at first, but Kaltara took my fears away from me. After that point I found that I no longer cared what my task was to be. I knew that I would give up my stall and do whatever God asked me to do.”
“Are you a religious man?” asked the Emperor.
“I have never been before,” admitted Pialorta. “I have given as much thought to God as the average Khadoran, which is to say, none at all.”
“But you believe in Kaltara now because he spoke to you?” inquired the Torak.
“It was not just the words,” Pialorta shook his head. “It was much more than that. I felt Kaltara within me,” he added with reverence. “I want to run and shout to everyone in the marketplace, but that is not what I was instructed to do. I came immediately to the palace. What am I to do, Emperor Marak?”
The Emperor stared blankly at the merchant for a long time without answering. Pialorta appeared to have calmed down once his message had been delivered. He sat and waited patiently for the Emperor to speak. Finally, Marak grinned broadly at Pialorta.
“You know, don’t you?” asked the merchant. “I can see it in your face.”
“I do indeed understand,” smiled Marak as he rang the bell on his desk to summon the guards. “It was not long ago that I asked Kaltara for help. You, Pialorta, are that help.”
The guards entered the room with their swords drawn. Marak waved dismissively at them and said, “Send a tailor up here immediately.”
The guards withdrew and Pialorta looked questioningly at the Emperor.
“You shall have the chance to speak to the multitudes in the marketplace,” smiled the Torak. “You will speak to thousands of Khadorans about Kaltara, and you will explain how to worship him.”
“Me?” balked the merchant. “I do not understand.”
“You are to become the Priest of Kaltara here in Khadoratung,” declared the Emperor. “The new temple is ready to be filled with the voices of thousands of worshippers. You shall gather the faithless and teach them to become the faithful.”
Emperor Marak had expected the merchant to protest, but Pialorta merely sat with wide-open eyes, staring at the Emperor. Finally, he nodded.
“So it shall be,” Pialorta swallowed hard. “I knew it would not be an easy task, but I will do my best. Will Kaltara continue to guide me as I bring others to know Him?”
“Have faith,” smiled the Torak. “In the temple library are a multitude of books and scrolls. Many of them are replicas of those found in the ancient city of Angragar. Within those pages, you will learn much about Kaltara.”
“I will study them night and day,” promised the priest.
“I suspect that there will be other priests soon,” stated the Emperor. “Four other temples have been built in Khadora. When the priests arrive here, I shall bring them to the temple to meet with you.”
“I am most honored by your faith in me,” the priest said.
“My faith, like yours, is in Kaltara,” smiled the Emperor as a knock sounded on the door.
A tailor entered in response to Marak’s call. The Emperor had just sent the new priest off to be fitted with appropriate clothing when another knock sounded. Ophia entered the room and shut the door.
“We have just had a communication from StarCity,” announced the air mage. “The Star of Sakova wants to know if you can possibly come to visit.”
“When does she wish me to visit?” asked the Emperor.
“She would like you to be there now,” Ophia replied, “but she understands that you need time to travel.”
“Did she say what she wanted?” Marak frowned.
“She did not,” answered the air mage. “Her tone was different than normal. Her words were guarded. She was terse and refused my inquiries into the purpose of the trip.”
“Very well,” Marak said after a long moment of silence. “Go back up on the roof and contact Angragar. Do not mention the Sakovans, but cleverly discern if everything is all right there. I suspect that Lyra believes that our air tunnels have been compromised.”
“I understand,” nodded Ophia. “Should I alert our other mages that air tunnel communications might be monitored by the enemy?”
“No,” replied the Torak. “Any warning to our people must be accomplished by ordinary means. I cannot be sure of the Star’s reasons for secrecy, but the very fact that she thinks she needs to be concerned bothers me. I will go to StarCity and find out the reasons for her concern. Alert Gunta and Halman on your way to the roof. Tell them we are leaving for the Sakova.”
Ophia hurried out of the Emperor’s office. Marak stepped into his living quarters and removed the white garb of the Emperor of Khadora. He dressed in the black and silver colors of the Torak clan and strapped on his weapons. When Halman and Gunta arrived, Marak was once again the Lord of the Torak clan. Marak’s shadows knew they were heading into potential danger. They readied their own weapons while the Emperor waited for Ophia to return.
When the guards opened the door to admit the air mage, they saw the Emperor dressed in black. Their eyes grew large as they gazed upon the warrior emperor, but they kept their thoughts to themselves.
“I just had a pleasant conversation with the Qubari,” reported Ophia as she stared at the Torak. “I could not detect any hint of concern in their voices. What shall I do next?”
“Contact the Sakovans again,” instructed the Emperor. “Tell them that some of the Torak clan are closer to StarCity than we realized. Tell them to expect a delegation within the hour.”
Ophia looked curiously at the Emperor, but she knew better than to question the words of his message. She nodded her understanding and left the room.
“Within the hour?” questioned Gunta after the air mage had left the room. “You know something that you have not shared with Halman and me.”
“Many things,” grinned Marak. “Come with me and learn some of them.”
The Torak led his shadows out of the office and slipped out of the palace using the Emperor’s private entrance. Within minutes the trio entered the temple and made their way to the library. Halman and Gunta said nothing as Marak slipped the catch on the bookshelf and led them into the small area beyond.
“Just like Angragar,” Gunta nodded as Halman slid the bookshelf closed. “Let me go through first. Halman will come last.”
“It goes to the Chula temple,” warned the Torak. “We will not be entering their library.”
Gunta nodded and opened the door to the closet. He stepped in and closed the door. Marak waited several seconds before opening the door and stepping into the closet. He closed the door and reopened it, stepping out into the small area behind the bookshelves in the temple in Changragar. Seconds later Halman stepped out of the closet.
“Now through to Angragar?” asked Gunta.
Marak nodded and the trio repeated the procedure, coming out in the small area behind the bookshelves in Angragar.
“And on to StarCity,” instructed the Torak.
Gunta nodded once more and stepped through the door bearing the mark of the Star of Sakova. Within moments the three warriors were behind the bookshelves in StarCity. Gunta peered through the spy hole and observed the library. Lyra was standing in the center of the room ushering out the few people who had been using the library. Gunta waited for the Star of Sakova to close the doors to the library before releasing the catch that swiveled the bookshelves.
Gunta led the way into the library as Lyra stood staring at him. When Marak exited the small area, Lyra moved swiftly across the room and embraced him.
“I am glad to see you,” Lyra said softly as Marak hugged her. “How did you arrive so quickly? Were you already at Changragar?”
“There is a new door at Changragar, “ explained the Torak. “It leads to the temple in Khadoratung. Ophia sensed some urgency in your request. Have our air tunnels been compromised?”
“I do not know,” replied Lyra, “but I could not take the chance that they were compromised. We have something very important to discuss, and I do not want anyone to know about it before we discussed it.”