Chapter Seven: Up and Over

Tranith Argan: Book 6

---

Felanar and Alessa climb the walls of the city.

---

The next day dawned and the captains met to plan this next line of attack, as unconventional a line of warfare as any of the army men could imagine. Felanar convinced everyone that his plan, though daring and risky, was sound in that he had imagined whatever threat he might face and had a plan to counter it. The rest of the morning was spent going over the timing of various events that had to take place if this plan was to succeed. Felanar stressed that this would be a multi-pronged line of attack. He would be acting on the inside of the city, they would be acting on the outside, but both would be acting together.

“What if you get caught in the castle?” asked Dolen. “You would be killed by the guards and then all is lost for you.”

“I do not think so, my friend,” said Felanar. “If we get captured by guards of Vélakk, I think the most likely occurrence is that we would be taken prisoner to Vélakk. That would also accomplish our aim—in fact it might shorten our journey considerably.”

“Why not turn yourself in then?” asked the dwarf skeptically.

“I am not going to take that chance,” replied Felanar. “One overly anxious guard and I am dead. Stealth is the way, but if we are captured, I do not think this is necessarily ruin.”

“How would you attack Vélakk in his presence if you are bound as prisoners?” asked Dolen.

“I have my way around bonds,” said Alessa quietly. “Any guards we face will not be used to elves, and I can surprise them.”

“And you will take no one else but you two?” asked Dalonír once again, his eyes trained on his younger sister.

“We will need to be inconspicuous in reaching our ascent point,” said Felanar, “and once we climb up and over the walls it should be a small group, and ideally two, but I think a third could be useful.”

“To do what?” asked Alessa.

“One of the risks we face,” said Felanar, “is that we get caught out before we can reach the castle walls. If that happens, it would be good to have an elf to stand ground while the two of us escape and continue. Ideally this will not occur, for if it does the alarm will be raised throughout the city and our efforts become considerably riskier. And if I think it too risky, then I might decide to abandon the plan, fight our way back to the walls, and up and over to this side once again. An extra elf is useful in that scenario too. So yes, Dalonír, please assign one of your best elves to join us. But I think that is enough. Remember, the idea is stealth, not might.”

“I shall do so,” replied Dalonír.

The meeting ended, and Felanar and Alessa spent the afternoon preparing themselves. They put on ordinary clothing that the elves said they had noticed the people inside the city wearing. Any weapons they carried, and they needed weapons for their plan to succeed, had to be hidden while they walked along. They had to look like farmers carrying supplies, so they each were provided with a burlap sack, and into this they poured whatever supplies they could think to carry. Alessa put her bow and quiver of arrows inside her sack, along with a sword. Knives she would keep hidden on her. Felanar placed inside his sack his sword plus an extra sword and some knives, all wrapped in cloth so they would not clink nosily while he walked. Some food supplies and water, but not much. This plan was a short one. Either it worked or it failed, but inside of a night and a day, it would be decided either way.

As evening drew close and the light in this land faded, after a day where nothing threatening was noted in the city, and reports from the coast were ordinary, Felanar, Alessa and Restil, a Findáran Knight under Dalonír’s command, ate supper and gathered their supplies. Dalonír had chosen Restil not because the was the biggest elf or the strongest, for they wanted to blend in with the farmers in the city, but he was experienced as a Knight, had shown his bravery, and was quite skillful in combat.

When it was completely dark, and indeed clouds mostly covered the sky as Felanar had hoped, the three of them began walking north to the mountain range that bounded the city. From there they walked silently around the mountain base toward the city walls that loomed in the distance. They wore black clothes and had their hoods drawn over their heads to make themselves blend into the dark ground. When they reached within twenty feet of the wall they paused. The two elves scanned the top of the wall, now high above their heads, for any sign of guards. They were far from their camp, they had never threatened this remote part of the wall, so they didn’t expect much in the way of guards, and they certainly could perceive no movement or talking.

They remain in this position for several minutes, and then at the predetermined time they had planned that afternoon, Felanar heard his far-off army begin noisily marching.

“They have begun,” said Alessa, “do you hear them?”

“Yes,” said Felanar.

They waited, knowing their enemy in the city could also hear it. The plan was not to attack that night, but merely to position the army close to the center of the wall, near the main gate, far enough out of arrow range, but close enough to give indication that an attack would begin as soon as it was light. Or at least make the enemy warily watch for a sign of attack. This, they hoped, would focus the enemy’s attention even further away from their current position far to the north. While this distraction was occurring, the three of them stood up and walked the rest of the way to the wall.

Though it was dark, they were now right up against the wall, and Felanar could see that the stones that made up the wall were hewn to precise measurements and fitted together neatly. This would not be an easy wall to climb. But to the elves, this was possible. As previously decided, Restil would make the first ascent, make sure the way was passable, and only then would Alessa and Felanar follow.

“Remember,” whispered Felanar into Restil’s ear, “we do not wish to kill soldiers if it can be helped. Stealth is our preference. If it looks as if we will have to fight our way in, come back down and tell me. Do not start killing soldiers. We don’t want to draw an alarm in this direction.”

Restil nodded, looked up at his goal, reached up with his hands to the thin line of mortar between stones, and then he started to climb. Finding hand holds where there appeared to be none in the cracks of the wall, he cautiously worked his way up the face of the wall. He hesitated only once when he lost his grip on a shallow indentation, but quickly righted himself and continued upward. Alessa could see him better than Felanar in the darkness, but even Felanar could see a dark shape contrasting with the slightly less dark sky above. They both followed Restil’s progress until he reached the top. Alessa saw him look left and right to see if any guards were near, and when he paused she knew it meant there was a guard nearby. Then he continued up and over the top, pulled out an elven rope and let it down to the others.

Felanar grabbed the rope and began climbing. This was the one part he could not do on his own, but Alessa could and she climbed next to Felanar but without the use of the rope. They made the same time to the top where Restil hauled Felanar over the edge. With all three standing on top of the wall, they could see far to their right that there was a gate tower that was no doubt manned, but otherwise they could see no guards. Restil quietly told them he saw a guard walking into the gate tower and only finished his ascent when the guard was safely inside it.

The walkway on the top of the wall was lined by stone on either side with lookouts every few feet. It was quite a wide walkway, and again Felanar saw how hard it would be to try to use engines of war to break through these thick walls. On the far side of the walkway should be a way to descend into the city that would let soldiers come and go, and quickly they found the nearest stairs.

With Restil going first they descended the stairs, still hearing their army in the distance far to the south noisily moving position. So far their plan had worked for all attention seemed to be focused on the south, leaving the north quiet and nearly deserted. The castle rose in the distance, but closer to their location was farmland and huts for houses. As they descended, they saw only one guard on the ground ahead of them at the base of the stairs. Beyond him the city was dark and quiet for it was the middle of the night. The three of them paused while still fifty feet above the guard’s position and almost silently discussed how to deal with him.

“I can put him to sleep with my darts,” said Alessa.

“That still leaves a body to be discovered and the alarm raised,” said Felanar.

“We can hide his body,” said Restil.

“Then they will wonder what happened to the guard and the alarm will be raised,” countered Felanar. “No, let us try something else.”

Looking around the stairs, he found a few loose pebbles that he grabbed. Then he threw one to his right so that it would hit the ground and make enough of a noise to be noticed. It hit with a plunk and the guard turned to face the south. But he did not move and soon turned his face back. Felanar threw another pebble. The guard turned again but did not move, and this time Felanar threw a third while he was looking. The guard looked around, and above, but did not see them with their hoods drawn close. He moved from his position and started exploring the area where the sounds had originated.

The three of them quickly descended the rest of the way, Felanar desperately trying to be as quiet as the elves, and they reached the ground and turned to the left just as the guard was starting back. They found a wagon and hid behind it until they were sure the guard did not see them. They were now about a hundred feet from the guard. Looking east they saw some huts clustered together around farmland, and they decided to make for those huts before turning south toward the castle. The ground was soft and they made their way silently and in darkness until they had nearly reached the huts. Alessa said she could hear breathing inside the huts, sounds of sleep, so they proceeded cautiously further.

To get to the castle meant traversing several of these farm communities, and then clusters of shops and buildings of labor, followed by more housing and then the castle itself. In a straight line this distance could be walked in about an hour, but proceeding as slowly and as cautiously as they were, it was nearly dawn before the massive castle was finally in sight. They had not been seen all night mostly because they had not seen anyone all night. That was changing now as the day approached. People emerged from several homes and huts in order to prepare to do their day’s work and it was here that the three of them hoped their disguises would work. Indeed, as they walked along, with their hoods over their heads, their burlap bags over their shoulders, and their rough, dark clothing covering their bodies, they realized they matched the local inhabitants who wore roughly the same material and were also carrying their work equipment for the day. Since most people they saw walked with their heads down, they fit right in.

They were now at the base of the castle, and in order to appear less conspicuous they knelt down and seemed to rummage through their packs whenever they saw someone nearby. Meanwhile they glanced at the castle walls and looked for an entrance on the northern face.

“There,” said Restil with a finger pointed from his chest that only they could notice, “that stone slot could be accessed.”

Alessa glanced upward where Restil was pointing and thought for a moment.

“I think it is wide enough,” she said quietly.

The cut out they referred to was a defensive slot from which archers could fire arrows at attacking armies. Since it had never occurred that an army was inside these walls, they assumed that post would not now be manned, and from there they could get inside the castle. But it was nearly daylight and if they did not act quickly they would have to make this traverse in bright light.

“This is where we have to part, Restil,” said Felanar. “I need you to stay behind and make sure if anyone sees us they have no opportunity to raise the alarm.”

Restil nodded.

“We are shielded from the walls, and are currently in the shadows,” said Felanar. “The only people who might see us climbing are the inhabitants of these nearby houses. As we climb we shall be in the shadows and with our dark clothing on. Given how everyone here seems to look down, I’m not too worried, but if anyone sees us, you know what to do.”

Restil nodded again and began looking around. When there was no one around, and just as the sun was threatening to climb above the city walls, Alessa began the ascent to the castle cut out that was twenty feet above the ground. Reaching it quickly, and squeezing her way inside, her head soon appeared and so did a rope tumbling to the ground. Felanar grabbed it and quickly ascended himself. He could barely fit inside the cut out, but was soon inside the castle too. He looked out, and suddenly he saw that Restil was dealing with a farmer who had noticed them climbing.

A middle-aged woman had left her hut and was walking to her nearby field, head down as everyone else they had seen. But whether she heard something, or just found it odd that there was this man in a dark cloak standing over there, she raised her head and turned to face him. Restil made eye contact with her, ready to pounce into action, but hesitant to do anything unless it was of necessity. They were about fifty feet apart, but his elven eyes saw her expression clearly. She stared at him, then glanced upward at the cut out where Felanar was peering down, and her expression finally changed from resignation to surprise. Restil tensed. Then as quickly as it appeared the expression left her face, she turned, dropped her head and continued walking.

Restil turned and looked up at Felanar who gave a sign to Restil. He was to stay behind, make sure no trouble followed this recognition, and if all was clear to begin walking back to the north and the wall. He was to climb back over, and if it meant hiding all day until nightfall, that is what he would do. In the meantime he would continue to look for any sign of disturbance and handle it in any way that he could.

For Felanar this was another sign that his idea was the right one. This woman did not care about matters of state or struggles between kings. It mattered not to her who ruled this land. She was so beaten down that any improvement in her life would be viewed with gratefulness. She was surprised to see people secretly entering the castle, but not motivated to turn them in or even confront them. Who knows what she thought of it all, who she thought they were, if she realized they were part of the forces against the city, if she even knew there were forces outside the walls. The rocks that had been hurled into the city hit on the southern parts, not this far north. She might be completely ignorant of all that was going on around her and merely wanted to check her vegetables. Felanar had no quarrel with this woman and he was glad it was not necessary to kill her.

Felanar and Alessa looked around this small room that was meant for archers, but it was clear none had been here for some time. Dust covered everything. There was no sound nearby of any activity. Here Felanar’s plan called for being prepared for anything—they had no real knowledge of how many people lived in this castle. It could be surmised, simply by living in Tranith Argan, that there would be cooks and servants of many kinds, but of soldiers this was unknown. Would Vélakk be fearful and have garrisons of soldiers inside the castle for such a threat as they now posed? Felanar had argued otherwise, noting that the true physical nature of Vélakk made it unlikely he feared physical threats. With his people viewing him a god and in complete subjection to his will, with no army until now threatening to attack him, and with a true form so powerful that no one could attack him, why would he be paranoid?

“Then how are you to kill him?” Dalonír had asked back in the army tent.

“That is the part of the plan I have to be prepared to make a decision on the spot when the opportunity arises,” he had responded finally, “but if we take the view that he is immortal and all-powerful, then there is no point in fighting at all. There must be a way.”

“What if you cannot find that way?” Dalonír had asked.

“I will find it,” Felanar had said.

Now the reality was descending upon him. They were in the castle, and soon, this day, he would discover if he could find a way to kill Vélakk.

Stealth was no longer needed. They were inside the castle, and no peasant was likely to go unchallenged if noticed, so they would no longer pretend to be simple farmers in cloaks. Down came the hoods, their burlap sacks were emptied, and both them were soon fully armed. Felanar had his sword hanging from its sheath on his belt, along with knives. Alessa wore her quiver of arrows, carried her bow, and also had her sword and knives. If there were noticed now, it would be obvious they were here for war. Why pretend otherwise?

They hid the empty burlap sacks behind some rope in the corner, a corner that appeared to have been undisturbed for months if not years, and they hoped that would continue one more day. For while they dressed for war, their chances were greatest the longer they remained undetected.

They left the small guard room and entered a large stone hallway. Orienting themselves from the views they had had of the castle from outside, Felanar knew they had to work their way toward the south, for there it was there they surmised they would find the most straightforward journey to the top. If visitors entered from the southern entrance, no doubt that was where the main staircase was located. Given how high the main tower stood, they knew they were in for many stairs before they were done.

They walked silently along the walkway, past more empty rooms and other hallways that stretched into the distance in various directions. They knew this castle had the appearance of a building that had been built and then added onto and more added onto and yet more built on top of that. They assumed it would be easy to get lost if they didn’t find the main entrance, so that is what they looked for as they marched down the hallway toward the south. Alessa assured Felanar she could keep track of direction even if they got turned around as they walked, and soon Felanar was glad of that assurance since he quickly lost track. A few times as they moved along the zigzag pattern of the hallways, they heard the sounds of voices, and when they did they slipped into an empty room until the voices receded. From the conversations they sounded more servant than soldier, but they did not take a chance to see for themselves.

When the hallway was again empty they continued. The halls were constructed of the same stone work as they had seen thus far, with no rug to walk upon, just cold stone. They strode silently along, seeing as far down the hall as they could, noting rooms they could duck into if they needed to. Alessa used her ears to hear anything coming, and when she heard the next conversation in the distance, they realized they were far from any room they had passed. So they took the chance of coming to another room and moved ahead quickly as the voices grew close enough for Felanar to hear it too. Then just as they saw an entrance up on the left, from around the corner at an intersection just beyond it came two soldiers talking to each other.

Alessa saw them before they saw her, and she had two darts in the air before they could reach for their weapons in surprise. By the time they had raised their swords, their bodies betrayed them and they slumped to the ground in sleep. Felanar and Alessa rushed up, dragged them into that room on the left, which turned out to be a supply room for the servants, full of soap and rags piled up. They placed the two sleeping soldiers in the far corner, knowing they would be found when the next servant came to pick up cleaning supplies. Given how dirty and neglected this part of the castle appeared, they expected that would not happen today.

“How many of those darts do you have left?” asked Felanar.

“A dozen,” said Alessa.

“We will be killing them before this is through,” replied Felanar staring into Alessa’s eyes.

“I know,” she said quietly, “but no more than necessary.”

“Let’s continue.”

They walked on to that intersection the soldiers came from, but turned left to what Alessa said was toward the southern center of the castle.

They walked on this way, past rooms neglected as well as recently in use, for over an hour, twisting this way and that, but always moving in the direction Alessa said was the right one. Finally they emerged into a great hall with soaring ceilings and walls that stretched out in all directions.

“There!” pointed Alessa, and Felanar saw that she was pointing out what had to be the main entrance to the castle. It was a huge reinforced metal door that was guarded by two soldiers carrying spears. They had not been noticed, and they quickly shrank back into the hallway to plan their next move. For ahead and to the left was a great staircase leading up. They had found their way to the center. Climbing those steps meant at last coming face to face with Vélakk.