6 The sorcerers

For her part, Gadara did not laze. She knew that she was wanted in all the kingdoms and have to be careful. The watchmen on the Earth were less dangerous than the Xera ones. She left her headquarter in the plain of Im'mod and was now in the No-land in the mountains of Shog. The No-land was a desolate and marshy plain in the middle of Shog. It was surrounded by four mountains. No plant grew in the No-land; no animal lives there and odour of dead was constantly in the air. The legend says that, in the dark of ages, a violent war burst out between the esmerids and the fairies but the dwarfs came to help the fairies and the esmerids were massacred. When the king of esmerids saw that his people was about to disappear, he created a passage to another world and cursed the land where the passage was. This world was the world of esmerids, the fourth world. The cursed land was the No-land. Even if it rained frequently, water was not potable. For a strange, immense and black cloud never quit its sky, it was always dark. People said that the spirits of the dead esmerids killed anyone who entered the No-land. And it was here Gadara brought her men to escape from the dwarfs. By using the magic, they built rapidly a new headquarter.

Thirty-seven sorcerers were with her. The spy who revealed their former place, Thordros, a young dwarf, had been put in an invisible magical cage. Actually he was a watchman. He would cancel the spell if it was not made by Gadara herself. Now she interrogated him. It was the first time he met her.

- "I'm sure you have a lot to tell me, Thordros." Said Gadara on a cold voice.

Thordros did not answer. They were in a little piece practically not furnished. It was just a table and a chair and the cage where was the young dwarf. Soon she demanded that he was got out the cage and tied up on the chair. On the table, the instruments of torture were set: a knife, a whip and a jar filled with worms.

- "You see, Thordros, I have been spent three hundred years with the humans on the Earth. I suppose you don't know the Earth. It's a planet filled with humans; and there is not a lot of great magicians there. Magic it's a myth for several people. So for daily tasks they use only science. With science you can know which parts of body are particularly receiptive to pain without kill the person you are torturing. I think that human body looks like dwarf body." Continued Gadara.

Gadara took the knife and looked at him in a frightening way. She smiled. She began to cut the flesh of Thordros. Small wounds but many wounds on all his body. She chose well where she cut. Thordros shouted loud with pain but Gadara was not disturbed by his shouts. She stopped when his whole body was covered with blood.

- "Are you ready to speak now? I warn you the following one is worse." Gadara said with a fake empathy. "I understand your zeal. I was like you a long time ago; always ready to give my life and my time for my nation and my companions until they betrayed me. They left you alone. You are no more useful for them. You have done you work. Don't die in pain."

- "You are the one who betrayed everyone... Hum... You can torture me. I won't tell you anything." Replied Thordros between two breathes. Gadara glanced at him and took the jar.

- "You will speak because of this. These red worms are very fond of flesh; I have found them here in the No-land. Moreover these are the only animals I have found here. I understood why there is no dead body. They can spend days without eating. It has been two days they did not eat. You always don't want to speak?" She took one of them and said.

Thordros looked with fear at the worm which was wriggled in her right hand.

- "AAAAAAH! He shouted when she put the worm in one of his leg wound. The pain stopped.

- "I can make them sleep. Just now it was a foretaste. I will put them in every one of your wounds and let them awake at the same time. After this I will warm this whip and use it on you. Because of the warmth and the knocks, the worms will sink into your flesh." She told him.

At this moment, someone knocked at the door.

- "Enter!" She ordered. "What do you want Silcul? Can't you see I am busy?"

A giant in red dress entered with a middle-aged woman in red dress too.

- "I am sorry, mistress. There is something new." He answered.

- "What is it? And why have you come with this woman?" Gadara replied.

- "Since we found this spy I thought that he could not be alone in the organization. Someone helped him. So I demanded Ica to do researches and..." Said Silcul.

- "How can you be sure that she is not herself the second spy? She is a human." Gadara cut him short.

- "Because Ica is one of the eldest of this community. Her husband and his son died because of the Murui. I was there..." Silcul retorted before Gadara cut him short again.

- "Alright! What does she have for me?" Asked Gadara. Silcul made a nod to Ica.

- "These are the movements of Thordros during these last two months. I am in charge of the member's surveillance. And these are the movements of Dardu from the supply department. We have found eleven cases of when Dardu left a place Thordros take his place after. For examples this six weeks ago or this market." Said Ica. She had come close to Gadara and howed her a sheet where the scriptures appeared or disappeared when she touched them.

- "Silcul, bring me Dardu!" ordered Gadara. " I want to see this register better."

Ica left the register in the hands of Gadara while Silcul went out. Ica came close to Thordrod. Gadara frowned: the register had been falsified. Before Gadara could stop her, Ica disappeared with Thordros. Gadara shouted loud such as Silcul came back and he saw that she was alone. Furious, burnt Silcul instantly. His ashes felk on the ground.

Ica and Thordros appeared at Inmeserine in front of Argan's home. It was already dark. He barely came from the Council. The face of Ica turned in a young woman one.

- "Azura!" Exclaimed Argan.

- "Argan!I need your help." Said Ica who waa actually Azura, the daughter of Water Magic's guardian.

Argan brought them in his house. She healed the wounds of Thordros. The young dwarf slept now in one of the bedrooms of Argan. He had been tortured for hours before Gadara took over. Thordros and Ica were friends and colleagues in the army of North's dwarfs though Azura was a siren. The sirens did not have their own kingdom. Where were their waters was their country. So they were in all the kingdoms even in the fairies ones who disliked this creatures. Azura was a blond girl of about 1.7 meter. She mastered the magic of the water and the spells of healing and of transformation. She would have to use a magical object to escape from the No-land since the curse of this place was too heavy for a normal magical teleportation: the wing of an esmerids. Azura knew Argan since their childhood for their parents were friends and guardians. So when she needed help she went often to him.

- " Why didn't you go to your authorities?"Argan asked to her.

- "Because I think that there is a traitor among the army? Azura replied.

- "Why do you think this?" Do you have evidences?" Argan asked again.

- "The council of elves watchmen decided to send ten men to evaluate the situation in the No-land, didn' it?" Azura said.

- "Yes and then?" Replied Argan.

- "I received this information three hours and the agreement of the dwarfs one. In the new head quarter of Gadara." Said Azura.

- "The leakage didn't come from us. We received their response just one hour ago." Said Argan.

- "Yes. So it came from the dwarfs. If someone in the army is with Gadara, Thordros and I are in danger. I think that the sorcerers didn't know who I was because only a few people in the army know that I was infiltrated." Azura said.

- "However I don't see why Gadara will chase you. What kind of information can you have to justify it?" Asked Azura.

- "Not me but he: the plan of Gadara to conquer the world." Replied Azura.

What Azura knew was that this plan implicated both Xera and Earth. It could be a very great thing for Gadara pretended conquer Xera and Earth with their magic, their Murui and their science. Argan thought that it was important to get rid of Gadara. Most of the kingdoms of Xera did not really care of this problem. Since she had lost a part of her power they considered she was not a menace for them. They wanted them for a matter of reveng. They truly underestimated the resources of Gadara and she was more powerful on Xera than on Earth.

Azura spent the night to care of Thordros while Argan meditated in his bedroom. The hous of Argan was not the Alyss Palace but was enough immense. After all, it was also the home of the legendary chief of the Magic's guardian. He thought to contact his father but he renounced thinking that he had no enough elements. And anyway, the council had asked for the help of guardians in this affair. Nonetheless, he had a foreboding. So to be reassured, he went in the world of dreams to inquire about the situationn on Earth. His body was in his bedroom but his spirit elsewhere. He knew an old watchwoman on Earth. They used to meet in a meadow. Argan was waiting for her in this meadow where a few days ago he brought a young girl. He felt an unknown presence in his back and turned suddenlly.