Disclaimer-I do not own anything TP related!!!(obviously)

A/N-OK, here's the third part of the War Plans chapter. I decided to put this one up now because I can't wait to put up the next one. . .LOL



By the time Leya reached the camp, Raphael was practically out of his mind with worry. The second he saw her, he ran forward and hugged her, yelling at her at the same time for being so late. "Where were you? Goddess knows what's roaming around on this mountain at night! You should know better than to say out for so long!" He kept going till Leya started laughing and he finally released her. It was then he noticed the scent of the flowers and wrinkled his nose. "Ugh! Don't bring those over here!" Leya grinned and jogged away from the camp and put the flowers under a bush where their scent wouldn't drift over to the camp.

When she got back, they ate, both lost deep in thought. Raphael was wondering how to get Leya to talk about her father and Leya was thinking about the meeting of the Kings and Emperors. It wasn't until after they had cleaned up and doused the fire that Raphael decided to talk to her. He had first watch, and she had rolled her self up in her bedroll with her back to him. "Leya?" he asked softly.

"What?" she asked sleepily.

'Good,' Raphael thought to himself, 'she's tired. Maybe she'll talk easier now.' Out loud he said, "You never told me exactly what happened with your father."

Leya was quiet for a moment. "I went out into the woods to practice with my sword. When I got back, like I said, he caught me putting it away. He made me give it to him, then he hit me and left, taking the sword with him. I assume he told Juliana about it while I was trying to compose myself." She was silent, reflecting, then she continued. "I was angry more than anything, and it made me really wish I knew hand to hand combat. . . ~*any*~ hand to hand combat would be good! Not that I would stand a chance against him." Her voice was full of disgust as she talked about it. "I was so angry, and I still am. Juliana wasn't any help, sending me to gather her precious Rulip. I really don't know my family; they're like strangers that I happened to be living with. If I had the opportunity, I'd leave in a split second. The only problem is that I don't have any place to go."

Raphael thought about this. He had been pretty sure she would say something like this. He had sensed before that she wanted to leave them, but she had never said it outright. Now he knew for sure. After a minute, he shrugged. He himself lived with a group of strangers as well. He was an orphan and shared the house he lived in with three others. He considered himself lucky that he had enough money to get by. . . well, more then enough. . . apparently some aunt of his had just died and left all her money to him, and, if you add that to what his own family had left him, he was pretty well off. All of this, however, was beside the point.

He heard her roll over and sat waiting for her to say something. "Did you see those men in the field today?"

Raphael started at her question. After he recovered, he turned to face her. "Yeah, of course. I used my spy glass to look at them." Quickly he related to her what he had seen.

Leya's golden eyes widened, though he could not see this through the darkness. She related to him everything that she had seen and heard, from the bottle of colorless liquid to the guards to the kings. When she was done, he stared at her like she was insane. "You mean to tell me that you snuck up on them and basically spied on them? Are you crazy? If they had caught you, they probably would have killed you!"

"Basically that's what I did, and no, I'm not crazy."

Raphael's mind was spinning, but he knew one thing was for sure. "Leya, we leave immediately in the morning. I only hope that that liquid doesn't do anything drastic in the next two days before we can alert the Lord and Lady of the Hold."



In Corus in the castle, King Ryland sat in the war chamber with his advisors and the war leaders. The discussion was a grim one. There was reason to believe that the countries that surrounded Tortall were beginning to mass for war. Various reports had come in, speaking of large armies and increased weaponry making. Spies had been sent out to confirm the reports. The situation wasn't a good one. At least five other countries were preparing for war; how many others there were was not yet known.

"You say that they may be working together?" the King asked.

The current Duke of Naxen, Keith (A/N-remember that this is long after Alanna's, Daine's, and Kel's time.) nodded.

The Lord of Golden Lake spoke. "They are massing, and there are reports of them working together. It would be wise to have confirmation that they are before we take action."

The King thought about this for a moment. "Very well then." He gestured that they were dismissed, and they all left. Once they were gone, the King put his head in his hands. "All we need is confirmation so we have reason to launch an attack!" Little did he know that there were two people with the confirmation he wanted. . .



The seriousness of the situation had dawned on both Raphael and Leya. Therefore, they were both tense and nervous the next two days as they traveled back to the village. Both Bonfire and Sham were extra good, sensing that something was terribly wrong. They made good time, but when they crested the last hill and the village came into view, they both stopped dead, each staring in terror at the scene that lay before them.

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A/N-OK, that's the end of that chapter. The next one is my favorite so far. It is basically one scene, but it is told from all four travelers' point of view. Yes, that includes the horses. I probably like it so much cause it's a lot of fun to write from the horses' point of view. Sham is so arrogant. I think ya'll will like it. ttyl! If you are reading this and haven't reviewed. . .well. . .REVIEW! Feedback is diffidently appreciated!