Ibn Zaid studied his maps, pondering the problem long and hard. One option would be for the prince to ride due west until he reached the shore of the Western Sea itself, possibly in Faranza or Norgeland. But ibn Zaid also knew that the prince was gathering the armies of mankind for a war against Aeshma this coming spring, and the armies of those lands were simply too far away. Even if they mobilized immediately, they could probably not reach the Leewahr Plains in time to do any good.
If, on the other hand, the prince turned his path southward, he could talk to such possible allies as Tatarry, Damasc, and Nikhrash on his way to the Central Sea; he could even venture as far south as Bann before finding a ship—although that was unlikely, since it would take him nearly a thousand parasangs ou
