pleasance. The elegant shops were closed with steel shutters, but food and liquor stalls and purveyors of festival novelties were open and doing a roaring business. In the center of the marketplace was a platform where an ensemble of musicians played rollicking airs on horns, doodlesacks, fipple-flut.es, and drums. Because of the constricted s.p.a.ce, people who wanted to dance were limited to jumping up and down and flapping the wings of their costumes. An illuminated clockface mounted on the facade of a great banking establishment showed an hour and a half until midnight.
"This is no good, Ledo," said the Archduke to the Pirate King. "The crowd is getting so dense we can scarcely move."
"But the spark inside the amulet points in that direction! G.o.d only knows why the villains have taken the Queen into the city"s center, but they have certainly done so. See for yourself, Gyor."
The Sobranian eyed the trillium-amber pendant thrust beneath his nose. "Yes, yes, I know. But look-the avenue on the opposite side of the market is packed solidly with people heading toward the pleasance. It"s impossible for us to go that way. We"ll have to find another route."
Gyorgibo and Ledavardis had left the other rulers at the imperial hunting lodge, to which Queen Anigel"s recovered trillium-amber had obligingly led them on the previous day. The escaped hostages had found the place deserted, and for a few precious hours, the King and the Archduke had slept like dead men. Awakening shortly before dawn, they shared a hearty meal that Queen Jiri and Duumvir Ga-Bondies scratched up from the lodge"s larder. Gyorgibo was almost unrecognizable after he had shorn his vart"s-nest of tangled hair, shaved, and dressed in clean garments. The two young men then bade their companions farewell, cautioning them not to stray away from the lodge, and rode off toward Brandoba via a roundabout trail familiar to Gyorgibo. The journey took them all day and part of the evening. All unknowing, they had barely avoided catching up with the rear guard of the Star Guild.
Before entering the Hunters Gate the pair abandoned their fro-nials for fear of attracting unwanted attention. Once inside Brandoba they bought a couple of cheap bird costumes, using money from the late Tazor"s effects, and slowly tracked Queen Anigel by means of the guiding spark within the heart of the trillium-amber until further progress through the crowd seemed to be impossible.
"How can we find another way," Ledavardis complained, "unless the magical Flower turns us into true birds, and we fly?"
"Follow me," the Archduke commanded. He unhooked a small gate shutting off a narrow s.p.a.ce between two buildings, then slipped into a arrow-straight alley so constricted that it would accommodate only a single person at a time. It was very dark, having a deep gutter in the middle and trending rather steeply downhill. A noxious stench revealed the gutter to be an open sewer that collected effluent from cesspipes of the structures on either side.
"Phew!" Ledavardis cried. "Where the devil are we going? This is the exact opposite direction from that indicated by the trillium-amber!"
But the Sobranian hurried on without explanation, and after a time they came to an inky little ca.n.a.l clotted with floating detritus. Windowless walls with widely s.p.a.ced doors fronted a narrow walk beside the sinister waterway.
"This is one of several small ca.n.a.ls that flush munic.i.p.al waste down to the lower River Dob and into the sea," Gyorgibo said. "Each dawn, garbage barges drift along them and public scavengers empty the litterbins set out on the embankment." He pointed upstream, where the sky was brightest. "If we go that way, we are bound to come to one of the great sewers serving the palace. When Denombo and I were lads, we used the tunnels to escape our tutors and prowl the city incognito."
The Archduke moved swiftly along the slippery paved walk, coming at length to a ma.s.sive wall. At water level was a semicircular opening twice his height, barred by a stout metal grate. "The wall is part of the palace"s northern perimeter. The grate of the sewer pipe is locked, of course. Deno and I once had keys- but you have something even better!"
King Ledavardis nodded and touched the grate"s lockplate with the drop of trillium-amber. There was a click, the bars opened, and Gyorgibo led the way into fetid blackness. Anigel"s amulet obligingly brightened like a tiny lantern.
"There"s a ledge just above the effluent. Keep close behind me, and for the love of heaven don"t fall into the muck. We don"t have too far to go. There"s a branch ahead that serves as a drain to the bosquets and fountains of the pleasance."
They shuffled along and finally turned right into a narrower tunnel. Fortunately, the liquid flowing through it was fairly clean water, only a bit grayish in color, for here there were no ledges and they had to wade along ankle-deep. To the surprise of the Pirate King, this pipe was faintly lit by widely s.p.a.ced overhead grilled shafts. When they had gone a few hundred ells it became evident that they were beneath the pleasance itself. The noise of the crowd penetrated underground like rolling thunder.
"I think we"ll climb out here," Gyorgibo said, indicating iron rungs that led up one of the shafts. "It should lead to one of the bosquets." He ascended hand over hand and lifted the grille at the top. When Ledavardis emerged behind him he saw that they were within a small planting of trees and bushes, one of many miniature parks dotting the great square, set off from the open areas of the pleasance by iron fencing. The crowd stood shoulder-to-shoulder round about it, waiting for the fireworks display to begin. The din was deafening.
The Pirate King took out the trillium-amber and inspected it. Seeing that the directing line of light in its heart was now exceedingly bright, he spoke to the amulet. "Is your mistress nearby?"
The spark at the line"s tip began to blink rapidly. Ledavardis gave a cry of triumph and bellowed into the Archduke"s ear. "Queen Anigel is somewhere over in that direction, near that big fountain!"
Gyorgibo shook his head in puzzlement. "Incredible! I cannot fathom why the Star Men would bring her there, of all places."
"Never mind. Let"s go!"
The two men penetrated the press of costumed people only by main strength, making their way with glacial slowness. A clock on one of the public buildings indicated that it was nearly midnight.
And then a costumed urchin heading in the same direction trod sharply upon the toes of Ledavardis and elbowed him in the stomach and kicked his shins for good measure, whereupon the King took hold of the boy and tussled with him, shouting, "You d.a.m.ned brat! I"ll teach you!"
The bird hoods of both of them fell away as they tumbled to the torn turf. The child"s eyes widened in recognition and he ceased his struggles, and Ledavardis saw that he was chastising none other than Tolivar, Prince of Laboruwenda. What was more, the boy had a peculiar silvery coronet clamped to his brow that had to be the fabled Three-Headed Monster talisman of Queen Anigel.
"What are you doing here?" Tolivar exclaimed.
"Probably the same thing you are," the King retorted. He and the boy were on hands and knees down on the flattened lawn, a forest of legs surrounding them. No member of the crowd paid them any attention.
"My Royal Mother-" the Prince began.
"Is here in the pleasance somewhere," snapped the King, "and you had best leave her rescue to me."
"You don"t understand," the boy wailed. "Orogastus and the evil Star Woman Naelore have Mother and they have promised to slay her unless I surrender to them this talisman. I was commanded to meet the sorcerer near that fountain during the fireworks."
"Did he tell you exactly where?" the King asked.
"Nay, he said he would find me. Once I have given him the ransom, he will turn Mother over to me."
Ledavardis thought quickly. "I doubt that! More likely, the wizard intends to take both of you prisoner. Queen Anigel is too valuable a hostage to be set free. What do you think, Gyor?"
The Archduke squatted beside the two of them and said, "I think the same as you."
"Why can"t you use your coronet"s magic to rescue the Queen?" the King asked Tolivar.
"I"m not a good enough sorcerer," the boy said miserably. "I hoped to go invisible and save her, but the talisman said that Orogastus would be able to descry me regardless." Desperation brought tears to the Prince"s eyes. "Oh, please, King Ledo! Do not interfere. I am the only one who can save Mother. Even if the Star Men do capture both of us, at least she will be alive."
A loud flourish of trumpets sounded from the bandsh.e.l.l, and it was echoed immediately by another fanfare coming from the palace at the opposite end of the pleasance. A collective roar went up from the crowd.
"It is the Emperor," Gyorgibo said, "coming out to signal the start of the aerial display."
The three of them climbed to their feet. A twin file of torch-bearers was visible, filing out of the palace"s grand entrance and down the stairs. They were accompanied by lackeys bearing a portable throne and many golden stools, imperial guardsmen in ornate armor, and a procession of courtiers wearing magnificent bird robes. The Emperor appeared last of all, attired in shining vestments of iridescent white vitt feathers and a platinum crown-helm with a beaked visor entirely covered by diamonds.
The trumpets blared again, and the mob responded by chanting Denombo"s name. So lofty was the palace staircase that the members of the imperial court were clearly visible above the gates. They marched down to a kind of terrace that divided the steps into two sections. The throne was emplaced there, flanked by stools for the high n.o.bles. The Emperor lifted his arms and the sleeves of his robe seemed transformed into great sparkling wings. Instantly, silence fell.
He declaimed: "Let the heavens proclaim the glory of the G.o.ddess Matuta-and that of her loyal servant, Denombo!"
A thundering detonation rang out. Six skyrockets took off from the s.p.a.ce in front of the temple, soaring into the cloudy sky trailing sparks. When they reached the top of their trajectory they exploded into an overarching canopy of gold and green stars. The a.s.sembled throng broke into a riot of cheering. Then the trumpets and flugelhorns in the bandsh.e.l.l began to play sprightly melodies and everyone settled down to watch the show.
"I have an idea." The Archduke leaned close to Ledavardis and began speaking into his ear. The two men conversed for a few minutes in words inaudible to the Prince.
Finally the King of the Pirates said: "Tola, do you see the small bosquet-that enclosed park to the left of the fountain?"
The boy nodded, and Ledavardis explained his plan-and what he, Tolivar, must do to abet it.
Blood drained from the Prince"s face. "If we fail, Mother might be killed after all!"
"The sorcerer needs Queen Anigel alive," Ledavardis told him curtly. "He never intended to slay her, only to frighten you into handing over your talisman. Look here!" The King pulled the trillium-amber from its place of concealment and explained how it had guided him and Gyorgibo in their search. "The Holy Flower will continue to protect your mother as it has done since her birth. You must believe that, Tola. Now go. But before you do, give me that."
And the King pointed to a mesh sack hanging from the Prince"s belt.
Queen Jiri came into the grand salon of the hunting lodge, where Widd, Hakit Botal, Prigo, and Ga-Bondies sat sipping mulled wine before the blazing hearth.
"My friends, we have a problem. After I helped Princess Raviya to retire upstairs, I stepped outside onto the balcony for a breath of air and saw something that worries me greatly."
President Hakit Botal gave a gusty sigh of annoyance. "Not another pack of forest monsters sniffing around the fronial stables! I a.s.sure you, Majesty, there is no way the creatures can break in and devour the mounts, any more than they can harm us here in the lodge. The buildings are very st.u.r.dy."
"I am not concerned about wild beasts eating us or the fro-nials," the Queen said with asperity. "Come and see for yourselves what is going on, then draw your own conclusions." She whirled about and climbed the open rustic staircase to the upper level. The four men followed reluctantly.
At the end of the hallway she unfastened the window-doors leading to the balcony. The others came out into the dark after her. It was a raw evening with intermittent moonlight piercing the dark clouds. "What do you make of that?" Jiri pointed to a gap in the trees, where the saw-toothed front range of the Collum Mountains loomed black against a widespread rosy glow in the sky.
"It is a most somber sunset," Prince Widd began tentatively.
But Jiri cut him off. "The mountains lie to the east"
"It cannot be a freak of moonrise," Duumvir Prigo said thoughtfully, "since all three orbs are high in the sky, albeit partially masked by clouds. Do you suppose it is a forest fire?"
"There is no smoke," said the Queen. "I thought at first that a mighty storm was approaching, and that the glow might be distant thunderbolts. But the wind blows from the other way, and while the redness does vary somewhat in intensity, it is too steady to be lightning."
"D-do you think it might be m-magic?" Ga-Bondies stuttered fearfully. "Orogastus beleaguering the Sobranian capital city with eldritch f-fire?"
"Imbecile," Hakit Botal snapped. "Brandoba also lies to the west, in the opposite direction."
"The glow might still be magical," said Prince Widd. "I can understand why Jiri is uneasy."
"There is something else," said the redoubtable Queen. "Listen!"
They c.o.c.ked their ears momentarily. Then Prigo announced, "I hear naught but the sound of the great river, and it seems to flow more quietly than usual."
"The forest creatures are silent," the Queen told them, "and that is hardly normal."
"Hmm. No cries of beasts or birds at all," the President said, concern entering his voice for the first time. "Yes-that is queer. Something must have frightened them."
"But what?" Ga-Bondies whispered.
"I don"t know," Jiri admitted. "But there is another, even more ominous development I would call to your attention. It is best seen from further along the balcony."
The men shuffled along after her, coming to a place where the sound of the River Dob in its canyon was louder. The Queen bade them look down, but they could see almost nothing, because the Three Moons were temporarily hidden; but after a few minutes the clouds parted and the rulers beheld a startling scene lit by silvery light.
The canyon of the Dob was no longer two hundred ells deep, as they had seen it that morning. A gleaming expanse of pale liquid filled it halfway to the rim, and in it floated countless huge uprooted trees. The debris moved downstream with extraordinary slowness, and it took the men some time to realize that the water had thickened almost to the consistency of batter.
"It"s mud!" Prince Widd marveled. "A stupendous flow of gray mud, coming down from those mountains. What in the world does it mean?"
"In my opinion," said Queen Jiri, "it means that we must ride out of here as though all the demons of the ten h.e.l.ls were at our heels."
Chapter Twenty-Six.
ONCE the fireworks display was in progress and the people standing still, occupied in looking skyward, it was much easier to slip through the crowd. Tolivar came to the Golden Griss Fountain, where many were standing. Then, following the instructions given him by Ledavardis, he began moving very slowly around the wide ornamental basin to the northeastern side, where flying spray from the fountain jets had discouraged large numbers of spectators from gathering.
Black Trillium! the boy prayed. Do not let Orogastus or Naelore find me yet!
The area of wet cobbles was some twenty ells in width. The nearest fire-basket lampposts were farther east at the guardhouses flanking the palace gates, another thirty ells distant, and the only useful light came from the fireworks. To the north was the fenced bosquet, densely planted with trees and flowering shrubs. Tolivar skirted the sprayfall, his eyes darting back and forth as he apprehensively searched the thinning crowd for Star Men. But all he saw were people in costumes: elaborate ones, modest ones, comical ones, frightening ones. The human birds went Oooh! and Ahhh! as each skyrocket exploded, and there were cheers and applause and whistles and quacks for particularly noteworthy displays. A large proportion of the crowd seemed to be well supplied with liquor; the pavement was littered with discarded jugs and crocks, and here and there a drunken reveler lay insensible on the cobbles.
When he reached the park fence the Prince gave a great sigh of relief. His greatest fear had been that he would be intercepted too early. Only a thin crowd of costumed citizens was close by, braving the occasional wave of spray. On the palace stairs, Emperor Denombo and his glittering court enjoyed the show while the band played on and the citizenry grew more boisterous in their enthusiasm.
Now the Prince became increasingly aware of the weight of the star-box on his back and the tightness of the coronet on his brow. His body reacted also to the physical effort he had expended making his way from the harbor to the city center and he slumped down on the damp pavement, sitting with his back against the low wrought-iron fence. He closed his eyes.
"Oh, talisman!" he whispered desolately. "Are you still mine?"
Yes.
"Is there no way that I can keep you and still save poor Mother?"
The question is impertinent.
"I know. But I had to ask."
Someone called, "Tola!"
He opened his eyes. Standing before him, silhouetted against the blazing sky, was a tall figure dressed as a blackbird. Before the Prince could speak, the costumed man pulled back his hood, revealing the awesome rayed helmet of the Star Guild. His eyes were twin white beacons.
"Get up," said Orogastus. "The time has come."
Moving as slowly as he dared, Tolivar climbed to his feet and confronted the sorcerer.
To Queen Anigel, the brief journey afoot from Dasinzin"s mansion to the Golden Griss Fountain was a time of peculiar detachment, beyond sorrow and despair, with the fireworks a kaleidoscope of fiery beauty overhead. Her wrists had been untied, but her arms were firmly pinioned by two taciturn Star Men named Zanagra and Gavinno, whose black capes concealed deadly antique weapons hanging from their belts. They hustled her along behind Orogastus, who cleared the way with his magic, and the cheering mob seemed not even to notice their pa.s.sing.
Within a few minutes they would reach the fountain, and there poor foolish Tolivar would hand over both the coronet and the crucially important star-box to the sorcerer, thinking thereby to gain her freedom. But she was certain now that Orogastus would never let her go, any more than he would release the other hostage rulers that the Guildsman Tazor held captive somewhere in the Forest of Lirda. The truth had come to Queen Anigel as she sat numbly in Dasinzin"s kitchen, an ignominious prisoner waited upon by terrified Sobranian women.
She and the other heads of state had not been abducted in order to insure some nebulous "cooperation" by their nations with the sorcerer. From the beginning, Orogastus had had only one objective: to exert irresistible pressure upon Haramis, forcing the Archimage to give up her talisman in exchange for their lives.
And the same dreadful choice would now face Kadiya as well.
Threefold G.o.d of the Flower, she prayed, give my sisters the strength to hold fast and let us die...
They reached the fountain and she felt its spray on her face, mingling with her slow tears. The tall central jet was swaying oddly from side to side independent of the wind"s direction, and the waters cascading over the gilded stone ornaments into the basin were clouded, as though admixed with milk.
Orogastus touched his Star, nodded in satisfaction, and said, "There"s the boy. Sitting at the railing of that little park on the left. Hold the Queen here, amongst the crowd, until I summon you."
Anigel would have cried a warning, but Zanagra"s gloved hand clapped over her mouth and she felt a dagger p.r.i.c.k her abdomen. "Stand quietly," the Star Man hissed, "or your babies will perish, even though the Master"s magic permits you to survive."
She ceased struggling. If only they had not taken her trillium-amber! But without the amulet and its Holy Flower, she was bereft of all energy. She saw Tolivar rise and confront Orogastus. Their words could not be heard over the explosions of the pyrotechnical display. Then the sorcerer beckoned. Still wearing her griss costume of gray and white, she was led forward to the small clump of ornamental greenery where her son waited. He had removed the hood of his drab costume so that the Three-Headed Monster was clearly visible, seeming to shine amidst his fair hair with a faint silvery light of its own.
"Mother," he said in a strained voice. "Have they harmed you?"
"In truth, no," she said. "Only my heart is wounded... by the sad discovery that you have possessed my talisman in secret for four long years-"
But Orogastus cut her off. "Queen, enough!" And to the Prince: "Tola, give me the star-box."