be that this is such a place, long abandoned and only
recently rediscovered."
"Damn!" Mudge shouted abruptly.
"What is it, what's wrong?" Jon-Tom asked him-
"Tripped over somethin', mate." He fumbled a bit
in the darkness, lifted something for all of them to
feel. jon-Tom identified it immediately. It was a
primate skull.
Opiode took it from Mudge and they could see his
hands moving over the bone. "Cracked when the
owner was thrown from above," he announced. Eyes
immediately went to that distant circle of light.
It was quiet for a moment. Then Sasswise said,
"Come on then, you lazy lot. Let's see *ow big this 'ole
is. Maybe there's another way in."
Everyone fanned out and began feeling along the
wall. Climbing was out of the question, even for the
agile otters. The damp stones arched to form a
dome overhead. Only Opiode might have been able
to manage it, in his younger days. Now he did not
have the strength to cling to such a slick overhang.
"Got an idea," said Mudge. "Let's make a pyramid."
The otters discussed the proposal briefly, then
settled themselves in the center of the chamber and
proceeded to put. on an astonishing display of
acrobatics- They managed to stack themselves four
high, but Splitch was still yards shy of the point
where the vertical shaft of the well broadened out to
form the curved ceiling.
The pyramid was collapsed and the otters brushed
themselves off. "Wouldn't 'ave mattered if I could've
reached the bottom," Spiitch told them- "The shaft's
as slick as a snowslide, and there ain't a 'and'old in
sight. She's too wide to bridge." She eyed Jon-Tom
thoughtfully. "You're long enough to do it, Jonny-
Tom, but we've no way to get you up there."
THE MOMENT OF THE MAOICIAM
269
"We had best find some way out," said Opiode.
This skul! is fresh." Everyone shuffled about uneasily.
"Doesn't mean a lot," said Domurmur. "One of
Markus's latest victims, no doubt."
"No doubt," agreed Opiode readily. "The question
is, if the victinvis a recent one, who or what has so
efficiently removed the flesh from the bone?" Faint
light glinted off his bulging eyes as he searched the
darkness.
"If I only had my duar," Jon-Tom was muttering.
"I might be able to sing up a ladder or rope or
something. If only we—"
'. He was interrupted by noise from above. Voices,
and the blare of ceremonial trumpets.
"Everyone, get back from the opening and keep
quiet!'* Opiode ordered them. They spread out quickly.
Sounds of a scuffle overhead, another blare of
trumpets, and then a horrible high-pitched scream
- that increased rapidly in volume. It stopped abruptly
t when something struck the stone floor with a wet,
sickening thud. The object bounced once and then
lay still.
The sounds from above went away. Jon-Tom leaned
cautiously into the light and saw nothing. Slowly, the
refugees gathered around the thing that had been
'thrown down the well.
It was a small macaque, no more than four feet
tall. A torn white lace ruffle ringed the neck above a
green-and-blue jersey which was tucked into dark
green shorts of bright snakeskin- Gold embroidery
decorated the sleeves, and a belt of thin gold links
circled the narrow waist-
The neck was twisted at an unnatural angle. One
arm lay bent straight up behind the spine. Open eyes
stared toward the well.
"Died instantly," commented .Opiode softly. "Neck
broke when he hit. Poor fellow."
270 Aim Dean foster
Cascuyom pushed his way to the fore. "1 know
him. That is the honorable Jestutia."
"Yes, I know him also." Selryndi bent over the
body. '"One of our most respected citizens." He^ glanced
up toward the top of the shaft. "Markus must be
feeling very confident, to begin murdering such promi-
nent individuals."
"Quiet, be quiet!" That was Mudge, snapping at
them from somewhere far off to the left.
"Listen, otter, one of our colleagues and friends
has just been foully slain, and I see no reason to—"
"Shut up, nut-eater, or I'll stuff that tail of yours
down your throat," His voice dropped an octave.
"There's somethin' else in 'ere with us."
A chill raced down jon-Tom's back. Something
had removed the meat from that first skull. "Mudge,
we checked out..."
"There's another tunnel over 'ere, mates. A big
one. And there's somethin' in it, and I think *tis
startin' to move."
"You are trying to frighten us," Selryndi said
nervously.
"Oh, why sure, now, that's it, guv'nor," said Mudge
sarcastically. "I've got nothin' better to do than make
up scary stories, right?" He rejoined them and put a
hand on the squirrel's back. " 'Ow about you go and
'ave a looksee over there, guv, and prove me out 10
be the liar you say I am." Selryndi's feet dug into the
floor.
"Listen, all of you," Memaw urged them- Mudge
and Selryndi quit squabbling as something scraped
against distant stones. This was followed by a heavy
wheeze. Wind from another tunnel, Jon-Tbm thought-
Or something waking up.
Unconsciously, everyone retreated toward the drain-
age tunnel. "What do the old legends say about
this?" Jon-Tom asked the wizard.
THB MOMENT OF THE MAG/CMN 271
"Nothing," came Opiode's whispered reply. "There
is not supposed to be anything down here. This is
the place of the dead."
Chunk! Gravel shifted underfoot, followed by a vast
exhaling and an odor like burning charcoal. Quoriy
clung to Miidge's arm.
"Tis comin' this way!"
"Stay still, don't let it know we're afraid," Mudge
told her, trying to edge behind Memaw and Sasswise.
Optode raised a hand and muttered something
under his breath, but it had no effect on whatever
shared the chamber with them. It was moving nearer.
"It is no use- I am still constrained from working
magic by the spell Markus laid upon me. 1 cannot
break free."
"Get ready to run for the tunnel," Memaw told
them. It lay close at hand, but it would take time for
all of them to crowd inside the narrow opening, and
a sudden rush ran the risk of stirring to action
whatever was coming toward them.
There was a brief explosion of flame in the darkness,
accompanied by a thick acrid smell. Then a low
growl, rich and throaty.
"Try singin' somethin*, matel" Mudge urged Jon-
Tom.
"But 1 haven't got the duar."
"Try anyway, mate. Try somethin'l"
"Sasswise," said Memaw, "you, Flutz, and I will try
to divert its attention while the others file into the
tunne
l. The rest of you prepare yourselves." The
otters scrambled to salvage old bones, rocks, any-
thing that might be used as a weapon.
Jon-Tom began to sing. He had no plan in mind,
no brilliant ideas, and he was certain the magic
wouldn't happen without the duar's music, but he
had to try. If nothing else, it might concentrate the
thing's attention on him while the others fled into
Alan Dean Porter
272
the tunnel. The first notes trembled, but his voice
steadied as he sang on. He could hear his companions
rushing for the tunnel entrance,
An immense outline turned toward him -.. and
hesitated. Mudge called out to him.
"That's it, mate! Keep singin'. 'Tis workin!"
It couldn't be, Jon-Tom thought. There was no
magic without the duar, none, no way! It couldn't be
working.
Yet there was no question of it: the thing had
halted in its leisurely approach,
A thunderous whisper filled the chamber then.
"Jon-Tom."
"Blimey," muttered Splitch, "it knows 'im!"
"It knows the spellsinger," Opiode observed aloud.
"Spellsinger," the voice echoed in the darkness.
Jon-Tom squinted, trying to see in the poor light
as he took a reluctant step forward.
A blast of fire erupted over his head- Screams
came from the otters and the Quorum members as
they rushed in panic for the tunnel, running into
each other and stumbling over the bones on the
floor. But Jon-Tom didn't move. The fire had passed
over him. Nor had it been directed at any of his
companions. It had been aimed ceilmgward, to gen-
erate light and not destruction.
The instant of brilliant illumination hurt his eyes,
but not so badly that he couldn't recognize its source.
"Comrade Falameezar," he asked hesitantly, "is that
you?"
XVI
A great clawed hand descended and picked Jon-Tom
off the floor. He could feel the thick, leathery mem-
brane that ran between the fingers. The hand lifted
him until it paused in front of a mouth full of
curving teeth. A single puff could incinerate him in
a second, sizzle his bones and melt his flesh. There
was heat and the smell of brimstone, but no hint of
cremation.
"It is you, Falameezar! I'll be damned."
"We are all damned, comrade Jon-Tom," said the
dragon somberly. "What are you doing here?"
Jon-Tom sat down on the slick, scaly palm and
turned to his triends. "It's okay. He's a friend. This is
comrade Falameezar, a good proletarian."
"What is the man talking about?" Memaw asked
Mudge.
The otter strode boldly out into the chamber. "We
know this bloke, we do, 'E 'elped us once before, on
our way to Polastrindu. Though wot 'e's doin' 'ere I'll
be buggered if I know." He looked back into the
tunnel, which was filled with anxious faces. "Everyone,
'tis all right. You can come out. Only," he added
more quietly, "wotever you do, don't say anythin'
about makin' money." He fought to recall some of
273
Alan Dean Poster
274
the confusing but effective conversations Jon-Tom
had held with the river dragon as it had carried
them up the river Tailaroam toward far Polastrindu
not so very long ago. The dragon was. - - what had
Jon-Tom called it?... a Marked Met. No, something
more compact. Marxist, yeah, that was it. The drag-
on was a Marxist, whatever that was.
But he was certainly sensitive about it. Dedicated,
Jon-Tbm had called him. Mudge knew better. The
dragon was nuts.
He spoke to his friends as they hesitantly emerged
from hiding. "Just act collective," he told them.
"What does that mean?" Memaw asked him.
" 'Ow the 'ell do I know? Just make sure everybody
does it."
Jon-Tbm was patting the dragon on the snout.
"Comrade Falameezar, it appears we are to be com-
panions in misfortune."
"So it would seem." The dragon set him down
gently, then looked around and opened his mouth.
Another blast of flame spewed forth. The members
of the Quorum cowered against the nearest wall. but
Opiode and the otters edged forward.
Falameezar's well-aimed blast set a huge pile of
debris on fire. It burned fitfully at best but provided
enough light for everyone to see ctearly for the first
time since they'd fled from their cell. They gathered
around while the dragon lay down on his belly, crossed
his arms, and rested his head against them.
"How did you get here?" Jon-Tom asked him.
"I wasn't having much luck trying to raise the
consciousness of the masses who live on the shores of
the Tailaroam," the dragon explained, "so 1 deter-
mined to try to find a group of the oppressed who
were more receptive.
"I'd heard much of this land, where the lakes are
large and the fish plentiful. So I made my way here
TffB MOJttEiVT OF TaE MAOICIAS
275
and, surely enough, found the workers badly in need
of organizing." He sighed and a puff of smoke drifted
ceilingward. "But as so often seems to happen, the
people here were reluctant to listen to me"
"Can't imagine why," Quorly whispered.
"So I decideokthis time to try to convert the heads
of state instead of the people."
"Uh-oh," said Jon-Tom.
"Precisely, comrade. 1 allowed myself to be de-
ceived by the honeyed words of the local ruler, a
strange human very different from yourself."
"Markus the Ineluctable."
"Yes. I did not know at first that he had deposed
the rightful rulers of this place, nor that he was a
powerful magician as well as a disgusting fascist
whose only aim is the exploitation of the masses for
personal gain. But by the time I learned all this he
had rendered me sleepy. I vaguely remember being
brought to the large room above. The floor was
removed and I was dropped down here, and then
walled up.
"I've tried to break out but the stone is solid and
thick. It will not burn. So here I have remained,
trapped by this evil imperialist. He does feed me
well. though. The trumpet calls me when a meal is
ready." Falameezar moved his head and sniffed at the
body of Jestutia. "A banker this time. Markus is
clever. He has learned that I will only eat capitalists."
"I'm surprised at you." Jon-Tom said accusingly.
"Even a banker can be converted to the cause of the
people."
"Not if he's dead." The dragon sniffed again. "Yes,
a dead banker. I'm sure of it- I hate bankers, you
know. Filthy robber-barons."
Near the back wall Newmadeen was hurriedly
going through her pockets. Like the recently de-
ceased macaque, she was also in the business of
Alan Dean Poster
276
lending money. Until now she'd never had reason to
regret it. Fortunately, Falameezar was too involved in
conversation with his newfound friends to do any
serious sniffing, and she was able to unburden her-
self of money, notes, and assorted usurious I.O.U.'s.
"Besides," he was saying, "a dragon has to eat." He
extended his long neck and snapped up the unfortu-
nate Jestutia in a single bite, chewed noisily.
" *Ere now," murmured Sasswise, looking at New-
madeen, "this one's gone and fainted."
Falameezar noticed it, too, sniffed curiously as he
chewed. "What's wrong with your companion? If I
didn't know better I'd ..."
Jon-Tom hurried to distract the dragon. "It's the
air down here. These are the legitimate rulers of
Quasequa, by the way. They have no more love for
Markus than you. They constitute the legitimate, uh,
soviet that the magician has deposed."
"I did not realize that this government was so
advanced," Falameezar replied in surprise.
"They're working on it," Jon-Tom assured him.
"Aren't you?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" The conscious members of the
Quorum managed to reply with enthusiasm, if a bit
too quickly.
Falameezar looked pleased. "It is good to have
right-thinking company in such sad circumstances-
As it is good to see my old comrade again. You, too,
Mudge. even if you did express the occasional reac-
tionary thought." The otter allowed himself to be
stroked by a single swordlike talon.
"If only I could get ahold of my duar," Jon-Tom
mumbled. "Markus hasn't placed any anti-magic spells
on me."
"That is so,'* admitted Opiode. "I would have
sensed it if he had."
TUB MOMEATT Or THE MAGICIAM 277
"Then there's only one thing left to try." He started
toward the tunnel. "I have to go back to our cell."
"You're jokin', mate." '
"No, Mudge. It's the only .way. I've got an idea.
Mudge, will you and Quorly come back with me?"
"Count on me, Jenny-Tom," she replied. Her ready
agreement made Mudge's acquiescence a foregone
conclusion.
"I'll be back in a little while, Falameezar"
"Good luck, comrade."
"Just a minute." Men-law stepped in front of Jon-
Tom as he bent to enter the tunnel. She looked
significantly past him. "What do we talk about with
the dragon?"
"Anything you can think of. He likes to chat- The
last weather we saw outside, jokes... Falameezar's
great with jokes. Simple things. Just make sure no-
Spellsinger 04 - The Moment Of The Magician Page 30