Not so the genius mage who wore black tunic over tights of deep magenta, his heel-length magenta cloak loose and free of his arms. He stood over her, and spoke as if lecturing.
“There are beings, Tiana, who dwell apart from Man, high in the heavens and deep in the bowels of the earth and in the waters beneath it. There are those who were before Man, and they seek to re-enter this world from which they are banished. There are dwellers in the cosmic abyss and the eternal night. Some are as indifferent to our plane as man is to a hill of scuttering ants — and could nigh as easily wreak havoc on our world. Others desire things of this world: to eat the enriching souls of men… to drink the blood of virgins… and other favours a wizard of this plane might grant.” He stared at her with those eagle-sharp eyes.
I am neither man nor virgin, fortunately, she thought, but she said nothing. His words were more full of horror than his earlier showmanship.
“It is the art of a wizard to invoke these beings by spells and by deceit and guile, and bind them to his will. Thus they serve him, not willingly. All, all, Tiana, share with us the common property of existence. But — there are others. These others are non-beings, which are not part of this cycle of the cosmos. Their presence is a violation of the order and harmony of the universe. They seek to cause death and destruction and agony, not to achieve their ambitions or to gratify their egoism.”
The implication, Tiana mused, being that those two are worthy motives!
“These non-beings, these others, desire disaster solely for disaster’s sake! Because they lack what we understand as existence, they are not subject to limitations we can understand. They are not ‘real’ then… but they are nonetheless most effective at the working of evil.”
“In other words, dealing with normal, everyday demons is all right, a wizard’s business — but to deal with these is pure evil. You are going to tell me that Derramal is guilty of trafficking with these… others, the non-beings?”
“Be patient. I have trafficked with them, Tiana. Derramal went far further. Once he was a minor sorcerer whose ambitions considerably exceeded his talent. His failures led to a mad desire, which came to horrible fulfilment. He invoked one of the non-beings. His bargain was that he and it should become one. Each ate the other, and so the demon Derramal was born into the world of men. Fortunately, the unsuccessful conspiracy against King Hower came shortly after. Newly born and unsure of its powers, the man-demon retreated into the mirror. There it remains confined. Over the years its powers have greatly increased. Your foolish plan for individual revenge will free that creature, non-being become flesh as un-man. There is no way to envision the havoc it will then proceed to work.”
Tiana shook her head. “On the contrary, I know what it will do, if freed. It will attack Pyre of Ice!” Tiana’s extended finger pointed. “One of the advantages of my plan is that in the unlikely event I fail, you will have to avenge me.”
“Wretched girl, this is not merely danger for you and for me, but for all that live!”
“As I told Sulun Tha, Pyre, so I tell you: this is a festering wound. At all risks, it must be lanced and cleaned. Delay only worsens the problem.”
“Girl! Why are you so careless of your life? If your foster father knew the danger, he would restrain you.”
“Oh, unworthy! Tattletale! When I was a little girl and bested the boys, they used to go crying to Caranga. And now you… boy.”
This shot at Pyre’s vanity was clearly effective. For several seconds his lower body flickered, faded to near transparency. Resolidified, at least in appearance, he spoke in a sour voice.
“So I must choose: let you start a war which I must fight at hopeless odds, or accept a loss of pride more bitter than death.”
With both hands, she made a gesture almost pleading. “Pyre, Pyre! Surely it is to your advantage — the advantage of ‘all that live’ — to start the war now! By your own statement, Derramal grows stronger every day, and the war if there is to be one can’t be postponed forever. Think of what a disaster would be were Derramal free, not while you are strong, but during one of the periods of weakness that are writ in your stars.”
Pyre forgot himself and the ephemeral nature of his Sending as he pounced; his attempt to seize Tiana was without effect. “Witch! My stars are my secret! How did you learn that?”
Tiana smiled seraphically into the insubstantial face that seemed to be but inches from her own. “To be exalted and humbled is the common law of humankind. Why should I suppose you an exception?”
On hearing this, Pyre shut his eyes and faded away.
The room was instantly back to normal, warm and comfortable.
Tiana snatched up a sack of wine and a drinking mug. When she looked into the mug, her heart nearly stopped; from its bottom Pyre stared back at her! Her haste for wine was an admission of fear, possibly a fatal one — but no! His presence was his admission of weakness!
With disdain she said, “What’s the matter, frightmaster, does it disturb you when you can’t scare someone?” And Tiana poured wine in his face.
The reply came from everywhere and nowhere, in the voice of Pyre.
“Tiana, your beauty is a flame and your wit is as sharp as your rapier. You have been a thorn in the side of many of the great and powerful. Were I not so far down the lonely path of black arts, I myself might desire you. The world will be a poorer place when you leave it. I, Pyre, who knows he is supreme, vow by the fires which shall destroy the earth that I shall avenge your death.”
And I, Tiana, who knows she is supreme, Pyre, vow that we’d be a marvellous couple indeed!
But she said nothing and he was gone, truly gone.
Tiana quaffed wine in quest of the settling of her nerves. She had won this encounter — but to what result? The mightiest wizard had sworn to avenge her, in an act of bravado to assuage a wound to his pride. In a way it was a cheap oath, for he had vowed to do only what he expected he must do.
But — the third oath! The consequences of the vow by the means that shall destroy the world at the end of time were never pleasant.
Well, that is Pyre’s problem — or, would be, were I the sort who fails.
Tiana finished her wine and retired.
There was soon no sound or visible movement in the windowless little room at the Ram’s Head. But there was movement.
Within the white ivory box the head of Derramal lay, its right ear pressed against the side of the box. Its lips made no sound, for they were not connected to lungs. But their motion was of a giant, laughing.
15 Egg of the Phoenix
“Why kill him? At most, the sot has a few copper coins.”
“Idiot — some profit for the night is better than none.”
The muttered words were passed between two waterfront footpads; in question was the immediate health of a drunken sailor. Having decided to slay and take what he might have left after his sojourn in the winehouse, they drew daggers and stole up behind the humming, staggering man. He who went first was raising his dagger to stab when a voice came from behind him. It was not that of his fellow thief.
“Are you sure you want to do that, you cringing crawling slime-toad?”
He whirled to see a slip of a flamehaired girl. Swallowed in a great black cloak, she stood athwart the corpse of his comrade. Her bloodstained rapier flashed, and he saw no more.
“Cap’n Tiana!” the drunken sailor exclaimed. “You — you’re back in Reme.”
“Clever of you to notice, Parsh. Judging from your presence here, Vixen must be in port. How fares my ship — and Caranga?”
“The ship remains the best afloat, Cap’n. But Caranga is in a black mood from worry over you and from the great tragedy he’s suffered.”
“Tra - What happened?”
“Methinks he’d rather tell you of it hisself, Cap’n.”
“Very well then; in which whorehouse is my father running riot?”
“He’s on the ship, Cap’n, sulking in his cabin.”
“He must be in a bad mood!”
And so Caranga was, but he was overjoyed to see his foster daughter; his fears for her well-being had gnawed at him more than he liked to admit. Shortly, she was hurling rapid questions at him until he raised his hands.
“Avast your questions, daughter! Sit down, sit down, and I will tell you the story of my calamity, my monstrous misfortune, even though I wrote it all down as we agreed.” He glanced about the cluttered cabin wherein she’d found him. “Though my throat is bone dry, and — what’s this? My marvellous, beautiful, dutiful daughter has brought her poor but kindly old father some wi - the famed sip-wine of Collada, no less! Ah, it’s been many a thirsty year sith I tasted this ambrosia! Sit back, my dear; the lamp has oil and now that I have… oh, have some?”
“Very nice of you to offer, I’m sure,” Tiana told him. “Look here, I’m just back from a long ride. At least let me fetch a jack — so, and fill it for a careful sip — ahh. And sit down and get — these — boots… off — Ahhhhh! Now one puts one’s grateful feet up on the chart table between us, so. Tickle my feet and be carved, poor but murderous old father. Now. I’m all attention. Knowing how you do love to spin a tale, I’ll not even ask whether you have the legs and feet of Derramal.” Tiana smiled, lifting her mug in hail to the huge black man with the almost ludicrously dolorous face. “Besides, I know you’d not be here else!” And besides that, I want you so drunk you’ll not interfere in what I must be doing, dear father mine.
Caranga did not smile. Having nigh emptied his handsome goblet of beaten silver studded with garnets and a rather nice emerald — off a Sinchorese ship, if Tiana recalled properly — he, too, sat back. And, somewhat lengthily and in his own way, Caranga related the tale of the Isle and elixirs of Serancon, and the temptresses who were not.
As he reached the end of that narrative, he squinted into his goblet, then shook the winesack.
“How can this be, daughter? This little sack you brought me all the way from far Collada was a valiant soldier, but now ’tis slain ere my tale be half-told! What? You brought a second? Ah, my dear, my dear, you are too good to your old father.”
And Caranga told her of the awful experiences in the City of Shadows.
When she had heard out how all had been loaded aboard Vixen and anchor was being weighed, Tiana had to interrupt. “Well, then — but what’s this talk of tragedy? You gained what you went for, and a fabulous treasure as well.” She glanced about with a sudden frown. “Caranga… you didn’t lose the Egg on the way home, did you?”
“Nay! We returned to Reme without incident or loss.”
“Then why are you not off cavorting in a whorehouse? Surely that little incident with the were-spiders or whatever did not sour you on women?”
“Nay. The… Old One did that.” Caranga took a mighty pull direct from the sack of Colladan liquor, shook his head, showed her a disconsolate face. “Have you not taken note that I wear long pants and high boots?”
“They… become you well enough,” Tiana said, with caution.
“Hmp! I wear them because that monster’s acid saliva ruined me! From the waist down, I am as white as you! Weeks will pass ere I gain my colour ba-”
Tiana’s fit of helpless laughter brought him to pause, nor did he do aught but stare until she gained control of herself. Then he was sulky, and it was necessary that she thrice apologise and thrice beg ere he’d tell her of the Egg of the Phoenix.
“Sith it was obviously too valuable to sell to any one sweet buyer, I took it to the diamond cutters. Naturally, they were passing surprised when I removed the cloth to reveal a diamond large as a man. The astonishment rapidly turned to dismay and anger and, ere I knew what was happening, soldiers seized both me and the Egg.”
“The cutters couldn’t chip it?”
Caranga waved a hushing hand. “I was brought before the magistrate, but he said that only the king could decide such a matter. I feared I would long languish in prison, awaiting His Majesty’s pleasure! But this was important; within an hour, I and Egg and angry jewellers stood before King Hower himself. The jewellers, y’see, swore that the Egg was too big. If ’twere cut up, they said, the market would be flooded and the price of diamonds drop to that of mere copper. It occurred to me then that I was the wealthiest man in the world! But — all diamonds, including our greedy liege’s crown jewels, would be nigh worthless. That nonsense persuaded His Moneygrubbing Majesty!
“In desperation, I told him the obvious solution — we would trade! He would have the Egg and be marvel and envy of the world, while I would heroically settle for no more than the considerably less valuable… crown jewels of Dan!”
Tiana chuckled. “Beautiful! Logical, too — where are they?” Swinging her long legs from the chart table with a thump, she looked about his cabin.
Only looking mournful, Caranga decanted more of Prince Eltorn’s gift. “Ahhh! King Hower saw how he’d profit from such a transaction, but those damned advisers of his practically frothed at the mouth. Mouths. To keep peace, the foreign minister has made treaties with a half-dozen several lands, promising each to go to war with the others. Playing each against the other, by Susha! Should His Majesty accept the Egg, our sweet neighbours in all directions would bum with envy and launch attack on Ilan forthwith. Hmp — that scurvy offspring of Drood is now in prison where he belongs. But: after much discussion, the king and his advisers agreed that the Egg should be taken to the deepest part of the ocean and… sunk! I was paid nothing, Tiana, nothing, and told I’m lucky not to be jailed as a troublemaker.”
Tiana was tight of lip. “We must find an opportunity to help His Majesty some fine day — and steal him blind and staggery!”
“One hopes. Meanwhile, a ship of the Royal Ilani Navy soon set sail, bearing that great wonder of our modem world. It returned only yesterday, a burned-out hulk that wallowed into port with half a crew. Captain Julnis swore that the Egg had suddenly sprung into flames, whereupon it disgorged a giant bird of incredibly beautiful plumage. The bird flew away, leaving Julnis with a burning ship. Many crewmen died extinguishing the flames, he says. Naturally, some immediately said that Julnis secreted the egg and murdered those of his crew who’d not join such thieving treachery, then fired his own ship to cover. Captain Julnis, curse his name, has of course powerful friends, and it appeared the rumours would be ignored… but the powerful friends have powerful enemies, who saw this as a perfect opportunity to embarrass the powerful friends.”
Caranga paused to draw breath and wag his head. “His Muddleheaded Majesty has appointed a supposedly impartial board of inquiry: four knaves who stand to grow rich by the captain’s conviction, four who will profit by his acquittal, and one senile old hog. Who knows what will come of it?”
“Politics and muddleheaded leaders!” Tiana snapped. “I doubt muchly if the facts and your words about the history of the Egg of the Phoenix will influence the decision of those… fine upstanding men.”
“Aye. So I am shamed, daughter, shamed. Caranga won the most fabulous of treasures and returned it to Reme… and in full view of all our fellow pirates I’ve lost it. I dare not so much as show my face; I am a laughingstock!”
Morosely, Caranga upended the second winesack. He squeezed and pressed, as though milking a reluctant cow. At last, with a long sigh, he dropped the useless bag of leather. “There’s the end of my story and my shame, daughter — and of the sip-wine.”
“And of you,” Tiana said, seeing the mist claiming his eyes.
“Aye,” Caranga said, whereupon he collapsed on the table and commenced snoring loudly.
Tiana gazed upon him with fondness. At last she firmed her mouth and squared her shoulders. It was time to act. She had braced Pyre, and faced him down, however tenuous that face at the time. She’d be no readier for Lamarred next month than she was right now. Caranga was safely out of the way, too; in this her perhaps insane and certainly ill-advised confrontation with the demon in the mirror, Tiana would not allow her stepfather to share her
danger.
And it took two full socks of Eltorn’s super-wine to put him under the table, too, she thought with an admiring and indulgent smile at the snoring Caranga.
16 Paying the Devil
Beloved Father,
We began this quest to save my brother. I found that he needs not saving but avenging. I am going to try to take that vengeance. If you read this letter, I have failed and am dead. Bardon sails under my orders. I write to tell you two things. The first is that you should not waste your life trying to avenge me. If I fail, there is naught that steel and human courage can do. Nor is there need. Two mighty wizards, Pyre and Sulun Tha, will for reasons of their own avenge me. The second is that I love you very much. When I was an orphan wanted by no one, you adopted me. You fed me, sheltered me, loved me. You taught me all my skills and developed all my strengths. You taught me courage, wisdom, and above all, honour. In all these things you are far more my father than he who sired me. What I do now is what honour requires. I hope you will be as proud of me as of a son dying under similar circumstances. I know you would rather have me less honourable, and alive. Hence, I give you no chance to stop me. Please remember me with pride, and spend your days in peace, Father. I leave you all my love.
She signed the brief letter, “Your daughter, Tiana,” and half-lifted, half-dragged Caranga to his bunk. He did not so much as interrupt his snoring. After covering him, she kissed him tenderly.
“Farewell, Father,” Tiana whispered. “Fair seas and peaceful harbours.”
Then Captain Tiana Highrider of Reme — wept.
She loved life; she enjoyed life, and thus she feared death. It grieved her to know that her dying would cause Caranga great pain. Yet she saw no choice. Her taking this desperate chance was the only hope for her brother Bealost to find peace. Too, she had excellent motivation in addition to the personal reason.
Isolated on Mount Erstand and in the custody of the mighty and good Sulun Tha, the parts of Derramars body had lain in harmless repose. Everywhere else they had abode, the pattern had been the same: evil. Nuns discarded their vows for vampirism; ghouls defiled the royal cemetery; shrubs seized control of Turgumbruda’s garden and stole the bodies of living men; Serancon became totally inhuman and spiders grew to monstrous size, by illusion seeming to be beautiful women for the entrapment of men; the people of Killiar were slain or driven from their homes when their own shadows rebelled and attacked them.
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