The Quest

Meren was holding the girl tenderly to his chest. Her face was buried in his neck and she was sobbing wildly. He patted her back, murmuring reassurance. 'It's all over, my beauty. No need to weep, sweetling. You are safe now. I will take care of you.' His attempts to express concern and sympathy were spoiled somewhat by his self-satisfied grin.

Fenn wheeled back on one side of him, and Taita rode up on the other. 'Young lady, I am not sure which is the greater danger to you, the wild ape or the man who rescued you from it,' he remarked. With one last sob, the girl looked up, but she kept her arm round Meren's neck and he made no effort to dislodge her. Her nose was running and her eyes were streaming. They all studied her with interest.

Tears notwithstanding, Taita decided, she is a beauty. Then he asked her, in a kindly tone. 'What were you doing alone in the forest when you were set upon by those beasts?'I 'I escaped and the trogs came after me.' The girl hiccuped.

'Trogs?' Meren asked.

Her dark eyes went back to his face. 'That is what they are called.

They are horrible things. We are all terrified of them.'

'Your reply has flushed out a flock of questions. But let us find an answer to the first one. Where were you going?' Taita intervened. The girl tore her eyes from Meren and looked at Taita. 'I was coming to find you, Magus. I need your help. You are the only one who can save me.'

'That raises another flock of questions. Shall we begin with a simple one? What is your name, child?'

'I am called Sidudu, Magus,' she said, and shivered violently.

'You are cold, Sidudu,' Taita said. 'No more questions until we have you home.' Taita turned to Meren and kept his expression serious as he asked, 'Is the lady causing you inconvenience or discomfort? Do you think you will be able to carry her as far as the village, or shall we put her down and make her walk?'

'I can abide with any suffering she may cause me,' Meren replied, equally seriously.

'Then I believe we have finished our business here. Let us go on.'

It was dark when they entered the village. The houses were mostly in darkness and nobody seemed to notice their passing. By the time they dismounted in the stableyard Sidudu had made a remarkable recovery.

Nevertheless Meren was taking no risks and carried her into the main living room. While Fenn and Imbali lit the lamps and reheated a pot of rich game stew on the hearth, Taita examined Sidudu's injuries. They were all superficial grazes, scrapes and embedded thorns. He dug the last out of her pretty calf and smeared ointment over the wound, sat back and studied her. He saw a maelstrom of fear and hatred. She was a confused, unhappy child, but beneath the turmoil of suffering her aura was clear and pure. She was essentially a sweet, innocent creature forced prematurely to face the world's evils and wickedness.

'Come, child,' he said. 'You must eat, drink and sleep before we talk any more.' She ate the stew and dhurra bread that Fenn brought to her, and when she had wiped the bowl with the last crust of bread and popped it into her mouth, Taita reminded her, 'You said that you were coming to find me.'

'Yes, Magus,' she whispered.

'Why?' he asked.

'May I talk to you alone, where nobody else can hear us?' she asked shyly, and glanced involuntarily at Meren.

'Of course. We shall go to my chamber.' Taita picked up one of the oil lamps. 'Follow me.' He led her to the room that he and Fenn shared, sat on his mat and indicated Fenn's to her. Sidudu folded her legs under her and arranged her torn skirts modestly. 'Now tell me,' he invited.

'Everybody in Jarri says you are a famous surgeon and skilled with all manner of herbs and potions.'

'I am not sure who “everybody” is, but I am indeed a surgeon.'

'I want you to give me something to flush the infant from my womb,'

she whispered.

Taita was taken aback. He had not expected anything like that. It took him some moments to decide how to reply. At last he asked gently, 'How old are you, Sidudu?'

'I am sixteen, Magus.'

'I thought you were younger,' he said, 'but no matter. Who is the father of the child you are carrying? Do you love him?'

Her reply was bitter and vehement: 'I don't love him. I hate him and wish he was dead,' she blurted out.

He stared at her while he composed his next question. 'If you hate him so, why did you lie with him?'

'I did not wish it, Magus. I had no choice. He is a cruel, cold man. He beats me, and mounts me so violently when he is in wine that he tears me and makes me bleed.'

'Why do you not leave him?' he asked.

'I have tried, but he sends the trogs to fetch me back. Then he beats me again. I hoped that he would beat me until I lost the brat he put inside me, but he is careful not to hit me in the belly.'

'Who is he? What is his name?'

'You promise to tell nobody?' She hesitated, then went on in a rush, 'Not even the good man who saved my life and carried me in from the forest? I don't want him to despise me.'

'Meren? Of course I will not tell him. But you have no need to worry.

No one would ever despise you. You are a good, brave girl.'

'The man's name is Onka - Captain Onka. You know him, I think.

He told me about you.' She seized Taita's hand. 'Please help me!' She shook it in her desperation. 'Please, Magus! I beg you! Please help me!

If I don't rid myself of the baby they will kill me. I don't want to die for Onka's bastard.'

I

Taita began to make sense of the situation. If Sidudu was Onka's woman, she was the one of whom Colonel That had spoken, the one who had doctored Onka's food to keep him out of the way so that That could escort Taita down from the Cloud Gardens. She was one of them and she must be protected. 'I must examine you first, but I will do my best. Would you object if I called Fenn, my ward, to be with us?'

'The pretty blonde girl who shot the trog off Meren's back? I like her.

Please call her.'

Fenn came at once. As soon as Taita had explained what was required of her, she sat down beside Sidudu and took her hand. 'The magus is the finest surgeon on earth,' she said. 'You need have no fear.'

'Lie back and lift your tunic,' Taita instructed her, and when she obeyed, he worked quickly but thoroughly. 'Are these bruises from the beatings Onka gave you?' he asked.

'Yes, Magus,' she replied.

'I will kill him for you,' Fenn offered. 'I never liked Onka, but now I hate him.'

'When the time comes I will kill him myself,' Sidudu squeezed her hand, 'but thank you, Fenn. I hope you will be my friend.'

'We are friends already,' Fenn told her.

Taita finished his examination. 'Already he could discern the faint aura of the unborn child, shot through with the black evil of its father.

Sidudu sat up and smoothed down her clothing. 'There is a baby, isn't there, Magus?' Her smile faded and she looked woebegone again.

'In the circumstances, I am sad to have to say, yes.'

'I have missed my last two moons.'

'The only good thing in this business is that you have not gone too far. So early in your term, it will not be difficult for us to dislodge the foetus.' He stood up and crossed the room to where his medical bag stood. 'I shall give you a potion. It is very strong and will make you vomit and purge your bowels, but it will bring down the other thing at the same time.' He measured a dose of green powder from a stoppered phial into an earthenware bowl, then added boiling water. 'Drink it as soon as it cools, and you must try to keep it down,' he told her.

They sat with her as she forced herself to swallow it, a mouthful at a time, gagging at the bitter taste. When she had finished she sat for a while, panting and heaving spasmodically. At last she grew quieter. 'I shall be all right now,' she whispered hoarsely.

320

I

'You must sleep here with us tonight,' Fenn told her firmly. 'You might need our help.'

Sidudu's groans woke them at the darkest hour of the night. Fenn sprang from her mat and lit the oil lamp. Then she helped Sidudu to her feet and led her, doubled over with cramps, to the nightsoil pot in the small adjacent room. They reached it just before Sidudu voided, with a spluttering liquid rush. Her cramps and pains grew more intense as the hours passed and she strained over the pot. Fenn stayed at her side, massaging her belly when the cramps were at their height, sponging her sweating face and chest after each bout passed. Just after the moon set Sidudu was convulsed with a spasm more powerful than all those that had gone before. At its height she cried out wildly, 'Oh, help me, Mother Isis! Forgive me for what I have done.' She fell back, spent, and the foetus made a pathetic mound of bloody jelly in the bottom of the pot.

With fresh water and a linen cloth, Fenn cleaned and dried Sidudu's body. Then she helped her to her feet and led her back to the sleeping mat. Taita gathered up the foetus from the pot, washed it carefully, then wrapped it in a fresh linen headcloth. It had not developed far enough to tell whether it had been a boy or a girl. He carried it out into the stableyard, called Meren to help him and they lifted a paving slab in the corner of the yard. They scooped a hollow in the earth beneath it, then Taita laid the bundle in it.

When Meren had replaced the slab Taita said quietly, 'Mother Isis, take this soul into your care. It was conceived in pain and hatred. It perished in shame and suffering. It was not meant for this life. Holy Mother, we pray you, treat the little one more kindly in its next life.'

When he returned to the chamber, Fenn looked up at him enquiringly.

'It is gone,' he said. 'The bleeding will soon staunch, and Sidudu will be well in a few days. She has nothing more to fear.'

'Except the awful man who beats her,' Fenn reminded him.

'Indeed. But she is not the only one: we must all fear Captain Onka.'

He knelt by the sleeping mat and studied Sidudu's exhausted face. She was sleeping soundly. 'Stay with her, Fenn, but let her sleep as long as she can. I have matters to attend to.'

As soon as he had left the chamber, Taita sent for Nakonto and Imbali. 'Go back to where we killed the apes. Hide the carcasses in the forest, then find the pack horses and dispose of the hogs. Pick up the spent arrows and cover any signs we were there. Come back when you have finished.' After they had left, he told Meren and Hilto, 'Colonel

That said that his agent in Mutangi is the headman, Bilto. He will take any message to That. Go to Bilto secretly. Tell him to let That know that we have the girl Sidudu with us—' He was about to go on when they heard many horses galloping down the lane that ran past the front of the house. Loud hectoring shouts rang through the village, then the sound of blows, the wail of women and the whimpering of children.

'Too late, I fear,' Taita said. 'The soldiers are already here. I have no doubt that they are searching for Sidudu.'

'We must hide her.' Meren jumped to his feet. At that moment they heard hobnailed sandals on the paving of the stableyard, followed by pounding on the door. Meren half drew his sword from its scabbard.

'In the name of the Supreme Council, open up!' It was Onka's angry voice.

'Put up your blade.' Taita told Meren quietly. 'Open the door and let them in.'

'But what of Sidudu?' Meren looked towards the door of the inner chamber, his expression distraught.

'We must trust to Fenn's good sense,' Taita replied. 'Open the door before Onka becomes truly suspicious.' Meren crossed the room and lifted the bar. Onka burst in.

'Ah, Captain Onka!' Taita greeted him. 'To what good fortune do we owe the unexpected pleasure of your company?'

With an effort Onka regained his composure. 'I beg your understanding, Magus, but we are searching for a missing girl. She is disturbed and may be raving.'

'What is her age and appearance?'

'She is young and pretty. Have you seen her?'

'I regret I have not.' Taita looked enquiringly at Meren. 'Have you seen anybody matching that description, Colonel?'

'I have not.' Meren was not the best of liars and Onka peered into his face suspiciously. 'You might have waited until morning before disturbing the magus and his household,' Meren blustered.

'I apologize once more,' said Onka, without any attempt to appear sincere, 'but the matter is urgent and cannot wait until morning. May I search this house?'

'I see that you will do so, whatever I say.' Taita smiled. 'But do it swiftly, then let us be in peace.'

Onka strode to the door of the inner chamber and threw it open, then marched in.

Taita followed him and stood in the doorway. Onka went to the pile

of sleeping mats and fur blankets in the middle of the floor. He turned them over with the point of his sword. There was nobody beneath them.

He glared around the room, then crossed quickly to the cubicle and peered into the nightsoil pot. He grimaced, then returned to the sleeping chamber, and looked around it again, more carefully than before.

Meren stepped into the doorway behind Taita. 'It's empty!' he exclaimed.

'You sound surprised.' Onka rounded on him.

'Not at all.' Meren recovered himself. 'I was merely confirming what the magus has already told you.'

Onka stared at him for a moment, then switched his attention back to Taita. 'You are aware that I am only doing my duty, Magus. Once I have searched the rest of the house, I have been ordered to conduct you to the citadel where the oligarchs will receive you. Please be ready to leave immediately.'

'Very well. At this hour of the night it is not convenient, but I will bow to the dictates of the Supreme Council.'

Onka pushed past Meren, who followed him.

As soon as they were gone Taita opened his Inner Eye. Immediately he picked up the shimmer of two separate auras in the far corner of the chamber. As he concentrated on them the shapes of Fenn and Sidudu appeared. Fenn was holding the girl protectively in the crook of her left arm. With the other hand she held the gold nugget of the Talisman of Taita. She had suppressed her aura to a pale glow. Sidudu's danced and flamed with terror, but in spite of that Fenn had been able to cloak them with her spell of concealment. Taita gazed into Fenn's eyes and sent her an astral impulse: 'You have done well. Remain as you are. When it is safe to do so I will send Meren to you. He will take you to a better place than this.'

Fenn's eyes opened wider as she received the message, then narrowed again as she replied: 'I will do as you tell me. I heard Onka say that the Council have summoned you. I shall hold vigil for you while we are apart.'

For a few moments longer, Taita held her eyes. He exerted all his powers to conceal from her his fears for her safety, and instead to convey to her his love and protection. She smiled trustingly and her aura took on its usual fire and beauty. With the talisman in her right hand she made the circular sign of benediction towards him.

'Stay concealed,' he repeated, and left the chamber.

Meren was waiting alone in the living room, but Taita could hear

Onka and his men rampaging at the back of the house. 'Listen well, Meren.' Taita stood close to him and spoke quietly. 'Fenn and Sidudu are still in my chamber.' Meren opened his mouth to speak but Taita raised his hand to caution him to silence. 'Fenn has cast a spell of concealment over them. When Onka and I have left for the citadel to answer the summons of the oligarchs, you may go to them. You must pass a message through Bilto to That. Tell him how precarious the position of the girls has become. He must find a more secure hiding-place for them while I am away, which may be a long time. I believe that the oligarchs intend to send me back at once to the Cloud Gardens.' Meren looked worried. 'I will only make astral contact with Fenn in case of dire urgency, or when our purpose has been achieved. In the meantime, you and That must continue to make preparations for our flight from Jarri.

Do you understand?'

'Yes, Magus.'

'There is one other matter, good Meren. There is every chance that I will not prevail against Eos. She may destroy me as she has done all the others she has sucked into her thrall. If that happens I shall warn Fenn before it is over. You must not attempt to rescue me. You must take Fenn with the others of our band and fly from Jarri. Try to find your way back to Karnak and warn Pharaoh of what has happened.'

'Yes, Magus.'

'Guard Fenn with your life. Do not let her fall alive into the clutches of Eos. You understand what I mean by that?'

'I do, Magus. I will pray to Horus and the trinity that it will not be necessary, but I will defend Fenn and Sidudu to the end.'

Taita smiled. 'Yes, my old and trusted friend. Sidudu may be the one for whom you have waited so long.'

'She reminds me so strongly of the Princess Merykara when first I fell in love with her,' Meren said simply.

'You deserve all the joy Sidudu can bring you and more,' Taita whispered. 'But hush now. Here comes Onka.'

Onka stormed into the room. He was making no attempt to conceal his annoyance.

'Did you find her?' Taita asked.

'You know I did not.' Onka went back to the doorway of the bedchamber and stood there for a while, glowering suspiciously into the empty room. Then, with an angry shake of his head, he came back to Taita. 'We must leave at once for the citadel.'

I I

'I will need warm clothing if the oligarchs send me to the Cloud Gardens.'

'It will be provided,' Onka told him. 'Come.'

Taita clasped Meren's upper arm in farewell. 'Be firm in resolve and steadfast in courage,' he said softly, then followed Onka out into the stableyard. One of Onka's men was holding a bay mare, saddled for the road. Taita stopped short. 'Where is my mare, Windsmoke?' he demanded.

'The grooms tell me that she is lame and cannot be ridden,' Onka replied.

'I must see to her before we leave.'

'That is not possible. My orders are to escort you to the citadel without delay.'

Taita argued a little longer, but it was to no avail. He looked back despairingly at Meren.

'I will care for Windsmoke, Magus. You need not fret.'

Taita mounted the strange horse, and they rode out through the gate.

It was the middle of the following morning when they reached the palace of the oligarchs. Once again, Taita was taken to the antechamber.

There was a basin of hot water in which he refreshed himself while one of the palace servants held a clean linen towel for him. The same servant gave him a meal of spiced chicken and a bowl of red wine.

Then the usher came to lead him through into the Supreme Council's chamber. With the utmost respect, the man settled him on a woollen mat at the front of the room just below the dais. Taita looked carefully about him, then concentrated on the leather screen. He could detect no trace of Eos. He relaxed and composed himself, for he expected a long wait.

However, a short time later, the guards filed in and took up their positions below the dais. The usher announced the entrance of the oligarchs: 'Pray show respect for the honourable lords of the Supreme Council.'

Taita made his obeisance but watched the oligarchs from under his eyelashes as they filed in from behind the screen. Once again they were

led by Lord Aquer. Taita was surprised that there were only two: Lord Caithor was missing. Aquer and his companion seated themselves1 on their stools and left the third unoccupied.I Aquer smiled. 'You are welcome. Please be at ease, Magus. You are among your peers.'

Taita was surprised by this, but tried not to show it. He straightened and leant back against the cushions. 'You are gracious, Lord Aquer,' he said.

Aquer smiled again, then addressed the usher and the commander of the palace guards: 'We wish to be alone. Please leave us and do not return until you are summoned. Make certain that no stranger listens at the doors.'

The guards thumped the butts of their spears upon the floor, then filed out. The usher followed them, walking backwards with his whole body doubled over in a low bow.

As soon as they were gone and the great doors were closed Aquer spoke again: 'At our last meeting I did not formally introduce you to the noble Lord Ek-Tang.' Taita and the councillor exchanged a seated bow. Ek-Tang was a short, portly man of indeterminate age and Asiatic features. His eyes were coal black and inscrutable.

Lord Aquer went on: 'We have excellent reports from the surgeons of the Cloud Gardens. We have been told that the operation on Colonel Cambyses' eye was a complete success.'

'It was an amazing achievement,' Taita agreed, 'He has regained the full sight of the eye. Not only that, but the organ is completely natural in appearance. It cannot be differentiated from its twin in any way.'

'Our surgeons are the most advanced on earth, but their greatest achievement is yet to come,' Aquer told him.

Taita inclined his head in enquiry but remained silent.

'We shall return to that later,' said Aquer, with a mysterious air, evidently designed to intrigue Taita. Then, abruptly, he changed the subject. 'You will notice that Lord Caithor is not here,' he said.

'Indeed, my lord. I was surprised by his absence.'

'He was an old man, and wearied by the weight of years. Tragically he passed away in his sleep ten days ago. His end was peaceful and without suffering.'

'We should all be so fortunate,' said Taita, 'but I mourn his passing with you.'

'You are a man of compassion,' said Aquer, 'but the fact remains that there is now an empty seat on the Supreme Council. We have conferred

at length and prayed most earnestly for guidance from the one true goddess, whose name will soon be disclosed to you.'

Taita bowed in acknowledgement of this favour.

Aquer went on: 'We have reached the conclusion that one man is eminently suited for election to the Council in Lord Caithor's place.

That man is you, Taita of Gallala.'

Again Taita bowed, but this time he was truly speechless.

Aquer continued genially, 'It is the decree of the Supreme Council that you are to be ennobled, with the title Lord Taita.' Again Taita bowed. 'There is, however, one impediment to your election. It is customary for members of the Council to be whole and healthy. You, Lord Taita, through no fault of your own, have suffered a grievous injury that disqualifies you from this position. However, that need not be final.

Your protege, Colonel Cambyses, was sent to the Cloud Gardens for treatment but not on the merits of his case. Access to these extraordinary procedures is usually reserved for the most worthy members of our society.

It is difficult to place a value on the immense cost of the treatments. You will learn more of this later. Officers of low or intermediate military rank do not usually qualify. Cambyses was chosen to convince you of the possibilities that exist. Without this demonstration, you would certainly have been sceptical and would most likely have declined to participate.'

'What you say is indubitably true. However, I am glad for the sake of Meren Cambyses that he was chosen.'

'As are we all,' Aquer agreed unconvincingly. 'That is no longer relevant. What is, though, is that you have been examined by the surgeons and, as a nobleman and elected member of the Supreme Council, you are entitled to preferential treatment. The surgeons of the Cloud Gardens have been warned of your imminent arrival. Their preparations to receive you are well advanced, which accounts for the delay in informing you. It takes time to make such preparations, but now the seeds have been harvested. The surgeons await your arrival.

Are you prepared to take the opportunity that you are offered?'

Taita closed his eyes and pressed his fingertips into his eyelids while he thought. Our entire enterprise depends upon this, he reminded himself. There is no other way in which I can get within striking range of Eos. However, the board is laid out in the witch's favour. My chances of success are as thin as a silken thread. The end cannot be foreseen, but must be taken at hazard. The only certainty is that all is steeped in the poison of the witch, therefore it will be not only evil but surpassing perilous. He massaged his closed eyes as he wrestled with his conscience.

Am I justifying a baser motive? If I do this thing will it be for Pharaoh and Egypt, or for Taita the man and his own selfish desires? he asked of himself, with cruel self-appraisal. Then he replied, with equally cruel honesty, For both. It will be for the Truth against the Lie, but it will also be for myself and Fenn. I long to know what it is to be a full man. I long for the power to love her with a passion that threatens to consume my very soul.

He lowered his hands and opened his eyes. 'I am ready,' he said.

'It was wise of you to consider your reply so carefully, but I am pleased with your decision. You will be our honoured guest at our palace for this night. In the morning you will commence your journey up the mountain and into a new life.'

The storm was raging as they set out next morning. As they climbed the pathway the temperature fell remorselessly. Swathed in his leather cloak Taita followed the shape of Onka's horse, which was almost obliterated by the swirling snow and the shimmering clouds of ice crystals that were blown across the track. The journey seemed much longer than before, but at last they saw the entrance to the tunnel appear out of the blizzard. Even the trogs that guarded the tunnel crouched down against the wind and blinked at Taita as he passed, their eyelashes laden with ice. With relief he followed Onka into the tunnel and out of the tempest.

They passed through the mountain and emerged from the dank darkness and the guttering light of the torches into the warm sunshine.

They rode past the trogs outside the tunnel, and saw the splendour of the Cloud Gardens spread below them. Taita felt his spirits lift as they always did in the enchanted crater. They took the now familiar path through the forest and on the far side came out on the beach of the steaming azure lake. The crocodiles were lying on the sandbanks, sunning themselves. It was the first time Taita had seen them out of the water and he was astounded: there were even larger than he had thought. At the approach of the horses the crocodiles lifted themselves on bowed legs and waddled to the water's edge, then launched themselves into the lake, sliding gracefully below the surface.

When they rode into the stableyard servants and grooms were waiting to welcome them. The grooms took the horses and the major-domo conducted Taita to the rooms he had shared with Meren. Once again

fresh clothing was laid out for him, a wood fire burned in the hearth and large jugs of hot water stood ready.

'I hope you will find everything convenient and to your liking, revered Magus. Of course, if there is anything you lack, you have only to ring.'

He gestured towards the bell pull that hung beside the door. 'Dr Hannah has invited you to dine with her in her private quarters this evening.' The major-domo moved backwards towards the door, bowing deeply at every second pace. 'I will come to take you to her at the setting of the sun.'

Once Taita had bathed he lay down to rest, but he was unable to sleep. Again he was imbued with restless excitement and an undirected sense of anticipation. As before, he realized the sensation came not from within himself but an exterior source. He tried to compose himself, but with little success. When the major-domo came for him, Taita was dressed in a fresh tunic and waiting for him.

Dr Hannah came to the door to welcome him into her rooms as though he were an old friend. News of his ennoblement had reached her and she greeted him as 'Lord Taita'. One of her first concerns was to ask after Meren, and she was delighted when Taita told her of his continued excellent progress. There were three other dinner guests. Dr Gibba was one and, like Hannah, he greeted Taita affably. The other two were strangers.

'This is Dr Assem,' Hannah said. 'He is a distinguished member of our Guild. He specializes in the use of herb and vegetable substances in surgery and medicine.'

Assem was a small, sprightly man with a lively, intelligent face. Taita saw from his aura that he was a Long Liver of vast knowledge, but not a savant.

'May I also introduce Dr Rei? She is an expert on reknitting damaged or severed nerves and sinews. She understands more than any other living surgeon about the bony structures of the human body, particularly the skull and teeth, the vertebrae of the spine and the bones of the hands and feet. Dr Assem and Dr Rei will assist with your surgery.'

Rei had rugged, almost masculine features, and large, powerful hands.

Taita saw that she was clever and single-minded in the pursuit of her profession.

Once they had settled round the board, the company was convivial, and the conversation fascinating. Taita revelled in the interplay of their superior intelligence. Although the servant kept the bowls fully charged, they were all abstemious and none did more than sip their wine.

At one stage the conversation turned to the ethics of their profession.

Rei hailed from a far-eastern kingdom. She described how the Qin emperor had handed over to his surgeons the captives he had taken in battle. He had encouraged them to use the prisoners for live dissection and experiment. All the company agreed that the emperor must have been a man of vision and understanding.

'The vast majority of human beings are only one cut above domestic animals,' Hannah added. 'A good ruler will make every effort to see that they are provided with all the necessities of life and many of its comforts, depending on the means at his disposal. However, he should not allow himself to be persuaded that the life of each individual is sacrosanct, to be preserved at all costs. As a general must not hesitate to send his men to certain death if the battle is to be won, so an emperor should be prepared to dispense life or death according to the needs of the state, not by some artificial standard of so-called humanity.'

'I agree entirely, but I would go further still,' said Rei. 'The value of the individual should be taken into account when the decision is made.

A slave or a brutish soldier cannot be weighed against a sage or a scientist whose knowledge may have taken centuries to accumulate. The slave, the soldier and the idiot are born to die. If they can do so for good reason, then so much the better. However, the sage and the scientist whose value to society is incalculably higher should be preserved.'

'I agree with you, Dr Rei. Knowledge and learning are our greatest treasures, far outweighing all the gold and silver of this earth,' said Assem. 'Our intelligence and our ability to reason and remember lift us above the other animals, above even the masses of lower humanity who lack those attributes. What are your views, Lord Taita?'

'There is no clear or obvious solution,' Taita answered carefully. 'We could debate the matter endlessly. But I believe that what is in the common good must be preserved, even if it means cold-blooded sacrifice.

I have commanded men in battle. I know how bitter the decision to send them to their death can be. But I did not hesitate to order it when the freedom or welfare of all was at stake.' He had told them not what he believed but what he knew they wanted to hear. They had listened attentively, then relaxed and their attitude towards him seemed easier and more open. It was as though he had shown his credentials and they had lowered a barrier to allow him into their fellowship.

Despite the good food and wine they did not sit for long. Gibba was the first to come to his feet. 'We must rise early on the morrow,'

he reminded them, and they all stood to thank Hannah and take their leave.

I

Before she allowed Taita to depart she said, 'I wanted you to meet them because they will assist me tomorrow. Your injuries are much more extensive than that of your protege and, what is more, they have consolidated over the years. There will be considerably more work for us, and we need the extra hands and experience. Furthermore we will not be able to work in your quarters, as we did with Colonel Cambyses. The operation will be carried out in the rooms where I made my initial examination.' She took his arm and led him to the door. 'The other surgeons will join me tomorrow morning to conduct the final examination and plan our surgical strategy. I wish you a peaceful night, Lord Taita.'

The major-domo was waiting to show Taita back to his quarters, and Taita followed him without taking account of their route through the complex of passages and galleries. He was thinking about the conversations in which he had participated that evening when his reverie was interrupted by the sound of weeping. He stopped to listen. It came from not far away, and there was no doubt that it was a woman's. She sounded as though she was in the extremes of despair. When the major-domo realized that Taita had paused and was no longer following him closely, he turned back.

'Who is that woman?' Taita asked.

'Those are the cells of the house slaves. Perhaps one has been punished for her faults.' The man shrugged with indifference. 'Please don't concern yourself, Lord Taita. We should go on.'

Taita saw that there was no point in pursuing the matter. The man's aura showed that he was intractable, and that he was simply following the orders of his superiors.

'Lead on,' Taita agreed, but from there he noted their route carefully.

After he has left me, I will return to investigate, he decided. However, his interest in the weeping woman faded rapidly, and before they reached his quarters it had been obliterated from his mind. He lay down on his sleeping mat and fell almost immediately into an easy, untroubled sleep.

The major-domo came for him as soon as he had breakfasted; He led Taita to Hannah's rooms, where he found all four surgeons awaiting his arrival. They began at once. It was strange for Taita not to be consulted and instead to be treated like a piece of insensate meat on a butcher's slab.

They began with the preliminary examination, not neglecting the product of his digestive processes, the smell of his breath, the condition of his skin and the soles of his feet. Dr Rei opened his mouth and looked at his tongue, gums and teeth. 'Lord Taita's teeth are much worn and corroded, Dr Hannah, the roots badly mortified. They must be causing him pain. Is that not so, my lord?' Taita's grunt was noncommittal, and Rei went on, 'Very soon they will constitute a serious threat to his health and eventually his life. They should be removed as soon as possible and the gums seeded afresh.'

Hannah agreed at once. 'I have taken such eventualities into account and made arrangements to harvest more essence than we will need for the regrowth of the damaged area in the groin. There will be sufficient for you to use on his gums.'

At last they arrived at the site of his injuries. They hovered over his lower body, pressing and touching the area of the cicatrice. Rei measured it with a pair of calipers, and made notes on a papyrus scroll in small, beautifully drawn hieroglyphics. While they worked they discussed the mutilated area in dispassionate detail.

'All the scar tissue will have to be dissected out. We must get down to the raw flesh and the open blood vessels so that the seeding will have a firm foundation on which to grow,' Hannah explained, then turned to Rei. 'Will you trace the major nerves and determine their residual viability for us?'

Rei used a bronze needle to trace the nerve endings. It was torture to submit to her probe. Quickly Taita controlled his mind to filter out the pain. Rei realized what he was doing and told him sternly, 'I admire your ability to suppress pain, Lord Taita, as it will stand you in good stead later. However, during my examination you must let it through. If you continue to block it, I will be unable to discover which part of your flesh is dead and must be removed, and which is alive for us to build upon.'

She used black dye to draw lines and symbols on his lower body to guide Hannah's scalpel. By the time she had set it aside, Taita was bleeding from hundreds of tiny painful needle pricks, and was pale and

I

sweating from the torment she had inflicted. While he recovered, the four surgeons discussed her conclusions.

'It is as well that we have on hand more than the usual quantity of seeding. The area we will have to recover is larger than I first calculated.

Taking into account the amount needed for the new teeth, we shall require all that I have harvested,' Hannah told them.

'That is indeed so. The open area will be extensive, and will take much longer to heal than any reconstruction we have attempted previously.

By what means can we ensure the passage of urine and faeces from the site without contaminating the wound?' asked Gibba.

'The anus will not be involved, and will continue to function in its accustomed manner. However, I intend to place a copper tube in the urethra. Initially this will convey the urine, but as soon as the seeding begins to stabilize and cover the open wound, it will be removed to allow normal regrowth of the organ.'

Although Taita was the subject, he managed to maintain an objective interest in the discussion and even made contributions that the others welcomed. When every facet of the procedure had been covered in exhaustive detail, Assem referred to him one last time: 'I have herbs that can be used to suppress pain, but perhaps they will not be necessary.

While Dr Rei was examining you, I was amazed by your technique of pain control. Will you be able to use it during the operation, or should I employ my potions?'

'I am sure that they are most effective, but I would prefer to control the pain myself,' Taita told him.

'I shall observe your technique with the utmost attention.'

It was the middle of the afternoon before Hannah brought the conference to a conclusion, and Taita was allowed to return to his quarters. Before he left her, Hannah said, 'Dr Assem has arranged for a herbal potion to be left beside your bed in a green glass phial. Drink it in a full bowl of warm water. It will purge your bladder and bowels in preparation for the operation. Please do not drink or eat anything more tonight or tomorrow morning. In the morning I would like to begin as soon as the light is good enough. We must give ourselves ample time.

We cannot be sure what unexpected difficulties we may encounter.

It is essential that we finish during daylight hours. Oil lamps will give insufficient light for our needs.'

'I will be ready,' Taita assured her.

When Taita arrived at Hannah's room the next morning,' her team of surgeons was assembled and ready to begin. Two nursing attendants, whom he recognized from his previous visit with Meren, helped him to undress. When he was naked they lifted him up on to the stone table and made him lie on his back. The stone was hard and cool under him, but the air was pleasantly warm, heated by the hot-water ducts beneath the floor. All four doctors were bare to the waist, and wore only white linen loincloths. Hannah's and Rei's breasts and upper bodies were firm and rounded as those of young women, and their skin was smooth and unwrinkled. He supposed that they had availed themselves of their arcane skills to keep themselves in that condition, and smiled faintly at the eternal vanity of the female. Then he considered himself: Lying here waiting for the knife, am I any less vain than they? He stopped smiling, and took one last look round the room. He saw that on another table close at hand a large selection of silver, copper and bronze surgical instruments had been laid out. Among them he was surprised to see at least fifty gleaming scalpels lying in neat lines on the white marble.

Hannah saw his interest. 'I like to work with sharp knives,' she explained, 'for your comfort as well as my own.' She indicated two technicians sitting at another worktable in the far corner of the room.

'Those men are skilled cutlers. They will resharpen each scalpel as soon as its edge becomes dull. You will be grateful to them before the day is done.' She turned to her assistants. 'If all is in readiness we can proceed.'

The two male nurses swabbed Taita's lower body with a pungent smelling liquid. At the same time the surgeons washed their hands and forearms in a bowl of the same fluid. Dr Rei came to Taita's side. The markings she had made the previous day had faded until they were barely visible. Now she renewed them, then stood back to make way for Hannah.

'I am about to make the first incision. Lord Taita, will you please compose yourself to resist the pain?' she said.

Taita grasped the Periapt of Lostris, which lay upon his naked chest.

He filled his mind with a soft mist, and let the circle of their faces above him recede until they were vague outlines.

Hannah's voice reverberated strangely in his ears, seeming to come from a distance: 'Are you prepared?' she asked.

'I am. You may begin.' He felt a tugging sensation as she made the

first incision, and as she went deeper he felt the first pain, but it was not unbearable. He let himself drop a level until he was just aware of her touch and the bite of her scalpel. He could hear their voices. Time passed. Once or twice the pain flared brightly as Hannah worked in a sensitive area, but Taita dropped a little deeper. When the pain receded he let himself rise to just below the surface, and listened to their discussions, which enabled him to follow their progress.

'Very well,' said Hannah, with obvious satisfaction. 'We have removed all the scar tissue, and we are ready to insert the catheter. Can you hear me, Lord Taita?'

'Yes,' Taita whispered, his voice echoing in his ears.

'Everything is going even better than I had hoped. I am placing the tube now.'

Taita felt it being worked into him, a mildly uncomfortable sensation that he did not need to suppress.

Already fresh urine is flowing from your bladder,' said Hannah. 'All is in readiness. You may relax, while we wait for the seedings to be brought from the laboratory.'

There followed a long silence. Taita let himself drift deeper until he was only just conscious of his surroundings. The silence continued, but he felt no sense of alarm or urgency. Then, gradually, he became aware of an alien presence in the room. He heard a voice that he knew was Hannah's, but it was very different now: soft, trembling with fear or some other strong emotion. 'This is the essence,' she said.

Taita brought himself to the level of bearable pain. He opened his eyes to slits so that he was looking through the screen of his own eyelashes. He saw Hannah's hands above him. They were cupped round an alabaster pot similar to that which had held the seeding for Meren's eye but much larger. Hannah lowered it from his line of vision and Taita heard the light scraping sound of a spoon against the alabaster as Hannah scooped out some of the contents. Moments later he felt a sensation of cold in the area of the open wound in his groin, and a light touch as the seeding was spread over it. This was followed by an acute stinging sensation in the same area. He masked it, then something else caught his half-open eyes.

He realized, for the first time, that a strange figure stood against the far wall. It had appeared without a sound, a tall but statuesque shape, veiled from head to floor in filmy black silk. The only movement was a light undulation as the person's chest rose and fell with each breath. The bosom beneath the veil was proudly feminine, perfect in size and shape.

Taita was possessed by an overpowering sense of awe and fear. He opened his Inner Eye and saw that the veiled figure threw no aura.

He was certain that it was Eos, not one of her shadowy manifestations but Eos, with whom he had come to do battle.

He wanted to sit up and challenge her, but as soon as he tried to rise from his trance to full consciousness the pain soared and drove him back.

He wanted to speak, but no words rose to his tongue. He could only stare at her. Then he felt the softest touch on his temples, like that of teasing fairy fingers. He knew it was not Hannah: Eos was trying to enter his mind and take out his thoughts. Swiftly he raised his mental barriers to frustrate her. The fairy touch withdrew: Eos had sensed his resistance and, like a skilled swordsman, had given ground. He imagined her poised for the riposte. She had made her first delicate test of his defences. He knew he should have felt threatened and intimidated by her presence, repelled by her wickedness, the great weight of her evil, but instead he felt a strong, unnatural attraction to her. Demeter had warned him of her beauty and the effect it had on all men who gazed upon it, and he tried to keep his guard high, but he found that he still longed to look upon her fateful beauty.

At that moment Hannah moved to the foot of the table and blocked his view. He wanted to shout at her to stand aside, but now that Eos was not directly in his eye his self-control reasserted itself. It was a valuable discovery. He had learnt that if he looked upon her she was irresistible.

If he turned away his eyes the attraction, although powerful, could be denied. He lay staring quietly at the ceiling, and allowed the pain to rise to the pitch at which it acted as a counter to the animal craving she aroused in him. Hannah was bandaging the open wound now and he concentrated on the touch of her hands and the feel of the linen strips being laid upon his body. When she had finished Hannah came back to his side. Taita looked at the far wall, but Eos was gone. Only the faintest psychic trace of her remained, a haunting sweetness that hung in the air like a precious perfume.

Dr Rei took Hannah's place at the head of the table, opened his mouth and placed wooden wedges between his jaws. He felt her settle the forceps over the first of his teeth and masked the pain before she began the extraction. Rei was expert: she pulled out his teeth in rapid succession. Then Taita felt the sting of the seeding being placed in the open wounds, and the prick of the needle as she closed the wounds with sutures.

Gently the two male nurses lifted Taita down from the stone table and laid him on a light litter. Hannah walked beside him as they carried him to his quarters. When they reached his room she saw him safely transferred from the litter to his sleeping mat. Then she made the arrangements for his comfort and care.

At last she knelt on the floor beside him. 'One of the nurses will remain at your side night and day. They will send for me the moment they detect any adverse change in your condition. If there is anything you need you have only to let them know. I will call upon you morning and evening to change the dressings on your wound and to observe your progress,' she told him. 'I do not have to warn you of what lies ahead.

You were present during the grafting of the seedings into the eye socket of your protege. You will remember the pain and discomfort he endured.

You know, too, of the usual sequence of events - three days relatively free of pain, six days of agony, and relief on the tenth. However, because your wound is so much larger than that of Colonel Cambyses, your pain will be more intense. You will need all your skills to keep it under control.'

Once again Hannah's predictions proved accurate. The first three days passed with only minor discomfort; a dull ache in the pit of his stomach and a burning sensation when he passed water. His mouth hurt more. It was difficult to prevent himself worrying with his tongue the stitches that Rei had placed in his gums. He could eat no solid food, and took only a light broth of mashed vegetables. He could walk only with the greatest difficulty. They had provided him with a pair of crutches, but he needed the help of a nurse to reach the washroom when he needed to use the nightsoil pot.

When Hannah came to change his dressing he looked down as she worked, and he saw that a soft sticky scab covered the wound. It looked like the resin that oozes from a cut or blaze made in the bark of the gum arabic tree. Hannah was careful not to disturb it, and to prevent it from adhering to the linen bandages she coated it with a greasy ointment that Dr Assem had provided.

On the fourth morning he awoke in the grip of an agony so deep that he screamed involuntarily before he could exert his mental powers to check the pain. The nurses rushed to his side and sent immediately for Dr Hannah. By the time she appeared he had rallied his forces and reduced it to the extent that he could speak intelligibly.

'It is bad,' Hannah said, 'but you knew it would be.“

'It is far beyond anything I have ever known. It feels as though a crucible of molten lead has been poured over my belly,' he whispered.

'I can call Dr Assem to administer a potion.'

'No,' he replied. 'I will come to terms with it alone.'

'Six more days,' she warned him. 'Maybe longer.'

'I shall survive.' The agony was dread and constant. It filled his existence to the exclusion of all else. He did not think of Eos, or even of Fenn. The pain was all.

He managed with great effort to hold it off during waking hours, but as soon as sleep overcame him his defences slipped and it returned in full force. He came awake, whimpering and moaning with its intensity. He lived with the temptation to yield and send for Assem with his narcotics, but resisted with all his mental and physical strength. The danger of letting himself be carried into a stupor outweighed the pain. His resolve was all the shield he had left against Eos and the Lie.

On the sixth day the pain faded, only to be replaced at once by the itching, which was almost more difficult to resist than the pain. He wanted to rip off the dressings and tear at his flesh with his fingernails.

The only relief he had was when Hannah came to change the dressings.

Once she had removed the soiled bandages she bathed him with a warm herbal solution that was soothing and comforting.

By this time the huge scab that covered his lower belly and crotch had turned as hard and black as the skin of a great crocodile of the azure lake. These periods of surcease were brief. No sooner had Hannah bound him up with fresh linen strips than the itching returned in full force. It drove him to the borders of sanity. There seemed no end to it.

He lost track of the days.

At one stage Rei came to him. While the nurses prised apart his jaws she removed the stitches from his gums. He had forgotten about them in the overwhelming anguish of the main wound. However, the faint relief afforded him by their removal was sufficient to stiffen his resolve.

When he awoke one morning he felt such a rush of relief that he moaned. The pain and the itching were gone. The peace that followed was so blessed that he fell into a deep, healing sleep that lasted a day and a night. When he woke again he found Hannah kneeling beside his sleeping mat. While he was asleep she had unwrapped his bandages.

He was so exhausted that he had not even been conscious of what she was doing. As he raised his head she smiled at him with proprietary pride.

I I

'Mortification is always the greatest danger, but there is no sign of it.

Your body is not heated with fever. The seed graft has taken across the whole area. You have crossed the sea of pain and reached the far shore,'

she told him. 'Considering the depth and extent of your wound, your courage and fortitude have been exemplary, although I expected no less of you. Now I can remove the catheter.'

The copper tube slipped out easily, and again the relief was a delight.

He was surprised by how weak and wasted the ordeal had left him.

Hannah and the nurses had to help him to sit up. He looked down at his body. It had been lean before but now it was skeletally thin. The flesh had melted away until every rib showed.

'The scab is beginning to come away,' Hannah told him. 'Look how it is lifting and sloughing off around its borders. See the healing beneath it.' With a forefinger she traced the demarcating line along which the old and new skin met. The two blended together flawlessly. The old skin was crinkled with age like crepe cloth, the hair growing upon it wispy and grey. The narrow strip of exposed new skin was as smooth and firm as polished ivory. A fine down grew upon it, becoming denser in a line extending downwards from his navel. It was the first fluffy promise of the luxuriant bush of pubic hair it would become. In the middle of the scab crust was the aperture from which Hannah had removed the copper catheter. Hannah covered it with another thick layer of Dr Assem's herbal ointment.

'The ointment will soften and help to lift away the dry scab without damaging the new tissue beneath it,' she explained, as she bandaged him again.

Before she had finished Dr Rei came into the room and knelt beside Taita's head. She slipped her finger into his mouth. 'Is anything happening in here?' she asked. Her manner was relaxed and friendly, in contrast to her formerly serious and professional mien.

Taita's voice was muffled by her finger. 'I can feel something growing.

There are hard lumps below the surface of my gums, which are tender when you touch them.'

'Teething pains.' Rei chuckled. 'You are passing through your second infancy, my lord Taita.' She ran her finger to the back of his mouth, and laughed again. 'Yes, a full set, including your wisdom teeth. They will show themselves within days. Then you can eat more substantial fare than pap and broth.'

Within a week Rei returned. She brought with her a mirror of burnished silver. Its surface was so true that the image it presented to

Taita of the interior of his mouth was only slightly distorted. 'Like a string of pearls from the Arabian Sea,' she said, as Taita gazed for the first time at his new teeth. 'Probably more regular and pleasingly shaped than the first crop you grew so long ago.' Before she left, she said, 'Please accept the mirror as my gift. I warrant you will have more to admire with it before too long.'

The moon had waxed and waned once more before the last flakes of the scab at the base of Taita's belly crumbled away. By now he was eating normally and regaining the flesh he had lost. He spent several hours each day exercising with his long staff in a series of movements that he had designed to build up his suppleness and strength. Dr Assem had prescribed a diet that included large quantities of herbs and vegetables. All these measures were proving most beneficial. The hollows in his cheeks filled out, his colour was healthier, and it seemed to him that the muscles that replaced those he had lost were firmer and stronger. Soon he was able to discard his crutches and walk around the lakeshore without having to stop and rest. However, Hannah would not allow him to leave the sanatorium unaccompanied, and one of the male nurses went with him. As he regained his strength, the constant surveillance and restriction became more difficult to endure. He was increasingly bored and restless, demanding of Hannah, 'When will you allow me to leave my cell and return to the world?'

'The oligarchs have cautioned me to keep you here until you are fully recovered. However, your days need not be wasted. Let me show you something that will help you pass the time.' She conducted him to the sanatorium's library, which stood in the forest at some distance from the main complex. It was a large building that comprised a series of enormous interconnected rooms. On all four walls of each one stone shelves reached from floor to ceiling, stacked with papyrus scrolls and clay tablets.

'On our shelves we have more than ten thousand works and as many scientific studies,' Hannah told him, with pride. 'Most are unique. No other copies exist. It would take a normal lifetime to read even half.'

Taita walked slowly through the rooms, picking up a scroll or tablet at random and glancing at its contents. The entrance to the final room was closed with a heavy bronze grating. He looked askance at Hannah.

'Unfortunately, my lord, entrance to that particular room, and to the editions kept in it, is restricted to members of the Guild,' she said.

'I understand,' Taita assured her, then looked back at the rooms

I THE QUEST

through which they had come. 'This must be the greatest treasury of knowledge that civilized man has ever assembled.'

'I agree with your estimation, my lord. You will find much to fascinate you and stimulate your mind, and perhaps even open for you new avenues of philosophical thought.'

'I shall certainly avail myself of the opportunity.' Over the following weeks Taita spent many hours each day in the library. Only when the light through the high windows grew too dim for easy reading did he make his way back to his quarters in the main building.

One morning when he had finished his breakfast he was surprised and a little irritated to find a stranger waiting outside his door. 'Who are you?' he demanded impatiently. He was anxious to get to the library and finish reading the scroll on astral travel and communication, which had engaged his full attention over the preceding days. 'Speak up, fellow.'

'I am here on the orders of Dr Hannah.' The little man kept bowing and smirking. 'I am your barber.'

'I have no need of your doubtless excellent services,' said Taita, brusquely, and tried to push past him.

The barber stepped in front of him. 'Please, my lord. Dr Hannah was most insistent. It will go hard for me if you refuse.'

Taita hesitated. For longer than he cared to remember he had taken no particular interest in his appearance. Now he ran his fingers through the long hair and silver beard that hung almost as far as his waist. He kept them washed and combed, but apart from that he allowed them to grow in wild but comfortable disarray. In truth, until he had received the recent gift from Dr Rei he had not even possessed a mirror. He looked at the barber dubiously. 'I fear that, unless you are an alchemist, there is little you can do to transmute this dross into gold.'

'Please, my lord, at least let me try. If I do not, Dr Hannah will be displeased.'

The little barber's agitation was comical. He must be terrified of the formidable Hannah. Taita sighed and acquiesced with as good grace as he could muster. 'Oh, very well, but be sharp about it.'

The barber led him out on to the terrace where he had already placed a stool in the sunshine. His instruments were at hand. After the first few minutes Taita found his ministrations quite soothing and he relaxed.

While the barber snipped and combed, Taita turned his mind to the scroll that waited for him in the library and reviewed the sections that he had read the previous day. He decided that the author's grasp of his

subject was fragmentary and that he should provide the missing material himself, as soon as he had the opportunity. Then his thoughts turned to Fenn. He missed her sorely. He wondered how she was faring and What had become of Sidudu. He took no notice of the abundant clippings of grey hair that fell like autumn leaves on to the paving stones.

At last the little barber interrupted his thoughts by holding up a large bronze mirror in front of his eyes. 'I hope my work pleases you.'

Taita blinked. His image was wavering and distorted by the uneven surface of the metal, then suddenly it came into focus, and he was startled by what he saw. He hardly recognized the face that stared back at him haughtily. It appeared far younger than he knew it was. The barber had trimmed his hair to shoulder length and tied it back behind his head with a leather thong. He had clipped his beard short and square.

'Your skull has a fine shape,' said the barber. 'You have a wide, deep brow. Yours is the head of a philosopher. The fashion in which I have swept your hair back shows off its nobility to best advantage. Before, your beard masked the strength of your jaw. Cropping it shorter, as I have done, enhances and emphasizes it.'

In his youth Taita had been pleased with his appearance — perhaps too pleased. At the time it had compensated a little for the loss of his manhood. Now he saw that, even after all this time, he had not entirely lost his looks.

Fenn will be surprised, he thought, and smiled with pleasure. In the mirror his new teeth gleamed and the expression in his eyes quickened.

'You have done well,' he conceded. 'I would not have thought it possible to make so much of such unpromising material.'

When Hannah called upon him that evening, she studied his features thoughtfully. 'Long ago I decided that dalliance consumed time that might otherwise have been applied to more rewarding and productive business,' she told him. 'However, I can see why some women might consider you handsome, my lord. With your permission, and in the interest of scientific knowledge, I should like to invite some carefully selected members of the Guild to meet you and to be apprised of what you have been able to achieve.'

'What you and your colleagues have been able to achieve,' Taita corrected her. 'I owe you that courtesy at the very least.'

Some days later he was conducted back to Hannah's operating room to find that it had been rearranged as an impromptu lecture theatre.

A semicircle of stools was set out in front of the stone table. Eight men and women were already seated, including Gibba, Rei and Assem.

Hannah led Taita back to the table and asked him to sit facing the small audience. Apart from the surgeons who had attended him from the beginning, Taita had met none of the others. This was strange when he considered how long he had been at the Cloud Gardens. The sanatorium must cover a greater area than he had realized, or perhaps other departments were detached from the main buildings and tucked away, like the library, in the forest. However, the most likely possibility was that much of the Cloud Gardens was still concealed from him by the dark arts of Eos. Like a child's puzzle, boxes were hidden within boxes.

One of the new faces was a woman's. The others were men, but all appeared to be distinguished and dignified scientists. Their attitude was attentive and serious. After she had introduced Taita, in the most flattering terms, Hannah went on to outline the treatment he had undergone. Rei described how she had removed Taita's worn or rotten teeth, and seeded the cavities in his gums. After that she invited each guest in turn to come forward and examine the new ones. Taita sat stoically through the examinations and answered the questions they levelled at him. When they had returned to their stools Hannah came to stand beside him again.

She described Taita's castration and the extent of the injuries inflicted upon him. Her listeners were horrified. The woman surgeon was particu'

larly moved and expressed her sympathy eloquently.

'Thank you for your concern,' Taita replied, 'but it happened a long time ago. Over the years the memory has faded. The human mind has a trick of burying what is most painful to recall.' They nodded and murmured agreement.

Hannah went on to describe the preliminary tests she had carried out, and the preparations she had made for the surgery.

Taita expected that at this stage of her lecture she might describe the harvesting and preparation of the seedings for grafting. He had been kept ignorant of this and was most anxious to have it explained. He was disappointed that she made no effort to do so. He presumed that her audience were fully informed, and had probably employed the same techniques in their own work. In any event Hannah went on to an account of the surgery, describing how she had dissected out the scar tissue to form a foundation on which the graft could be set. Her audience asked many searching, erudite questions, which she answered at length. Finally she told them, 'As you are all well aware, Lord Taita is a magus of the highest level, and is also an eminent surgeon and scientific observer in his own right. The reconstruction of his organs of

procreation was an unusually intimate and sensitive experience for him.

I have no need to tell you that he was subjected to a great deal of pain.

All of this was a gross imposition on the dignity and privacy of such an extraordinary person. Despite this, he has agreed to allow us to examine and evaluate the results. I am sure we all realize that this was not an easy decision for him to make. We should be grateful for this opportunity.'

At last she turned to Taita. 'With your permission, Lord Taita.'

Taita nodded and stretched out on the table top. Gibba came to stand on the opposite side of the table from Hannah. Between them they lifted the skirts of Taita's tunic. 'You may come forward to obtain a better view,' Hannah told the onlookers. They left their stools and formed a circle round the table.

Taita had become so accustomed to being pored over that he felt no particular embarrassment under their scrutiny. He raised himself on his elbows and looked down his body as Hannah resumed her lecture.

'You will observe how the new skin has covered the wound. It has the suppleness and elasticity that one would expect to find in a pubertal male. In contrast please note the hair on the pubes, which is well advanced. It has grown with extraordinary rapidity.' She laid her hand on the area she was discussing. 'This whole fleshy promontory comprises the mons pubis. If you feel it you will discern how the cushion of flesh has already formed over the pelvic bone. You will observe that the general development approximates that of a ten-year-old male. This has been achieved in the weeks since the surgery was performed. Now observe the penis. The prepuce is well formed, not too tight as it is in many young boys.' She took the foreskin and drew it back carefully.

Taita's glans penis emerged from its hood of loose skin. It was little larger than a ripe acorn, soft and glossy pink. Hannah went on, 'Please note the opening of the urethra. We formed this by inserting a catheter during the operation. When we removed it the aperture was round, but now you will see that it has become a characteristic slit.' Hannah slid the foreskin back.

She turned her attention to the scrotum below the immature shaft.

'The sac is developing normally but with the usual extraordinary rapidity we have noted in all our other seedings.' She squeezed it gently. 'There!

It already contains the immature testicles.' She looked across the table at the lone female visitor. 'Dr Lusulu, would you care to examine them for yourself?'

'Thank you, Dr Hannah,' the woman said. She seemed to be in the region of thirty-five years, but when Taita studied her aura he saw that this was deceptive and that she was much older. Her demure attitude did not accurately depict her true nature, which contained a lascivious streak. She took his scrotum and deftly located the two little orbs it contained. She rolled them thoughtfully between her fingers. 'Yes,' she said at last. 'They seem perfectly formed. Do you have any sensation there, Lord Taita?'

'Yes.' His voice was husky.

The woman continued to touch him as she studied his face. 'You must not be embarrassed, my lord. You must learn to enjoy the manly parts that Dr Hannah has returned to you, to delight in and glory in them.'

She moved her fingers up to the shaft of his penis. 'Do you have sensation here yet?' She began to move her fingers up and down the shaft. 'Can you feel how I am manipulating you?'

'Very distinctly,' Taita replied, his voice huskier still. This new feeling far exceeded any that he had experienced before. In the short time since the small appendage had made its appearance he had treated it with caution and reserve. He had handled it only when he was forced to do so, in response to the demands of hygiene and nature. Even then his touch had been clumsy and inept, certainly lacking the dexterity and expertise that Dr Lusulu was demonstrating.

'What dimensions do you expect the organs to attain when they are fully developed?' Dr Lusulu asked Hannah.

'We can be no more certain of that than we could be in the case of a child. However, I expect that they will eventually be a close copy of the original organs.'

'How very interesting,' Dr Lusulu murmured. 'Do you think it might be possible at some future time to grow organs and parts that are superior to the original? For example, to replace a clubbed foot or a cleft palate with a perfect specimen, an abnormally small penis with a larger one? Is that impossible?'

'Impossible? No, Doctor, nothing is impossible until you prove it to be so. Even if I never achieve my goals, those who follow me might do so.'

Their discussion lasted a little longer, then Lusulu broke off and transferred her attention to Taita. She was still stroking his parts, and now she looked pleased. 'Oh, very good,' she said. 'The member is functional. The patient is nearing full erection. That really is proof of your skills, Dr Hannah. Do you think he will be able to reach orgasm

yet? Or is it too soon for that advance?' By now the shaft in her hand had more than doubled its dimensions and the prepuce was fully retracted. Both women studied it with full attention.'

Hannah considered the question seriously, then replied, 'I think that orgasm may already be possible, but it will be some time before ejaculation is achieved.'

'Perhaps we should put it to the test. What do you think, Doctor?'

They were conducting the discussion in cool impersonal tones. However, the unfamiliar sensations that Dr Lusulu was creating with her simple hand movements were so pervasive that Taita was thrown into a state of confusion. He had no idea where or how it would end. For someone who was accustomed to being in full control of himself and all those about him, it was an alarming prospect. He reached down and removed her hand. 'Thank you, Doctor,' he said. 'We are all impressed by Dr Hannah's surgical brilliance. I certainly am. Nevertheless, 1 feel that the test that you are suggesting might better be conducted in a less public environment.' He straightened the skirts of his tunic and sat up.

Dr Lusulu smiled at him and said, 'I wish you much joy.' From the look in her eyes it was plain that she did not subscribe to the philosophy on dalliance that Dr Hannah professed.

Now that Taita had access to the great library, the days passed quickly. As Hannah had remarked, a lifetime would be too short to take in all of the knowledge that was stored there. Oddly, he mustered no interest in the locked and barred room. Like the weeping woman in the night and many other unexplained occurrences, the thought simply receded into the mists of his memory.

When he was not studying, he spent much time in discussion with Hannah, Rei and Assem. They took turns to guide him through some of the other laboratories where they were engaged in a number of extraordinary projects.

'Do you recall Dr Lusulu's question regarding replacing bodily parts with improved versions?' Hannah asked. 'Well, let us consider a soldier with legs that can carry him at the speed of a horse. What if we could grow him more than one pair of arms? A pair to fire a bow, a second to wield a battleaxe, the third to swing a sword and the last to carry a shield. Nothing could stand against such a warrior.'

'A slave with four strong arms and extremely short legs could be sent

into the most confined stopes in the mines to shovel out the gold ore in great quantities,' said Rei. 'How much better if his intelligence was reduced to that of an ox, so that he was inured to hardship and would work in the harshest conditions without complaint? Dr Assem has grown herbs that will achieve that mental effect. In time Dr Hannah and I might be able to create the physical improvements.'

'No doubt you saw the trained apes that stand guard at the entrance to the tunnel that leads into these gardens,' Hannah said.

'Yes, I have seen them, and heard them referred to as trogs,' Taita replied.

Hannah looked a little annoyed. 'A term coined by the common people. The name we use is troglodyte. They were originally derived from a species of arboreal apes that inhabit the great forests in the south. Over the centuries that we have bred them in captivity we have been able, by surgical procedure and the use of certain herbs, to enhance their intelligence and aggression to the level at which they are most useful to us. By similar techniques we have been able to manipulate them until they respond completely to the will of the person who controls them. Of course, their minds are rudimentary and brutish, which makes them much more susceptible than humans to manipulation. However, we are experimenting with the same techniques on some of our slaves and captives. We have had exciting results. Once you are a member of the Guild I will be pleased to show them to you.'

Taita was sickened by these revelations. They are discussing putting together creatures that are no longer men, but aberrant monstrosities, he thought, but he was careful not to express his horror. These people are tainted with the evil of Eos. Their brilliance has been perverted and corrupted by her poison. How I miss the company of decent, honest men, like Meren and Nakonto. How I long for the fresh bright innocence of Fenn.

Some time later when they were returning from the library, he raised again with Hannah the subject of when he would be allowed to leave the Cloud Gardens and return to Mutangi, even for a short time. 'My companions must be much distressed by my continued absence. I should like to reassure them of my safety and well-being. Then I would be happy indeed to return here to begin my initiation into the Guild.'

'Unfortunately, my lord, the decision does not rest with me,' she replied. 'It seems that the Supreme Council wishes you to remain in the Cloud Gardens until you have been fully initiated.' She smiled at him.

'Be not downcast, my lord. This should not be longer than another year.

I assure you, we will do all in our power to make the time you spend with us as fruitful and productive as possible.'

The prospect of another year without being able to see Fenn or Meren appalled Taita, but he took consolation from the thought that the witch would not wait that long before she made her decisive move in the game she was playing with him.

His grafted parts continued to grow with amazing rapidity. He remembered Dr Lusulu's advice: 'You must learn to enjoy the manly parts that Doctor Hannah has returned to you. You must learn to delight in them, to glory in them.' Alone on his sleeping mat in the night he began to explore himself. The sensations aroused by his own touch were so intense that they intruded into his dreams. The lascivious devils that the imp of the grotto had set loose in his mind became more insistent and demand'

ing. The dreams were at once shocking and fascinating. In them he was visited by a beautiful houri. She displayed her womanly parts shamelessly to him, and he saw that they were as perfectly formed as an orchid. The woman smell and taste of her was sweeter than any fruit.

For the first time in almost a century he felt his loins erupt. It was a sensation so powerful that it went far beyond ecstasy or even agony.

He awoke panting and shaking, as though in fever. He was drenched in sweat and his own bodily fluids. It seemed an age before he could return from the far borders of his imagination to which the dream woman had transported him.

He rose and lit the oil lamp. He found the silver mirror that Rei had given him and went back to kneel on the mat. By the light of the lamp he gazed with awe at the reflection of his genitalia. They were still tumescent, and as the imp had shown him in the waters of the pool: perfectly formed, majestic and weighty.

Now I understand the urges that govern all natural men. I have become one of them. This thing that I have been given is the beloved enemy, a beast with two faces. If I can control it, it will bring me all the joy and delights that Lusulu spoke of. If it controls me, it will destroy me as surely as Eos plans to do.

When he returned to the library later that morning, he found it difficult at first to concentrate on the scroll that he unrolled on the low worktable in front of him. He was very much aware of a glow in the pit of his belly, and the presence under the skirts of his tunic.

It is as though another person has come to share my life, a spoilt brat who endlessly demands attention. He felt an indulgent proprietary affection for it. This is going to be a contest, a trial of wills to decide which of us is in command, he thought. But a mind like his, which had been honed to such perfection that it could suppress high levels of pain, an intelligence that had been trained to assimilate vast quantities of information, was able to deal with this much lesser distraction. He returned his full attention to the scroll. Soon he was so absorbed in it that he was only vaguely aware of his immediate surroundings.

The atmosphere in the library was quiet and studious. Although patrons were sitting at worktables in the adjoining rooms, he had this one to himself. It was as if the others had been warned to keep at a respectful distance. Occasionally the librarians passed through the room in which he sat, carrying baskets of scrolls to replace them on the shelves.

Taita took little notice of them. He heard the grille that barred the forbidden room being opened, and glanced up in time to see a librarian going through the open gate, a woman of middle age and unremarkable appearance. He thought nothing of it and went on with his reading. A little later he heard the grille open again. The same woman came out and locked it behind her. She walked quietly down the room, then paused unexpectedly beside Taita's table. He looked up enquiringly. She laid a scroll on the table top. 'You are mistaken, I fear,' Taita told her.

'I did not ask for this.'

'You should have,' said the woman, so softly that he could barely catch the words. She extended the little finger of her right hand, then touched her lower lip with it.

Taita started. It was the recognition signal that Colonel That had shown him. The woman was one of his people. Without another word she walked on, leaving the scroll on his table. Taita wanted to call after her, but restrained himself and watched her leave the room. He went on reading his own scroll until he was certain that he was alone and unobserved, then rolled it up and set it aside. In its place he opened the one that the librarian had brought him. It was untitled and the author

was not named. Then he recognized the hand that had formed the unusually small and artistically drawn hieroglyphics.: 'Dr Rei,' he whispered, and read on quickly. The subject that she1 was addressing was the replacement of human body parts by the process of seeding and grafting. His eyes skipped down the sheet of papyrus. He was intimately familiar with everything that Rei had written: her coverage of the subject was impressively detailed and lucid, but he found nothing new until he was almost half-way through the scroll. Then Rei began to describe how the seedings were harvested and prepared for application to the wound site. The chapter was headed: 'Selecting and cultivating the seedings'. As his eye ran on, the enormity of what she was so coldly enumerating crashed down on him like an avalanche. His mind numb with shock, he went back to the beginning of the chapter and reread it, this time very slowly, returning time and again to those sections that were beyond rational belief.

The donor should be young and healthy. She should have demonstrated at least five menstrual periods. Neither she nor her immediate family should have any history of serious disease. Her appearance should be pleasing. For reasons of management she should be obedient and tractable. If any difficulty is encountered in this area, the use of calming drugs is recommended. They should be administered with care so as not to contaminate the end product. There is a list of recommended drugs in the appendix at the end of this thesis. Diet is also important. It should be low in red meat and milk products, which heat the blood.

There was much more in this vein. Then he reached the next chapter, headed simply 'Breeding'.

As with the donor, the impregnators should be young and healthy, without defect or blemish. Under the present system they are usually selected as a reward for some service to the state. Often this is for military accomplishment. Care must be exercised to prevent any establishing emotional ties with the donor. They should be rotated at brief intervals. As soon as the donor's pregnancy is confirmed she must be denied any further contact with her impregnator.

Taita looked up sightlessly at the shelf of tablets directly in front of him. He remembered the stark terror of little Sidudu. He recalled vividly

her pathetic plea: 'Please, Magus! I beg you! Please help me! If I don't rid myself of the baby they will kill me. I don't want to die for Onka's bastard.'

Sidudu the runaway had been one of the donors. Not a wife or mother, but a donor. Onka was one of her impregnators. Not her husband, lover or mate, but her impregnator. Taita's horror mounted steadily, but he forced himself to read on. Trie next section was headed 'Harvesting'.

Some phrases seemed to leap at him from the text.

The harvesting must take place between the twentieth and twenty-fourth week of pregnancy.

The foetus must be removed intact and entire from the womb.

Natural birth should not be allowed to take place as this has proved to be detrimental to the quality of the seedings.

As the chance of the donor surviving after the removal of the foetus is remote, her life should be terminated immediately. The surgeon should usually take measures to prevent unnecessary suffering. The preferred method is to place the donor under restraint. Her limbs are pinioned and she is gagged to prevent her screams alarming the other donors. The foetus is then removed swiftly by frontal section of the abdomen. Immediately this has been carried out the donor's life should be terminated by strangulation. The ligature is kept in place until the heart has stopped beating and her flesh has cooled.

Taita hurried on to the next chapter, entitled 'The foetus'. His heart was beating so rapidly that he could hear it resonating in his eardrums.

The sex of the foetus appears to be unimportant, although it seems logical and desirable that it should be the same as that of the recipient. The foetus should be healthy and well formed with no detectable deformity or defect. If it does not conform to these criteria it should be discarded. For these reasons it is advisable to have more than one donor available. If the area to be grafted is extensive there should be a choice of at least three donors available. Five would be a more desirable number.

Taita rocked back. Three donors. He remembered the three girls in the waterfall on the day of their first arrival. They had been brought as sacrificial lambs to provide a new eye for Meren. Five donors. He remembered the five girls whom Onka had been bringing up the mountain when

they met him on the pathway. Had they all died of strangulation in the approved manner? Had it been one of them he had heard weeping in the night? Had she known what was about to happen to her and the babe in her womb? Was that why she had wept? He jumped up from the table, rushed out of the building and into the forest. As soon as he was hidden among the trees he doubled over and retched painfully, vomiting his shame and guilt. He leant against the trunk of one of the trees and stared down at the bulge beneath his tunic.

'Is this the reason why those innocents were slaughtered?' He drew the small knife from the sheath on his girdle. 'I will hack it off and force it down Hannah's throat. I will choke her with it!' he raged. 'It is a poisonous gift that will bring me only guilt and torment.'

His hand was shaking so violently that the knife slipped from his fingers. He covered his eyes with both hands. 'I hate it — I hate myself!'

he whispered. His mind was filled with violent and confused images. He remembered the frenzied feasting of the crocodiles in the azure lake.

He heard the weeping of women and the wailing of infants, the sounds of sorrow and despair.

Then the confusion cleared and he heard again the voice of Demeter the savant: This Eos is the minion of the Lie. She is the consummate impostor, the usurper, the deceiver, the thief, the devourer of infants.

'She is the devourer of infants,' he repeated. 'She is the one who orders and directs these atrocities. I must turn my hatred for myself upon her. She is the one I truly hate. She is the one I have come to destroy.

Perhaps by grafting this thing upon me she has unwittingly given me the instrument of her own destruction.' He lifted his hands from his eyes and stared at them. They were no longer trembling.

'Screw up your courage and resolve, Taita of Gallala,' he whispered.

'The skirmishing is over. The battle royal is about to begin.'

He left the forest and made his way back to the library to retrieve Dr Rei's scroll. He knew he must read and remember every detail. He must know how they desecrated the bodies of the little ones to create the vile seedings. He must make sure that the sacrifice of the infants was never forgotten. He went to the worktable where he had left the scroll, but it was gone.

By the time he reached his own rooms in the sanatorium the sun had gone behind the crater wall. The servants had lit oil lamps, and the bowl that contained his evening meal was warming over the glowing charcoal in the copper brazier. After he had eaten sparingly, then brewed and drunk a bowl of the coffee grown by Dr Assem, he settled himself cross-legged on the sleeping mat and composed himself for meditation. This was his nightly routine, and the watcher at the hidden peep-hole would find nothing unusual in it.

At last he doused the oil lamp and the room was plunged into darkness. Within a short time the aura of the man behind the peep-hole faded as he left his station for the night. Taita waited a little longer, then relit the lamp, but turned down the wick until it was only a soft glow.

He held the Periapt in his cupped hands and concentrated on the mental image of Lostris, who had become Fenn. He opened the locket and took out the locks of her hair, the old and the new. His love for her was the central redoubt upon which his defences against Eos hinged. Holding the curls to his lips he affirmed that love.

'Shield me, my love,' he prayed. 'Give me strength.' He felt the power that flowed from the soft hair warm his soul, then laid it back in the locket, and took out the fragment of red stone they had removed from Meren's eye. He placed it in the palm of his hand and concentrated upon it.

'It is cold and hard,' he whispered, 'as is my hatred of Eos.' Love was the shield, hatred the sword. He affirmed both. Then he placed the stone in the locket with the hair and hung the Periapt round his neck. He blew out the lamp and lay down, but sleep would not come.

Disjointed memories of Fenn haunted him. He remembered her laughing and crying. He remembered her smiling and teasing. He remembered her serious expression as she studied some problem he had set for her. He remembered her body lying warm and soft beside him in the night, the gentle sigh of her breathing and the beat of her heart against his.

I must see her once more. It may be the last time. He sat up on his mat. I dare not cast for her, but I can overlook her. These two astral manoeuvres were similar but in essence very different. To cast was to shout to her across the ether, when an unwelcome listener might detect the disturbance. To overlook was to spy upon her secretly, like the watcher at the peep-hole. Only a savant and seer, like Eos, might be able

to detect it, as he had detected the watcher. However, he had refrained from any astral activity for so long now that the witch might no longer be on the alert.'

I must see Fenn. I must take the chance.

He held the Periapt in his right hand. The locks of hair were part of Fenn and would guide him to her. He pressed the Periapt to his forehead and closed his eyes. He began to rock from side to side. The locket in his right hand seemed to take on some strange life of its own. Taita felt it pulsing softly in rhythm to his own heartbeat. He opened his mind and let the currents of existence enter freely, swirling round him like a great river. His spirit broke free of his body and he soared aloft as though he were borne on the wings of a gigantic bird. Far below, he saw fleeting, confused images of the forests and plains. He saw what looked like an army on the march, but as he drew closer he saw it was a slow-moving column of refugees, hundreds of men, women and children trudging along a dusty road, or packed into cumbersome ox-carts. There were soldiers with them, and men on horseback. But Fenn was not among the multitude.

He moved on, his spirit soul ranging wide, holding the amulet as his lodestone, searching until the tiny cluster of buildings at Mutangi appeared in the distance ahead. As he drew closer, he realized with mounting alarm that the village was in ruins, blackened and charred.

The astral memory of a massacre hung like fog over the village. He sifted through the traces but, with surging relief, found that neither Fenn nor any others of his band were among the dead. They must have escaped from Mutangi before it had been destroyed.

He let his spirit soul range wider until he detected a pale glimmer of her presence in the foothills of the Mountains of the Moon, far to the west of the village. He followed the gleam and at last hovered above a narrow valley, hidden in the forests that covered the lower slopes of the mountains.

She is down there. He searched closer until he discovered a picket of horses. Windsmoke was among them, and so was Whirlwind. Just beyond the horses, firelight glowed from the narrow entrance to a cave. Nakonto sat above the entrance with Imbali beside him. Taita allowed his spirit soul to drift inside.

There she is. He picked out the form of Fenn stretched on a sleeping mat beside the small fire. Sidudu lay on one side of her, Meren beside Sidudu, then Hilto. Taita was so close to Fenn that he could hear her breathing. He saw that she had laid out her weapons close at hand. All

354

I

the other members of the small party were also fully armed. Fenn was lying on her back. She wore only a linen loincloth and was bare to the waist. He gazed upon her tenderly. Since last he had seen her, her body had become even more womanly. Her breasts were larger and rounder, the nipples still tiny, but alert and darker pink now. The last vestiges of puppy fat had melted from her belly. The hollows and swells of her flesh were shadowed and highlighted by the low flames of the fire. In repose her countenance was lovely beyond his fondest memories. Taita realized with astonishment that she must now be at least sixteen. The years he had spent with her had passed so quickly.

The pattern of her breathing changed and slowly she opened her eyes.

They were green in the glow from the hearth fire but darkened as she sensed his presence. She raised herself on one elbow, and he could feel her making ready to cast for him. They were close to the Cloud Gardens.

He must stop her before she betrayed her position to the hostile thing up there on the mountain. He let his spirit sign appear in the air before her eyes. She started up as she realized he was watching her. She stared directly at the sign and he commanded her to remain silent. She smiled and nodded.

She formed her own spirit sign in reply to his, the delicate tracing of the water-lily bloom entwined with his falcon in a lover's embrace. He stayed with her a moment more. The contact had been fleeting, but to tarry longer might be deadly. He placed a single last message in her mind: 'I will return to you soon, very soon.' Then he began to withdraw.

She felt him going and the smile died on her lips. She held out a hand as if to hold him back, but he dared not stay.

With a start he jerked back into his own body, and found himself sitting cross-legged on the sleeping mat in his room at the Cloud Gardens. The sorrow of parting from her, after so brief a contact, was a heavy weight on him.

Over the months that followed he wrestled with his new flesh.

Because he had always been a horseman, he treated it as if it were an unbroken colt, bending it to his will by force and persuasion. Since his youth he had made many more arduous demands upon his body than the one he was making now. He schooled and disciplined himself mercilessly. First he practised breathing techniques, which gave him extraordinary stamina and powers of concentration.

Then he was ready to master his newly grown parts. Within a short time he was able, without manual stimulation, to remain fully tumescent from dusk to dawn. He schooled himself until he was able to withhold his seed indefinitely or to spend it at the precise moment of his choosing.

Demeter had described what he had experienced when Eos had had him in her power and their 'infernal coupling'. Taita knew that he would soon be the victim of her carnal invasion, and if he were to survive he must learn to resist. All his preparations for the struggle seemed futile.

He was matching himself against one of the most voracious predators of the ages, yet he was a virgin.

I need a woman to help me arm myself, he decided. Preferably one who is vastly experienced.

Since their first meeting, he had seen Dr Lusulu on more than one occasion in the library. Like him, she seemed to spend much of her spare time in study. They had exchanged brief salutations, but although she seemed ready to take their friendship further, he had not encouraged it.

Now he looked out for her and one morning he came across her, sitting at a worktable in one of the library rooms.

'The peace of the goddess upon you,' he greeted her quietly. He had heard Hannah and Rei use the same phrase. Lusulu looked up and smiled warmly. Her aura flared with fiery zigzag lines, her colour rose and her eyes glowed. When she was aroused, she was a handsome woman.

'Peace on you, my lord,' she replied. 'I am much taken by the new cut of your beard. It suits you most admirably.' They spoke for a few minutes, then Taita took his leave and went to his own table. He did not look in her direction again until much later when he heard her roll the scrolls she was studying and stand up. Her sandals slapped lightly on the stone floor as she crossed the room. Now he glanced up and their eyes met.

She inclined her head towards the door and smiled again. He followed her out into the forest. She was walking away slowly along the path towards the sanatorium. He caught her up before she had gone another hundred yards. They chatted together, and at last she asked, 'I often wonder about your recovery from the procedure that Dr Hannah performed on you. Has it gone as well as it started off?'

'Indeed, yes,' he assured her. 'Do you recall that you discussed with Dr Hannah my ability to ejaculate?'

He saw her aura light when he used the evocative word, and her voice was slightly hoarse as she replied, 'Yes.'

'Well, I can assure you that it is now happening regularly. As a surgeon

and a scientist, you might have some professional interest in a demonstration.'

They kept up the pretence of being colleagues until they entered his rooms. He took a moment to cover the peep-hole in the corner with his cloak, then came back to where she stood.

'I will need your assistance once again,' he said, as he took off his tunic.

'Of course,' she agreed, and came to him readily. She reached down for him and, after a few deft strokes, she said, 'You have grown a great deal since our first meeting.' Then, a little later, she asked, 'My lord, may I ask if you have ever known a woman before?'

'Alas!' He shook his head mournfully. 'I would not know how to begin.'

'Then let me instruct you.'

Naked she was even more handsome than when she was clothed. She had wide hips, large resilient breasts and big dark nipples. When she lay on her back on his sleeping mat, spread her thighs and guided him into her he was taken off-guard by the heat and the clinging oleaginous embrace of her secret flesh. He came perilously close to spending himself before they had begun in earnest. With a huge effort he regained control of himself and his body. Now he was able to profit from all his practice and self-training. He blocked out his own sensations and concentrated on reading her aura in the way a mariner reads a chart of the oceans.

He used it to divine her needs and wants before she became aware of them. He made her cry out and whimper. He made her screech like a condemned woman on a torture table. She spasmed and her whole body convulsed. She pleaded with him to stop, then begged him never to stop.

'You are killing me,' she sobbed at last. 'In the holy name of the goddess, I can go on no longer.' But he went on and on.

She was weakening, unable to meet his thrusts. Her face was wet with tears and sweat. Dark shadows of fear fell across her eyes. 'You are a devil,' she whispered. 'You are the devil himself.'

'I am the devil that you, Hannah and others like you have created.'

She was ready at last. There was no resistance left in her. He held her down, pinning her deeply. Her body and mind were open to him.

He covered her mouth with his, forcing her lips open, then arched his back and, like a pearl diver taking a long last breath before plunging below the surface, he drew it all out, her strength, her wisdom and her knowledge, her triumphs and defeats, her fear and her deeply buried guilt. He took everything she had and left her empty on the mat. Her

breathing was quick and shallow, her skin pale and translucent as wax.

Her eyes stared ahead unblinking, but saw nothing. He sat beside her through the rest of that night, reading her memories, learning her secrets, truly coming to know her.

The dawn light was filtering into the room when at last she stirred and rolled her head from side to side. 'Who am I?' she whispered weakly.

'Where am I? What has happened to me? I can remember nothing.'

'You are a person named Lusulu, but you have wrought great evil in your life. You were tormented by guilt. I have taken it and all else from you. But there is nothing of yours that I wish to keep. I am giving it back to you, especially the guilt. In the end it will kill you, and you so richly deserve that death.'

As he spread her again and knelt over her, she tried to fight him off but she did not have the strength. As he entered her for the second time she screamed, but the scream burbled in her throat and did not reach her lips. When he was deep in her, he took another deep breath and strained.

He expelled it all back into her in a single long ejaculation. After he had finished, he uncoupled from her and went to bathe himself.

When he came back into the sleeping chamber she was pulling on her tunic. She gave him one look of stark terror, and he saw that her aura was shredded. She stumbled to the door, pulled it open and scuttled into the passage. The sound of her running feet receded.

He felt the first twinge of pity for her, but he recalled all her heinous crimes and it fell away. Then he thought: But she has made retribution in small part by teaching me how I must deal with her mistress, the great witch.

Day after day and week after week, he waited patiently for the invitation from Eos that he knew must come. Then, one morning, he awoke with the familiar sense of well-being and expectation.

'The witch is summoning me to her lair,' he told himself. On the terrace overlooking the lake he ate a frugal breakfast of dates and figs as he watched the sun break through the morning mist and clothe the walls of the crater with golden light. Apart from the servants he saw nobody: not Hannah, Rei, or Assem. He was relieved by this: he did not trust himself to come face to face with one of them so soon after the revelations contained in the scroll from the secret room. Nobody

accosted him or attempted to restrain him when he left the building and set out for the gates of the upper gardens.

He walked slowly, taking his time to assemble and review his forces.

The only reliable intelligence he had about Eos was the description Demeter had given him. He was able to run over it word for word as he walked. So complete were his powers of recall that it was as if the old man was speaking to him again.

If she is threatened she can change her appearance as a chameleon does, Demeter's voice said in his ears, and Taita remembered the manifestations he had encountered at the grotto: the imp, the pharaoh, the gods and goddesses and his own self.

Yet vanity is among her multitudinous vices. You cannot imagine the beauty she is able to assume. It stuns the senses and negates reason. When she takes on this aspect no man can resist her wiles. The sight of her reduces even the most noble soul to the level of a beast. Taita cast his mind back to his sighting of Eos in the operating room at the sanatorium. He had not glimpsed her face through the black veil, but such was her beauty that even unseen it had flooded the room.

Despite all my training as an adept I was not able to restrain my basest instincts. Demeter spoke again, and Taita hearkened to him. I lost the ability and the inclination to reckon consequences. For me, in that moment, nothing but her existed. I was consumed by lust. She toyed with me, like the winds of autumn with a dead leaf. To me it seemed she gave me everything, every delight contained in this world. She gave me her body. Taita heard again his tormented groans as he went on: Even now the memory drives me to the brink of madness. Each rise and swell, enchanted opening and fragrant cleft . . . I did not try to resist her, for no mortal man could do so.

Will I be able to do so? Taita wondered.

Then Demeter's most dire warning echoed in his head: Taita, you remarked that the original Eos was an insatiable nymphomaniac, and that is so, but this other Eos outstrips her in appetite. When she kisses, she sucks out the vital juices of her lover, as you or I might suck out the juices from a ripe orange. When she takes a man between her thighs in that exquisite but infernal coupling she draws out of him his very substance. She takes from him his soul.

His substance is the ambrosia that nourishes her. She is as some monstrous vampire that feeds on human blood. She chooses only superior beings as her victims, men and women of Good Mind, servants of the Truth, a magus of illustrious reputation or a gifted seer. Once she detects her victim, she runs him down as relentlessly as a wolf harries a deer.

As she has done to me. Taita reflected.'

She is omnivorous. Those were the words of Demeter who had known her as no living man ever could. No matter age or appearance, physical frailty or imperfection. It is not their flesh that feeds her appetites, but their souk. She devours young and old, men and women. Once she has them in her thrall, wrapped in her silken web, she draws from them their accumulated store of learning, wisdom and experience. She sucks it out through their mouths with her accursed kisses. She draws it out from their loins in her loathsome embrace.

She leaves only a desiccated husk.

The witch's minions, Hannah, Rei and Assem, had regenerated Taita's missing organs for one reason only; to enable Eos to destroy him, body, mind and soul. He crushed down the terror that threatened to rise like a tidal wave and sweep him away.

I am ready for her, as ready as 1 can ever be. But will that be enough?

The gates to the gardens were wide open, but as he stood in front of them a hush fell over the crater. The soft wind died away. A pair of bulbul shrikes that had been calling a duet to each other fell silent. The high branches of the trees froze and remained as motionless as a painting against the blue canopy of the sky. For a moment longer he listened to the silence, then he stepped through the gates.

The earth moved under his feet. It trembled, the branches of the trees quivering in sympathy. The tremble became a harsh juddering. He heard rock groan under his feet. A section of the crater wall split away and fell with a roar into the forest below. The earth tipped under him like the_ deck of a ship caught in a gale. He almost lost his balance and reached1 out to grab one of the gate's bars to prevent himself being cast down.

The wind rose again, but it came from the direction of the imp's grotto.

It swept over the tops of the trees and swirled round him in a vortex of dead leaves. It was as cold as the hand of a corpse.

Eos is trying to intimidate me. She is the mistress of the volcanoes.

She commands the earthquakes and the lava rivers that flow up from hell. She is showing me how puny I am in the face of her might, he thought. Then he shouted aloud, 'Hear me, Eos! I accept your challenge.'

The trembling of the earth ceased, and once again the mysterious hush fell over the crater. Now the pathway lay clear and inviting before him. When at last he passed through the gap between the tall boulders he heard ahead the chortling of the waters that flowed out of the grotto.

He pushed his way through the screen of greenery and stepped into the clearing beside the pool. All was as he remembered it. He took his

customary seat on the grass with his back to the fallen tree-trunk, and waited.

The first warning he received of her approach was an icy breeze that tickled the back of his neck, and he felt the hair rise on his forearms. He watched the opening of the grotto and saw a fine silver mist billow from it. Then a dark figure appeared through the mist, coming down the lichen covered ledges towards him with stately grace. It was the veiled woman he had last seen in Hannah's rooms, dressed in the same voluminous, translucent robe of black silk.

Eos stepped out of the silver mist, and he saw that her feet were bare.

Her toes peeped out from under the hem of her robe, the the only part of her that was visible. They were wet and shining from the spring water that spilled over them, small and perfectly shaped, as though carved by a great artist from creamy ivory. Her toenails were pearly bright. Those feet were the only part of her body he had ever laid eyes on, and they were exquisitely erotic. He could not tear his gaze from them. He felt his manhood swell, and stilled it with an effort.

If she can affect me thus with a glimpse of her toes, what chance have I of resisting her if she reveals the rest of herself?

At last he was able to lift his eyes. He tried to see beyond her veil but it was impenetrable. Then he felt the touch of her regard as though a butterfly had landed upon his skin. She spoke, and he caught his breath.

He had never heard a sound to match the music of her voice. It was as silvery as the chiming of crystal bells. It shivered the foundations of his soul.

'I have waited through the aeons for you to come to me,' said Eos, and although he knew that she embodied the great Lie, he could not help but believe her.

Fenn and Meren had kept Sidudu hidden for many long months after Taita had been taken away by Captain Onka to the Cloud Gardens. At first she had been so enfeebled by her ordeal that she was confused and distraught. Meren and Fenn were gentle and soon she became pathetically reliant upon them. One or other had to stay with her at all times. Slowly she rallied and her confidence began to return. At last she was able to describe her experiences and to tell them of the Temple of Love.

'It is dedicated to the one true goddess,' she explained. 'All the temple virgins are chosen from the incomers, never the noble families. Each arriving family must offer up one of their daughters, and it brings great honour and privilege on those whose daughters are chosen. All the people in our village held a festival of praise to the goddess and dressed me in the finest robes, placed a crown of flowers on my head and took me to the temple. My father and mother went with me, laughing and weeping with joy. They gave me to the mother superior and left me there. I never saw them again.'

'Who chose you for the service of the goddess?' Fenn asked her.

'They told us it was the oligarchs,' she replied.

'Tell us about the Temple of Love,' Meren said. She was silent for a while as she thought about it. Then she went on, speaking softly and hesitantly: 'It was very beautiful. There were many other girls when first I arrived. The priestesses were kind to us. We were given lovely clothes and delicious food. They explained that when we had proved ourselves to be worthy we would go up into the mountain of the goddess and be exalted by her.'

'You were happy?' Fenn asked.

'At first I was. Of course I missed my mother and father, but each morning they gave us a delicious sherbet to drink that filled us with joy and high spirits. We laughed, sang and danced.'

'Then what happened?' Meren asked.

She turned away her face and spoke so softly that he could hardly hear her. 'The men came to visit us. We thought they were to be our friends.

We danced with them.' Sidudu began to weep silently. 'I am ashamed to tell you more.'

They were silent, and Fenn took her hand. 'We are your true friends, Sidudu,' she said. 'You can speak to us. You can tell us everything.'

The girl let out a heart-wrenching sob and threw her arms round Fenn's neck. 'The priestesses ordered us to have congress with the men who visited us.'

'Which men were they?' Meren asked grimly.

'The first was Lord Aquer. He was horrible. After him there were others, many others, then Onka.'

'You need tell us no more.' Fenn stroked her hair.

'Yes! I must! The memory is a fire inside me. I cannot keep it from you.'

Sidudu took a deep, shuddering breath. 'Once a month a woman doctor named Hannah came to examine us. On each occasion she chose one or more of the girls. They were taken away to the mountain to be exalted by

the goddess. They never returned to the temple.' She stopped speaking again, and Fenn passed her a square of linen on which to blow her nose.

When she had finished, Sidudu folded the cloth carefully and went on: 'One of the other girls became my dearest friend. Her name was Litane.

She was very gentle and lovely, but she missed her mother and hated what we had to do with the men. One night she ran away from the temple. She told me she was going and I tried to stop her, but she was determined. The next morning the priestesses laid her dead body on the altar. As a caution, they made each of us walk past it. They told us that the trogs had caught her in the forest. Lying on the altar, Litane was no longer lovely.'

They let her cry for a while, and then Meren said, 'Tell us about Onka.'

'Onka is a nobleman. Lord Aquer is his uncle. He is also Aquer's chief spy-master. For all these reasons, he has special privileges. He was taken with me. Because of his position he was allowed to see me more than once. Then they allowed him to take me away from the temple to live with him as his house slave. I was a reward for the services he had performed for the state. When he was drunk he beat me. It gave him pleasure to hurt me. It made his eyes sparkle and he smiled when he was doing it. One day while Onka was away on military duty a woman came secretly to see me. She told me that she worked in a great library in the Cloud Gardens. She told me what happened to the girls from the temple who were taken up into the mountain. They were not exalted by the goddess. Their babies were cut from their wombs before they were born and given as food to the goddess. That is why the goddess is known secretly as the Devourer of Infants.'

'What happened to the girls who bore the infants?'

'They disappeared,' Sidudu said simply. She sobbed again. 'I loved some of those girls who have gone. There are others in the temple whom I also love. They, too, will go up the mountain when there is a baby inside them.'

'Calm yourself, Sidudu,' Fenn whispered. 'This is all too dreadful to be told.'

'No, Fenn, let the poor girl speak,' Meren intervened. 'What she says fires me with rage. The Jarrians are monsters. My anger arms me against them.'

'So you will help me to save my friends, Meren?' Sidudu looked at him with more than trust in her large dark eyes.

'I will do whatever you ask of me,' he answered at once. 'But tell me more of Onka. He will be the first to know my vengeance.'

'I thought he would protect me. I thought that if I stayed with him I would never be sent to the mountain. But one day, not long ago, Dr Hannah came to examine me. I was not expecting her, but I knew what her visit meant. When she had finished she said nothing, but I saw her look at Onka and nod. It was enough. I knew then that when the baby inside me grew larger I would be taken up the mountain. A few days later I had another visitor. She came to see me in secret while Onka was with Colonel That at Tamafupa. She was the wife of Bilto.

She asked me to work with the incomers who were planning an escape from Jarri. I agreed, of course, and when they asked me to do so I gave a potion to Onka that made him sick. After that Onka suspected me. He treated me even more cruelly, and I knew that soon he would send me back to the temple. Then I heard that the magus was in Mutangi. I thought he would be able to take away Onka's baby, and I decided to risk everything to find him. I ran away, but the trogs came after me. That is when you rescued me.'

'It is a terrible story,' Fenn said. 'You have suffered much.'

'Yes, but not as much as the girls who are still in the temple,' Sidudu reminded them.

'We will rescue them,' Meren blurted out impulsively. 'When we escape from Jarri those girls will go with us, I swear it!'

'Oh, Meren, you are so brave and noble.'

Thereafter Sidudu made a swift recovery. She and Fenn grew closer each day. All the others liked her, Hilto, Nakonto and Imbali, but Meren more so than all the rest. With the help of Bilto and the other villagers of Mutangi, they were able to escape from the house during the day and spend time in the forest. Meren and Hilto continued to train Fenn in archery, and soon they invited Sidudu to join in. Meren made her a bow, which he matched carefully to her strength and the span of her arms. Although small and slim, Sidudu was surprisingly strong, and showed a natural aptitude with the bow. Meren set up a target for them in a clearing in the woods, and the girls shot against each other in friendly rivalry.

'Pretend that the mark is Onka's head,' Fenn told her, and after that Sidudu seldom missed. Her arms strengthened and developed so swiftly that soon Meren had to build her another bow with a heavier draw

weight. After much devoted practice she was able to send out an arrow to the mark at two hundred paces.

Meren, Hilto and Nakonto were all inveterate gamblers and laid wagers on the girls when they shot against each other. They urged on their favourite, and haggled over the allowances given to Sidudu. Because Fenn had been using the bow for so much longer than Sidudu, they made her shoot from longer range. At first this was agreed at fifty paces, but gradually it became shorter as Sidudu's skill increased.

One morning they were holding another tournament in the clearing, Meren and Sidudu teamed against Hilto and Fenn. The competition was keen and the banter raucous when out from among the trees rode a stranger on an unfamiliar horse. He was dressed like a field worker, but he rode like a warrior. At a quiet word from Meren they nocked fresh arrows and stood ready to defend themselves. When the stranger saw their intention he reined in his mount and pulled aside the headcloth that covered his face.

'By Seth's dung-smeared buttocks!' Meren exclaimed. 'It's That.' He hurried forward to greet him. 'Colonel, something is amiss. What is it?

Tell me at once.'

'I am pleased to have found you,' That told him. 'I have come to warn you that we are in great danger. The oligarchs have issued a summons for all of us to appear before them. Onka and his men are hunting for us everywhere. At this very moment they are searching every house in Mutangi.'

'What does this mean?' Meren asked.

'Only one thing,' That told him morosely. 'We have come under suspicion. I believe Onka has denounced me as a traitor. Which, of course, by Jarrian standards, I am. He found the bodies of the trogs you killed when you rescued Sidudu, which infuriated him because now he is certain that you are hiding her.'

'What proof has he?'

'He needs none. He is closely related to Lord Aquer. His word is enough to condemn us all,' That replied. 'The judgement of the oligarchs is certain. We will be interrogated under torture. If we survive that, we will be sent to the quarries or the mines … or worse.'

'So now we are all fugitives.' Meren did not seem worried by the prospect. 'At least the pretence is over.'

'Yes,' That agreed. 'We are outlaws. You cannot return to Mutangi.'

'Of course not,' Meren said. 'There is nothing there that we need. We

have the horses and our weapons. We must take to the forests. While we wait for Taita to return from the Cloud Gardens we will make the final preparations for our flight from this accursed place back to our very Egypt.'

'We must leave at once,' That concurred. 'We are much too close to Mutangi. There are many places in the remote hills where we can hide. If we keep moving, Onka will be hard put to catch up with us.' They mounted and rode eastwards. By late afternoon they had covered twenty leagues. As they climbed into the foothills of the range of mountains below the Kitangule Gap a herd of large grey antelope with long spiral horns and huge ears broke cover and ran across their front. Immediately they unslung their bows and gave chase. Fenn, on Whirlwind, was the first to catch up with them and her arrow brought down a fat, hornless female.

'Enough!' Meren cried. 'There is plenty of meat on it to last us for days.' They allowed the rest of the herd to escape and dismounted to butcher the carcass. As the sun set, Sidudu led them to a stream of clear sweet water. They bivouacked beside it and grilled antelope chops over embers for dinner.

As they gnawed the bones, That reported to Meren on the most recent disposition of the forces loyal to the rebel cause. 'My own regiment is the Red Standard, and all the officers and men will come over to us when I call them to arms. I can also rely on two divisions of the Yellow Standard, which is commanded by my colleague Colonel Sangat. He is one of us. Then there are three divisions of troops who are responsible for guarding the prisoners and captives working in the stopes of the mines. They have had first-hand experience of the brutality and inhumanity with which the captives are treated. They await my orders.

As soon as we begin the struggle they will release their charges, arm them and bring them by forced march to join us.' They went on to discuss the mustering point, and eventually decided that each unit must make independently for the Kitangule Gap, where they would all come together.

'What force will the Jarrians be able to deploy against us?' Meren asked.

'Although they will outnumber us ten to one, it will take the oligarchs many days to muster their troops and march against us. As long as we can achieve initial surprise and a head start on the pursuit our forces will be of sufficient strength to fight a rearguard action as far as the boatyards at the head of the Kitangule river. When we get there we will seize the

craft we need. Once we are on the river it will be an easy run downstream to the great Nalubaale lake.' He paused and looked shrewdly at Meren.

'We can be ready to leave within ten days.'

'We cannot leave without the Magus Taita,' Meren said quickly.

'Taita is one man,' That pointed out. 'Hundreds of our own people are in danger.'

'You will not succeed without him,' Meren said. 'Without his powers you and all your people will be doomed.'

That thought about it, frowning morosely and pulling at a strand of his bristling beard. Then he seemed to reach a decision. 'We cannot wait for him for ever. What if he is already dead? I cannot take the risk.'

'Colonel ThatI' Fenn burst out. 'Will you wait for Taita until the rise of the harvest moon?'

That stared at her, then nodded curtly.' But no longer. If the magus does not come down from the mountain before then, we can be sure he never will.'

'Thank you, Colonel. I admire your courage and good sense.' Fenn smiled sweetly at him. He mumbled with embarrassment and looked into the flames. She went on remorselessly, 'Do you know about the girls in the Temple of Love, Colonel?'

'Of course I know there are temple maidens, but what of it?'

Fenn turned to Sidudu. 'Tell him what you told us.'

That listened with mounting horror to Sidudu's account. By the time she had finished, his expression was bleak. 'I had no inkling that atrocities such as these were being perpetrated on our young women. Of course I knew that some of the girls were being taken to the Cloud Gardens.

Indeed, I escorted some, but they went willingly. I had no idea that they were being sacrificed to the goddess, or that cannibal rites were being conducted on the mountain.'

'Colonel, we have to take them with us. We cannot leave them to the Jarrians,' Meren broke in. 'I have already sworn an oath that I will do everything in my power to set them free and take them with us when we escape from Jarri.'

'Here and now I make that same oath,' That growled. 'I swear in the name of all the gods that I will not leave this land until we have freed those young women.'

'If we must wait until the harvest moon how many more will be sent up the mountain before then?' Fenn asked.

The men were silenced by her question.

'If we act too soon, we will lose the element of surprise. The Jarrians will immediately unleash all their forces upon us. What do you propose, Fenn?' It was That who had spoken.' ¦ 'Only the girls with child are sent up the mountain,' Fenn pointed out.

'From my own observation I know that is true,' That admitted. 'But how does that help us? We cannot prevent them conceiving if they are being treated as playthings by many men.'

'Perhaps we cannot prevent it, as you say, but we can halt the growth of an infant.'

'How?' Meren demanded.

'As Taita did for Sidudu, with a potion that induces miscarriage.' The men thought about what Fenn had said, until Meren spoke again.

'Taita's medical bag is in the house at Mutangi. We cannot return to fetch it.'

'I know which herbs he used to make the potion. I helped him gather them.'

'How will you get these medicines to the women?' That asked. 'They are guarded by trogs.'

'Sidudu and I will take them to the temple and explain to the girls how to use them.'

'But the trogs and the priestesses - how will you avoid them?'

'In the same way that we hid Sidudu from Onka,' Fenn replied.

'A spell of concealment!' Meren exclaimed.

'I don't understand,' That said. 'What are you talking about?'

'Fenn is the magus's initiate,' Meren explained. 'He has taught her some of the esoteric arts and she is far advanced in these skills. She is able to hide herself and others behind a cloak of invisibility.'

'I don't believe it is possible,' That declared.

'Then I will demonstrate it to you,' Fenn told him. 'Please leave the fire and wait beyond that clump of trees until Meren calls you back.' Frowning and grumbling, That stood up and strode into the darkness. Within minutes Meren hailed him and That returned to find him alone.

'Very well, Colonel Cambyses. Where are they?' That growled.

'Within ten paces of you,' Meren told him. That grunted and walked slowly round the fire, peering left and right until he came back to where he had started from.

'Nothing,' he said. 'Now tell me where they are hiding.'

'Directly in front of you.' Meren pointed.

That stared hard, then shook his head. 'I see nothing—' he began, then reeled back and let out a shout of astonishment. 'Osiris and Horus, this is witchcraft!' The two girls sat exactly where he had last seen them.

They were holding hands and smiling at him.

'Yes, Colonel, but only a small act. The trogs will be much easier to deceive than you were,' Fenn told him, 'for they are brutes of limited intelligence, while you are a trained warrior with a superior mind.' That was disarmed by the compliment.

She really is a witch. That is no match for her. Meren smiled inwardly. If she set her mind to it, she could make him stand on his head and whistle through his arse.

They could not approach the Temple of Love too closely on horseback. Unlike Taita, Fenn's skills were not sufficient to conceal a large party of horses and men. They left the horses with Meren and Nakonto, hidden in a dense stand of trees, and the two girls went forward alone on foot. Sidudu was carrying four small linen bags of herbs tied round her waist under her skirt.

They climbed up through the forest until they reached a crest of higher ground and could look down into the valley beyond. The temple stood at the far end. It was built of yellow sandstone, a large, gracious building, surrounded by lawns and pools of water on which floated the leaves of a gigantic water-lily. There was the faint sound of revelry, and they saw a gathering of women on the bank of the largest pool. Some were sitting in a circle, singing and clapping, while others danced to the music.

'We did that every day at this time,' Sidudu whispered. 'They are waiting for the men to visit them.'

'Do you recognize any of them?' Fenn asked.

'I am not sure. We are too far away for me to tell.' Sidudu shaded her eyes. 'Wait! The girl on her own at this side of the pool - do you see her? That is my friend Jinga.'

Fenn studied a willowy girl who was walking along the bank of the pool. She was dressed in a short chiton. Her arms and long legs were bare, and there were yellow flowers in her hair. 'How reliable is she?'

Fenn asked.

'She is a little older than most of the others, the most sensible of them all. They look up to her.'

'We will go down to speak to her,' Fenn said, but Sidudu seized her arm.: 'Look!' she said, her voice shaking. Just below where they crouched on the ridge a file of shaggy black shapes emerged from the trees. They lolloped along on all fours, knuckling the ground with their hands.

'Trogs!'

The great apes were circling the periphery of the temple grounds, but keeping out of sight of the women on the lawns. Every few paces one sniffed at the ground with dilated nostrils, searching for the scent of strangers or runaways from the temple.

'Can you mask our scent?' Sidudu asked. 'The trogs have a keen sense of smell.'

'No,' Fenn admitted. 'We must let them pass before we go down to the girls.' The trogs were moving rapidly and disappeared back among the trees.

'Now!' said Fenn. 'Quickly!' She reached for Sidudu's hand. 'Remember, don't speak, and don't run or break contact with me. Move slowly and carefully.'

Fenn cast the spell over them, then led Sidudu down the slope.

Sidudu's friend, Jinga, was still alone, sitting under a willow tree, throwing crumbs of dhurra cake to a shoal of fish in the water below her. The pair knelt beside her and softly Fenn lifted the spell of concealment from Sidudu. She herself remained cloaked so that Jinga was not startled by a strange face. The girl was so preoccupied with the swirling fish that, for a while, she was not aware of Sidudu. Then she started and half rose to her feet.

Sidudu restrained her with a hand on her arm. 'Jinga, don't be afraid.'

The girl stared at her, then smiled. 'I didn't see you, Sidudu. Where have you been? I missed you so much. You have grown even more beautiful.'

'You also, Jinga.' Sidudu kissed her. 'But we have little time to talk.

There is so much I must tell you.' She studied the girl's face and, with dismay, saw that the pupils of her eyes were dilated from a potion she had been given. 'You must listen carefully to what I say.' Sidudu spoke slowly as though to a very young child.

Jinga's eyes focused more clearly as she began to understand the enormity of what Sidudu was telling her. At last she whispered, 'They are murdering our sisters? It cannot be true.'

'It is, Jinga, you must believe me. But there is something we can do to prevent it.' Quickly she explained about the herbs, how to prepare and

administer them. 'They only take the girls who are with child up the mountain. The medicine brought down my infant. You must give it to anyone who is in danger.' Sidudu lifted her skirt and untied the bags of herbs from round her waist. 'Hide these well. Don't let the priestesses find them. As soon as Dr Hannah chooses a girl to go up the mountain to be exalted by the goddess, you must give her a potion. This is all that can save them.'

'I have already been chosen,' Jinga whispered. 'The doctor came four days ago and told me I was soon to meet the goddess.'

'Oh, my poor Jinga! Then you must take it this very night, as soon as you are alone,' Sidudu told her. She embraced her friend again. 'I cannot stay with you longer, but soon I will return with a band of good men to rescue you. We will take you and the others away to a new land where we will be safe. Warn them to be ready to leave.' She released Jinga.

'Hide the herbs well. They will save your life. Now go, and don't look back.'

As soon as Jinga had turned her back Fenn spread the cloak of concealment over Sidudu. Jinga had gone no more than twenty paces before she glanced over her shoulder. Her face paled as she saw that Sidudu had vanished. With a visible effort she braced herself and walked away across the lawns towards the temple.

Fenn and Sidudu started back through the forest. Half-way up the hill Fenn stepped off the path and stood perfectly still. She dared not speak, but squeezed Sidudu's hand firmly to caution her to keep the spell intact.

Barely breathing the two girls watched a pair of huge black trogs shamble down the path towards them. The apes were swinging their heads from side to side as they searched the bushes that flanked the track, their eyes moving quickly beneath beetling brows. The male was the larger of the pair, but the female following him seemed more alert and aggressive.

They drew level with the girls and, for a moment, it seemed they would pass by. Then the female stopped abruptly, lifted her snout, flaring the wide nostrils and snuffling noisily at the air. The male followed her example and both of them began to grunt softly but eagerly. The male gaped to display a vicious set of fangs, then gnashed them shut. They were so close that Fenn smelt the stench of his breath. She felt Sidudu's hand tremble in hers and squeezed her fingers again to encourage her.

Both trogs hopped forward cautiously towards where they stood, still testing the air. The female lowered her head and sniffed the ground over which the girls had passed. She shuffled towards them slowly, following their scent. Sidudu was shaking with terror and Fenn could sense the

panic rising in her to the point when it must boil over. She drew deeply upon her training and sent out waves of psychic strength to steady her, but by now the ape's questing snout was only inches from the toe of Sidudu's sandal. Sidudu urinated with terror. Her water ran down her legs and the trog grunted again as she smelt it. The ape gathered herself to spring forward, but at that moment a small antelope rustled the bushes as it fled, and the male trog let out a ferocious bellow and bounded away in pursuit. Immediately the female went after him, passing so close to Sidudu that she almost brushed against her. As the apes crashed away through the undergrowth, Sidudu sagged against Fenn and might have fallen to the ground if Fenn had not grabbed her. Holding her close, Fenn led her slowly up to the crest of the hill, taking care not to break the spell of concealment until they were out of sight of the temple. Then they ran to where Meren and Nakonto were waiting with the horses.

They never slept two nights in the same bivouac. Between them That and Sidudu knew all the back ways and hidden tracks through the forest, so they moved swiftly and secretly, avoiding well-travelled paths, covering much ground between one camp and the next.

They went from village to village, meeting local magistrates and headmen who were sympathizers. All were incomers, and most of the villagers were loyal to them. They provided food and safe houses for the fugitives. They kept watch for Jarrian patrols and warned of their approach.

In each village Meren and That held a war council.

'We are going back to our very Egypt!' they would tell the magistrates and headmen. 'Have your people ready to march on the night of the harvest moon.'

That would look round the circle of faces that glowed with elation and excitement in the firelight. He pointed to the chart he had unrolled and spread before him. 'This will be the route you must follow. Arm your menfolk with what weapons you have to hand. Your womenfolk must gather food, warm clothing and blankets for their families, but bring nothing that you cannot carry. It will be a long, hard march. Your first assembly point will be here.' He indicated the place on the chart. 'Move swiftly to it. There will be scouts waiting for you. They will have more weapons for your men, and they will guide you to the Kitangule Gap.

That will be the main mustering ground for all our people. Be discreet and circumspect. Tell only those you can trust of our plans. You know from bitter experience that the spies of the oligarchs are everywhere. Do not move before the appointed time, unless you receive direct orders from either Colonel Cambyses or me.' Before sunrise they rode on. The commanders of the outlying garrisons and military forts were almost solidly Tinat's men. They listened to his orders, made few suggestions and asked fewer questions. 'Send us the order to march. We will be ready,' they told him.

The three main mines were in the south-eastern foothills of the mountains. In the largest, thousands of slaves and prisoners toiled on the stopes, digging out the rich silver ore. The commander of the guards was one of Tinat's men. He was able to spirit That and Meren, dressed as labourers, into the slave barracoons and prison compounds. The inmates had organized themselves into secret cells and elected their leaders. That knew most of the leaders well: before their arrest and incarceration they had been his friends and comrades. They listened to his orders with joy.

'Wait for the harvest moon,' he told them. 'The guards are with us.

At the appointed time they will open the gates and set you free.'

The other mines were smaller. One produced copper and zinc, the alloy needed to turn copper into bronze. The smallest of all was the richest.

Here the slaves worked a thick seam of gold-bearing quartz, so rich that lumps of pure gold gleamed in the light of the miners' lamps.

'We have fifteen wagonloads of pure gold stored in the smelter,' the chief engineer told That.

'Leave it!' Meren ordered brusquely.

That nodded. 'Yes! Leave the gold.'

'But it is a vast treasure!' the engineer protested.

'Freedom is an even greater treasure,' Meren said. 'Leave the gold.

It will slow us down, and we can find better use for the wagons. They will carry the women, children and any men who are too frail or sick to walk.'

It was still twenty days short of the harvest moon when the oligarchs struck. Many thousands were already privy to the planned exodus so a bright flame was burning throughout Jarri. It was inevitable that the spies would pick up its smoke. The oligarchs sent Captain Onka with two hundred men to Mutangi, the village from which the rumours had emanated.

They surrounded it at night and captured all the inhabitants. Onka interrogated them one at a time in the village council hut. He used the lash and the branding iron. Although eight men died during the questioning, and many more were blinded and maimed, he learned little.

Then he started on the women. Bilto's youngest wife was the mother of twins, a girl and a boy aged four. When she resisted Onka's questions, he forced her to watch while he decapitated her son. Then he threw the boy's severed head at her feet, and picked up his sister by a handful of her curls. He dangled her screaming and wriggling before her mother's face. 'You know that I will not stop with just one of your brats,' he told the woman and pricked the little girl's cheek with his dagger. She shrieked afresh with pain, and the mother broke down. She told Onka everything she knew, and that was a great deal.

Onka ordered his men to drive all the villagers, including Bilto, his wife and their surviving daughter, into the thatched council hut. They barred the doors and windows, then set fire to the thatch. While the screams were still ringing from the burning building, Onka mounted and rode like a fury for the citadel to report to the oligarchs.

Two of the villagers had been hunting in the hills. From afar they witnessed the massacre and went to warn That and Meren that they had been betrayed. They ran all the way to where the band was hiding, a distance of almost twenty leagues.

That listened to what the two men told him, and did not hesitate.

'We cannot wait for the harvest moon. We must march at once.'

'Taita!' Fenn cried out, in agony of spirit. 'You promised to wait for him.'

'You know that I cannot,' That replied. 'Even Colonel Cambyses must agree that I dare not do so.'

Reluctantly Meren nodded. 'Colonel That is right. He cannot wait.

He must take the people and fly. Taita himself wanted it.'

'I will not go with you,' Fenn cried out. 'I will wait until Taita comes.'

'I will stay too,' Meren told her, 'but the others must leave at once.'

Sidudu reached for Fenn's hand. 'You and Meren are my friends. I will not go.'

'You are brave girls,' said That, 'but will you go again to the Temple of Love and bring out our young women?'

'Of course!' Fenn exclaimed.

'How many men will you need to go with you?' asked That.

'Ten will suffice,' Meren told him. 'We will also need spare horses for the temple girls. We will bring them to you at the first river crossing on the road to Kitangule. Then we will come back to wait for Taita.'

They rode for most of the night. Fenn and Sidudu led, but Meren followed close behind on Windsmoke. In the early light of dawn, before sunrise, they breasted the top of the hills and looked down on the Temple of Love, nestled in the valley below.

'What is the morning routine in the temple?' Fenn asked.

'Before sunrise the priestesses take the girls to the temple to pray to the goddess. After that they go to the refectory for breakfast.'

'So they should be in the temple now?' Meren asked.

'Almost certainly,' Sidudu affirmed.

'Whatofthetrogs?'

'I am not sure, but I think they will be patrolling the temple grounds and the woods.'

'Are any of the priestesses kind to the girls? Are there any good women among them?'

'None!' said Sidudu bitterly. 'They are all cruel and merciless. They treat us like caged animals. They force us to submit to the men who come, and some of the priestesses use us for their own foul pleasures.'

Fenn looked across at Meren. 'What shall we do with them?'

'We kill any who get in our way.'

They drew their swords and rode down in a tight group, making no attempt to conceal their approach. The trogs were nowhere to be seen, and Sidudu led them directly to the temple, which stood detached from the main building. They raced towards it and pulled up the horses in front of the wooden doors. Meren jumped down and tried the latch, but it was barred from the inside.

'On me!' he shouted to the men who followed him, and they formed up in phalanx. At his next order they lifted their shields and charged the door, which burst open. The girls were huddled on the floor of the nave

with four black-robed priestesses standing guard. One was a tall, middle aged woman with a hard, pockmarked face. She lifted the golden talisman she held in her right hand and pointed it at Meren.'

'Beware!' Sidudu shouted. 'That is Nongai and she is a powerful sorceress. She can blast you with her magic'

Fenn already had an arrow nocked to her bow and did not hesitate.

She drew and released it in a single fluid movement. The arrow hummed down the length of the nave and struck Nongai in the centre of her chest. The talisman spun out of her hand and she crumpled on to the stone floor. The other three priestesses scattered like a flock of crows.

Fenn shot two more arrows and brought down all but the last, who reached the small door behind the altar. As she wrenched it open Sidudu shot an arrow between her shoulder-blades. The woman slid down the wall leaving a trail of blood on the stonework. Most of the temple maidens were screaming. The others had pulled their chitons over their heads and were cowering in a terrified group.

'Speak to them, Sidudu,' Meren ordered. 'Quieten them.'

Sidudu ran to the girls, and pulled some to their feet.

'It's I, Sidudu. You have nothing to fear. These are good men, and they have come to save you.' She saw Jinga among them. 'Help me, Jinga! Help me bring them to their senses!'

'Take them out to the horses, and get them mounted,' Meren told Fenn. 'We can expect an attack from the trogs at any moment.'

They dragged the girls out through the doorway. Some were still weeping and wailing and had to be thrown up bodily on to the saddles.

Meren was ruthless with them, and Fenn slapped one across the face as she shouted at her: 'Get up, you foolish creature, or we will leave you to the trogs.'

At last they were all mounted, and Meren shouted, 'Forward at the gallop!' and touched Windsmoke's flanks with his heels. He had two girls up behind him, clinging to him and each other. Nakonto and Imbali hung on Fenn's stirrup ropes and she carried them along with her. Sidudu had Jinga behind her and one of the other girls seated in front. All the other horses carried at least three girls. Heavily laden, they galloped in a tight group back across the temple lawns, heading for the hills and the road to Kitangule.

As they entered the track through the forest, the trogs were waiting for them. Five of the huge apes had climbed into the trees and they dropped out of the branches on to the horses as they passed below. At

the same time other apes came bellowing and roaring out of the undergrowth. They leapt up at the riders or snapped with their powerful jaws at the legs of the horses.

Nakonto had a short stabbing spear in his right hand and killed three of the brutes with as many quick blows. Imbali's axe hissed and hummed through the air as she cut down two more. Meren and Hilto hacked and thrust with their swords, and the troopers who followed spurred their horses into the fight. But the trogs were fearless and single-minded and the fight was ferocious. Even when they were gravely wounded or dying the apes tried to drag themselves back into the fray. Two set upon Windsmoke and tried to savage her hindquarters. The grey mare aimed two mighty kicks. The first crushed the skull of one and the second caught the other under the jaw and snapped its neck cleanly.

One of the temple maidens was dragged down from behind Hilto's saddle and her throat was ripped out by a single bite before Hilto could smash in the brute's skull. By the time Nakonto had speared the last trog many of the horses had been bitten: one had been so gravely savaged that Imbali had to despatch it with an axe stroke through the crest of its skull.

They formed up again, rode out of the valley, and when they reached the fork in the track they turned eastwards towards the mountains and the Kitangule Gap. They rode through the night, and early the next morning they saw a dustcloud rising above the plain ahead of them.

Before noon they had caught up with the tail of a long dense column of refugees. That was riding with the rearguard, and as soon as he saw them coming he galloped back to meet them. 'Well met, Colonel Cambyses!'

he shouted. 'I see you have saved our girls.'

'Those who have survived,' Meren agreed, 'but they have had a hard time of it, and are near the end of their tether.'

'We will find places for them on the wagons,' That said. 'But what of you and your party? Will you come out of Jarri with us, or are you determined to go back to find the old magus?'

'You already know what our answer must be, Colonel That,' Fenn replied, before Meren could speak.

'Then I must bid you farewell. Thank you for your courage and for what you have done for us. I fear we might never meet again, but your friendship has done me great honour.'

'Colonel That, sir, you are the eternal optimist.' Fenn smiled at him.

'I warrant you shall not be rid of us that easily.' She pushed Whirlwind

up beside his mount and planted a kiss on his whiskery cheek. 'When we meet again in Egypt I shall kiss the other,' she told him, and turned Whirlwind back, leaving That staring after her in pleasurable confusion.

They were reduced to a tiny band now, only three women and three men. For once Nakonto and Imbali had chosen to ride rather than run, and each led a spare horse.

'Where are we going?' Fenn asked Meren, as she rode beside him.

'As close to the mountains as is safe,' Meren answered. 'When Taita comes we must be able to join him swiftly.' He turned to Sidudu, who rode at his other side. 'Do you know of a place near to the mountain where we can hide?'

She thought for only a moment. 'Yes,' she replied. 'There is a valley where I used to go with my father to collect mushrooms when they came into season. We camped in a cave that few know of.'

Soon the shining white peaks of the three volcanoes rose above the western horizon. They skirted round the village of Mutangi, and looked down on the burnt-out ruins from the low hills where they had hunted the wild hog. The smell of ashes and charred bodies wafted up to them.

No one said much as they turned away and went on westwards towards the mountains.

The valley to which Sidudu took them was tucked away in the foothills. It was so well concealed by trees and the folds of the land that it was not visible until they were looking down into it. There was good grazing for the horses and a tiny spring that supplied sufficient water for their needs. The cave was dry and warm. Sidudu's family had left a pair of battered old cooking pots and other utensils in a crevice at the back, with a large pile of firewood. The women cooked the evening meal, and they all gathered round the fire to eat.

'We will be comfortable enough here,' Fenn said, 'but how far are we from the citadel and the road that leads up to the Cloud Gardens?'

'Six or seven leagues to the north,' Sidudu answered.

'Good!' said Meren, through a mouthful of venison stew. 'Far enough to be unobtrusive but close enough to reach Taita swiftly when he comes down.'

'I am pleased that you said when and not i,' Fenn observed quietly.

There was silence for a while, except for the clinking of spoons in the copper bowls.

'How will we know when he comes?' Sidudu asked. 'Will we have to keep watch for him on the road?' They all looked at Fenn.

'There will be no need for that,' Fenn replied, i will know when he comes. He will warn me.'

They had been continually on the move, riding and fighting, for many months. In all that time this was their first chance for a full night's sleep, broken only by their turns on sentry duty. Fenn and Sidudu took the midnight watch and when the great cross of stars in the south dipped towards the horizon they stumbled half asleep into the cave to wake Nakonto and Imbali for the dog watch. Then they fell on to their sleeping mats and dropped into oblivion.

Before dawn the next morning Fenn shook Meren awake. He started up so violently that he woke the others - and when he saw the tears on Fenn's cheeks he reached for his sword. 'What is it, Fenn? What is amiss?'

'Nothing!' Fenn cried. Now he looked properly at her face, and realized she was weeping for joy. 'Everything is perfect. Taita is alive. He came to me in the night.'

'Did you see him?' Meren seized her arm and shook her in agitation.

'Where is he now? Where has he gone?'

'He came to overlook me while I was asleep. When I awoke he showed me his spirit sign and told me, 1 will return to you soon, very soon.'

Sidudu leapt up from her mat and embraced Fenn. 'Oh, I am so happy for you, and for the rest of us.'

'Now everything will be all right,' Fenn said. 'Taita is coming back and we will be safe.'

' IT have waited through the aeons for you to come to me,' said Eos, I and although he knew that she embodied the great Lie, Taita could JL not help but believe her. She turned and walked back into the mouth of the grotto. Taita did not try to resist. He knew that he could do nothing but follow her. Despite all the defences he had raised against her enchantments, there was nothing he wanted to do more at that moment than follow wherever she might lead.

Beyond the entrance the tunnel narrowed until the lichen-covered rock brushed his shoulders. The spring water was icy as it burbled over his feet and splashed the hem of his tunic. Eos glided ahead. Under the black silk her hips moved with the undulating motion of a swaying

cobra. She left the stream and went up a narrow stone ramp. At the top the tunnel widened and became a roomy passageway. The walls were covered with lapis-lazuli tiles carved in bas-relief, depicting human fdrms, and beasts both real and fabulous. The floor was inlaid with tiger's eye, and the roof with rose quartz. Large rock crystals the size of a man's head were set on brackets on the wall. As Eos approached each in turn they emitted a mysterious orange glow that illuminated the passage ahead.

As they moved on, the crystals faded into darkness. Once or twice Taita glimpsed the shaggy black shapes of apes as they moved away into the shadows and disappeared. Silently Eos's small bare feet flitted over the golden tiles. They fascinated him, and he found it difficult to take his eyes off them. As she moved on she left a delicate perfume on the air.

He savoured it with intense pleasure and recognized it as the scent of sun lilies.

At last they reached a commodious chamber of elegant proportions.

Here the walls were of green malachite. Shafts in the high ceiling must have reached up to the earth's surface for the sunlight spilled down through them and was reflected from the walls in a glowing emerald effusion. The furniture of the room was of carved ivory, and the central pieces were two low couches. Eos went to one and seated herself, folding her legs under her and spreading her cloak so that even her feet were concealed. She gestured to the couch facing her. 'Please be at your ease.

You are my honoured and beloved guest, Taita,' she said, in the Tenmass.

He went to the couch and sat opposite her. It was covered with an embroidered silk mattress.

'I am Eos,' she said.

'Why did you call me “beloved”? This is our first meeting. You do not know me at all.'

'Ah, Taita, I know you as well as you know yourself. Perhaps even better.'

Her laughter was sweeter on his ears than any music he had ever listened to. He tried to close his mind to it. 'Even though your words defy reason, somehow I cannot doubt them. I accept that you know me, but I know nothing of you, except your name,' he replied.

'Taita, we must be honest with each other. I will speak only the truth to you. You must do the same for me. Your last statement was a lie. You know much about me, and you have formed opinions that are, alas, mostly erroneous. It is my purpose to enlighten you, and to correct your misconceptions.'

'Tell me where I have erred.'

'You believe I am your enemy.'

Taita remained silent.

'I am your friend,' Eos went on. 'The dearest and sweetest friend you will ever have.'

Taita inclined his head gravely, but again made no reply. He found he wanted desperately to believe her. It took all his determination to keep his shield high.

After a beat, Eos continued, 'You imagine that I will lie to you, that I have already lied to you as you have lied to me,' she said.

He was relieved that he threw no aura for her to read: his emotions were seething.

'I have spoken only the truth to you. The images I showed you in the grotto were the truth. There was no element of deceit in them,' she told him.

'They were forceful images,' he said, his tone neutral and noncommittal.

'They were all true. All I have promised is in my power to give to you.'

'Why of all mankind have you chosen me?'

'All mankind?' she exclaimed, with scorn. 'All mankind is no more important to me than the individual termites in a colony. They are creatures of instinct, not of reason or wisdom, for they do not live long enough to acquire those virtues.'

'I have known wise men of learning, compassion and humanity,' he contradicted her.

'You make that judgement from the observations of your own short existence,' she said.

'I have lived long,' he said.

'But you will not live much longer,' she told him. 'Your time is nearly done.'

'You are direct, Eos.'

'As I have already promised, I will speak only the truth to you. The human body is an imperfect vehicle and life is ephemeral. A man lives too short a span to acquire true wisdom and understanding. By human standards you are a Long Liver, one hundred and fifty-six years by my reckoning. To me, that is not much longer than a butterfly lives, or the blooming of a night-flowering cactus, born at dusk and perishing before dawn. The physical vehicle in which your spirit soul rides will soon fail you.' Suddenly she thrust her right hand from beneath the black silk cloak and made a sign of benediction.

If her feet were lovely, her hand was exquisite. His breathing checked and he felt the hair on his forearms rise as he watched its graceful gestures.'

'But for you it need not be so,' Eos said softly.

'You have not answered my question, Eos. Why me?'

'In the short time that you have lived you have achieved much. If I extend your life eternally you will become a giant of intellect.'

'That does not explain all of it. I am old and ugly.'

'I have already renewed part of your body,' she pointed out. He laughed bitterly. 'So, now I am an ugly old man with a young and beautiful cock.'

She laughed with him, that thrilling sound. 'So elegantly phrased.'

She drew her hand back under the cloak, leaving him bereft. Then she went on, 'In the grotto I showed you an image of yourself as a young man. You were beautiful, and you can be again.'

'You can have any beautiful young man you choose. I do not doubt that you have already done so,' he challenged.

She answered at once, fairly and honestly: 'Ten thousand times or more, but despite their beauty they were ants.'

'Will I be any different?'

'Yes, Taita - yes.'

'In what way?'

'Your mind,' she said. 'Carnal passion alone soon palls. A superlative intellect is endlessly alluring. A great mind growing stronger with time in a fine body eternally youthful: these are godlike attributes. Taita, you are the perfect companion and mate I have longed for down the ages.'

Hour after hour they discoursed. Although he knew that her genius was cold and malevolent, it was still fascinating and seductive. He felt charged with energy, physical and intellectual. Eventually, to his annoyance, he felt the need to absent himself, but before he could voice it she told him, 'There are quarters set aside for you. Pass through that doorway at your right hand and follow the passage to the end.'

The room to which she had directed him was large and imposing, but he hardly noticed his surroundings for his mind was alight. He felt no fatigue. In a cubicle he found an ornately carved stool with a latrine bucket set beneath it and relieved himself. In the corner, scented warm water ran from a spout into a basin of rock crystal. As soon as he had washed he hurried back to the green chamber, hoping that Eos would still be there. The sunlight no longer glowed through the shafts in the

I mTHE QUEST ¦ roof. Night had fallen but the rock crystals on the walls glowed with a warm light. Eos sat as he had last seen her, and as he settled himself opposite her, she said, 'There is food and drink for you.' With that lovely hand she indicated the ivory table beside him. During his absence silver dishes and a chalice had been set upon it. He felt no hunger, but the fruit and sherbet looked delicious. He ate and drank sparingly, then returned eagerly to their conversation: 'You speak easily of eternal life?'

'The dream of all men, from pharaohs to serfs,' she agreed. 'They long for eternal life in an imagined paradise. Even the old people who lived before I was born painted images of that dream on the walls of their caves.'

'Is it possible to fulfil it?' Taita asked.

'I sit before you as living proof that it is.'

'How old are you, Eos?'

'I was already old when I watched Pharaoh Cheops raise the great pyramid at Giza.'

'How is this possible?'

'Have you heard of the Font?' she asked.

'It is a myth that has come down to us from antiquity,' he replied.

'It is no myth, Taita. The Font exists.'

'What is it? Where is it?'

'It is the Blue River of all life, the essential force that drives our universe.'

'Is it truly a river or a fountain? And why “Blue”? Can you describe it for me?'

'There are no words, not even in the Tenmass, that adequately describe its might and beauty. When we have become one, I will take you to it.

We will bathe side by side in the Blue, and you shall come forth in all the splendour of youth.'

'Where is it? Is it in the sky or in the earth?'

'It moves from one place to another. As the seas shift and the mountains rise and fall, so the Font moves with them.'

'Where is it now?'

'Not far from where we sit,' said Eos, 'but be patient. In time I will lead you to it.'

She lied. Of course she lied. She was the Lie. Even if the Font existed, he knew she would lead no other person to it, but still the false promise intrigued him.

'I see you doubt me still,' Eos said softly. 'To demonstrate my utmost

good faith, I will allow you to take another person with you to the Fbnt, to share in its blessing. Someone whom you count dear. Is there such a person?'

Fenn! Instantly he cloaked the thought so that even she could not read it. Eos had set a trap, and he had almost blundered into it. 'There is no such person,' he answered.

'Once when I overlooked you, you sat beside a pool in the wilderness.

I saw a child with you, a pretty child with pale hair.'

'Ah, yes,' he agreed. 'I forget even her name, for she was one of those you call termites. She was a companion of the moment only.'

'You do not wish to take her with you to the Font?'

'There is no reason why I should.' Eos was silent, but he could feel the softest touch on his temples, like that of teasing fairy fingers. He knew that Eos was unconvinced by what he had said and was trying to enter his head, trying to reach into his mind and steal his thoughts. With a psychic effort he blocked her entrance, and immediately she withdrew.

'You are tired, Taita. You must sleep awhile.'

'I am not tired in the least,' he replied, and it was true: he felt vital and fresh.

'We have so much to discuss that we are like runners at the start of a long race. We must pace ourselves. After all, we are destined to become companions for all eternity. There is no need to hasten. Time is our plaything, not our adversary.' Eos rose from her couch and, without another word, slipped through a doorway in the back wall that he had not noticed before.

A lthough he had felt no fatigue, when he stretched out on the ¦k padded silken sleeping mat in his chamber Taita fell into deep JL ~ sleep. He woke to find a shaft of sunlight playing down through the opening in the ceiling. He felt wonderfully alive.

His soiled clothing had disappeared and a fresh tunic had been laid out for him with a new pair of sandals beside his leather cloak. A meal had been placed on the ivory table near his head. He bathed, ate and dressed. The tunic Eos had provided was of a delicate material that caressed his skin, while the sandals were worked from the skin of a newborn goat and embossed with gold leaf. They fitted perfectly.

He returned to Eos's green room to find it deserted. Only her perfume

lingered. He crossed to the doorway through which she had gone the previous night. The long passage beyond led him out into the sunlight.

Once his eyes had adjusted he found that he was in another volcanic crater, not as large as the Cloud Gardens but more lovely by far. Yet he had no eyes for the luxuriant forests and orchards that covered the floor of the crater in profusion: directly in front of him spread a green lawn with a small marble pavilion above a pool in the middle, a rill of bright water cascading into it. Although the stream was clear, the surface of the pool was black and shiny as polished jet.

Eos sat on the marble bench in the pavilion. Her head was bare, but she faced away from him so that only her hair was visible. He moved quietly towards her, hoping to come on her unawares and catch a glimpse of her face. Her hair rippled down to her waist. It was as dark as the water of the pool, but ineffably more lustrous. As he drew closer to her he saw that the soft reflections of the sunlight glowed in the tresses like the glint of precious rubies. He longed to touch it, but as he reached out, Eos lifted the veil over her head, covering herself, denying him even the briefest glimpse of her face. Then she turned to him. 'Take your place beside me, for that is where you belong.'

They sat in silence for a while. Taita was angry and frustrated: he longed to see her face. She seemed to sense his mood and laid her hand on his arm. Her touch thrilled him, but he steeled himself and asked, 'We have spoken much of physical appearance, Eos. Do you suffer from some blemish? Is that why you hide yourself behind the veil? Are you ashamed of the way you look?'

He had tried to provoke her as she had him. But her voice was sweet and calm as she replied: 'I am the most beautiful person, man or woman, who has ever walked the earth.'

'Then why do you hide that beauty?'

'Because it can blind the eyes and unhinge the minds of men who look upon it.'

'Must I take your boast on trust?'

'It is no boast, Taita. It is the truth.'

'Will you never reveal this beauty to me?'

'You will look upon my beauty when you are ready to do so, when you realize the consequences and are prepared to accept them.' Her hand still lay upon his arm. 'Do you not see how my lightest touch disturbs you?

I can feel the beating of your heart through the tips of my fingers.' She withdrew her hand, leaving his senses in turmoil. It took him a while to

bring them under control. 'Let us speak of other matters. There are many questions you have for me, and I have given you my undertaking to answer them truthfully,' she said.'

Taita's voice sounded a little breathless as he took up her invitation.

'You have placed barriers across the headwaters of the Nile. What was your purpose in doing so?'

'My reasons were twofold. First, it was an invitation to you to come to me. You were unable to resist it, and now you sit beside me.'

He thought on it deeply, then asked, 'What was the other reason?'

'I was preparing a gift for you.'

'A gift?' he exclaimed.

'A betrothal gift. Once we are joined in spirit and flesh, I will give to you the Two Kingdoms of Egypt.'

'Only after you have destroyed them? What perverse and savage gift is this?'

'When you wear the double crown and we sit side by side on the throne of Egypt, 1 will restore the Nile and its waters to our kingdom . .. the first of our many kingdoms.'

'In the meantime it is only the termites of humanity who suffer?' Taita asked.

'Already you begin to think and act like the lord of all creation, whom you will soon become. I showed it to you in the images beside the grotto in the Cloud Gardens. Dominion over all the nations, eternal life, youth and beauty, and the wisdom and learning of the ages, which is the diamond mountain.'

'The greatest prize of all,' Taita said. 'I call it the Truth.'

'It shall be yours.'

'I still doubt that you offer me this without demanding some commensurate price from me.'

'Oh, I have already spoken of that. In return for what I offer, I demand your eternal love and devotion.'

'You have existed so long without a companion, why do you wish one now?'

'I have been overtaken by the tedium of eternity, a staleness of spirit and the aching boredom of lacking someone with whom to share these wonders.'

'That is all the price you ask of me? I have had a glimpse of your mighty intellect. If your beauty matches your mind, it is a trivial price to pay.' Her lies were disguised by truths. He pretended to believe them.

They were like the commanders of two armies arrayed against each other.

This was the skirmishing and maneuvering that preceded the battle. He was afraid, not so much for himself as for Egypt and Fenn, the two things dearest to him, both in deadly danger.

They spent the days that followed beside the black pool and most of the nights in Eos's green chamber. Gradually she exposed more of her physical form to him while keeping her spirit soul concealed. Her discourse grew daily more absorbing. Occasionally she would lean forward to pick up a morsel of fruit from the silver tray and artlessly let her sleeve fall back to reveal her forearm. Or she would shift position on her ivory couch and let the skirt of her black robe expose a knee. The shape of her calf was sublime. He should have become conditioned to the perfection of her limbs, but he had not. He dreaded the moment when her entire body would be revealed. He doubted his ability to resist its enchantment.

The days and nights sped by with startling rapidity. The carnal and astral tensions built up between them until they were almost unbearable.

She touched him, taking his hand when she wanted to emphasize a point. Once she clasped it to her bosom and he had to exert all of his self-control not to groan at the pain in his groin as he felt the warm elasticity of her breast.

Her perfume never changed: it was always the scent of sun lilies.

However, she changed her raiment morning and evening. Always it was long and voluminous, barely hinting at the swells and curves of her body beneath the delicate fabrics. Sometimes she was serene, at other times restless: then she circled his couch with the graceful menace of a man eating tigress. Once she knelt in front of him and brazenly slipped her hand up his thigh under his tunic while continuing her erudite discourse, her fingers stopping just short of his manhood and withdrawing as she felt it swell. At other times she reverted to the black robes and kept herself completely hidden, not allowing even her toes to show.

One morning they were in her green chamber and Eos was wearing a robe of diaphanous white silk. She had never worn white before. In the midst of their conversation she rose unexpectedly to her small bare feet and came to stand before him. The white veil she was wearing floated about her like a cloud. The pink and ivory tones of her skin shone through the material as the light played on her. Seen through the silk, her image was ethereal. Her moon-pale belly was as sleek as that of a hunting greyhound, with a mysterious triangular shadow at its base. Her breasts were indefinite creamy orbs, tipped with strawberry aureoles.

'Do you truly wish me to unveil myself, my lord?' she asked.

He was so taken by surprise that he could not reply at once. Eventually

he said, 'It seems that I have waited all my life for the moment that you do so.': 'I want you to have all of me. I will hold nothing back from you.'I set no conditions on you. I expect nothing from you in return but your love.' She threw back the silken sleeves and held up her bare arms.

They were slim, rounded and firm. She took the hem of her veil between those tapering fingers and began to lift it from her face. She paused at her chin. Her neck was long and graceful.

'Be very sure that you wish to look upon my face. I have warned you what the consequences may be. My beauty has enslaved all before you who have looked upon it. Will you be able to resist it?'

'Even if it destroys me I must do so,' he whispered. He knew that this was the fateful moment when they joined battle.

'So be it,' she said, and raised her veil with infinitely tantalizing deliberation. Her chin was rounded and dimpled. Her lips were full and curved, charged with red blood to the colour of ripe cherries. She licked her lips. Her tongue was tapered and it curled at the tip like that of a yawning kitten. It left a glistening trace of saliva on her lips, then drew back between small, lustrous teeth. Her nose was narrow and straight but flared slightly at the tip. Her cheekbones were set high, and her forehead was wide and deep. Her arched brows formed a perfect frame for her eyes, which were dark jewels that seemed to dispel the shadows with their glory. They looked deep into Taita's soul. Each separate part of her countenance was perfect. Taken as a whole, it was incomparably lovely.

'Do I please you, my lord?' she asked, as she swirled the veil off her head and let it float down to the green malachite tiles. Her hair tumbled over her shoulders in a sable cascade shot through with ruby lights. It hung to her waist, springing and curling, vibrant with life of its own.

'You do not answer me,' she said. 'Do I displease you?'

'My mind cannot encompass your beauty,' he said, in a voice that shook. 'There are no words that can describe even a tenth part of it.

Having looked upon it, I understand how it may burn a man to ash as though he were caught up in a raging forest fire. It terrifies me, but I am unable to resist it.'

She glided closer to him, and the perfume of sun lilies enveloped him. She stood over him until he was forced to turn his face up to hers.

She stooped slowly and placed her lips on his, warm and soft. Her curling kitten tongue slipped deep into his mouth. For a fleeting moment it twined round his own, and then it was gone, but the taste of her filled his mouth like the juice of some wondrous fruit.

She whirled away across the malachite tiles. Her translucent robe billowed round her as she arched her back and pirouetted until the back of her head almost touched the bulge of her buttocks, her hair brushing the tiles. Her feet danced until they blurred with speed. His eyes could not follow them. Then they stopped and she stood on tiptoe, still as a statue, only her hair swinging round her.

'There is more, my lord.' Her voice took on a deep, throbbing intensity he had not heard before. 'There is much more. Or have you seen enough?'

'If I gaze upon you for a thousand years, I will never see enough.'

With a toss of her head she threw her hair off her shoulders, and stared at him with those smouldering eyes. 'You stand on the lip of the volcano,' she warned him. 'Even at this late stage it is possible for you to draw back. Once you take the plunge there will be no return. For you the universe will change for ever. The price will be high - higher than you can imagine. Are you prepared to pay it?'

'I am ready.'

She slipped off the robe over one shoulder. Its curve was perfectly harmonious with that of the long, delicate neck. She let the robe fall lower, and one breast strained to be free. She released both. Round, full and womanly, they swung against each other. She let the robe drop until it caught on the curve of her hips. Her belly was as smooth as a field of newly fallen snow. A fiery ruby glowed in the pit of her navel.

She undulated her hips and the robe slipped down her slender thighs to garland her ankles.

She stepped out of it and came naked to him, with that long gliding stride. Once again she leant over him and put an arm round the back of his neck. With the other hand she cupped one of her breasts, drew his face towards her and eased the nipple into his mouth. 'Take suck, my lord,' she whispered in his ear.

As he drew on it like an infant, the nipple swelled between his lips and it began to exude a thick creamy fluid. Taita relished it, until she pushed his head away and drew it out from between his lips. 'Be not so greedy,' she admonished him. 'My body has many delights for you to savour. You must not satiate yourself too soon.'

She stepped back and ran both hands down her belly with a smoothing motion. His eyes followed them slavishly. She moved her feet apart and bent her knees, spreading her thighs. He watched her hand burrow between them, deep into the cloud of dark hair. Then she brought it out again and held up a forefinger. It was glossy with a pellucid dampness.

'See how I long for you,' she whispered huskily, as she touched the tip of her wet finger with her thumb. When she parted them, a gelatinous thread stretched between them. 'This is the true ambrosia that all men crave.' She came to him. 'Open your mouth, my lord.' She slid her finger between his lips, and the heady scent of her sex pervaded his senses.

She reached down with her free hand under the hem of his tunic and took hold of his manroot. Already it was as hard as ironstone, but in her cunning fingers it stretched harder and longer still.

He looked deep into her eyes and saw in them a stark, predatory hunger that had not been there a moment before. He knew that it was not for what she held in her hand but his very soul that she lusted. Now she placed both hands upon him, lifted him to his feet and led him to the couch. She knelt before him, loosened the straps of his sandals and slipped them off his feet. She lifted her head and nuzzled him, taking him between her lips and sucking voraciously. As she stood up again she lifted his tunic over his head, then pushed him back on to the couch.

She stepped over him with one leg as though she was mounting a steed, then crouched over him to guide him into her secret depths.

He uttered a deep groan as the pleasure became so intense it was transmuted into agony. She froze immobile over him. The muscles deep inside her pulsed and contracted, tightening as inexorably on him as the coils of a python round its prey. She locked him in a union so powerful that neither could break from it. Her eyes gazed into his, filled with the triumphant glare of a warrior about to make the killing stroke. 'You belong to me.' Her voice was the hiss of a serpent. 'Everything you are is mine.' No more dissembling, she had stripped off her disguise to reveal her true colours.

He felt her carnal invasion begin. It was as though a barbaric horde had besieged the citadel of his soul and was battering down the walls. He rallied all his powers to resist her, closing his gates to deny her entrance, hurling her back from the breach. The look in her eyes changed to consternation as she realized he had enticed her into an ambush. Then her expression became murderous, and she surged back into the attack.

They struggled against each other, at first evenly matched. He moved his body to one side, and when she threw her weight across to counter him, he rolled with her off the couch. Locked together they crashed on to the malachite floor, but she was under him and bore the brunt of his weight. Just for an instant the grip of the muscles deep within her slackened at the shock. He used the lapse to drive himself further inside, trying to reach her centre. She tightened instantly, holding him out.

I

I THE QUEST

They strained against each other silently, pitting all their forces, holding each other in precarious equilibrium.

He felt her summon her reserves and gathered his own in readiness.

Then she launched herself against him in a psychic avalanche. She was forcing a breach in his defences, breaking through into the secret places of his soul. He could feel his body yielding to her. Once again, gloating triumph lit her eyes. He reached down and closed his fist over the Periapt of Lostris that still hung at his throat. In his mind he conjugated the word of power: Mensaar! His manroot leapt with the impulse, and she cried out incoherently as she felt it. 'Kydash! Ncube!' he shouted. A bolt of psychic power flashed from the Periapt. Like a lightning strike, it flung Eos from the breach in his soul. Once again they held each other at bay, their strength evenly matched. Locked in each other's flesh they lay as still as figures carved in ivory.

The oil in the lamps burnt low, the flames guttered and went out. The only light in the chamber came through the shaft high in the roof above.

That light faded as the sun set behind the mountains, and left them in darkness to continue the battle. All through the night they were braced against each other in the hellish coupling, his manroot buried inside her, her muscles clamped on it remorselessly, no longer organs of procreation and pleasure but deadly weapons.

When the dawn light seeped through the shaft in the roof, it found them still locked together. As the light strengthened, he could see into her eyes. In their depths he discerned the first flutter of panic, like the wings of a trapped bird beating against the bars of its cage. She tried to shutter them from him, but he held her eyes as she held his sex. Both were far past the borders of exhaustion. There was nothing left in either but the will to hold out. She had locked her long legs round his hips, and her arms round his back. He clasped her buttocks in one hand, pulling them on to him. His right hand, still clutching the Periapt of Lostris, was clenched at the small of her back. Very carefully, so that he did not alert her, he eased open the lid of the locket with his thumbnail and the chip of red stone fell into his palm.

He pressed the stone against her spine, and felt it grow hot as it turned its power back on to her. She screamed, a long despairing wail, and struggled weakly, pumping her sex like bellows in a desperate effort to expel him. He timed his thrusts to her spasms. Each time she relaxed he drove in deeper. He reached the final barrier and, with one last mighty effort, pierced it.

She collapsed under him, moaning and gibbering. He covered her

mouth with his own and thrust his tongue down her throat, stifling her cries. He rampaged through the inner sanctum of her being, tearing open the coffers in which her knowledge and power were locked away'and draining the contents. As he did so, his own strength flooded back, multiplied a hundredfold by what he took from her.

He stared into her unspeakably lovely face, into those magnificent eyes, and saw them change. Her mouth gaped, drooling silver ropes of saliva. Her eyes turned opaque and dull as pebbles. Like a lump of wax held close to a flame, her nose broadened and coarsened. Her glowing skin faded to sallow yellow, became desiccated and as rough as the scaly hide of a reptile. It puckered into deep creases at the corners of her lips and eyes. The vibrant curls fell out of her hair, leaving it straight and flecked with dry skin from her scalp.

Taita was still buried inside her, drawing in the torrent of astral and psychic substance that flowed from her, like the waters of a burst dam.

There was such a vast quantity that the flood continued hour after hour. The ray of sunlight from the shaft in the ceiling had crept across the malachite tiles and reached the centre mark of noon before Taita felt the flow weaken and shrivel. At last it dried up completely. He had taken all there was. Eos was drained and empty.

Taita allowed his manroot to deflate and slither out of her. He rolled off her and stood up. His sex was swollen, bruised and rubbed raw in places. He suppressed the pain and went to the silver jug of water on the table beside her couch. He drank deeply, then sat on the edge of her couch, watching her as she lay on the floor.

She breathed harshly through her open mouth. Her eyes were fixed in a blind stare on the roof of the chamber as her body began to swell. Like a corpse left in the sun, her belly ballooned as though filling with the gases of decay. The slim arms and legs bloated. The flesh puffed, soft and shapeless as a bladder of butter. Taita watched as her flesh billowed until her limbs disappeared in the pasty white folds. Only her head remained, tiny in comparison with the rest of her.

Gradually her swollen body filled half of the chamber. Taita jumped off the couch and backed against the wall to give her space to expand.

She had taken on the shape of a queen termite lying in her royal cell in the centre of a mound. She was trapped within her own flesh, able to move only her head, the rest of her pinned down by her own grossness.

She would never be able to escape from this cavern. Even if the trogs returned to help her, they could never drag her through the narrow rock passages and tunnels into the open air. .

A dreadful stench permeated the cavern. A thick, oily fluid oozed from the pores of Eos's skin and ran down her carcass, each drop pale green with the sheen of putrescence. The nauseating odour clogged Taita's throat and smothered his lungs. It was the smell of rotting corpses: the victims of her murderous appetites, the unborn babes she had torn from the womb and the young mothers who had carried them; the bodies of those who had perished in the famines, droughts and plagues she had bred and loosed upon the nations; the warriors who had died in the wars she had incited and commanded; the innocents she had condemned to the gallows and the garotte; the slaves who had perished in her quarries and mines. It was compounded by the fetor of an immense evil that issued from her mouth with every rasping breath she exhaled. Even Taita's control of his senses wavered under its miasma. Keeping as far from her as the confines of the cavern would allow, he moved along the wall towards the mouth of the tunnel.

An ominous sound brought him up short. It was as though a gigantic porcupine was rattling its quills in warning. Eos's grotesque head rolled towards him and her eyes focused upon his face. Her features were ravaged so no trace of her beauty remained. Her eyes were deep, dark pits. Her lips had retracted to expose her teeth, like those of a skull. Her features were ineffably ugly, the true mirror of her twisted soul. She spoke in a croak, harsh as the cawing of carrion crows: 'I shall persist,' she said.

He reeled back at the rankness of her breath, then braced himself and looked steadily into her eyes: 'The Lie will always persist, but so will the Truth. There will never be an end to the struggle,' he replied.

She closed her eyes and spoke no more. Only her breathing rumbled in her throat.

Taita found his cloak, then slipped through the green chamber into the passage that led to the outer air. As he came out into her secret garden, the sunlight was striking the top of the cliff but it left the depths of the crater in shadow. He looked around carefully for any evidence of Eos's trogs, searching for their auras, but there was none.

He knew that, with her destruction, they had been deprived of a guiding intelligence. They had crept mindlessly into the tunnels and passages of the mountain to die.

The air was cold and clean. He breathed it deeply with relief, washing the stench of Eos from his lungs as he went to the pavilion beside the

L

black pool. He took his seat on the bench where he had sat with her when she was still young and beautiful. He pulled the leather cloak round his shoulders. He expected to find himself exhausted and wasted by his ordeal but elation filled his being. He felt strong and indefatigable.

At first this bewildered him, until he understood that he was charged with the power and energy he had taken from the witch. His mind soared and expanded as he began to explore the mountainous accumulations of knowledge and experience that now filled him. He could look back over the millennium that Eos had existed, back to the beginning time.

Every detail was fresh. He was able to fathom her lusts and desires as though they were his own. He was amazed by the depths of her cruelty and depravity. He had not understood the nature of true and utter evil until now when it had been clearly revealed to him. There was so much to learn from her that he knew it would take him a natural lifetime to examine even a small part of it.

The knowledge was seductive in a vile and loathsome way, and he knew at once that he must condition himself to resist its addictive fascination, lest it corrupt him too. There was dire danger that the grasp of so much evil might turn him into a monster of her like. He was humbled by the thought that the cognizance he had wrested from the witch, added to his own arsenal, had made him now the most powerful man on earth.

He rallied his powers and began to lock away the vast body of foul matter in the deep warehouses of his memory, so that he would not be haunted and sullied by it but could retrieve any part as he required it.

In addition to the evil, he had now in his possession an equal or greater quantity of wholesome learning which might be infinitely beneficial to himself and humanity. He had taken from her the keys to the natural mysteries of ocean, earth and heaven; of life and death; of destmction and regeneration. All this he held in the forefront of his mind where he could explore and master it.

The sun had set and night had passed before he had assembled and rearranged all this in his mind. Only then was he conscious of his creature needs: he had not eaten for days, and although he had drunk, he was thirsty. He now knew the layout of the witch's lair as if he had lived in it for as long as she had. He left the crater and went back into the rocky warren, finding his way unerringly into the storerooms, pantries and kitchens from which the trogs had served Eos. He ate sparingly of the best fruits and cheeses and drank a cup of wine. Then, refreshed, he

returned to the pavilion. Now his foremost concern was to make contact with Fenn.

He composed himself and made his first cast across the ether, calling to her clearly and openly. At once he realized he had underestimated the power of the witch. His efforts to reach Fenn were blocked and turned back by some residual force that emanated from her. Even in her enfeebled condition, she had managed to spin around herself and her warren a protective shield. He abandoned the effort, and devoted himself to finding a means of escape from the mountains. He searched the memory of Eos and he made discoveries that staggered him, taxing his powers of belief to the utmost.

He left the pavilion again, and went back into the rock tunnel that led to Eos's green chamber. Immediately the stench of corruption filled his nostrils. If anything, it had become even stronger and more noisome. He covered his nose and mouth with the hem of his tunic, and choked back waves of nausea. Eos's body almost entirely filled the cavern now, bloated with its own putrid gas. Taita saw that she was in the midst of a metamorphosis from human to insect. The green fluid that oozed from her pores and coated her body was hardening into a glistening shell. She was sealing herself into a cocoon. Only her head was still exposed. The ruined tresses of her hair had fallen out and littered the green tiles. Her eyes were closed. Her hoarse breathing made the foul air tremble. She had thrown herself into a profound hibernation, a suspended form of life that he knew could last indefinitely.

Is there some way in which I can destroy her as she lies helpless? he wondered, and searched his newly acquired knowledge for the means to do so. There is none, he concluded. She is not immortal, but she was created in the flames of the volcano and she can perish only in those flames. Aloud he said, 'Hail and farewell, Eos! May you slumber for ten thousand years that the earth will be, for a little space, rid of you.' He stooped and picked up one of the coils of her hair. He twisted it into a thick braid, then placed it carefully in the pouch on his belt.

There was just sufficient room to allow him to pass between her and the glittering malachite wall, then reach the far end of the chamber.

There he found, as he had already known he would, the hidden doorway.

It was so cunningly carved into the mirror-like wall that its reflection tricked the eye. Only when he reached out his hand to touch what had seemed solid green rock did the opening become apparent. It was only just wide enough to allow him to enter.

Beyond, he found himself in a narrow passage. As he moved down it, the light faded into darkness. He went on confidently, holding one hand out in front of him until he touched the wall where the passage turned at right angles. Here he reached up into the darkness and found the stone shelf. He felt the warmth of the clay fire-pot on the back of his hand. This guided him to the rope handle of the pot, and he brought it down. There was a faint glow in the bottom, which he blew gently into flame. By its light he found a stack of rush torches. He lit one, placed the fire-pot with two extra torches in the basket that stood ready on the stone shelf, then went on along the narrow tunnel.

It was descending at a steep angle so he used the rope that was strung along the right-hand wall to steady himself and maintain his balance.

At last the passage opened into a small bare chamber. The roof was so low that he had to bend almost double under it. In the centre of the floor he saw a dark opening that looked like the mouth of a well. He held the torch over it and peered down. The feeble light was swallowed by the darkness.

Taita picked up a shard of broken pottery from the floor, and dropped it into the shaft. He counted while he waited for it to strike the bottom.

After fifty, there had been no sound of it hitting the rock below. The pit was bottomless. Directly in front of him a sturdy bronze hook had been driven into the roof of the cave. From this a rope of plaited leather strips dangled into the pit. The roof above him was blackened by the smoke of the torches that Eos had held aloft as she had passed this way on her innumerable visits to the cave. She had possessed the strength and agility to descend the rope with her torch between her teeth.

Taita removed his sandals and dropped them into the basket. Then he wedged his torch into a crack in the side wall, so that it would afford him a little light during his descent. He slung the handle of the basket over his shoulder, reached for the rope and swung himself out over the pit. At intervals the rope was knotted, which provided a precarious hold for his hands and bare feet. He began to clamber downwards, moving his feet first, then his hands. He knew how long and arduous the descent would be and he paced himself carefully, pausing regularly to rest and breathe deeply.

Before long his muscles were quivering and his limbs weakening. He forced himself to go on. The light of the torch he had left in the chamber above was now a mere glimmer. He climbed down and down into utter darkness but, from Eos's memory, he knew the way. The muscles in his right calf spasmed with cramp and the pain was crippling, but he closed

his mind to it. His hands were numbed claws. He knew that one was bleeding from under the nails for droplets of blood fell into his upturned face. He forced his fingers to open and close on the rope.

Down he went and still down until, at last, he knew he could go no further. He hung motionless in the darkness, bathed in sweat, unable to attempt another change of grip on the swaying rope. The darkness suffocated him. He felt his hand, slippery with blood, slide as his fingers began to open.

'Mensaar!' He conjugated the words of power. 'Kydash! Ncube!' At once his legs steadied and his grip firmed. Still he could not force his worn-out body to reach downwards for the next knot.

'Taita! My darling Taita! Answer me!' Fenn's voice was as clear and sweet in his ears as if she hung beside him in the darkness. Her soul sign, the delicate outline of the water-lily bloom, glowed before his eyes. She was with him again. He had passed beyond the point where the enfeebled witch could block their astral contact.

'Fenn!' He sent a desperate cry across the ether.