Gaal the Conqueror (38 page)

"You are not afraid, my lord?"

"I don't know. I'd like to see Geburah again. We were there
two years last time I was in Anthropos. It's where I really got
to know Mab."

"Is it far?" Eleanor asked.

"Quite a ways-but I guess we're going fast, not as fast as
when my-as when Mab did it."

"Look! There's some shelving."

"And cushions, and-sheets? No, curtains."

All around them furniture, books, parchments, chairs, the
large dining room table, and the golden throne were floating,
seeming to pass in bewildering fashion among the whirling
suns, moons and stars.

"They're going faster than we are."

"Yeah. Those first books are almost out of sight."

"John! Quick! Look behind youl"

John turned his head and shoulders. Ten yards or so behind
them, moving in and out of the confusing shadows of the unreal night was the large picture frame. He tried to turn completely round to face it, but found himself turning round dizzily
and pulling Eleanor and Authentio after him.

"I can't stop turning!" he said as he released Eleanor's hand.

They found themselves rotating helplessly around some central axis, sometimes with their backs to the approaching picture
and sometimes facing it. Eventually it collided with them and
it bounced off them. They gently approached it again as it
managed to settle into the curve of Eleanor's free arm. Carefully she hooked her arm through the chain at the back of the
frame.

"We got it!" John cried. "Remember when we were listening
to Lord Lunacy? This must be the picture that we' hang on the
wall to bottle up Shagah. It's crazy! The thing's come right into
our arms. It's going to be a cinch!"

Slowly they gained speed, and continued traveling for an
hour or so by which time every scrap of furniture had long
since disappeared ahead of them.

"I think that's Lake Nachash ahead," John said.

"That is so, my lord."

"Where's the island?" Eleanor asked.

"We should see it in a minute-in fact I can see it already."

Steadily they drew nearer to the island, and as they did so the
sense of whirling stars and sky faded. They began to descend.

"See it? That's the tower-the thing on this end of the island.
You can see the keep just behind it and a bit to the left. The
banqueting hall is behind that, and then come the kitchens and
stables-all on the north side of the island. Gosh, it looks so
different-there's ivy and stuff all over everything now."

"We're going awfully fast," Eleanor said anxiously. "How will
we land?"

For a moment John did not answer. "I don't know," he said
speaking rapidly. "I guess the magic will try to draw us inside
the tower. What we'd better do is grab whatever we can before
we get inside-if we get a chance to." The thought of being
drawn into Shagah's immediate presence was unnerving.

The island was little more than an enormous rock that rose
in sheer cliffs from the lake. Stone walls and parapets crowned
it. A circular stone tower dominated the west end of the island,
hiding the other buildings from view as they descended. Seconds later they found themselves sweeping across a quarry below the tower.

"We're going over the wall," John breathed. "Hang on to the
picture, Eleanor. I'll grab the corner of one of the parapets if
I can-and I'll hang on to your belt like grim death, Authentio.
Mebbe you could hang on to me with your free hand."

They were headed for the space between two parapets, a
space from which arrows could be shot or boiling oil poured.
Beyond the parapets was the top of the wall, wide enough to
drive a cart, and beyond that again, more parapets that faced
the courtyard. They reached the first set before they knew what
was happening. John's extended arm slapped against the ivycovered masonry. He hung on with all his strength, his hand
clutching a twisted branch of ivy. In a flash the momentum had
swung them round to slam their faces against the inner side of
the parapet. Stunned, winded and bruised, they dropped onto
the surface of the wall.

But the magnetic power of the spell was working still, dragging them slowly until they hit one of the parapets on the inner
side of the wall, holding them there, trapped like the leaves and
twigs a stream has abandoned. Slowly the power of the spell
subsided, leaving them huddled against the wall, badly shaken,
but uninjured. After a minute or so John groaned, "That wasn't
much fun. You guys O.K.?"

"I am well, my lord. Let us praise the name of Gaal!"

"I think I'm O.K" Eleanor tried to stand.

"Get down, you idiot!" John hissed. Quickly Eleanor ducked
and crouched. She looked scared. "What are we going to do?"

"I don't know-yet. Shagah probably doesn't know we're
here-at least I hope he doesn't."

Slowly they struggled to sit with their backs against the parapet. Eleanor inspected the picture frame which was still
hooked to her arm. "There's a tiny chip off one corner. Otherwise it's OX Look, it has a brass plate on the lower edge. But
there's nothing on it."

"Probably for Shagah's name or something-you know,
`Lord Shagah, Greatest Magician Ever' and the date. What shall
we do? I need time to think. We don't want to walk up to the
main door of the tower. Somehow we must get into the cave
below it. We'll be less exposed there."

He thought for a moment. "We can't use the steps down into
the courtyard. We could easily be seen from the tower, but once
or twice, when I was here before, I almost managed to climb
up by scrambling up the angle between the tower and this wall.
It's a very narrow angle and you could sort of press yourself
between the wall and the side of the tower. And it's a spot that
can't be seen from the tower. Now that there's all this ivy it
should be a piece of cake to get down."

It was not exactly a piece of cake, but neither was it impossibly difficult. John went first, the picture slung over his back
with the chain for hanging the picture (a long one fortunately)
round his neck. Eleanor followed. Authentio threw the treasure
bag down and John caught it-more or less. It was very heavy
and he dropped it, but the fall seemed to have done its contents
no damage. Once down, they stood with their backs to the
tower. "There's a stairway that leads down to the wharf just
beyond here," John whispered. "Keep close to the tower wall
and follow me."

Strange silence brooded over the enormous courtyard.
Weeds and grass rose waist high. It was obvious that nobody
had lived there for years. Creeping plants clambered up every
wall, smothering the buildings and blinding the windows. Only
the tower had resisted them. Its walls of smoothest stone stood
proudly naked. Its windows (though John and Eleanor did not know this yet) looked with a blank gaze on the courtyard.

They hugged the wall of the tower and forced their way
through tall weeds to the archway John had spoken of. A wide
stairway led downward. It was hewn in rock, descending all the
way to the level of the lake, and emerging in a cave. They stood
on a platform of rock, where bollards and rusty iron rings spoke
of boats that must once have been tied there. No source could
be seen of the dull red light that lit the cave.

"Where does that lead?" Eleanor asked, pointing to an archway at the end of the cave on their left. The water, smooth and
still as glass, reflected the black opening so it appeared to be
in the shape of an eye.

"It looks different," John murmured. "I guess the surface of
the lake is higher than I remember it. That opening leads
through a tunnel to the lake. There's a gate at the entranceor there used to be-to guard the place."

Strange feelings flowed over his body, and he shivered a
little. Carefully he removed the picture frame from around his
neck and set it against the wall. He walked to the edge of the
rock overlooking the water and scanned up and down the cave.
After a moment he said softly, "I killed Nicholas Slapfoot last
time I was in this cave, and it was from here that Dad and I left
for our own world again."

Eleanor stared at John, her mouth open. "You mean you
killed someone?" she asked. "You actually did-I mean-kill
him?"

"It, not him," John said. "You saw me kill the goblins. Well,
it was just the same. Nicholas Slapfoot was a thing, not a person.
He was the Prince of the Goblins. He had terrified me for a
long time, and he-I mean it-was trying to kill me again when
it happened. It was the sword that did it ..." For several minutes he stood staring at the far wall of the cave. Eleanor remained silent.

At last he sighed and turned toward the others. "I suppose we ought to make some plans," he said. "We-or shall I say, Icould get in without being seen through the other door, of
course."

"The other door?"

"There are steps that go up to a door in the tower, not the
main door, but a little door at the top of some narrow winding
steps. The only problem is-I don't know any way of opening
it." His attitude to the adventure was changing. He was growing
increasingly reluctant about the task that lay ahead. Only
dogged will power enabled him to force himself to think about
it at all.

"Have you never been through that door, my lord?"

John shook his head. "I've only been in the tower once. We
could never get in when I was here last-until one day Mab and
I found the main door open. That was the day the Regents
came, and the red dragon, Lord Lunacy, turned into a serpent."

Eleanor was frowning. "I've been thinking. Shagah must
know something by now."

"How do you mean?"

"We've got the picture. That means Shagah doesn't have itand I bet it was the first thing he would look for. He's bound
to suspect something."

John drew in a breath sharply. "You know, you're right. Without the picture he's sort of in danger. That means our job will
be that much harder. You know he said he had a dangerous
spell prepared. How the blazes are we going to get inside without getting caught? I wish there were some way of opening that
door."

Eleanor looked thoughtful. "You know, we've not come here
by chance, and you keep reminding us that we are to take the
adventure that comes to us."

"Hm. We've come by Shagah's magic, and it looked awfully
like chance to me."

"Not by chance, my lord. The hand and eye of Gaal are in
the matter somewhere."

"We came because of a prophecy," Eleanor protested. "Somehow I think Gaal must know we're here-I agree with Authentio. What I mean is the door-there must be some way we can
use it."

"I'd sure feel easier going in by that little door than by the
big door that leads into the courtyard."

"Listen, John-you know how you got into the Gaal trees?"

"You mean by a command?"

"Yes. Why shouldn't it work here?"

"Well, Gaal trees are Gaal trees. They're put there by Gaalor by the Changer."

"And who put the tower here?"

John's eyes widened "Gosh! You could be right. The matmon
(they're terrific builders) didn't build the tower. No one really
knows-but there's something very unusual about it. I guess it's
worth trying. Better still-I could try the key from the treasure
bag again. But what do we do when we get inside?"

Once again John drew in a deep breath. "I guess I could go
alone and wear the Mashal Stone."

"No. No. I want to come. In fact Authentio should come to."

"We don't have to be invisible. We could wait till after midnight. Even Shagah must go to bed sometimes." Hope was
growing in John's mind. "You know, there's something else. So
long as we have the picture, Shagah can't touch us. Lord Lunacy talked about it. Apparently Shagah's own safety is bound
up in the picture and the possessors of it."

"That sounds too easy. You mean we could just walk in and
stick it on the wall, and there's nothing he could do?"

Sadly John shook his head. His reluctance had not diminished, and he was wishing the thing was over. "I guess there
must be a catch somewhere-that was why he seemed so confident."

The rest of the day passed slowly. They could think of no
clear plan of action, and came to the unsatisfactory conclusion
that they would have to wait till after midnight and then take
their chances on the door at the top of the narrow staircase.

They were hungry, without food and with no means of getting any. John talked about fishing, but it was talk he could not
put into action. In any case they had no means of making a fire
to cook the fish. From time to time one or another would climb
part way up the stairway to see whether there was daylight
still-and the daylight seemed to remain for longer than ever
it had done before.

But at last the darkness descended outside, and eventually
they fell asleep despite the chill of the cold cave and the hard
rock they lay on. John dreamed he was in the dentist's chair.
They woke several hours later, almost as though someone had
shaken them both by the shoulder. In fact John was sure that
someone had, and always said so after. At any rate they were
not only instantly but also fully awake. And scared. "I guess
we've got to do it!" John breathed.