Geis of the Gargoyle (55 page)

"Maybe if I show you my panties." She reached for the hem of her skirt.

"No, don't do that! It might freak me out, but maybe not wake me."

"How about jumping off a high cliff?"

"No, that would kill me."

"In a dream?"

He reconsidered.
 
"That's right-falling in a dream scares you awake without killing you.
 
Very well, let's go jump off a cliff."

They walked on until they found a cliff beside the path.
 
It dropped off into a crevice of a valley.
 
"Does that scare you?" Mentia asked.

"It sure does!" He backed away from the brink.
 
"I don't think I have the nerve to jump."

"No problem." She wrapped her arms around him, lifted him, and flung him over the brink.

"AEEEEE!" he screamed as he plummeted.

"Interesting," the demoness remarked, appearing beside him.
 
"That's exactly what the pail said when it viewed my pale posterior."

"But the pail wasn't about to die of fright," he gasped, trying to grab on to her to slow his fall.

She eluded him.
 
"No, it was about to die of disgust.
 
I told you I could be obnoxious when I tried."

"Agreed!" He grabbed for her again, but his clutching hands passed right through her image without contact.

The rocky ground was rushing up at him.
 
Hiatus savored one more instant of utter terror, then landed-

And found himself sitting on the ground near the palace of the city of Hinge.
 
He was awake, unharmed.

"It worked!" Mentia said, pleased.
 
"We must do that again sometimes.
 
Dreams are fun."

17

HARNESS

Gary and Gayle rode the train of thought back to thestation at Hinge.
 
When they got off they found Hiatus and Mentia waiting for them.
 
A train was arriving from the other direction, and soon Iris and Surprise joined them.
 
They all walked slowly back to the palace, comparing notes.
 
It seemed that one couple had gone to the past, but this had been merely a matter of reminiscing.
 
Another had gone into the dream realm.
 
Gary and Gayle had of course visited the future.
 
None had found the philter.

"But the philter seemed determined to kill Gayle," Gary said.
 
"We finally turned our ship around and came back, because it was too dangerous and we weren't learning anything."

The demoness Mentia nodded.
 
"It is clear that Gayle knows something we need."

"I don't know what that would be," Gayle protested.
 
"I have been nowhere for three thousand years."

"And Desi tried to seduce me from the mission," Hiatus said.
 
"Physically and emotionally.
 
She offered me everything-Desiree, the kingship of Xanth, whatever I might desire.
 
She even showed me her-" He stopped, overcome by delicacy.
 
Actually, Gary had a fair suspicion what Desi might have shown him, based on what Hanna had done.
 
The philter seemed to be getting desperate.

"So you, too, must know something important," Iris said.

"Or have been about to find it out," Mentia said.
 
"As I believe we did."

"We, too, may have learned something," Iris said.
 
"But not enough."

They entered the palace.
 
"Let's discuss this," Mentia said.
 
"I think we may have learned more than we thought."

Desi appeared.
 
"Oh, you must be very tired after your long journeys," she said solicitously.
 
"And hungry.
 
We have beds and banquet waiting."

"Now I'm sure of it," Mentia said with satisfaction.
 
"Ignore her and proceed with the discussion.
 
What do you know.
 
Iris?"

"I think I have figured out where the philter is," Iris said.

"That won't do you any good," Desi said.
 
"It is only an object physically, and won't do a thing for you."

"Where is it?" Gary asked.

"In the center of the magic," Iris said.
 
"The very center.
 
That's why the trains of thought all circle around; they can't go beyond the philter's range.
 
And I think it needs the very strongest magic to craft its powerful illusions and effects.
 
It's not inherently strong; it is buoyed by that intense field, making it a super demon.
 
It must be in the center of the focus circle."

"But that's where I was," Gayle protested.
 
"Surely you don't think that I-"

"No, dear," Iris said.
 
"You are no demon; Mentia would have known if you were.
 
And you are no illusion; I would have known.
 
And you are a gargoyle: Gary knows.
 
As a group we are uniquely qualified to assess your nature, perhaps by no coincidence.
 
You are beautifully innocent.
 
But your location is also that of the philter.
 
I strongly suspect it has been hiding in the tiles beneath you for three thousand years."

"Beneath me!" Gayle cried, amazed.
 
"I suppose it could be true, for I talked with its illusions often.
 
But I never suspected it could be that close!"

"This is ludicrous," Desi said.
 
"Even if you found the philter, you wouldn't be able to affect it.
 
You don't have the-"

"The what?" Mentia asked alertly.

"Nothing."

"What did you find out, Mentia?" Gary asked.

"That we can conjure the philter," the demoness said evenly.
 
"It's a demon."

"You can't summon the philter," Desi said.
 
"The philter can't move."

"I said conjure, not summon," Mentia said.
 
"That is, to exert power over it.
 
We can conjure it into the Interface.
 
We merely need to be close enough to it for our conjuration to have full effect-and we need to know its real name."

"Why, I know that," Gayle said.
 
"It's-"

There was a deafening blast of sound, drowning her out.

Then Mentia assumed the shape of a great golden blob, and the noise faded.

"What did you do?" Gary asked, surprised.

"She became a blob of golden silence," Iris said.
 
"She's neutralizing Desi, who had become an obstructive noise.

Gayle, you were saying-?"

"Its name is Fil," Gayle said.
 
"Fil Philter.
 
I remember that from when they were first working on the Interface.
 
I didn't realize that was important."

"But the philter knew it was important!" Gary said.
 
"That's why it was trying to kill you, when you started associating with me."

"So now we have the whole of it," Iris said.
 
"We know how to right the wrong of three thousand years ago, and reverse the spread of madness, and free the gargoyles.
 
We have simply to go to the center of the magic circle, and conjure Fil into the Interface, and our quest will be done."

"Then let's do it!" Gary said.

Mentia reappeared in her usual form.
 
"That may not be easy," she said.
 
"Desi is gone for the moment, and so is her noise, but the philter as it is presently enhanced by the madness magic is one powerful demon, much stronger than I am, and it is determined not to let us conjure it into the Interface.
 
It tried to distract us from learning its secrets, and now it will distract us from acting."

"But now that we know where it is and what to do, it won't be able to stop us," Gary said.

Iris shook her head.
 
"The philter has powerful illusions.
 
Those will be difficult to get past."

"But we'll know they are illusions," Gary said.
 
"So we'll just have to feel our way forward, and not fall in any holes."

"Illusions supported by demon powers," Mentia said soberly.
 
"I agree: that's a potent combination.
 
We had better organize carefully."

"Now I can recognize and perhaps counter some of the illusions," Iris said.
 
"Surprise may be able to lend me support when I need it.
 
But the demonic aspects-"

"I will be able to identify," Mentia said, "And to counter to a degree, if I don't face the full brunt.
 
Hiatus can help me.
 
That means that the gargoyles will have to be our guides when we get preoccupied with illusions and demonies."

"We can do that," Gayle agreed.
 
"I know the way."

"But-" Gary said, still not seeing what all the fuss was about.

"Let's go," Iris said grimly.
 
"Before the philter has any more time to organize its defense."

"And there's still something missing," Mentia added.
 
"Something we need.
 
Desi's not the smartest of illusions, and she almost let it slip.
 
But we don't know what it is."

"Maybe we can find it," Iris said.
 
"By traveling in a zigzag pattern and keeping alert for anything out of the ordinary."

"Everything's out of the ordinary, here in the madness!" Hiatus protested.

"True," Mentia said.
 
"But there may be something different, even so.
 
If we can catch it, it may give us the final key to victory."

This seemed nonsensical to Gary, but he realized that there was no point in arguing.
 
Either they would find that mysterious thing, or they wouldn't.

So they left the palace.
 
Gayle led the way, with Gary close beside her.
 
And suddenly he realized why they were taking it so seriously.

The city of Hinge had completely changed.
 
It was now a plain, covered by a ripple on the ground.
 
It was pretty in its way.
 
But he knew that if the philter could change the semblance of the city into that of a plain, it could do other visions too, and that could be real mischief.

Surprise screamed.
 
Then Gary saw a terrible bug stalking her.
 
It was a nickelpede-the insect whose pincers gouged out coin-sized chunks of flesh.
 
There was another nickelpede behind it, and others coming toward the rest of them.
 
In fact the entire ground was covered with them; that was what made the ripple effect.
 
Gary realized that though his natural form was immune to them, his human form was vulnerable.
 
It was impossible to cross this region.

"Illusion," Iris said tersely.
 
"Ignore them." "Nuh-uh," Mentia said.
 
"Some may be real, hidden among the illusions."