Golem in the Gears (26 page)

Evening was coming, and the Fauns brought down fruits from the trees and fresh berries from the mountain and sea biscuits from the water .and formed a feast. The visitors were invited, of course, and the food was very good. But Grundy remained pensive, not seeing any proper course.

As the shadows lengthened, Snortimer scrambled away. "That shadow!" he cried in Monster-tongue. "It's reaching for me!"

"But you're a creature of shadow," Grundy reminded him. "You live in darkness."

"I'm afraid of the dark!"

"Afraid of the dark!" Grundy was astonished. "What's the matter with you?"

"I don't know," the Bed Monster confessed. "But now I love the sunshine and can't stand the dark."

"But it's dark under your bed."

"The bed!" Snortimer exclaimed with horror. "Don't let it get me!"

"What's the matter?" Rapunzel asked.

"Snortimer's afraid of the dark, and doesn't want to go back under his bed," Grundy said, baffled.

She laughed. "Silly! It's the reverse-wood."

Of course! "Get rid of that sliver of reverse-wood," Grundy told the Bed Monster.

Snortimer tossed aside the sliver—and suddenly dived under the bed. He had reverted to normal, and could no longer stand the light. One mystery solved.

"Just let me make sure he's all right," Rapunzel said. She went to the bed, climbed up on it, then changed to human-size. She dangled her pretty ankles down toward the ground.

Snortimer grabbed. Rapunzel screamed and yanked her legs away. "He's all right," she pronounced.

But the Nymphs had noted this action. "Ooo, let me try!" an Oread exclaimed. She ran to the bed, plumped down on it, and dangled her legs.

Naturally Snortimer grabbed. "Eeeeek!!" the Nymph screamed happily, yanking her legs away.

Suddenly they were all doing it. The evening resounded with their joyous shrieks, squeals and giggles. One Naiad, being less agile on land, lost her balance when grabbed and tumbled under the bed. "Eeek!" she screamed. "He's all hands!" There followed a sound suspiciously like kiss- ing, and she rolled out and into the water, a broad smile on her face.

The Bed Monster, it seemed, was a success. But Grundy looked across to where Stanley lay, supposedly snoozing, and saw that the dragon looked a trifle greener than usual. For three years he had been the center of attention; now there was competition.

Grundy ambled over to the dragon. "Not that this is relevant," he said in dragon-talk, "but there's a little girl at Castle Roogna who only has eyes for one dragon."

Stanley sighed steamily. "Actually, I'd like to see Cas- tle Roogna again. But what would happen to these nice Fauns and Nymphs?"

To that Grundy had no answer. He returned to the bed, where the Nymphs were finally tiring of their sport.

"It's getting too dark," one explained. "We have to go to sleep."

And, shortly, all of the Nymphs and Fauns were sleep- ing in their various habitats, the boundless energy of their day becoming the easy repose of their night. Stanley posi- tioned himself across the entrance path so that he could intercept any intruders, and slept himself.

Jordan and Threnody settled down under an acorn tree. She was changing back to human-size; at the moment she was in the diffuse, ghostlike stage, having increased her size but not yet her mass; in another hour she would be solid again.

That left the bed for Grundy and Rapunzel. She had shifted back to golem-size. Her changes were instant, unlike Threnody's, but she had no other forms. There generally did seem to be a tradeoff, in magic; few people had it all, and those were Magicians or Sorceresses. Little Dolph could change instantly to any form, and therefore he was a Magician, destined to be King of Xanth if Ivy didn't want it.

"Hey, Grundy," Snortimer called from under the bed.

"Here," Grundy said.

"You know, we've found your dragon, but we haven't found romance for me. That was part of the deal, you know."

Grundy looked at Rapunzel, stricken. What could he say?

"Is he asking what I think he's asking?" Rapunzel asked.

"Yes. And I don't know what to tell him."

"Why, tell him the truth," she said. "He deserves to know, you know."

"But—"

Rapunzel said it for him. "Snortimer, it grieves me to tell you this, but there are no females of your species."

"I suspected that," the Bed Monster muttered, and Grundy translated. Snortimer could understand human- talk, as many monsters could, though he couldn't speak it.

"But I'm sure your life can be worthwhile," Rapunzel said. "Those Nymphs seemed to like you very well."

"But I can't stay here," Snortimer replied glumly. "It's Stanley's territory."

And so there was a dragon who would return to Castle Roogna, but could not, and a Bed Monster who would remain here, but could not. Xanth was full of ironies.

"Somehow, there's an answer for everything," Rapun- zel said consolingly. "I just know it."

She was somewhat nymphlike in her positive attitude. Grundy wished he could share it, but he could not. Being on a Quest was not as simple as he had imagined.

Then Rapunzel took his hand again, and almost he was able to believe that things were better than they were.

Chapter 14. A Bonnet of Bees

In the morning the Fauns and Nymphs roused, and flocked to see the visitors, just as if they didn't remember them. Stanley whomped over. "Every day is new for them," he explained in dragon-talk. "They don't remember overnight. That's why the goblins and ogres and things can raid; the Fauns and Nymphs never leam and take no precautions."

"They really need protection," Grundy agreed, per- ceiving the larger picture. Of course it wouldn't be right to deprive the community of its only protection. But how

could he return to Castle Roogna with his Quest unful- filled?

The Nymphs rediscovered the Bed Monster, and shrieked with delight as Snortimer grabbed at their attrac- tive ankles. Stanley turned a darker shade of green, but made no comment. The Fauns fetched in the morning feast of fruits and biscuits. Everyone was happy—except the visitors, who were cursed with memories longer than a day.

"If there is no solution," Rapunzel murmured, "maybe this would be a good place to stay."

"No!" Grundy said. "I have a Quest to fulfill, and you need to be restored to your own kind, whichever that is. There has to be a way."

"Of course," she said, somewhat sadly.

But in midmoming things abruptly changed.

There was an ominous humming from the entrance- trail. Soon it manifested as a swarm of B's, and by the
  
( sound of it, they meant no good.
                      
[

They were huge B's, similar to bees but larger and
  
I more magical. Each was a quarter the size of Grundy, and they had horrendous stingers. They spread out and dive-bombed the hapless Fauns and Nymphs. The attacked creatures screamed—then acted very strangely. One insisted on running out in front of all the others and staying there no matter what; another went to the rear of the group and would not be budged. A third started peering about, looking and looking as if he could not see enough. Another cried, "I have seen the light!" over and over. Another got down on the ground and tried to tunnel into it. All of them were doing such peculiar things that the others could not figure it out—until getting stung them- selves and taking off on their own peculiarities.

Jordan glared about, sword in hand, but this wasn't much good against the B's. "What does it mean?" Thren- ody asked.

"I think those are B's from a Have," Rapunzel said. "I have learned about them, but never seen them until this moment."

"A B-hive?" Grundy asked. "But all B's live in hives!" "A B-Have," she said. "That's a very special kind. When they sting, the victim be-haves in the manner dic- tated by the sting. It looks to me as if there are several types of B's here—a B-fore, a B-hind, a B-lieve, a B- neath, a B-hold—"

"Oh!" Grundy exclaimed. "The one who's trying to go before everyone, and the one going behind, and the one who sees the light, and the one trying to get down beneath—"

"And the one looking all about," Threnody put in. "That's the one stung by the B-hold!"

"And I see a B-seech, a B-side, a B-stir, a B-reave—" Jordan added.

"And a B-siege, a B-set, a B-tween—" Grundy added. "And a number of B-wilders and B-wails," Rapunzel

concluded. "But why are they attacking the innocent folk?" But now one of the insects was making a B-line for

Grundy. "Have you had enough, golem?" it buzzed in B-

talk.

"The Sea Hag!" he cried, catching on.

"Oh, no!" Rapunzel exclaimed in maidenly dismay. "She's still after me!"

"You can't have her. Hag!" Grundy cried. "I am not the Queen B," the B buzzed. "I am merely her messenger. She says the Fauns and Nymphs will suf- fer excruciatingly until the girl is returned to her." "What's she saying?" Rapunzel asked, distraught. "This is only a messenger with an ultimatum," Grundy said. "The Hag wants the usual. It seems she has taken over the Queen B, so these B's obey her."

"And they're going to harass the innocent creatures until she gets her way," Threnody said. "I know how she thinks. We've got to nullify her."

"This is my job," Grundy said. "I'll go to the B-Have and settle with her once and for all."

"We'll all go," Jordan said, touching his sword.

"You men are so headstrong and foolish," Threnody said. "If everyone goes, the B's will simply swarm in and sting us, and we'll spend all our time in weird activity and never get there. No, this has to be a covert operation, accomplished while most of the swarm is away from the Have. Probably Grundy could do it alone, if he could sneak away—"

"No! It's too dangerous!" Rapunzel cried.

"It's too dangerous not to try it!" Grundy said grimly. "Snortimer, can you get me out of here without being spotted by the B's?"

Snortimer didn't answer. It was day, and he was hud- dled under the bed.

Grundy went and got the loose sliver of reverse-wood.
  
I He tossed it under the bed. The Bed Monster caught it automatically—and came sailing out, suddenly afraid of the shadows. "I can do it!" he cried.

"Good enough!" Grundy mounted. "Keep them dis- tracted," he called to the others.

"But you'll have to do it by nightfall," Threnody called back. "Because then they'll return to their Have any- way—"

"By nightfall," he agreed. Then he hung on, as Snor- timer scurried for the ring of mountains.

They climbed the rough-hewn slope, Snortimer's hands readily grasping the crevices. Because they were off the path, the B's did not spot them. They circled around until

they could intersect the path out of sight of the swarm, then proceeded rapidly along it.

As they left the Retreat, Grundy began calling to the surrounding vegetation. "Where is the B-Have?"

"South," the vegetation agreed.

They bore south through increasingly rough terrain, dodged around a tangle tree, and came into sight of it: a huge hive in the shape of a lady's bonnet, hanging from a big branch. They stopped short, for a number of guard- ian B's buzzed around it. "I'll have trouble getting at the B in that bonnet," Grundy muttered.

"I could climb up the tree and rip it down," Snortimer suggested.

"And get hopelessly stung," Grundy retorted. "That's no good. I need to sneak in, seal it off, and then go after the Queen. I can fit inside; you can't." "It's dangerous," Snortimer reminded him. "Set me on the branch," Grundy said. "Then when I sneak in, you leap up and jam something in the entrance. Then get out of there before the B's catch you."

"You fools," another voice said. "That'll never work." Grundy looked around. There was a tremendous spi- der, with a circular web that spanned from tree to ground. "You know these B's?" Grundy asked in spider-talk. "I feed on them," the spider said. "But they're getting pretty canny, and now they avoid my web no matter how carefully I conceal it."

"Then how do you figure you know so well how to handle them?" Grundy demanded.

"I didn't say I knew how to handle them," the spider said. "I just know what won't work."

"That's not much help," Grundy said sourly.

"Why should I help you, anyway?"

"Because I could make it worth your while."

"How?"

"I could call some B's here, so you would have a sea- son's feast."

The spider's mandibles watered. "Ah, maybe I could

help you..." "How?" "I could give you some silk to let yourself down to the

entrance to the B-Have."

Grundy considered. "Not worth it. I'd just get stung

when I got there."

"I could give you a web-net to put across the entrance, so that you could prevent any B's from passing in and out; they can't handle that stuff. It tangles up their wings."

Grundy wavered. "So that once I got in, I could seal it off behind me. That does sound good. But I'd still have to deal with the ones remaining inside."