Mirror 04 The Way Between the Worlds (51 page)

work. The floor was covered in an exquisite carpet of knotted silk. The room
was full of the scent of books and scented woods, and stuffed to the gills
with volumes that he would have given his right arm for. It made all his
trials worth while. He wished he could work here forever.
Llian turned the pages of his journal, found the translation, took a swig of
wine from his flask and then conjured the
appropriate page of Tales of the Aachim into his mind. He compared the two.
They were the same, but one phrase still bothered him.
There will appear an instrument (khash-zik-makattzah) and if a way can be
found to use it, Santhenar can be . . . redeemed. But at the end the
instrument will be lost. Previously he had translated khash-zik-makattzah as
three-and-one - the flute! But it might have meant three plus one, which he
could make no sense of, or thirty-one, or with a bit of imagination, one into
three, one-third - neither of which had any meaning that he could fathom.
Mendark had dismissed all those possibilities. Llian recalled the earlier
conversation to mind.
'The three means the flute,' Mendark had said, 'for it was the product of
three worlds: gold of Aachan for the body of the flute; precious ebony of
Tallallame the other parts of it; and the genius of Shuthdar, who was from our
own world, that conceived and made it. And the one is the sensitive who will
use it to unstitch the Forbidding and restore the balance between the Three
Worlds. But at the end the instrument will be lost. Does that mean lost, or
destroyed?'
Perhaps that had been wishful dreaming on Mendark's part. Was it three in or
into one, or one made out of three? It was impossible to tell. It must have
made sense to the people who wrote it, but Llian did not know the language
sufficiently well to he sure of his translation. He went looking for Tensor
but could not find him anywhere. Going back to the library past Mendark's
apartment, Llian heard the sound of a flute playing, the same notes over and
over again, as if Mendark was struggling to master a complex melody. He was
always playing the flute these days.
Putting the journal aside, Llian returned to his other puzzle - what had
really happened when Rulke had been imprisoned in the Nightland. Now he could
not make sense of this story either. Disgusted with his stupidity he drank the
rest of the wine; put his head on his arms and fell asleep.
Almost immediately there was a great clamour outside.
Sticking his head out the door Llian saw Shand, Yggur and Tallia running up
the corridor in a great flap.
'What's the matter?' Llian shouted.
Mendark jogged up from the other direction, clad in a nightgown of blue satin.
'What's going on?' he demanded. He looked a lot younger than Llian felt.
'Maigraith has gone again!' cried Shand. He was very distressed.
'Go on!' said Mendark darkly.
'I had Karan watching over her, for Maigraith has been abusing her ability
with gates. Unfortunately she got away in the night and made a gate from the
top of the roof. Karan went after her.' He gave Llian an unhappy glance. 'I'm
sorry, Llian. It was a strange sort of a gate - it didn't look right. Karan
jumped into it at the last minute and they both disappeared. I'm dreadfully
worried.'
Llian hung on the door handle, staring into nowhere. It was all beginning
again.
'Have you any idea where they went?' Mendark asked, and when Shand did not
answer at once he shook him by the shoulder. 'Have you?'
Shand pushed Mendark's hand away, though without rancour. 'I thought the gate
was directed to Carcharon, though surely their true destination is - '
'What?' cried Mendark, and he suddenly looked uneasy. 'Where?'
'Shazmak!' said Yggur explosively. 'Maigraith's destination is Shazmak. She is
going to Rulke.'
They stared at each other, then Mendark spun around and ran for the stairs.
'She's taken the flute!'

'Wait!' Yggur yelled after him. 'How could she get through all those guards?
Anyway, Tallia has gone down to make sure.'
Mendark came back. 'I need more time!' He paced the corridor. In a few minutes
Tallia came running up.
'The flute's safe in the bakehouse. I saw it! Neither the guards nor the
Aachim have seen Maigraith.'
'So they say!' Mendark said darkly. 'All along I've been right about Karan.
She's gone over to Rulke too.'
'Your wits have left you,' said Yggur.
'Still, they don't matter. The flute is all that matters now.'
'I wonder,' said Yggur. 'I doubt that we were ever on the right track with
this flute. I should have trusted my instincts instead of allowing you to
manipulate me. Better we put our faith in arms, and besiege Shazmak before he
can build up his strength.'
'You talk big but you never do anything!' Mendark said. 'We've got to use the
flute and seize his construct. Shazmak can never be taken by force.'
'Only by treachery,' said Llian, remembering. 'Well, you go your way and I'll
go mine!' said Mendark. 'But I'm not ready.' He shook his head in agitation.
'I'm failing at the final hurdle.'
They separated, each going off on their own frantic business. Llian went back
to his work but was too worried to think straight. He desperately wanted
someone to talk to but everyone was too busy, even Shand.
The day dragged on. It was impossible to think for worrying about Karan. In
the late morning Shand came in and slid a long piece of paper across the
table.
'Here you are. It took a lot of trial and error, but I've put the syllables
into what I believe are the correct words.'
No sze gwi ta sha mu no dzo ta dzo gwu cho ksi lo sze mo nu mu bu gi sze gwi
gwu je ru she ksi cha vo gw'uh wi no sze ta mo va mu bu cho ksi kso fe mo nu
mu gw'uh gwu ta dzo lu u lo gwi ksi lo gi mu qa kso je e i dzo ta dzo mu no
she nu che mo lo cha kso pi lu ta gwu va nu vo cha ru gwi sze ya ta sze pi no
sze lo je mu gwi ta sha sze e.
Nosze gwitasha mu nodzo tadzo gwu choksi losze monumu
Bugi szegwi gwuje rushe ksicha vo gw'uh wino szeta mova mu
Bucho ksiksofemo numu gw'uhgwuta dzolu'u lo gwiksilo
Gimuqakso je'e i'dzo
Tadzo muno shenu chemo locha ksopiluta
Gwuvanu vocha rugwisze yatasze pinosze loje mu gwita-shasze'e
'What a strange language!' Llian exclaimed. 'What does it say?'
'That's rather more difficult, not least because the word order seems quite
different from the syntax in our language.'
'You know the Charon speech, don't you?'
'I used to,' said Shand. 'I had the best teacher there was, though I dare say
I've forgotten most of it now. I've an inkling what this means, but let's work
on it together.'
Some hours later, they had come up with the following awkwardly translated
lines, which observed the same word order as Shand had set out.
Held closed is reflecting plate but hides inside key Look in interior come
what you require to see there is Take in hand firstgift be fooled nevermore
Far-seeing device truth tell
Lamented lost homeworld (repeat words) mine
Wheel stopping-point hanging from one is three-parted
'Reflecting plate means the Mirror,' Llian mused. 'Therefore,
surely the first line is a restatement of the paradox ...' He
trailed off. Shand was staring into space, paying no attention.
'Shand?' said Llian. He shook him by the shoulder. 'Shand?'
Shand floated back to reality. 'Save yourself the trouble,
Llian. I know what it says.
'The Mirror is locked, but within lies the key Come, look inside, see what you
want to see Take hold of your birthright, you will see true Then the Glass

cannot lie to me or to you Tallallame, oh my Tallallame Your fate does rest on
the one which is three
'I understand it now; it's the verse Yalkara called out as she went through
the gate, that I couldn't quite catch at the time. She must have been making
sure that Aeolior could use the Mirror when the time came, even if it tried to
lie to her.'
'So she was meant to have Yalkara's gold in hand when she used the Mirror,'
said Llian.
'Then the Glass cannot lie to me or to you. And without it, the Mirror surely
has lied to her.'
'And led her to Shazmak. To Rulke!'
'Yes,' Shand said, crushed. He sat at the table for a very long time, head
bowed, then rose to his feet and slowly went out.
Llian suddenly had an inspiration. 'Shand!' he called out
urgently.
'What is it now?'
'Remember Yalkara's book that was . .. stolen and burnt?'
Shand's head jerked up. His green eyes pierced Llian. He
was quick! 'You young scoundrel!' he said.
'I had Lilis make a copy, and it was the copy that was stolen.'
'And you want my help to translate it.'
'You said you'd do anything in your power to help me. Besides, I'm doing it
for Maigraith. Are you too busy?'
'Yes,' said Shand, 'but I'll find the time. It's a much more difficult
project, though. No doubt you know why.'
'The script on the Mirror contained only thirty-three different glyphs, and
there are a lot more in the Charon syllabary.'
'Ninety-eight, as it happens, but the ones we know are the most common ones.
And I can probably work out a few more. Shall we begin?'
They worked in Shand's rooms, more pleasant because Shand fed him at
intervals, and Llian found the old man's help invaluable. Despite his
protests, Shand had forgotten very little, and from the context they were able
to work out the meaning of quite a few more glyphs. By the evening they had
finished the first page, which seemed to be a synopsis of the book.
'Read it aloud,' said Shand, and Llian did so.
Shand stood up. 'This turns everything upside down.'
'Everything!' Llian bent his head to the book again.
Around midnight, seeking a respite from the translating, Llian went walking
outside. At the front door of the fortress he ran into Tensor, who had been
checking the guards at the bakehouse. Tensor looked surprisingly friendly. But
then Llian already knew how mercurial he could be.
'Chronicler! You've come about Karan!'
'Karan?' said Llian, wondering what he was talking about.
'Just before she went, she asked me if there were any secret ways into
Shazmak. I told her about the fifth way. She did not mention that to you?'
Llian had a distant memory of Karan slipping into his bed, but that was all.
So they had gone to Shazmak! 'No, I
came to ask you about the reading I made from Tales of the Aachim.'
'I wondered about your boldness in translating our work without consulting us.
But it does not matter anymore. Quote me the passage.'
Llian did so. 'The phrase I was unsure about was khash-zik-makattzah. I
translated it as the-three-and-the-one, which Mendark took as a sign that the
flute must be remade.'
'I wish I'd known that before we began the flute,' said Tensor. "That
translation cannot be right.' 'Then what is it?' cried Llian. 'It's not
ihe-three-and-the-one but the-three-in-one.' 'The triune,' said Llian, feeling
a chill run down his back. 'The triune!' Tensor echoed.
Llian opened his mouthbut nothing came out. His stupidity had condemned
Maigraith, and Karan. 'Then I've made a terrible mistake. The triune is
Aachan, Tallallame and Santhenar; Maigraith is the instrument! And the

instrument will be lost in restoring the balance. Or ... does it refer to
Karan?'
'I don't know, chronicler.'
Llian ran back up to the library. The Mirror had lured Maigraith to Shazmak.
If the foretelling was correct she would die there and probably Karan with
her. He spent the rest of the night going through his notes and his memories,
but could shed no further light on the matter. In the early hours he put his
head on his arms and dozed. Then, dreaming about Mendark's Tale, suddenly all
the pieces clicked into place. In the chilly clarity of the pre-dawn he saw
the deceit in the story, but which one was it, Mendark or Yggur?
He worked through the evidence until the dawn light came through the windows.
There was little doubt, but he must confirm it. I used to be able to move
people with my teller's voice, he thought. I'll push Mendark as far as he can
be pushed, and then we'll see what happens. If that doesn't work, I'll try
Yggur. If I survive Mendark's fury!
Llian sent a messenger boy down to find Mendark, Yggur and Shand, asking them
to come to the library, for he had made a great discovery.
'What is it?' Yggur asked impatiently, the first to arrive.
'Something of great interest to you. The greatest interest,' said Llian.
A spark ignited in Yggur's eyes, but he asked no questions.
Lilis came trotting in. She had come up to fetch something for Nadiril. 'Stay
for a while, Lilis,' said Llian. 'You may hear something of interest to
Nadiril.'
Eventually Mendark appeared, the last. 'Well, what have you dragged me up here
for?' He sounded crotchety. He looked as if he had been up all night.
Llian noted that Mendark had begun to age already. Two frown lines were etched
across his brow. 'I've made two discoveries,' said Llian. 'Here is the first.
Tensor has put me on the right track at last.'
'Tensor!' growled Mendark. 'Already you stretch your credibility. Well, get on
with it! Time is precious.'
'My translation from Tales of the Aachim was wrong,' said Llian. 'The
instrument was not the-three-and-the-one, the flute, but the-three-in-one, the
triune. And it is the triune that will be lost.'
'So the flute need never have been made,' said Yggur. 'I was right after all.'
'Yes,' said Llian.
'Nonsense!' said Mendark. 'Anyway, we have it now and we will use it.'
'But Maigraith has gone to Shazmak,' said Llian. 'If she tries to restore the
balance she will be lost.'
'Restore the balance!' Mendark's voice dripped sarcasm. 'What a load of
mumbo-jumbo! This confirms what I've long suspected - our master chronicler is
a fraud. He is a teller, a voice, but there's not much wit behind it. No
wonder he's incapable of making my tale.'
Llian had had enough. 'Do not call me fraud, you charlatan'.'
He leapt up on the table. 'Do you want to know why I cannot tell his tale?' he
cried. 'Because it is a lie Mendark made a thousand years ago and has
cunningly reworked ever since. A deceit that has tainted the Histories since
the day Rulke was imprisoned into the Nightland.'
'Calm down, you two,' said Yggur. 'Llian, no one who was not there during the
Clysm can understand what it was like. Rulke was too powerful, with his
city-construct of Alcifer. If we had not stopped him we would have been
enslaved just as the Aachim were. It was worth any price, even the Proscribed
Experiments.'
'And the failure of the Experiments?' asked Llian. 'He was too strong!'
shouted Mendark. 'Not even the whole Council could stop him.'
'That's true as far as it goes,' said Llian, using his voice on Mendark and
taking pride in the reactions that he was forcing and, hopefully, the truths
that would soon be revealed. 'But that's where the great lie began. Would you
like to hear the real truth, Yggur?'
Yggur was enjoying Mendark's discomfiture more than anything since the
Elludore disaster. 'Indeed I would!'