The Seven Swords (15 page)

22 - IN WHICH MERLIN APOLOGIZES FOR BEING AN INSENSITIVE WIZARD

Artie and Kay tried to
reconnect with Kynder on the iPad for about ten minutes, but it was pointless. Apparently the network at the Library was down. They didn't know what to do, but a short while later the iPad chimed, and Kay rushed to it.

“Is it Kynder?” Artie asked.

“Naw. It's Merlin,” Kay said unenthusiastically.

Artie stepped next to her and took the tablet. He swiped it on and accepted the chat invite.

“Merlin, I don't—” Artie began.

“Wait,” Merlin said, holding up a hand. “Before you get mad at me again, let me speak. I want to apologize for the way I've behaved. I can see that you are devoted to Qwon, and committed to saving her, even, it seems, at the expense of reaching Avalon.”

Artie frowned. “Go on.”

“Being a king is hard, isn't it, Artie?” Merlin asked.

“You can say that again.”

“All people with responsibilities like yours face the same problem at one time or another,” Merlin continued. “Sometimes you have to choose between what's right and what's smart.”

Artie considered this for a moment.

“What's he talking about, Art?” Kay asked.

Artie looked at Kay. “I want to save Qwon. I
have
to save Qwon. That's the right thing to do. But going to Avalon is the
smart
thing to do.” Artie let out a long sigh. “I mean, the fate of the worlds hinges on my getting there! Is Qwon really more important than that? Should I want to save her more than I want to go to Avalon? More than I want to become king?”

Kay blew out her cheeks. “Man, I never thought of it that way.”

“I think I can help, Artie,” Merlin consoled him. “There's a word—one I'd forgotten and that used to be very closely associated with the first King Arthur—that perfectly describes your desire to save your friend.”

“What is it?” Artie asked.

“Noble,” Merlin said with an air of gravitas.

Noble.
Artie liked that.

“Like kingly,” Kay observed.

“Yes, Kay, like kingly. But it's more than that. It means honorable, moral, principled. Only the best kings are noble in both rank and in spirit. You, young Artie Kingfisher, in spite of your misguided wizard, embody both of these perfectly.”

Artie leaned closer to the screen. At that moment he knew what he would choose, and he understood that the decision to save Qwon
was
smart. It was smart
because
it was right. After that he would figure out what to do about the rest of his mission.

“Thank you, Merlin,” Artie said.

“Thank you, sire, for being so patient with me,” Merlin said.

Artie clapped his hands. “So now that we're agreed, and we've gotten Bors's report, what do you think is the best way to go about getting Qwon? Should we follow Bors's advice and wait till tomorrow or use the map he provided, sneak into Castel Deorc Wæters, and attempt to whisk her away now?”

“I still think it foolish to try a special-ops rescue,” Merlin said. “But I do think we can support his escape plan by distracting the witch. And the best way to do that, I believe, is by going for Kusanagi now.”

Kay huffed, “So, what? Nothing's changed then?”

Merlin shook his head. “No, Kay, everything's changed. From here forward, saving Qwon will be our primary purpose.”

Artie nodded slowly. “Okay, but if Qwon is priority number one, why bother with Kusanagi?”

“Because it will vex the witch. Morgaine will sense that we are pushing forward for another of the Seven. This will preoccupy her and should help our friends.”

“So off to Japan, then, eh?” came a voice directly behind Artie and Kay.

“Tom!” Kay said, jumping from her chair. “You scared me!”

“Hello, Mr. Thumb,” Merlin said. “Lovely to see you. We were just discussing Qwon's blade.”

“I heard,” Thumb replied. “Looking forward to going to Japan. I've read a lot about it.”

“It should be quite an adventure,” Merlin said with a wink.

Kay pointed at the iPad. “Hey, none of that winking stuff between you two.”

Merlin chuckled. “Mr. Thumb will go over everything else. The blackout Bors desires for his escape tomorrow requires my attention. Things are happening quickly now, sire. We mustn't tarry.”

“Roger that, Merlin,” Artie said.

Merlin hesitated. “Before I sign off, do you mind if I ask what you were discussing with Kynder?”

“He said he thinks Mordred isn't our enemy but our friend!” Kay blurted, unable to contain herself.

Thumb made a choking sound. “Amazing!” Merlin said. He stroked his long sideburns for a moment, considering this news. “Did he say
why
he thinks this?”

This was an essential question for the wizard. Merlin knew that only a short while ago Kynder had abandoned his keeper stone. He didn't know why or how this had happened, but he was pretty miffed about it. If Kynder no longer had the stone, then he might have told Artie the secret that Merlin had made him promise not to reveal: that Morgaine was the one who'd made him. If Artie knew that, Merlin was afraid that Artie would begin to question his allegiance to Merlin, especially since Artie was on record as feeling manipulated by the wizard.

That wouldn't do. If it happened, Merlin's entire plan would be compromised.

Artie shrugged. “Naw, he wouldn't say. Just called it a gut feeling.”

Merlin fought an urge to breathe a sigh of relief and said, “Interesting. I don't know if Kynder is right, but since we now know Mordred holds the Peace Sword, it may not hurt to exercise some restraint next time you see him.”

“I'll try to keep that in mind,” Artie said.

“All right. Off to Japan, then!” Merlin said. “Once you're back, we'll decide on our next move.”

“All right, Merlin. Good luck with the blackout,” Artie said. “Over and out!”

The wizard swiped his finger across the screen and disappeared.

Artie looked at Kay and said, “I guess we should see what this thing has to say about Kusanagi, huh?”

“Yep. I'll do it,” Kay replied, opening the sword app. “Let's see. Kusanagi. Really old, originally found in the body of an eight-headed serpent. Went missing for a long time. Some believe it's in a place called Atsuta Jingu, others think it was lost at sea. Says here it's actually in a mysterious Otherworld shrine that can only be accessed from a remote Japanese national park called Shiretoko.”

“The Shrine of Horrors,” Thumb interjected matter-of-factly.

“Oh, wonderful,” Kay said. “Is it guarded by some psycho giant too?”

Thumb shrugged. “Unknown, lass. The Shrine of Horrors is a shadowy place. The monocle from Qwon's house is supposed to help us find the crossover that leads to it.”

Artie nodded and said, “Get some rest, both of you. I'll tell the others about the plan and we can meet here at three a.m. Be ready.”

23 - IN WHICH ARTIE AND COMPANY VISIT JAPAN

The moongate twirled open in
a clearing on a steep mountainside.

The party fanned out. To the east was a sheer thousand-foot drop that ended in the sea. To the west and north were dense woods. Beyond the woods they could make out a few snow-tipped mountains. To the south was a slice of forest far below, dotted with small, tear-shaped lakes. The deciduous trees were just beginning to turn and the air was crisp and clean.

Artie put Thumb, who'd reverted to his small version, on his shoulder. “Let's go that way, lad,” Thumb said, pointing north to a low break in the trees. When they got there they peeked into the woods, finding a narrow path. At their feet was a rock the size of a basketball, and etched into this rock were some very old-looking Japanese characters. At the base of the rock was a tuft of long black hair.

Artie asked, “Anyone read Japanese?”

“A little,” Thumb said. “That is the character for ‘spirit,'” he continued, pointing with his red cane. “I believe the others say something like ‘turn away,' or maybe ‘behind you.'”

“Weird,” Kay said.

“Hey, Art, why don't you use that eyepiece thing?” Erik suggested.

“Duh.” Artie fished in a pocket. He pulled out the monocle and held it to his eye.

The world looked the same. Artie spun in a few circles, squinting through the crystal, waiting for something to happen.

“Everything's the same.”

“Try tilting it, lad,” Thumb suggested.

Very slowly Artie angled the lens back over his eye. When he got it just right, he stopped and exclaimed, “Oh!”

“What do you see?” Erik asked.

“It's hard to say. Tom, what is this thing?”

“It doesn't have a proper name, but its glass allows you to see through to the other side. Tilted just so, you're looking into the Otherworld. In essence, you can see the spirit world of Japan with that little thing. It has been in the Onakea family for a long, long, long time.”

“Cool,” Artie said. “But we're still in this world, right?”

“Correct, lad.”

“Wait!” yelled Artie. “I saw something move!”

“What?” Kay asked as Lance nocked an arrow.

“Don't worry. It was small. Come on, guys. Follow me.”

Artie lowered his spear and ducked into the woods. The rest of the knights followed, with Lance bringing up the rear.

Artie and his crew hunched over as they walked through a tunnel of tightly packed trees and saplings. The path led up, and after a hundred feet, the ground became very steep and choked with roots.

The path twisted and turned as they ascended. Artie recognized the trees as they changed from mountain ash to Asian spruce. The group passed an especially old and regal-looking pine tree, its gnarled bark carpeted with lichens, which seemed to mark some kind of boundary.

“Did it just get, like, way colder?” Kay asked, as they came to a stop just past the pine.

“Yeah, it did,” Erik said.

Artie raised and lowered the monocle a few times. “Weird.”

“What is it?” Thumb asked.

“The worlds look . . .
exactly
the same,” Artie said.

“Hmm,” Thumb murmured. “This world and the Otherworld must be identical in this place. Can you still see whatever it was we were following?”

Artie put the glass to his eye again. “Yeah, it's right up there.” He pointed at a child-sized rock about twenty feet away.

“It'd be nice if you told us what it is, dude,” Lance said.

“It looks like a fox. And you know what? I think it's waiting for us.”

“A fox, you say? Do you mind if I have a look, lad?” Thumb asked.

“Not at all, Tommy.” Artie held the monocle in front of Thumb's face. “You see it?”

“I most certainly do!” Thumb exclaimed. “That's a
kitsune
!”

“A what?” asked Erik.

“A spirit. In Japan almost everything—from monsters to chopsticks to toilet stalls—has a spirit associated with it.”

“Is a
kitsune
a good spirit, Tommy?” Kay asked.

“Yes,” Thumb said simply. “Try calling it to you, lad.”

Artie brought the monocle back to his eye and made a series of clicking noises. The fox's ears turned toward the noise, then it stood and trotted down the path. To the others it was invisible, but as it got closer Artie saw that it had red eyes and golden hair. It also had several tails.

“Tom, check this out.” Artie shifted the monocle back to Thumb.

The little man looked through the lens and said, “My, this is an old
kitsune
. The more tails they have, the older they are.”

“Let me see!” Kay said impatiently. Artie passed her the eyepiece, and all the knights took turns observing the curious spirit.

Erik went last. He passed the lens back to Artie, who stared through it again and, acting on a hunch, said, “Hey,
kitsune
! Kusanagi!”

The fox whined and nodded its head. Then it turned and ran down the path.

“Whoa, little dude's fast!” Artie said.

“Follow it!” Thumb said.

They took off, Artie directing them which way to go as he tracked the strange animal. It kept its distance and often disappeared, but never for long. After a while it led them off the path on an easy bushwhack that lasted about ten minutes.

Finally they reached flat ground and a little clearing. On the far side a wall of pine trees stood like sentinels.

Artie peered through the lens but couldn't find the fox. “It's gone,” he said a little wistfully.

“That may be,” Thumb said, “but it led us where we need to be. Look there!” Thumb pointed at two perfectly round black stones set in the earth right at the base of the wall of pines.

“The crossover!” Kay said.

“Indeed, lass,” Thumb replied.

Artie took Thumb from his shoulder and placed him on the ground. Then he and Kay went about opening the crossover with the pommel. The crossover formed just like all the others, only this time the space beyond the portal was pitch-black.

Artie leaned in. He saw a clearing dotted with little paper lanterns. Hanging from the trees here and there were multicolored cloth banners covered with Japanese characters. And at the end of the clearing, also hanging from a tree, was the glinting steel of a Japanese katana.

“That's it,” Artie said, but when he spoke he could hardly hear his own voice.

Weird.

He pulled back from the archway and turned to his knights, who were all yelling at him.

“What the heck, Art?” Kay said. “It was like you leaned into a pool of black ink.”

“Yeah, we couldn't see you at all!” Erik said.

“Chill, guys, it's fine in there. I can see the sword—and the shrine doesn't look horror-filled at all,” Artie said. “The sound's a little strange, though.”

“Anything else in there?” Thumb asked.

“Not that I could see,” Artie said. “Just a bunch of lanterns and a few banners.”

“Nice,” Erik said with relief.

“Respect, fox!” Kay said into the woods. “Thanks, wherever you are.”

“All right, then,” Artie said, readying his spear just in case. “Let's go and get Kusanagi.” Then he turned and disappeared into the blackness, and his knights bravely followed.