ESKENDEROM, KING OF KROAXIA AND DIVINELY ORDAINED PROTECTOR of the Lifemaker’s True Faith, rested an elbow on an arm of his throne and glowered down over his hand while he listened. Bowed over one knee at the foot of the steps before him, Skerilliane, the spy, made a flourish in the air with his arm. “In tame dragons as long as the palace is wide, they fly—many twelves of them at a time. In strange, wheeled beasts the size of houses, through the streets of Menassim, they ride. They conspire in secret league with Kleippur, and outside the city they conduct rituals among the machines of the forest with the tame creatures and magic vegetables. They are formed from burning fluids contained in soft casings, and they share thoughts without impediment of distance, though they utter no sound.”
Eskenderom brooded while he absorbed the information, then lifted his head and turned to look questioningly at Horazzorgio, who was standing to one side of the steps. One of Horazzorgio’s imaging matrixes was covered by a plastic cap, and a welded plate blanked off the hole left by his missing arm. “The beings and the creatures that serve them, I have seen not,” Horazzorgio said. “But the dragons are the same as those of the Meracasine, and the smaller spy-dragons are the ones that swooped upon us, spitting lightning bolts and hurling fire. The violet radiance too is the same.”
“What is the substance of the discourse that beings such as these would enter into with Kleippur?” Frennelech inquired from the High Priest’s seat, a level below the throne and to the right.
“My informants have overheard much talk among Carthogia’s counselors and officers of forbidden arts and the unholy powers that are sought by heretics and accursed ones,” Skerilliane replied. “Carthogia places itself at the Dark Master’s disposal as a sanctuary for his servants and the base from which he would enslave the world. Many worshipers of evil who have forsaken enlightenment to serve him through his worldly lieutenant, Kleippur, are being conscripted to the task—Maker-of-Maps Lofbayel and Asker-of-Forbidden-Questions Thirg being among just the most recent additions.” Horazzorgio’s remaining imager glowed angrily at the mention of the names. “And now, it seems, the Dark Master has provided Kleippur with further aid as compensation for Carthogia’s limited size and means,” Skerilliane concluded.
The King looked at Frennelech. “So—Kleippur’s Dark Master sends dragons from the sky to aid him. I see much energy expended on pomp and pageantry by the priests of Kroaxia, Serethgin, and the other nations of the Sacred Alliance; I hear endless praying, chanting, and supplication. Where, then, are your Lifemaker’s dragons?”
“In the face of adversity, faith shall overcome,” Frennelech quoted in reply. “It is a test sent to try us. We must not waver.”
“Does the faith of the Waskorians help them to overcome in their struggle to throw off Kleippur’s yoke? I equipped them generously and sent our best combat officers to instruct them, but in their last encounter with Kleippur’s soldiers they were decimated. The new Carthogian weapon that can hurl a pellet of steel from thrice the range attainable by the strongest dartsman would appear more efficacious than a mountain of dreary books or an eternity of incantations.”
“Dragon-beings’ weapons,” Horazzorgio muttered, fingering his shoulder unconsciously. “I know well of those too.”
Frennelech looked uncomfortable, but before he could reply, Mormorel, the King’s Senior Counselor, who had been pacing slowly to and fro as he listened, turned suddenly and moved to the center of the open floor below the throne and raised his hands to draw attention. Skerilliane straightened up and moved respectfully back while the others turned their heads curiously.
“It is possible that our alarm is premature,” Mormorel said. “For what, precisely, is it that substantiates the assumption—which none of us has questioned—that these dragons are indeed emissaries of the Dark Master? That they bear beings possessed of skills unfamiliar to us, we know; that they are from regions unreported by our farthest-ranging travelers and explorers, we know. But more of whence they come and why, we suppose much and know nothing. Is it not possible that, rather than having been sent from some supernatural realm for the advancement of sinister designs upon the world, they too could be explorers, who find it expedient to enter into bargain with Kleippur for rendering that which is of value to him in return for that which they in turn have traveled far to seek?”
A silence descended around the throne room while the others digested the implications of Mormorel’s observations. “The news that Kleippur was receiving powerful foreign aid could prove a strong source of inspiration and resolve for our people,” Horazzorgio mused. “They have long been mystified by the inability of the Alliance armies to conquer tiny, stubborn Carthogia.”
“What would beings such as these seek in lands such as ours?” Eskenderom asked doubtfully.
“No amount of speculation will tell us that,” Mormorel replied. “But whatever the answer, can Carthogia offer anything that cannot be obtained in greater abundance from Kroaxia’s vaster territories or produced more cheaply by our more numerous slaves and laborers? Thus we can better not only whatever bargain Kleippur has made with these dragon-beings, but also any improvement that lies within his power to offer.”
“Mmm...” Eskenderom sat back and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. A gleam slowly suffused his imagers. “If the dragon-beings’ aid can make such a difference to puny Carthogia, it would make a nation like Kroaxia...”
“Invincible,” Frennelech completed in a distant voice.
Mormorel saw that he had made his point. He gave a slow, satisfied nod, and looked from one to another of the faces around him. “Invincible not only against Carthogia...but, should the occasion arise, against Serethgin, Corbellio, Munaxios—all of them.”
Another short silence fell. Then Frennelech pronounced in a voice that was suddenly more sure of itself, “It is divinely ordained! The Lifemaker has sent the dragon-beings from beyond the Barrier as His instrument to carry the True Faith to all corners of the robeing world. We are the chosen bearers of that instrument, which the Dark Master, through Kleippur, is attempting to misdirect. The quest we are set is to initiate contact with the dragon-beings and discover what the Lifemaker has directed them to seek. Thus has He chosen to reveal to us His will.”
Eskenderom looked at Skerilliane. “Has anything that you saw or heard provided indication of what the dragon-beings seek from Kleippur?” he asked.
“Nothing. But it was not my purpose to look for such.”
“Then it shall be your purpose now,” Eskenderom declared. “Your assignment is to return to Carthogia immediately and discover what the dragon-beings wish in return for their aid. You are empowered to speak on behalf of the Kroaxian Crown to express its desire for a direct dialogue, and to make appropriate offers as guided by your own discretion to secure the attainment of that end.”
“I shall begin preparations at once,” Skerilliane said.
“One of your officers is to go too,” Eskenderom told Horazzorgio. “Skerilliane may have need of a soldier’s expertise. Also, I would like to hear the opinion of a military professional who has observed these dragon-beings firsthand.”
“I request the King’s permission to accompany him myself,” Horazzorgio replied at once. Eskenderom frowned, reluctant to make an issue of his captain’s condition. Horazzorgio saw the King’s gaze travel from his eye to his arm. “If I can return alone from the Meracasine, on foot and wounded, then surely I can survive it accompanied, mounted, and recovered. Neither will Skerilliane’s mission be jeopardized, for my personal interests in this matter will more than make up spiritually for what has been lost physically.”
Eskenderom looked at him for a moment, and then at Skerilliane. “You shall be the judge, for yours is the casing that will be at risk, not mine. Would you have confidence in Horazzorgio as your companion? Speak truly, spy. This is not a time to permit fear of personal insult to affect judgment and prudence.”
“The spy should be never seen and never heard,” Skerilliane answered. “Of what importance is the appearance of he who exists not? Indeed, such business is more often hampered than assisted by a penchant for deeds of recklessness and daring, which Horazzorgio has ample reason to avoid. I have every confidence in the prospect of our association.”
The King looked at them for a moment longer, then nodded. “So be it.” He stood up from the throne and descended the steps before it, then stopped as an afterthought struck him, and looked back at the High Priest. “I suppose you’d better pray for their success,” he said, and with that turned and strode away.