A few Ehn later, there was a sharp, ringing sound, resulting one supposes from the striking of one of the small bars, to the sounds of which the Lady Bina, amongst other festal tokens, had been welcomed to the Cave.
Timarchos and Lysymachos then emerged through the curtain and, one on each side, drew back the curtain, revealing a passage behind it.
I did not know how deep the passage was. It was dark.
In a moment I thought I sensed something within the passage, back in the darkness. I rose up a bit, off my heels, and strained my eyes. Then I was afraid, an Ihn or two later, that there was indeed something there. Then I heard a sound which was difficult to interpret, like a metallic scratching, interspersed, now and then, with a sudden, quick sound like a wheel of rotating metal spokes moving on tiles.
I was then sure there was something in the passage, but it had stopped. Then it had moved rapidly forward, then stopped again. I saw a glint of metal. It was a machine of some sort. At least it was not alive. Then it darted forward, onto the dais, and I screamed. Other kajirae, too, screamed, or cried out, startled, in fear. Then I heard a cry of pain as one of the kajirae was seized by the hair, and had her head forced down to the floor. It was a machine, clearly, but, in a moment, I was not so clear that it might not be alive. It was poised on the dais, alertly, and then sank downward, resting its belly on the dais. It had four eyes, or eye-like things, two mounted on its front, and two on metallic stalks which were lifted above the body, and could rotate about. The thing, then, could look behind itself without turning its body. The Kurii present, including Grendel, were unperturbed. One gathered they had seen this, or things like this, before. Oddly, though it was merely a machine of sorts, they accorded it respectful attention. It is difficult to describe the machine, which seemed so animate one might almost have thought it alive, even conscious, even intelligent. It had a generally crab-like look about it, a flattish, rounded, heavy, disk-like, metallic body, four jointed appendages in virtue of which it might move, and, most crab-like, emerging from the body on each side, two large, metallic arms, each terminating in giant bladed pincers. There was also, in the front of the body, below and to the sides of the lower eyes, those not on stalks, two capped apertures, the function of which I did not immediately discern.
Timarchos, and then Lysymachos, began to chant in Kur, and this chant was taken up by the Kurii in the room. Then, a few moments later, Lysymachos began to utter a series of short noises, and each of the attending Kurii responded to each of these noises with the same, brief response. Meanwhile the eyes on the stalks lifted and surveyed the room. I sensed them peering at Grendel, briefly, and then I half froze when I sensed them pointing in my direction, and was relieved, overwhelmingly, when they slowly, gracefully, moved to another perspective. One had the sense that the machine, unconcerned with the chanting, and the subsequent utterances with their unmistakably repetitive, identical, rote response, was noting, and counting, each form in the room.
I heard another note on the bar, and the room was then quiet, redolent with an expectant silence.
I began then to feel hair rising on the back of my neck, and on my scalp, and forearms.
Noises, clearly Kur noises, though with a sense of having been artificially produced, had begun to emanate from the machine.
One had the unmistakable sense, a terrifying illusion, that the machine was alive, though one knew this to be impossible. Something, however, somehow, was surely controlling the device, expressing itself through the device, perhaps perceiving through the device.
Dialogue apparently took place, largely between Lucius, Timarchos, and Lysymachos, and the machine. Certainly they spoke to it, regarded it, and treated it, as though it were alive, rational, conscious, and such. And, too, it seemed to regard them, relate to them, and interact with them, eerily, as though it were sentient, conscious, and rational.
At one point the machine addressed itself to Grendel, who rose in response to its attention. It spoke for a short time to Grendel, and, at one point, Grendel stepped back, startled, seemed almost to fall, and began to tremble. He did not seem frightened, but I had never seen such a reaction in the beast. Then, after a bit, at the conclusion of the machine’s address, he resumed the crouching position, so common to Kurii at rest.
There was then a commotion in the rear of the room, as a door was opened, and, in the threshold, feeling about, appeared, to my amazement, a figure I well recognized, one with which I had, in the past, become familiar, that of the blind Kur, whom we have decided to call Tiresias. It was prodded forward by two iron-chain Kurii with pointed sticks. By means of these sticks, striking and jabbing, Tiresias was guided to the foot of the dais, where he stood, lost, and forlorn, turning his head about, as though he were trying to see through the seared holes in his face. As he had been driven forward the other Kurii had hastened to clear him a path, as though they were loath to make contact with him.
He was addressed by the machine, to the utterances of which he made no response, but crouched down, and lowered his head, as though in shame.
Lucius then scrambled forward and began to snarl and hiss at Tiresias, and address him violently. He then struck at him, and then, carefully, firmly, perhaps ceremoniously, clawed him, on both sides of his face. There were then twelve streams of blood about the side of the Tiresias’ face. Tiresias made no attempt to resist, protect himself, or retaliate. Then all the Kurii in the room began to direct what I took to be abuse on the injured Kur. Grendel, too, sprang up and contributed to the opprobrious uproar, and it was only then, when this was done, that Tiresias reacted. He turned his bleeding, eyeless head to Grendel, and then, with his wide paws, covered the holes where his eyes had been, as though he could not bear to see what he might have seen, could he have seen. Tiresias was then, with the sharp sticks, striking and jabbing, hurried from the room.
While this took place the machine had been quiescent, though, I supposed, from the gleam of the eye-like things, not unaware of what had occurred.
Next two Kurii came before the machine, and stood before it, side by side, each, in turn, with great agitation, addressing it. One of the Kurii wore a silver chain. The other wore an iron chain.
When they were done, the machine, which had shown no sign of interest or emotion during what I took to be the protestations of either, turned slowly toward the Kur who wore the silver chain. It began to back warily away. Then it howled, as though in rage.
I do not know if it would have fled, or not, but it had no opportunity to do so. The two capped apertures below and to the side of the lower eyes, those mounted in the face or chest of the machine itself, snapped open and two, javelin-like, barbed darts burst out, each trailing a light, supple metal cable. These darts caught in the chest of the Kur, who wrestled to draw them forth, but, a moment later, he was drawn stumbling forward, toward the dais, as the cables were being reeled back into the machine. He was thus brought within reach of the gigantic pincer-like claws of the machine. I turned my head away. I only looked back in time to see that the silver chain, now dripping blood, had been removed from what lay about on the dais, and was being, by Lucius, put over the head of the other Kur. It was no longer an iron-chain Kur. It was now a silver-chain Kur. Timarchos and Lysymachos placed garlands on the shaggy head, and the assembled Kurii, including Grendel, rose up, and, as nearly as I could determine, congratulated, and saluted, the Kur about whose neck there now hung, I supposed for the first time, a silver chain.
I felt sick.
I wanted desperately to rise up, and flee through the halls, back to the slave quarters.
A noise came from the machine, and Grendel rose to his feet, facing the machine.
Many of the Kurii leaned forward.
The machine then, again, began to speak. It spoke for more than three or four Ehn. Now and then, at the conclusion of one phrase or another, several of the assembled Kurii uttered sounds which I took to be sounds of agreement, or approbation.
Following the remarks of the machine, or those which were transmitted by means of the machine, Lucius brought forward a golden chain, which he placed over the head of Grendel. He then brought forth two garlands, giving one to Timarchos and one to Lysymachos. Each of these Kurii then placed his garland on the head of Grendel. Following this the assembled Kurii rose up, and, as nearly as I could determine, congratulated, and saluted Grendel.
I scarcely noted, in the celebratory milieu, that the machine had backed away, vanishing down the dark corridor behind the dais. Timarchos and Lysymachos, who seemed to attend on the machine, went behind the curtain and drew it shut.
After a time Grendel and I alone were in the room. He stood, and I looked up at him, from my knees. There was a golden chain, with a translator, looped about his neck. On his head were two garlands.
