piper again. 'But no one hates rodents more than I. I want to see them gone. They have given the town of St. Ronges an air of decrepitude that I don't want it to have. Particularly since His Lordship of Richemulot, the noble Claude Renier, will be visiting us anon.'
'Perhaps a demonstration of my musical prowess will help you decide whether to employ me or not,' the piper suggested.
The burgomeister scanned the faces of the council members. They all seemed interested. 'Yes. I think that is an excellent suggestion. Councilman Dragova mentioned the rats in his wine cellar before. Why don't we go there and put your alleged powers to the test?'
The piper bowed flamboyantly. 'I am at your service.'
Klaus and his council stood up, and they and the piper headed out the door. But two guards, both heavily armed, blocked their path.
'What is the meaning of this?' Klaus demanded angrily.
The guards separated, and Claude Renier stepped between them.
'I am,' Renier said, smiling. 'My itinerary has changed, Klaus, my friend. I trust my early arrival will not inconvenience you?'
Nervously, Klaus answered,' Er. . no, Your Lordship.'
'You and your fellows seem headed on an important mission,' Renier continued. 'I would love to accompany you. So rarely do I get to see one of my town councils in action. What is the nature of your mission?'
Klaus tugged at his collar in order to loosen it and wondered how to explain where they were headed. 'I'm afraid it's rather mundane, milord.'
'Speak, man!'
'If I may be so bold, Your Lordship,' the piper interjected. 'The citizens of this good town are having a rodent problem. I was about to demonstrate my technique of extermination.'
His Lordship smiled. 'Oh. Rats, eh? And this is a major problem, is it Klaus? '
'I'm afraid it is. They will take over if we do nothing.'
'Will they?' Renier laughed. 'Will a rat rule Richemulot someday? Who knows? In any event, I would very much like to see this young man's demonstration, so I will accompany you. Please, lead on.'
'A-As you order, Y-Your Lordship,' Klaus stuttered, and the group of men set off toward Councilman Dragova's home.
As they walked through the streets, a beautiful young woman, unseen by the group, wondered where her grandfather, the Lord of Richemulot, might be headed with such a sorry group of men. She resolved that she would follow them, but would do so in secret.
All of the men, including Claude Renier, assembled at one end of Dragova's rather extensive wine cellar. Lighting yet another candle, Dragova himself pointed at several partially emptied bottles of port and cried,' Look. The foul beasts have eaten through the corks, damn them. '
Then, unnoticed by everyone except Lord Renier, a white mist seeped into the room and moved behind several casks of amontillado at the far corner of the cellar.
'What in heaven's name is that foul odor?' the burgomeister said. 'Do you keep sewage down here, too, Dragova?'
The odor faded, the mist dissipated, and, unseen by all but the Lord of Richemulot, a female human form materialized behind the distant casks. Lord Renier concealed a smile when he realized it was his granddaughter Jacqueline.
'It is time, gentlemen,' the piper said. He turned to Renier. 'With your permission, Sire?'
Renier nodded as the piper stepped to the center of the cold cellar and began to play. Soon, the melody of his pipe was accompanied by the squealing of still-hidden rodents. Suddenly, he stopped for a moment. 'Mister Dragova, please be so good as to bring me some oil.'
Dragova grabbed a container and put it down by the piper's feet. 'Here.'
The piper resumed his playing, and although the men found the tune quite irritating and repetitious, rats began to crawl out of all corners of the cellar and assembled practically at his feet. Klaus and the councilmen were pleased at the sight; Lord Renier watched unemotionally; and Jacqueline, still hidden, frowned.
The musician continued to play with one hand as he squatted and, with his other hand, opened the container of oil and poured it on and around the seemingly intoxicated rodents. Then he took a lit candle and dropped it in the center of the group of rats. The flame encircled them, trapped them, burned them, but the piper's song was powerful enough to keep them from running away.
Their fur, their flesh, burned, and the cellar became filled with the horrible odor of living flesh being burnt from its bones and the terrifying sound of hundreds of squealing, choking creatures.
The men covered their mouths with handkerchiefs; Jacqueline Renier, too, covered her mouth, but it was to suppress a cry of pity and anger. For among the creatures who were painfully dying were several of her friends, including the rat who had bitten the burgomeister.
The flames themselves died a bit, and through them Jacqueline saw the charred, ashy remnants of the rodents. The sight was too much for her. Her human form faded and within seconds the white mist she had become blew out of the cellar, out of Dragova's house, out into the street.
An hour later, Jacqueline Renier sat by the shore of the river. She tossed stones into the water and watched them splash. A figure sat down beside her and kissed her on the cheek.
'My darling girl, it is so good to see you,' Claude Renier said. 'Actually, I saw you before. . at that fool's house.'
She kissed her grandfather's hand. 'It is good to see you, too. But I must admit I was puzzled by your presence there. That. . musician's magic is quite amazing.
It is repulsive and, I might add, dangerous. Suppose I had been in rat form. Would I have fallen under the spell? '
'That is difficult to know, my dear. But clearly this piper is a potential danger to you and others in our community. Would you like to take care of this matter, my dear, or would you prefer I handle it?'
Jacqueline wasted no time answering. 'Grandfather, I would like your permission to give this piper a demonstration of my own magic.'
Claude looked in her eyes and saw the true meaning of her words: her demonstration would rid Richemulot of the piper forever. 'Very well,' he said. 'But allow me to pass on this information to you. After you left, Burgomeister Nellak gave the piper a thousand gold coins in advance for his services. The piper will come here — to this river — tonight at midnight, and he has promised that every rat in the community will be drawn here by his song. He further promised that, under his spell, all of them will then march into the river and drown. Perhaps you might want to visit with him prior to that. '
Jacqueline kissed her grandsire's hand again. 'Thank you. I will waste no time preparing for the piper's. .surprise.'
Claude Renier stood up. 'I must go, my darling girl. You must come see me more often.'
'I shall,' she promised, standing up next to him. He nodded and winked his eye; then he mounted the horse his two guards held steady for him, and they were off.
Jacqueline turned back toward the river. She shook her head and said,' Only one creature will suffer tonight!'
Gauzy clouds whipped by the midnight full moon like a series of ghosts. The air was chilly by the river, and the sounds of the approaching men echoed everywhere. About a hundred yards from the river, the piper raised his hand, and the burgomeister and two of the city council members halted. 'You must stay here,' he instructed. 'I will need full concentration tonight. I must not be distracted. And certainly you won't want to be in the path of the throng of onrushing rats.'
The burgomeister's face registered disgust. 'I should say not!'
'Very well,' the piper continued, drawing his flute from his belt,' then I shall proceed with my task. 'He took a couple of steps toward the river, but stopped and turned his head back to the town leaders. 'And I shall expect the other thousand gold coins when I am finished.'
