partake of the Font.' She was talking more to herself than to him.
'The Font?' he asked.
'No matter.' She realized her lapse and glossed over it. 'Take no notice of an old woman's idle chatter.' She did not look up, but continued her examination.
Taita opened his Inner Eye, and saw that the fringes of her aura were distorted, a sign that she regretted mentioning the Font. Then he saw the distortion clear, and her aura harden as she closed her mind to further questions he might ask about it. Clearly it must be one of the deeper secrets of the Guild. He would bide his time.
Hannah completed her examination of his chest, then stood back and looked squarely into his eyes. 'Now I must examine the injuries to your manhood,' she said.
Instinctively Taita reached down with both hands to protect himself.
'Magus, you are a man entire in your mind and soul. Your flesh is damaged. I believe I may be able to repair it. I have been ordered to do so by an authority I dare not gainsay. You can oppose me, in which case I shall be forced to call for my assistants and, if necessary, for Colonel That Ankut and his men to assist me. Or you can make it easier for both of us.' Still Taita hesitated. She went on quietly, 'I have nothing but the deepest respect for you. I have no wish to humiliate you. On the contrary, I wish to shield you from humiliation. Nothing would give me deeper satisfaction than to be able to repair your injuries so that you may command the respect of all the earth for the perfection of your body as well as that of your mind.'
He knew that yet another temptation had been placed before him, but there seemed no way in which he could resist it. In any case, if he co-operated it might carry him one step closer to Eos. He closed his eyes and raised his hands from his groin. He crossed his arms over his chest and lay quiescent. He felt her lift the skirts of his tunic and touch him lightly. Unbidden, the lascivious images that the imp had placed in his mind returned. He clenched his teeth to prevent himself groaning.
'I have finished,' said Hannah. 'Thank you for your courage. I will send my report to the Council with Colonel That Ankut when you leave us tomorrow.'
Tomorrow, he thought. He knew he should have been relieved and happy to be escaping from this hell that masqueraded as paradise. Instead, he experienced the opposite emotion. He did not want to leave, arid he looked forward eagerly to being allowed to return. Eos was still playing shadow games with his mind.
It would be another hour before the sun showed above the wall of the crater, but Colonel That and his escort were waiting in the stable yard when Taita and Meren came out of their quarters, Meren carrying their bags. He slung his on to the bay, then went to Windsmoke and strapped Taita's behind her saddle. When Taita came to her, the mare whinnied a greeting and nodded vigorously. Taita patted her neck.
'I have missed you also, but they must have been feeding you too much dhurra,' he admonished her. 'Either that or you are in foal again.'
They mounted and followed Tinat's troop out through the colonnade and across the lawns to the lake's beach. Taita turned in the saddle and looked back as they reached the point where the path entered the forest.
The sanatorium buildings seemed deserted: there was no sign of life except the plumes of steam rising from the vents of the flues that carried the hot waters from the springs under the floors. He had expected that Hannah might come to see them off, and was mildly disappointed. They had shared unusual experiences over the previous weeks. He respected her learning and dedication to her calling, and he had begun to like her.
He faced forward again and followed the escort into the woods.
That rode ahead with the vanguard. He had spoken to Taita just once since they had left the clinic, to exchange a brusque, formal greeting.
Taita felt his unnatural desire to remain in the Cloud Gardens recede as they approached the entrance to the tunnel through the crater wall that led into the outer world. He thought of being reunited with Fenn, and his spirits soared. Meren was whistling his favourite marching song, a monotonous, tuneless sound, but a sure sign of his good humour. Taita had grown accustomed to it over the thousands of leagues that he had listened to it and it no longer irritated him.
As the gates of the tunnel appeared, That fell back and rode beside him. 'You should don your cloaks now. It will be cold in the tunnel and freezing on the far side. We must keep together when we reach the
entrance. Do not straggle. The apes are unpredictable and can be dangerous.'
'Who controls them?' Taita asked.
'I do not know. There was never a human being in sight when I came this way before.' Taita studied his aura and saw that he was telling the truth.
He avoided the brutish stares of the apes as they drew level. One hopped forward and sniffed his foot, and Windsmoke skittered nervously.
The other two bobbed their heads aggressively but allowed them to pass.
Nevertheless, Taita sensed how close they were to violence and how easily provoked to attack. If they did so there was nothing he could do to restrain them.
Taita stooped forward in his saddle as they entered the mouth of the tunnel and the hood of his cloak brushed against the rock. As before, the tunnel seemed endless, but eventually they heard the dismal howl of the wind and saw fitful grey light ahead.
They emerged into the austere, magnificent grandeur of the mountains, so different from the beautiful serenity of the Cloud Gardens.
The apes crowded round them, but reluctantly they shuffled and hopped aside to let them pass. They rode out on to the pathway and into the scourge of the wind. They huddled in their leather cloaks, and the horses lowered their heads to plod into the gale. Their tails streamed out behind them, their breathing steamed in the icy air and their hoofs slithered on the ice.
That was still beside Taita and now he leant towards him until his lips were level with Taita's ear. 'I have not been able to speak to you before this, but now the gale will cover our voices,' he said. 'I do not know which of my men has been set to spy on me. It goes without saying that we can trust nobody at the sanatorium, from Hannah herself downwards. They are all spies for the oligarchs.'
