'What would they do?' Taita asked.
'We will tear down this barrier, and let the Nile waters flow into our very Egypt once more.'
Taita smiled and stamped one sandalled foot on the wall beneath him. 'Kalulu has told us how hard and adamantine this stone is. Look at the size of it, Meren. It is many times bigger than all three of the great pyramids of Giza placed on top of each other. If you captured every man in Africa and set them to work for the next hundred years, I doubt they could move even a small part of it.'
'We should not take that strange man's word for how hard it is. I will get my men to test the rock with fire and bronze. Remember also, Magus, the engineering skills that raised those pyramids might be used to cast them down again. I see no reason why we should not be able to carry out the same feat, for we are also Egyptians, the most advanced culture on this earth.'
'I see some small merit in your arguments, Meren,' Taita agreed. Then something beyond the far end of the wall caught his attention. He frowned. 'Is that a building on the bluff overlooking us? I will put the question to Kalulu.'
They scrambled down the slippery rockface to where the dwarf sat on his litter surrounded by his bodyguards. When Taita pointed out the ruins he nodded brightly. 'You are right, Magus. That is a temple built by men.'
'Your tribe do not build in stone, do they?'
'No, that place was built by strangers.'
'Who were these strangers, and when did they build it?' Taita demanded.
'It is almost exactly fifteen years ago that they laid the first stones.'
'What manner of men were they.' Taita asked.
Kalulu hesitated before he answered. 'They were not southern men.
Their features were like yours and those men with you. They wore the same dress and carried the same weapons.'
Taita stared at him, stunned into silence. At last he said, 'You suggest that they were Egyptians. It does not seem possible. Are you sure they came from Egypt?'
'I know nothing about the land from which you have come. I have never been down the Nile even as far as the great swamps. I cannot say with any certainty, but to me they appeared to be men of your race.'
'Did you speak to them?'
'No,' Kalulu said, with feeling. 'They were secretive and spoke to no one.'
'How many were here, and where are they now?' Taita asked keenly.
He seemed to be watching the little man's eyes intently, but Fenn knew he was reading his aura.
'There were more than thirty, and less than fifty. They disappeared as mysteriously as they came.'
'They disappeared after the damming of the river with the Red Stones?'
'At the same time, Magus.'
'Surpassing strange,' Taita said. 'Who inhabits the temple now?'
'It is deserted, Magus,' Kalulu replied, 'as all the land for a hundred leagues around is deserted. My tribe and all the others fled in terror at these and other strange events. Even I took shelter in the marshes. This is the first time I have returned, and I admit that I would never have done so without your protection.'
'We should visit the temple,' Taita said. 'Will you show it to us?'
'I have never been inside that building,' Kalulu said softly. 'I never will. You must not ask me to go with you.'
'Why not, Kalulu?'
I
'It is the site of utmost evil. The force that has brought disaster upon all of us.'
'I respect your caution. These are deep matters and should not be undertaken lightly. Return with Meren. I will go alone to the temple.'
He turned to Meren. 'Spare no labours to make the camp secure. Fortify it well, and post a strong guard. When you have done that we will return to assay the hardness of the Red Stones.'
'I implore you to return to the camp before darkness falls, Magus.'
Meren looked jaundiced with worry. 'If you are not back at sunset, I will come to search for you.'
As the bodyguards hefted the litter and followed Meren, Taita turned to Fenn. 'Go with Meren. Hurry to catch up with him.'
She stood to her full height, arms behind her back, mouth set obstinately. He had come to know that expression well. 'There is no spell you can weave to make me leave you,' she declared.
'When you scowl you are no longer beautiful,' he warned her mildly.
'You cannot imagine how ugly I can be,' she said. 'Try to rid yourself of me and I will show you.'
'Your threats unman me.' He could scarce prevent himself smiling.
'But stay close to me, and be ready to form the circle at the first malevolent emanation we encounter.'
They found a path that climbed the bluff. When they reached the temple they saw that the stonework was beautifully executed. The entire building was roofed with hewn timber planking, over which had been laid a thatch of river reeds that was collapsing in places. They walked slowly round the walls. The temple was laid out on a circular foundation, about fifty paces across. At five equidistant points tall granite stele had been built into the
