Sabastian's eyes moved to Paul, and a single 70 William Greenleaf CLARION 71
bushy eyebrow rose slightly. Selmer Ogram cleared his throat and offered his brief explanation for Paul's presence. Sabastian nodded his acceptance and turned to select another cylinder from the basket beside the table.
'Thank you for coming back,' he said. This brought no response from Doriand. Selmer Ogram disappeared into the cave and returned with two folded chairs. He set them up near the table and offered them to Paul and Doriand. He and Karyn sat facing them on a log that had been placed near the fire pit. Ogram clasped his hands between his knees and looked through them at the ground. Karyn's eyes were on Doriand.
'I'm sorry we had to ask you to come back,' Sabastian went on. He plugged one end of a cable into the cylinder, and the other end into a small instrument he had placed in front of him on the table. He frowned, unplugged the cable and began removing the cap from the cylinder. 'It wasn't an easy decision. I had hoped you would find a new life on the outside.'
'I did. Selmer said you need my help.' Sabastian looked up at Doriand, holding the cylinder shell carefully between thumb and forefinger. 'There are only five of us left. Schaefer and Michelson are dead. And Cleve Quinton.'
'I know,' Doriand said quietly. 'Cleve was first witness when Diana and I were married. Selmer said Cleve saw something come out of the chauka during the semarch ceremony.'
The old man reached for the bladed tool again.
'Cleve wore a fartalker, and Karyn and Jacque were listening outside the wall. Cleve relayed what he saw until the deacons found him and killed him.' He twisted the tool and the end popped off the cylinder, exposing a web of tiny wires. 'He may have been hallueinating. We know he was under great stress.'
'This happened during a religious ceremony?' Paul asked.
Sabastian nodded. 'Semarch—when the young men are initiated into the Sons of God.'
'Then you're probably right,' Paul said. 'About Cleve Quinton hallucinating, I mean. From what I've heard, that's fairly common among some religions. People get worked up to the point they may see anything.'
'Perhaps.'
Paul was more interested in something else
Sabastian had said. Erich Frakes had mentioned it also—a Tal Tahir machine. 'What's the chauka?'
'The chauka is the most sacred of Tal Tahir artifacts,' Sabastian said. He went back to work on the cylinder and made a delicate adjustment with the tool. 'It is inside the temple of the Tal Tahir, and only the deacons and elders of the Holy Order are permitted to see it. According to legend, it is used to summon Lord Tern from beyond the Far Peaks.'
'Selmer told me the Tal Tahir are all dead. As you said, this man Quinton must have been hallucinating. Why is the chauka so important to you?'
'The chauka is a symbol of Lord Tern. If we destroy it, the people of Fairhope will see that the Holy Order is not invincible. We hope they will learn to control their fear of the Holy Order and turn against it.'
'Why do you need Doriand?'
Sabastian connected the cylinder to the instrument and frowned at the result. Once again he began prying gently at the cap. 'I hope Doriand will agree to go into the sacred chamber and try to discover what Cleve saw during the semarch ceremony.' Paul issued a grunt of surprise. 'After what happened to him? How can you expect—'
'Cleve saw something that he thought was Lord 72 William Greenleaf CLARION 73
Tern,' Sabastian said in the same quiet tone. 'We want to find out what he saw. I have always believed that the ceremony was merely a ritual. Now I am not so sure.'
The statement confused Paul. 'Are you saying you think Lord Tern may really exist?'
'I am saying only that I want to leam what I can about what Cleve saw inside the sacred chamber.'
'But if Lord Tern is a fabrication of the Holy Order—'
The old man turned to look at Paul. 'It may be that what we have taken as myth and lies is actual fact. It may be that Lord Tern lives inside the temple.'
Paul shook his head. He felt as if the conversation had drifted off somewhere and left him behind. Doriand sat silently beside him.
