“It seems the Tower’s builders thought of everything.”
“They had centuries to do so, and enough powerful enemies to give them the incentive to be thorough.”
The sense of cold, implacable scrutiny increased as they marched closer to the gate, and then just as suddenly vanished as they passed within. Sardec made a careful note as they went through the archway. It was almost five yards deep. There were no signs of any doors at either end. It was as if they simply became part of the walls and vanished when they were not needed.
The courtyard around the Tower was massive enough to hold a regiment on parade but dwarfed by the structure itself. Its shadow chilled the air. There were buildings all around, of brick and quite obviously later additions. A host of cart men stood nearby, the unloading of their wagons forgotten as they watched the new arrivals with interest.
Green garbed soldiers were everywhere. An honour guard waited for them, ten times in number the size of the force Sardec had brought. As Lady Asea entered they presented their arms in salute with a precision that the Royal Guards themselves might have envied. Lord Ilmarec was sparing no effort to impress on them the power and efficiency of his retainers. Sardec had to admit that it was working.
As the last of his troops entered, the gates of the Tower closed behind them, sliding smoothly from within the walls, so that the entrance vanished as if it had never been. Well, thought Sardec, let us hope Lord Ilmarec is feeling friendly today.
If not, they were well and truly trapped.
Chapter Fifteen
Rik heard the doors close behind him. He felt trapped. His old thievish instincts made him deeply uneasy. No way out, he told himself.
They were outnumbered and outgunned. If Lord Ilmarec decided that now was a good time to do away with a rival mage there was nothing they could do about it except die heroically, and he had never been particularly enamoured of that idea.
Why had the Lady Asea come here, he wondered? Why had she put them in the power of some mad Elder Race-obsessed sorcerer? Had she a death wish?
Her calm beautiful face told him that if she was in the slightest intimidated, she was not letting it show. In fact her features lit up with a lovely smile, quite the warmest he had ever seen her give.
“Lord Ilmarec,” she said. “How pleasant it is to see you once again.”
A tall, lean Terrarch, silver-haired and smoothly beautiful walked towards them. His tread was feline, his movements perfectly controlled. Unlike most male Terrarchs he was bearded, a small goatee descended from his chin, as silver as his hair and his eyebrows. Two waves of hair curled up over his forehead, oddly horn-like, in a way that made Rik think of the depiction of demons. Lord Ilmarec bowed. “The pleasure is mine, Lady Asea.”
The newcomer’s smile was chilly, his teeth small and sharp looking. His clothes were elaborate to the point of foppishness and in a style that Rik had only seen previously on the ancient statues in the squares of Sorrow. Obviously this was not a Terrarch overly concerned with the latest fashions.
On his chest was a large amulet of silver and within it a green stone glowed. Rik had seen that colour before, in the woods near the Serpent Man ruins and on the tip of the Tower at night. The sight of it filled him with foreboding.
Behind Ilmarec was a figure entirely shrouded in robes. Cowls hid its head, voluminous sleeves covered its hands, the skirts of its robes went all the way to the ground so that not even its feet were visible. Its robes constantly rippled and bulged in odd places as if a nest of serpents fought within them. The thing did not seem to walk so much as glide. An odd, fusty leathery smell came from its direction when the wind was right. There was an air of terrible menace about the creature, the feeling that they were in the presence of some old supernatural evil.
Asea and Ilmarec went into the long exchange of formalities obligatory when two Terrarchs of their age and rank met. Rik paid careful attention to Ilmarec. Like Asea he wore power like a cloak. Even if Rik had not known he was a sorcerer he would have guessed it.
At last, when the bowing and speech-making was done, Ilmarec led them through the entrance of his Tower. Rik noticed there was another of those strange serpents carved over the archway. Its jewelled eyes glittered in a manner that reminded him of the gem on Ilmarec’s medallion. Every man who went before him shivered as he passed into the darkness, as if they felt the touch of some dark sorcery.
Rik felt nothing as he passed under the thing’s gaze but decided to pretend that he did, just in case anybody was watching. Under the circumstances, it seemed best not to stand out from the crowd.
The first things Sardec noticed when he stepped inside the Tower were the lights. They were of green crystal, set in the ceiling, and gave a soft glow that illuminated the place eerily. They seemed intended for creatures whose eyesight operated in a somewhat different fashion from his own.
The next thing he noticed was that the walls were oddly curved. Like the gates they resembled an oval cut off at the base. They ran through the walls of the Tower like veins. There was no brickwork, and it all contributed to the impression that the structure had somehow been moulded in one piece. The floor beneath his feet was not slippery although it was as smooth and glassy-looking as the rest of the material. He reached out and touched one wall with his fleshly hand. It was cool and smooth to the touch. How was this place kept warm in the winter?
They entered a large chamber. On one side was a throne. It rose from the floor seamlessly as if it too were a moulded component. Other benches, low and cool and comfortable, were arranged around the walls of a sunken amphitheatre in front of it. Ilmarec indicated by a gesture that Sardec and Asea should sit. The human soldiers could stand behind them. The sorcerer took his place on the throne, and looked down on them, a king studying petitioning subjects. The heavily robed figure took up a position just behind him. Servants entered bearing trays of refreshments for the Terrarchs. Once they were served, Ilmarec turned to affairs of state. They spoke in the old High Tongue so that none of the humans present could understand.
“It does my heart good to see you once more, Asea, but I suspect that this is more than a personal visit.”
“Lord Azaar had sent me to inquire about Queen Kathea. He believes she is being held within the Tower.” It was a shockingly blunt statement. Asea obviously felt no need to observe the niceties of diplomatic language. Under the circumstances, Sardec could not blame her. Time was of vital importance in the prosecution of this war. If Ilmarec was surprised, he gave no sign.
“My niece is here for her own protection, Asea. There are those who would kill her if they could. I would not have her join her poor father so swiftly.”
“It seems to me that your niece should be allowed to make her own decision in the matter.”
“I assure you she is here of her own free will.”
“I had heard some of her troops died trying to free her.”
“A misunderstanding. There are always hotheads in any army. Once the situation was properly explained to them, they saw the light.”
There were the undertones of an unpleasant joke in the way Ilmarec stressed the word light. Sardec thought of the green light at once, as, no doubt, he was intended to.
“I am here to make sure Kathea is with you of her own accord, that her decision was shall we say… unforced?”
Ilmarec smiled coldly. “As you and my old friend Azaar would undoubtedly allow her to make her decisions — as long as they suited your purposes.”
Asea was not the only one here capable of speaking bluntly.
“We would see her on her rightful throne.”
“As you saw Arielle on hers?” There was a note of mockery in Ilmarec’s voice.
Asea smiled. “Your manners have altered for the worse since last I saw you.”
“Pray forgive me, Lady. I did not mean to offend you but you see, you have offended me, by implying that my motives are somehow less pure than your own undoubtedly are. Believe me, I intend to see that my niece is safe and I have the power to ensure it is so.”
