‘You used the reversesequence to give closure to the dead.’
‘I didn’t think youbelieved in the gods,’ said Miranda.
‘I don’t believe inthat particular sequence of events. It’s too neat and too much infavour of the people that run the temples. It doesn’t fit in with alot of the things I’ve observed. For example, it says that animalsdon’t have spirits. Many people in Panmagica would believe thatslime creatures like Logicons were animals if they saw them outsidetheir metal body shells, yet I swapped spirits with one. Anywaythis is not a good time to discuss religion. What about thetreasure - shall we look for it or run from the threateningdanger?’
‘Your creation storydiffers a little from mine. In the druid’s story both the animalsand plants also have spirits, however, you’re right about this notbeing a good time to discuss such things. Let’s go for thetreasure, and then I’ll make you a nice dinner; and I might eventhink about the second.’
‘Good then, let’s getto it. I’m hungry already,’ replied Aquitain, feeling at last thatshe was responding to him. Yes, she was beginning to like him. Hewas sure of that and he was amazed at her, just simply amazed. Howcould he have been so lucky to find such a wonderful, exciting,resourceful woman that didn’t see him as a monster? Logically hestarted calculating the odds. Hmm. It didn’t add up, but he didn’tcare at the moment. Maybe he would have to think more about thissome time.
**
Half a league awayWizard Fental reported to High Priest Kelnor.
‘I flew down to the catshrine as you requested, Your Holiness. The gully in which the catshrine is located was clouded by fog. The column of smoke weobserved rose out of the fog. I flew through the smoke and it smeltlike burning bodies, so I assume that someone was incinerating thebodies of those within the shrine. I circled around for a fewminutes and the smoke ceased. I decided to wait a little longer andthe fog suddenly cleared. I flew down close to the entrance to theshrine and found that the terrible feeling of fear that was presentis now gone. I suspect someone has exorcised the place, and theymay still be in there. Oh, there was one more thing. There seems tobe a Logicon body shell in the centre of the clearing.’
‘A Logicon! By theGods, it could be that renegade bastard that we’ve got the Archonlooking for. If we can catch him ourselves we won’t have to paythat damned Archon. Sergeant, gather six men for a skirmish andreport here for teleport in five minutes.’
‘Priest Percival, youhave the honour of leading this group. It’s time you did more thansell pox cures to the local prostitutes. Hide the men at the bottomof the track to the rear of the village until Wizard Fentalreports. Wizard Fental, fly back and watch to see if anyone comesout of the shrine, then report on what you see to Priest Percivaland the sergeant. If they head down the track ambush them. Capturethem alive if possible, but if they resist you have my permissionto kill them. If they don’t come out within half an hour take themen and investigate the shrine.’
‘Yes, Your Holiness,’said both Percival and Fental together.
Chapter 18 The ambush.
Aquitain asked Alpha togo outside the entrance to the shrine and keep watch while hesearched for the treasure and Miranda attended to the dead druid.He retrieved his ball of chaos matter and reformed it into a chunkynecklace and placed it around his neck. He used his power to detectmagic and carefully scanned the space, and on seeing nothingobvious slowly walked around, carefully examining the walls and anyalcoves for signs of doors or passageways.
Miranda hurried over tothe dead druid. The body was badly decomposed but she recognised itfrom a necklace and other items it wore as belonging to a femaledruid whom she had met several times. She gathered the woman’smaterial possessions into a straw basket and laid them to one side.She then stood and sang a prayer for the woman, and finally anotherbeseeching the Lady to take her spirit to a better place. A columnof flame descended upon the druid woman’s body and burnt it toashes in seconds. Miranda looked around for some cloth andcollected the ashes into the cloth, tied it into a package andplaced it in the basket with the rest of the woman’spossessions.
Aquitain continued hisexamination of the walls until he had worked his way right aroundthe whole interior of the cave, but found nothing.
‘I was sure that theremust be a passage, a secret doorway or hole out of here to somespecial place where they hide their treasures, but there doesn’tseem to be anything magical or otherwise at floor level that I canfind. What is the trick? How have they disguised it?’ he said, moreto himself than to Miranda.
‘Maybe its buried underthe floor,’ she offered.
‘Perhaps and perhapsnot,’ he said and moving to the centre of the room looked aroundfor any clues.
‘I’m a little person, Ican’t fly, I can’t use magic, I’m primitive but not stupid, I likecats because ... they protect me.’ And his gaze stopped on thelarge face of the cat painted on the wall; he noticed that justbelow the jaw of the image there was a stone ledge about threepaces up from floor level. He visually followed the ledge aroundthe room until he spotted what he was looking for, a place wheresomeone small could climb onto the ledge.
‘I think I’ve got it,’he said, shape changed to his Logicon form and slithered up thewall to the cat face, reformed to his newman form standing on theledge, and examined the painting of the mouth closely. There was afaint gap around the edge of the mouth. He looked carefully and sawa minute depression, pushed it and a small doorway through themouth of the painting opened into darkness beyond.
‘Behold, a passagewayto a treasure trove,’ he said to Miranda with a cheesy smile.
‘Where you a thief backin Panmagica? You seem to be well versed in thief skills,’ Mirandanoted helpfully.
‘No, but a wizardartificer learns many useful skills with
