‘Whether it lasts depends on how long we’re holed up here. Actually, timber’s abundant. I’m more worried about victuals. Water’s all right; we have wells. But food could be a problem. Darrok built up a store of dried goods, but there’s not a lot in the way of fresh produce, particularly in winter. There’s fish, of course, though the waters are getting too dangerous for that.’
‘You still think there’ll be an invasion?’
‘Nothing’s made me think otherwise.’
‘Can we hold out?’
‘Truthfully?’
‘I always expect you to tell me the truth, Reeth.’
‘Of course. Then…probably not.’
‘Oh.’
‘But that’s on paper, so to speak. As I said, people can be inventive when they’re up against it. They can be incredibly brave, too. And all sorts of things could turn the tide in our favour.’
‘Like finding the Source?’
‘You know I’ve got hopes pinned on that for myself, but we shouldn’t rely on it to save us. We don’t really know what it is, and I might not find it.’
‘You’ve always been one for going against the odds, Reeth.’
Caldason smiled. ‘Maybe. But I try to be prepared when I do it. Talking of which, I wish you’d let me teach you some sword craft.’
‘I’m not sure I’m really cut out for that.’
‘Anybody can pick up a few pointers, and you’re young and reasonably fit. I’d feel better if you had some basic self-defence skills, given what’s coming.’
‘Well, perhaps you could teach me a few essentials. But I think magic serves me better.’
‘Force of arms is more likely to be the deciding factor in defending the island. Magic might not be much use.’
‘They’ll be using it against us, won’t they? We have to have a way of countering that. You’ve such a strange attitude to the Craft, Reeth. On the one hand you hate magic, and on the other you look to it for salvation.’
‘Only because I’ve no choice. But we’re not talking about me, we’re talking about what’s happening here. I’ve been in a lot of conflicts, and most of them have been settled with blades, not magic.’
‘Magic shapes our world, Reeth. It can do stupendous things. That was something I first saw when I wasn’t much more than a baby.’
‘What did you see?’
‘Melyobar’s flying palace. I was with my mother, I think. I can’t remember. But I’ve never forgotten the palace. It must have been…I don’t know; a long way off, and the sun was setting behind it, brilliantly red. It was fabulous.’
‘I can imagine that would leave a mark on a child.’
‘So much so that when Master Domex came to take me away I wasn’t so unhappy about it. I mean, I hated leaving my mother and everything, but I thought we’d be making palaces fly.’ He grinned. ‘It wasn’t quite like that, of course.’
‘I remember a time before the palace was built. Actually saw it under construction if I recall.’
‘I keep forgetting how old you are, Reeth. It must be weird having memories going back that far.’
‘You might have far-reaching memories yourself one day,’ the Qalochian replied dryly, ‘if you’re lucky enough to live to an old age. But if your best example of what magic can do is a madman’s folly-’
‘It isn’t. I’m just saying it can do astonishing things.’
‘Like subjugating the population? Stupefying them with illusions? Corrupting their values?’
‘That’s not magic’s fault. It’s the people who use it. In the same way you’d use the Source for good if you found it.’
‘And how are you going to change human nature?’
‘I think people can be good if they’re given the chance.’
‘There are always the bad, Kutch, no matter what you do.’
They were arriving at the redoubt. The renovation and fortifying work on the stronghold was almost finished, though scores of people still laboured there.
Caldason drew the cart to a halt. As they climbed down, he added, ‘The truth is I prefer the honesty of blades. Magic’s too damned complex, apart from anything else.’
‘Not once you’re attuned to it,’ Kutch told him. He looked around and spotted a small pile of logs. ‘See.’ His hands performed an esoteric gesture. He gazed intently.
One of the logs shuddered slightly. A corner lifted. Then the log rose from the heap and hung in the air. Kutch moved his outstretched finger. The log aped it, swaying from side to side as though floating on agitated water. A second later it dropped back onto the pile with a dull thud.
From the look on Kutch’s face it had been a physical effort. He turned to Caldason and beamed.
‘Impressive. But it’s hardly going to stop an invasion fleet, is it?’
Caldason headed for the fortress’s cavernous entrance. Kutch followed, seething.
A wide central corridor bisected the building’s ground floor. The door they were making for, near its far end, led to a dining hall. Before they reached it, they heard raised voices close to hand. Familiar voices, coming from a room they were about to pass. Reeth and Kutch exchanged a look. Caldason opened the door.
‘…and I say there’s no justification for it!’ Serrah raged. She saw them come in and stopped.
Darrok was there, his disc perched on a bench. Pallidea stood beside him.
‘Reeth,’ Serrah said. ‘Good. You’ll back me on this.’
‘Back you on what?’
‘That.’ She nodded at a large open chest sitting on a table.
He walked over to it, Kutch in tow. The chest was crammed with fist-sized cloth pouches. One had been slit. Inside was a quantity of tiny, almost translucent, bluish-white crystals.
Kutch was puzzled. ‘What is it?’
‘Ramp,’ Caldason said.
‘Yes, fucking ramp,’ Serrah confirmed, near incoherent with anger. ‘It’s Zahgadiah’s.’ She glared at him.
‘What’s going on, Darrok?’ Caldason said.
‘Nothing anybody need get worked up about.’
‘Really?’ Serrah hissed dangerously. ‘How do you figure that?’
‘I’m not denying it’s mine. Or the island’s, strictly speaking.’
‘I knew you’d been a rogue in your time, but I thought even you’d draw the line at dealing in this shit.’
Darrok held up a hand. ‘Hear me out,’ he grated. ‘I don’t like it any more than you do. But the fact is I inherited it. Well, more accurately it came as one of the assets when I bought the island.’
‘Assets? This stuff killed my daughter!’
‘I know, Serrah, and I’m sorry about that. But you have to understand the nature of the Diamond Isle. People paid fortunes to come here. Or they used to, in its heyday. In exchange they expected to indulge in whatever experience took their fancy. Ramp was one of the things they wanted. But I never offered it. They had to ask.’
‘But it’s illegal.’
‘Not here. Ordinary laws never applied to this place because we’ve always been outside any state’s jurisdiction. The only rules were the ones we imposed ourselves. Actually, I guess that’s why some guests wanted ramp. You know, the allure of something they couldn’t safely get at home. For most it was plain curiosity.’
‘That’s how it started with Eithne.’
‘She was a child, Serrah,’ Darrok replied gently. ‘I’m talking about adults. People mature enough to make their own decisions.’
‘It’s a fine distinction. And it’s not one my old employers back in Gath Tampoor made. For all their many faults, they had no tolerance for ramp traffickers. Fighting those people was part of my job, remember.’
‘Do you know where ramp came from?’
‘Came from? What do you mean?’
‘It’s not a natural substance, you must know that. It consists of a number of natural ingredients, but it has to be processed. Manufactured. Who do you think first did that? Do any of you know? Reeth?’
