difficulties plague the construction of my Castle. So pretension would ill befit me, were I inclined toward it.'
'Uh, yes, Your Majesty,' Dor mumbled.
The King contemplated him. 'I gather you are from Mundania, though you seem to have had some garbled account of Xanth.' He glanced at Millie. 'And the young lady has the aspect of the West Stockade. They do raise some pretty fruits there.' He looked at Jumper. 'And this person-I don't believe I have encountered a jumping spider of your magnitude before, sir. Is it an enchantment?'
'He called me sir,' Jumper cluttered. 'Is a King supposed to do that?'
'A King,' Roogna said firmly, 'can do just about anything he chooses. Preferably he chooses to rule well. I note your voice is translated by a web on the warrior's shoulder.' His aspect hardened, and he began to suggest the manner Dor had expected in a King. 'This interests me. There appears to be unusual magic here.'
'Yes, Your Majesty,' Dor said quickly. 'There is considerable enchantment here, but it is hard to explain.'
'All magic is hard to explain,' Roogna said.
'He makes things talk,' Millie said helpfully. 'The sticks and stones don't break his bones. They talk to him. And walls and water and things. That's how we found our way here.'
'A Mundane Magician?' Roogna asked. 'This is a virtual contradiction in terms!'
'I, uh, said it was hard to explain, Your Majesty,' Dor said awkwardly.
A figure approached: a compact squarish man of the King's generation, with a slightly crooked smile. 'Do I smell something interesting, Roogna?' he inquired.
'You do indeed, Murphy,' the King replied. 'Here, let's introduce ourselves more adequately. I am Magician Roogna, pro-term King. My talent is the adaptation of living magic to my purpose.' He looked meaningfully at Dor.
'I, uh, I am Dor. Er, Magician Dor. My talent is communication with the inanimate.' Then, in case that wasn't clear, he added: 'I talk to things.'
The King prompted Millie with another glance. 'I am Millie the maid, an innocent girl of the West Stockade village,' she said. 'My talent is-' She blushed delicately, and her talent manifested strongly. 'Sex appeal.'
On around the circle: 'I am Phidippus Variegatus of the family of Salticidae: Jumper the spider for short,' Jumper chittered. 'My talent, like that of all my kind, is silk.'
At last it came to the newcomer. 'And I am Magician Murphy. My talent is making things go wrong. I am the chief obstacle to Roogna's power, and his rival for dominance in Xanth.'
Dor's mouth dropped open. 'You are the Enemy Magician? Right here with the King?'
King Roogna laughed. 'What better place? It is true we oppose each other, but this is a matter of politics. Magicians, as a rule, do not practice their talents directly on each other. We prefer to manifest our powers more politely. Murphy and I are two of the three Magicians extant. The third has no interest in politics, so we two are the rivals for power in Xanth. We are trying our strength in this manner: if I can succeed in completing Castle Roogna before the year is out, Murphy will yield me uncontested title to the throne. If I fail, I will abdicate the throne, and since there is no other Magician suitable for the office, the anarchy that follows will likely foster Murphy as the dominant figure. Meanwhile we share the camaraderie of our status. It is an equitable arrangement.'
'But-' Dor was appalled; 'You treat the welfare of the whole Land of Xanth as if it were a game!'
The King shook his head gravely. 'No game, Magician Dor. We are absolutely serious. But we also indulge ourselves in honor. If one of us can prevail in war, he can surely do it by humane rules of conduct. This is warfare of the civilized kind.'
Jumper chittered. 'There is warfare of the uncivilized kind approaching,' the web translated. 'The harpies and the goblins are massing their forces to exterminate each other.'
Murphy smiled. 'Ah, you betray my secret, spider!'
'If anything can go wrong, it will,' Dor said. 'You mean the war between monsters is your doing?'
'By no means, Magician,' the Enemy demurred. 'The war of monsters has roots going well back before our time, and no doubt will continue long after our time. My talent merely encourages the most violent outbreak at the least convenient time for Roogna.'
'And we need hardly guess where the two armies will randomly meet,' King Roogna exclaimed, his gaze turning northward toward the incomplete Castle.
'I had hoped it would be a surprise,' Murphy admitted ruefully. 'That would prevent you from calling back your troops in time to defend the Castle. But for the intrusion of these visitors, it might have been unforeshadowed.'
'So your talent fouled you up, this time!' Millie said.
'Perhaps an eddy-current,' Jumper chittered.
'My talent is not proof against the influence of other Magicians,' Murphy said. 'The ramifications of the talents of Magician caliber extend well beyond the apparent aspects. If another Magician were to oppose me, my talent would feel the impact, regardless of the specific nature of the opposing talent. And it seems another Magician has indeed entered the picture. It will take time to comprehend the significance of this new element.'
That was an apt remark: Dor had entered the picture literally, for this was the tapestry, the picture-world.
Murphy studied Dor with a certain disquieting intensity. 'I would like to get to know you better, sir.
