"Up," said Suzy. "They're Denizens, right? They always want to go up. Up is good, inside the House. The higher the better. That's why the superior ones, like the Noons and such, make themselves tall. Got a thing about it. Bit silly really, just makes it harder to get clothes to fit."
"Up," said Arthur. "That makes sense. Unfortunately. I hope I'll be okay to keep climbing."
"What's wrong?" asked Suzy. She hadn't spent any time with Arthur in the Secondary Realms when he didn't have a Key.
"I have a... I guess you'd call it a breathing sickness," said Arthur. "Sometimes it comes on if I do too much exercise. Because this worldlet is part of the Secondary Realms, I might get affected by it."
"Like black lung, is it?" asked Suzy, clearly interested. "Or the greenspit cough?"
"Maybe," said Arthur. "Don't worry about it, though. I feel fine for now. Slow and steady, that's how we'll go."
"Without the rat disguises?"
Arthur nodded. "We should be okay up here. But we'd better hang on to them just in case we need to use them to get back out."
After a brief rest, they continued on. The rain forest drew in again as they left the clearing, and there were no obvious paths. Arthur simply went where the undergrowth had a gap in it or was less sparse, but he always aimed uphill.
After another half hour or so of thrashing their way upslope, Arthur paused for another rest. He wanted to wait till they hit a clearing, but there had been no sign of one and he had to take a break.
"Not much to see, is there?" said Suzy. "Smells a bit too."
Arthur sniffed at the rich odour of the forest.
"It's only all the leaves and stuff turning into mulch," he said. "I wonder whether the Followers of the Carp have built houses up here, or found caves or something. You wouldn't last long just camping out."
"Could be worse," said Suzy. "Down in the Pit or in the Lower House Coal Cellar."
"Or collecting salvage for Feverfew," said Arthur. He was thinking of all the golden bones strewn outside the dome. "They must not last long doing that."
"Who speaks of Feverfew?!" boomed a voice out of the undergrowth — a deep, powerful voice, trained to rise above the fiercest gale.
Twenty–five
"WHO SPEAKS OF FEVERFEW?"
Arthur and Suzy leapt to their feet and drew their weapons. But there was no sign of the person who'd spoken. The rain forest around them was quiet and still.
"No one ever looks up," continued the voice. "Interesting, isn't it?"
Arthur looked up, his sword at the ready. There was a Denizen high up in the nearest tree, hanging on with the aid of hooked spurs in his boots and what looked like clawed gloves, though Arthur wasn't entirely sure if they were gloves or actually the Denizen's hands. He was wearing a shirt and breeches of light tan splattered with patches of green mould, effective camouflage for the rain forest, particularly since the mould looked like it had spread across the Denizen's skin as well.
"Now for the traditional questions," said the Denizen. "And the traditional warning. Answer correctly, or you will die where you stand. Or, to tell a truth, die a bit later, because our arrows, while tipped with Nothing-contaminated mud, are not very effective."
Arthur looked around as the Denizen spoke. There were rustlings in the undergrowth around them, and he spotted several other green-mould-and-tan-wearing Denizens moving up on them. These ones had short bows. Not crossbows, but the simple stave and bowstring kind.
"We're friends," called out Arthur. "We're looking for the Followers of the Carp."
"Can you just wait for the questions?" asked the Denizen up the tree. "Let's do this properly, please."
"Sure," said Arthur.
Suzy yawned and sat back down.
"Denizens," she muttered to herself.
"Are you now or have you ever been a pirate?" asked the Denizen.
"No," said Arthur.
"Do you serve the pirate Feverfew in any capacity?"
"No," said Arthur.
"Do you believe in the Carp?"
"Uh, I'm not sure what you mean. I want to meet it —" "Is that a "no"?" asked the Denizen.
Arthur took a sideways glance at the bow-wielding Denizens, who were nocking arrows and drawing bowstrings back.
"We do believe in the Carp, don't we, Suzy?"
"Sure," said Suzy. "I'll believe whatever you want."
"You must have faith in the Carp," said the Denizen. This statement was echoed in a whisper all around.
Arthur nodded vigorously several times, indicating that he had tons of faith in the Carp.
"Now, also for the record, state your names."
Arthur thought for a moment.
If the Carp is who I think it is, I can't go wrong. But if it isn't, then …
"This 'ere's Lord Arthur, Master of the Lower House, Lord of the Far Reaches, Hero of the House, Eater of the Biscuit, and Rightful Heir of the whole lot," said Suzy, standing up again. "And I'm Suzanna Monday's Tierce, so you'd better act a bit more respectful, if you don't mind."
"Really?" asked the Denizen in the tree. "I mean, I have faith and all, but are you really the Rightful Heir?"
"Yes," said Arthur. "I am. Can you take us to the Carp?"
"And you're going to rescue us all from Feverfew's dominion?"
"What?"
"Rescue us, like the Carp says you will."
"Uh, I have to talk to the Carp first."
"How many of you are there?" asked Suzy. She was staring out between two of the trees, where more and more green-tinged Denizens were becoming visible as they moved out of cover.
"Seven hundred and seventy-nine, at last count," said the Denizen as he slid down the tree trunk, his boot-spikes shredding bark. He landed and bowed in one smooth motion.
"Allow me to present myself. I am Jebenezer, First Follower of the Carp, and formerly Second Mate of the Naiad, may her wooden bones rot in peace."
Before Arthur could answer, a female Denizen pushed forward and bowed, declaring, "I am the Second Follower of the Carp, and my name is Pennina!"
"I am the Third Follower," shouted someone else, farther back. "My name is Garam. I have faith in the Carp!"
A cacophony of voices followed, with Denizens shouting out their names, their numerical ranking as Followers, and various protestations of faith in the Carp, belief that the Rightful Heir would come, and other stuff that Arthur couldn't hear properly over the din.
As they shouted, the Denizens moved closer and closer. More and more of them appeared out of the undergrowth, till there was a great crowd advancing on Arthur.
"Uh, I think I'd like to see the Carp right now," said Arthur as he retreated back against a tree trunk. Many of the Denizens had forgotten to put away their Nothing-poisoned arrows, and there were lots of muddy, sharp arrowheads sticking out ahead of them, straight at Arthur.
"The Rightful Heir says everyone take three steps back!" shouted Suzy, but even her sharp voice was lost in the tumult.
"I'm the Ninety-Ninth Follower —"
"Hundred and Sixth —"
"I believe —"
"Faith in the —"
"The Carp! The Carp!"
"Three steps back!" roared Jebenezer, at a volume to match Sunscorch's best shout.
The Denizens halted, then — after some scuffling — stepped back. Arthur took a breath, found he couldn't get a full lungful, and concentrated on staying calm.
"Lord Arthur wants to see the Carp," said Suzy.
"I'm in a bit of a hurry," Arthur added, a slight wheeze underlying his words. He looked at his watch. They'd been out of the submersible for two hours. Ten hours to go before the Balaena departed, and now he had nearly eight hundred Denizens thinking he was going to do something for them as well.