No one knew what had caused the Reod. There were those who theorized-most of them Derethi priests-that the fall of Elantris had been caused by God. The pre-Reod Elantrians had lived as gods, allowing other religions in Arelon, but suffering them the same way a master lets his dog lick fallen food off the floor. The beauty of Elantris, the powers its inhabitants wielded, had kept the general population from converting to Shu-Keseg. Why seek an unseen deity when you had gods living before you?
It had come with a tempest-that much even Raoden remembered. The earth itself had shattered, an enormous chasm appearing in the south, all of Arelon quaking. With the destruction, Elantris had lost its glory. The Elantrians had changed from brilliant white-haired beings to creatures with splotchy skin and bald scalps-like sufferers of some horrible disease in the advanced stages of decay. Elantris had stopped glowing, instead growing dark.
And it had happened only ten years ago. Ten years was not enough. Stone should not crumble after just a decade of neglect. The filth should not have piled up so quickly-not with so few inhabitants, most of whom were incapacitated. It was as if Elantris were intent on dying, a city committing suicide.
"THE market section of Elantris," Galladon said. "This place used to be one of the most magnificent marketplaces in the world-merchants came from across Opelon to sell their exotic goods to the Elantrians. A man could also come here to buy the more luxurious Elantrian magics. They didn't give everything away for free. Kolo?"
They stood atop a flat-roofed building; apparently, some Elantrians had preferred flat roofs as opposed to peaks or domes, for the flat sections allowed for rooftop gardens. Before them lay a section of city that looked pretty much the same as the rest of Elantris-dark and falling apart. Raoden could imagine that its streets had once been decorated with the colorful canvas awnings of street vendors, but the only remains of such was the occasional filth-covered rag.
"Can we get any closer?" Raoden asked. leaning over the ledge to look down on the market section.
"You can if you want, stile," Galladon said speculatively. "But I'm staying here. Shaor's men are fond of chasing people; it's probably one of the few pleasures they have left."
"Tell me about Shaor himself, then."
Galladon shrugged. "In a place like this. many look for leaders-someone to ward off a bit of the chaos. Like any society, those who are strongest often end up in command. Shaor is one who finds pleasure in controlling others, and for some reason the most wild and morally corrupt Elantrians find their way to him."
"And he gets to take the offerings of one-third of the newcomers?" Raoden asked.
"Well, Shaor himself rarely bothers with such things-but yes, his followers get first call on one-third of the offerings."
"Why the compromise?" Raoden asked. "If Shaor's men are as uncontrollable you imply, then what convinced them to hold to such an arbitrary agreement?"
"The other gangs are just as big as Shaor's. sule," Galladon explained. "On the outside, people tend to be convinced of their own immortality. We are more realistic. One rarely wins a battle without at least a few wounds, and here even a couple of slight cuts can be more devastating. and more agonizing, than a swift decapitation. Shaor's men are wild. but they are not complete idiots. They won't fight unless they have incredible odds or a promising reward. You think it was your physique that kept that man from attacking you yesterday?"
"I wasn't sure," Raoden admitted.
"Even the slightest hint that you might fight back is enough to scare these men off, stile," Galladon said. "The pleasure of torturing you just isn't worth the gamble that you might get in a lucky blow."
Raoden shivered at the thought. "Show me where the other gangs live."
'The university and the palace bordered one another. According to Galladon, Karata and Aanden had a very uneasy truce. and guards were usually posted on both sides to keep watch. Once again, Raoden's companion led him to a flat-roofed building, an untrustworthy set of stairs leading to the top.
However, after climbing the stairs-and nearly falling when one of the steps cracked beneath him-Raoden had to admit that the view was worth the effort. Elantris's palace was large enough to be magnificent despite the inevitable decay. Five domes topped five wings, each with a majestic spire. Only one of the spires-the one in the middle-was still intact, but it rose high into the air, by far the tallest structure Raoden had ever seen.
"That's said to be the exact center of Elantris," Galladon said, nodding to the spire. "Once you could climb the steps winding around it and look out over the entire city. Nowadays. I wouldn't trust it. Kolo?"
The university was large, bur less magnificent. It consisted of five or six long, Hat buildings and a lot of open space-ground that had probably once held grass or gardens, both things that would have been eaten to their roots long ago by Elantris's starving inhabitants.
"Karata is both the harshest and most lenient of the gang leaders." Galladon said, gazing down on the university. There was something odd in his eyes. as if he were seeing things Raoden couldn't. His description continued in its characteristic rambling tone, as if his mouth wasn't aware that his mind was focused elsewhere.
"She doesn't often let new members into her gang, and she is extremely territorial. Shaor's men might chase you for a while if you wander onto his turf, but only if they feel like it. Karata suffers no intruders. However, if you leave Karata alone, she leaves you alone, and she rarely harms newcomers when she takes their food. You saw her earlier today-she always takes the food personally. Maybe she doesn't trust her underlings enough to handle it."
"Perhaps." Raoden said. "What else do you know about her?"
"Not much-leaders of violent thieving gangs don't tend to be the type to spend their afternoons chatting."
"Now who's taking things lightly?" Raoden said with a smile.
"You're a bad influence, sule. Dead people aren't supposed to be cheerful. Anyway. the only thing I can tell you about Karata is that she doesn't like being in Elantris very much."
Raoden frowned. "Who does?"
"We all hate it, sule, but few of us have the courage to try and escape. Karata has been caught in Kae three times now-always in the vicinity of the king's palace. One more time and the priests will have her burned."
"What does she want at the palace?"
"She hasn't been kind enough to explain it to me," Galladon replied. "Most people think she intends to assassinate King Iadon."
"The king?" Raoden said. "What would that accomplish?"
"Revenge, discord, bloodlust. All very good reasons when you're already damned. Kolo?"
Raoden frowned. Perhaps living with his father-who was absolutely paranoid about the prospect of getting killed by an assassin-had desensitized him, but murdering the king just didn't seem like a likely goal to him. "What about the other gang leader?"
"Aanden?" Galladon asked. looking back over the city. "He claims he was some kind of noble before he was thrown in here-a baron, I think. He's tried to establish himself as monarch of Elantris, and he is incredibly annoyed that Karata has control of the palace. He holds court. claims he will feed those who join him-though all they've gotten so far are a few boiled books-and makes plans for attacking Kae."
"What?" Raoden asked with surprise. "Attacking?"
"He isn't serious," Galladon said. "But he is good at propaganda. He claims to have a plan to free Elantris. and it's gained him a large following. However, he's also brutal. Karata only harms people who try to sneak into the palace-Aanden is notorious for dispensing judgments at a whim. Personally. sule, I don't think he's completely sane."