Tithonus said, 'Lord Hairstreak continues to insist it's just manoeuvres, nothing to do with the current negotiations. But the build-up's very large for a routine exercise and reinforcements are still coming in.'
'Sabre-rattling?' the Emperor asked. 'His way of wringing a few more concessions out of the negotiations?'
'Possibly,' Tithonus said. 'I have, however, taken the precaution of placing our own forces on alert.'
'You really think he would risk an all-out attack?'
Tithonus frowned. 'I find it hard to believe. But whatever he has in mind may be part of some larger scheme. Don't forget he was planning to murder Pyrgus.'
Murder? Blue blinked phantom eyes. She hadn't known that! Why would he want to kill her brother? It would gain him a lot less than simply taking Pyrgus prisoner. That way he could use him to bargain.
'I still don't understand what it would have gained him,' her father said, echoing her own thought.
'Neither do I,' said Tithonus, 'but there's no doubt it's what he was planning.'
'Perhaps – ' The Emperor stopped, interrupted by a sharp knocking on his door. He glanced at Tithonus.
Tithonus said nothing, but opened the door a crack, then murmured something to someone outside. Blue moved to eavesdrop on the exchange, but before she reached the door, Tithonus stepped back and a chapel priest entered. He moved forward nervously and knelt before the Emperor. 'Majesty, grave news.' Blue wasn't absolutely certain, but she thought this was the same priest she'd seen running in the corridor.
Her father waited, face impassive.
'Majesty, I -'
'Come on, man,' said the Emperor mildly. 'Spit it out!'
The priest could not meet his eye. He swallowed loudly, hesitated, then said all of a rush, 'Majesty, Crown Prince Pyrgus has not reached his destination.'
For a moment, the only expression on the Emperor's face was puzzlement. 'What are you talking about?'
'Sire, the translation appeared to be routine. As you saw. We had no reason to – No reason to – ' He looked up at the Emperor imploringly. 'Sire, we have made routine contact with Lulworth and Ringlet. Prince Pyrgus has not joined them.'
'What?' the Emperor exploded.
Tithonus said sharply, 'I saw him enter the portal myself.'
The priest glanced at him miserably. 'We all did, Gatekeeper.'
'Then where has he gone?'
'I don't know.'
'Where could he have gone?' Tithonus asked insistently.
The priest dropped his eyes again. 'Anywhere,' he murmured.
Blue withdrew her consciousness so violently her body went into spasm in the bedroom. She gasped, then stretched to unlock her muscles. Her heart was racing. Pyrgus had vanished! She grabbed the psychotronic spider and dropped it back into the jewel box. Then she ran from her room.
The chapel was in chaos. Dozens of technician priests seemed to be running here and there to no purpose whatsoever. Blue's eyes went at once to the portal. The space between the twin pillars was devoid of the familiar flames. In their place hung a dirty grey fog, all that was left of the natural portal owned by House Iris. To one side, part buried in the chapel floor, were the great machines that maintained it now and gave it life. But their metallic covers had been stripped away and component parts were strewn about.
She stepped forward to find her way barred by a near-hysterical priest. 'No admittance!' he screamed wildly. 'Nobody is permitted – ' He recognised her belatedly and stepped aside. 'I'm sorry, Your Highness. Forgive me.'
Blue swept past him without a word. She was fighting to control her emotions. Pyrgus would be fine. Pyrgus was fine. This was just a glitch, just some silly mistake or misunderstanding. Whatever had gone wrong could be corrected. Pyrgus was still safe. She looked around until she spotted Peacock, the Chief Portal Engineer, and marched directly up to him. He was a man she'd spoken to before and liked. Although technically a priest, he cared very little for the ceremonial aspect of his profession. It was the mechanics of portal transportation that fascinated him. He was just the man she needed at this moment. 'What's happened?' Blue asked.
Peacock looked worried and distracted. 'Your brother is missing. He never reached the portal destination.'
'I know that,' Blue told him. 'I want to know what happened.'
'That's what we're trying to find out.' He nodded towards the scattered components.
'Was there a fault in the equipment?'
Peacock hesitated, bit his lip, then said, 'Could be, but my money's on sabotage.'
She fought down a growing panic and managed to hold her voice steady. 'What makes you think so?'
'Well, we know the portal's not working properly since it didn't send him where he was supposed to go. But the filter's not working properly either. I've just stripped it down myself. It looks OK on the outside, even tests OK so long as you only run a routine check. But it's not doing its job. The filter and the portal mechanism are different things – they work quite independently of each other. Chances against two major faults like that developing at the same time are far too high for my liking. I think somebody's been up to something.'
Blue said, 'Isn't the filter working at all?'
'Only up to a point, Your Highness.'
'What's that mean?'
'When he went through, he'd have translated into the small winged analogue, just like going through a natural portal,' Peacock told her soberly. He caught her expression and added quickly, 'But it wouldn't last. There was enough of a charge in the filter to pull him back to his natural size and shape sooner or later.'
Blue stared at him. 'How long?'
'Difficult to say.'
'Then guess!' Blue snapped.
'Few days… week or two. Month at most. Hard to say.'
'Days? Weeks? A month?' Blue echoed. 'He could be killed by anything. A mouse could kill him. A dragonfly could kill him!'
'Yes, but they probably won't.'
It was an empty reassurance and she ignored it. 'Do you know – ' She stopped because her father had entered the chapel, trailed by Tithonus. They spotted the Chief Portal Engineer and headed towards him. Around them, the scurrying priests froze in place, apprehension showing on their faces.
'Holly Blue,' her father said, 'I'd like you to go to your room. I need to speak to the Chief Portal Engineer on a – '
'I know what's happened, Father,' Blue told him. 'And I'd like to stay.'
He hesitated for less than a second, then turned to Peacock. 'Do we know if he's alive?'
'No, sire.'
'Assuming he is, do we know where he's gone?'
'Not yet, sire. But we're working to find out.'
'How long will it take?'
'About a week, sire.'
'A week!' the Emperor flared. 'I can't wait a week to find out if my son is alive or dead!'
'Sire, we have to strip down and analyse every component in the machinery. After that, we have to run tests. We might be lucky and get an answer sooner, but…' His face said clearly that he wouldn't bank on it.
'Someone's tampered with the filter,' Blue said.
'Tampered?' The Emperor rounded on the Chief Portal Engineer. 'You mean this wasn't just an accident?'
'It may not have been an accident,' Peacock said carefully.
'I'm afraid it's certainly no accident,' a new voice put in. They turned to find the Senior Medical Priest had joined them. He was a smoothly handsome grey-haired man, but his eyes were bloodshot now and his face showed strain. 'Your Majesty, may I speak to you in private?'
Blue moved to follow her father as the two stepped away, but he waved her back. She watched their huddled conversation with increasing frustration. She could read nothing from their faces. After a moment they broke apart and her father returned, his features like a mask. 'Holly Blue, please come with me. Tithonus, I'd like you to find Comma, then bring him to join us in my apartments.'