The torches on the walls roared to life again, flames stretching two feet and more. The whole chamber filled with light, washing out the shadows. The cries of the priest of Ahriman faded with them.
Matt shuddered, wondering to what realm the man had gone.
The two toughs still awake saw, and cried out in fear. Panic leant new strength; they shot to their feet and bolted for the door. Unfortunately, Matt was between them and it. He sprang aside in the nick of time, realizing they might be able to call up reinforcements, and called out,
The toughs wrenched at the door, then froze, then slumped to the floor, out cold.
Matt breathed a sigh of relief and turned to the dastoor. “Thank you, Honored One, for timely rescue.”
“I was pleased to be able to afford it.” The dastoor smiled, but his smile faltered and the light about him faded.
The younger priest stepped forward in alarm and caught him as he sagged.
“Thank you,” the dastoor said with a gentle smile. He was obviously exhausted, but turned to Matt and said, “Thank also your pet, for she carne running to us mewing in fear. We cast a scrying over her recent past and found this temple—she had followed your kidnappers. Then we projected ourselves here, and brought her with us. She has served you well.”
“She certainly has.” Matt stretched out a hand to Balkis, wondering which projection spell she had used to transport herself back to the Mazdean temple. “She tripped up my enemies, too.”
Balkis sniffed his fingers, eyeing him suspiciously at the pun.
Matt stood up, turning his back on one of the acolytes. “If you could untie the ropes, there, it would help a lot.” As the young man complied, Matt asked the dastoor, “Who untied my gag?”
“A spirit,” the mobed said, wide-eyed.
The dastoor nodded. “It was most strange. A girl in a white robe rose up behind you. A moment later your gag fell away, and she sank down again and disappeared from sight.”
“Amazing,” Matt agreed, his gaze on Balkis. “I am fortunate indeed to have so bright a spirit on my side.”
Balkis sat up straight, preening visibly.
On the other side of the door was a tunnel, lined with stone blocks and floored with flags, slanting up toward the surface. Matt and Balkis decided to walk, leaving the transportation spells to the dastoor and his helpers.
Outside of the daivayasnis’ temple was an ordinary village, much like that of the Parsis—only this one was inhabited by Hindus, as Matt could tell from the caste marks and the statues in front of the temple. It was night, so there was no one to see them emerge.
Matt knelt, turned to Balkis, and said, “Thanks. Thank you very much—for saving my life.”
“It was nothing.” The cat lifted her head arrogantly and flitted her tail. “Any cat would have done the same.”
“Any other cat would have hightailed it for the deep brush and paid attention to her own survival,” Matt contradicted.
“Well, I have some interest in your survival.” For a moment, the mask dropped, and the cat’s eyes widened, staring up at him with an adoring and very uncatlike gaze. Then the mask dropped again, and Balkis turned broadside, breaking eye contact. “After all, I have much to learn from you yet—and a long way to travel, I know not where. You, at least, seem to have some notion of our destination.”
“I know we need to go north, anyway.” Matt stood up. “Want a ride?”
“No, I can walk. North is this way.” Balkis padded off into the night.
Matt followed, letting the shock show, now that her back was to him. That one-second-long glance had been enough and had left him thoroughly shaken—but the look was unmistakable, even on a feline face.
Balkis had a crush on him.
Not that unusual in a teenage girl but very disconcerting in a cat. Matt had dealt with it before, as a teaching fellow. It was always difficult to deal with, though, having to make it clear that he wasn’t interested without hurting the girl’s feelings. He couldn’t even plead interspecies incompatibility, since the cat shape was only a disguise. Fortunately, Balkis was going to make it easier for him by putting up a good front and not admitting her interest—he hoped. But what was he going to do if she decided to bare all?
In the morning, they came to a much larger village, a regular town, and Matt came through the gates as just one more peasant among many. They found the bazaar, where he pulled out another synthetic-copper coin and swapped it for a throw rug. He bought a few samples of fruit and some Hindu fast food with another copper and shared them with Balkis, who was at least interested in the ghi. Then he found a plot of trees and grass near the temple of Vishnu the Preserver, hoping it would deter any would-be kidnappers, and took turns sleeping and standing watch with Balkis-cat.
“You could have slept on the bare grass,” the cat sniffed. “Why spend good money on a rug?”
“In the first place, who said it was good money?”
“You should know—you made it yourself. And the second place?”
“In the second place, you’ll see what else I can do with a rug after I’ve had some sleep. Good night.” Matt stuffed a pile of dead leaves under the carpet for a pillow, then lay down and fell asleep far more quickly than he’d thought he would.
“Should we not speed out of the gates before they close for the night?” Balkis demanded.
“No need.” Matt was hunting among the debris under the trees and came up with a couple of bird feathers.
Balkis watched him weaving them into the fringe of the rug and said, “If you had wanted feathers, I could have fetched you many.”
“Thanks, but I wanted them without the bird attached.” Matt made flying motions with his hands and recited,
The rug trembled, then began to rise from the ground.
Matt thrust it down with a hand, holding it against its own inclination to rise. “Down, boy! Lie low!”
The carpet still struggled to rise.
“That’s right, I have to do it with verse, don’t I?” Matt said sourly.
The rug subsided, settling back onto the ground.
“Okay, climb aboard,” Matt told Balkis. “We need to make up for lost time.”
The cat shrank away. “You do not mean that we shall fly!”
“You’ve always wanted to surprise the birds when they tried to wing away from you, didn’t you?”
The cat’s eyes gleamed. She sprang onto the carpet and settled herself in the middle. “Why do you wait?”
“Only for me to climb aboard.” Matt settled down behind her and repeated the elevating verse. The rug stirred and rose, and somehow, without Matt realizing the transition, he found Balkis inside the circle of his knees, forepaws on his calf, staring outward and trembling. Matt winced. “Velvet paws, if you don’t mind.”
“Oh, if you really must.” Balkis was doing her best to sound disgusted, but her mew still shook.