Nobody answered.
'Miphon?'
'Here!'
They had come through. They had survived. 'Have we got the death-stone?' said Hearst. 'I've got it,' said Miphon. So they still had a chance. A hope.
That afternoon, they made camp at the foot of Maf. A scouring wind swept the silt in clouds across the countryside, swiftly reducing the enormous pile. Toward evening, they saw a couple of mountains blundering across the countryside in the distance, south of their present position.
'Someone has used a death-stone,' said Miphon, in a sombre voice. it must have been used at the border,' said Hearst.
'So it's set mountains walking,' said Blackwood. 'How many will have moved? They're only small ones, by the looks of things. What will it have done to the fire-dyke? What -' "The only way to answer all your questions is to go south and have a look,' said Miphon. 'But I can tell you this much. The death-stone must have been used soon after we skirted the southern border, otherwise those wandering mountains wouldn't have got as far as they have.' if someone's used a death-stone in the south, they won't be able to use it again for… for how long?' said Blackwood.
'Work it out,' said Miphon. 'Normally we ride a mountain for four days then have to wait another day before using the death-stone again. That's five days in total. So, down in the south they'll have to wait five days. And us? We used our death-stone yesterday, so we won't be able to use it again until the day after the day after tomorrow.'
'By which time the Swarms may be upon us,' said Hearst.
'How do you work that out?' said Miphon.
'If the death-stone was used at the border yesterday, the Swarms must have been attacking then. If they made a second attack yesterday, they may have broken through. If they can go as fast as a mounted man -which I think is a reasonable assumption – they could be here tomorrow. After all, it's only about a hundred leagues to the border from here.'
'Your mounted man is pushing his horse along pretty quickly,' said Miphon. 'It took sixteen days for us to do four hundred leagues from Veda to Narba.'
'Yes,' said Hearst. 'But you didn't have the heart to thrash your mount to exhaustion. Besides, we were moving mostly by night on a bad road. And skirting round cities, which made the journey longer. And – '
'Never mind!' said Blackwood, thoroughly tired of this theorising. 'Let's stick to what we know. We know for a fact that we can't use the death-stone for three days. We know for a fact – well, we can reasonably presume – that the Swarms could get here by then. If indeed they've broken through. So the question is, what should we do?'
'We can't risk running into the Swarms when we don't have a weapon to use against them,' said Miphon. 'At a minimum, we need to hide out somewhere until the death-stone's ready again. Morgan, when you climbed down from Maf i'd been thinking about that,' said Hearst. 'There's a cave system running the whole height of Maf. I know how to get into it. So if the Swarms come, we can run for shelter.'
The next day was bright and clear, with a stiff wind which steadily diminished the remains of the suicided mountain. They saw, once, one of the Neversh circling high in the sky. But no creature of the Swarms came north along the Salt Road. Night came again, and they slept.
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
They woke to find the sky grey, cloudy, moody. The wind had dropped away. Tomorrow, they would be able to use the death-stone; for today, they could only wait. Miphon concentrated on the Meditations; Hearst, half-heartedly, practised with his sword Hast. Blackwood went scavenging amongst the rocks near the mountain, returning, in due course, with a load of snails which he had found glued to those rocks, settled in for the winter.
They cooked, and ate.
They drank stream-water.
They waited.
Toward, mid-morning, they saw a body of horsemen coming down the Salt Road. They debated whether to risk talking with them.
'We have to know what's happening in the south,' said Blackwood. 'On the other hand, we can't risk the death-stone. So I'll go. You two stay here. Depending on who it is and how the talk goes, I'll either say I'm alone or else say you're here.'
'Be careful,' said Hearst.
'Trust me,' said Blackwood.
And Blackwood set out from Maf for the Salt Road. Hearst and Miphon eventually saw him intercept the horsemen. There was a long hiatus, and then the horsemen started to make for Maf. Blackwood was leading them to his comrades. i hope he knows what he's doing,' muttered Hearst. i trust him,' said Miphon.
'Yes, but…'
As the horsemen drew near, it became apparent that 528 they were fewer in number than they seemed to be at first. There were, in fact, only a score of horsemen; however, as each had a string of half a dozen mounts -to provide the changes needed for fast long-distance riding – they made quite a sizeable body when they were on the move.
As the riders came closer, Hearst recognised:
Blackwood. And -
Prince Comedo!
And-
Elkor Alish!
Smiling!
And, apart from that, precisely nineteen assorted troopers – Hearst, with a warriors's concern for the odds, counted them. Though it did not look like it was going to come to a fight. Instead, there was happiness all round. Mixed, though, with a fair bit of weariness -these horsemen had ridden long and hard.
'Greetings,' said Prince Comedo.
'My lord,' said Hearst, bowing.
'We understand you can save the world for us,' said Comedo, who looked pale and drawn. 'Accordingly, we have made a treaty with you. Tell him the terms.'
And he nodded at Blackwood.
'The good and gracious Lord Emperor Comedo,' said Blackwood, 'Master of all of Argan, Commander of the Central Ocean, terror of all lands beneath the stars, ruler of Powers and Thrones, deeds to the three of us, as a token of gratitude for the performance of deeds now promised, the suzerainty of the Greater Teeth and of the Lesser.'
'My lord is very gracious,' said Hearst, keeping a straight face and managing a bow.
He urgently wanted this charade to end. He wanted to talk to Elkor Alish. Alish! Really there! On a horse! Just a few paces away! Alish, smiling! 'For his part,' said Blackwood, 'the good and gracious Lord Emperor Comedo will allow us full use of the red bottle which is his by virtue of his treaty with the High Priest of all Gods and all Demons, Valarkin of Estar.'
'Valarkin!' said Hearst, with shock and surprise.
'The High Priest of all Gods and all Demons,' drawled Alish, 'is currently at the southern border with our death-stone. It worked once, then refused to work again. He thinks it'll come to life in due course. I think he's wrong, which is why we're on our way north. With… this.'
And he patted the red bottle hanging from his belt.
'We have,' said Alish, 'most of our army within. Including troops from Rovac. They did come, Morgan, I called, and they came. I, you see… did my best.'
There was something strange in his voice. What? Tension. Not anger, surely. Not hate? Or was it? 'So much for the red bottle and the death-stone,' said Hearst. 'What about the green bottle? Valarkin got his hands on that, too.'
'Oh, the green bottle,' said Alish. 'Oh, that. I gave that to a pirate as a love-offering.'
'No!' cried Hearst, in shock, pain, horror and disbelief.
'Yes,' said Alish, with a sardonic edge to his voice. 'And I promised that same pirate something else. Your head!'
And with that, Alish drew his sword. He urged his horse forward.
'Honour the Emperor!' screamed Blackwood. 'Honour the Emperor's treaty!'
A horseman tried to head Alish off. Alish cut him down. Comedo was shouting for Alish to stop.
'Are you with me, boys?' shouted Alish.
Some cried yes, but others – their Emperor was of the Favoured Blood – shouted no.
'Run!' said Hearst.
And Hearst, Blackwood and Miphon fled. Alish, unable to break free from the melee to follow them, screamed: 'Run then, Morgan, run! Run, you rat-spawn murderer! You can run, but you'll never find a hole that's safe from me!'