The man watched her from impassive eyes as she stared into the crystal. He was tall and gaunt, with saffron skin and dark suave eyes, dressed in a loose robe of purple velvet. The symbol of a crimson dragon was stitched into the cloth above his heart. Hair was shaven from his polished skull. He was more than seven centuries old, as one might guess from the network of tiny, almost invisible wrinkles that meshed his face. His immortality was derived from an annual injection of pituitary fluid drawn from human infants. He was one of the Mind Wizards of Nex, and had come to Zangrimar twenty years ago to destroy the woman who now stood beside him by the crystal. Instead, she had conquered and enslaved him, as she had enslaved every other living thing on this planet. But he was a willing slave, the unslaked fire of desire that blazed in his cold reptilian eyes when he watched her gave the reason…
“Azeera, my Queen,” he murmured, “I feel you are entering into a dangerous endeavor. It is enough that we shall earn the enmity of Zarlak and the Death Dwarves when we make our attempt to steal the Medusa, now you would pit us against the Master Mages of Trevelon as well! I begin to regret that I ever lent the aid of my mental powers and assisted you in unlocking the Vault of Time…”
“However, you did. And look at the marvels we have uncovered,” the Queen said coldly. She made a gesture and the picture vanished within the crystal, its fires dimming. She turned away and mounted black jade steps to a throne of rose-tinted ivory set under a canopy of that iridescent crystal-cloth spun by the sentient Arachnidae of Algol IV. Stretching like a lazy cat, she settled herself therein and sprawled, toying with a blazing jewel, watching him with cold cruel eyes wherein mockery flashed.
“A century ago when I came to this planet I realized it must be one of the long-forgotten Science Worlds,” she murmured. “I discovered this metal city and learned how to awaken the metal warriors from their centuries-old slumber. With them bound to my will, I conquered the humans who had long dwelt on this bleak and barren world, never daring to disturb the sleeping terrors of the metal city. I made them my slaves, and the city of the Ancients became my capital. I knew the lost Science Worlds had never been discovered. I knew the Ancients left their laboratories and wisdom-vaults concealed and locked when the Empire collapsed. I deduced that the robot warriors were here to guard such a vault. Together, you and I, we found it and opened it. And now we stand on the threshold of power beyond limit. The force field we used to capture the Earthman’s ship was but one of the incredible science-miracles the Ancients hid away in the sealed vault beneath this city. When we have learned how to master all the other wonder machines therein, I shall truly become Empress of the star worlds…”
He said quietly, “I have said it before and I repeat it now, my Queen. With the treasures of the Vault at our command, we do not need the Medusa. And we stray into dangerous paths in attempting to secure it…”
Her eyes flashed cold fires. “So, Pangoy! You would have me begin my march of conquest without the Medusa? You would have me launch my robot legions against the Inner Worlds, knowing that the wise men of Trevelon will oppose me as they oppose every would-be conqueror? Knowing that Trevelon can use the Medusa against me? Knowing what the Medusa is?”
He shook his head. “Nay, you distort my words. I know the dread power of the Medusa. I know that it almost conquered the Universe aeons ago, ere the god Valkyr sealed it within the Iron Tower. But what I advise is this, launch your robot armada against Trevelon first. Demolish it, before you hurl your might against the Inner Worlds. Then the Medusa cannot be used against you, for the malignant little Death Dwarves do not know how to gain entry into the Iron Tower as that impostor, Zarlak, must have learned by now.”
She stirred restlessly. “I am not ready to challenge the magic of Trevelon,” she said.
He smiled gently. “Precisely. You are not even ready to launch your invasion of the Inner Worlds. Why, then, seize this fat little mage and the Earthling and thus bring yourself to the attention of Trevelon and Zarlak? Thus far both factors have ignored our existence. They know you are the tyrant of Zangrimar, and they know something of your power, but you pose as yet no menace to the star worlds—as far as they know. They cannot know you have opened the Time Vault and found the scientific treasures of the Old Empire. They cannot know that you energized the Space Mirror and thus have been able to observe their councils and to learn of the power of the Medusa and their plans to steal it before Zarlak does, so that it may be immobilized or destroyed. But with this action, you enter a great game openly. No longer can we work in secret.”
There was no denying the logic in his soft purring voice, but Azeera stirred restively under his words.
“Yes, yes, Pangoy, I know all this. But it is too late to argue your point further. If I do not interfere now, and use Kirin to steal the gem for me, then Trevelon or Zarlak will get it, and they will be able to use it against me when my legions are ready to attack. It is they who have, unknowingly, forced my hand! But in any case, the thing is done. It is too late for words. Now leave me!”
Pangoy sighed. As always, they argued from irreconcilable positions. He bowed, and padded out of the green-hung chamber, leaving the Witch Queen to brood on her ivory throne alone.
The metal giants escorted Kirin and Temujin through the winding ways of the glittering city. Everywhere they saw about them evidence of tremendous industry. Automatic factories were humming, turning out sky sleds and energy weapons and star ships. Throngs of the metal warriors moved through the streets, bound on mysterious errands. Sleds dipped, hovered, circled through the sky above the city like steel insects. The fantastic metal towers of the strange city blazed with light.
They even saw people. But very few. Obviously, the human inhabitants of this unknown planet were vastly outnumbered by the giant robots. The few they glimpsed while being escorted from the space field looked pale and wan, with frightened eyes and bent shoulders. The metal warriors were the masters here, that much was obvious.
They were ushered into one of the flying sleds. It was an oval platform of glittering metal some ten feet long, with a guardrail about its perimeter. One of the robots stationed himself at the control chair before a low pedestal of gleaming crystal wherein small lights flickered. He manipulated the surface of the pedestal in a certain manner and Kirin watched his actions closely without seeming to. It occurred to him that if they were later to make their escape from the metal metropolis, it might prove useful to know how to pilot one of the sky sleds. The mechanism looked simple enough to operate.
The oval platform lifted weightlessly off the ground and went skimming into the air. Invisible pressor beams emitted from the lower surface lifted and drove the craft smoothly. Kirin watched the robot’s metal fingers as they sped over the crystal surface of the control device. He saw how it was driven.
The sky sled swooped between mile-tall towers of glass and steel. It soared above congested roadways and over aerial networks of bridges, heading for the heart of the ancient city. Kirin knew this must be one of the centuries-ago abandoned cities of the Empire, somehow miraculously preserved undamaged and operable since the collapse of the Carina regnum a thousand years before. But were humans in charge here, or had the robot warriors ruled throughout the centuries since the Empire fell? From the worn, pale, frightened faces of the few humans he had seen, it seemed likely the metal men were in command…
Towards the center of the city rose a colossal citadel. This, obviously, from its central and prominent position, was the seat of power. They hurtled towards it and as they drew nearer, Kirin’s keen eyes could see the legions of metal men guarding every approach to the central citadel. Pale beams of light flickered from roof and dome and grounds, a force-fence, obviously, guarding against chance entry or insurrection. His heart sank within him. Perhaps it would have been wiser to have fought against capture. They were heading for what looked to be an impregnable fortress. It would be a hard place to escape from…