Part 34 (2/2)

'Precisely.'

'My given word is an unbreakable contract,' said Gilhaelith. 'I'm sure you, as the leader of a n.o.ble species, appreciate that?'

'Of course,' said Vithis, a little too quickly. 'But I doubt that everything you deal in is spoken for.'

'It is not. Am I to take it that you wish to trade?'

'In due course,' said Vithis, 'I will send a representative.'

'Your representative will be made most welcome.'

Back at the terrace, Vithis accepted the offer of drinks, and the troop of Aachim sat in the shade of the vines, which were just coming into full leaf. 'This is my foster-son, Minis,' he said, waving a young man across. 'He and I are all that remain of Clan Inthis, First Clan.'

'I am sorry to hear that.'

'The world will be sorry one day.'

THIRTY-ONE.

Tiaan felt her throat close over when the Aachim appeared. The sight of Vithis, standing so arrogantly on the platform of his construct, had set her heart racing. How she hated the man. Had she a crossbow, it would have taken all her self-control to hold back from shooting him.

s.n.a.t.c.hes of his conversation with Gilhaelith drifted up, and when Vithis offered a reward for news of Tiaan, terror gripped her. This talk of using the amplimet was a fantasy. Gilhaelith must realise the peril he was in. If he gave her up, he could have all the wealth he ever wanted. He must betray her. He would.

She could see Vithis's face clearly. What would he do when she was in his clutches? Pain spread outwards from her stomach. Gilhaelith seemed to be playing some kind of game with the Aachim. What a fool! Vithis was the leader of a world in exile, Gilhaelith just a rustic eccentric who lived on a mountaintop because he was too strange to survive in the real world. Once they discovered what he had done, he would die, and so would she.

Tiaan did not like Gilhaelith. She could not work him out at all, and he disturbed her. Though he was always perfectly mannered, the way he stared at her reminded her of Nish. Perhaps, living out of society, he did not know any better. And yet ... When he had carried her in his arms, for an instant she had felt safe.

They disappeared from view and she lay waiting for the sound of their big feet on the ladder. It did not come. Perhaps Gilhaelith had taken them to see the thapter first. Despite the secrecy about the recovery operation, she knew it was here. A noise had woken her one night and, looking out her window in the moonlight, she had seen them carrying a long, canvas-covered shape. Fourteen strong men had it up on their shoulders, tied to poles, while others held it steady with ropes to left and right.

She imagined them downstairs now, Gilhaelith drawing back the canvas to reveal the beautiful machine. His wealth came from trade, after all. Perhaps they were counting out the first allotment, and he was gloating and rubbing his skinny hands together. How many pieces of platinum did it take to buy you, Gilhaelith? And what does Vithis most most want, the thapter, or the person who learned how to make it fly? want, the thapter, or the person who learned how to make it fly?

Her miserable thoughts were interrupted by Gilhaelith's hearty laugh. The Aachim were now gathering on the terrace. Servants hurried back and forth with foaming jugs and trays of delicacies. They must be sealing the deal with a drink. Everyone was smiling; they were shaking hands.

It was hot in this airless s.p.a.ce, directly under the roof. She was desperately thirsty. She waved her free hand in front of her face but the breeze was not enough to cool her.

Who was Gilhaelith talking to now? He looked so very familiar. Her skin p.r.i.c.kled. It was Minis! Gilhaelith led him out to the edge of the terrace and they leaned on the rail together, chatting like friends. Tiaan felt sick. Her heart hammered; her eyes watered. Minis looked magnificent but he was jelly inside. She despised him for it.

Gilhaelith shook hands with Minis, a handsome, dark-haired young man. He could see why the fellow had appealed to Tiaan. Minis had a pleasant, open face with a hint of vulnerability, and not a trace of the arrogance of his foster-father.

'I'm pleased to meet you, Minis,' he said, offering the jug of ale. 'Come this way. Let me show you the view.' He drew the young man over to the stone wall at the inner edge of the crater. The lake was particularly blue today. 'This lake goes up and down with the seasons, and is warm enough to swim in, even in the winter. I often do so.'

'On Aachan, our winters are bitter,' said Minis, 'though they don't last long. Our year is little more than half of yours, I believe, yet our day is longer. But Aachan is a cold world compared to Santhenar.'

'Winter here is cold enough, and lasts for a good hundred days,' said Gilhaelith. 'Don't be fooled by today's weather. It's unseasonably hot for this time of year but, should it turn southerly, we could have snow next week. The weather is changeable here, and we are high up. Tell me, what is your profession?'

'I ... am in flux.' The young man looked self-conscious. 'My foster-father would mould me into a force commander.'

'And that is not entirely to your liking?' Gilhaelith enquired.

'I will do whatever he requires of me,' Minis said formally.

Gilhaelith changed to the subject he was really interested in. 'The tale of this flying construct must be a fascinating one, though perhaps I should not ask questions of matters that may be ... strategic.'

'I would prefer that you did not,' said Minis.

'This woman who stole it Tiaan, I think your foster-father named her is not Aachim, surely?'

Minis started, and a tic developed at the corner of his mouth. 'Tiaan is old human; from the province of Einunar.'

'Einunar! That's a long way from here. I would like to hear the tale of how she came to steal your flying flying construct. She must be a most talented woman.' construct. She must be a most talented woman.'

Minis began to sweat. 'Most talented,' he choked, and his admiration for her could not be disguised.

Well, well, thought Gilhaelith.

Minis looked over his shoulder at Vithis, who was in a huddle with the scriers, and went on. 'Tiaan did not steal the flying construct, for we have not learned how to make them fly. She must have made it herself.'

'Made it!' Gilhaelith exclaimed.

'We abandoned three damaged machines in Tirthrax.'

Gilhaelith had difficulty concealing his astonishment. Could Tian's preposterous statements about the gate and the amplimet also be true?

'How could she make it fly?' He did not expect an answer to such a strategic question, but Minis, with another glance in the direction of his foster-father, continued.

'I don't know. We have sought Rulke's secret for two hundred years, without success. But Tiaan is '

'How did she come to be in Tirthrax?'

'I told her how to get inside the city, so she could make the gate.'

'Are you saying Tiaan made made the gate that brought you to our world?' Oh, to have an hour alone with this indiscreet and desperate young man. the gate that brought you to our world?' Oh, to have an hour alone with this indiscreet and desperate young man.

'Yes, she did. Without her the Aachim of Aachan would be extinct. And in return we betrayed her. I can never forgive '

Gilhaelith, seeing Vithis heading in their direction, cursed inwardly and interrupted him. 'Perhaps, should we meet again, you could tell me the rest of the tale? I must rejoin your father. I have forgotten my manners.'

'I would be happy to tell you now,' Minis said. 'She is '

'Ah, Vithis,' Gilhaelith said breezily, quaffing his mug of ale, 'would you care for a snack?'

He snapped his fingers and a servant presented a tray on which was arranged a series of shrivelled, oily, yellow-green objects. They made a square, seven to each side.

'What are they?' said Vithis, wrinkling his nose at the smell, which was nauseating.

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