Shardik (45 page)

‘Perhaps you have.’

‘But damn it, no one here’s even asked me yet what we were going to contribute, so how can it be that? But whatever it is, the Kabin landowners will be convinced that I let them down somehow or other - played my cards wrong, that’s it - and now I’m to be replaced by someone who isn’t even a local man, someone who’ll have no scruples about fleecing them for more. Who’s going to believe me when I say I haven’t the least idea why the appointment wasn’t confirmed? I’ll be lucky if no one seeks my life one way or another. It’s not
that
I care about,
though
. Do you know a better way to make a man really angry than to promise him something and then to take it away?’

‘Off-hand, no. But my dear Mollo, what did you expect when you took up with this bunch of bruin boys? I’m surprised the possibility didn’t occur to you at the outset.’

‘Well, didn’t
you
take up with them?’

‘By no means - rather the reverse, actually. At the time when they burst upon an astonished world I was already Ban of Sarkid and it was they, when they arrived, who took a good, long look at me and decided on balance to leave it at that; though whether they were wise to do so remains to be seen. But to go to them, cap-in-hand, as you did, and actually ask for a nice, lucrative appointment; to offer, in effect, to help with the defeat of Santil and tie furtherance of the slave trade - And besides, they’re so frightfully boring. Do you know, last night, down in the city, I was enquiring about the drama. “Oh no,” says the old fellow I asked, “that’s all been stopped for as long as the war lasts. They tell us it’s because there’s no money to spare, but we’re sure it’s because the Ortelgans don’t understand the drama, and because it used to be part of the worship of Cran.” I really felt most frightfully bored when he told me that.’

‘The fact remains,
Elleroth
, that your position as Ban of Sarkid

has been confirmed in
the
name of Shardik. You can’t deny it* ‘I don’t deny it, my dear fellow.’

‘Is the slave trade any better under Shardik, then, than it was ten years ago, when you and I were fighting alongside Santil?’

‘If that’s a serious question, it certainly doesn’t deserve a serious answer. But you see, I’m not a humanitarian - just an estate-owner trying to live a reasonably peaceful life and make enough to live on. It’s awfully difficult to get people to settle down and work properly when
they
think that they or
their
children may be required to form part of a slave-quota. It seems to bother them, oddly enough. The real trouble with slavery is that it’s such a terribly short-sighted policy - it’s bad business. But one can hardly go
the
length
of leaving one’s ancestral homestead just because a dubious bear has taken up residence round the corner.’

‘But why are you actually here, in person, on the bear’s business?’

‘Like you, perhaps, to make the best deal I can on behalf of my province.’

‘Kabin’s in the north; it’s got to stay in
with
Bekla. But Lapan’s a southern province - a disputed province. You could declare openly for
Erketlis
— secede, and take half Lapan with you.’

‘Dear me, yes, so I could. Now I wonder why I never thought of that?’

‘Well, you make fun of the business, but I don’t find it so damned amusing, I’ll tell you. It’s not the loss of the governorship I mind. What I can’t stand is that they’ve made me look a fool with everyone I’ve known since I was a lad. Can’t you imagine it? “Here he comes, look; ‘thought he was going to be governor and tell us all what to do. Come home with his tail between his legs, that’s it. Oh, good
morning,
Mr Mollo, sir, lovely weather, isn’t it?” How can I go back to my estate now? I tell you, I’d do anything to harm these blasted Ortelgans. And whatever I did, they’d deserve it, if they can’t run an empire better than
that
. I’m like you - it’s bad business methods I object to.’

‘Do you mean what you say, Mollo?’

‘Yes, I damned well do. I’d risk anydiing to harm them.’ ‘In that case - er, let us just step outside for a stroll in some nice, lonely place
with
no propinquitous walls or bushes - what a pleasant morning! You know, every time I see the Barons’ Palace it seems to express something fresh, original and delightfully un-Ortelgan — where was I? — ah yes; in
that
case, I may perhaps be able to lead you step by step to the highest pitch of quivering excitement — or somewhere like that, anyway.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Well, you sec, I am not, alas, the good, simple fellow that you suppose. Beneath this well-washed exterior there beats
a
heart as black as a cockroach and fully half as brave.’

‘Well, you’ve evid
ently
got something you mean to say. Tell me plainly — I’ll be as secret as you like.’

‘Perhaps I will. Well
then
, you must know that at one time, about five years ago, when Santil came through Sarkid on his march from Bekla to Ikat, I was seized with
a
foolish desire to take some of my fellows and join him.’

‘I wonder you didn’t. I suppose you jibbed at the idea
of losing the estate and everyth
ing else?’

‘Oh, I jibbed practically without stopping - I was jibbering, in fact. However, I had managed to get myself more or less to the point of departure when Santil himself came to see me. Yes - at the outset of a desperate campaign, with everything to be organized and Ikat to be turned into a military supply base, that remarkable man found time to come twenty miles to talk to me and then return by night. I dare say he knew I wouldn’t have obeyed anyone else.’

‘You
obeyed
him? What did he come to say?’

‘He wanted me to stay where I was and put on a convincing act of benevolent neutrality to Bekla. He thought that if it were skilfully done, it would be more useful to him than leaving Sarkid to be controlled by some nominee of the enemy. He was quite right, of course. I’ve always hated people thinking I’d decided not to go and fight, but the advantages to Santil have been greater than anything he could expect from my shouting “Yah
!
”
at an Ortelgan spearman. He gets to hear a great deal about the movements of Master Ged-la-Dan, and the other man, Zelda; and they find themselves in all sorts of difficulties whenever they’re operating in the neighbourhood of Sarkid. You know - couriers disappear, funny accidents happen, commandeered rations seem to disagree with people and so on. Any
little
larks we can think of. In fact, I honestl
y believe that i
f it weren’t for Sarkid, Santil’
s western flank would have been turned long ago and he might never have been able to hold Ikat at all. But it needs very delicate handling indeed. Ged-la-Dan’s a tough, ugly customer and I’ve had to go to great lengths to convince him that I prefer his side to
the
othe
r. For years I’ve kept him thinking that on balance, and because of my local influence and knowledge, it would be better to
keep me than to replace me. Littl
e does he know
that
my love of boyish mischief leads me to grease his stairs from time to time.’

‘I see; and I suppose I might have guessed.’

‘Now
this
next bit is the sensation of
a
lifetime. Your pulse will tingle with
a
thousand thrills - well, say five hundred. About
a
month ago Santil paid me another nocturnal visit, disguised as a wine-merchant, incidentally. And what he told me was that this spring, for the first time, he is strong enough both to cover Ikat and to attack northwards in force. In fact, he may at this moment have begun a march that will take him north of
Bekla
before he’s done.’ ‘
Not
to
Bekla?’

‘That’ll depend on the support he gets. Initially, he probably won’t try to attack Bekla, but simply march into the north and see whether any of the provinces will rise for him. Of course, he may come upon a good opportunity to defeat an Ortelgan army, and if so, he’s not the man to waste it.’

‘And where do you come in? For obviously you do.*

‘Well, as a matter of fact, I am that despicable creature, a secret agent.’

‘Getaway!*

‘I trust I may in due course. Does it occur to you that if something really nasty were to happen in Bekla just as Santil begins his attack, these superstitious fellows would be most upset? Anyway, it did to Santil. So I came as a delegate to the Council.’

‘But what do you mean to try to do? And when?’

‘Something reckless, I fancy, will be appropriate. I had considered the possibility of causing the king or one of the generals to cease to function, but I don’t thi
nk it can be done. I missed rath
er a good chance yesterday afternoon, due to being unarmed, and I doubt whether another will present itself. But I have been considering. The destruction of the King’s House and the death of the bear itself
- that
would have a calamitous effect. It might well tip the scale, in fact, when the news reached the army.’

‘But it can’t be done, Elleroth
. We could never succeed in that.’

‘With your help I believe we might. What I intend to do is to set fire to the roof of the Kind’s House.’

‘But the place is built of stone!’

‘Roofs, my dear Mollo? Roofs
are
made of wood. You couldn’t span a hall that size with stone. There will be beams and rafters supporting tiles. Look for yourself — there is even some thatch at the far end - you can sec it from here. A fire should do well if only it can get a
little
time to itself.’

‘It’ll be seen at once - and anyway the place will be guarded. How can you possibly climb up to the roof carrying a torch or whatever you’re going to need? You wouldn’t get near the place before you were stopped.’

‘Ah, but this is where
you
will be so invaluable. Listen. Tonight happens to be the spring fire festi
val. Have you never seen it?

At nightfall they extinguish every flame in the city, until there is total darkness. Then the new fire is kindled and every householder comes to light a torch from it. After that the whole place goes mad. There will be a brazier or at least a torch burning on every accessible roof in the city. They have a procession of boats on the Barb, full of lights and made to look like fiery dragons - the water reflects them, you know. Very pretty. There’ll be a torchlight procession - any amount of smoke in people’s nostrils and their eyes dazzled. Tonight, if ever, a fire on
the
roof of the King’s House won’t be noticed until it’s too late.’

‘But they don’t leave the bear unguarded.’

‘Of course not But this we can deal with, if you are as angry and revengeful as you say. I’ve already marked a place where I think I can climb to the roof; and to make sure, I’ve risked buying a rope and grapnel. After dark, you and I light torches and set out for the festival - armed under our cloaks, of course, and rather late. We make for
the
King’s House and there we sil
ently
deal with any sentries we may find. Then I’ll climb to the roof and start the fire. There’ll almost certainly be a priestess left in the hall to attend upon the bear — perhaps more than one. If they’re not silenced they’ll spot the fire from below. So you’ll have to go in and tackle whomever you find in the hall.’

‘Why not just go in and kill the bear?’

‘Have you ever seen the bear? It’s stupendously large - unbelievable. Nothing but several heavy arrows could do it. We haven’t got a bow and
we
can’t risk attracting attention by trying to get one.*

‘When the fire gets a grip, won’t the bear simply go out into the Rock Pit?’

‘If it’s already in by nightfall, they drop the gate between the hall and the pit. It’s in at the moment*

‘I don’t fancy the idea of using a sword on a woman - even an Ortelgan priestess.’

‘Neither do I; but my dear Mollo, this is war. You need not necessarily kill her, but at the least you’ll have to do enough to stop her raising the alarm.’

‘Well, suppose I do. The roof’s burning and about to fall in on the bear and you’ve climbed down and joined me. What do we do then?’

‘Vanish like ghosts at cock-crow.*