The Wanderers of the Water-Realm (57 page)

Six darkenings after the expedition returned to Holy Ptah, an envoy arrived at the ‘Bonny Barbara’with orders for the three travellers to accompany him to the main city, for Councillor Hemm awaited them with important news.

Once again, the newcomers crossed the great bridge in a man-hauled passenger carriage and very little time elapsed before they were rising weightlessly upwards in the elevator leading to the highest levels of the towering headquarters building.

Hemm greeted them as they entered the council chamber and invited them to enjoy the comfort of the now familiar couch.

“My friends,” The Councillor began. “I have summoned you here so that I may personally inform you that preparations for your departure to the southern lands are now almost completed and there appears to be no good reason why you should not sail within the space of two darkenings.” He paused and adjusted his gown.

“We began the necessary preparations for your voyage to the south even before you returned from the land of the Hix. The first thing that we did was to despatch a priest belonging to our order, to the south, on one of the fast packet galleys that occasionally ply the southern portion of the Life River. The priest will be well ahead of you and warn the priest-technicians who are in charge of our maintenance depots of your imminent arrival and order them to give you all possible assistance. This priest has long experience of serving the order within the borders of the Kaa-Rom Empire and his final task will be to find a trading vessel in the port of Ostia that he considers capable of transporting you across the Southern Sea.

He is also charged with making all possible preparations for your journey into the barbarous lands beyond that distant sea. He will meet you at the southern-most of our maintenance depots and watch over you until you disappear over the horizon.”

“How will we recognize this priest?” George asked.

“Have no fear on that account.” Hemm answered. “For he will approach you, once you have completed your journey.”

The Councillors voice then became grave.

“Everything possible has been done to ensure your safety. In addition, a trusted overseer, who has had long experience within the imperial lands, will join your vessel before you sail and he will serve as your personal adviser. I will now give you a few final words of warning. Should the fates force you ashore inside imperial territory, then you must keep your wits about you and endeavour to get word of your predicament to the nearest of our maintenance depots and our servants there will try to bring you aid.

Also, beware of all Imperial noblemen who have elongated eyes and lashes joining over their noses, for these strange physical characteristics are peculiar to pure-blooded members of the old Kaa aristocracy. These creatures are best avoided if possible, for they have successfully assimilated much of the culture of their Roman countrymen, whilst retaining a talent for perfidy and extreme cruelty that was all too common amongst their nomadic ancestors.”

The priest then addressed the young witch.

“Women are not generally allowed aboard the transport vessels of the order and your presence might be enough to draw the unwelcome attention of the Imperial authorities to the craft. It would be fitting if you were to don the robe of an adept of the healing God ‘Dumtek’ it will be assumed that you are travelling to one of their many temples under the good offices of the priesthood.”

The Councillor handed the wisewoman a leather bag fastened at the neck by a thong. “This bag contains a selection of un-cut diamonds. These are little more than baubles in the Water-Realm, but they may serve you well enough if you successfully return to your own reality. I suggest that you divide them among yourselves and sew them into your clothing so they cannot be lost.”

Councillor Hemm stepped forward and grasped each of the travellers by the forearm in the common Water-Realm greeting.

“For the last time I thank you for the services that you have rendered to all of humanity dwelling within the Water-Realm. Even as I speak, the dockyard workers are beginning to load the stores and cargo aboard your craft, now you must leave and begin making your own preparations for your departure. So, for the last time I give you the blessing of our order and wish you all a safe return to your own reality and to your homes on the planet Earth!”

A fiery red Water-Realm dawn was breaking as the ‘Bonny Barbara’ was shepherded out of the dockyard and into the south flowing stream of the Great Life River by a single towing galley. Wilakin stood in the bows and controlled the delicate operation, whilst the boatmaster stood at the tiller and guided the craft out into the flowing current.

Darryl, like all of the other members of the crew, with the exception of Myra, now wore the brown uniform of the overseer’s marine personnel, but beneath this outer clothing they all wore their padded battle gear, for the boatmaster had ordered the crew to remain armed and protected at all times, in case the vessel should be unexpectedly attacked.

The overseer, who was to serve as their adviser, had come aboard the vessel on the previous evening and his first action had been to hoist the black pennant of the Dark Priests from the makeshift mast that had been rigged in the bows.

“Poldaar, as the man was called, was a surly individual with few words to spare for the boatmaster and almost none for the remainder of the crew.

“Not worth his victuals!” The boatmaster had decided as his craft dropped the towing line from the galley and began ploughing its way unaided along the line of the Life River.

The narrowboat spent the first evening of the southern leg of the voyage, tied to a stout mooring post close to left bank of the river and none aboard were surprised when the newcomer elected to sleep alone in the bows of the craft. Yet Poldaar’s knowledge of the Empire proved to be invaluable and this was demonstrated on the fourth morning out from Ptah when the vessel slipped into Kaa-Rom territory.

Traffic upon the Imperial portion of the river was lighter than any the travellers had experienced whilst navigating upon the waters in the vicinity of Holy Ptah and the task of the steersman was also much less exacting. Darryl was considering the wisdom of handing the tiller over to one of the less experienced members of the crew when two light galleys suddenly put out from the western bank of the river and headed directly for the ‘Bonny Barbara.’

Poldaar was at the boatmaster’s side in a flash. “Ignore them!” The overseer said sharply. “Those confounded boats are just a pair of government cutters hoping to frighten some merchant into giving them a handsome bribe. Their captains are not senior enough to risk serious trouble by boarding one of the priest’s craft. They’ll simply take a good look at the pennant at our mast-head and push off to pester another boat.”

The cutters closed ominously and then suddenly turned away and disappeared from view in a matter of minutes.

“Told you so!” The overseer muttered as he turned to retrace his steps to the bows.

“These minor officials are cowards to a man; they won’t risk the wrath of the priests simply to win a bit of cloth or the odd copper disc!”

On the sixth day out from Ptah, the narrowboat passed a substantial riverside town. The young witch stood upon the deck and admired the temple colonnades and the many public buildings whose classical lines clearly showed their Graeco-Roman architectural ancestry. Even so, a few such cultural diversions were quite insufficient to stop a feeling of mind-grinding boredom from gradually taking hold of the crew as the long days spent aboard the craft began turning into weeks. Indeed, this was hardly surprising, for the boatmaster remained adamant that the crew of the ‘Bonny Barbara’ should not be allowed to risk their lives by going ashore for recreation.

Darryl often steered the craft onwards throughout the hours of darkness and when he allowed the vessel to anchor for the night, it was always at a safe distance from the shore. Occasionally, the narrowboat put into one of maintenance depots in order to take on supplies and to give the crewmembers two or three days rest. The depots were invariably Spartan establishments surrounded by high palisades of sharpened timbers and manned by squads of dull uncommunicative technicians, and the travellers were generally glad to be riding upon the current of river within a very short space of time.

Sixty darkening out from Ptah, the travellers noticed that numerous small riverside towns were being sighted on both banks of the river, sometimes two or three in the course of a single day’s sailing, they also noticed that every one of the settlements was surrounded by carefully tended groves of Thoa-trees, together with well built farmhouses and neatly laid out fields. One morning, Myra approached Poldaar, who was standing in the bows of the craft, and asked him the reason for this sudden change in the appearance of the landscape?

The overseer spat over the side of the boat in a casual fashion.

“This portion of the Imperial domain is almost completely given over to soldiers settlements.” He answered reluctantly and without taking his eyes from the river.

“The Empire employs many pure blooded Rom soldiers to guard its frontiers and to keep order within the realm. When these men have completed their term of service, about twenty cycles on average, they are given land to farm in one of these veterans’ settlements. Afterwards’ they spend the remainder of their lives breeding yet another generation of soldiers to serve in the legions of the First Tribune. The settlements, that we are currently passing, were all established centuries ago. Nowadays, the new veteran’s colonies are founded as far away as possible, often in the east and in close proximity to the Hixian’ border!”

The overseer spat again. “You won’t’find any slaves on the holdings of these Rom veterans like you do on the estates of the nobles, only hard working countrymen who will instantly leave their families and rejoin the eagles if their generals order it.And that, my lady, is where the military strength of the empire lies!”

“But what of the Kaa?” The witch asked. “What part do they play in this Imperial scheme of things?”

“As always, the Kaa drive their herds of narr over the vast plains of moss lying far to the west of this river. A plain stretching from the shores of the Southern Sea, to the grazing ranges of a few scattered families who dwell far to the north-west.

Some of their clans occupy ranges lying to the east of the Life River and many of their warriors serve the First Tribune as swiftly moving light infantry. It is also said that a few of their nobility have abandoned their nomadic style of existence and occupy some of the landed estates surrounding the Imperial capital of Deva, that we shall reach in about thirty darkenings from now if we continue advancing at our present rate of progress.”

The overseer spat over the side for one last time and watched as the glob of spittle struck the water.

“You have probably been warned to keep well clear of folk with elongated eyes and extended lashes. “This is good advice and you had best take heed of it!”

With that, Poldaar turned his back upon the young wisewoman, leaving her with much to consider.

The ‘Bonny Barbara’continued its steady progress towards the Southern Sea, but as the vessel advanced, the crew began noticing yet another gradual change in the appearance of the surrounding landscape. The riverside towns became larger, but less frequent, whilst the neat little farmhouses surrounded by groups of small fields, had slowly given way to imposing mansion houses that were frequently surrounded by large tracts of arable farmland and massive groves of Thoa-trees.

Myra was the first of the travellers to notice this change and she mentioned her observations to the dour overseer as he occupied his usual position in the bows.