by Samit Basu
‘There is no other way. That is why the Karismen were trained,’ said Kirin.
‘So what do you propose to do? Do you actually think you can you get the Gauntlet to the Circle of Darkness in two weeks? That is madness!’ roared Omar. His hood fell off, and his eyes were blazing. ‘Do you have any idea how far away the monastery is? You think you can climb the mountains of Harmony! Stealing from the fools in Avranti is one thing, the Wu Sen monks are quite another! Did not the samurai say it would be impossible for anyone else?’ He sat down, fuming.
‘Do you think you can do it, Karisman?’ asked Bali quietly. ‘You have not failed once yet.’
Kirin smiled at him. ‘I can do it,’ he said evenly. ‘I know I can. Spikes and I will leave tomorrow at dawn.’
‘No,’ said Omar. ‘You cannot take the pashan with you. He is too valuable, and if you are killed, we will lose his claw. You can go get the Gauntlet, or die trying, but you will not take away one of the four objects we have. Otherwise,’ he clutched the lamp to his chest, ‘the lamp disappears too.’
‘Omar is right, Karisman,’ said Bjorkun. ‘Besides, it will take us two weeks to travel to the Circle of Darkness. We must at least lay four things down and see if that brings Danh-Gem back. We cannot let Spikes go with you – by the time you return, it will be too late.’
‘That’s all right,’ said Kirin, unable to think of any reason why Spikes should come with him, apart from the fact that he would feel very lost without Spikes.
‘I could go with him,’ said Aciram. ‘I could storm this monastery and bring out the Gauntlet.’
‘No, Aciram,’ said Omar. ‘You cannot defeat Xi’en monks with force. Their puzzles can never be broken – the more the force you use, the more convoluted they become.’
‘I will come with you, Karisman,’ said Bali. ‘The rest of the Brotherhood can take these four objects to Imokoi. My work here is done – Angda can represent the vanars in the journey to Imokoi.’
‘We will use the path through the forest, and over the mountains to Imokoi,’ said Angda, her eyes shining. ‘The open roads are full of evil soldiers.’
‘Yes. It is a good thing that we will be traveling underground, Karisman,’ said Bali. ‘All the roads to Xi’en are being watched. Kol is evidently doing its own bit to protect the Gauntlet. I wonder what the accursed ronin said before dying! What if I had told you all about the Circle of Darkness, Omar? You would have reached there to be welcomed by the Silver Phalanx. The Silver Dagger himself would have helped you raise Danh-Gem, no doubt.’
‘After this dazzling display of wit, do we have anything to discuss?’ asked Omar.
‘Not really. We will leave at noon, brothers, for the last lap of this long race. Get ready. It is beginning,’ said Bjorkun. ‘Our labours are going to bear fruit at last. This council is over. Let us get some rest.’
‘Get some of our best soldiers to take you part of the way, Angda,’ said Bali. ‘At least up to the mountains of Imokoi. After that, you can travel by yourselves, unless the roads of Imokoi are no longer safe.’
‘Nothing is safe any longer, but there are fewer spies in Imokoi than anywhere else, and they will not be ready for all of us together. In any case, we will have the crows flying ahead to warn us if danger approaches or lies in wait,’ said Bjorkun. ‘We will get there in time, if we stick together. Already there is too much discord in the Brotherhood. But time will sort that out.’
‘And if time does not, Danh-Gem will,’ smirked Aciram.
‘This council is concluded,’ continued Bjorkun. ‘The Brotherhood will not meet again in full strength until Danh-Gem walks the earth. I wish you and Kirin luck, Bali. If truth prevails, we will meet in Imokoi. It is dawn, let us get some rest before our journey.’
‘I wish you luck, Karisman,’ said Omar as he followed Bjorkun out of the chamber. ‘Maybe when we meet again you will earn my trust.’
The asurs and the vanars left. Aciram rose and looked at Kirin. ‘Is there anything you want to say in private to me?’ he asked. ‘Anything you could not say before the council?’
‘No, not really,’ said Kirin, wondering what on earth was going on.
‘I see. Well, good luck,’ said Aciram, smiling. ‘My heart tells me I will see you in Imokoi.’
He left the room. ‘What was that?’ Kirin asked Spikes. Spikes shrugged.
‘I have no idea,’ he replied. ‘So I’m not going to see you for a couple of weeks at least.’
‘No,’ replied Kirin, ‘unless you want to run away to Xi’en with me, which might not be a good idea.’
‘Are you going to kill Bali?’
‘I think so.’
‘Good luck. But why are you so sure you can do it? You sounded as if you already have the Gauntlet in your pocket.’
‘Remember how you said learning the danav language wouldn’t get me anywhere?’
‘I said you would never teach the asurs anything.’
‘Which was true, I admit. But it helped me in another way, Spikes. I translated a bit more out of the red notebook – the one where I found the list. And I did it without anyone’s help, which is why only I know what I read.’
‘What did you read?’
Kirin waited for some time with his head to one side. ‘I thought I heard someone outside,’ he said. ‘Something’s wrong with me, I’ve been feeling very uneasy, especially when I’m alone.’
‘What did you read?’
‘Everyone seems to have forgotten that the Gauntlet of Tatsu has already been stolen once, by Danh-Gem. Of course, they may have changed the way they guard it, but I know a great deal about the monastery now, and I know a secret entrance that Danh-Gem made. Because on one of the pages of Danh-Gem’s red notebook, the heading was ‘How I stole the Gauntlet of Tatsu’. There were maps, Spikes, maps, and descriptions of the monastery. And there was an answer to a question, an answer I wouldn’t have thought of, simply because it was so obvious… which is why I know I can steal the Gauntlet. Don’t say anything. Someone’s coming.’
It was Bali.
‘Do you need sleep, Karisman?’
‘Yes, actually.’
‘Well,’ grinned Bali, ‘you can sleep in the chariot. I’ve brought everything we need. Food, water and furs for the mountain. Come on, let’s go.’
‘See you in Imokoi, Spikes,’ he called as they left the chamber. ‘Kill Omar if he gets too annoying.’
‘I was thinking about it,’ replied Spikes.
Chapter Fifteen
As the sun set over Kol, the Fragrant Underbelly began to fill up. A young woman walked in and looked around. Behind a crowd of grimy vroomers, sitting at Kirin’s old table, was a grey-clad figure, perched on a high stool. She walked up to him and said, ‘They found the mirror. It’s in the Palace now.’
Triog walked up with a tray of drinks and greeted the two people at the table.
‘Hello, Triog,’ smiled the beautiful young woman whose real name was Roshin. ‘Remember me?’
‘Of course I do,’ said Rightog. ‘You’ve been in the sun, I see. Holiday?’
‘Yes,’ smiled Roshin. ‘I went to Amurabad.’
‘That’s a dangerous place,’ said Middlog, setting the drinks down on the table. He looked at her companion and looked puzzled. ‘I didn’t know you two were friends. Where did you meet?’
‘Under the tables of the Underbelly, in fact,’ grinned the Silver Dagger.
There was a fever of excitement and near-panic running through the Free States. People expected Danh-Gem to turn up any day, and even the rumours of the mysterious Hero of Simoqin could not calm them. The asurs were leaving the city in large numbers, and more and more vamans were coming in. The power of the Heart of Magic had grown, and it was a very good time to be a spellbinder – first-year students suddenly found themselves capable of performing very strong magic.
People from all over the world were coming to Kol, and the more daring of them inevitably drifted into the Fragrant Underbelly. Hence no on
e was surprised when the newly formed Guild of Superb Heroes declared that the Underbelly would be its headquarters.
The Guild of Superb Heroes was a group of people from all over the world, who had gathered in Kol to unite against the forces of Danh-Gem. Dressed in outlandish costumes, they would tell tall tales of their own exploits, and proudly proclaim that Kol was safe even if the Hero of Simoqin never actually turned up. Led by the Man of Reinforced Iron, a former champion of the W.A.K., and his brother, a trapeze artist named the Skimmer, they gave the people of Kol occasional hope and frequent mirth. Children ran home and told their parents about the mighty Thog the Barbarian and the scythe-wielding Jax the Reaper.
Of course, the spellbinders, inspired by these heroes, had formed their own group of crime-fighters – a dashing band of final-year students who called themselves the Hex Squadron. The Hex Squadron now sat around a large table debating noisily over the advantages and disadvantages of black uniforms. In the din they made, the soft words of the two leaders of the Silver Phalanx were inaudible to anyone else.
‘Asvin’s training is complete,’ said the Dagger. ‘The mirror couldn’t have been found at a more convenient time. Now I can enjoy a life of peace and quiet, and you can run the show.’
‘I can’t believe you’ve retired,’ said Roshin. ‘I refuse to believe it.’
‘Well, I have,’ said the Dagger simply.
‘But you can’t quit now. We need you more than ever now. It’s just beginning.’
‘There’s always something just beginning. I’ve really had enough of this. And I’ve trained you for years. It’s time for me to go.’
‘Well, it’s your decision, I suppose, but it won’t be the same without you. You gave the Phalanx that touch of glamour.’
‘Well, if it’s glamour you want, I’m sure you can provide more of it than me, Roshin… or should I say Rupina.’
‘Don’t call me that,’ said Roshin sharply. ‘I still have nightmares about the Sultan. You should have let me kill him while I had the chance.’
‘The Civilian wants him alive. If Omar becomes the Sultan it will be far worse, believe me. Well done finding out about him, by the way.’
‘It was nothing. What cuts deepest is that I actually saw the lamp. But they took it out of the palace and gave it to Omar before I could get my hands on it. What else did the samurai say before they killed him?’
‘They need five things to raise Danh-Gem,’ replied the Dagger. ‘Four they have. The Gauntlet is the last.’
‘Who’s leading them?’
‘Omar, Bjorkun, the vanar Bali, a sorcerer called Karisman and Spikes.’
‘Spikes? He’s joined them? I thought he would. What happened to that boy, Kirin? Is he on their side, too?’
‘I don’t know,’ replied the Dagger. ‘Chances are he’s dead. Unless he’s calling himself Karisman and working with them. Too bad the ronin hadn’t seen his face.’
‘So it all hinges on the Gauntlet,’ said Roshin, looking thoughtful. ‘And Xi’en won’t let us have it. To be fair, why should they just give it to us? I mean, it’s theirs, isn’t it? This is the first time I’ve seen the Civilian lose an argument.’
‘I evidently didn’t train you well enough,’ sighed the Dagger.
‘The Civilian never expected Xi’en to hand over the Gauntlet,’ he continued as she stared sharply at him. ‘But the theft of the Tear in Avranti shows us that we cannot allow it to remain in Xi’en, because there are strong magical forces at work. It needs to be hidden somewhere else, and where better than the treasure-room of Kol? And if Xi’en will not give it to us, we will steal it.’
‘But when some of us volunteered to steal it you forbade it.’
‘Of course I did,’ said the Dagger. ‘The Wu Sen monks are not just experts at martial arts. They are powerful sorcerers as well. If they were left alone to guard the Gauntlet, even I could not have stolen it. Which is why the Civilian went on a diplomatic offensive. She applied pressure in the way only she can, pushing the Emperor to ensure the Gauntlet was safe, until the Emperor had to increase security. He sent a few of his best soldiers – the Green Serpent Guards–and now they have taken charge of the Gauntlet, much to the annoyance of the Wu Sen monks.’
‘And how does that help us? The Green Serpents are the worst possible adversaries, as we know only too well,’ said Roshin. Then her jaw dropped. ‘Wait a minute – the Green Serpents – you mean Chen is in the Wu Sen monastery now?’
The Dagger smiled smugly. ‘Yes. Man on the inside. Complete map of the monastery. Schedules. And when we are ready, Chen will help us steal the Gauntlet.’
‘But if Chen is in the monastery, who’s watching the Emperor?’
‘No one. The Gauntlet is more important now.’
‘So when do I start?’ asked Roshin, her eyes shining.
‘Not you,’ said the Dagger. ‘Yes, you’re very good, but even I couldn’t get to the monastery now. Because the Wu Sen monks are patrolling the foot of the mountain. And if anyone passes them, they will be aware of it. Skill will not help – they are using magic.’
‘How are we going to steal it, then?’
‘We aren’t. It’s going to be stolen by someone who can appear on the mountain without climbing it.’
‘I don’t understand.’
‘I said, didn’t I, that the mirror couldn’t have been found at a more appropriate time? It saves me the trouble of sending you to Bolvudis with the maps and loads of equipment. The Civilian wants Asvin to steal the Gauntlet of Tatsu. Because he can go to the monastery without crossing the foot of the mountain. One of the seven mirrors is high up on the mountain, in a hidden cave near the Wu Sen monastery, according to Mantric – the hero it belonged to was a Wu Sen monk. And now that Jaadur’s mirror has been found, Asvin can come to Kol and learn everything he needs to know before going to Xi’en. I will send a scarab…’
The Dagger laughed. ‘Old habits die hard,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘I won’t be sending any more scarabs. You will tell the Civilian to send a scarab to Mantric, to tell him that the mirror has been found. And Asvin should come to Kol, with Mantric preferably, some time around the sixth. It’s time he learnt what it’s like to be in the Civilian’s service.’
They sat in silence for a while.
‘You know,’ said Roshin, ‘I just had a thought.’
‘Tell me.’
‘Remember, long ago, I told you I couldn’t get involved with my employer?’
‘Yes. I remember very clearly.’
‘Well, you’re not my employer any more, are you.’
The Dagger leaned back and smiled. This certainly opens up a new range of possibilities.
Roshin leaned forward. ‘Of course, I completely understand if there is someone else – or as is more likely in your case, a queue.’
The Dagger waved a self-deprecating hand.
‘I was talking to Captain Rupaisa yesterday,’ continued Roshin blandly. ‘We agreed that now that you had retired, you should settle down – perhaps start a family.’
She saw the Dagger’s smile vanish and a horrified expression take its place, and laughed aloud.
Chapter Sixteen
The Wu Sen monastery was mostly carved into the side of Mount Laoye, one of the highest peaks of the Harmony range. It was a seat of ancient wisdom, and protected by thick walls and fierce guards. Savage snowstorms lashed at it all through the year, even as the rest of the world squirmed in the grip of summer. But the power of the sorcerer-monks kept the monastery safe.
Asvin, Mantric and Maya passed through the mirror into Kol and met the Civilian on the sixth of Dragonmonth. The Civilian gave them the maps and timetables her spy in the Imperial guard had sent, and they sat together for three days and worked out a plan. Maya also went to her room in Enki and found, to her immense relief, that the matchbox containing Prince Kumirdanga was safe. She put the slug out in the middle of a field, because bright sunlight would make the spell wear off in a day or so.
>
On the morning of the ninth, they returned to Bolvudis with the papers the Civilian had given them and a trunk full of vaman explosives that made Gaam’s face break into a huge smile. The Civilian had been strengthening Kol’s ties to the vamans in the form of trade benefits, and had acquired, in return, many wondrous pieces of vaman craftsmanship to add to Kol’s awesome arsenal. There was no doubt whose side the vamans were on this time. Kol had the money.
Gaam was also immensely happy to hear that Mantric was coming with them this time. Stealing the Gauntlet of Tatsu would involve using magic stronger than Maya could create alone. The spell they were planning to use was called the Blur, and normally it took at least five spellbinders to cast it.
The Blur spell made whatever it was cast on difficult to see, and if it was cast with sufficient strength, it could make a person or an object invisible. The cold on the mountain would help, but the casting spellbinder could not move while the spell was in place. The spellbinder casting the Blur could see the person it was cast on, and the spell could only work while its target was visible to the caster. Mantric and Maya could not practice the Blur in the heat of Bolvudis, but they were confident they could make it work.
Mostly confident.
At sunset, they all gathered in the cave and passed through the mirror of Icelosis to Mount Laoye through the mirror of Yong-gan, the Wu Sen monk who had secretly become one of the Seven Heroes. Even the Great Lama of the Wu Sen monks had not known how or why Yong-gan mysteriously disappeared from the monastery from time to time.
Yong-gan’s mirror was in a cave he had hollowed out magically in a little rock-cleft on the western spur of the mountain, about ten minutes march below the monastery in clear weather. It was well above the snow line, and they were in no danger of being discovered by the sorcerer-monks who, annoyed by the clamour the Imperial Guard made, were meditating in little huts below the snow line, aware of every bird and beast that prowled in the forest below them. No intruder would pass their stern vigil. They had not dreamed that four would-be thieves could suddenly materialize out of a mirror above their realm of awareness.
