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After taking shortcuts which only he knew, he arrived at his chambers. He went
inside, locked the door, shed his costume and donned another, that of a castle
functionary.
The voice spoke to him again.
You have returned
.
Yes. Are there any further developments?
I feel there must be I sense an impending end to my bondage Someone calls to
me I know not who
.
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.
,
.
Have more memories returned to you?
Not many I feel though that it is only a matter of time
.
, ,
.
Do you know your name?
There was silence, then:
No Will you tell me?
.
No, but there are those who will.
He left by a secret panel, threading his way through narrow passages until he
came to a dead end. He shoved against a large stone block and it moved,
swiveling on a central fulcrum. He pushed it open a crack and paused, looking
out, then stepped into the hallway. The stone swung back and became a blank
wall again.
A door lay to the left. He opened it and went inside.
The library was vast and many-volumned, shelves rising several stories to the
corbeled ceiling. He strode across the main floor and entered an area where
free-standing stacks stood in rows. He walked down the central aisle, turned
left at the thirty-fourth row, and followed the shelf to its end, coming out
into an aisle running along the wall, against which was set a row of carrels.
He chose one and seated himself. He withdrew the scroll from his tunic, took
it out of its sheath, undid the ties and opened it.
He took a deep breath, scanning the first few lines. It was written in a
script he couldn t immediately decipher, but a translation spell would take
care of that.
Wearily, he rubbed his eyes. He had only an inkling of what he was after. A
key; he needed a key to unlock a mystery then to close it up again, once and
for all.
Perhaps the answer lay in this ancient book. Perhaps not. Time would tell, and
he had so very, very little of it.
Keep Somewhere
THEY D BEEN WANDERING now for at least a day. Last night they d bedded down
in a storage room full of odds and ends. Today they d encountered evidence
of recent flooding.
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Gene waded through the puddle of brackish water. The carcass of another large
sea animal lay beached nearby, an oily gray mass in the shadows. It stank.
I wonder if it was a tidal wave that slopped through one of the portals, or
something else, he said.
Linda and Snowclaw avoided the puddle. Linda s nose wrinkled at the smell.
What else?
An incredibly huge aquarium that sprang a leak, here in the castle
somewhere?
That s silly.
In this place? Nothing is.
Snowclaw said, It s probably what you said, Gene. A leak through a portal.
Gene whistled and said, What an incredible place to live. Imagine! You could
be sitting around, darning socks or something, and all of a sudden
The far wall of the chamber disappeared, revealing a blasted alien landscape.
A violent air current nearly swept them into the portal as pressure
differences adjusted. Soon the air flowed the other way and waves of heat
assailed them.
Oh, hell, Gene complained. The way out was through that wall. Now we ll
have to double back. And there ain t nothing back there.
Linda looked nervously out at the dark rocks and bleached sand. That doesn t
look like a very nice place. I m for going back.
Gene sniffed. Air s breathable, but it looks hotter than hell out there. I
guess we can t explore it. Unless & He began walking toward the portal.
Gene! Where are you going?
I m going to take a quick look. It sort of reminds me of parts of Utah. Maybe
Something large bounded through the opening and entered the chamber. It was
twice as tall as Gene and ran on two powerful hind legs. Its head was somewhat
reptilian, though the eyes, unnervingly intelligent, were set close enough
together to afford accurate depth perception. Its skin was beet red and looked
rough and dry. It had a long, supple tail, and the claws on its short but
sinewy fore limbs curved wickedly. It saw Gene and stopped in its tracks.
So did Gene, but he hit a wet spot and slipped, falling on his buttocks.
The beast eyed him, its blunted snout parting to reveal a gleaming set of
caninelike teeth. Then a voice emanated from the cavity: Look like food, but
it speak. Its voice was several registers lower than human, but intelligible.
Taking two steps closer, it said, You food?
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The beast towered over Gene, who struggled to his feet. Hi, there! he
squeaked in an almost hysterical giggle.
Smell like food, the beast observed.
Uh & uh & uh & Gene backed stiffly away.
The beast s yellow eyes moved from side to side, taking in the chamber, Linda,
and Snowclaw. The latter had begun slowly moving toward the thing, broadax
raised.
I not see this cave before. I smell much food.
Still backing off, Gene drew his sword and pointed it lamely at the beast.
The animal said, I think you food. I eat. It sprang forward.
Snowclaw was a blur and a howl. The beast broke off his charge at Gene and
turned to meet him, raking forward with its great claws. But in an instant
Snowclaw had run by, and the beast s talons clawed nothing but air. It halted,
looking puzzled. A great, raw gash had opened up across its chest, oozing
grayish-purple ichor. The beast searched from side to side, then whirled.
Gene saw the great tail sweeping around at him and threw himself flat on the
floor. The thin whiplike tip whistled inches over his head. He got up and ran.
The thing charged at Snowclaw, who had begun running in a wide arc back toward
it. The beast ran a curving course to intercept, but at the last possible
second Snowclaw executed an impossible pivot and leaped in the other
direction, making a lightning-quick swipe with the ax. He raced back to the
other end of the chamber. The beast
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turned slowly. Another incision gaped wide, this one running straight across
its throat.
No food? it gurgled, its visage registering a faintly perplexed expression.
It took three unsteady steps forward, then collapsed with a floor-shaking thud
and lay unmoving.
Gene and Linda were peeping out from behind the stanchion of the arched
doorway.
You okay, Gene? Snowclaw asked.
Gene stepped out. Yeah. Thanks.
You were lucky. You wouldn t ve had a chance against that thing.
I know. You were & Gene shook his head in wonder. Incredible.
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