Does that mean that Ill have to say, one-two-three every time I want to talk with you this way?
Not any more, pet. Im in now, and youll never get rid of me.
Its going to take some getting used to. Ive never had somebody inside my head before.
Is it really that unpleasant?
Not really.
Now Ill be with you wherever you go.
I wasnt going to leave without you, Em. Id been meaning to talk with you about that. Im not going anywhere without you, kitten even if that means that the world goes all to smash. The world doesnt matter; you do.
Please dont say things like that, Althalus. Her voice inside his head had a melting sort of tone. Youre making it very hard for me to think.
Yes, I noticed that. He considered it. When you get right down to it, though, this is where weve been going since I first came here, isnt it? You started out by talking to me out loud, and a talking cat isnt the most natural thing in the world. All weve done is take that one step further, so now you wont have to waste all those thousands of years teaching me how to use the Book. We could leave right now if winter werent settling in. He looked at her with one raised eyebrow. Now that youve opened the door, all sorts of things are coming through, he said aloud. I dont want to seem critical, Em, but you shouldnt really be having those kinds of thoughts, you know.
She glared at him for a moment. Then she jumped down from the bed and stalked away.
Are you blushing, Em? he asked mildly.
She turned and hissed at him.
PART TWO
The Gathering
CHAPTER SEVEN
Stay out of there, Althalus! Whats in there is none of your concern!
Youre the one who opened the door, Em, he replied mildly. It swings both ways, you know.
Just mind your own business and quit snooping. You have to start paying closer attention. When I tell you which word to use, Im sending a picture of what the words going to do. You must have the picture in your mind as well as the word. The words just a sound, pet. Nothings going to happen if all youre doing is making noises. Now try it again.
How much longer is it before we have to leave?
About a month six weeks at the most. As soon as spring arrives, we go, whether youre ready or not.
We have to pick something up in Arum?
The Knife, yes.
Is that the knife Ill use when I kill Ghend?
Will you stop that?
Isnt that what this is all about? Ghends interfering with what Deiwos is trying to do, so Im supposed to get rid of him. Its not really all that uncommon, Em. Ive done it before. Im primarily a thief, but Ill take on a murder if the pays right. I thought thats what you had in mind.
It most certainly is not!
It is a simple solution, Em, and you wouldnt even have to get your little paws dirty. We go to Arum and pick up the knife. Then I go to Nekweros and cut Ghends throat with it.
Thats not what its for, Althalus. It has writing on the blade. There are some people were going to need, and well recognize them because theyll be able to read that writing.
Isnt that just a little exotic? Talk to your brother and find out who these people are. Then well chase them down and get on with this.
It doesnt work that way, Althalus. Situations change. If things have happened one way, well need certain people. If theyve happened in another way, well need different people. Circumstances decide exactly who were going to need.
Wouldnt that mean that the writing on the knife-blade changes as the circumstances change.
No. Its not the writing that changes, pet. Its the reading.
Wait a minute. Doesnt the writing mean the same thing to everybody?
Of course it doesnt. Everybody who reads any writing gets a different meaning from it. When you look at the writing on the blade, youll see a certain word. Other people will see a different word. Most people wont see words at all only decorations. The people we want will see a word, and theyll say that word out loud.
How will we know that theyve read it right?
Well know, pet. Believe me, well know.
The tag-end of winter dragged on for the next month or so, and then one night a warm wind blew in from the southwest, cutting the snow away almost overnight. Althalus stood at the south window watching the muddy brown streams overflowing their banks as they ripped their way down the mountainsides of Kagwher. Did you do that, Em? he asked.
Do what?
Call up that wind thats melting all the snow.
I dont tamper with the weather, Althalus. Deiwos doesnt like it when we do that.
If we dont tell him, maybe he wont notice. Were already cheating, Em. Whats one more little cheat? Maybe we should work on that a bit. You teach me how to use the Book, and Ill teach you how to lie, cheat, and steal. He grinned at her.
That isnt funny, Althalus! she flared.
I sort of liked it. How about a little wager on which of us can corrupt the other first?
Never mind.
Corruptions a lot of fun, Em. Are you sure you wouldnt like to try it?
You stop that!
Think it over, Em, and let me know if you change your mind.
They were both edgy for the next week while they waited for the spring runoff to subside. Then, after the mountain streams had returned to their banks, Althalus gathered up his weapons and they made ready to leave.
He pulled his cloak over his shoulders and looked around. I guess thats everything, he said. Im going to miss this place. Its the first time Ive ever had a permanent home. Do you think well be able to come back some day?
I think so, yes. Shall we leave?
He picked her up, reached back and spread the hood of his cloak. Why dont you ride back there, Em? he suggested. Once we get outside, I might need to have both hands free in a hurry.
All right, her voice murmured in his head. She crawled up over his shoulder and down into the bag-like hood. This should work out just fine.
Will other people be able to see you when we get outside?
If we want them to. If we dont, they wont.
He looked at the curved wall and saw that shed put the door back.
No questions or comments? Her silent voice sounded disappointed.
Oh, Im sorry, Em. Hows this? He threw himself back in an exaggerated posture of amazement. Astonishing! he exclaimed. There seems to be a hole in that wall! And somebody even covered that hole with a door! Would you fancy that?
Oh, Im sorry, Em. Hows this? He threw himself back in an exaggerated posture of amazement. Astonishing! he exclaimed. There seems to be a hole in that wall! And somebody even covered that hole with a door! Would you fancy that?
She hissed in his ear.
He laughed, opened the door, and started down the stairs. Dont forget to turn out the lights, he said as they went on down.
He remembered something as they were crossing the drawbridge. This might not mean anything, Em, he said, but Ill tell you anyway, since you always seem to tie your tail in a knot when I mention something that doesnt seem very important. There was some kind of animal following me when I first came here. I never saw it, but I could definitely hear the silly thing.
What did it sound like?
It was a sort of wailing sound, but not quite like the howl of a wolf. I heard it off and on all the way here.
A kind of despairing scream? The kind of cry a man might make if hed just fallen off a cliff?
That comes close. It wasnt a man, though.
No, it probably wasnt.
Should I have hidden so that I could get a look at it?
You wouldnt have really wanted to see that creature. Its something that Ghend sent to follow you, to make sure you were doing what he wanted you to do.
Ghend and I are going to have a little talk about that one of these days. Will that thing still be waiting out there on the other side of the bridge?
It might be. Theres not much we can do about it if it is.
I could chase it down and kill it.
You cant kill it. Its a spirit. Is killing always your first answer to every problem?
Not every problem, Em, but I can kill things or people when the situation calls for it, and I dont get all weepy about it. Its part of the business Im in. If I do my job right, I dont have to kill anybody, but if something goes wrong ah, well.
Youre a terrible person, Althalus.
Yes, I know. Isnt that why you hired me?
Hired?
You want something done, and you want me to do it for you. One of these days before long well have to discuss my wages.
Wages?
I dont work for nothing, Em. Thats unprofessional. He continued on across the bridge, his spear at the ready.
You want gold, I suppose? she asked in an accusatory tone.
Oh, golds all right, I suppose, but Id really rather get paid in love. Love cant be counted, so its probably even more valuable than gold.
Youre confusing me, Althalus.
I was trying hard enough.
Youre teasing me, arent you?
Would I do that? Me? Little old loveable me?
They reached the other side of the bridge, and Althalus stopped, listening intently for the wailing sound of Ghends sentinel, but the forest and mountains remained silent. It must have gotten bored, he said.
Maybe, her voice murmured dubiously.
He turned to take one last look at the House, but it wasnt there any more. Did you do that?he demanded.
No, it takes care of that itself. You were able to see it when you came here because you were supposed to. Nobody else needs to see it, so they cant. Lets go to Arum, pet, she said. Then she stirred around inside the bag-like hood of his cloak until she was comfortable and went to sleep.
They covered about fifteen miles that day, traveling along the brink of the precipice Althalus still thought of as the edge of the world, despite the frozen glaciers that now loomed off to the north. As evening approached, they took shelter in a clump of stunted trees, and Althalus built a fire. Then Emmy provided him with the words that produced bread and a roasted chicken.
Not too bad, she observed, nibbling at a piece of chicken, but isnt it a little overdone?
I dont criticize your cooking, Em.
Just a suggestion, pet. I wasnt criticizing.
He learned back against a tree, stretching his feet out to the fire. I think theres something you need to know, Em, he said after some reflection. Before Ghend hired me to go steal the book, I was having a run of bad luck. It might have worn off by now, but nothing was working for me the way it was supposed to.
Yes, I know. I thought the paper money in Druigors strongbox was a nice touch, didnt you?
He started at her. It was you? You were behind all that bad luck?
Of course. If luck hadnt turned sour, you wouldnt have even considered Ghends proposititon, would you?
And before that, you were the one responsible for all the good luck I was so famous for?
Well, of course it was me, pet. If you hadnt had such a streak of good luck, you wouldnt have even recognized bad luck when it came along, would you?
Youre the goddess of fortune, arent you, Em?
Its a sideline, pet. We all play with the luck of certain people. Its a way to get them to cooperate.
Ive been worshiping you for years, Emmy.
I know, and its been just lovely.
Wait a minute, he objected. I thought you said that you didnt know that it was Ghend who hired me to steal the Book. If you were perched right on my shoulder to play games with my luck, how could you have missed it?
I wasnt quite that close, Althalus. I knew that somebody was going to do it, but I didnt know itd be Ghend himself. I thought hed have some underling take care of it Argan, maybe, or Khnom. Im sure it wouldnt have been Pekhal.
Who are they?
Ghends underlings. Im sure youll meet them before this is all over.
You almost got me killed in Equero, you know. Some of those arrows came awfully close when I was running across Kwesos garden.
But they didnt hit you, did they? I wasnt going to let anything happen to you, pet.
That notion of paper money was your idea, wasnt it? Nobody could actually believe that papers worth anything.
The ideas been around for a while. People who are in the business of buying and selling things write little notes to each other. Theyre a sort of promise to pay, and theyre not as cumbersome as gold is. The people of Maghu have sort of formalized the idea.
Were you the one who arranged for Gosti Big Belly to lie to me about what was in his strongroom?
No. That was probably Ghend. He had as much reason as I did to want you to be unlucky right then.
I wondered why everything was turning so sour. I had people pouring trash on my luck from both sides of the fence.
Isnt it nice to have everybody so concerned about you?
Then my luck has changed back now?
Of course it has, Althalus. Im your luck, and Ill love you all to pieces as long as you do just exactly as I tell you. She patted his cheek then with one soft paw.
A few days later they reached the place where the dead tree stood. Its still here? Althalus was a bit startled.
Its a landmark, pet. We sort of like to keep it here as a reference point.