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four hundred miles an hour. It was just fast enough to keep his interest at a high pitch, his mind working on the basis of his sharp observation, his whole being alert and eager. Once more he caught a tantalizing glimpse of a city half lost in the haze of distance. But that, too, lay beyond the river of boiling mud, uncrossable for some reason by this most perfect of all means of reconnaissance. It was shortly after they passed the second city that the river turned sharply northward. Except for twistings and writhings that threaded around entire mountains, north- ward was its course thereafter. Holroyd began to feel puzzled. It was easy to understand the importance of the river where it faced Gonwonlane. But why follow the meandering course of a hot mud moat that seemed to encircle the solid core of Nushirvan? After an hour it was clear that that was exactly what they were doing. Gradually that remarkable canal twisted eastward, then after a long time it seemed a long time now that his military interest had collapsed it shifted south for yet more hours. The sun, which had been high in the heavens, was clinging finally to the very edge of the western horizon, its rays a a T T n n s s F F f f o o D D r r P P m m Y Y e e Y Y r r B B 2 2 . . B B A A Click here to buy Click here to buy w w m m w w o o w w c c . . . . A A Y Y B B Y Y B B r r casting long shadows over the strange, terrible mountain land of Nushirvan when abruptly there was the blurry rush of speed that had begun the trip; and he was back in the palace. The journey of minds, inexplicable because of the queer course it had followed, was over. The room was much, much dimmer. Its great windows faced a still bright east, but twilight had obviously come early now that the sun was sinking in the west. Holroyd grew aware that he was slumped low in his chair; and that the goddess was regarding him from over the table with a faint, amused smile on her lips. Her eyes were serene. She looked at ease, comfortable, pleased with herself. Before Holroyd could speak, she said: 'I showed you the far side of Nushirvan, adjoining Accadistran, because I believe knowing about them will help you in planning your attack.' Holroyd couldn't quite see how. He parted his lips to say so, then shut them again. He who knew nothing about past discussions between Ineznio and the goddess couldn't ask too many questions. Except that he had already asked one. And she had answered, unsatisfactorily, to be sure, but answered. He said: That river of boiling mud why couldn't we cross it?' The woman shook her head. The movement caused her hair to catch a flash of light. There was a fascinating glint of gold, like a fire stirred to life. Her voice came softly, out of the thickening gloom: There are some things, Ineznio, that even you must not ask questions about, limitations to certain of my powers.' She was standing up. She came around the table and her arms were warm against his neck and cheek as she bent down. Her lips were cool at first, then demanding. The hard a a T T n n s s F F f f o o D D r r P P m m Y Y e e Y Y r r B B 2 2 . . B B A A Click here to buy Click here to buy w w m m w w o o w w c c . . . . A A Y Y B B Y Y B B r r questions that still quivered in Holroyd's mind began to fade. 'Later,' he thought shakily, 'I'll think this whole busi- ness through completely ' Holroyd picked up the pen and wrote: The greatest power in Gonwonlane is the Goddess Inez- nia. She brought Ptath here before he was due. How this was done was shown to me.' He stared at the paragraph with satisfaction. Just seeing it written down made him feel better. All day yesterday he had been rushed almost beyond his mental ability to keep up. Already the new morning had slowed the tempo of his life. Here he was sitting at a writing desk alone, thinking over his problems in a leisurely fashion. The resulting general picture seemed distinctly clearer. L'onee had been sent against her will to bring him back to Gonwonlane, and she had done so. That was the beginning. By writing down everything in sequence, he ought to be able to fit in some of the pieces now missing, and draw decisive and important conclusions. Holroyd poised his pen, then wrote again: 'The second greatest power in Gonwonlane, but one greatly circumscribed, is L'onee. She frustrated the attempt of the Goddess Ineznia to snatch Ptath into the palace. How this frustration was accomplished was shown to me, and ' Holroyd stopped. He raised his pen and stared at the sentence. It was untrue. He hadn't been shown. He had been told. He whistled softly, then very swiftly, he began to write. In half an hour there was no more doubt. He scribbled his conclusions: 'The woman I thought L'onee is, of course, Ineznia. Accordingly, everything told to me by the temple princess, by Moora, the peasant girl, and by Marshal Nand's wife, is a distorted version, if not the exact reverse of the truth. The gaunt woman who tried to kill me, who gave me the ring, and who found speech so difficult, must be the real L'onee.' a a T T n n s s F F f f o o D D r r P P m m Y Y e e Y Y r r B B 2 2 . . B B A A Click here to buy Click here to buy w w m m w w o o w w c c . . . . A A Y Y B B Y Y B B r r Holroyd leaned back and stared at the written words. The shock was mounting inside him, with wonder and a thousand questions flooding hard after, a totality that nar- [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |