The Worlds of the Sheaf

Veglia - Part 10

     Saturn had descended almost to the bottom of the stairs before he found what he'd been hoping for. A gap between the soil and the ceiling where the falling leaves had failed to completely fill the room. A great deal must have blown in through the broken windows and doors of the outer rooms, of course, and he had no doubt that those rooms would be packed full, but here, in the central room, gaps had been left, and as the leaves had rotted and broken down to form the rich, loamy soil that had buried the ancient city, it had shrunk in volume, leaving the top half of the room empty and open.

     He cast a light spell to look about and saw an undulating surface covered with the small white bones of burrowing creatures that had once made this chamber their home, along with thick tree roots snaking their way like great, coiling serpents. The air was musky and humid with a rich organic flavour that stirred a vague memory from his childhood that he wasted a few moments trying to track down before dismissing it with a snort of annoyance and returning to his examination.

     The top half of the four walls were bare brick. Whatever covering they had once borne had long since rotted to nothing. What was more, there was a spot to his left where the wall had partially caved in under the pressure of the soil on the other side. For a moment Saturn wondered whether he was safe there, whether the whole building might collapse in on him at any time. If he let himself be ruled by such fears, though, then he'd never accomplish anything.

     He continued his examination, therefore, and saw an alcove in the opposite wall that contained what might have been an ornament. It was covered with the muck of ages; a thick black grime that looked like black soot, but beneath it the wizard could see the smooth outline of something that must have been made solely for a pleasing appearance. It was the only thing in the room that had survived the passage of the eons, but it was out of reach several yards away and Saturn had to climb up onto the high floor of soil and crawl to reach it.

     It was heavy in his hands. Heavy enough to be glass or crystal, and when he scraped some of the grime off he saw a translucent green beneath, shot through with reds and yellows in a way that must have been quite striking in its day. He took it with him as he crawled backwards to the stairs, his head bumping against the sagging ceiling. As a surviving artefact of a civilisation that had perished thousands of years ago, it might be worth quite a bit of money to a collector, once he'd examined it himself to make sure it had nothing to tell him.

     He paused before climbing back up the stairs, wondering what might be buried under the soil and whether it might be worth his while excavating to have a look, but what he'd seen so far didn't encourage him and he thought he'd have better luck if he could find one of the city's public buildings. He returned to the surface, therefore, and levitated himself out of the pit back to the forest floor.

     "Anything?" he asked the two soldiers, who were staring at him in astonishment as the grime and dirt fell away from his magically charmed robes, leaving them pristine and clean.

     "Been as quiet as a grave," replied Villa. "Not even a mouse."

     "Good, good," Saturn muttered and handed him the ornament. "Look after this for me." Then he strolled away in the direction of the centre of the city to try another spot.

     The soldier stared at the ornament as if it might bite him, wondering what kind of powerful and dangerous magical weapon it might be, and he carefully placed it on the ground before backing warily away from it.

☆☆☆

     Matthew had the crew of the Galtalista running battle drills when Strong and Thomas returned, late in the evening. One man was fitting a six foot long, steel tipped bolt to the ballista while another cranked back the tension bar. The other two men were extending the upper masts, ready to lift the ship off. One of them pretended to chop the mooring ropes with a blunt training axe, and if it had been a real conflict the ship would have shot into the air as the Orbmaster activated the Orb of Levitation.

     The crowd of felisians watched in fascination, and no doubt some of them had a professional eye on the display, picking up tips just in case they decided to launch an attack for real, but they weren't seeing anything they couldn't have figured out for themselves. The ballista could hardly be disguised, after all, but seeing the speed with which it could be reloaded and discharged might be enough to dissuade a potential aggressor.

     "Ready!" cried the man on the crank handle as it completed its final turn and the trigger clicked into readiness.

     Matthew stopped counting his heartbeats. "Twenty two seconds," he said. "Good, but we've done better. "Okay, let's try again. Ihvon and Monk this time."

     The two men on the ballista gently removed the bolt and released the tension bar, then changed places with the other two crewmen. Matthew waited until they were in place and the masts had been folded back against the hull, then placed a finger on his wrist to feel his pulse. "Enemy off the starboard bow!" he shouted. "Prepare to repel boarders! Launch the ship!"

     Ihvon and Monk sprang to their feet and began work on the huge weapon on its swivel mount.

     Strong nodded his approval as he came back aboard, and Matthew noticed that both he and Thomas were carrying armloads of books and papers, presumably the maps and charts the felisians had promised them. Matthew came to attention, but Strong paid him no further attention and continued below. The wizard winked as he passed, though, and the Flight Leader grinned back, eager to hear what had happened while they'd been away.

     They reappeared a few moments later, evidently having just dropped the papers off in the chart room to examine properly later. This time, the Captain did stop long enough to pass a few words with the Flight Leader, telling him to select two men to accept the felisians' hospitality.

     "It's a political thing," he said. "A bridge building exercise, but we don't want to leave the ship undefended so at least two men and an orbmaster must remain aboard at all times. Enough to take the ship to safety and come back with reinforcements if necessary."

     "Aye, Sir," replied Matthew. "Maybe this would be a good opportunity for the Gowns to get a bit of privacy together, so they won't be tempted to canoodle aboard ship, in front of the men."

     "Good idea," agreed Strong, "but in future, I don't want to see them aboard the same scout ship. Neither of them can do their job properly with the other aboard. If it had been up to me, I wouldn't even have had them both aboard the Jules Verne."

     "Apparently, they're both indispensable to the mission," said Matthew.

     The Captain nodded, an expression of irritation on his face as he strode to the rope ladder, waiting there for the other members of the shore leave party to join him.

     "Mat, you're a prince!" said Thomas, clapping him on the shoulder before dashing off to get Lirenna. "I owe you one. A big one!"

     "Forget it," said Matthew to himself, happy to see the wizard so full of delight. There was something about him, and Lenny as well, that made you want to do things for them. Maybe it was that they seemed to have an almost limitless capacity for happiness and joy, without the slightest trace of self consciousness. They radiated delight wherever they went, and everyone they came across felt a little of it brushing off on them.

     Seeing them happy made him happy as well. although it also reminded him of his own wife, Heather, and his children, none of whom he'd seen for a long, long time. High time he got back to them. He could get a posting closer to home, perhaps. It might mean a reduction of rank, but it would be worth it. He couldn't let his kids grow up seeing him for only a couple of weeks a year. They deserved better than that. He longed for the mission to be over quickly, therefore, and for the Jules Verne to take him back home, to the people he'd left behind.