Domes of Fire

‘They can still go to ground and just feed the mob to the wolves, you know.’

Caalador shook his head. ‘Tamul justice is a bit abrupt, and an attack on the emperor is going to be viewed as the worst sort of bad manners. Several hundred people are going to be sent to the headsman’s block. Recruitment after that will be virtually impossible. They have no choice. Once they start, they have to follow through.’

‘You’re talking about some very delicate timing, you know.’

‘Aw, that’s easy tuk care of, Sparhawk,’ Caalador grinned. ‘There’s this yere temple right smack dab in the middle o’ town. It’s more’n likely all fulla cobwebs an’ dust, on accounta our little yella brothers don’t take ther religion none too serious-like. There’s these yere priests ez sits around in there, drinkin’ an’ carousin’ an’ sich. When they gits therselves all beered-up an’ boistrous-like, they usual decides t’ hold services. They got this yere bell, which it is ez must weigh along ‘bout twenty ton ‘er so. One o’ them there drunk priests, he wobbles over t’ that there bell an’ he takes up this yere sledge-hammer an’ he whacks the bell a couple licks with it. Makes the awfullest sound you ever did hear. Sailors bin known t’ hear it ‘bout ten leagues out t’ sea. Now, there ain’t no special time set fer when they goes t’ whackin’ on that there bell. Folks here in Matherion don’t pay no attention t’ it, figgerin’ that it’s jist the priests enjoyin’ therselves.’ Even Caalador could apparently tire of the exaggerated dialect. ‘That’s the beauty of it, Sparhawk,’ he said, lapsing into normal speech. ‘The sound of that bell is random, and nobody takes any special note of it. Tomorrow night, though, it’s going to be profoundly significant. As soon as that warehouse opens, the bell’s going to peal out its message of hope and joy. The murderers sitting almost in the laps of the people we want to talk with will take that as their orders to move. We’ll have the whole lot rounded up in under a minute.’

‘What if they try to resist?’

‘Oh, there’ll be some losses,’ Caalador shrugged. ‘You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs. There are several dozen people we want to pick up, so we can afford to lose a few.’

‘The sound of the bell will also alert you, Sparhawk,’ Stragen pointed out. ‘When you hear it start ringing, you’ll know that it’s time to move your wife’s party inside.’

‘But you can’t do this, your Majesty!’ the minister of the interior protested shrilly the next morning as tons of water began to gush into the moat from the throats of the huge pipes strewn across the lawn of the imperial compound.

‘Oh?’ Ehlana asked innocently. ‘And why is that, Minister Kolata?’

‘Uh, well, uh, there’s no sub-foundation under the moat, your Majesty. The water will just sink into the ground.’

‘Oh, that’s all right, Minister Kolata. It’s only for one night. I’m sure the moat will stay full enough until after the party.’

Kolata stared with chagrin at a sudden fountain-like eruption of air and muddy water out in the centre of the moat.

‘My goodness,’ Ehlana said mildly, looking at the sudden whirlpool funnelling down where the eruption had taken place. ‘There must have been an old abandoned cellar under there.’ She laughed a silvery little laugh. ‘I’d imagine that the rats who lived in there were very surprised, wouldn’t you agree, your Excellency?’

Kolata looked a bit sick. ‘Uh, would you excuse me, your Majesty?’ he said, and he turned to hurry across the lawn without waiting for a reply.

‘Don’t let him get away, Sparhawk,’ Ehlana said coolly. ‘I strongly suspect that Lord Vanion’s list wasn’t as complete as we might have hoped. Why don’t you invite the minister of the interior into the castle so that you can show him our other preparations?’ She tapped one finger thoughtfully against her chin. ‘And you might ask Sir Kalten and Sir Ulath to join you when you get around to showing his Excellency the torture-chamber. Emperor Sarabian’s excellent minister of the interior might want to add a few names to Vanion’s list.’

It was the cool and unruffled way she said it that chilled Sparhawk’s blood the most.

‘He’s beginning to feel more than a little offended, Sparhawk,’ Vanion said soberly as the two of them watched Khalad’s workmen ‘decorating’ the vast gates of the imperial compound. ‘He’s not stupid, and he knows that we’re not telling him everything.’

‘It can’t be helped, Vanion. He’s just too erratic to be let in on all the details.’

‘Mercurial might be a more diplomatic term.’

‘Whatever. We don’t really know him all that well, Vanion, and we’re operating in an alien society. For all we know, he keeps a diary and writes everything down. That could be a Tamul custom. It’s entirely possible that our whole plan could be available to the chambermaid who makes up his bed every morning.’

‘You’re speculating, Sparhawk.’

‘These ambushes out in the countryside weren’t speculation.’

‘Surely you don’t suspect the emperor.’

‘Somebody passed the word of our expeditions along to our enemy, Vanion. We can apologise to the emperor after this evening’s entertainment is concluded.’

‘Oh, that’s just too obvious, Sparhawk!’ Vanion burst out, pointing at the heavy steel lattice Khalad’s workmen were installing on the inside of the gates.

‘It won’t be visible when they open the gates all the way, Vanion, and Khalad’s going to hang bunting on the lattice to conceal it. Did Sephrenia have any luck when she tried to contact Zalasta?’

‘No. He must still be too far away.’

‘I’d be a lot more comfortable if he were here. If the Troll-Gods put in an appearance tonight, we could be in very serious trouble.’

‘Aphrael can deal with them.’

‘Not without revealing her true identity, she can’t, and if that comes out, my wife’s going to find out some things I’d rather she didn’t know. I’m not so fond of Sarabian that I’m willing to risk Ehlana’s sanity just to keep him on his throne.’

The sun crept slowly down the western sky, moving closer and closer to the horizon. Although he knew it to be an absurdity, it seemed to Sparhawk that the blazing orb was plummeting to earth like a shooting star. There were so many details – so many things that had yet to be done. Worse yet, many of those tasks could not even be commenced until after the sun went down and gathering darkness concealed them from the hundreds of eyes that were certainly out there watching.