Part 16 (1/2)

The form of the akesh materialized in front of them, glowing faintly of its own accord. The room grew brighter, illuminated by four gla.s.s hemispheres set into the walls.

”Why did you forbid our companion entry?” asked Gerin.

”That being has power we cannot control,” said the akesh. ”Our laws forbid such a creature from entering our domain.”

”Why have you locked us in?” asked Balandrick.

”The door will open in time. There are things we would have you know. Come. I will take you to the en pulyan ar-anglota.”

The akesh turned away from them, and as it did, the bright outline of a door appeared in the wall. The outlined faded in a moment, and the door opened silently onto a stairway landing. They followed the akesh, with Gerin in the lead.

The stairway spiraled down toward a bottom lost in gloomy darkness. The curved walls were lit by the same glowing hemispheres they had seen in the antechamber, though they were not very bright-apparently the Telchan did not care for or need much light. They were filled with magefire, Gerin realized, but operated on a different principle than the lamps wizards produced. Who created this place? he wondered. Why is wizard-like magic in use here?

There were no doors or other landings visible as they descended. Even after they had gone a considerable distance, Gerin could not see the bottom.

Far off sounds like the tearing of metal drifted up the shaft from somewhere below. ”What is that noise?” Gerin asked.

”That is the power of the Telchan at work,” said the akesh.

”When will we meet the Telchan? Are you taking us to them now? Are they in the en pulyan ar-anglota?”

”You will not meet them. It is forbidden for them to have direct contact with anyone who is not Maitalari. Only through me can they hold communion with you.”

The statement confused Gerin. ”Maitalari” was an Osirin word of very archaic form that he thought meant ”people of knowledge,” or perhaps ”servants of lore.” He had never heard the word before.

He was about to ask the akesh another question when it stopped and faced the wall. Another luminous door appeared, identical to the one in the antechamber, the white light slicing a knife-edged trail through the stone.

”This is the en pulyan ar-anglota,” announced the akesh. ”Where your questions will be heard and answered.”

Gerin drew a breath to calm himself and pa.s.sed through the doorway.

He entered a huge domed room, the walls of which were ribbed with curved beams that shone with a wan bluish light. The light brightened and dimmed in rhythm with a deep pulsing noise, a low thrumming that Gerin felt more than heard. The ribs converged on a hemisphere of some dark metal at the apex of the dome.

There was power in this chamber, a great deal of it. Forces ebbed and flowed like the tides, was.h.i.+ng over him with energies so potent they made his head swim. His exhaustion dragged at him, and the pain from his wounds made it difficult for him to concentrate. But he had arrived at his destination. He fought to clear his mind and learn what the Telchan wanted him to know. They had promised to reveal the secret of the Words of Making. He needed that knowledge if they were to have a hope of defeating the Adversary.

The akesh grew even more distinct and luminous than before, as if the power in the en pulyan ar-anglota were saturating its being. Gerin thought it had grown larger, but without an easy reference point it was difficult to be certain.

”The air in here feels heavy,” said Nyene.

Balandrick nodded. ”There's a kind of pressure on my skin. It's uncomfortable.”

”What will happen now?” Gerin asked the akesh.

”I must leave you. I cannot remain while the pulyaril is awake. Do not fear. I will return when it is done.”

”When what is done?” asked Gerin. But the akesh was already fading. In a moment it was gone from the chamber.

”I don't like this place,” said Elaysen.

Gerin did not reply. There was nothing they could do now except wait for whatever was going to happen to occur.

The low thrumming sound increased in intensity. The ebbs and flows of power in the chamber grew stronger, more chaotic, as if a storm were building.

The hemisphere at the top of the dome pulsed with a bloo-dred light that seemed to take command of the energies in the room. The chaotic swirl of magic began to order itself; Gerin could almost imagine the flows of power suddenly aligning themselves along the ribs within the dome, encasing them in thickening sheaths of magic.

Pressure began to build behind his eyes. He squeezed them shut, but the pressure quickly grew painful.

”G.o.ds, it hurts...” said Nyene. ”What's happening?”

There was a crisp smell in the room that reminded Gerin of a biting winter wind. He heard a ringing in his ears as well, but it was not the melodious sound of the akesh-this was a discordant, strident sound, dark and ominous.

He pressed his hands to his temples as he sensed a living presence moving through his thoughts, exploring like a shadowy stranger wandering through an unfamiliar house in an attempt to understand the placement and purposes of each room. It echoed the feeling of the Presence in Naragenth's staff, only this was even more painful, the power having little regard for the damage it might cause.

Elaysen cried out and sank to her knees, her eyes squeezed shut. ”Make it stop! Please!”

The pain intensified, building toward some impossible crescendo.

There was a flash of light that he saw in his mind rather than with his eyes. Then the pain and the thrumming vanished. The immense energies receded. The hemisphere above them once more grew dark.

They all gasped for breath, many of them doubled over. The air in the chamber was stale and close. Gerin felt light-headed and nauseous. His ribs hurt immensely.

The akesh appeared before them, as luminous as before, and regarded them with a piercing light in its eyes. Behind them the door swung open to the stairs.

”You have been given what you came for,” it said. ”Now you must leave. There is nothing more for you here.”

18.

Gerin and the wizards protested as the akesh led them back toward the surface, but it would not respond or acknowledge them in any way. At one point Abaru said defiantly, ”It's not right that we should be herded out of here like cattle. We came here for answers, and the G.o.ds take me, we're going to get them!” He turned and started back down the stairs, but had gone only three paces when a curtain of blue fire erupted below him, blocking his path. Abaru reeled and fell back against the stairs.

”Do not unleash your power here,” warned the akesh. ”Even your combined might could not break the barrier. If the Telchan were forced to extinguish your magic, it is possible you would be harmed, perhaps irreparably.”

”We didn't get to ask a single question!” said Abaru. ”Some of our companions died coming here!”

”The Telchan knew your questions before you entered the Tower. They have answered what they could. Be patient. All will be revealed.”

”What about the rest of the Havalqa army?” asked Balandrick. ”Are they waiting for us in the valley?”

”We were forced to destroy them,” said the akesh. ”It was unfortunate, but the Telchan had no choice.”

”If you have such power, will you help us against the Havalqa?” asked Gerin. ”You could drive them back across the sea.”

”The magic of the Telchan is bound to this place,” said the akesh. ”It is rooted here, and cannot be moved. By the laws of their creation, they may only defend themselves. They cannot help you.”

Then it turned its back to them and spoke no more.

It was fully dark when they finally exited the Tower. A half-moon was rising from behind the Ozul Mountains like the luminous sail of a s.h.i.+p.