The Crystal Sorcerers (16 page)

"Did you say beer?"
Walker shouted.

"The best to be had."

"Say, I think I'm gonna like this place." Eagerly he fell in alongside the ruler, who, still shouting imprecations, started down the steps of the pyramid.

Mark walked over to Ikawa, who smiled and said, "I thought the son of a bitch was going to break my hand."

"I think he likes you," Leti ventured, unable to keep from grinning.

"Well, thank God for that," Ikawa replied. "I certainly wouldn't want to upset the family."

"You know," Mark said, unable to contain
himself
, "if you two ever make some sort of formal marriage out of this, that guy's going to be your nephew-in-law."

"Just what I've always wanted," Ikawa groaned.

After several hours of crisscrossing the city, which Tulana was showing off with evident pride, Mark found himself to be captivated by the
place.
Even in the unique world of Haven, it ranked as one of the more bizarre regions he had ever seen.

Tulana's
island
of
Salemar
was over three millennia old, and as far as he could guess, the giant had been ruling it and eight others like it since their creation during the Great War. The islands had originally been created as rest points for sorcerers crossing the ocean and afterwards evolved into major trade ports linking the continents. There were now four such chains crossing the ocean and from each of the chains, like spokes on a wheel, dozens of minor centers radiated outward so that no point on the ocean was more than half a day's flying time from a safe haven. Tulana kept boasting that his system was the first, and that all the others were but minor systems controlled by rivals who at best were simple-minded incompetents.

Mark found that there was a certain organic quality to the artificial island, like an ever-living organism that was forever building itself, wearing down, and replacing parts at need. It was, Mark felt, as if a great ship from the time of Alexander had somehow survived across the ages, due to constant maintenance, and through time had acquired the architecture and design of every ship that had been built afterward, so that in the end the vessel was an historical melange.

The floating island was built on a series of pontoons, which in turn were anchored by heavy cables to the ocean floor. Each island was located above a relatively shallow spot in the ocean, so the depth here was under a thousand feet. All elements of its design had been engineered to ride out the roughest storm.

But the city's understructure was what held his attention the most. A vast interworking of pegged timbers, ropes and iron beams, it set up a cacophony of creaks and groans as the island rolled in the sea.

The city supported nearly ten thousand inhabitants and was far more than merely a port of call for sorcerers flying across the ocean. It served as a trade center and safe haven for ships as well, but gained most of its livelihood from the shepherding and harvesting of fish.

"I've got millions of tons of food growing out there," Tulana boomed, pointing expansively to the shimmering ocean. "I'm prince of a chain of nine of these islands and control most of the central ocean. It's the best damn realm in this world!"

Tulana looked back at the weary travelers who sat about his long table in the main feasting hall, which on all sides was open to the pleasant afternoon breeze, offering an uncluttered view of the sparkling ocean in every direction.

"A beer would sound mighty good right now,"
Walker said, looking hopefully up at Tulana.

"Ah, damn me, I've been neglecting you." Laughing, Tulana clapped his hands.

A doorway into the floor opened and half a dozen servants appeared, dragging up a heavy barrel which they deftly cracked open. Heavy leathern flagons were filled and passed around, foaming amber brew dripping down their sides. Without waiting for the others, Tuluna swept up a flagon in his beefy hands and drained it off. Expectantly he looked over at Walker who tentatively sniffed the brew, brought it to his lips, and took a short pull. A look of delight lit his eyes.

"This stuff is great!" Kochanski called.

"Now for some mituni," Tulana shouted, and servants appeared carrying trays of golden fish, sliced into thin strips. The Americans looked at each other in confusion.

"Sushi!"
Shigeru cried and, caught up in the informality of his
host,
the lumbering wrestler stood, scooped a handful of raw fish from a passing platter, and downed it in a single gulp.

"Excellent!"

"Jesus Christ," Smithie mumbled, looking at Mark. "Is that stuff what I think it is?"

"Raw fish," Mark said, trying not to appear nonplussed, while around him the Japanese eagerly dived into the repast.

"How the hell can you eat that stuff?"
Walker asked Saito, while trying to keep a look of disgust off his face.

"It's delicious," Saito replied, spearing a long golden sliver on the end of a fork and passing it to
Walker.

Walker
wrinkled his nose.

"They say it makes you a better lover," Shigeru growled. He leaned over
Walker's shoulder and dangled a piece in front of
Walker's face.

Walker
tentatively sniffed it. "I don't want to tell you what it reminds me of," he said quietly, and Mark couldn't help but break into a laugh.

Tulana, surveying the scene with obvious amusement, clapped his hands again.

"Bring in the zah!"

"Damn
it,
look at the size of that lobster!" Kraut shouted. The room broke into a round of excited cries as four servants appeared, carrying a monstrous, four-clawed creature, steamed red and nearly the size of a man.

Laying the creature before Tulana, one of the servants handed him a heavy mallet. Tulana brought the weapon smashing down on a claw, which cracked wide open to reveal a mass of creamy white meat. Pulling a knife from his belt, Tulana sliced out several pounds of flesh with deft strokes, speared the chunk on the end of the blade, and leaned over the table to offer it to Mark.

"Go on, take a bite, and pass it on."

Mark bit and was stunned by its sweet richness. Grinning, he passed the blade to Kochanski.

"Better than
Maine
hardshell," Kochanski replied with delight.

The servants now fell to, wrestling the claws free, smashing them open, and passing the meat about, while Tulana buried his face in the first claw, so that his beard was soon coated with juice and meat.

"See why you didn't have to worry about me being interested in him?" Leti said quietly, smiling at the Japanese captain, who was fastidiously cutting a large piece of zah into more manageable slices.

In the distance a horn sounded, counterpointed by a rolling of drums.

Tulana tossed the half-devoured claw onto the floor, his eyes afire. "Damn them, they're at it again!"

Cursing, he walked over to the edge of the pavilion and leaned over the side.

"From what direction?" he bellowed.

"Northeastern quadrant.
A patrol ship just relayed the message,"
came
a voice from below.

"How many?"

"Three, possibly four.
They're Cresus--we know that for certain."

"I'll bet my pouches they're the same ones hit us last week and killed old Gupta. Well, make the ship ready, I'm getting sick of these bastards."

"All right," Tulana shouted, walking back into the center of the room, "feasting's over for now. We're going hunting!"

"These men have never done something like this before," Leti said anxiously. "Maybe they should sit this one out."

"What the hell--they're sorcerers, aren't they? Come on, a little hunting will do them good."

"What say you," Tulana yelled to the assembly, "you're not afraid of a little fishing expedition, are you?"

"Fishing?
I'd love to!" Shigeru cried, lumbering to his feet and tossing a handful of sushi aside. "Let's get going."

The group, carried away with the feasting and Tulana's half angry, half excited mood, shouted approval.

"To the ships, then!"
Tulana stormed over to the trap door, followed by a boisterous mob.

"Just what the hell are Cresus?" Mark asked, falling in beside Leti, who was obviously less than pleased.

"They're fish," she said quietly.

"What kind of fish?" Mark asked, although he really didn't want to know.

"Carnivorous, and bigger than a house.
They're a constant problem for the sea shepherds."

"You mean like a shark?" Ikawa asked.

"I don't know the word," Leti replied, "but if a shark can swallow an entire ship, you've got the right idea."

"Here we go again," Ikawa said, trying to smile.

Following Tulana's lead, the party poured into the street, which was aswarm with several hundred men racing down to the boats docked on the lee side of the island. The atmosphere was strange: grim, but with a wild note of excitement. Above the general confusion, Tulana's voice could be heard booming out oaths and commands.

Reaching the harbor side, Mark was delighted to see that they were going to board the large clipper-type ship he had seen from the air.

"What do you think of her?" Tulana called, pointing expansively. "
Cloud Dancer
is the finest one afloat!"

Not waiting for a response, he turned away, and with a good deal of cursing and shouting, ordered the ship to depart.

"I think we're going to be swimming underwater," Leti announced. "The rest of our group hasn't had a chance to practice so I'd better give them some pointers right now." Calling the offworlders together, she hurriedly started to explain the techniques of breathing beneath the waves.

Mark and Ikawa broke away from their men and wandered astern to where Tulana stood by the wheel.

"We've got four of them out there for certain," Tulana announced. "One is old Naga--he's been a thorn in my side for years. Wait until he finds out I've got over a score of sorcerers and another demigod with me this time!"

"It sounds like it's going to be exciting," Mark said tentatively.

"Exciting? There's nothing like it! I hate the damn things. They can swallow a hundred tons of the finest mituni in a single pass and be out again in an hour. This time of year they cruise the western end of my chain; later in the season they'll shift further east. And the gods help us if they ever got to one of my cities--they'd make splinters of it in the flash of an eye. But damn my soul, if they weren't here to pester me, I'd die of boredom, I would."

"All's ready!" came a cry from forward.

"Cast away, then," Tulana shouted. "Hoist all sails."

"Why don't we just fly out to where they are?" Ikawa ventured. "It'd be faster."

"I'll need the rest of the men when we get them to breach. But you'll see, we've got a broad reach today, we'll be there in no time."

"Clear away!"

A curtain of white canvas thundered down from above, filling the masts. The crew, cursing and shouting, worked the sheets, pulling the sails in, while from above came a wild litany of shouts and chanties as the men let out yet more sails.

A shudder ran through the huge vessel as Tulana guided it out past the star point bastions.

"Now hang on," Tulana shouted, a delighted grin on his face.

Spinning the wheel hard over, he pointed the ship north. The canvas sails snapped and thundered, bellying out with the wind, and the deck started to heel over. Nervously Mark looked around for something to grab on to.

The vessel lurched and the deck canted even higher, while the crew strained at the windlasses, hauling the sheets in tight, cranking the vast fore and aft sails down to form winglike airfoils.

"We're flying a hull," Tulana cried as the canting continued so that Mark felt as if the entire vessel would roll straight on over. Unable to contain himself, he lifted off the deck.

"A land walker to be sure," Tulana shouted good-naturedly. "But go on, fly out a bit and see me beauty sail."

Mark looked over at Ikawa, who flew up to follow Mark through the rigging. Sailors waved to them as they rose above the ship.

"It's magnificent!" Ikawa cried.

Cloud Dancer
cut through the water like a knife, its massive fore and aft sails pulled taut as drumheads. It sliced easily through the waves, kicking up curtains of spray and leaving a rooster tail plume fifty feet high in its wake. The curtains of water caught the early afternoon sun in a rainbow wash.

"She must be doing close to thirty knots," Ikawa said. "It's just amazing."

Together the two swooped down, racing along the downwind side, slicing through the salty spray and then arcing back up again. Pointing to the foremast crow's nest, Mark raced through the rigging once more and alighted next to several sailors who were anxiously peering forward.