The Hero's Tomb (21 page)

Chapter Thirty-four

‘Goodbye,’ said Tabitha.

She laid her hand on Nell’s head, smoothing the feathers. The griffin gave a gentle click of her beak, and half stretched her wings. They caught the morning sunlight, and Tabitha thought once again how beautiful she was. She turned away.

The stable boy hustled the three griffins back inside and swung the wooden stable doors shut. Master Gurney pressed a coin into his hand.

‘Now you mustn’t worry yourselves,’ said the magician, turning to Tabitha and Joseph. He was still wearing his dusty black gown, but Tabitha could have sworn there was a little extra colour in his cheeks
now. Ever since the adventure at Corin’s Tomb. ‘The Academy will take excellent care of your feathered friends. They’ll be far better off here than they were in that ghastly bile farm.’

Tabitha nodded. She knew they couldn’t take Nell back to Port Fayt with them, but she was still sorry to see her go. ‘Just promise me one thing,’ she said.

‘Yes, my dear?’

‘That you won’t try and turn her into an egg?’

The magician laid a solemn hand on her shoulder. ‘I swear it by Corin’s Sword.’ He winced as he realized what he’d just said. ‘Or, I mean … perhaps I should say,
by Thalin’s breeches.
That’s the expression, isn’t it?’

Just that morning, the sword had been melted down in the Academy’s smithy. Master Gurney had hated every second of it – losing such a precious historical artefact – but he knew they had no choice. The Sword of Corin was gone – and the Old World was safer for it.

‘Thank you, Master Gurney,’ said Joseph. He was dressed in a clean blue coat, white shirt and breeches – the smartest Tabitha had ever seen him. He was still a little pale after the fight at the tomb, and he seemed even skinnier than before. But the biggest change was in his face. There was a strange kind of peace there. A look she hadn’t seen since … well, ever.

‘You are most welcome, young man,’ said Master Gurney. ‘I must admit, I found it all rather … exhilarating. I would never have dreamed of meddling in League affairs, but I couldn’t allow that wooden spoon to fall into the hands of the Duke of Garran. Now, do you have it with you?’

Joseph reached into his pocket and drew it out. Master Gurney took the spoon at once, sweeping it inside his gown as though it might catch fire if it was in the open for too long. ‘You have my word that I will take proper care of it.’ He beamed. ‘Well. Your friends will be waiting for you.’

They walked together, footsteps crunching in the gravel as they made their way past the neat green squares of grass, through the courtyards of the Academy.

Master Gurney led them, his cloak billowing behind him like a raven’s wings.
He’s even standing a little taller now,
thought Tabitha. She noticed other magicians steal quick glances at the master and the two children following him, readjusting spectacles and peering over piles of books to get a better look.

Word’s got around.

The carriage was waiting for them on the gravel driveway beyond the drawbridge. It was a smart, shining black Academy vehicle, with its motto inscribed
on the lacquer in letters of gold:
To LEARN is to DO.

It had never made much sense to Tabitha.
To DO is to LEARN
seemed more like it.

‘Have you said your goodbyes, Tabs?’

It was Hal who spoke. The magician was standing by the open door of the carriage, rubbing at his spectacles with a handkerchief. He looked a thousand times better now that the burden of his secret had been lifted.

‘Aye, just about.’

Paddy heaved the last bag of provisions up onto the roof of the carriage and lashed it down. The trolls had spent most of the morning in the kitchens, sniffing around for some loaves of black bread, joints of ham, and some enormous multi-coloured cheeses from the Duchy of Henge that Frank had become fond of.

‘Where’s Newt?’ asked Tabitha.

‘Beats me,’ said Frank, rounding the carriage. ‘We’ll miss the tide if he’s not here soon.’

‘I could go and find them?’ Joseph suggested.

Paddy chuckled as he clambered down and dusted off his hands. ‘I reckon you’ve done quite enough. I’m not letting you out of my sight again, you little rascal.’ He made to deliver one of his friendly punches, then stopped himself as Joseph flinched.

‘Ah,’ said Master Gurney. ‘Here they are.’

Everyone turned.

Three figures were making their way across the drawbridge. Two of them walked side by side – a tall, thin elf and a large, strong human. Cyrus Derringer wore a bandage around his head, and his clean black uniform hung a little loose on his shoulders – but he was clearly on the road to recovery. Newton wore his blue watchman’s coat over one shoulder, the other exposed and covered in bandaging. Ty rode in his front pocket.

At the rear came a hulking, shambling creature, his footsteps clumping heavily on the wooden planks of the drawbridge. Morgan had become even quieter since the fight at the tomb, if that was possible. Tabitha didn’t blame him. The Duke of Garran might have been a cruel man, and likely a worse master – but he was still a person, and Morgan had killed him. That wasn’t something he was going to forget.

The ogre came to a halt a little way behind his two companions, waiting like a faithful hound. He was dressed in shirtsleeves and an Academy gown to replace the white League livery he’d worn before. It was far too small for him and the material was strained in several places, but it covered his back at least.

‘Thank you, Morgan,’ Tabitha called out.
Thank you for saving our lives.
She smiled at him, and the ogre
gave her a confused, wary look. As though he’d never seen a smile before.

‘The wounded veterans return, eh?’ said Frank. Tabitha thought he was making a joke for a moment, but he looked grave. Everyone did. There was a strange atmosphere, as though something was going on. She turned to Joseph, and saw that he felt it too.

‘Captain Newton, I—’ began Hal. He was staring at his feet, looking anxious all over again. ‘I don’t know if anyone told you … About the wooden spoon, I—’

‘I heard,’ said Newton. ‘And I understand. I can’t blame you, Hal. Especially after all I’ve done.’

‘All the same … I’m sorry.’

There was another long, awkward pause.

‘Are we going then?’ said Tabitha briskly.

Newton nodded. ‘Aye,’ he said, and his deep voice trembled a little. ‘Aye, you should.’

‘What do you mean?’ said Tabitha. She felt dizzy.

‘You’re not coming?’ said Joseph.

Newton laid his hands on their shoulders, one on Tabitha’s and one on Joseph’s. The bruise on his face was a pale purple now. He smiled at them – a sad smile, but more than that, a weary one.

‘Listen to me closely. Cyrus and I, we’ve been talking, and we’ve decided that he’ll come with you. He’ll captain the Watch from now on – he’s proved himself,
I reckon.’ The elf looked solemn, and Tabitha remembered how he used to smile all the time – or smirk, at least – and how she hadn’t seen that in a long while.

‘What about you?’ she asked.

‘Me and Ty, we’re staying here in the Old World.’

‘But—’

‘I’ve thought about this a lot, Tabs. I’ve made some mistakes lately. Big ones. And I reckon … well, I reckon I’m tired.’ He paused a moment, eyes glazing over, and at once Tabitha thought of Old Jon. His friend. Now dead and gone. ‘Someone should be here,’ he added finally. ‘For now, at least. Alice Turnbull’s at the House of Light, and she’s doing what she can. The lords of the League are all dead now, and it’s a chance to turn things around. Maybe destroy the League for good. Who knows? But I’m going to keep an eye on things. Besides …’

He turned and looked at Morgan. The ogre was standing still, fiddling with his hands and looking like a lost puppy.

‘I reckon he needs me,’ said Newton. ‘What the Duke did to him … well …’ He tailed off. ‘Master Gurney here has offered us rooms in the Academy. It’ll be a good life. And maybe one day soon I’ll take a trip out into the countryside. To Wyborough. To the zephyrum mines.’

Tabitha took a deep breath, fighting down her tears. She was going to argue, but something in Newton’s face stopped her. He looked so content, so sure that this was the right thing to do.

‘I’ll miss you,’ she said at last, her voice wavering.

Newton nodded. ‘Aye. I’ll miss you too. But we’ll see each other again very soon. I promise you that.’

Paddy clapped a big green hand on Cyrus Derringer’s shoulder. ‘Welcome to the Watch,’ he said.

‘Thank you,’ said Cyrus. ‘I …’ He seemed a little embarrassed. ‘I don’t think I understood what the Watch really was, before. What it meant. But I won’t let you down.’

Newton turned to Joseph. ‘Goodbye, young ’un,’ he said. ‘You and Tabs look after each other, understand?’

The tavern boy nodded, and flashed a smile at her.

‘I don’t want to rush you,’ said Frank. ‘But the tide …’

‘Aye,’ said Newton. ‘Best be on your way.’

He and Ty said goodbye to the other watchmen, one by one. At long last they clambered on board, and Joseph gave Tabitha the window seat. She stuck her head out and waved as the carriage jolted off, as it bounced along the gravel drive, faster and faster.

The wind tossed her blue hair across her face, breaking up her view of the figures waving back. The fairy hovering in the air, the tall, black-clad magician, the hulking ogre and the shaven-headed man in the blue coat. The man who wasn’t her father, but who had looked after her like his daughter.

The tears came at last, blinding her, as they turned the corner and Newton disappeared from view. Ever since her parents died, he’d been the only family she’d known. And now he was gone.

Cyrus Derringer silently reached into a pocket of his uniform, drew out a handkerchief and passed it to her.

‘We’ll see him again, Tabs, don’t you worry,’ said Frank.

‘Aye, and he’ll write letters too,’ said Paddy. ‘Probably get Ty to deliver them.’

‘They’ll be misspelled with terrible grammar, if I know Newt,’ said Hal.

‘And we’ll write letters back,’ said Joseph. ‘Let him know what’s happening with the Watch. Remember what you said to me, on that rooftop?
We’ve still got a family.’

Tabitha smiled through the tears.
The only family she’d known.
Maybe that wasn’t quite true.

Joseph stood at the bow of the
Eternal Brilliance,
savouring the breeze and the salt spray that buffeted his face. The ship had been on the sea for almost an hour, and the Old World was just a thin blurred line on the horizon to stern. Ahead there was nothing but the sparkling ocean.

For the first time since the griffin farm, he was alone.

He reached into his pocket and drew out the wand. It looked just the same as ever – old, battered and chipped. A wooden spoon, just like the one he’d given Master Gurney. Tabitha had picked up the fake one from the burned-out tavern when she’d gone to fetch his cutlass. She’d had a hunch it might prove useful, and she’d been right.

Joseph hadn’t wanted to give up the wand – not like that. It had started everything. That day back in the Legless Mermaid, when his broom had struck the black velvet package and he’d kept it in the hope of returning it to its owner and finding a better life.

The spoon was the beginning, and it made a funny sort of sense that it should be the end too.

There were footsteps on the deck behind him, and Cyrus Derringer joined him at the gunwale. The sea air seemed to have done wonders for the elf’s complexion. The bandage was still wrapped around
his head, but he’d mend – that’s what Hal had said, anyway. He was fiddling with the hilt of his sword, gazing straight ahead.

‘I wanted to ask you …’ he began stiffly. He paused for a long while, and Joseph waited. ‘I’m not sure I can do it. Lead the Watch. The way you are together it’s like a … well. Like a family.’

Joseph nodded.

‘How can I replace Captain Newton?’

‘You can’t.’

There was another long pause.

‘But you know,’ said Joseph finally, ‘I never thought I could do it either. Be a watchman. If you’d told me, back when I was a tavern boy …’ He smiled at the thought. ‘They took me in, all the same. They acted like I wasn’t just a mongrel boy. Like I was
someone
. Like I was … I don’t know. Joseph Grubb.’ He turned his smile on Derringer, and the elf smiled back. ‘You’ll be all right,’ Joseph told him.

‘I hope so,’ said Cyrus. He pointed at Joseph’s hand. ‘What have you got there?’

‘Oh, this …’ Joseph held up the wooden spoon. ‘This is just a spoon.’

Almost without thinking, he took it in both hands and snapped it over his knee. He felt a strange vibration through his palms, and the air shimmered,
as though the magic was evaporating. He drew his arm back and hurled the two pieces out into the ocean.

‘Why did you do that?’ said Cyrus cautiously.

Joseph shrugged. ‘I reckon I don’t need it any more.’

They stood together in silence, as the
Eternal
Brilliance
sailed on, towards Port Fayt.