Vale of the Vole (11 page)

"I thought the Good Magician would know," Chex said.

"Sure he does!" Ivy said.

"Surely," Chet and Chex said together.

Ivy didn't even bother to say pooh. She jumped down and skipped off to the gaming monsters. "Time to get moving, boys!" she cried, wading into the melee. "We're going to the Gap!"

That got Stanley's attention immediately. The engagement broke up and the two lined up for the trip.

The party proceeded north, again cutting its own trail. Once a sleeping flying dragon woke, belching fire. Tangleman leaned over it and opened his mouth. The dragon gazed at the huge wooden teeth and scooted away. Another time a small tangle tree—one in the vegetative state— menaced them as they passed. Stanley reared up and puffed steam at it, and the tree quickly wilted back.

"I could get to like this sort of travel," Esk mumured.

"Yeah, it's real fun with them," Ivy said.

"Yes, it's really," both centaurs called.

Ivy stuck out her tongue. Esk buried a smile. He liked the little girl, even if she was a princess.

By nightfall they were near the Gap. They camped by a spring and posted no guards; they needed none in the present company. Esk noted with private satisfaction that Ivy was just as secretive as he was about natural functions; the centaur way was not the only way. In fact, Ivy was a fine antidote to the centaur attitudes.

In the morning they reached the Gap. It was a monstrous crevice whose faces descended clifflike to a narrow base far, far below. Esk felt dizzy just peering into it.

"We shall have to travel along it until we find a way down," Chet said. 'That may require some time. There are bridges across it, but my sibling should be down inside it."

Volney sniffed the ground. "No need to vearch," he said. "The old vole holev remain; a large one will take uv down."

"Voles are very good with tunnels," Esk explained to the others as Volney moved along.

"But he's going away from the chasm," Ivy protested.

Then Volney found what he was sniffing for: the cavelike entrance to a large tunnel "You may wivh light," he said as he plunged on in.

"I saw some lightning rods close by," Ivy said. She dashed off to pick them. They glowed more brightly as she held them, enhanced by her magic. Soon everyone who wanted one had a glowing rod, even Tan-gleman. They trooped down after the vole.

The tunnel was long and dank, and branched many times, but they followed Volney with confidence, and eventually came out at the base of the Gap. The vole hole had saved them a good deal of trouble.

"Now to find Chem," Chet said. "Stay with us, Stanley; we don't want Stella to find us and take us for prey."

"Stacey," Ivy said smugly.

"What?"

"Her name is Stacey Steamer," Ivy said.

"But she's listed as Stella."

"But I named her, same as I named Stanley. I can't help it if the ass who made the Lexicon got it wrong."

"The ass didn't get it wrong; he listed both," Chex said. "There's an ambiguity, that's all."

"But when I'm here, my name is right," Ivy said.

Chet shrugged, unable to refute that. Again the little princess had gotten the best of the centaur. Esk enjoyed that, privately.

Again Volney's nose simplified things. "They went that way movt revently," he announced, pointing west.

They traveled west, and in due course came upon Stacey and Chem. They were exploring an offshoot of the chasm, one with jagged walls angling upward. Chem was projecting an image of it and comparing the details to the real one, so as to match them perfectly. She was a lovely brown-maned, brown-eyed creature with a family resemblance to Chex.

Chex embraced her dam. "My, how you've grown, dear!" Chem exclaimed.

"I exercised."

"But whatever brings you here? I thought you were trying to learn how to fly."

"That's why I finally went to the Good Magician." She proceeded to that story, and to their need for a suitable map.

"But I cannot show the Magician on a map!" Chem protested. "I don't know where he is!"

"We thought you might be able to show a detailed map of where he might be," Chex explained.

"I suppose I could do that. Certainly I can detail any of the geography of that region for anyone who wishes to search for him."

So Chem reluctantly agreed to accompany them back to Castle Roogna. Her sibling and her filly understood her reticence; she had no more desire to brace her sire and dam on the matter of mixed-breed offspring than did Chex. But they all agreed that the time had come to do it.

Stanley decided to stay in the Gap awhile and visit with Stacey. Ivy pouted but yielded to necessity; she could not keep the Gap Dragon out of the Gap forever. They were now near one of the enchanted crossings, so would need no protection once they got to the upper level.

There was no vole hole in this particular section, but Chem had mapped it and knew a good way out. It was along a side crevice on the north slope. They trooped up the jagged V of it, following only the branches Chem indicated, and made their way through the puzzlelike labyrinth to the surface. Then they took the invisible bridge across, which was a novel experience for Esk. He peered down beyond his seemingly unsupported feet, and felt dizzy. After that he followed Volney's example and closed his eyes.

Tangleman departed for his glade, leaving just the three centaurs, two human beings, and one vole. They camped for the night, and when it rained they moved under a large umbrella tree. Volney didn't need it, of course; he simply dug one of his cozy burrows. Ivy insisted on spending the night there, to Esk's annoyance, until Chem projected a map of this region that showed where a good pillow bush grew. Then Esk gathered a fine pile of pillows and settled down in comfort.

They did not hurry in the morning. Centaurs were creatures of integrity, but somehow none of these three found reason to rush on to the castle. Actually, there was no reason; King Dor and Queen Irene were not due to return for another day. Chester and Cherie were supervising the grounds during the royal absence, as it happened, and keeping an eye on Ivy's little brother, Prince Dolph. That, Chet remarked, was challenge enough, for little Dolph could change form instantly to anything, and tended to become a mouse and sneak out when he was supposed to be studying boring Xanth history.

But, being the centaurs they were, they did not dawdle unduly either. Thus at midday they arrived at Castle Roogna.

Esk was impressed. He had seen the Good Magician's castle, so knew the general nature of such structures, but this was on a grander scale. Its walls towered above the moat, and the moat had not one but several monstrous monsters. The grounds were girt about with an orchard con-

taming every kind of exotic tree, and beyond were more aggressive trees that were able to move their branches to block unwanted trespassers. To one side was the zombie graveyard, whose occupants would rise up in all their sodden horror when required in defense of the estate. There were even, Chet assured him, several ghosts in the castle, though these were relatively harmless, merely waiting for their stories to be told.

A tiny man-shape stood at the drawbridge. "A horse rear with wings/" the figure exclaimed. "Wait till the caretakers see that!"

"Go tell them, Grundy!" Ivy cried happily. She was not aware of the gravity of the situation.

The golem ran swiftly into the castle. In a moment a pair of older centaurs appeared, male and female. They spied Chex together.

"Great!" the male exclaimed.

"AppallingI" the female breathed.

"Sire, Dam, this is my issue," Chem said, gesturing to Chex, who stood as if expecting to be struck.

"And she can almost fly!" Ivy said.

Chex's granddam said no further word. She turned and went back into the castle.

Her grandsire hesitated. "This may take a little time," he said, then hurried after his mate.

The three centaurs turned with similar looks of pain and walked away from the castle.

Ivy looked at Esk. "Does this make any sense to you?"

"Not any I like," he replied.

"I thought Cherie would be glad to meet her granddaughter!"

"I gather that centaurs don't approve of crossbreeding."

"Oh, pooh! Everybody crossbreeds in Xanth!"

Esk shrugged. "I fear Cherie Centaur doesn't see it that way."

"She doesn't like magic much, for centaurs," Ivy said thoughtfully. "Chester's better about that; he's got a talent, and so does Chet."

Chet found a place for Chem and Chex to stay the night, and Esk and Volney joined them. None of the three said anything about what had happened, but the pall of gloom was almost tangible. Esk realized that they had really hoped that Cherie would accept the situation. But centaurs, as Esk was coming to understand, were the most stubborn of creatures.

The next day King Dor and Queen Irene arrived back, and in the afternoon they had a audience with the three travelers. It was evident that they had no prejudice against crossbreeds; indeed, they openly ad-

mired Chex's wings. Ivy was there, now dressed in robes like the little princess she was, and so was her little six-year-old brother, Prince Dolph.

They listened gravely to Esk's report of the Magician's mysterious absence. Then they listened to Volney's story of the Vale of the Vole. It was apparent that they had already learned something of both these matters, and had come to a decision before holding the audience.

"Ordinarily, we would do our best to help the voles," King Dor said. "But this matter, coming as it does at the time of the crisis with the Good Magician, must wait. Our first priority is to locate Magician Humfrey."

"Oh, Daddy!" Ivy exclaimed indignantly. "Aren't you going to help them just a little?"

"Not at this time, Ivy. When we recover the Good Magician, then he should be able to help the voles, as Volney has come to ask him to do."

"But the bad demons are hurting that friendly river right now!" Ivy protested. "At least let me go with them!"

"No," King Dor said.

"But Daddy!"

Queen Irene turned to her daughter. "No," she repeated, and the tone seemed mild, but the girl shrank back as if severely rebuked.

That was it. There was to be no help of any kind from Castle Roogna. Esk couldn't help but wonder whether Cherie Centaur had anything to do with this cruel decision.

They filed out. Now Volney was as dejected as Chex. What could they do? All their missions were balked until the Good Magician was found.

As they departed the castle, Ivy dashed after them. "But maybe someone else will help!" she cried. "The other centaurs, or maybe the ogres, or someone! Maybe you could ask them! Maybe you three could do something yourselves!"

Esk brightened. His own mission to the Good Magician seemed relatively minor, now; surely he had been rationalizing when he thought that the demoness would harm his family. All she wanted was to be left alone in his hideout. He had made this trip for himself, really, to try to make himself important, or at least worthwhile, in some way. "I am related to the ogres and the curse fiends and the nymphs and fauns," he said. "I don't think my own problem is nearly as important as the voles' problem. I could ask those other folk, and maybe they would help get rid of the demons in the Vale of the Vole."

"I am related to the centaurs and to the flying monsters," Chex said, brightening similarly. "I want to learn to fly, but until the Good Magician is found, I might as well do something to help others. I think the

voles need more help than I do, and I could ask those folk. Certainly I don't have much to keep me here."