Chapter 15

 

 By the time Seema arrived at the Turquoise Cliffs, all the streams in the basin had turned the color of blood. The stain was creeping down into the main valley, lacing itsway through the trees as though some huge spider was spinning a scarlet web overLangdarma itself. Atreus could see by the alarm in Seema's eyes that such a thing hadnever before happened, and that she blamed herself for this horror. Had she knownwhat would come of bringing strangers into paradise, he wondered if she would still have saved his life.

As Seema came up beside him, Atreus gestured down into the hollow, where Yagostill held the axe over Tarch's neck. "He's pretty beaten up, but we didn't kill him," Atreus said, glancing out over thered-laced basin. "I don't know if that will mean anything for Langdarma." "Who can say?" Seema sounded drained and numb. "It is good you spared him. Asecond murder does not undo the first. What of the girls? Are they injured?"

Atreus shook his head, then pointed toward the base of the cliff and said, "Rishi hasthem up in a cave. They're not hurt physically, but they're not saying much." He looked down at Tarch's mangled form. "They saw a pretty bloody fight"

When Seema glanced at the devil, her eyes grew hard and surprisingly ugly. "At least they did not see a vengeance murder," she said. "They will heal better for it, but I am not sure I will. I wanted him dead. I still do." Atreus looked away, not knowing what to say. Had she expressed such sentiments inRivenshield he would have handed her Yago's axe and told her to take as manyswings as she liked. But they were not in Rivenshield, and Atreus was as lost with hisemotions as she was with hers. He had spared Tarch's life only because he did not want to corrupt the innocence of the two girls watching. Now that Seema had losthers, he had no idea how to give it back.

Instead, he said, "Maybe you should check the girls. You'll be more comfort to them than Rishi."

The suggestion seemed to lighten Seema's burden. Her eyes grew brighter and shesaid, nodding, "Of course. They will need to know their mother is well, and perhaps I can explain to them how this happened." She squeezed his shoulder. "Thank you."

Seema started up the slope. Not long after, Atreus noticed a silver comet over themain valley. For a moment, it seemed to hang motionless near the far end, then itgradually began to swell and brighten. A faint sizzling echoed up the canyon, growing louder as the comet enlarged, and at last it became apparent that the shiny ball wasactually moving, streaking through the air toward the Turquoise Cliffs.

The sizzle built to a roar, and the silver ball became a platinum blur arcing downtoward the talus slope. Tarch's bloodshot eyes grew large and angry. He tried to roll to his feet, but Yago hammered his head with the flat of the axe blade and beat himback into submission.

The platinum blur resolved itself into a milky white oval supported by two shimmering wings. Seema and Rishi came down from the cave with the two sistersand stood next to Atreus. Together, they all waited respectfully as the figure slowedand took on the more humanlike form of the Sannyasi, then circled overhead, creating a pearly halo over the hollow where Tarch lay trapped.After this brief inspection, the Sannyasi alighted on the boulder next to Atreus. Heturned at once to the girls.

"Have no fear," he said, and touched his palms to their faces. "The devil will harmyou no more."

"We are not afraid for ourselves," said the oldest sister. "We are thinking of our father."

"The devil bit him!" gasped the younger.

"I know," the Sannyasi said grimacing. He continued to touch them, but even hecould not erase their pain or explain to them why Tarch had done such a terriblething. He merely nodded and said, "He is from Outside, and there are things Outsidewe can never understand. Do not worry on your father's account He is with the Serene Ones now, and it makes no difference to them how he died. You were a blessing to him in life, and I have it on good authority that his only wish is for you live in peace and forget what you have seen today."

This drew some of the pain from the girls faces, and only then did the Sannyasispread his feathery wings and glide down into the hollow. Tarch's scorched and battered body began to tremble and exude vile-smelling fumes, and he glared at the winged guardian in red-eyed hatred.

The Sannyasi took the axe from Yago and motioned him out of the hollow. He lookeddownat Tarch. "How dare you bring your evil into this place." The Sannyasi's voice was filled withcontrolled fury. "Did you not see my wards?"

"Pike it... bubber!" Tarch barely managed to moan the words. "How long you thinkyou can hold this little corner? This world's ours. We'll be coming for you soon enough—"

"If that is so, you will not see it"The Sannyasi stepped on his prisoner's chest. A glowing white halo appeared beneathhis foot and started to spread outward, slowly turning the devil's scaly hide pale and translucent. Tarch howled in pain and began to flail around, his thrashing fists poundingstones to powder. He struck at his captor time and again, clawed his leg, tried to drag himself free, but he was no match for the Sannyasi's strength. The white radiance continued to spread over the devil's body, turning him as clear as glassfrom head to toe, and when he became nothing more than a crystal ghost, he finallylet out an agonized howl and stopped writhing.

The Sannyasi glared down at the devil's still form, then brought the axe down. Tarch's body shattered like ice, and began to melt away and stream off in alldirections.

"Water turns the wheel, the wheel turns time," said the Sannyasi. "When the wheel brings your spirit around again, I pray you find a happier life." Yago arched his bushy brows. "You killed him," he said. "After all we went through not to?"

"I did not kill him. I sent his spirit back to the endless river," the Sannyasi said,then returned the axe to Yago. "You were right to spare his life. It will help you findhappiness Outside."

"Outside?" Seema asked.

The Sannyasi nodded. "It is not easy to subdue such a fiend without killing him," he said. "If your friends are strong enough to do this, they are strong enough to leave Langdarma."

Atreus's heart sank.

"How soon?"

The Sannyasi looked from Seema to Atreus. "Three days," he said. "The fall storms are coming soon."

"And if we don't care about the storms?" Atreus asked. He glanced at the scowlon Yago's face, then added, "What if / don't care about the storms. What if I don't want to leave... ever?"

The Sannyasi's eyes softened. "This is not your home," he said softly.

"I have never been happier in my home than I am here." Atreus took Seema's hand, then added, "I have found here what is forbidden me in Rivenshield." "Perhaps that is so. But you are a child of Rivenshield. You have a violent heart,and we have already seen what comes of violent hearts in Langdarma." The Sannyasi gestured at the web of scarlet streams spreading over the valley and said,"It cannot be."

"Violent hearts?" Rishi scoffed. "Did we not risk our own lives to spare Tarch's?"

"Tarch was here only because of you, and you are here only because of him."The Sannyasi glanced up at the two young sisters, who were observing the exchange with blank, faraway eyes, and continued, "Violence clings to you like anaura. You carry it with you wherever you go. You may stay for three days... nomore."

"Ungrateful squab!" Rishi hissed. "After all we have done for Langdarma, youdare insult us like this? You do not know who you are talking to." "I do not need to," said the Sannyasi. "You have proven my point with your ownwords."

"And if they don't leave?" Yago's tone was stubborn and menacing, but it did notescape Atreus's notice that the ogre had not included himself. He, at least, knewwhere he belonged, and it wasn't Langdarma. "You think you can force them?"

Seema gasped at the ogre's brazenness, but the Sannyasi's silvery eyes remained calm and patient"They will leave. That is the only possible outcome." He looked away from theogre and asked Atreus, "What of the other two missing women?"It took Atreus a moment to swallow his disappointment and answer, for hisstomach had grown so bitter and tight that he could barely speak. "I imagine they're still alive," he said, gesturing at the cave mouth toward whichTarch had been climbing. "We'll find them somewhere in there."

"I will find them," said the Sannyasi. "You must rest and prepare yourself for your

journey."

With that, he spread his wings and flew up to the cave, leaving Atreus and hiscompanions alone with the two girls. Atreus watched the Sannyasi disappear into thedark cavern and turned to stare out over Langdarma. The red web already stretched over as much of the valley as he could see.

"Maybe the Sannyasi is right," Atreus said, shaking his head sadly. "I only hope we haven't destroyed this little world already."

"Us?" Rishi snorted. "This is not our fault It was Tarch who killed, not us."

"Tarch wouldn't have found Langdarma if we hadn't been looking for it," said Atreus.

"And Seema would've been some devil's bed slave by now," Yago said, and smothered Atreus's shoulder beneath his heavy hand. "Don't go playing What if. This isa big valley. If you want to stay, we can hide out until after the storms start. The Sannyasi won't send us off till next summer, and maybe he'll change his mind by then."

"Thanks. I know what a sacrifice that would be for you," said Atreus, "but no good cancome of defying the Sannyasi. It would only harm Langdarma, and we'd still have toleave."

Seema raised her brow, then her eyes grew glassy. She turned to the girls Tarchhad kidnapped and asked them, "Will it be okay for Rishi and Yago to take you back toyour mother? They helped rescue you, and I believe you know you can trust them."

The oldest girl nodded, and the younger one said, "Rishi is nice."

"So is Yago," said Seema, "and very brave."

"And where will you be taking the good sir?" asked Rishi.

Seema turned to Atreus and said, "There is something I would like to show himbefore he leaves." "And this is something we are not permitted to see?" Rishi leered, then gestured athimself and Yago.

"I fear not," Seema blushed. "Besides, you saw much of Langdarma while Atreuswas recuperating. I think it only fair that he gets to see something special."

Atreus bit his Up, torn between his desire to spend his last few days with Seema andto continue his search for the Fountain of Infinite Grace. "How long will this take?Perhaps we could meet Rishi and Yago after they return the girls."

Seema winced, clearly stung by Atreus's suggestion.

"You do not wish to spend your remaining time with me?"

"Of course I do!" Atreus exclaimed, realizing what a mistake he had made. "It's justthat... we all had our plans, and I didn't want to let the Sannyasi's decision change them."

"Oh, you must not concern yourself with Yago and me," said Rishi, patting Atreus's side. "We will see to the girls and continue on as before, but I think you should go withSeema and see this special sight"

Atreus felt something small and light drop into his cloak pocket Guessing that it wasprobably the empty vial Rishi had taken from Seema's kitchen, Atreus realized theMar was right. Perhaps Seema had decided to show him the Fountain of Infinite Grace after all. Atreus turned to Seema and took her hands.

"I would enjoy nothing more than spending all my remaining time with you."Though he was speaking the absolute truth, he could not escape the hollow feeling inhis stomach as he added, "I hope you'll forgive me for being as foolish as I am ugly."

There is nothing to forgive." Seema smiled. "I am glad you find my company inviting. Besides, in the weeks to come, I am sure you will be seeing more of yourfriends than you like."

Too much of us? He's the ugly one!" joked Yago. The ogre took the youngestgirl's hand and turned down the mountain. "Well see you back at the hut?""Yes." Seema smiled mischievously. "Sometime."She led Atreus along the base of the Turquoise Cliff toward the brink of the upper basin. Soon, they drew close enough to the edge to see down to the mottled floor of

the main valley. Along the crimson web of streams and rivers stood scattered clustersof tiny figures, gesturing excitedly and peering toward the upper basin. Only a single stream, cascading down from someplace hidden around the shoulder of the TurquoiseCliff, retained its natural silver.

Atreus stopped and looked down the length of the immense valley, his eyessilently tracing a dozen scarlet waterfalls into the mouths of a dozen hanging basinslike this one.

"Will the stain ever fade?" Atreus asked. "Or now that Langdarma has seen bloodshed, will its waters run red forever?" "There is bloodshed in many lands, and their streams are not red. I think it will nottake long for the beauty of Langdarma to wash the stain away."

Seema guided Atreus to an immense fir growing along the cliff face. Beneath thecrisp smell of sap hung the odor of musty stone, and there was a dampness to theair that suggested the cool breath of a cave. Seema ducked under the tree's low-hanging boughs and disappeared on her hands and knees. Atreus followed, hishuge shoulders and humped back scraping the branch thickets somewhat clumsily.Soon, he found himself sliding down a muddy chute into the mouth of a small cavern.

Seema took his hand and led him into the dank-smelling darkness. The floor wassometimes soft and level and other times hard and steep, but it was always slick.Several times Atreus slipped and nearly fell, and once the ground completelydisappeared beneath his boot. Seema always seemed to know exactly where she was, cautioning him to duck when the ceiling grew low, or warning him not to trip oversome unseen boulder lying in the path. He was beginning to wonder if this was another mystical Passing when they finally rounded a corner and he saw a faint circleof light fifty paces ahead. When the passage grew bright enough to see clearly, Seemareleased his hand and led the way out onto a narrow ledge.

Atreus found himself standing many thousands of feet above the valley floor, staring down the length of the broad canyon at a hazy blue cloud he took to be themountains at the far end. The tiny figures he had seen standing along the river banksearlier were mere specks, discernible from the boulders and trees around them onlybecause they moved. The streams and creeks had become a mesh of red threads,and the main river was a scarlet rope snaking back and forth across the valley floor.

"You are not afraid of heights, are you?" asked Seema.

Atreus glanced down and found himself looking at a mot-tied carpet of green woods.He could discern nothing about the forest except its color—not the shape of theindividual trees, nor whether their crowns were pointed or billowing, nor even whetherthey were conifers or deciduous.

"It's too far down to be afraid."

"Good," Seema laughed. "I would not like having to blindfold you on this trail."

She started along the rocky shelf. Atreus followed as quickly as he could, keepingone hand on the cliff and his eyes on his feet. The ledge had a disconcertingdownward slope and an alarmingly smooth texture, and he had the constant feeling his boots were about to slide out from beneath him. If Seema felt the same way, sheshowed no sign, walking along as comfortably as on the balcony of her own stone hut Atlength, Atreus grew relaxed enough to tear his gaze away from his feet He saw thatthey were curving along the valley wall toward the head of the canyon, where a glistenญing tail of water fell to the valley floor in a series of step-like cascades, plummeting from one pool to the next until it finally plunged into a small, gleaming lake. It wasthe outflow of this lake that Atreus had glimpsed earlier, a single silver stream in the webof scarlet

"That stream is the source of Langdarma's beauty," said Seema. "It will wash awaythe stain of Tarch's murderous heart." "But those are the sparkling waters," Atreus said, pointing at the cascades. "I thought it was forbidden to bring me here.""It is. Of all the forbidden things I have done, this is most forbidden. But I cannot letyou leave without bringing you here. It is the reason you came to Langdarma."

She took his hand and led him along the curving wall to the end of the ledge,where a small slot canyon cut up through the cliff to a hanging meadow. Here, overlooking the entirety of the valley's beauty, sat an alabaster palace flanked onboth sides by lotus ponds. The building had an ancient, guileless beauty, with thelower story painted in bright horizontal stripes and the upper decorated in swirlingrelief’s. A second-story balcony room commanded one end, while the other wasdominated by an elaborate open rotunda skirted by two domed gazebos. Connecting the two was a long gallery of scalloped arches and slender columns, withtwo streams of twinkling silver water joining halfway down a Y-shaped staircase, thendraining into a large oval reflecting pond.

"I've seen something like this before," Atreus gasped, "after the avalanche!"

Seema nodded and said, "Of course. Did you not say you had found Langdarma?"

"I did, but after—when I forgot—I thought it was a dream."

"Langdarma is a dream."

Seema took his hand and led the way across the meadow to the reflecting pool andknelt in the soft grass. Even with the tiny stream flowing into the upper end anddraining out the lower, the edges of the pool were as still as glass. Its silvery surface reflected Atreus's hideous face in perfect detail—every lump, every blotch, everygruesome deformity. He turned his head aside.

"No, do not look away," said Seema. "Close your eyes and drink."

"Drink?" Atreus avoided his reflection as he swung his gaze back in her direction."That is permitted?"

"Why not? Do you think we will run out?" Seema giggled. "Drink as much as you like."

Atreus closed his eyes and cupped his hands in the pool. The water was as cold as a glacier, but he could feel its sparkling magic in his hands. It was a sweet effervescence that tingled down to the bone. A smile crept across his face, then heheard himself chortle in delight.

Seema's palm touched his elbow, urging his hands toward his face. "What are you waiting for?"

Atreus saw the radiance of the water through his eyelids, silvery scintillations thatpopped inside his mind like bursting stars. He lowered his lips to his palms and drank,gulping the icy water down so fast it made his throat ache. The water filled him with anairy giddiness similar to the first time Seema kissed him, and he felt as if he would float into the air.

"Atreus, look," Seema whispered as she pulled his hands down.

The face in the water was as unbalanced and misshapen as his own, with the samebeetling brow and sunken eyes, the same enormous nose and twisted mouth, but itwas not him. All of the disparate parts of this face fit together in a natural way that was sincere and unpretentious, noble in its casual warmth. This face was handsome,rugged, happy, and utterly at peace with its own uncommon character.

Seema peered into the pool beside Atreus, her reflection a likeness of her customaryloveliness. "This is the way I see you. It has always been the way I see you."

She turned to look at him, reached up behind his head, and drew his face down to hers. Her lips were warm and sweet and intoxicating, and now that she hadgiven him freely what he had come to steal, he found it impossible not to respond.He slipped his hands under her cloak, felt the heavy softness of her breasts, andlifted the cloth over her head. She raised her arms, letting her silky hair cascadefree as he undressed her, and pressed her nakedness to him, undoing hisclothes as he had undone hers. She touched every part of him, running her warm hands over his burly shoulders and down his broad back, feeling the solidness ofhis stomach, the sinewy strength in his hips, the pent-up ardor of his loins, andAtreus thought he would explode.

What happened then became a blur. Seema pulled him on top and they meltedtogether. They lay writhing in the meadow for an eternity, skin-to-skin, oblivious to the chill breeze or the gurgling water or the passing day, sometimes locked inembraces so tight Atreus could not tell where his body ended and Seema's began, sometimes merely resting in each other's arms, exhausted and content, theirbodies drained and their hearts full. They lost themselves in each other, forgot the morning bloodshed and Tarch's evil and the Sannyasi's verdict, and they becameone. If only for a few hours, Atreus learned what it was to be beautiful.

At last, the afternoon light began to fade, and their strength with it. Seema curledinto the crook of Atreus's arm and started to breathe in a deep, steady rhythm. Hepulled her cloak over her and lay holding her until his arm fell asleep and his back ached from lying so still. Using his free hand, he folded her clothes into a pillow andgently slipped them under her head and withdrew his numb arm. She curled into atighter ball and continued to sleep but otherwise did not stir.

Atreus stood and pulled on his own cloak, then looked out over Langdarma. Longcurtains of afternoon drizzle were beginning to fall from the icy sky, cloaking most ofthe valley in haze as gray as the canyon walls. Through the mist, Atreus could see little more than a sweeping swath of mottled green with the outline of a broadriver snaking down its center. With Seema sleeping behind him, it seemed themost beautiful landscape he had ever seen.

Atreus stood breathing in Langdarma's peace and serenity for a long time. Then he closed his eyes and kneeled beside the reflecting pool. At that moment, hewas strong enough to accept whatever he saw, but he had to see it alone. If theimage in the water was ugly, he wanted some time to swallow his disappointment,to put on a happy face so Seema would not think him ungrateful. Atreus leanedforward until he saw the water's radiance twinkling inside his eyelids and openedhis eyes.

The reflection was as handsome as before.

Atreus breathed a sigh of relief, then glanced over his shoulder. Seema was stillsleeping, her lips curled into a dreamy smile. Atreus reached into his cloak pocket and found the vial Rishi had slipped him earlier. He began to feel guilty anddisloyal, though he could not understand why. Seema had told him he could drink as much as he liked, and the whole flask would not amount to a single gulp. WhateverSune wanted with the twinkling water, he did not see how taking such a smallamount could harm Langdarma.

Atreus plunged the vial into the icy water and watched the air bubble rise to thesurface of the pool, then inserted the cork while it was still underwater. When he lifted the flask from the basin, it was gleaming and twinkling just like the oneKumara had used to calm Timin's delirious father. He checked his reflection one more time, just to be certain he had not broken the pond's magic, then slipped the flask into his cloak pocket.

A low hissing sounded from the alabaster palace. Atreus glanced toward the sound and saw—or thought he saw—a trio of dark eyes peering out from withinthe second-floor gallery. A ring of black tentacles seemed to be writhing aroundthe three eyes, and between the eyes was something that looked vaguely like anebony beak. Atreus gasped and rose.

"There is nothing to fear," said Seema.

Atreus glanced back to see her slipping her cloak over her shoulders. She pulled her silky black hair out of the collar and let it cascade down her back, thencame to his side.

"It cannot escape the palace," she said.

"What is it?"

Seema shrugged. "Only the Sannyasi knows," she replied, "and perhaps not even him." "Every beauty hides a greater ugliness," Atreus said, recalling what Seema had said to him not so long ago.

Seema nodded.

"Every adage has its source."

Atreus gave an involuntary shiver and asked, "How long has it been watching?"

Seema blushed. "Not that long, I am sure," she said. "It has no interest in Devotions." Despite her assurance, she glanced up at the sky and grasped Atreus's hand. "Come along, now. It would not do for us to be on the ledge after dark."

They returned to Seema's house to find their friends fast asleep downstairs.Yago woke up long enough to mumble something about staying up half the nightworrying, then rolled over and began to shake the entire hut with his snores.Seema giggled, then took Atreus's hand and led the way upstairs, where he discovered he was not quite as tired as he thought.

The next morning, Atreus awoke at the crack of dawn, roused from a soundsleep by an alarming hollow in the pit of his stomach. At first, he credited his anxietyto the loss of waking from a blissful dream, but when he felt Seema's warm bodycurled against his and looked over to find her smiling in her sleep, he knew thisparticular dream was not yet over.

Atreus lay there without moving for several minutes, trying to recover the peace hehad experienced at the Fountain of Infinite Grace. Finally he realized that what hefelt was guilt As of yet, he had said nothing to Seema about the vial in his cloak,and he did not see how he could. To admit filling it was to admit that he had planned to deceive her all along. Even more than he wanted to be handsome, hedid not want to lose her love. He slipped out from beneath the heavy blanket,collected his clothes, and crept downstairs to dress. Part of him wanted to emptythe vial and return it to the cabinet, but another part whispered that Seema neednever know what he had done, that if he could keep the vial hidden for just twodays, he would have both Seema's love and Sune's gratitude.

On the bottom floor of the hut, his friends were already up, brewing a pot of thegreasy buttered tea that Yago loved more than anything in Langdarma. Atreus stopped on the stairs to pull on his tunic, drawing a sly grin from Rishi.

"Yago, look at our master. Does he not look content this morning?"

Atreus could not help beaming, but his joy was quickly spoiled by the thought of what he had done to win the compliment. The smile vanished from his lips, and hesaid, "I wish I felt as content as I look."

Rishi frowned. "She did not take you to the Fountain of Infinite Grace?" the Marasked.

"She took me." Atreus tied his trousers, then added, "I filled the vial."

"Then what's your grumbling about?" Yago continued to stir his tea. "That's whatSune sent you for.""I didn't tell Seema about it" Rishi's eyes widened in alarm. "And why would you want to do such a foolish

thing?" he asked. "If she knew—"

"Seema would only object if it endangered Langdarma," Atreus said. He hunghis cloak on a wall peg. "And if it endangers Langdarma, then I shouldn't do it. That would be the worst kind of betrayal."

Yago looked up from his stirring and said, "So you'd betray your goddess insteadand go home empty-handed? After coming all this way, you expect me to believe that?"

Atreus hesitated, unsure of his answer and hating himself for it "Maybe it won't cometo that," he said.

"I do not think that is a chance you wish to take," said Rishi. "You saw the Sannyasi's power. Now, are you going to let us look at this marvelous water? I did notsee it when Kumara used it on Timin's father, and I am most curious about its glow."

Atreus withdrew the vial from his cloak pocket, then scowled. The only thing sparkling in the flask was the reflection of the flames under Yago's tea potThe ogre squinted at the glass. "Sure," he said, "I can see something sparkling inthere." "But not the way it should, I fear," said Rishi. He eyed Atreus nervously. This is nothow it looked when you filled it?"

Atreus shook his head. "No." He stared at the vial for several moments, then noticed his knuckles turning white from squeezing it so hard. He placed it on the table and said, "The sparkle is gone."

Yago frowned. "Did Sune say it—"

"The water must be sparkling," Atreus said. "She even reminded me."

Rishi picked up the vial and held it to his eye.

"Then there is clearly more to the task than we thought"

"Why doesn't that surprise me? This whole trip..." A terrible thought occurred toAtreus, and he turned to Yago. "What do I look like?""Same as usual. Like the loser of a bad fight," Yago said. He used his bare hands tolift the tea pot off the fire, then placed it in on the table to cool. "Why?"

Atreus turned to Rishi and asked, "What do you think? Am I handsome?"

The Mar's eyes shifted away.

"Certainly, Seema must think so "

Atreus's heart sank at the word "certainly."

"It's a simple question, Rishi. I look no better than before?"

The Mar dropped his gaze and said, "No."

"By Sune's red hair!" Atreus cursed.

He plucked the vial from Rishi's hand and hurled it against the wall, then heard asmall gasp. He turned to see Seema standing on the stairs behind him, her hands toher face, her gaze fixed on the shattered remains of the vial.

Atreus's fury was instantly replaced by shame and remorse. "Seema! This isn'twhat you think." Realizing how insincere and deceitful that particular lie sounded, he began again, "Well, I can't imagine what you must think."

Seema pointed at the corked neck of the broken flask and said, "I think that you brokeone of my vials."

Atreus nodded.

"What was in it?" she asked.

Atreus started to answer, but found his throat so dry he could not choke out thewords. "It was my doing," said Yago, ever the loyal guard. "I took one of your vials—"Atreus waved the ogre off, then said, "But I am the one who filled it... from the pool

of sparkling waters."

Seema frowned and said nothing.

"It's what we've been looking for all along," Atreus explained. "My goddess,

Sune Firehair, promised to make me handsome if I brought her a vial of sparklingwaters from the Fountain of Infinite Grace."

Seema studied him for a long time, her eyes growing harder and more angry as each moment passed. Finally, she came down the stairs and began to pick up thepieces of her shattered vial.

"I do not know this Sune Firehair of yours, but I think you are a fool for worshipingher. To ask such a thing, she must be a heartless witch."

"Fickle as a game of knucklebones," agreed Yago.

"Fickle is not cruel," said Seema. She continued to avoid Atreus's gaze. "WhatSune Firehair asks is impossible.""I was afraid of that," Atreus sighed. "The last thing I want to do is harm Langdarma, but—"Seema whirled on him and shouted, "Do not lie to me!" Her eyes were glassywith unshed tears. "If you feared for Langdarma, then you would have asked first." "You said it was forbidden for anyone but healers to see the shining waters,"Atreus explained. "We were—I was— afraid you wouldn't do it.""I would do anything for you," Seema answered bitterly. She tossed the broken

glass shards into the hut's fireplace. "Have I not proven that already?"

"You would not help him find Langdarma," Rishi reminded her.

Seema cringed, and her expression grew more sad than angry. She looked up atAtreus. "It seems we have both agonized over the wishes of our goddesses. I will fetch you all the sparkling water you wish, but that will change nothing. What yourgoddess asks is impossible. The pool's magic lasts only a few hours. By the time you return to her, the water in your vial will be as plain as the water from your ownwell."

Atreus was too stunned to reply. "What do you mean?" he finally asked. "It stopssparkling?"Seema nodded. "Did you not see that for yourself?" She ran her fingers along the rough skin of his cheek. "I am sorry, but your goddess sent you for nothing.""No!" Atreus collapsed onto a chair, shaking his head numbly. "All this way... why?"

Seema sat beside him and said, "I do not know. If she is not a cruel goddess,then perhaps she sent you looking for one thing knowing you would find somethingelse."

"What?" Atreus demanded. "The knowledge that I'll always be a monster?"

"Perhaps it was me."

"You?" Atreus took a deep breath, reminding himself that he was not the onlyperson who had been deceived here. He took Seema's hand and shook his head. "Perhaps Sune is fickle, but she is not cruel, not when it comes to love. She wouldnever have sent me to find you, knowing I would only lose you a few weeks later."

"Perhaps you do not have to lose me," said Seema.

"Then you can convince the Sannyasi to let us stay?" asked Rishi.

"That is not what I was thinking," said Seema. "The san-nyasi never changes hismind, because nothing he decrees can ever be wrong." "He is wrong this time!" snapped Rishi. "We are not going to bring any harm toLangdarma.""Your anger is harming it now," said Seema. "And there is no sense in it. The Sannyasi's will cannot be challenged."

"Then he is an ungrateful fool," Rishi said, his eyes burning with indignation. "I would not live in a place ruled by such a buffoon! But if he thinks we are leavingwithout our reward..."

"Reward?" asked Atreus. "What reward?" "Our reward for saving the daughters of Langdarma," Rishi said. "I did not riskmy life battling Tarch for free."

Atreus started to chastise the Mar for his greedy attitude, but Seema spoke first."What is it you want, Rishi? You are welcome to take anything you like, but we haveno gold or jewels in Langdarma, and yaks will not survive the Passing."

Seema's offer calmed Rishi as no argument of Atreus's could have. The Mar glanced around the hut with an appraising eye, then simply shook his head and muttered, "How can a people so poor be so happy?"

"Perhaps we are happy because we are poor." Seema smiled at the Mar's bewilderment, then turned to Atreus and said, "But as I wanted to say, I would behappy with you wherever we were. Could that be the reason Sune sent you here?"

"Not likely," scoffed Yago. "Seeing a beauty like you with a beast like him would only insult that prissy hag. He'd be lucky if she didn't strike him dead on the spot"Atreus barely heard the ogre's appraisal of the situation, so astonished was he by Seema's offer. "You would leave Langdarma for me?" he gasped."If that would make you happy."

"It would... it does." Atreus's heart was suddenly as light as a bird. He took her hands and said, "Just knowing that you would come with me makes me happierthan I have ever been in my life."

"Would?" Seema echoed. "You do not want me to?"

"I want you to...."

Atreus paused to gather his strength, imagining what Seema's life would be like in Erlkazar. Court ladies whispering that she loved Atreus's gold more than him, freshly slaughtered meat at every banquet, jousts, bloodbaths, and wars that sprang up on the whim of an angry king.

"I can't ask you to leave Langdarma," he continued. "My world would poison you,just as surely as Tarch poisoned Langdarma."

Seema squeezed his hand. "You are not asking me to leave," she countered. "Iam asking you to let me come."

Atreus did not even hesitate in saying, "I can't The Sannyasi is right about the Outside. It ruins everything it touches, and I would hate myself for allowing that tohappen to you."

"I am strong," Seema insisted. "You cannot know—"

"He's right" Yago came around the table and laid a big hand on Seema'sshoulder. "I'd like nothing more than for you to come with us—for Atreus's sake—but it wouldn't be right Sooner or later, you'd start missing this place more than you love him, and then you'd hate him for it."

Seema furrowed her brow and said, "I could never hate—" "In Erlkazar, you could," said Atreus. "The Outside is full of hate. I love you morethan my own life, but you are not the reason Sune sent me here." "Then Sune is a cruel goddess," said Seema, "because I am going to miss you,and there was never any hope of finding what you came for."

"I found it for a time, and I will never forget that."

Atreus grew thoughtful, recalling how he looked in the reflecting pool, then thought of the beast he had glimpsed watching them."Perhaps she is not so cruel after all." Seema scowled. “What are you saying?” she asked.“That she told me to fill the vial from the fountain of infinite Grace, not the pool----“

Seema looked more concerned than ever. "There are no fountains at the Palace of Serenity," she said."Not outside," said Atreus, "but that water must be coming from somewhere."

Chapter 16

  As Atreus and his companions splashed up the flooded stairs into the alabaster

palace, a scaled tentacle flicked out from a second story archway and twined itself

around one of the gallery's slender support columns. The expedition came to a

stunned and breathless halt. The appendage was as thick as Yago's forearm,

coated in stringy gleet, and as black as obsidian. It ended in a small scarlet mouth

surrounded by a ring of finger-like tendrils.

Rishi stopped at the top of the stairs and reached past Atreus to catch Seema by

the sleeve. "Good lady," he said, "you are certain we need nothing but these

stones?" He hefted the bucket of pebbles in his hand. "Whatever awaits us at the

other end of that tentacle, I would feel much safer meeting it with an axe in my

hands."

"I do not care how you feel." Seema pulled her arm free, then stepped onto the

gallery with her own bucket of pebbles and said, "If you are afraid, do not come."

Atreus winced at Seema's harsh tone. She had agreed only hesitantly to helphim find the source of the twinkling stream, and even more hesitantly to bring hiscompanions along in case of trouble. He paused at the edge of the gallery andturned to the nervous Mar.

"Rishi, there's no need for you inside. In fact, if something does happen, it might

be better to have someone out here."

"Are you saying I am a coward? I have every right to be here. If you want to leavesomeone behind, leave Yago!" The Mar stepped past Atreus and followed Seema

onto the gallery. Yago raised his brow and glanced back at the reflecting pool, clearly
thinking it would be a fine place to wait.
"Sorry, Yago," said Atreus. "If we do run into trouble, you'll be our only advantage."

"I'd be more of an advantage with a club," grumbled the ogre. He shifted his hold onthe heavy cask in his arms. "If that thing attacks us, what am I going to do with a bunchof pebbles?"

Atreus glanced at the huge tentacle stretched across the gallery, trying to imaginethe size of the beast at the other end. "Probably the same thing you'd do with a club ... not much."

Carrying his own bucket of pebbles, Atreus stepped onto the gallery behind Seemaand Rishi. On the other side of the scaly black tentacle, the stream of shining waterspilled out from the palace's central arch and split into two currents, one flowingtoward Atreus and the other in the opposite direction. Though the water was onlyfingertip deep, Atreus could feel its magic prickling his feet through his boots.

Seema reached the tentacle and stopped to stare down at it. When the creaturedid not withdraw the scaly appendage, she shook her pebble bucket loudly,then squatted down and duck-walked underneath. When she stood on the otherside, her chestnut skin had paled to the color of honey.

She waved Rishi under the tentacle. "Come along," she said. "The Dweller won't bother you."

"You are certain?" Rishi asked.

Atreus gave the Mar a gentle nudge and said, "Go on."

"Yeah ... what you waiting for?" added Yago. "Ain't you got every right to be here?"

Rishi scowled over his shoulder, shook his pebble bucket as Seema had, and ducked under the Dweller's tentacle. When he reached the other side, he stood quickly and turned to face Atreus and Yago. Before the Mar could repay their taunts,the tentacle slowly untwined itself.

Rishi dropped his pebble bucket and leaped back, reaching under his cloak. The

tentacle merely rippled back into the murky archway, and the Dweller vanished into

the darkness.

Atreus caught Rishi's wrist. "What have you got there?" he asked sternly. "Seema

said no weapons."

"Most definitely, she did," Rishi admitted and drew up his cloak, displaying the yak-hair tunic underneath. "My reaction was only out of habit, as the good sir will certainly agree if he cares to examine my person."Atreus studied the Mar's torso and the inside lining of his cloak. When he did not findthe telltale bulge of a hidden knife, he motioned Rishi to lower his cloak. "My apologies for doubting you." "No apologies necessary," said Rishi. "The blame ismine, entirely and without sharing."

Atreus motioned the Mar forward, feeling somewhat guilty for his suspicions. He was hardly blind to Rishi's anger over the Sannyasi's decision, but it seemed hypocritical to doubt the Mar when he himself resented having to leave Langdarma.Seema had accused Sune of being cruel, but it seemed to Atreus that the Sannyasiwas the heartless one. If Langdarma could abide someone as bitter and sharp-tongued as Kumara, surely the valley would not be ruined by the presence of a singleugly westerner.

Seema paused to wait at the central arch, and they all stepped into the murkypalace together. A film of cool dew formed on their skin almost instantly, and the airsmelled as dank and earthy as a cavern. The trickle of running water came from every direction, echoing through a ghostly forest of alabaster support columns. Theonly light came from the sparkling stream itself, leading like an arrow straight to adistant aura of silver radiance.

Atreus glanced into the murk alongside the stream and saw the Dweller lurkingamong the shadows, a nebulous black shape silhouetted against the alabaster columns beyond. The monster seemed as large as an elephant, with a slug-like tail and a formless body covered in dense black scales. Just looking at it filled Atreus witha cold, queasy fear. Seema led the way deeper into the palace. The monster slithered along beside them, laying a swath of white slime in its wake. As it moved, itemitted a low, constant rumble that might have been a gurgling belly or a threateninggrowl.

The thing swung its gruesome head around, locking gazes with Atreus. Suddenly, he could see nothing but an ebony beak and three scarlet eyes ringed by a mane of writhing black tentacles. He felt goose bumps prickling his skin, shiversrunning down his spine, and something oily and alien gliding into his mind. He experienced a sensation somewhere between thought and emotion, an instinct ofpure, unbridled malevolence that might have been the Dweller's or his own.

Atreus wanted to look away but could not free himself from the monster's gaze. Itwas as though one of the creature's scaly tentacles had somehow slithered into his skull and wrapped its tiny fingers around his brain, holding his head motionless so thathe could neither close his eyes nor look away. His thoughts and memories beganto swirl through his mind in a wild cyclone, then he heard his pebble bucket crash to thefloor and felt himself step forward. As his foot came down, the monster blinked. Atreus found himself dangling abovethe ground, pinned to Yago's massive chest. His face was cold and wet and tinglingwith the magic of the shining water, and Seema was stooping down before him,cupping her hands in the stream. She stood and hurled another handful into hiseyes, nearly blinding him with brilliant flashes of silver.

"That's enough ... I can't see it anymore!" Atreus said, shaking the water from his eyes. "I can't see anything."

"That will pass soon enough," said Seema. "But you must not allow the Dweller to lureyou off. They are very unpredictable, and sometimes it is decades before they release their playmates."

"They?" Atreus demanded. "There's more than one?"

"So it is said," Seema replied. "I have only seen one."

"You told us it wasn't dangerous," growled Yago.

"I said you would not be harmed if you did exactly as I said," replied Seema. "HasAtreus been harmed?"

The ogre placed Atreus on the ground and rapped him between the shoulders. Atreus, still struggling to overcome the water's dazzling effects, stumbled two stepsforward before catching his balance.

"I guess you're okay," said the ogre. "But I still don't like coming in here with nothingbut rocks. She could be leading us into a trap."

"Seema wouldn't do that," said Atreus.

"Because you two did a fracas?" Yago mocked. Among ogres, it was not uncommonfor an unhappy wife to arrange her mate's death. "Maybe that's the reason. It's not like you've had a lot of practice with the real thing."

"Seema's not a thing," Atreus said. "And humans don't treat their mates... er, lovers... that way."

"Why didn't she warn us about that Dweller?" Yago demanded.

"The Dwellers summon every person differently," Seema said. "I have heard of

people being sung to or lured with sweet aromas—"

"And she didn't want us to come here in the first place," Yago continued, speaking over Seema. "She's trying to protect something—just like she was trying to protect Langdarma when she nearly got you killed."

"Yes, and I suspect now she's trying to protect us," said Atreus. He gestured into the shadows, which were empty of the Dweller. "Whatever that thing is, I don't think weapons would do us much good."

He gave Seema an apologetic shake of the head, picked up his pebble bucket, andgestured for her to lead the way. The Dweller did not show itself again, but they couldhear it paralleling their course, its heavy body making wet sucking sounds as it slithered through the shadows alongside them.

After Atreus's nose grew accustomed to the cavern-like smell of the place, hebegan to notice the subtle stench of brimstone wafting through the alabaster forest. At first, he thought it might be some odor the creature was emitting. Then hestarted to glimpse the jagged throats of rough-hewn tunnels along the palace walls.They had passed into the mountain itself.

As they neared the back of the huge chamber, the forest of alabaster pillars gave

way to a black granite wall. The aura of silver radiance continued to brighten, and they

soon recognized it as the shining aura of a small pond, formed when an alabaster

pillar toppled or was pushed across the stream. The falling column had brought with

it a sizable heap of rubble that someone had shaped into a shallow dam. On one

rim of this dam sat a small marble bench, and scattered across its surface were a

dozen floating lotus blossoms.

Beyond the pond, barely visible through its cloudy aura of brilliance, an even

brighter stream of twinkling water cascaded down a stairway from the unseen

depths of the palace's inner sanctum. Atreus smiled. The water appeared to be

growing more potent as they neared its source.

The Dweller emerged from the shadows beside the pond, its big belly scales

hissing across the stone floor as it slithered up to the dam. Atreus's stomach turned

cold and queasy again. Without really meaning to, he stopped and averted his gaze,

watching from the corner of his eye as the monster stuck its tentacle-festooned head

into the water.

The creature looked as though it were drinking, but then it began to stretch forwardand twist its neck about, searching for something on the bottom of the pool. Seemacontinued forward until she could peer over the rubble dam down into the pond, andwaved her companions forward.

"This is very special," she whispered. "You must see."

Rishi crept ahead without hesitation, but Atreus found himself lagging behind,struggling with his memory of how easily the monster had taken control of him. Only hisbodyguard's looming presence, and the certain knowledge that the ogre wouldinterpret any hesitation as further evidence of Seema's trustworthiness, compelledAtreus forward at all.

When he reached Seema's side, he bit his cheeks to keep from crying out inwonder. The bottom of the pool was buried in diamonds, rubies, sapphires, everytype of precious stone, all in their natural form and some as large as a man's thumb.The Dweller was rummaging through the jewel bed, pulling out the brightest stonesand holding each one to an eye for a closer examination. It threw many stonesback, usually those cloudier or less deeply colored than their fellows. It placed theother gems into the scarlet mouths at the end of its tentacles and sucked them upinside the scaly appendages.

"Seema, you are a hopeless liar!" cried Rishi. "Did you not tell me just this morningthere was no treasure in Langdarma?"

"This is not Langdarma's treasure." Seema smirked at the Mar as though daringhim to steal it. "It belongs to the Dwellers, and you must not touch it.""Are you mad?" Rishi gasped. “Those are diamonds . . . and rubies. They are notmeant to fill the gizzard of some overgrown snail!""They will not," said Seema. "The Dwellers take them down into the mountains andplant them beneath the far reaches of the Yehimals."

"Where they will not be found for centuries?" A larcenous gleam appeared in Rishi's eye, and he seemed unable to rip his gaze from pool bottom as he said,"What good does that do? It is better for me to take them now. I can carry themstraight to the finest markets in the Five Kingdoms."

The Mar dropped his bucket and started forward without awaiting Seema's reply,but Atreus quickly caught him by the shoulder.

"Don't you think the Dweller will object to another pair of hands in its gem bed?Seema promised no harm would come to us as long as we did what she said. Iintend to see to it that we honor our agreement."

Rishi's gaze ran along the pool bottom to one of the Dweller's scaly tentacles,then up the appendage to the shapeless bulk of the monster's huge body. The larcenous gleam faded from his eyes, and he seemed slowly to return to his senses.

"You are absolutely right. A thousand gratitude’s. I was lost in the monster's fiendish grip and would certainly have brought a swift and terrible end to us all if notfor your ready intervention."

"The Dweller calls to each of us in a different way," Seema agreed. "I am glad

you have heard yours and returned to us whole."

"We will have to wait until after the monster is gone," the Mar said, then sat down on

his pebble bucket, his gaze still fixed on the pool. "Surely, there will be a bucketful left

for us."

Seema's face grew stern and she said, "Even if you had so many days, that is not

why I brought you here." She jerked Rishi to his feet, snatched his bucket up, and

thrust it into his hands. "Let us do what we came to do and be gone."

Seema cast an angry look at Atreus, clearly holding him responsible for the Mar'ssacrilege, then climbed onto the dam and dumped her pebble bucket into the shiningbasin. A tentacle snaked over to inspect the stones and rose briefly out of thepool and slapped the surface, splashing Seema with a stream of shining water. It wasimpossible to guess whether the gesture was one of thanks or irritation. Seemamotioned the others over, gesturing for them to do as she had. After dumping theirbuckets, Atreus and Rishi each received a similar splash. When Yago dumped hiscask, the Dweller rested its tentacle on his shoulder and rubbed his face, smearingthe ogre's orange cheek with white slime. "Hey!"

Yago knocked the tentacle away and the Dweller responded by flicking theappendage back toward him. When the ogre fell for the feint and brought his otherarm across to block, the monster struck, slapping Yago alongside the head so hardthat he tumbled backward off the dam. He landed with a deafening crash and spranginstantly to his feet, only to find the tentacle's finger-like end tendrils waving in his face.

Keeping a cautious eye on the tendrils, Yago began to edge toward the marble

bench. "Yago!" Seema hissed, wrapping both hands around the ogre's wrist and pullinghim toward the head of the pool. "What are you doing?" "You saw," the ogre said as he backed away from the Dweller. "That thing wentafter me!"

"It was only playing," Atreus said, hoping he was right. "If that monster had beenattacking, I doubt any of us would be here."Seema nodded, her eyes as hard as ice. "I pray we are not about to discover the truthof that," she said, and began to edge along the dam toward the granite stairs. "I donot know what the Dweller will do when we pass the Pool of Gems. I have never beenbeyond here."

Rishi rolled his eyes, clearly believing this was just one more lie designed to protect

Langdarma's secret treasures.

Atreus stepped to the head of the line. "In that case," he said, "let me go first...

alone. If the Dweller objects, perhaps he will only attack me."

"I'm the bodyguard," objected Yago.

"But it's my quest," Atreus said, then made the small leap from the dam to the firststep. "What does it mean if I don't go first?"

Yago frowned, and Atreus ascended the staircase while the ogre was still trying topuzzle out the question. The Dweller raised its tentacles and cocked its head, itsdark scarlet eyes growing steadily dimmer as Atreus climbed out of the pool's brilliant aura. He averted his own glance and was careful not to lock gazes with themonster. When the trio of scarlet eyes finally faded to nothingness, the creature letout one of its low belly rumbles and splashed its tentacles back into the water.

Atreus found himself standing alone at the entrance to what appeared to be anarrow, vaulted temple. Down each side ran a low meditation platform covered in themouldering remains of folded carpets. On the walls hung tatters of silken tapestries whose patterns and colors had long ago vanished into dust and mildew. The shining stream ran straight up the aisle between the meditation platforms, narrowingin the distance until it finally vanished into the darkness.

"Atreus?" called Seema. For the first time since leaving her hut, there was genuineconcern in her voice. "Is everything well?"

"It's fine. Come up."

His companions emerged from the cloudy aura one after the other, each entering the strange vault in awestricken silence. Once they had gathered, Atreus quietly led the way up the aisle. A low murmur began to resonate in the back of his mind, growing more noticeable as they progressed. It was not a sound, but rather the perception of a sound, an echo that reverberated inside his head without passing through his ears.

The murmur became a rhythmic growl, then a deep, guttural chant, and finallyan eerie pulsing roar as mesmerizing as it was maddening. Atreus looked backand found Yago and Rishi staring wide-eyed at the dark walls.

"You hear it too?"

Though Atreus had intended to speak only loud enough to make himself understood, his voice rang through the silent temple like a thunderclap.

Both Yago and Rishi nodded nervously.

"It says, 'Luck and Happiness to all creatures. May the Serene Ones spreadtheir grace over the world,'" explained Seema. "The ancient monks filled the stones with their voices, and now the walls are ringing their chants back to us."

"The walls?" grumbled Yago. "It sounds like ghosts."

Seema whirled on the ogre. "You mustn't say such things," she said. "Not here!" Yago's orange cheeks darkened. "Sorry," the ogre apologized. "I didn't know they was listening."

Atreus led the way down the aisle. The chanting continued to swell, but as theygrew accustomed to it, it became almost calming. They soon found themselvesdroning along, "Omna lo renege ge suun, song tse ngampo ge lung pa.. . omna lorenege ge suun, song tse ngampo ge lung pa..." The chant seemed to free their minds from all awareness of time and space, sothey were all taken by surprise when the sparkling stream suddenly narrowed and became a fan-shaped cascade spilling down yet another stone stairway.For a moment, Atreus just stood there, too mesmerized by the hypnotic rhythminside his head to realize what he was seeing. His gaze began to rise, followingthe stream up a long series of steps to the summit of a pyramidal dais.

On top sat a pair of golden yaks, kneeling across from each other and facing a great alabaster altar inlaid with a thousand-spoked wheel of gleaming silver. At oneend of the altar sat three elegant vessels: a bronze brazier with incense smoke stillrising from its heart, a glass butter lamp with a tiny flame still flickering on its wick,and a jade vase with a single hibiscus blossom still rising from its mouth. At theother end sat three plain objects: a loaf of steaming rice-bread, a tin caster filled with fresh cinnamon, and a sandal-wood lute still resonating from the touch of itslast player.

In the center of the altar, resting on its side between the two groups of sacredobjects, lay what Atreus had come so far to find, a platinum cup rimmed insapphires and rubies, from whose mouth spilled a perpetual stream of glittering silver water.

Rishi clutched Atreus's arm and whispered, "Good sir, your wisdom and faithare the measure of all men!" The Mar glanced over his shoulder. "If I may suggest a small precaution, we should see to Seema with every haste."

Atreus tore his eyes from the altar and scowled down at Rishi and said, "See to her?"

Rishi winced, then held a finger to his lips. "Quietly, good sir," he cautioned. "I amsure it will only take one scream, and then the Dweller will come running."

Atreus glanced back at Seema, who was standing at the base of the dais asawestruck as he. "Why would she do that?" he asked.Rishi raised his brow, genuinely surprised. "Is it not obvious?" he whispered. "Yourgoddess sent you here to steal the Fountain of Infinite Grace . . . that is how youare to return the shining water to Erlkazar."

The Mar's sly logic stunned Atreus. It was an elegant solution to an otherwiseimpossible problem, but for the one detail Rishi had overlooked.

"Sune would never want such a thing."

"Want what thing?" asked Seema, finally drawn out of her reverie.

Rishi glanced at Yago, then cocked his head meaningfully in her direction. Atreusscowled and shook his head. Getting no answer to her question, Seema stepped to Atreus's side and asked,

"What is all this whispering?"

"Nothing for you to worry about," Atreus replied.

He was careful not to look in the direction of the alabaster altar, but Seema's

suspicions were already raised. She glanced at the toppled cup, her eyes lit in

understanding, and she grabbed Atreus's arm with surprising strength.

"You would steal Langdarma's beauty?"

"No," Atreus said, and covered Seema's fingers with his hand. "Sune would not

want me to. The last thing she would want is to spoil a place like Langdarma."Yago rolled his eyes and quickly looked away, but his skepticism was not lost onRishi.

"What do you think, my friend?" asked the Mar. "Is this Sune not a jealous goddess,who might very well resent this stream of beauty pouring forth from her ancientrival's temple?"

The ogre gave a grudging shrug. "She's fickle enough," he said. "I wouldn't put anything past her."

Seema paled, turning to call the Dweller.

Atreus pulled her back, clamping a hand over her mouth. "You have nothing to worry

about," he assured her. "Even if Sune did want the fountain, how could we get it pastthe Dweller? I'm sure it would frown on us stealing the source of its shining pool."

"How would it know until it was too late to stop us?" asked Rishi, smiling.The Mar bounded up the dais and snatched the cup off the altar, eliciting a muffledscream from Seema. "Put that back!" Atreus ordered.

"Have no worry, I am not stealing the cup," said Rishi. "I am only demonstrating howsuch a thing might be possible, in case the good sir should in his own judgmentconsider it necessary."

"I won't"

Rishi paid Atreus no attention, began to descend the dais, and said, "You see?" TheMar stopped two steps above, holding the cup sideways so that the water continued to pour out at an even rate. "In this manner, we could advance all the way tothe stairs above the Pool of Gems, where we might wait until the Dweller wanderedaway on its business. Or perhaps we would send someone to distract it while theothers fled with the Fountain of Infinite Grace."

"How do we escape Langdarma before the Sannyasi catches us?" Atreus asked,more to prove the impossibility of Rishi's plan than because he was really interested.Or so he told himself. "From what little I recall, the Passing was something of a challenge."

Rishi's smile grew confident "Langdarma is difficult to enter, but easy to leave," he said. "Yago and I learned of many exits while we were searching for the fountain."

Seema's body stiffened. She began to struggle in Atreus's arms, going so faras to bite his palm. He winced, then pointed his chin at the altar.

"Put it back," Atreus said, feeling Seema's chin grow slick with his blood. "Sune didn't send me here to steal the fountain or anything else."

Rishi's eyes hardened and he demanded, "Do you never think of anyone beyondyourself?" He glanced back toward the alabaster altar. "I am sure that any two of those treasures would make me the wealthiest bahrana in the Five Kingdoms!""I'm tired of telling you." Atreus caught Yago's eye, swung his chin toward the Mar,and said, "Feel free to break an arm if he doesn't give it to you."Instead of rushing to obey, the ogre asked, "You sure about that?" "What?" Atreus gasped, astonished by Yago's disobedience. "You can't be with him!"

Yago scowled, clearly insulted. " 'Course not!" he said. "I'm just trying to figure outwhy you want to stay ugly for the rest of your life." The ogre glanced at Rishi andadded, "He's right about Sune. You know he is. I didn't come all this way to see you go home empty-handed."

Atreus fell silent, weighing the ogre's opinion and hating himself for it. To evenconsider the possibility that Sune had sent him after the cup was a betrayal of Seema's love, yet the way she continued to struggle in his arms made it clear thatshe believed he had already forsaken her. He glanced down and noticed his blood drops falling into the stream of sparkling water and turning into little beads of gold.Everyone but him, it seemed, knew exactly what the goddess expected.

"On my heart," Atreus growled. "How I wish I could stay."

"But the Sannyasi will not permit it, and so he deserves what he shall receive." Rishismirked, then started back up the dais. "Come along, Yago, and help me retrieve the rest of the treasure."

"No," Atreus said, closing his eyes. "Don't do it."

Seema stopped struggling, astonished, and Rishi spun on his heel, spraying her andAtreus with a stream of shining water.

"What?" the Mar demanded.

Atreus opened his eyes again. "We came to fill the vial." He pointed his chin towardthe cup. "Put it back."

Rishi glared at Seema icily, clearly blaming her for the loss of his fortune. A craftygleam came to his eye.

"You are very clever, good sir. If the water loses its sparkle again, we canalways return for the cup in the morning. But how will you pay me with all your gold lost in the river? Even the clothes on your back are not your own."

Seema tensed at Rishi's words, but she did not resume her struggle. Though evenAtreus could not say what he would do if the water lost its sparkle again, he sensedthat Seema hoped as much as he that he would not have to make the choice. Heglanced in Yago's direction and nodded.

"Give me that!" Yago's gangling arm lashed out, ripping the cup from Rishi's handsand inadvertently turning it upside down.

It was as though the ogre had punched a hole in the bottom of a lake. A ragingtorrent of water poured from the mouth of the chalice, instantly sweeping the legs out from under Atreus and Rishi and sweeping them down the aisle.

Fearing the Mar would take advantage of the situation, Atreus released Seema andgrabbed Rishi instead. They tumbled a dozen paces down the aisle, before Yagofinally thought to right the cup. The torrent ended as swiftly as it began, depositingAtreus and his captive among the moldy-smelling rugs on a meditation platform.

"There is no need to crush me," Rishi wheezed. "You are the ugly one. If you do not want to steal the fountain, then I am as willing as you to leave it behind."

"I'll believe that when we're back in the Five Kingdoms," Atreus said.

He glanced up and saw Seema across the aisle, wiping the moldy remnants of acarpet off her cloak. The flood itself had spent its fury washing onto the meditationplatforms and was slowly draining back into its main channel. Yago stood near the bottom of the dais, holding the cup upright and staring at its gem-studded rim asthough he were clutching a live cobra. In this position, the fountain looked much thesame as any other chalice. There was no water spilling over its rim and only a faintaura shining up from its interior.

Atreus dragged Rishi over to Yago's side, exchanging the indignant Mar for theplatinum cup.

"Keep an eye on our thieving friend."

"Why do you insist on insulting me, good sir?" Rishi protested. "Did I not give youmy word? I have completely forgotten the Fountain of Infinite Grace. If you cannot seethat Langdarma has nothing to fear from me, then you are certainly the fool they took you for in Queen Rosalind's court!"

"I've been called worse than a fool." Atreus glanced back at Seema, who waswatching him with veiled emotions, and added, "Perhaps rightfully so."

Atreus climbed the dais and laid the cup on the alabaster altar, restarting the flow ofshining water. Though he had reached the end of his quest, he experienced noexultation or relief, only a queasy sort of guilt that made him feel hollow and coldinside. He removed the empty vial from his cloak and held it beneath the falling water and, as the flow spilled over his fingers, took no joy in the sweet tickle of its magic.

When the vial was full, Atreus corked it, carefully wrapped it inside a cushioning rag, and began to descend the dais. "Ain't you gonna take a drink?" asked Yago, oblivious to Atreus's remorseful mood."I'd kinda like to see you handsome." "Yes, drink," sneered Seema. "If the magic here is as potent as you hope, you willbe handsome forever."

Stung by the sarcasm in her voice, Atreus started to decline, then realized shewas right. Whether the magic lasted or not, he stood to lose nothing by drinking,and it just might be what Sune had intended all along. Anything as worth a try, if itmeant avoiding the decision of whether or not to steal the fountain.

Atreus knelt beside the altar, then opened his mouth under the cup and let theshining water pour down his throat. He experienced the same airy giddiness as before, save that it was a hundred times as strong, so strong that he felt its radianceshining inside every part of his body, filling him from head to toe with a sweet burninghe swore would turn him to smoke.

A terrible thought occurred to Atreus then, and he turned to see if he couldread any sign of betrayal in Seema's face. She grimaced and looked away in disappointment, but Yago smiled broadly.

"Now, if that ain't a wonderful sight!" said the ogre. "I wish they could see you backin the Church of Beauty!"

"Yes, he is as handsome as a prince," drolled Rishi. The Mar twisted around to lookup at Yago. "Now, perhaps we should turn our concerns to the real danger in ourmidst. Seema certainly knows whether or not the magic will last, and even as we speak, she is most likely plotting to set the Dweller upon us."

"Rishi, how can you say such a thing?" Seema asked. She appeared more amusedthan affronted. "Even if the Dweller were mine to control, to do such a thing wouldbe to kill... and you know I would never kill, not even to protect Langdarma."