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I flicked a look at both Pitr and Alyssa, and saw they were both expecting at me to decide what to do next. They both looked scared.
‘Go–yen!’ hissed Alyssa.
We walked back to the top of the stairs and looked down to see a small group of men; one standing out in front and the other six arranged in a loose half-circle around the bottom of the stairs. The men at the back looked professional; disinterested, alert and competent, and all six had a blade hanging at their hip.. They had hair cut close to the scalp, and there were intricate patterns shaven into the fuzz, and all wore something that looked like it was a modification of the same garment Pitr and I were wearing. The man standing at the front looked friendly enough, with a small, genuine smile, but had long, fussy hair in ringlets and his clothing was more gaudy and was scattered with glittering trinkets.
I looked back at Pitr and Alyssa, shrugged, and started down the stairs.
‘Wonderful,’ said the man standing at the front. ‘And if you could step outside the door? Thank you.’
We all marched outside and as soon as we were clear of the door, the man went straight to the hidden panel and pressed the green button. As the doors began to slide together, the lights switched off.
‘Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lt. Maduk Issu. I think ‘Lieutenant’ or ‘Issu’ would be appropriate. I must admit I really don’t know exactly what the right protocol is for this situation.’
There was an awkward pause as Issu looked expectantly at me, then I realised he was expecting me to introduce us.
‘How do you do,’ I asked, trying to remember my manners. ‘My name is Garret Trent these are my friends, Pitr Shokov and Al - ’
‘I am Alyssa, Granddaughter to Chief Brytar of the Clan Festrain.’
I turned and stared. I had never heard Alyssa use such an imperious tone of voice, and when I looked at her she had drawn herself up. Considering her shortage of height, she actually managed to pull off looking like a Chief’s close kin.
Issu bowed to all of us. ‘Charmed. Delighted to meet you all.’
‘Look,’ I said, ‘I don’t mean to sound rude, but if you don’t want us to go through the Hall, can you tell us a route around it? I need to - ’
‘Of course. Noah’s mission. We were expecting you, although it isn’t customary for the Emissary to have companions. Not an issue. I’m sure we can accommodate everybody on the buggy, and if not I am sure I can prevail upon one or other of these fine men to take a somewhat slower route back to their barracks.’
They were expecting me? How?
‘You seem somewhat taken aback, young sir,’ Issu said, his smile widening slightly. ‘Perhaps I should hurry along and get you off to someone who can answer your questions? If I could trouble you all to take a seat on the buggy?’
He made a flamboyant and sweeping gesture with his arm and the other men stood aside to reveal a wheeled carriage. It reminded me of the thing we had found in the tube, but it had no roof and only bench seats facing each other on either side. We walked up some steps at the back and sat down, Pitr and Alyssa on one side, me on the other. Issu sat next to me and two men crowded in at the back. One more got into a seat at the front, presumably to control the machine, and that left two still standing outside by the door. Both seemed to be looking hopefully at the empty seat at the front.
‘Double along now, lads,’ said Issu, and I heard a commanding edge to his voice he hadn’t used on us. ‘If you’re late back to the barracks you’ll miss your meal. Driver, move on.’
The buggy moved off smoothly, making a faint whine from underneath as the bulbous tyres rolled along. Pitr and Alyssa were looking fixedly at the floor of the carriage, their hands clenched against the bench seat trying to find something to hold on to. The thing moved fast, and I loved it. Wind rushed against my face and when I wasn’t looking eagerly where we were headed, I was craning around the side of the operator trying to figure out how he was making the thing go.
‘Please excuse me,’ said Issu. ‘I really should be more considerate.’
He leaned forward past me and tapped the driver on the shoulder. ‘Raise the shell, man.’
The operator leaned forward and pressed a control, then two transparent panels arched up over our heads and enclosed us, cutting off the wind.
‘Won't be long now,’ said Issu, settling back in his seat with the air of someone who wasn’t really interested in any conversation. The two other men sat stiffly, hands on their weapons, and looking at them made me feel uncomfortable.
The drone told me only ten minutes had passed, but the lack of conversation made it seemed like much longer before the view started to change. Then a side tunnel flickered past, and another on the other side, and in a few minutes they were everywhere. Some even had men standing outside and barriers going across them. We turned into one tunnel, made another turn and started up a ramp that coiled upwards two full turns before opening out onto a plaza.
It must have been forty meters tall and there were lights on the walls that shone powerfully onto a ceiling painted pale blue. The ramp came out on one side of the square and the operator followed a marked path as he drove around a big water basin with jets shooting into the air. I looked behind us, and either side of the ramp were two smaller tunnels with gates and soldiers. The other three walls were covered in a grid of windows – of all things – and in the centre of each wall was a fancy door at the top of a flight of stairs. There was writing above each door, and though I knew the letters the words didn’t mean anything to me. The door in the wall opposite the ramp was the biggest and most ornate.
We went all the way around to the third door and stopped at the foot of the steps. Issu knocked on the cover and the operator withdrew it. After the two men with weapons had climbed off, Issu went down the steps and waved for us to follow. As Alyssa went step down he held out his hand, palm down and to the side of her. She looked at him, then the outstretched hand, and walked past. Issu looked embarrassed, made a strange coughing noise, and took his hand away. I didn’t understand what the issue had been. Pitr and I clattered down the steps and followed Issu up to and through the door.
Inside was a huge hall, bigger than the Commons, with other rooms opening off either side. In front, another imposing staircase swooped upwards in curves that made it look as though it was floating in the air. I could see two landings above us, and a great dome over the top just like outside. Soldiers stood beside the stairs on each landing. Everything was in shades of pale colours except the floor covering which was a dark blue and sucked up the sound of footsteps. The air smelt like the - what was it Alyssa had called them? - flowers we had often passed in Boreetum.
I had started heading towards the stairs, but Issu intercepted me with a mellow ‘This way if you would’ and he guided us to a row of sliding doors I had not seen either side of the stairs. He tapped a button, the doors slid open and we stepped into one of the moving rooms. This one counted upwards from ‘1’ and we go out again at ‘3’. A corridor stretched off to either side with doors every ten metres on both sides. Issu took us along the corridor, the armed men walking along behind us, and stopped four doors down, at a door marked ‘307’. He pressed a thumb to a pad next to the door, and then gestured we should walk through once it had slid open.
‘I’m sure you’ll find this apartment satisfactory,’ he said, standing in the doorway. ‘Please make yourselves comfortable. Both bedrooms have two beds, so sort out your own arrangements. I’m sure someone will be along to see you very soon, and I understand you have been travelling for some time so you might want to make use of the fresher and the tailor. I’ll leave the two guards outside so you aren’t disturbed.’
He backed out through the door and it slid closed behind him.