An excited buzz rose within the crowd, for all the young rats knew this was the moment they would be called forward to try to unlock the cage and dare to look into the cut surface of the black diamond.
The Elders clapped their paws for the Tower Guards to refill their glasses and for more food to be served. The Tower Guards scanned the crowd, and Tilbury felt the gaze of one guard turn his way. It was one of the biggest rats Tilbury had ever seen. He was battle-scarred, with ripped ears and a silver patch over one eye. His tail spikes looked long and lethal. It was as if this rat could see him though the veil of seaweed.
Tilbury felt Nimble-Quick’s paw on his shoulder. ‘Stay still, little brother,’ she whispered. ‘That’s Yersinia, the General of the Tower Guard.’
Tilbury shivered and waited for Yersinia to turn his attention back to the ceremony. The Master was leading the young rats in a line up the steps cut into the rock. He invited each to take their turn. Some edged forward, too frightened to look. Others swaggered with bravado. Ola went ahead of Elberry, and Tilbury could see Ola’s face turned away from the diamond. Ola hardly tried to open the locks and looked relieved to head back down the other side of the rock.
When Elberry stepped forward a deep hush descended. For Elberry was a young rat of great confidence. He was good-looking too, with sleek fur and neatly shaped ears. He bowed to the Keeper and then the Elders. Tilbury noticed the Elders had stopped eating and were leaning forward, intently looking at Elberry. Elberry then turned to the other rats, showing the best view of his handsome features. He bent down and began working with his paws at the intricate locks. There were some loud clunking and clicking of locks opening, and gasps rose up from the crowd.
But then another set of locks firmly closed up again, with another loud clunk.
Elberry tried again, turning and twisting the mechanisms. The clicks and whirr of locks opening up again echoed around the Great Hall. It seemed all the rats were holding their breath. But once again, the locks closed back up before Elberry could reach the inner cage. He snarled in frustration, hitting his clenched paws upon the cage.
‘Enough,’ said the Master of the Ceremony. ‘You have had your turn.’
‘I can do it,’ cried Elberry, lashing his tail against the locks. ‘Let me have another go. I know what to do –’
‘Stop!’ came a stern voice from the gallery.
All rats turned to the Elder who had spoken. It was Elder Elreath, the oldest rat. He was tall and so very thin, his fur silver and sparse. ‘Master Elberry, you are not The One.’
Elberry bared his teeth at the Elders, spittle flying from his mouth. ‘I can open it, you know I can. But you don’t want me to have it, do you? You don’t want anyone to have it. You say you protect the prophecy, but all you want to do is protect yourselves. You want to keep the diamond here so you can get fat and drunk in the Tower while we feed you all.’
There were sharp intakes of breath and in the silence that followed, Tilbury could hear Ma squeak, ‘Hush, Elberry. Hush now.’
It was too late. Two of the guards climbed up and held Elberry by the shoulders.
‘You dare question the Elders?’ said Yersinia, the General of the Tower Guard.
Elberry squirmed beneath the guards’ grip. ‘I will return the Cursed Night,’ he snarled. ‘I’m the warrior you seek.’
Ma rushed forward. ‘Forgive him, please. It’s the diamond. It has cursed his mind.’
Elberry turned his head to the diamond. ‘It’s mine,’ he screeched, reaching out his paws and biting the cage with his teeth. ‘Let me open it.’ But in that moment, he caught his reflection in its surface and stifled a scream. He froze, clasping his paws to his mouth. ‘No, no, no …’
‘What do you see?’ asked the Keeper.
‘I cannot tell,’ squeaked Elberry. ‘It cannot be me …’
‘You must tell,’ said the Keeper, ‘for then you can understand who you are.’
‘I see great weakness,’ whimpered Elberry. His shoulders slumped, and he let the guards carry him away from the Gilded Cage and down the stone steps.
‘Poor Elberry,’ whispered Nimble-Quick gravely. ‘The diamond possessed him, and he saw the truth of his soul.’
Tilbury shuddered. He was fascinated by the cage, with its intricate workings, but equally afeared of the Cursed Night. He did not want to feel its power and did not want to see himself at all.
The long line of young rats waiting to attempt to open the cage became shorter and shorter until all the year-old rats had tried to open the cage, but none had succeeded.
Tilbury watched the eldest Elder sit back and take a sip of wine. A small smile played at the corners of his mouth and Tilbury couldn’t help thinking that he looked somewhat relieved. Doubt crept into his mind. Perhaps Elberry was right, and the Elders didn’t want to find the warrior rat. By protecting the prophecy they could live life in luxury.
The Master held the crow-skull staff up high. ‘Let us wish good luck and fortune to those young rats as they venture forth, and let us give praise to the moon and hope our saviour will come with its return.’
‘To the moon,’ all the rats murmured in unison. ‘The moon.’
Tilbury and Nimble-Quick watched the year-old rats head out first into the moonlit night. Only Elberry remained, held by two guards that were talking to Ma and Pa. Then they filed out with the Elders, followed by all the adult rats, and lastly the Keeper.
Then the Great Hall was empty. The candles still swung in the breeze, the strange greenish light spinning in the darkness. The creak and swirl of the incoming tide could be heard, creeping and curling into the hall.
‘We must get back too,’ whispered Nimble-Quick, crawling back into the dark drain. She looked back for Tilbury, but Tilbury hadn’t followed.
‘Tilbury!’ called Nimble-Quick. She edged forward but saw that Tilbury had jumped down onto the soft mud below.
‘Tilbury!’ she called again, but little Tilbury didn’t hear. He seemed in a trance, walking toward the Gilded Cage on the rock. He was drawn by its intricacy and beauty.
He was drawn to it, like a moth to a flame.