The King's Name (44 page)

took the crown and mean to reign."

Chins were being raised around me. "Absurd," Gorai murmured to Galbian. Alswith patted my arm.

"Will Sulien ap Gwien so swear?" Morthu asked.

"We are not here to embarrass my mother, but to inquire into your treachery," Darien said.

"Before we begin, will you swear before the gods to speak the truth?"

"Of what am I accused?" Morthu asked again.

"Sorcery," Darien said. "That is, burning your own soul to power your spells. Sedition, that is plotting to stir up the kings of Tir Tanagiri to fight against their rightful king. And treachery, that is plotting with the enemies of your country, and specifically inviting Marchel ap Thurrig and Arling Gun-narsson to invade."

"By all the gods I care for," Morthu said, "I swear that I am innocent of those charges, and I will speak nothing but the truth."

Angas stirred uneasily, and I wondered if he was also thinking that there were very few gods Morthu cared for.

"It is customary to ask the White God to witness and hold your oath," Darien said.

"But it is not the law," Morthu said. He was right, of course. I gritted my teeth.

We then went through the procedure of evidence being given against Morthu. Veniva read out Garah's statement. Several servants and people of Caer Tanaga made statements.

Then Flavien made a statement about Morthu's sedition, enticing him into rebellion. Sidrok made another, almost identical, as was Hengist

Guthrumsson's. Then Atha came out, looking subdued and just like anyone else, and spoke about the letters he had sent her. Then it was my turn. As briefly as I could I explained about Aurien, and Daldaf, and that he had confessed the plot and the stolen letters. Then I gave an account of the events of the day before, which should have been sufficient evidence of sorcery all on their own. Lastly Elenn came forward, with Teilo at her side, and gave evidence quietly, confirming what I had said, confirming Garah's statement about the sacrifice, and saying that she had been bewitched and forced to act against her own will.

When she had stepped back, Morthu raised his head. "May I speak now?" he asked. "Can I
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defend myself, or am I to be condemned unheard by this conspiracy of my enemies?"

"You can speak," Darien said patiently.

"In the first place, the kings who say I wrote to them seditiously are twisting the events. There were letters between us, yes, and we did discuss rebellion. But as they stand pardoned, that is not in itself a crime. I did not begin writing to them, as they said. They were the ones who wrote to me, and to my brother, stirring up the war because of their rightful grievances, and not on my account. Secondly, Sulien ap Gwien and her servant, Garah ap Gavan, are lying, out of the hate and mistrust she has always had for me ever since she killed my mother. As for the last speaker, I must explain my innocence. The Queen Elenn is a very beautiful woman. When she fell in love with me and made advances to me I tried to resist for some time, as she was married to King Urdo. When he discovered this, I was banished to Demedia, although I was innocent. When I

came back, she said that since Urdo was as good as dead I could have no more scruples, and threw herself at me. She is trying to escape blame and gain sympathy with this story of sorcerous bewitchment. She should rather be pitied than condemned."

Elenn stood completely still, her face as remote as if he were speaking of someone else.

"And how do you explain the sacrifice of a hundred armigers and townspeople?" Darien asked.

"Another lie. They tell you to go and see the circle of ashes. It is true that we made a pyre to burn the dead, but that is all the truth of it. My enemies are conspiring against me, some out of hatred for me but most to shift the blame from themselves to me. If you are not prejudiced because one of them is your mother, you will judge the truth of it for yourself. You may say that their conspiracy against me is fantastic and unlikely, but on the same grounds consider what it is that they say I have done and how plausible that is."

"And why would Atha lie about you?"

"Who knows why Isarnagans do anything?" He shrugged, and some of the crowd chuckled.

"And Rigga of Rigatona?" Darien asked.

"Who?" Morthu asked, but I could tell he had not been prepared for this.

"Rigg, of Rigatona. She writes from Caer Custenn of your conspiracy with Arling." Darien waved the letter I

had sent to Urdo when all this began. It seemed like years ago, but it was hardly a month and a half.

"Probably a forgery your mother made," Morthu said, and stared at Darien as if daring him to condemn him.

This was the first public act of Darien's reign. He had not only to do justice, but be seen to do it.

If there had been a vote among the kings then, I am not sure whether Morthu might not have swayed enough of them to set him free.

"And sorcery?" Darien asked.

"Where is your evidence of sorcery?" Morthu replied.

"We have given our evidence," Darien said, coming forward toward Morthu. "Garah's written evidence and

Sulien's spoken evidence you deny as lies. Shall I have Raul and Gliv-iden tell us how the stones of the gate were fallen? Shall I have everyone who has ever dealt with you tell of one thing and another that are individually very small but together are incontrovertible proof?"

I was looking at Morthu, so I saw his eyes narrowing as Darien approached, and I saw his face tighten as if he was waiting for him to be near enough. He didn't have a weapon, but neither did I.I didn't really think he was going to jump Darien, it wasn't that sort of expression.

As I was trying to think what sort of expression it was, his leapt forward. "The blackheart has come to Caer

Tanaga!" he shouted. "Hear me, oh Earth!"

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Then everything happened at once. Darien took another step forward and there was a muffled crump sound, and gouts of fire exploded up through the ground in a wide band across from where I was standing to where

Elenn was standing, opposite me. Almost before I had seen it, there was a loud bang and the fire was gone.

A wave of warm fog expanded quickly outward at knee level, and rolled away along the ground.

I wasn't sure at the time if any of it had been real, but I found afterward that the hairs on my legs were singed off, so it must have been.

Morthu was staring at Inis with incredulous hate on his face. "That wasn't sorcery!" he said.

"Not a bit of it," Inis agreed cheerfully. "That was the fuel for the flame-machines which you had stored in the heating-system tunnel, and you set it off with a perfectly ordinary spark charm. Do not condemn this man for sorcery, Kings and Princes; he would have killed you with innocent burning oil."

Gorai actually laughed.

"We would have been just as dead," Darien said, sounding a little shaken. "And murder is also a capital crime," he added. "Thank you, Inis, whatever you did."

"I just took away the air around the fire, and the life from the heart of it," Inis said, as if this made sense in the first place and as if it were possible in the second. He sounded a little bashful.

"Well, Morthu," Darien said.

Morthu tried to take a step toward Darien, and stumbled to his knees. "My feet," he screamed.

Teilo stepped forward from the crowd. "The curse has him," she said. "He could not do sorcery, and the charm he did has opened the way for the curse to find him. And every life he has taken to keep it away is making it stronger now."

Morthu kept screaming. I leaned forward to see. It looked as if the grass had caught Morthu by the feet and ankles and was holding him tight. Now it was twining up his legs to his knees. "Cut me loose!" he screamed, tearing at the grass with his fingers.

Inis cackled. "You just tried to kill them all, and you think they'll cut you loose?"

I looked to see if anyone would. Flavien was patting his clothes, looking appalled.

Everyone else seemed stunned. Gwien was gazing, eyes wide. "His foot's come right off," he said. It had. The bare bones were lying separately on the innocent grass like the bones of someone long dead, each toe bone separate from the other bones like an illustration in one of ap Darel's books. Morthu's scrabbling fingers had been caught, too, and he was pulled forward on his hands and knees, with the grass reaching up his arms.

"Help me!" Morthu shouted. "I'll teach you all my spells. I'll make you High King if you help me.

I'll show you how to be like a god! Whatever you want, power, lovers, comfort. Just get me away from this grass. You're standing on it too, you know. How do you know it won't turn on you when it has done with me? Cut me free and lift me up!"

"And will you be carried in a chair all your life, or walk in shoes with springs on their heels?" Inis asked, still full of maniacal cheer.

"This is not deadly grass you have stumbled on," Teilo said. "This is the vengeance of the Earth you have scorned all your days."

Alswith was looking sick. Even Darien looked pale. The worst of it was that there wasn't any blood. I was at the same time both intensely glad of it and absolutely horrified by seeing it. Only Inis seemed to be enjoying it, laughing and dancing about. He went back into the crowd and took hold of Elenn's arm and dragged her forward. "Elenn!" Morthu screamed. "Help me! Cut me free!"

She spat on his face. "So perish all who malign my honor," she said coldly.

Even I shuddered. She shook off Inis's hand and walked over to Teilo, who held Elenn against her shoulder like a child, hiding her eyes. Teilo was not afraid to look herself. On the faces
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around me I saw hatred and nausea and disgust and, on some, a furtive pleasure. Raul looked incredulous. Dewin looked confused.

Father Cinwil looked as if he might be sick at any moment. Only Teilo watched entirely dispassionately, as if she needed to be able to give an account of it to someone later.

When Morthu stopped begging for help and his screams became gurgles, Teilo gave Elenn to Raul and came forward again.

"It is time for mercy," she said to Darien. "Kill him now."

Darien raised his chin, and reached for where his sword should have been, then remembered he didn't have it.

All of us were patting our clothes now, and discovering the same thing. By the time a guard came up at

Darien's signal, it was too late; there was nothing left of Morthu but his neatly piled bones.

I was very glad he was dead, and so perish all poison-tongued traitors and sorcerers. But all the same, I have never cursed anyone since.

—27—

Let the dead be carried gently;

let them wonder, who are living, what choice shall be tomorrow.

— Roland Poem, Number 5

When it was almost sunset, a servant came and asked me to go to Elenn for the laying out. I had almost forgotten about it. Darien had told me in the morning that there would be a boat ready, but it had gone out of my mind. I was the last to arrive in the little room where they were preparing the bier. Elenn welcomed me, looking very composed. My mother was there, and Alswith, arranging cornflowers and roses around the piece of wood that was, when looked at in a certain way, Urdo lying still with closed eyes. It was a gnarled and weathered oak log with the bark still on. I don't know where they found it.

Emer stood a little apart, as if unwilling to touch it. Rowanna was fussing around and wiping her eyes. Her sister Ninian was not there, and clearly not invited, although she had been at the coronation. Ninian ap Gwyn was there, casting very uncertain looks at Elenn and at the piece of wood. I got to see her hair, which was as red as Alswith's. It looked strange with her darker skin. I have heard people call Ninian a beauty, which seems to me too kind of them. All the same, her looks were certainly striking when she was young.

Alswith was still wearing the grey overdress she had worn at the coronation. The others were all wearing very splendid clothes and whatever gold they had. For a moment I felt out of place in my armor. Then I reminded myself that Urdo had given it to me after Caer Lind and that it was fit to wear anywhere.

The log on the bier both was and wasn't Urdo. Sometimes it could look like him to me, and other times it was only the wood. He was a hero of the land now. He could look however he chose and make any part of the land resemble him. When we were done to Elenn's satisfaction the other six of us picked up the bier and carried it out. Emer and I had the front, Ninian and Alswith the center, and Veniva and Rowanna took the end.

Elenn walked in front, carrying a bunch of flowers tied up with hair of all colors which people had sent.

In the citadel Darien and the kings waited to see us carry it by and then followed us down through the streets of the town. Many armigers joined in behind, and many people of the town.

It was like a procession. People opened their doors to see us pass. Some of them were crying.

Some called out farewells to Urdo as if they thought he could still hear.

"Where are they taking Urdo?" I heard a little boy ask his mother.

"They're taking him away to a magic island where he can be healed," his mother said, mopping at her eyes.

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The bier wasn't heavy, nothing like as heavy as it would have been if we had really been carrying Urdo's body.

We came at last to the wharf. Elenn directed us to lay the bier in the center of the boat on a prepared box.

Then she stepped in and went and stood at the prow. Alswith went to the steering oar. Emer and Veniva and

Ninian and Rowanna stepped away, back into the crowd. I hesitated. Nobody had told me what to do next. I

looked at the bier, and it was Urdo, unquestionably Urdo. He looked as if he were asleep. I remembered a night journey long ago, going to Derwen after Morien's death, when Urdo had fallen asleep crossing the