"Medieval England... the early years of the reign of Edward I." "A troubled land in those days." "Her great feudal fortress castles, born in that uneasy time... stand now as stately monuments... to how unyielding were the enmities that caused their building." "More than two centuries have passed... since the Norman conquests have brought the last infusion... of what was one day to be English blood." "Yet, the bitterness between the Norman conqueror and the Saxon conquered... lay still unhealed." "It had separated the neighboring great houses of Bulaire and Gurnie... by far more than the scant few miles that lay between them... in those days that began with the death of Rauf.'..." "Earl of Lessford and Lord of the House of Bulaire." "You there." "What's your business?" " I was sent for by the earl's man of law." " And what might your name be?" "They call me Walter of Gurnie." "I should have known you're his son by the look of you." "You had a good man to father you, I'll say that." "You'd best come this way." "Saxons of any breeding won't find much welcome here now that he's dead." " What do you want here?" " He wants to see Simeon Bautrie, the earl's man of law." "Oh, so you're the lad from Oxford." " I'll take you to him." " Thank you." " Walter, my lad." " Simeon, I'm glad to see you." "You've grown." "Thickened out anyway." "Did you find your grandfather well?" "Well, I— I didn't stop at home." "I came straight here." "I thought—Well, I was afraid that he'd forbid my coming." "My grandfather never stopped hating him." "You'll not have eaten then." "Sit down, lad." "I keep bite and sup handy." "Fall to, lad." "Tell me, young scholar... what have they taught you in this Oxford of yours?" "Oh, numbers." "Ma— Many things." " I can read as well as you, Simeon Bautrie." " And write too?" "Yes, I know a little Latin and some Greek too." "And French too, perhaps?" "No, I'll not learn that Norman tongue." "Let them learn ours." "Two hundred years since they came here... and their court still clatters with that foreign—" "Easy, lad, easy." "You forget this is a Norman house now." "Do you want to get us hanged?" "Simeon, tell me, why did you send for me?" "Reason enough." " You're in the will." " By name?" "I mean, he acknowledges me as his son?" "Yes, he says you're his son." "I knew he would." "But don't count on too much from it, lad." "Tell me." "You knew my father well." "He loved my mother, didn't he... more than he loved that Norman... woman he married." "He loved me too." "I know he did." "I remember once when I was little..." "I admired a pair of boots he was wearing." "They were black with gold leopards." "He said that he'd get me a pair like them." "He never did, of course, but I knew that he wanted to." "If he could have done what he wanted, he— he would have made things different, wouldn't he?" "Your father, Walter, bore a stout lance in battle... and he was gentle enough of heart, there's truth in that." "Yes, I think he loved your mother best... and that you were the son he wanted." "But it may be too that he's done you more harm than good by mentioning you in the will." "There's no love here for Saxons of any breeding now." "They gave their allegiance to your father... and well that Norman wife of his knows it." "She's already thrown a score of them into her dungeons... hostages against trouble." "So I'll not have you come charging into this business with all your emotion." "You can be present at the reading of the will... but only if you'll stand well back in the hall." "If my lady sees you, she'll do you harm if she can." "Oui." "Begin." "In the name of God, amen." "This is the last will and testament of Rauf..." "Earl of Lessford and Lord of Bulaire." "First, he gives and bequeaths his soul unto the Lord God Almighty... and to all saints... and his body to be buried in the chapel ofhis castle at Bulaire." "Item— He wills that all such manors, lands and rents... which were descended unto him by way of inheritance, shall remain unto his heirs... namely, Eleanor, his wife, and Edmond, his lawful son." "Item." "He wishes to acknowledge a known truth... that he had another son, who, for lack of his name... is known as Walter of Gurnie, and for whom he had affection." "To this said Walter of Gurnie... he bequeaths his black boots of Spanish leather with the golden leopards." "Further, and of most importance... it was his wish to will this son's life into the service of our king... confident that he will make a fitting and honorable place for himself in such service." "Item—" "He gives and bequeaths to the high altar of the chapel of Bulaire..." " the chalice—" " There's no more in that will concerns that nameless lout!" " Let him take what was given him and leave." " Why should I?" "Shall I crawl out on my hands and knees because some Norman tells me to?" " Watch your Saxon tongue!" " And I'll serve no Norman king either." "I'm a Saxon." "He had no right to hand me over to a Norman tyrant." " This is treason!" " And may you hang for it, Walter of Gurnie." "By your leave, my Lady of Lessford." "There's something here, I think, that touches on a matter... with which I am very much concerned." "I should like to question this young man." "You have no need to ask, Your Majesty." "It would seem that the prospect of entering the service of your king... does not altogether fill you with pleasure." "I'd like you to tell me freely why this feeling is so bitter." "You may speak up, lad." "As you see, I came this way while hunting... so let us say that for the moment I am not your king... so we talk as between two men." "There'll be no penalty for the truth." "You're a Norman, that's reason enough." "But it's not." "It's over 200 years since the conquest." "Surely Saxons and Normans should have found a way... to live together in that time." "Your father did not feel as you do." "He was a Saxon." "He knew that if this bitterness was not healed... it would be the worse for England." "This is a problem that must be dealt with one way or another." "Tell me, when you refuse me your loyalty because I am a Norman... have you not considered that I have no choice in the same matter... that I must be king for Norman and Saxon alike... whether I like it or not?" "Do you Saxons not owe something besides hatred to the same cause?" "What do I owe the Normans?" "We lived at Gurnie when the Normans were no better than wolves of the sea... and it was a better Gurnie then before they came to rob us." "She's a Norman... and she robbed me of my name." "She robbed my father of the chance he had to have a Saxon son." "It was her doing that I never knew my father." "He willed me into the service of a Norman, but he can't make me serve them." "I have heard nothing in this that touches my problem." "This seems to me to be a matter between a son and his father." "I would not like the lad to be hanged merely because he has been hurt." "It is our wish that he be let go free." "Do you suppose this house could give a traveler rest?" "Let's say if he was born here?" " Master Walter!" " It's good to see you, old Will." "You've grown, and well too." "Come in." "Come in." "You're home again." "I hoped you'd come by suppertime." "I laid a place for you." "You knew I'd left Oxford then." "Aye." "We have a guest who came from Oxford." "About you, I think." " Who's that?" " Bacon." "Friar Roger Bacon." "Oh." "Friar Bacon." "He was a teacher of mine." "I'd like to see him." "I'll tell him, Master Walter." "Will—" "Uh, what did he say when he found I'd left school?" " My grandfather, I mean." " You know him, Master Walter." "He never says anything." "He just looks." " Well, how is he?" " You saw that pile of iron in the moat?" "Yes, I did." "I meant to ask." "We have gone into trade." "A belted knight of Gurnie in trade... dealing in armorers' iron and swine." "And just like he does everything else, not a word to anyone." "One morning, the horses were gone and the swine came." "And then the iron." "And when they wanted to know where he wanted it put... he told me to have them put it in front of the gate." "They didn't know what he meant, but I did." "If we were going to be in trade, put it out where the world could see." "If there's a price to pay, pay it." "And when he walks by it... he looks neither to the right nor to the left." "I'll call Friar Bacon, Master Walter." "Itrustthisreception is not planned for me." "Oh, Friar Bacon." "I— I couldn't help doing that." "When I was very little, that was my measure of growing up... when I could wield that sword." "I could wish I'd given you so much of feeling about your books." "Perhaps you would not have given them up so readily." "Oh." "What happened concerning your father?" "Was it all you hoped for?" "No." "Will you return with me then?" "I, uh— I don't know." "Never mind." "There'll be time to talk of that later, perhaps with your grandfather." "That won't be so easy." "Why not?" "Well, you see, my grandfather and I only talk to each other through someone else." "It, uh— It makes discussion difficult." "You mean you don't speak?" "Generally we talk through old Wilderkin... but I should warn you that it may very well be you if no one else is here." "No, you mustn't think that he's unkind." "It— It's just an oath he took after the great quarrel with my father." "Well, perhaps I ought to tell you a little bit about it to make it clear." "My father was betrothed to my mother before he went on his crusade... but when he was returning, he fell ill of a wound—very nearly died of it." "They cared for him in a Norman house." "Well, after a long time, when he was well again... he married the daughter of that house, the one who had nursed him." "It was out of gratitude, I suppose." "He didn't know that I'd been born." "How could he?" "As soon as he found out, he came straight here." "And then there was a quarrel, so bitter that I can still remember it." "My grandfather swore that he would never speak to my father again... nor to anyone else of his blood." "That included me, of course... although he didn't mean it that way." "I've often thought that he was sorry for it afterward." "But my grandfather, you will find, is a man who does not take an oath..." " nor anything else, lightly." " I see." "I, uh— I think that I should tell you something—" "Wilderkin.!" "Isoursupperready, and is our guest here, Wilderkin?" "Yes, my lord." "Uh, Wilderkin, tell my grandson that I'm pleased to see him... and to see that he's grown the shoulders of a man." " My lord wishes me to tell you—" " Tell my grandfather, Wilderkin... that I'm glad to see him, and that I hope the shoulders... are broad enough to be of service to him soon." " My lord, Master Walter says—" " Well spoken, Wilderkin." "Well spoken." "Ah, and our guest.!" " Welcome to our table, Friar Bacon." " Thank you, my lord." "Ah." "Pig." "Not the best of meats to offer a guest, Friar, but it's stout and it fills the belly." "Uh, Wilderkin, ask my grandson what he thinks about our venture into trade..." " a course of which no doubt he's aware." " My lord asks—" "Tell my grandfather, Wilderkin... that I think he has adopted a courageous and knightly course." "Ah, well spoken again, Wilderkin." "Well, now let's fall to." "Talk comes easier on a full belly." "The Normans haven't changed that yet." "A pair of boots... and the privilege of wearing an iron collar for a Norman king." " Ask him what else he expects." " My lord says—" "Tell my grandfather I— I had hoped there would be some help for Gurnie in it." "Tell my grandson he was a fool to think it." "Tell him he can help Gurnie best by returning to his studies... where he can learn to be a better man than his father was." "Tell my grandfather that..." "I'm not going to return to school." "Tell him that I think my place is here with him at Gurnie, if there is to be a Gurnie." "Ask him by what right he thinks at all in such a matter." "Ask him who's the best judge of what he'll need... to hold this house against the Norman thieves." " Ask him if he thinks I—" " Tell my grandson that—" " My lord, will you permit me?" " On whose side will you speak?" " On no one's side, my lord." " I warn you, Friar... that if what you say is not on my side..." "I shall pay but little heed to the fact that you're my guest." "I journeyed here, my lord, to urge the same point as you— the return of your grandson to Oxford." "Few scholars have come to me with such an aptitude for learning as your grandson." "It would be a personal and bitter failure to me if I lost him." "What good is it?" "How can you fight the Normans with—with books?" "Walter, if I was young and had no sure place to put my life..." "I could think of nothing better than to give it for the search for knowledge." "The strength in knowledge, it can win victories that the sword cannot." "There's so much we need to know and so few people to seek it out." "England will need it someday." "She needs it now." "Just a handful ofbooks in all our land." "Painfully written, painfully read by only too few." "There is in every land knowledge that we need to add to our store." "I've heard of Cathay, a country they say where no Englishman has been... an old country, fabulously rich not only with gold... but with the knowledge of many ages." "I've heard that they know of a substance... which when it touches a spark... disappears in a blinding flash of light." "That they have instruments which help them to travel by sea and land without becoming lost." "Do you believe those old wives' tales?" "Yes, and more." "Walter, what a challenge when you're young." "What better thing can a man ask of life than that?" "I don't know... but it's a— it's a soft blow to strike." "If I'm gonna leave him here alone, I—" "I want to strike a better blow than that." "Let him go." "He has been hurt." "He'll think better after he has slept." "You!" "What are you doing down there?" " What do you want here?" " Who are you?" " It's the grandson of the old lord." " Nobility then." "I don't like it." "Tris." "Tris Griffen." "You're no thief." "What are you doing here?" " Go on." "Let him up." " But he's Saxon." "Tris, we've played too often on these walls." "I know you and— and you, Dicken." "You're not thieves." " What are you doing here?" " Well, it's bad enough." "We had no trouble with Bulaire castle while your father was alive." "But now the Norman woman has thrown a dozen Saxons in her dungeons as hostages." " Yes, I saw them." " Well, we're gonna get them out." "Out of Bulaire?" "How?" "Well, don't think too little of the strength of this." "She has a beautiful long arm." "Oh, but not against stone walls, Tris." "I told you he'd be on their side." "Who said I was on Norman side in anything?" " Who's your leader?" " Well, I am, in a manner of speaking." " Well, we all are." " Well, you—" "You might stand a chance if you could get inside the gate." "What's your plan?" "Well, that's the hard part, the thinking." " Well, maybe I can get you in." " Look, this isn't your quarrel, Walter." "Give me a few men." "I may be able to get them in the miller's gate." "I know the signal." "If we can get the drawbridge down from the inside, you might stand a chance." "If we can't, you're still on the outside safe, to hunt me down if I've betrayed you." "All right, you can go with us." "Come on." "Get your weapons." "What do you want?" "Who are you?" " Our luck's too good." " It's probably yours." "Who are you, out there?" "Stay where you are!" "Any man coming out of that door will meet a shaft coming in." "Like this." "The rest of you in there, throw out your arms one at a time." "You down there, whoever you are." "I must ask you to disperse... and if you have a grievance, to submit it in the proper fashion." "We'll present it now." "We'll give you five minutes to yield the prisoners." "For every minute more, we'll hang a man of the household from the battlements." "Wait there." "Well, that's the end of your problem." "His new Norman master has no belly for fighting." "I'll go see about my problem now." "The prisoners will be set free." "Who you are, I have no means of knowing... but I beg of you to receive them quietly... and go to your homes before deadly harm comes of this night's work." "Oh, I say." "We can't go without young Gurnie." "Stop where you are!" "You'll pay for this, Walter of Gurnie... and you, Tris Griffen!" "Well, we can't stay here." "They'll hunt us early in the morning." "I know this forest better than they do." "They'll hold your family to bring you out." "There's nobody but Sarah." "You're lucky." "I have my grandfather to tell, and tonight." "Why did you want the boots so much, Walter?" "Well, they were all I had on the side of sayin' my father loved me... when all the world said he didn't." "Well, if they— if they fit, they'll keep my feet warm." "It's a letter, Tris, from my father." "He did care." "Listen." ""Written at Bulaire by candlelight with the hand of Simeon Bautrie to help." ""To my son Walter:" ""I have left a legacy in gold for you..." ""with Joseph at the sign of the merry-totter in London." ""I could not leave this openly because to do so might do you hurt." ""And in the matter of bidding you to the service of the king..." ""that was done in the hope that in helping him to serve this torn England..." ""you could earn for yourself the honorable name I could not give you." ""God bring you to a good decision..." ""and I regret to my heart all unhappiness I have brought you." "Your affectionate father, Rauf of Bulaire."" "I'm glad we got the boots." "Tell my grandfather if they find me here, Gurnie will suffer for it.!" "Ask my grandson when it was the part of Gurnie men to run from Norman trouble." "Tell my grandfather, please, Wilderkin, that we've no choice." "They've won." "The—The Normans have won." "Bulaire is theirs and— and Gurnie soon will be." "It's their England now, not ours!" "And tell him that I'm not going to stay in this Norman country." " Master Walter says that he has—" " Ask my grandson... where he hopes to find a land where he can live with himself... when he knows he's run away from his obligations." "Tell my grandfather that I'll find it... and the farther away from this land the better." "And the farther away from this land the better." "That— Cathay, perhaps." "Tell him if I can get my hands on enough gold to buy the lands that Gurnie needs... then maybe I'll come back." "But until that time, they can have their England." "I'll not set foot on Norman soil." "Our guests, Wilderkin, have a long road before them." " See that they have what they need for their journey." " Yes, my lord." "Come on." "The sun will soon be up." "Yes, the Bulaire hounds will run with the first light." "Master Walter, he said you were to have all the things you needed." "And... he said you were to have this standing cup." "It has some value." "It is the last." "Oh, tell him to keep it." "Maybe I'll fill it with gold for him someday." "Thank you, Wilderkin, for everything." "Good luck, Master Walter." "Well, that's the end of something... or the beginning of something, I don't know." " I hope you sleep well in your forest." " Walter, I've been thinking." " What?" " I was thinking about going with you." " To Cathay?" " Well, where's that?" "Well, it's a long way from your forest." "Well, maybe Sarah would like it there." "Now, don't talk too lightly about it, Tris." "If we should go to such a place, the chances are all you'll get out of it... is that in the end you'll be hung by a Mongol instead of a Norman." "Well, if it comes to that, I'd sooner give the pleasure to somebody I don't know than— than a Norman I hate." "A far land it is then." "I guess this is the beginning." " Well, that's the best." " So far." "Now, what heathen—" "Easy." "Crusades have given these people reason enough not to love Christians." "Besides, we're not looking for trouble." "We're looking for the biggest merchant with the biggest caravan to the farthest places." "He'll likely be the biggest pirate too." "Good day." " Are you master of this house?" " No." "The master of this house... is the amiable, gracious and kindly Anthemus of Antioch... who I serve the best I can." "Will you tell him two travelers of importance are here to see him?" "My kindly master concern himself with only the greatest matters." "Perhaps his servant could—" "Look, we've come a long way to see your master himself." "It will be difficult." "I don't want to disturb him without a reason." "The risk is too great." "I suppose the risk seems less now, hmm?" "I will see my kindly master." "Good day." "You do not look important to me." "I warn you that every minute of my day must show me a profit." "Well, all we wanted to say, sir, is that we desire passage with a caravan to the East." " To what part?" " It's of no matter, sir." " To Cathay perhaps." " Well, I have a caravan... which will go near enough to, uh, Cathay." "It is a caravan of gifts..." "I'm sending to Kublai Khan." "We understand that small caravans... too often disappear in the wild country they pass through." "Small?" "What are you talking about?" "When you send presents to the great Khan... he demands nine times nine of everything— silks, jewels, women." "I had to find 81 of the most beautiful women of this land." "And because it is all for the Khan... it will travel under the protection of the army of the great General Bayan himself." "Bayan of the Hundred Eyes." "Does that sound safe enough for you?" "A caravan of nothing but gifts." "It's strange." "I—" "It isn't strange at all." "You see, the Khan begins his war against China—" "Cathay, as you call it." "He will have the spoils of the oldest and richest country in the world." "I will be his friend." "I will help him to, uh, dispose of the wealth of ages." "I will be the richest merchant in the world." "Well, young travelers, are you prepared to, uh, pay well... to travel in such company?" "Well, we thought we might put ourselves to hire as guards for such a caravan." "Christian guards." "It would invite attack." "Is that the best you can offer?" "You've wasted my time." "I warned you." "Search them!" "If there is nothing of value, cut off their hair to make a pillow for my feet." "I will have something for my trouble." "I have already made such a search." "There was only this of value." "I kept it for just such a moment." "It's not much profit, but it is enough to save my honor." " Throw them out." " Oh, yes, sir." "This way." "What did you do that for?" "Why did you lie to him?" "Sometimes they call me "the bird who feathers his nest"... because they say that I steal from everyone." "It is not true, of course." "But let us say that I'm in a position to take a smaller profit than my kindly master." "I go with the caravan." "I'm in charge of it." "Perhaps I will take you." "It will cost me nothing to provide you with equipment." "It will be his." "How much gold do you have?" "There isn't much left... and you're not exactly giving us good reason to trust you with what there is." "Who is this Bayan general, the one with all the eyes?" "Oh, he's the greatest soldier in the world." "The great Khan borrowed him from Persia for his war against China." "He will conquer the world one day." "And, uh, where is he camped now?" "Three days from here with his army." "I wouldn't consider offering your services to Bayan." "His men are trained to love killing." "They would enjoy cutting a Christian's throat." "I'm afraid you have no choice but to... deal with me." "How much gold have you?" "What kind of a country is this?" " Good." " How soon can we get started?" "Two dawns from now." "You're lucky you found me." "These, by the reason of the great kindness of my heart... they're for you for the journey." "This one they call her "the singer" because she makes horrible noise all the time." "The other will bite you whenever she cannot kick you." "You'll have to find a place to sleep in your tent... where it doesn't leak." "But I think it's good enough for Christians." "The servant is good." "He will steal everything for you." " Mahmoud, sir." " That's all." "Good day, young sirs." "I'll toss you whether you get sung to or bitten." " Wet or dry?" " Wet." "It's dry." "Mahmoud, I don't know why they didn't build me to fit a camel better... or build a camel to fit me better." "Well, I found out some of it from our nest-feathering friend." "That mighty general is camped right over that hill with his army." "We're camped here so that wild crew of his... doesn't get a look at the women we brought with us." "We're not traveling today because he's holding games... some sort of tournament on the plain." "And I also found out another thing— why they call him Bayan of the Hundred Eyes." " Thought maybe he had that many." " No, they say he can see everything." "Tomorrow he'll know how every man performs in the games." " There'll be all kinds— horsemanship, archery, all—" " Archery?" " Oh, that interests you, huh?" " Yes, it's a little cold for fine work... though the light should be good." " What are their bows like, do you think?" " Bone and steel." " The finest in the world." " Ah, wait till they hear Sarah talk." "But they won't, my impulsive friend." "The last thing we want to do is to attract attention... so you leave Sarah right where she is." "It wouldn't hurt just to take her along." " Well, you won't take her off your shoulder." " She wouldn't make any trouble." "I'd feel surer about that if her name wasn't Sarah." "That's an English banner." "Probably a crusader's that he killed." "The infidel swine!" " What's that about?" " He's the camel driver... who came too close to the women's tent yesterday." "Child's play." "Child's play, hmm?" "At that range, I could toss an arrow in the mark." "Somebody ought to show them what an English bow can do." "Tris!" "Get over there and see if you can find out what's happening." "He says that master is to compete... but if he does not make good, the bow is to be broken over his head." "He means that if master fails, they are to beat out his brains." " Who is he?" " That, master, is Bayan of the Hundred Eyes." " Does he know what'll happen to him if he fails?" " I do not think so." "Well, I guess you're right." "Look at him." "All he knows is that he's out with Sarah." "What were they talking about?" "Oh, nothing." "Nothing." "The bow, that's all." "Well, go ahead, my friend." " Remember the wind, Tris." " Walt, I was weaned on remembering the wind." "Sarah herself would remember it if I forgot." "Good enough." "Well, that's enough of children's games." "Now give us a little room to shoot." "Tris!" "If we're gonna show them something, let's show them something good." "Tris.!" "Don't be a fool." "That's far enough." "No, a little further." "I want to make him refuse to try it." "Now, my heathen friend, would you like to try first?" "I thought as much." "Tris!" "Not even a miracle can make that shot." "Well, if I miss this, I'll have missed a hard one." " You did it!" " Yes, but it was luck." "I moved too far back." "I don't know why." "I think it was Sarah trying to show off." " Well, if you'd have missed, we'd be very dead by now." " What?" "Yes." "His orders, Bayan himself." "Well, why didn't you tell me?" "No, I'm glad you didn't." "Sarah." "Bayan wishes to see you, master." " Now?" " At once." "Be very careful what you say." "You let me do the talking." "This may be the chance we've been waiting for." " My lord—" " That shot of yours, how much luck was there?" " I want the truth." " There was a certain amount of luck in it, my lord." " How often can you make the same shot?" " Three out of five times." "The bow can be handled quickly?" "He's put three shafts in the air before the first touches the ground." "I asked the bowman." "With accuracy?" "I've seen him bring down three ducks with four shafts." "It's light." "Light and strong." "Comes from the wood or the way it's made?" "From both, my lord." "From the yew, and from skill..." " in shaping the bow to take advantage of the grain." " What's it called?" " It's called a longbow." " He calls it Sarah, my lord." " Sarah." "That's a woman's name." " Yes, my lord." "You'll have reason to love your Sarah even more after today." "She... saved your skull, you know." " Yes, I've just been telling him about that, my lord." " The shaft should pierce armor." " Yes." " You've seen it tried?" "You." "Steel-tipped, it will pierce anything, my lord." "I think this is the finest weapon in the world." "She can reach out that long arm of hers and meet the enemy... before he can get close enough to strike a blow against her." "With her, an English yeoman stands as tall as any man." "He's the greatest soldier in the world." "I take it you're English then?" "Yes, my lord." "I've seen you English hacking away at the Saracens in your crusades." "Each man his own fortress in his great armor... so weighed down he can't move." "It's very stupid." "But this... is not so stupid." "We'll talk about it." "Do you play chess?" " Sorry, no." " Oh, I do, my lord." " How well?" " Well, four moves soundly." "Four sound moves is more than any man in this army can do." " We'll play in my tent tonight." " With pleasure, my lord." "Oh, how do we find your tent?" "Scholar, if any man in my army can't tell you where my tent is... our poetic young bowman can use him as a target." "Maybe your Sarah did us a good turn after all." "Come on." "We'll take her home." "You can make up a sonnet to her as we go." " Oh, go swallow your tongue." " Why, Tris!" "Over there." "Let me see that bow of yours." "You'll find the game's ready." "I always, uh, make the first move." "About this, uh— this bow of yours." " Could you make another one like it?" " If I had the wood." "A sound game." "Thoughtful." "It lies in wait for the attack." "It won't win against an attack, of course." "It's just the kind of game I want, young scholar." "Pawn to king's bishop four." "Play it." " Can you train men in the use of such a bow?" " Yes, my lord." "Then the right wood can be found." "Uh, as a scholar... you permit no weakness in the attack." "Good." "As a scholar you know something of your country's... military theory and practice." "I have a—" "I have a certain knowledge of those things, my lord." "War is my trade." "At least I'm good enough to know no war was ever won... that was fought in the same way as the war before it." "Why, I've made a weapon of speed." "Speed." "No man should wear armor so heavy that he can't move quickly... to save himself or to pursue his enemy and destroy him." "That's why I like this bow of yours." "It's— It's light." "It can reach out to the enemy and put an end to him." "That's the only way you can ever sleep soundly, you know... when your enemy's sleep is eternal." "Forgive me for distracting you from your game, but I'm curious." "Why are you young travelers in this far place?" "We came in search of adventure into this new land." "We heard of the greatness of my lord Bayan and came in search of him." "If that's flattery, I don't like it." "We had to find someplace to put our lives." "Don't you plan to return to your own country?" "We have no country, my lord." "That's a strange thing for an Englishman to say." "Why?" "A woman?" " No, more than that." " Oh, it doesn't matter." "Bowman and scholar, both without a country." "It's just possible you two could be of service to me." "I'll think about it." "It's your move." "Oh, it's you." "What do you want?" "It is bad, very bad." " What is?" " This old tent... these old blankets and one little servant." "Steal food, cook— it's too much." " You need second boy." " How do we get him... by the great kindness of your heart?" "Maybe I get him for you." "Maybe some dislike Christians." "I do not." "All right, out with it." "What are you trying to say?" "Never talk important matters where you cannot see who listens." "I have a message for you, from the Black Rose." "And who would the Black Rose be?" "She is the sister of my kindly master." " Well, that's fine." " She wishes to escape." "She say she is going to England... and that all Englishmen are gallant... and you will be glad to help one of your own blood." " Are you trying to say that she's English?" " There is some report... that her father was English, a crusader taken prisoner." " Well, why is she called the Black Rose?" " That's the name... they've given the clove, the most precious of the spices." "I don't like it, a girl of English blood being sent to these heathen." " Oh, we don't know she's English." " She has relatives in Maratha." "The only thing she needs is to reach them." "I see." "And what are you doing this for?" "I'm not troubled that the lady's in distress." "She has a very large sapphire." "What does she expect us to do in the middle of Bayan's army?" "The bird who feathers his nest never leaves things to chance." "I have a very well-made plan in which I will do all that's dangerous, if you're afraid." "Afraid?" "We'd do more for English blood any day... than you'd do for an overgrown sapphire." "Oh, that's good." "I'll tell that to the Black Rose." "Master, the strange one's here again." "Oh?" "This is your second boy." " His name is Mahomet." " Well, you can take him back." " Go on." "Get out of here." " Very strange." "Last night, the camels run through the tents of the women." "They have to take a time for the search." "The Black Rose is missing." "Go on." "Get her out of here." "They'll find her when they search... and they'll drag us over the hill like they did that camel driver the other day." " Go on, Mahmoud." "Go on." "Back to your work." " Yes, master." "I'm no fool." "Yesterday, I bought a slave boy for the Englishman." "That boy disappeared... and everybody thinks this is the boy." "And I did something else." "One of the camels that run away was saddled." "When they find that camel, they will believe... the Black Rose tried to escape on it and was hurt." " It's very simple." " Well, get her out of here!" "Perhaps I will call out that I've found her here now." "No one would believe your story." "Perhaps you would like being staked out for vultures." " Well, I found the camels." " And we have a new second boy too." "He's all yours, Tris." "He has beautiful, big eyes." "Very simple, young sirs." "She will do whatever you tell her to do." "You understand that?" "You know what'll happen to all of us unless you do exactly as you're told?" "Oh, yes, most kind grandeur." "Oh." "Oh, where did— Never mind." "Mahmoud!" " I wish to say that I am very grateful." " Yes, I know all about that." "This new second boy will stay here to help you... but you'll still be first boy, you understand?" "Master, we don't need second boy." "This boy no good." " I can do everything." " You'll do as you're told." "Get him out of here." "Get him some breakfast, and put him to work." "Yes, master." "Second boy will eat when I'm through." "Now, go.!" "Oh, it's not gonna work." "What are we gonna do now?" "I guess the only thing to do is just to sit here... and wait for the ax to fall." "Well, the old pirate's right after all." "And there's that saddled camel." "He's the offspring of a sore-eyed camel driver.!" " He wanted to beat me.!" " Quiet!" "Get her into the tent." " Do you know who she is?" " Mahmoud has struck a great lady." " Mahmoud should be whipped." " Never mind about that!" "Do you know we'll all be killed if anybody finds out she's here?" "I will tell no one." "Mahmoud would die first." "I want you to get into that tent and pretend as though nothing had happened." " Can we trust him?" " We'll either trust him or slit his throat." " I am glad he knows." " Why?" "Because now there is no more need of pretending... and I can be in the tent with you the way that it was meant to be." " Now, look, Mahomet—" " I suppose he told you... that I am English and that I am to go to England." " Yes, we know that." " There is so much I must know about England... if I am to go to live there." "Do you think they would like me?" "What is it like there?" "Are all the people as beautiful as you are?" "Ask him." "He's the beautiful one." "Oh, no!" "I think you are much more beautiful than he is." "You look just as I've always known—" "Mahomet, there's no time for talking." "This is very serious for all of us." "Put that turban back on, button yourself up... and get ready to play second boy again, understand?" " Yes, but I—" " I don't wanna talk about it." " Just do as I say, and quickly too." " Yes, most kind, but—" "All right, then do it!" "I never saw anyone look less like young gallants going off on a great adventure." " How does the lady feel about it?" " The lady, my lord?" "Hmm." "What's her name?" "Sarah?" "Oh." "I think she'll like what lies ahead, my lord." "We're making some kinsmen for your Sarah so she won't be lonely." "I've given orders to find that wood of yours, bowman." "There's something to interest you, young scholar." "With that direction-finding chariot... we can strike straight through any storm without getting lost." "We can leave the trade route and travel across country." " Was that made in China?" " Mmm." " Well, how does it work?" " Inside, there's a box." "In the box there's a needle that points always in the same direction." "What makes the needle behave in such a manner?" "Well, if you don't know, scholar, I won't worry about it." "I need the time to make war." "Look." " There's India." "We'll conquer that someday." " India?" "We're done with China, we'll have to conquer something." "No doubt your scholar's mind inquires into a plan for India." "But China first!" "It looks like they believed his trick with the camel." "The men they left to search have joined us here." "There doesn't seem to be any sign of a search of the camp." "Where is she?" "In there, out of sight." " What are you doing?" " I'm taking this ugly stain off my face." " Put it right back on again." " No." "It's very ugly." "And I mustn't be ugly when I eat here in the tent with you." " Mahomet—" " Maryam." "There." " Where did you get that?" " I needed it." "And I got some clothes too to wear when I eat here." "Mahmoud!" " Yes, master." " Mahmoud, did you steal these things?" "Mahmoud see, Mahmoud take." "Suppose they searched this camp?" "There's to be no more stealing." "All the women steal from each other." " There's to be no more stealing." " But if great lady wishes—" "You'll do as I say no matter what great lady wishes." " Maryam, I want you to put that stain back on your face." " No." " What do you mean, no?" " I mean no!" "There is no danger." "If they were going to search the camp, they would have done this by now." "And no one will come near our tent because we are Christians." "Everything is happening the way it said in the miracle... only I must take the stain off my face so the rest of the miracle can happen." "Miracle?" "What miracle?" "I've been very ashamed because I almost stopped believing in it... when I found out I was going to be sent to the Khan." "But when I saw you, I knew it must have been working all the time." "Uh, Maryam, I've never been part of a miracle before... so I don't know much about it." "But what makes you think a miracle is telling you to take that stain off your face?" "I've known about it ever since I was a little girl." "My father told me." "I wanted very much to go to England... because I thought how wonderful it must be in a country... where all the people were like him— gentle and very tall and beautiful." "He wanted to take me there, but he couldn't because he was a prisoner." "So he said that we should have to ask God to help me." "And maybe if we believed very hard, there would be a miracle." "Oh, I like the God that would do miracles like that." "So I believed very hard." "My father gave me this before they killed him to help me with the miracle." "He said that someday, a tall, beautiful Englishman... would come riding over a hill... and would think that I was very beautiful, so he would help me." "So when I saw you, I knew God sent you to be part of the miracle." "Only how are you to see that I am beautiful... if I've got that ugly stain on the face?" "That's very nice, Maryam, and I—" "I wish it was a miracle, because that's just what we need." "But I'm afraid we can't count on it because miracles just don't happen like that." "Oh, but it has happened." "Tall, young Englishmen do not ride across this country." "But you were here just when the miracle needed you." "So I know the rest of it will happen just the way my father said the miracle." "Well, miracle or no miracle, I'm not gonna get us hanged." "Now, unless you do as I say, I'm gonna send you back to the women's tent." "No." "We'll do just as the miracle said... or— or I will tell them I'm here." "All they will do to me is send me back with the other women." "But they won't be so kind with you, I think." "Now I think you will look to see if you think I am beautiful." "All right, all right." "You're beautiful." "Now I think you will help me to take this ugly stain where I cannot see?" "Don't tell me you've never seen men hanged before." " What did they do, my lord?" " See that pass there?" "We ride through there today." "We could fight our way through, but we haven't time." "So this is a warning." "If there's trouble..." "I have twice as many of these fellows as prisoners." " I'll hang them too." " I see." "You see, but you don't like it, do you?" "I forget your English gallantry in war." "I suppose different people believe in different things, my lord." "Well, not such foolish things, Englishman." "No." "What I can't touch doesn't exist." "You conquer, or somebody conquers you." "That's all there is to it." "I thank you for reminding me, my lord." "I like you, scholar." "I like the way you speak your mind." "I must reward you." "You do not feel like talking, Walter?" "No." "That's too bad." "I hoped you would begin telling me about England." "What is it like there?" "Is it very beautiful?" " I don't know." " Do you think it's beautiful, Tris?" "Yes, I think it's beautiful." "The most beautiful place in the world." "It smells good." "The forest, the English soil." "It's clean." "The rain washes it that way, I suppose." "It's so clean, it's fragrant with it." "I think it's the most beautiful country in the world." "Why, Tris!" "Well, I wish I was there, that's all." "Bayan was right about that poet business." "And a homesick poet too." "Oh, it must be very beautiful if he feels so about it." "He only remembers the good part." "I like him for feeling like that." "Don't you ever feel like that about it?" "That's the way my father felt about it." "Oh, I think you feel so too, only you don't want to say so." "Tell her about the Normans, Tris." "I don't like you to feel like that, Walter." "I think to feel like that, you must have loved it very much... and— and been hurt..." "by something." " I don't like her." " Who?" "The girl in England you loved that hurt you." "There wasn't any girl." "Oh, you'll be glad—" "You'll be glad to go back in England, won't you, Walter?" "That's one thing I won't have to worry about." "I won't be going back." "But where will you go then?" "You'd better ask Bayan general about that." "I'll be with him, with the victor, if our luck holds out." "What's the matter, Mahomet?" "Mahomet, what's the matter?" "It hurts to think of England if you will not be there." "It's not the way the miracle said." "Oh, I— I'm sorry, Maryam." "I forgot about that miracle." "But it'll be all right, you know." "You'll find yourself a hill and another Englishman to come riding over it." "He'll be a Norman probably, but that won't make any difference." "We'll make as much of your miracle come true as we can." " It'll be all right." " I wish you didn't feel so." "I will be Mahomet again if it will make you feel not like that." "I don't mind the stain." "It—" "Well, why don't you say something?" "You're the one that started all this, you and that poetry." "You're the one that's in the miracle... and you look very beautiful there too." "We've come a long way to see that, scholar." "Cathay." "There it lies." "Play the real game with me, scholar, and the best game." "Play as you've never played." "Think." "I have a new plan for war." "Find a flaw in it if you can." "It's a plan for China." "Many men have tried to conquer China, but she swallowed them all." "Strike a blow into a great, soft pillow." "The pillow gives with the blow, and the force is spent." "You can't conquer geography." "Occupy a country, and what happens?" "Your soldiers become jailers, and you're that much weaker." "What do we do?" "Think, scholar." "We don't occupy at all." "We strike and strike on." "Destroy." "Strike at the very heart of China— Kinsai." "Destroy the government." "Destroy the will to resist." " But suppose they get behind you, my lord?" " Let them." "It's for that I have made a new weapon of speed." " But your lines of supply—" " We won't use any." "We'll live off the country." "Think deep, scholar." "There's supposed to be a weakness in every plan." "Find this one." "My lord has spoken often about winning battles and losing wars." "Even if you win, each battle will weaken you." "We'll only fight one battle here when the Khan's army arrives." "Then we'll wait for the news of our victory to spread." "If we lose, well, we'll be very little men as history is written." "But, scholar, if we gain China... gain its strength and wisdom—" "They have an iron tube there that shoots fire." "It's just a toy now... but someday it may help us to crumble the walls of Rome." " Rome?" " Mmm." " Rome is a long way, my lord." " So is England." "Not too long." "How would you like to visit your island again, Englishman?" "This time as a conqueror to do what you like with those that conquer you." "Think deep, scholar." "We may win the greatest game in the world." "What's the matter, bowman?" "Can't you sleep?" "I was thinking of— Do you think he can do it?" "I don't know." "I think maybe he can." "I was thinking, the way he talked... maybe we were fighting on the wrong side." " Tris?" " Yeah?" " Do you wanna turn back?" " Well, what do you want to do?" "Well, I'll tell you one thing." "I'm sick of lost causes." "If he conquers the world, at least we'll be on the winning side for a change." "What's wrong with going back with him?" "It's the only way you'll ever see that England of yours that smells so good to you." " Yes, I know." " We'd better get some sleep, bowman." "Tris, you haven't got yourself hurt, have you?" " No, I'm all right, I suppose." " I saw you at the beginning." "You and your bowmen against those fire tubes." "They sounded like the anger of God." "I think perhaps they were." "They're killing every man, woman and child in the district." "Like harvesters going through a field of grain." "They'd pull their heads forward by the hair for the ax." "Not one left alive, like harvesters cutting wheat." "What's the matter, Englishman?" "We won today." "But you have no joy in the victory." "Why?" "It's the business ofbattle." "It's very simple." "Kill the enemy." "A soldier must like to kill." "No man can follow me who hasn't the belly for that." "Go back to your tent now and think about it." "Think hard." "You have a choice to make." "That's right." "We'd better go to our tents." "It was a victory, wasn't it?" "The bows did well." "The general was pleased." "Let's go to our tents and think about it, Walter." "I was afraid for you." "I was very afraid for both of you." "Nothing could happen to us." "It isn't the way it went in the miracle, don't you remember?" " I know, but—" " Isn't that so, Tris?" "Yes, that's so." " I will be glad when—" " That's right, Maryam." "You mustn't forget the miracle." "A tall, young Englishman came riding over a hill, didn't he?" "A knight." "A knight in shining armor." "You should have seen him today, Maryam." "He looked almost like a knight." "An English knight." "A sword and shining armor." "You'd have been proud of him." "He looked more beautiful than ever." "Except those knightly vows." "You didn't think to say those over, did you, Walter?" " What's the matter with you?" " Your father would have been proud of you." "Your grandfather too." "He was a credit to them." "The way you looked anyway." "Why don't you ever wear your father's boots?" "You'd look well in them." "Where are they?" "I'll get them for you, and you can put them on." "There was a letter too." "You'd better read it again." "What did it say?" " Something about honor." " Tris!" "Keep your hands off—" "Tris!" " Walt, I'm sorry." "I—" " What's the matter with you?" "I don't know you anymore, quarreling, short-tempered all the time." "You're not the Tris I used to know." " Let's get away from here, away from all—" " For what?" " I can't help them anymore." " Well, if you don't like it, you don't have to stay here." "What do you want to do?" "March with them on England?" "I don't owe England anything." "I think it's very foolish to speak of that anymore." "I think you'd better go back to England." "I don't think you have what he was talking about— the belly for it." " I think you're the one—" " No, I'm all right." "I'll stay right here." "If you don't want the same thing, it's all right too." "I'll help you get out ofhere." "And it all fits together nicely." "You can take her back with you wherever she wants to go." "No." "If you are going to stay here, I will stay here too." "That's very nice, Maryam, but it just doesn't work that way." "It's been all right up to here, but it wouldn't be from now on." " Where are you going?" " You can't just walk out of here without a plan." "I'm gonna find out how to get to China." "What's the matter with him, Maryam?" "What are we gonna do?" "I don't know." "But he doesn't mean everything he says." "I think he doesn't really know what he wants." "But I don't know what to do about it." "Well, you're leaving just in time." "I found out that much." "We move again tomorrow." "Bayan's army turns south into China... and the caravan of gifts goes north to the Khan." "That means that from now on, we camp right in the middle of the army... and you'd never have a chance to get away." "You'd better try it tonight." "Yes, I guess we'd better do that." "I'd head straight south first." "Then cut across to Kinsai." "From there, the river runs to the sea... and you might stand a chance of getting back that way." " Yes, we'd better do that too." " Where's Maryam?" "In there." "We are going tonight, Walter." "I heard what you said to Tris." "Yes." "You want to say good-bye to me?" "Well, yes." "I'm glad it's hard for you to say." "Tris—Tris will take good care of you, Maryam." "You can depend on Tris." "And I— I hope you like England." "He'll feel much happier when he can smell it again." "And, uh, tell him— Oh, never mind." "You know, Walter, I can go or I can stay." "Whatever you want." "No." "No, you'll like England better." "I'll— I'll be up with the column... so they won't get suspicious for some time." "You'll need a good start." "Well, it looks as though it might be a nice day for a ride." "I'll go and see about the horses." "So it was you, Englishman." "Was it your curiosity as a scholar?" " Or did you know you were steering us off our course?" " I knew, my lord." "Why?" "You realize the penalty for such a thing." "Why take such a risk to do me an ill turn?" "Why do me an ill turn at all?" "Move the column south and east for as far as we've gone off the trail." "When we camp tonight, bring him to my tent." "Well, what's the matter?" "We got away, didn't we?" "They can't track us in the dark." "You've got a part of your miracle." "You're going to England." "I don't want to go anymore there." "I know, Maryam." "I know." "So there was a woman in it." "I might have known." "A woman and a bowman who didn't like war." "Why take such a risk for the girl?" "You must love her very much." " No, my lord." " The gallantry again." "I didn't mean to be gallant." "If my lord Bayan hadn't been quite so observant, I wouldn't be here now." "Why didn't you come to me about her?" "I would have given her to you." " What's one woman more or less?" " It didn't occur to me, my lord." "No, of course not." "It would have spoiled the gallantry." "Well, it's worth something... to be willing to die for something." "There's a way you may have a chance for your life." "A few men have come through it." "I'll send you to the rope walk in the morning." "Good night, scholar." "Good night, my lord." "Now, you understand, Englishman." "As long as your feet touch the rope, no one can strike you... except the two men with the pig bladders." "They can hit only below the line." "Now begin." "Let him go!" "Let him go!" "Take him to his tent." "You are very tough for an Englishman." "Come in." "Well, my lord, am I a— a prisoner or what?" "You paid for what you did." "Your back should tell you that." "But..." "I'd like to be doing something, my lord." "You miss the bowman, don't you?" "I have a mission of some importance for you when you're ready for it." " I'll take it now, my lord." " Hear it first, scholar." " You saw our Chinese visitors?" " They brought this tribute to avoid battle." "It won't be so easy nearer Kinsai, but our war has been going well." "We only had to fight once." "Since you've been sick, we've taken four cities." "Perhaps I should remain in bed." "Mmm." "Now Kinsai." "There are those in the government who want peace... but they haven't much influence with the old empress." "But, scholar, suppose I sent you to Kinsai as a traveler of rank... a student from another land, and you told what you've seen of our strength." "Yes, but will the empress hear me?" "Find the heads of the peace party." "They'll see that you're heard." "You can refuse to go if you want to." "The risk is great enough." "No, I'll go, my lord." "It's settled then." "Scholar?" "Maybe I'm a little sorry I thought of this journey for you." "But be sure of this." "If they kill you..." "I'll kill 10 of them for every hair on your head." "I have a strange feeling I may not see you again." "If that's true, I'll miss you, scholar." "I don't miss many men." "Well, for your sake, I'll try not to get killed." "You will come with me." " What is it?" "I—" " We have been waiting for you." " What is this place?" " It is the palace of her unlimited magnificence." "Her kindly splendor, the dowager empress of China." "Well, what am I doing here?" "I do not know entirely." "You will wait." "Bow." "Bow profusely." "Now are there two of them, or are there not?" "Are their skins fair, or have you no eyes?" "Is there such a prophecy, or is there not?" "Is it your duty to know such things, or is it not?" "Do not argue with me more in this matter." " You will come with me." " But what is this all about— a prophecy?" "No harm will come to you." "Far from it." "Please." "This is your house." "It has been prepared for you." "Tris!" "Tris!" "What are you doing here?" " Where's Maryam?" " Well, she must be a captive here somewhere." "Now I just left her to find out about a boat." " But how did you get here?" " Well, I didn't even get to the river." "Some people laid hold of me before I got started." "Don't you know where we are?" "We're somewhere in the palace, because I was just talking to the emp—" "Oh, wait a minute." "Maybe we'll find out now." "Good day, young sirs." "I have come to welcome you." "We'd be very grateful if you'd tell us what all this means." "It means that the prophecy of the two birds... of the fairest color has been fulfilled." "It is a very old one." "It's said that in a time of great peril... two birds of the fairest coloring would appear... and the clouds of disaster would roll away like the mist." "We were urging Her Royal Grandeur to think of peace." "She was about to yield... when word was brought her of a stranger... who was very fair of skin." "Such a thing has never been seen here... and it reminded her of the prophecy." "She said that there must be another, so guards were posted." "Now that you are both here... she is sure the prophecy has been fulfilled... and she will talk no more of peace." "Hmm." "Well, what are we supposed to do here?" "You will live here to ensure a continuance of the good fortune you have brought." "For how long?" "I have told you, this will be your home." "You mean we're prisoners?" "The chains that bind you are golden ones." "But I would not try to leave." "Now, look." "I can't just sit here." "I came to talk to the empress about peace." " You tell her that I come from the Bayan general himself." " It is too late." "Her Excellent Kindness is certain that you were sent by the gods." "So now, we have nothing to fear." "The gifts are meant to fit your station as gods." "And I'm commanded to tell you that if you have any desire... you have only to express the wish." "Well, if that's true, there is something I'd like to have done." "There's a girl." "She was with my friend when he was taken prisoner." "If you know where she is, I'd like to have her brought here at once." "I will send someone to carry out your command." "This house is called... the Abode of Everlasting Felicity." "I hope it does not fail that name for the young gods... and the young gods do not fail their obligation... to a people that they have committed to war." "I think he'd like that one better." "Oh." "What's this?" "Oh, I think he'd like that too." " Walter.!" "Walter.!" " Not now, Maryam." "Go away." " But I have to show you." " What?" "Oh, look." "It's beautiful." "They are made of silk to go on legs." " I'll see them later." " All right, Walter." "But it's wonderful!" "Well, I don't see what you're so particular about." "It took me a half an hour to convince four girls they weren't going to bathe me." " Where is he, Tris?" " I don't know." "He said he was going to find out if the gods could still have anything they asked for." "Did he talk to you, Tris?" "About himself, I mean." "No, not exactly." "But I think he's sorry he was angry with you." " So he ran away from the Bayan general to be with you." " No." "Oh, you shouldn't say such things." "He's here, and he's not angry anymore." "And he comes to go with us to England." "You really have learned to believe hard enough, haven't you?" "Yes." "No." "He came on a mission of some kind for Bayan." "I didn't want to talk to him about it." "You know how he is." "You can make him say things he doesn't mean." "There's one thing." "He can't do anything about it while we're shut in here." "And there's something else too." "It's about these." "He got very interested." "He said they weren't written by hand... and they're not on sheepskin." "It's something to do with soaking wood and making this out of it." "And using these." "I tried to figure it out." "But he says he knows a man in England who would gladly give his life... to know of such a wonder, so there must be something to it." "Only they don't know about it over there." " And then last night—" " Well, you could look a little happier, bowman... sitting right in the middle of the wealth of ages." "And here's some more for you." "You know, I was right." "I thought if they have books, they must set down matters of science in them... like the direction needle and how to make the books." "And look what else I have." "What do you think this is?" "This is that powder that disappears in a flash of light." "It's what they use in the fire tubes." "And if you— If you close it in somewhere—" "Now, look." "You see that?" "Bayan was right." "There's the wealth of ages." "He'd rather have that than all thejewels in China." "Do you know what you just heard?" "They don't know it yet, but you just heard the walls of Rome begin to crumble." "The young gods already know, of course, the news that we have just received." "No." "What news?" "The armies of Bayan have taken four cities since you came here." "One that resisted exists no more." "Soon, that army will be before our walls." "But the young gods have done nothing." "Well, what can we do?" " It wasn't our idea to be gods." " Nor was it mine." "I'm in an unfortunate position." "If anything happens to the young gods..." "I will die very quickly for I am responsible for them." "But I will also be among the first whom Bayan will kill... if the city resists." "So if I must die..." "I will take the way that will save the city from destruction." "You're trying to say, I imagine, that if you have to die... you prefer the choice that may convince the empress that we're not gods." "Say if we were found very mortally dead." "That is possible." "If you have a better remedy, I would find it quickly." " Walter?" " Huh?" "What's the matter?" "I couldn't sleep, Walter." "I want to talk." "Please wake up." "Oh, can't it wait until morning?" "No." "I don't know if I can say it now... but if I think of it anymore I won't be able to say it at all, I think." "All right." "What is it?" "If it's true what he said, that we shall never leave here until— until we die... then— then—" "Go on." "I know it's true that you do not love me... but if this other is also true... then you can never find anyone else to love." " Isn't that so?" " Yes, I— I suppose so." "Well, then, I was thinking." "Since you cannot love anyone else... and since it may be a very short time that we are here... maybe you could pretend for a little while that you loved me... like it was in the miracle." "Oh, I would like it very much... and you wouldn't have to pretend very hard." "But if you did pretend for a while, maybe it would get to be true... since there is no one else." "You're strange." "But the house is called the House of Everlasting Felicity... and I would rather be with you even for a— for a little while... and even if you only pretended... than to have all the rest of my miracle or anything." "Maryam." "What's the matter?" "Wake up, Tris." "I think he loves me." "Oh, that." "Why do you have to pick on a time like this to find it out?" "Maryam?" " Maryam—" " Where have you been?" " Can you sew?" " Yes, a little." "Good." "Now, I want you to take these coats... and sew as many of those jewels as you can into the linings, and do it quickly as possible." " Did you find a way to get away from here?" " Yes, I have." "You know, I thought our friend last night was pointing at something." "So I took a look around." "Now, there was a door that was heavily barred before." "Now I could open it." "There was a room behind and a passage leading to the river." "I followed it." "There are boats on the river." "Now, the attack must be close because a lot of people are leaving down the river." "What—What I don't like about it is it's all too neat." "Now, I tried to think like our Chinese friend." "Just letting us get away isn't good enough." "But if we were killed doing itjust when danger threatened, we wouldn't look very godlike... and he could easily convince the empress that... we hadn't just returned to our celestial paradise." "It would give him a chance to save his city and his skin." "What do you think, Tris?" "Well, he didn't give us much choice." "Well, we'd better wait until night." "We'll stand a better chance at the river." "Come on." "Get ready." " Well, the light's going." "It won't be long now." " No." " Aren't you ready yet?" " Yes, almost." " Well, hurry up." " Yes, Walter." "I'm sorry, Maryam, that we got you into this, having you brought here." " It—" " I'm glad you did it, Walter." " Well, hurry up." " Yes." "That's— That's yours, Tris." "If we get out of here, you'll be a rich man with what's in there." "How does it feel?" "Of course, I suppose by rights it should be Bayan's... the spoils of China, but there'll be plenty for him." " Walter." " What?" " Look, I've been thinking." " Well, don't." " It only leads to trouble." " No, no." "I've gotta say it." "What happens?" "I mean, when we do make it to the other side of the river?" " Well, maybe we better wait till we get there." " No." "What I mean is—" "Look, I've been putting some things together." "Things about making books." "Things like you said that man would give so much to know... in matters of science like the direction-finding needle." "Well, I-I thought to an island... you know, it might be useful for a trade and to defend itself." "But—" "What I was really thinking, I wish it was you that was taking her back." "It'd be better that way." "I wish it was you." "Well, Bayan was right about one thing." "You're a poet, bowman, and a good one." "But he was wrong about another thing." ""What you can't touch doesn't exist," he said." "He didn't know that you could smell those English oaks of yours from here... did he, bowman?" "Oh, no one could say it better than you, Tris." "And I— I wish I felt the same way." "Probably I'm sorry that I feel that Bayan... is the best thing that I have to follow, but that's the way it is." "I'd lie to you, Tris, if I were sure we weren't going to get through." "But if we do, I won't stand out there and tell you that I'd take it back." "I'm glad that it didn't end in the tent, you and I... bitter and— and angry." "Felicity means something after all, maybe." "I hope we don't make it." "I hope you don't ever get to the river." "Walter!" "I finished, Walter." "Well, that's one way we won't get out." "This was open." "Well, this is it." "That door is not as high as the walls of Rome." "Why don't you get your friend Bayan to crumble it for you." "Here they are." " Can you hold them for a while?" " We'll find out." " I'm gonna try it." " What?" "The walls of Rome." " Give her to me a minute." " You couldn't hit anything." "Give it to me." "And take her back out a bit." "Tris!" "Tris!" "Are you all right?" "You all right?" "Our friends will be back soon." "Now get her down to the boat." " Hold onto me." "You take—" " Stop being a hero." "How will you keep them back?" "Throw a diamond at them?" "Go on." "Get her down to the boat." "Hold this clear of the bank." "We'll be right back." "Walter!" " Come on." " I said I hoped we'd never get to the river." "Well, maybe I don't have to." "What are you talking about?" "You have to get back to England, don't you remember?" "Come on." "You can't just lie there." "Let me help you." "Leave them alone!" "They're mine!" "You get onto your walls of Rome and leave me alone." "Look at you." "You haven't got the belly for it either, have you?" "Well, I don't know." "Books, the walls of Rome... and the miracles... and—and the oaks." "I don't know." "They're just so... green." "What are you talking like that for?" "What—" "What are you trying to do, die on me?" "Tris, come on." "Come on, Tris." "Come on." "Come on." "Come on, Tris." "Come on, Tris." "We don't use this door anymore." " If you've come to trade, you'll have to—" " Old Will, couldn't I use it?" "You're playing tricks at me." "It is." "It's Master Walter." " I'm glad to see you." " Come in." "Come in." "Come in, Master Walter." "Well, it looks the same." "And I have the same questions to ask." "How's Grandfather?" "He'll never say it, but he's missed you sorely." "Once we hoped that we might see you again." "The king's men came looking for you." "There were very strange men with them such as I had never seen before." " They said that they had a message to give you." " What message?" "I don't know, Master Walter." "They said they would only give it to you when you came." "I'll tell him." " You lie, you old villain." " I swear it, my lord." " He's here." " Walter, my lad." " Grandfather." " Where have you come from?" "We thought—Wilderkin, tell my grandson— I've spoken to him." " My lord—" " You let me speak to him." " My lord, I—" " What are you standing there for?" "I've broken my knightly vow." "Wilderkin, tell my grandfather that it was my fault—" "Tell my grandson that— Oh, what's the good?" "When a vow's broken, you can't put it together again." "Perhaps the good bishop could tell my lord—" "What have I got to do with the bishop?" "I can set myself my own penance." " I'll—Well, never mind." "I'll think of one." " Yes, my lord." "Then—Then I can talk to him as much as I want, can't I?" " We've no need of you." "Go on about your business." " Yes, my lord." "Yes, my lord." "So the— the needle that points in the same direction... and those books, I left in London to be sent to the king." "And as they might need some explanation..." "I left word that they could find me here." "And then I— I came straight here to see you." "But I— I wish I had something more to tell you." "It— It all ought to add up to something." "I've seen Cathay." "But what of that?" "For all my talk, there's been no help for Gurnie in it." "And maybe—" "Maybe if I'd stayed here, he'd still be in his forest..." "looking down a shaft at some king's stag." "Well, I—" "I should have the answers, lad, if you're troubled." "I'm old enough." "But if I were you, I'd—" "My lord." "They're here, my lord." "The king's men-at-arms." " They wish to see Master Walter." " Bring them in, man." "Bring them in." "We're ready for them." "There is a man at Oxford who can best tell you about the importance of the books... and the manner in which they are made— Friar Bacon." "As for the rest, I— I thought perhaps... the direction-finding needle might prove useful on the sea that surrounds us." "I don't know." "However, it's all set down in the books... and your men of science can read about it there." "I am not inclined to believe all this about the fire tubes." " I think the young man saw a dragon." " Perhaps I did." "You have told us much and well, young Saxon." "All but the most important part." "I've— I've told you all I know, sire." "All but why you have done these things." "I remember you well, young Saxon." "You refused to enter my service." "You were very outspoken about it." "If you remember, I asked you a question then about this matter of Saxon and Norman." "I have some feeling the answer may lie here, if we can find it... somewhere in this service you have tried to do us." " I didn't do it for you, sire." " For whom then?" "For him." "He— He wanted it that way, I" " I think." " The bowman?" " Yes, sire." "Why did he wish it, then?" "I don't know." "It was something he felt that— I don't know what it was." "Bayan used to say that nothing existed... except what you could touch." "But it did for him." "What he felt was as clear to him." "He'd— He'd sit there, and it—" "Well, it was like a fragrance to him." "It had to be." "He died for it, didn't he?" "Do you think it could be that he discovered he was English first and Saxon second?" "I— I don't know." "Saxons can feel like this underneath the bitterness." "They can work with a king who would like to be English first and Norman second." "There are some points I would like to dispose of in your case, and in that of the bowman." "As I remember it, there was some question of a name amongst other things." "It is our wish you remain here until I return." "As you knelt Walter of Gurnie, rise Sir Walter Fitzrauf." "And it is our wish that your shield shall bear a longbow as part of your arms." "And as the first act of your knighthood... you shall place this bow, the finest I could find... above all other of your arms at Gurnie... since in its presence no man will be able to live less well for England... than did Tristram Griffen." "You will place this upon it as a tribute from me to a brave man." "We have been sent a long way to see you... if you are the one my lord Bayan called the scholar." "Bayan?" "If you are that one, I have something I am ordered to give you." ""To my friend, Walter the scholar."" ""BayanoftheHundredEyes  sends greetings and a message." ""I think that I understand why you did not return to me..." ""and why you went back to your England." ""I still do not believe in your foolish chivalry..." ""but I like men who are willing to die for the thing in which they believe..." ""wherever I may find them." ""The tall bowman died well..." ""and I think you would both have died well for me if that had been necessary." ""Therefore, I send you something I believe you would have taken with you if you could." ""She will be wearing a coat you will recognize." "It has a very fine lining." ""I send you also my chessmen and the message..." " that I would be happier if you were still here. "" " Maryam!" "She is not to see you until you tell us that the gift is welcome." "My lord was afraid you might have tired of her." "Maryam!"