Through Darkest Zymurgia!

The first of Ragout had been horrific; the second of Ragout had been tedious and alarming by turns. The third of the month, in contrast, was a fine day. Despite our fears of being torn asunder by an angry if sophisticated mob, the excellent food and drink of the night before had conspired in favor of slumber, and we had retired immediately upon return to the hostel. When we descended to the common room after a refreshing, though sonorous, night, Abayla was ready with a tureen of porridge and platters of fruit.

Breakfast was a merry meal. A yellow sun was shining brightly outside the common room window, and several dogs were sprawled on the cobbles, basking in the sun and obstructing the few passersby. Most glanced curiously at us, but none stared, or even broke their stride. Nor did they seem hostile. For our part, we had managed to put aside our fears. I did not intend to allow us to be killed; either we would be allowed to stay, or we would be required to go. The latter would be a disappointment, but on the other hand required no particular planning, so we naturally dismissed it.

Carbuncle finished a second bowl of porridge, and accepted a mug of fruit juice from Abayla.

"Assuming they let us stay, Leon, what shall we do first?"

I put down my spoon.

"My first concern is mapping the immediate vicinity. In the long run, of course, I'll be looking for the effects of the Law of Consensus on the terrain, and I can't do that without a proper baseline. I'll need Fox and Hodgins to come with me, at least. I expect one of the locals will want to tag along, and unless they speak Serosan I'll need Cadbury as well. I suppose, Thomas, that you'll be wanting to examine the hoist? I'm sure Mukden would be delighted to show you around."

"I believe I'll accompany you, Leon."

"Oh, really, Thomas, that's not at all necessary."

"Indeed it is. Or were you going to operate the geometer yourself?"

"Thomas, I'm really quite capable--"

"Of scaring the wee beasty to death, Leon. No, I'll be coming with you, never fear. Have you any objection to starting at the hoist? It's true that I'd like to examine the works."

As Carbuncle was in all likelihood right about my skills, I gracefully acquiesced.

"Very well, Thomas, we'll have it your way. The hoist is the proper starting point in any event, as I was in no shape to take measurements the day before last." My companions wisely did not comment. "Now, Thaddeus, I expect you'll want to stay here in town."

Philpott looked up from his notes; he had a pencil in his right hand and a spoon in his left. As he was not naturally ambidextrous, I fear he had spilled a certain amount of porridge on the pages and down his front.

"I beg your pardon, Leon?"

"I expect you'll want to stay here in town while Thomas and I are off mapping."

Philpott nodded vigorously.

"Oh, yes, Leon. At some point I'll want to visit some outlying villages or farms, if there are any, but it makes most sense to start where the most people are. I'm hoping that one of the Masters will be willing to show me about."

"Won't that give you a slanted view of the place?" asked Carbuncle. "Will the people you talk to behave normally with one of their rulers present?"

Philpott smiled at him fondly.

"Of course they won't, Thomas. I'll need to go see them all again later. But it will give me an excellent insight into the Masters and their position in the town."

"Will you need Cadbury to translate?" I asked.

"It would be helpful, Leon. My Zymurgian is still rather poor, and I would prefer to avoid confusion. If I have Cadbury along, I can be certain that he, at least, understands what I wish to say."

Just then, Mukden passed by the window, and entered the common room by the street door.

"Good morning, my friends. I have come to take you to the Masters." His dark face gave nothing away, and my fears were renewed. It was all very well to say that I wouldn't permit us to be put to death; I was not at all sure how to enforce my decree. I could only hope that our status as guests would earn us a running start.

"Very well, we are ready," I said. "Thomas, Thad, shall we go?" We rose from our seats at the table, Philpott carefully straightening his sheaf of notes and tucking them in his pocket. "Bruno, heel," I commanded as we followed Mukden into the street. I wasn't sure it was wise to bring the dog, but it might be just as foolish not to. Besides, the noble beast deserved an outing.

I had forgotten the two dogs basking outside. They sprang to their feet when Bruno appeared, as though they had been waiting for him. They showed none of the truculence of the day before, but approached Bruno slowly, heads down, tails wagging just a little. Bruno outwardly ignored them, keeping to his station at my left side as we walked a few paces toward the square, but I could tell he was eager to be let go. At length I decided that if there was to be trouble it were best to have it over with, and released him.

"All right, Bruno." At the words of release, Bruno bounded away, pouncing on the larger of the two Zymurgian dogs. He rolled over, with one dog on top and the other nipping at his tail, and then over again, and pounced on the smaller dog. All three were barking merrily, and soon three other dogs came from three different directions and the thing became a general melee. It was by no means five little white dogs against one large black one; so far as I could tell, Bruno and the first two had joined forces.

Eventually Mukden's sense of duty overcame his curiousity and he gestured for us to continue. I called Bruno to heel, and he looked at me woefully. He was lying on his side, with three dogs on top of him, one under his left front paw, and the fifth dog's right hind leg in his mouth. I merely stared at him. Sighing, he released the dogs, shook off the three others like a whale breaking through an ice pack, and resumed his place at my side. The five Zymurgian dogs tagged along behind as we continued on our way, and several others joined us as we crossed the square to the Hall of the Masters. Mukden opened the door for us, and as we entered I once again commanded Bruno to go lie down. Surprisingly, the eight or nine smaller dogs followed us in, and went and lay down in the corner beside him. There was much panting, and as the Zymurgian dogs were effectively strays, I am afraid the pile of canines was exceedingly rank in that enclosed space.

The Masters were standing before their stools; studying their faces, I saw that they were nonplussed by this new development, for which I could not blame them. Yet, I thought their dismay was tinged with a certain amount of relief.

We stood comfortably at ease as Mukden announced us, and listened attentively as Asha spoke and Mukden translated.

"Asha asks whether you could persuade the dogs to go elsewhere," he said. It was a reasonable request. I released Bruno, and gestured at the open door. Bruno wasted no time, the other dogs followed suit, and a good riddance it was. Barking, yelping, and the occasional whine formed the aural backdrop for the remainder of the meeting, but the air was substantially clearer.

The Masters seated themselves, and we three took up our positions before them. Asha spoke again.

"We have conferred at length. Because Mukden brought you to Tomar, you are our guests. Firenz reminds us that guests are sacred, and must not be ill-treated." The older man bowed. "Yet we do not trust you. We have traded with the people of the Lands Below forever, yet we have never seen folk like you. Simuny doubts your motives, and fears that you precede an army." The older woman bowed, an ironic smile on her lips. "Nabili is angered that you have restrained one of the Pups of Basenis." Nabili nodded quickly, his lips tight and his eyes cold. "It seems to the rest of us that Great Basenis is not unduly disturbed." Here, she gestured to the window and the square beyond. Nabili's lips tightened further, but he held his tongue. Asha continued.

"We are the Masters of Tomar, and the well-being of Tomar is in our charge. Because you are our guests, you are made free of the town and its surroundings." Mukden began to smile happily as he translated this. "Because we do not trust you, one of us must accompany you in all you do." His smile did not slip. "Because Mukden presented us with this dilemma without warning, he must forfeit his share of his recent journey to the people of Tomar. The Masters have spoken." Mukden turned from us to the Masters in surprise; this last bit had apparently been unexpected. They looked back at him, nodding, and I believe Asha raised one eyebrow quizzically, as if inviting him to comment. He took a deep breath, and sagged back into his previous position.

"The Masters of Tomar are most generous," I replied. "Indeed, though we would not wish to inconvenience you, your presence with us is exactly what we most desire." Simuny looked skeptical, and Nabili clearly didn't believe a word, but neither voiced their reservations.

Next followed a lengthy discussion on logistics: when, where, and whom. When the fog cleared, we had agreed on the following terms: we would remain in the hostel each night. Each day, two of the Masters would be available for escort duty, thus allowing us to divide our forces in half, as we had intended. Mukden would also accompany one team or the other, as translator. The festival being over, the Masters had no more pressing duties than seeing to their troublesome guests, so as the day was young we set off at once.