Lorn looked at them both askance. ‘Why the creature, Gilwyn? A pet?’
‘Teku’s more than that,’ said Gilwyn. ‘She helps me. I’ve had her for years now. When I can’t get to something out of reach she fetches it for me.’
‘And the boot?’ queried Lorn, gesturing down to Gilwyn’s left foot, which was encased in a strange boot with a hinged heel. ‘That helps you walk?’
‘Uh huh. Figgis, the man who used to run the library, made it for me.’
Lorn nodded. He had already told Gilwyn about his brief sojourn in the Liirian library. They had discussed it at length, because the boy was starved for news from home. He was sure Minikin would want to know about it, too.
‘Remarkable,’ he said. ‘But what about these spirits you told me about, the ones that heal. Couldn’t they make your foot right for you? So that you could walk without the boot?’
‘They could, but I didn’t want it that way,’ Gilwyn replied. ‘Come, let’s get to Minikin.’
Gilwyn walked surprisingly quickly as he led Lorn through the palace, then finally up a spiral staircase that had once been grand but was now quite plain. At the top of the stairs — which were not at all easy for Gilwyn — they entered into a cavernous hall decorated with mosaics and enamel. Jadori men and women moved quietly through the hall, their faces still grave from the shock of the last two days. Whether or not these were the people Gilwyn had told him about — the Inhumans — Lorn couln’t say, but they nodded politely as they passed. At last, near the end of the hall, they came to a pair of beautifully carved, open wooden doors. Sunlight spilled onto the stone floor from the recesses of the chamber, which to Lorn seemed gigantic. Gilwyn paused as they reached the threshold and peered inside.
‘She’s here,’ he whispered, and stepped aside for Lorn to see.
At the far side of the chamber stood a woman, near open glass doors that led to a balcony. She was very tiny, a midget really, with a strange coat of varied colours and long white hair down her back. She did not turn to face them, but he saw her head cock to listen.
‘Come in,’ she said suddenly.
Gilwyn and Lorn stepped inside, revealing another person in the chamber, this one a giant with mountainous, slumped shoulders and a granite face marked by an overbite. His eyes fixed on Lorn as he entered the room. Lorn froze.
‘Do not mind Trog,’ the little woman advised. ‘He guards my person.’ At last she turned around, and the brilliant sun from the balcony lit her peculiar face. ‘Welcome to Jador, King Lorn.’
She was unlike anything Lorn had ever seen. Her ears, like those of an elf, bore two pointed peaks, and her eyes were a strange, oceanic grey. The coat that flowed around her legs seemed alive with colour as if made from a rainbow, and a glowing amulet hung at her breast, warmly lighting her face. Minikin did not step away from the balcony. Her smile struggled to seem genuine.
‘Thank you, my lady,’ said Lorn carefully. He approached and gave a bow. ‘I am glad at last to be in your presence.’
‘And you have many questions, I’m sure,’ said Minikin. ‘And requests too, no doubt.’ Her face soured. ‘You may be disappointed, King Lorn.’
Lorn grinned. ‘I have already gained from your generosity, lady. If I beg more from you, than surely you will forgive me.’
‘Come,’ said Minikin. ‘Both of you, out onto the balcony with me.’
She turned and stepped through the glass doors. Gilwyn followed immediately, waving Lorn to come along. The one called Trog did not follow, but stayed near the balcony to guard her, keeping an uncomfortable watch on Lorn. The balcony itself was as lovely as the room, its stone rail carved with flowers and figures of beautiful women. It paled, however, next to the view it offered, an expansive scene of the serene desert, blushing pink as the sun set. A large birdcage stood near the rail, but there were no birds within it. Lorn wondered if that was why the mistress seemed so sad.
‘The birds of this cage bear us messages from Princess Salina,’ said Minikin. ‘You have met the princess?’
‘The princess? Yes,’ answered Lorn. His eyes narrowed on the woman. ‘Lady, are you some sort of mystic? To read my thoughts the way you do. .’
‘There are things you have to learn about us, King Lorn. Some of these things you have already seen.’ Minikin frowned. ‘Like the fire.’
Lorn shrugged. ‘It is all a mystery to me, I admit. But your regent has told me much already, lady. And yes, I did have the pleasure of meeting Princess Salina in Ganjor. It was she who warned us of your troubles with Aztar. Without her I doubt we would have made it across the desert.’
‘The princess is a fine young woman. Very brave.’ Minikin leaned against the ornate railing. ‘None of us have ever met her. We speak only through the doves she sends to warn us.’
‘I doubt we’ll be getting any more of those,’ said Gilwyn. ‘With Aztar dead, I mean.’
‘You presume too much, Gilwyn,’ chided Minikin. ‘None of us knows whether or not the Tiger still lives.’
‘No,’ Gilwyn admitted, ‘you’re right. But I don’t think he’ll be waging war on us too soon.’
Minikin nodded. ‘That’s a blessing, surely. And we are glad to receive you, King Lorn, and your people. Gilwyn has told me about all of you, and how you lost your throne.’
‘Not all of the stories about me are kind, my lady,’ said Lorn. ‘There are many rumours about me, and about my reign. Some are true, some are lies.’
‘They call you King Lorn the Wicked,’ said Minikin. ‘But I am wondering — would a wicked man lead suffering people across a desert? Or fight for us without being asked?’
‘My lady, I have been wicked, true enough, because I fought a wicked woman who knew no bounds in stealing my throne. I have too much blood on my hands to account, and my motives for coming to your aid are not all selfless. You know why we’ve come.’
The mistress smiled. ‘I do. Gilwyn told me about your daughter and the others. He has also told you about our situation. The place you call Mount Believer — that is the place we call Grimhold. Many hundreds like you have come here seeking the same as you, King Lorn.’
‘I know,’ said Lorn, his hope fading. ‘We have been told there is no room for us in Grimhold. But my lady, if you would at least hear my plea. .’
‘I have heard a thousand pleas in the last year, King Lorn, so many that my heart has shattered. Your daughter is deaf, and at least partially blind as well. The woman you care for, Eiriann, has an empty womb she yearns to fill. And so on and so on. The stories are the same, you see. Always wretchedly the same.’
She was not at all what Lorn expected, and now he didn’t know what to say. ‘My lady,’ he began carefully, ‘when Gilwyn told me you would see me I was hopeful. I am a king, or at least I was. I should think that counts for something with you.’
‘Sir, I agreed to speak with you out of respect, and to thank you for what you did for us. You saved Gilwyn here in battle. I am truly grateful, and glad to welcome you to Jador. There is room enough for all of you in the city, and your help rebuilding this place will be appreciated. As you can see there is still much devastation from the last war.’
‘And you can stay in the palace, my lord,’ offered Gilwyn. ‘All of your people will have a home here.’
‘You see we are grateful to you, King Lorn, but I cannot heal your daughter or the others. What you ask is not possible. There are too few of the Akari. . you know of the Akari, yes?’
‘Vaguely,’ replied Lorn. ‘The boy explained it to me, but I admit my grasp is cloudy.’ It was hard for Lorn to hide his disappointment. He said in exasperation, ‘My lady, we’ve come so far. .’
‘No farther than any others,’ said Minikin. ‘King Lorn, be you wicked or not, I am not your judge. But be you king or not, you have no more right to the gates of Grimhold than do any of the hundreds that came before you. I must be just in choosing who may be healed, and it is not a duty I enjoy. I am sorry.’