Mjipa shrugged. "Don't know. Some of the more advanced states, like Zamba, might; but I doubt if the idea would occur to these chaps. After all, we have countries on Earth, quite advanced, who confiscate the property of anyone they dislike."
They strolled across the plaza, skirting piles of rubble. Around the base of the tower, the ground had been properly leveled. A pair of tracks of the man-powered street-railway system made a loop around the tower. A small crowd of Krishnans stood craning their necks to look up. From their appearance, Mjipa decided that they were mostly visitors from other parts of Kalwm and from the other Khaldoni kingdoms.
Sounds of construction came from the tower, and little figures could be glimpsed moving around the top. At ground level, Krishnans were bringing heaps of red-brown bricks in hand carts. Others stacked these bricks in a couple of large baskets, from which ropes soared upwards.
Mjipa followed these ropes up with his eyes, squinting against the glare of Roqir, until they reached a pair of brackets jutting from the wall at the top. These brackets supported pulleys, over which the ropes were laid. As Mjipa watched, one of the ground crews sang out. Two Krishnans of this crew turned cranks, and the basket rose as the other leg of the rope was reeled in on a large spool, connected by gearing with the crankshaft. When the basket reached the top, one of the crank men belayed his crank by slipping a leather loop over it.
Alicia said: "Do you suppose, if we acted important enough, they'd let us inside?"
"We might try." Mjipa approached the monumental entrance to the tower, guarded by a pair of Vuzhov's gilded soldiers. The massive valves of the door, of squared timbers bound with bronze, stood open, and workmen went in and out.
"Good morning," said Mjipa to one guard. "We are Terrans from Novorecife. May we speak to the chief of construction?"
The guard went in and presently returned with a small, elderly Krishnan in a black kilt, who said: "Chief Engineer Arraj, at your service!"
Mjipa made a ceremonious introduction of himself and Alicia, adding: "Having heard of the wonders of this tower, we should be much obliged if you would permit us to view the details of construction."
"Certes, my dear Terrans! A thousand times aye! 'Twill be bliss inexpressible to show you round myself. We hear so much rumor of the might of Terrans in such matters that I would fain monstrate to you that we Khaldonians, too, can perform feats of dought in building. Come hither, pray."
They followed the affable engineer into the building. The interior, cluttered with construction materials, had a great spiral stair, which went round and round and up and up. Every five or six meters of height, the stair pierced a broad circular gallery bracketed out from the tower wall. Windows on each level admitted light.
Their host rattled on: "Since Kalwm has but little good stone, being in essence a plain of alluvial mud, stone is costly. Hence the bulk of the structure is of brick. Ye wite that I used stone for the foundation and for the lowest course, despite the expense, to withstand the superincumbent weight. For the rest, the outermost layer and the next within are of kiln-dried brick, lest rain water soften it and bring the tower over the years to collapse."
"Why not kiln-dried brick all the way through?" asked Mjipa.
"Why, sir, not e'en the wealth of Dakhaq would suffice to pay for the fuel such baking would devour. Now, would ye behold the finest overview of Kalwm City that life affords? 'Tis an exigent climb, I'll warrant you."
Mjipa turned to his companion. "How's your heart, Lish? I shouldn't care to have you drop dead in the middle of this climb."
"My heart's fine, thank you. I was an intercollegiate tennis champion." As they started up the stairs, she spoke to the engineer: "Good Master Arraj, tell me when you expect to reach—ow!"
Mjipa had pinched her arm. He said in English:"You were going to ask him when he expected to get to Heaven, weren't you?"
"What if I was? That hurt!"
"Didn't I tell you not to converse with the natives? I promised the government you wouldn't, and you were about to bugger it up again. The next thing would have been an argument over the shape of the planet. Want to get us killed? Damn it all, forget you know a word of Khaldoni! If you have something to say, tell me and I'll translate."
Mjipa thought if human eyes could really emit sparks, Alicia's would have done so. But she clamped her lips together in a thin, tight line and said no more.
They reached the third gallery from the bottom. While catching breath from the climb, Mjipa opened the door of a chamber built into the tower wall, which was several meters thick. The room was empty and without furnishings save for rows of pegs protruding from the wall. "What's this, Master Arraj?"
"Merely a chamber for the storage of tools. There's one on each level. The tools have been moved to the fifth story. Ye will observe that we are completely flooring only every fifth level, to save weight."
At last they reached the fifth level, which unlike those below was completely floored. The floor was open to the sky. Here construction made a din. Workmen hammered and sawed, moved scaffolding about, mixed mortar with hoes in troughs, laid bricks, and shouted orders back and forth. Arraj beckoned them to a window. Raising his voice above the noise, he said: "Here's your view, sir and madam."
Mjipa stared down at the sea of red-tiled roofs. After some minutes of trying to identify the roof of Irants's Inn, he gave up. He thanked Arraj effusively for the tour, and he and Alicia returned to the ground. They took a man-powered street car back to the inn, where Minyev awaited them in the common room.
"My lord!" said Minyev. "I have bespoken three berths on the ship Tarvezid, leaving for Majbur seven days hence."
Mjipa frowned. "Was that the earliest sailing?"
"Aye, sir. The next was a ship for Jazmurian, leaving a fiftnight later. I hope ye be satisfied, sir."
"I'm sure I shall be, though I'll go to the docks tomorrow to look the Tarvezid over."
"If she meet not your requirements, is't likely ye'd defer departure?"
"I don't know yet. Why?"
"Because, may it please Your Lordship, the execution of the heretic Isayin is set for two days after the Tarvezid's sailing. 'Twere a spectacle well worth beholding."
Mjipa grunted. During the last moon, other thoughts had crowded the fate of Doctor Isayin out of his mind. Now he felt a rush of contrition for having helped to condemn the savant, although he told himself, what else could he have done? At last he said:
"Where is Isayin kept?"
"In the Old Prison, sir, I do believe."
"Is that part of the palace?"
"Nay; 'tis westerly of the palace, near the waterfront. An ,ye'd like to see it, I'll guide you thither on the morrow."
"I'll consider that, Minyev. How long before dinner?"
"Eftsoons, my lord. Wouldst that I broached the matter to Irants?"
Before Mjipa could answer, the street door flew open, and in marched a squad of King Vuzhov's soldiery, spangled loin cloths and all. "Enter first murderers," muttered Mjipa.
The officer in command headed straight for Mjipa, halted with a click of gilded sandals, and said: "Pen-see Um-jee-pah, ye are summoned to the palace to answer a legal process against you. Ye also, A-lee-shah Dah-eek-man. Come!"
Surrounded by Kalwmian soldiery, Mjipa and Alicia were herded out and along the street. Minyev had somehow managed to vanish, as if by a magical spell, as soon as the soldiers appeared. Mjipa tried to question the officer but was rebuffed.
They were taken to Chanapar's office. The minister said: "Ah, Master Mjipa and Mistress Dyckman! Whereas I am pleased to see you again, I regret that our meeting be under these litigious circumstances."