Episode LXXXIX - Off to See the Wizard

            Two weeks later and Ellis found himself sitting in the shade on the back of a wagon, whilst travelling along the closest thing to the 'open road' that Shadow possessed.  It was called the Great Desert Highway and judging by it's appearance and the many Lithoderm statues which ran alongside it, it was probably old enough to have been there when there was only desert in that part of the world, ten, maybe even twenty thousand years ago.  As it was it was a wide avenue, lined with statues and monuments with some open, plaza-like space to either side, cutting a strange rift through the district of Searingsands.  Ellis had been travelling this way for two days already and he still wasn't used to seeing the endless parade of palaces, houses and marketplaces where he knew there should be sand dunes and oases.

The wagon he rode upon was travelling north, towards Shadedstreams at a snail's pace, all the time surrounded by the actions and sounds of several dozen performers; part of the spectacle that was Valter Kerring's Circus of Delights.

It was, of course, the Former Baron who had had the idea.  He had realised that whilst trade and travel were restricted between the two neighbouring districts, the Kahn's brother was not above a certain amount of vanity and excess.  The prospect of a new circus to enliven his district was not one he was likely to turn down.  But to make the charade work they had to travel about a bit in Searingsands first, putting on shows most nights, convincing everyone that the circus was real and building a reputation likely to catch the Khalif's ear.

At last, however, they were on the Great Desert Highway and, in a few hours, they would cross the district border into Shadedstreams and their true mission would begin.

Ellis wasn't sure what he felt about it all.  Being part of a circus, even one ostensibly run by Kerring, was quite fun, especially now he didn't have to worry about being an attraction himself.  Other captives, such as Theophilus, who had also been given his freedom when Kerring was arrested, had rejoined the circus to volunteer as sideshows and performers, but Ellis wasn't sure he could face the crowds.  Instead he was working as a porter and though the effort of it could be back-breaking, he was enjoying the opportunity for some pure, physical work.  Even in the course of two weeks he was noticing the effects on his musculature and for the first time in years he had been training with weights and exercises to enhance the effect.  He had even taken the time to practice swordplay with some of the performers, remembering that time he had tried to fight off a Grinder in Siren's kitchen and hoping that, if it ever came to it again, he would be better able to defend himself.

In the back of his mind he wondered what Siren would make of all of this.  He hoped that she would be proud of his efforts to be less passive, to take an active role in events unfolding around him in Shadow and preparing for the likely eventuality of further combat.  He also wondered what she would think of his efforts to tone himself up.  He knew he would never be a Hollywood pin-up of the kind Harker seemed to resemble, but perhaps with a little effort he would catch her eye.  Assuming her ever saw her again, of course.  He wondered if she would enjoy the circus.

In Siren's place, however, he had to suffer Nadiyya, who continued to make it clear that she did not like him.  She laughed at his efforts to improve himself and took every opportunity she could to demonstrate her contempt for him.  He didn't know what he had done to upset her, but she was a necessary part of their mission and so he did his best to stay out of her way.

Gulliver and the Former Baron each had their roles to play, of course.  Gulliver was also serving as a porter, although doing so as minimally and as miserably as possible.  The Former Baron, meanwhile, was usually helping Kerring in the general running of the circus and, along with a select few members of the Kahn’s guard, made sure that the vile merchant didn’t get up to anything untoward.

Kerring himself was hardly to be seen at all, in fact.  It was clear he was not happy about the state of affairs he found himself in, though it was doubtless better than being held indefinitely at the Kahn's pleasure.  When he did put in an appearance he was all scowls and harsh words to the performers and porters - a necessary act which he was clearly putting more energy into than it really required.  Aside from his words, however, he was impotent.  One wrong move and the Kahn's men would haul him all the way back to Searingsands if needed, and if not, well, a little light bruising here and there probably wouldn't ruin the ringmaster image.

It was approaching evening and Ellis was admiring the amber-jade skies he was becoming so familiar with, when there was a soft slithering sound and Theophilus appeared beside him, using his still weak wings to lift himself up onto the moving wagon.

"Hey, Theo," Ellis said, greeting his former prison-mate cheerfully, "what's up?"

"The sky, usually," replied the Sixwing without malice, "but there's also something worth seeing down the road.  I thought you might like to have a look."

"You know me," Ellis replied before hopping down onto the dusty road and waiting for his serpentine friend to flutter back down to join him, "I'm always happy to see new sights."

"Then I think you'll particularly enjoy this one," the Sixwing replied once his body touched ground once more.  "Follow me."

Together they made their way around the slowly moving wagon and past the bulk of the circus convoy until they had a clear view of the road ahead.  Ellis gasped.

"That's amazing," he said after a moment, "is that... is that Shadedstreams?"

"It is indeed.  That's how it got its name."

What they were staring at, beyond the point where the road dwindled to a thread between the houses, was a vast natural arch of stone the size of a small mountain with city on top and city beneath, just as Ellis had come to expect of this world-city.  What had had not expected, however, was the shere scale of such a place and the strange beauty it held, slightly silhouetted against the evening sky.

"They say it was carved out of a mountain by some unnatural torrent during the most ancient days of our world, though there is no recorded history from that time to prove it.  All that is known is that four small rivers run underneath it and in the cool twilight they fed meadows of strange plants and fungi, things that rely less on the light than more natural flora.  The plants are still there, growing between the walls of houses and filling parks and gardens.  It gives Shadedstreams a most unique atmosphere."

"And on top of the arch?"

"Well, of course, that is where the Khalif lives and all his nobles, basking in the light of the sun and seared by desert winds which do not inflict the poorer inhabitants of the city.  Apparently being on top is worth all kinds of misery.  The palaces up there are built to channel the wind in such ways that the interiors are marvellously cool, but the buildings sing at all hours and their melodies are truly unnerving if you are not used to them."

"How do you know so much about the place?"

"One of my past owners toured his menagerie through Shadedstreams and we were welcomed into the palace of the Khalif himself."

"Is he as hot-tempered as Nadiyya and the Former Baron say?"

"Oh, easily.  He is really not a man to be trifled with.  I do not relish the opportunity to see him again.  If I have the chance, I think I'd like to stay beneath the arch, in the strange gardens of the poor."

Ellis stared at the distant district and wondered what awaited them there.  He already knew to expect the possibility of wizards and godlike monstrosities from outside of reality, but it was the Khalif that worried him most.

And I’m heading straight to him, he thought.

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