Siege of Tarr-Hostigos by John F. Carr

Author:John F. Carr
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Science Fiction
Publisher: Pequod
Published: 2010-10-16T23:00:00+00:00

II

No matter how hard he tried Count Sestembar couldn’t remove the smile of satisfaction from his face. He had just finished questioning the last of the brass-founders in the dungeon of Tarr-Zygros and the stink of the man’s fear still clung to his clothes like bad perfume. What he had learned from the founder was worth far more than all the whale ambergris in the kingdom.

“What are you smiling about, Sestembar?” Prince Eudocles asked.

“Here we went all the way to Hos-Harphax for a treasure that was resting in our own backyard,” he answered smugly.

“Enough of your riddles, old friend. I just returned from a lengthy visit with my brother’s latest charlatan, a self-proclaimed wizard dressed all in black, topped with a pointed hat, who claims the voice of the dead Prince speaks through his tongue. My brother had me sitting in a dark chamber for the entire afternoon while this man threw his voice about the room, an instrument that sounded to these ears no more like Prince Pariphon’s voice than my own!

“His obsession with the deceased Prince grows so desperate that it’s bandied about all the wineshops on the waterfront! He will make us all a laughingstock!”

Not all, thought Sestembar. No subject who valued his life would ever consider joking about Eudocles, who was notorious for both his quick temper and his lack of humor, especially about his own person.

“Your brother will grow tired of his weeping, maybe sire another child. Your sister-in-law is still fertile, is she not?”

“Who knows, she’s so ugly no other man will look at her. Now she cries both day and night with such emotion one would think the Daemon Kalvan was perched on the city gates!”

“More evidence that the kingdom needs a new ruler.”

Eudocles frowned. “Be careful where you speak such thoughts. Although I will admit there is a great deal of truth to your words. Now, what is this about a treasure?”

“When I talked to the ungrateful one.”

“Spit it out, Sestembar!” he growled. “I know the ungrateful whelp of whom you speak.”

“During our meeting at the brothel he frequents, he asked me to have you send some of our brass-founders like those employed by the Usurper Kalvan in his Royal Foundry. The other day it struck me that if Kalvan is using our founders, he may have actually visited Zygros Town before or after his sudden appearance in Hostigos. Since so little is known about this Kalvan, I decided to visit all the foundries in the area and talk to the founders myself. It was a most enlightening visit.”

Eudocles leaned forward. “Go on, old friend.”

“I visited six different foundries, all of which are most busy. It was not always such before Kalvan’s arrival.”

Eudocles spat a string of curses. “These Dralm-blasted dogs of Styphon never let us have enough of their fireseed.” He laughed maniacally. “Now their Fireseed Mystery is known to every woodcutter and charcoal burner in the Five Kingdoms!”

“We do owe Kalvan a debt of thanks for removing Styphon’s chains,” Sestembar added, careful not to offend his lord.

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