Nix, Garth - The Old Kingdom 02 - Lirael by Garth Nix

Author:Garth Nix [Nix, Garth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 0060005491
Published: 2011-03-05T04:35:23+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Five

A Family Conference

Silence greeted Sabriel’s words, a silence that went on and on, as they all imagined a host of the Dead two hundred thousand strong, and Sam struggled not to. A horde of the Dead, a great sea of stumbling, Life-starved corpses that stretched from horizon to horizon, inexorably marching towards him—

“That will not happen, of course,” said Touchstone, breaking into Sam’s terrible imaginings. “We will make sure that it doesn’t, that the refugees never even cross the Wall. However, we can’t stop them on our side. The Wall is too long, with too many broken gates and too many old Crossing Points on the other side. So we must ensure that the Ancelstierrans don’t send them across in the first place. Consequently your mother and I have decided to go to Ancelstierre ourselves—secretly, so not to arouse alarm or suspicion. We will go to Corvere and negotiate with their government, which will undoubtedly take several months. That means we will be relying on you two to look after the Kingdom.”

More silence greeted this revelation. Ellimere looked deeply thoughtful but otherwise calm. Sam swallowed several times, then said, “What, ah, what exactly do you mean?”

“As far as both our friends and enemies need know, I will be on a diplomatic mission to the barbarian chiefs at their Southern Stop, and Sabriel will be going about her business as mysteriously as she always does,” replied Touchstone. “In our absence, Ellimere will continue as co-regent with Jall Oren—everyone seems to have become accustomed to that. Sameth, you will assist her. But most important, you will continue in your studies of The Book of the Dead.”

“Speaking of such things, I have something for you,” added Sabriel, before Sam could interject. She pushed her pack across with obvious effort. “Look in the top.”

Slowly, Sam undid the straps. He suddenly felt very sick, knowing that he must tell them now or he would not be able to. Ever.

There was an oilskin-wrapped package in the pack. Sameth slid it out slowly, his fingers gone cold and clumsy. His eyes seemed to be strangely blurry, too, and Sabriel sounded as if she were talking from another room.

“I found these at the House—or rather, the sendings had set them out. I don’t know where they found them, or why they’ve got them out now. They are very, very old. So old that I have no record of who bore them first. I would have asked Mogget, but he still sleeps—”

“Except for when I caught that salmon last year,” interjected Touchstone crossly. Mogget, the Abhorsen’s cat-shaped familiar, was bound by Ranna, the Sleepbringer, first of the seven bells. He had woken only five or six times in nearly twenty years, on three of those occasions to steal and eat fish caught by Touchstone.

“Mogget would not wake,” continued Sabriel. “But as I have my own, these are clearly meant for the Abhorsen-in-Waiting. Congratulations, Sam.”

Sam nodded dumbly, the remaining package unopened in his lap. He didn’t need to look

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