“She didn’t change much. She looked a bit thicker around the middle. I wouldn’t have guessed she was pregnant had she not told me.”
“Seems to me you know very little about the baby business,” her father said.
Kale glared at him. “I know a great deal about dragon babies.”
Sir Kemry stirred sugar into his tea and nodded wisely. “Grouchy.”
“What does grouchy have to do with anything? I’ve been tired, so I’ve been a bit testy. The marione mothers were always jolly, downright giddy at times.”
“You’re not a marione,” her father said before Lyll could reiterate the same notion. “When your mother was pregnant with you, I tiptoed around the castle.”
Kale placed her hand on her stomach. “So, how long?”
“That depends,” said Lady Lyll.
“Depends on what?”
“It depends on whether you rest and allow your body to take on this new venture. Actually, it is a wee bit more complicated than that. You have to turn from your normal routine so that your system recognizes you are ready for the change in your life.”
Kale turned slowly to Bardon. He purposely looked down at his porridge, fishing out a raisin to lift to his lips.
“That’s why you insisted on this trip.”
Bardon couldn’t decide whether Kale’s voice held more accusation or wonder. He’d prefer to know more about which way she was likely to go before he added any weight to the discussion.
“How did you know?” she asked calmly.
He felt it was safe to answer. “The kimens who did my treatment for the stakes.” He turned to look her full in the face. “I asked them some questions, told them some of the things I observed, and listened to their advice.”
“And their advice was?”
“To take you away from your usual workload to a place where we could be together more, and to hold you close and cherish you. They said it was much the way you quickened a dragon egg.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? Surely this shouldn’t be a secret between a husband and wife.”
“I wasn’t sure that you were truly carrying our child. The whole thing was speculation until I heard your mother say for sure that you’re expecting. I didn’t want to make you feel like I was disappointed because we haven’t had a child yet.” He took her hand. “And frankly, when Gilda boasted about her accomplishment in supplying the great egg…” He rolled his eyes.
Kale giggled.
“Well, I didn’t want Gilda lording it over you if it turned out I was mistaken.”
“Aww.” Kale leaned in to kiss his lips.
“And that,” said her father, “is the other side of the coin. Grouchy one minute and mushy the next.”
Bardon and Kale ignored him.
“Harrumph! I suppose I could go with Bardon to rescue Holt.”
They broke off the kiss and turned astonished eyes his way.
“Why?” asked Kale. “I’m going.”
Bardon frowned at his father-in-law. “It will be a long time before the baby comes, won’t it? Surely she can still travel.”
Lady Lyll chuckled. “I wouldn’t count on that ‘long time.’ I’m figuring less than a month.”
Kale looked down at her flat stomach. “Impossible.”
Her mother smiled. “That baby is fully formed. All he or she needs to do now is put on weight. When he or she is nice and plump, we’ll have a grandchild.” She took a buttered nordy roll from her own plate and offered it to Kale. “Here, dear. You are going to be mighty hungry from now until then.”
33
VISITING PALADISE
Kale found it amusing that her father was up in arms, not wanting her to go gallivanting among dangerous people, while her husband had full confidence that she could handle whatever came along. With her hand on her stomach, she smiled, letting the conversation between her parents, her husband, and Wizard Namee drift about her.
A baby. She was going to have a baby. I am determined not to become odious like Gilda. No smugness. No prideful remarks. No snarking.
She looked at Bardon and thought of Regidor’s saurian countenance. Not even when it is obvious that our child will be ten times cuter than theirs. She stifled a giggle. No point in sharing her thoughts with the others. Such words would trample her determination to be a humble mother even before she got started.
Seezle entered with a swish of air and the sound of tiny bells tinkling. Kale tilted her head and squinted to bring the kimen into focus. She moved so fast that when she stopped her clothes blurred for a moment.
“What lovely bells,” exclaimed Lady Lyll. “Where did you get them?”
Seezle glided across the hall and offered Wizard Namee a bouquet of slender metal stalks decorated with leaves and clusters of bells like flowers. “A community of kimen make them here in Namee’s forest. Fizz made a bunch just for him.”
“Thank you, Seezle, and send my regards to Fizz.” The silver artwork looked fragile in Wizard Namee’s big hand. “I shall give this to Mistress Orcutt before my clumsy fingers bend the stems.”
Seezle ran to pull the cord that would summon the housekeeper. Then she flitted across the floor and hopped into a chair.
“You’re welcome to breakfast, little one,” said Wizard Namee.
“I’ve eaten. Thank you.”
Namee eyed the kimen. His cool eye ran over her flighty appearance as if deciding whether to ask this mistywisp a serious question. He cleared his throat, sat straighter, and frowned. “Do you have something to report? I assume you have visited with whoever took on the duty of caring for Holt.”
“That was Fizz’s son Ziffle. And the report is good. Holt is alive. We have a route planned to get through Paladise unseen. We can get to the jail cell and out again in ten minutes. The tumanhofer in charge, Glaringtonover, says he’s ready, and we should be able to retrieve Holt tonight.”
“Tonight?” Kale looked around the table. “What are we going to do all day while we wait?”
Lady Lyll stood and took her daughter’s hand. “You and I, my dear, are going to have a little mother-daughter talk. We need to further your education.”
“Shall I come?” asked Sir Kemry.
“You,” said Lyll over her shoulder, “are not welcome. You may keep Bardon entertained and out of trouble.”
Kale and her mother found Namee’s conservatory, built onto one of the castle walls facing a small green and a sheer cliff. The glass sides and roof allowed sunshine to bathe an uncountable variety of plants.
Kale saw some she recognized, but most of the exotic foliage were unfamiliar. Damp earth mixed with sweet floral fragrances to create an appealing scent. Stone walkways twined through a jungle of plant life that grew high enough to obstruct the view of other paths. Fountains trickled over rocks. Birds darted between small trees and sang cheerfully in their pleasant circumstances.
The dragons poured out of Kale’s pockets in search of an exciting meal. Lady Allerion led Kale to a bench beside a pool with yellow and orange striped fish swimming about.
Lyll examined the pool with uncommon interest.
Kale waited. Dark green, broad-leafed plants surrounded the waterscape. Tiny bright birds hopped among equally colorful blossoms. A charming view, but Kale wanted information from her parent. “Mother?”
Lyll started and laughed. “Oh, I’m sorry, dear. I was lost in memories. I do believe this is the pool by which your father proposed.” She sighed with a gentle smile on her lips. “It seems like eons ago.”
Kale tipped her head to the side as she asked, “How long is an eon? It might very well have been at least one eon ago.”
“Don’t be pert. We’re here for a serious discussion.”
Pulling her grin into a straight line, Kale tried to look sorry. “I apologize.”
“Don’t sham a contrite spirit, either. I know you have a rampant sense of humor. And you lived with Fenworth on top of that. Who could escape with a normal appreciation for decorum?”
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“I believe part of my delight in the absurd was passed on directly from my parents.”
Lyll smiled. “Yes. ‘The apple falls from the tree, but the worm can’t carry it away.’”
Kale tilted her head. “Are you sure you have that one right, Mother? It sounds a bit off kilter.”
Her mother waved her hand. “It’s neither here nor there. You can ask Bardon if you really must know the exact wording. We have more important things to pursue. Let’s talk about babies.”
Lady Lyll and Sir Kemry stood beside the gateway as Kale, Bardon, and Seezle prepared to leave.
Sir Kemry paced. “It is not unreasonable to ask her to stay, Lyll.”
“She’ll be fine.” Lyll caught his arm and brought him to an abrupt stop. “You’re making me wish I hadn’t told you.”
“Bah! I would have guessed as soon as the dragons knew.”
“That’s not guessing when someone relays the knowledge.” Lyll frowned. “Why didn’t Gymn know?”
Kemry tapped one finger against his chin. “There’s a very scientific reason.”
“What?” asked Kale and her mother in unison.
“I have no idea what it is, but I know it must exist.” The corners of Sir Kemry’s mouth twitched, but he firmed his jaw. His wife wagged a finger at him, and a laugh escaped his lips.
“You see, Mother,” said Kale. “A tendency toward levity abounds in this family.”
Her father held up a hand. “I’ll be serious. Until the baby started growing, he was virtually undetectable. But that does not mean he—”
“Or she,” said Lyll.
“—did not exist. There are a lot of things in this world that are present but can only be seen by Wulder’s eye.”
Kale’s chin went up. “I still think Gymn would have told me had he felt a new life within me.”
“Perhaps not,” said her mother. “Gymn would have detected something abnormal in your body. A baby is perfectly normal. But you have had symptoms.”
The strong lines of her father’s face showed predominantly as he became serious. He gave Kale a considering look. “And speaking of growing…” His eyes shifted to Lyll. “I remember how quickly that last month went. Your abdomen blew up like a balloon.”
“Really, Kemry, that is not a topic for conversation in polite society.”
“What’s polite about this society? It’s just us and the children and Seezle.”
Bardon and Kale exchanged a glance with eyebrows raised.
“Speaking of Seezle,” said Seezle, “we have to get moving. I have arranged for the others to meet us.”
“Others?” asked Bardon.
“Yes. Pardon me if I don’t list their names, but we are late already.”
“Tumanhofers,” said Kemry.
Seezle nodded, and her hair flew around her head. “They’ve dug a maze of tunnels under Paladise.”
Kale kissed Sir Kemry on the cheek. “Don’t worry, Father. I’ll be fine, and so will the baby. We’ll only be gone a few hours.”
They stepped through the gateway and entered an oversized, rambling shack lit by a single lightrock sitting on a crude table. The minor dragons flew around the large room examining each nook and cranny.
“Where is everyone?” asked Bardon.
“Down the hole,” answered Seezle. She crossed to the side of the room and dropped into an opening in the wooden floor. Her head reappeared. “Come on. They’re in the tunnels.”
Kale changed into clothes suitable for underground travel. Leggings and a close-fitting tunic would be easier to manage as they navigated dirt-walled hallways.
“Wait here,” she told the dragons. “We’ll call you if we need you.”
Once in the underground passage, Kale made two light orbs and handed one to Bardon. No natural lightrocks dotted the sides and ceiling.
“Hurry, but don’t touch the support beams.” Seezle urged them on. “The tumanhofers have it rigged to collapse if the wrong people find their work. But do hurry. We’re going to miss it.”
“Miss what?” asked Bardon.
“Our opportunity.”
“I thought we’d be waiting until very late when everyone was asleep.”
“No, it would be too easy for the guards to spot you then. We’ll move through the town during the march.”
“More information, please.” Kale reached to grab the kimen to slow her down, but her fingers brushed through the sleeve of Seezle’s light garment.
“Five nights a week, the citizens march for an hour. The pattern is set, the pace is kept by the playing of instruments, and the formation is predetermined. The march is organized and fascinating to watch. The real purpose is to empty the houses so they can be searched for contraband.”
“Contraband?” asked Kale. “What do you mean?”
“Things they aren’t allowed to have. Books, outsiders’ clothing, clocks, letters, sugar or salt, lots of things. And the quarters have to meet a standard of tidiness. The Followers put a lot of store in being orderly.”
“Do the people know their privacy is invaded?” Bardon asked.
“Oh yes. They earn advancement when they pass a certain number of inspections.”
“The echoes must use some excuse for forcing the march.”
“Discipline. The Followers are keen on discipline as well.”
“Oh, I bet they are,” said Bardon.
Seezle turned around to walk backward. She lifted a hand over her head, pointed one finger, and spoke as one in authority. “The march provides exercise of the mind and body. The brisk pace improves circulation and the function of the lungs. The precision drill requires concentration and sharpens the mind.”
She turned around to face forward. “I think the citizens enjoy it because they get to hear music, and it’s the only time they can move without shuffling.”
Kale pushed her unruly hair back from her face. “Will we be able to walk through the town if they’re all out doing this march?”
“Sure, easy!” Seezle emphasized her point with a lively skip. “They’re in groups of two to eight. You just get behind a group and follow them, then drop out when you reach your destination.”
“And how will we know where we’re going?”
“You can follow me. They never see me. Kale can mindspeak with me. It’ll be all right. These people are pretty confident that what they have established cannot be put asunder. Therefore, they are careless in the most harebrained ways.”
Kale heard soft noises of dirt being shoveled.
“Here we are,” announced Seezle in a loud whisper.
“About time,” said a rough tumanhofer voice. “They’ve been on the march for fifteen minutes already.”
In the crowded space where two tunnels crossed, two men continued to dig while the third tumanhofer handed Kale and Bardon the Followers’ standard garb, loose trousers and a tight shirt with the overlay. “We won’t be going with you. They only allow o’rants and mariones up there.”
Kale sidled up to her husband and smoothed his longish hair over his pointed ears. They exchanged a look, each feeling the other’s excitement as they prepared to infiltrate Paladise.
Light from her orb caught a glint in Bardon’s eye. Kale resisted the urge to kiss him. I am so very glad you insisted we go on this quest. Well, not this quest…to rescue Holt, but the original quest…to find the meech colony.
“Does the yellow have any significance?” asked Kale as she pulled the long gown over her head.
“Means you can make a mistake and not get killed for it. You’re a novice, and if you make a wrong turn, you’ll be prodded with a pole, but not beaten.”
“Comforting,” said Bardon. “Seezle said this would be easy.”
“It will be,” said the kimen. “Glaringtonover is a pessimist.”
“Follow me,” said the pessimist. “You will enter the city through Holt’s quarters. It’s no longer inspected.”
“The floor of the jail cell is stone,” explaine
d Seezle before Kale or Bardon asked.
They came to a wooden ladder, and Seezle skimmed up the rungs with ease. She pushed open a trapdoor and slipped out.
“Coast is clear,” she whispered a moment later.
Kale hiked the yellow robe up and climbed the ladder. Bardon followed.
No light shone in the bare room, but a glimmer from a lamppost outside prevented total darkness. Seezle glowed a tiny bit, then her light faded to nothing. Kale could no longer see the kimen but heard her merry voice.
“Peek out the window. Watch a couple of groups go by so you can see how they march. It’s easy. You’ll catch on quickly. When a group passes to the right, we’ll sneak out and join their formation.”
“They’ll see us,” objected Kale.
“No, watch,” insisted Seezle.
The tune played by a brass ensemble must have been coming from the town center, but it could be heard clearly. The feet of most of the inhabitants of this Paladise tramped in unison, giving a steady beat behind the music, almost like a percussion instrument.
A group of four Followers approached.
Kale gasped. “They’re blindfolded.”
Marching in step and evenly spaced, they passed with faces pointed straight ahead. With precision, the four turned at the counter, just as another group entered the intersection of the two streets.
“They don’t ever collide?” she asked.
“Never,” answered Seezle. “The routine never varies, and if they start at exactly the same time and don’t vary pace or path, the march proceeds in perfect synchrony.”
“I assume you have blindfolds for us,” said Bardon.
“Oh yes.” Seezle giggled. “Only they aren’t exactly blindfolds, because you’ll be able to see right through them.”
Kale tied Bardon’s on, and he did the same for her.
She looked around the room and could see even better than before the cloth covered her eyes. “This has moonbeam thread in it, doesn’t it?”
“It does.” Seezle opened the door a crack. “Are you ready?”