“I cannot attest to this from mine own true knowledge,” the king said cautiously, “but certain seafarers have asserted that there appears to be a cave mouth on the north side of the highest pinnacle. On occasion, more adventurous ones have sought to go ashore to explore its depths, for, as is widely known, remote caves ofttimes serve as repositories for the ill-gotten gains of freebooters and pirates. The pinnacle, however, hath ever repulsed their most valiant efforts. Each time one of these brave souls attempts landing there, the sea becomes angry, and sudden storms do appear from a cloudless sky.”
“That’s it, Belgarath.” Beldin chortled exultantly. “Something’s been going out of its way to keep casual explorers out of mat cave.”
“TU-o somethings, Igather,” Belgarath agreed. “You’re right, though. WeVe finally located the exact place of die meeting. It’s in that cave.”
Silk groaned.
“Art thou ill, Prince Kheldar?” the king inquired.
“Not yet, your Majesty, but I think I’m going to be.”
“Our Prince Kheldar has difficulties with caves, your Majesty,” Velvet explained,, smiling.
“There’s nothing difficult about it at all, Liselle,” the rat-faced little man disagreed. “It’s really very simple. Every time I see a cave, I go into an absolute panic.”
“I have heard of this malady,” the king said. “One wonders what may be its mysterious source.”
“There’s nothing mysterious about the source of mine, your Majesty,” Silk said dryly. ‘ ‘I know exactly where it came from.”
“If it is thine intent to dare the perilous reef, Ancient Belgarath,” the king said then, “I will provide thee and thy companions with a stout ship to convey thee thither. I will give orders that the ship be ready to sail with the morning tide.”
“Your Majesty is very kind.”
“It is but small payment for the service thou hast rendered to me this night.” The king paused, his face reflective. “It may be even as the spirit of foul Naradas proclaimed,” he mused. “I may indeed be a vain and foolish man, but I am not immune to the promptings of gratitude. You all have preparations to make,” he said then. “I will not delay you more. We shall meet i on the morrow ere you depart.”
“We thank you, your Majesty,” Garion said, his armor
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creaking as he bowed. Then he led the others from the chamber. He was not at all surprised to see the she-wolf sitting just outside the door.
“The time is exactly right, isn’t it, Cyradis?” Polgara said to the Seeress once they were all out in the corridor. “At Ash-aba, you said it would be nine months until the meeting. As I make it, the exact time will be the day after tomorrow.”
“Thy calculations are correct, Polgara.”
“It works out precisely then. It should take us one full day to reach the reef, and we’ll go to the cave on the following morning.” Polgara smiled a bit wryly. “All this time we’ve been fretting about arriving late, and now we get there precisely on time.” She laughed. “What a waste of all that perfectly good worrying.”
“Well, now we know where and when,” Durnik said. “All that’s left to do is to go there and get on with it.”
“That sums it up, I’d say,” Silk agreed.
Eriond sighed, and Garion felt a chill suspicion that was not quite a certainty. ‘ ‘Is it going to be he?” he asked the dry voice. ‘ ‘Is Eriond going to be the one who dies ?”
But the voice would not answer.
They entered their quarters with the wolf close behind them.
“It’s been a long time getting here,” Belgarath said wearily. “I’m getting a little old for these extended journeys.”
“Old?” Beldin snorted. “You were born old. I still think youVe got a few miles left in you, though.”
“I think that when we get home, I’ll spend a century or so in my tower.”
“That’s an idea. It should take you about that long to get it cleaned up—oh, one other thing, Belgarath. Why don’t you fix that loose step?”
“I’ll get around to it.”
“Aren’t we all assuming that we’re going to win?” Silk said. “I think that making plans for the future at this point might be a bit premature—unless the Holy Seeress might see fit to let slip a hint or two about the outcome?” He looked at Cyradis.
“I would not be permitted to do that, Prince Kheldar— even if I knew the answer.”
“You mean you don’t know?” he asked incredulously.
“The Choice hath not .yet been made,” she said simply. “It may not be made until I stand in the presence of the Child of Light and the Child of Dark. Until that moment, the outcome doth still hang in the balance.”
“What good is it being a Seeress if you can’t predict the future?”
“This particular Event is not susceptible to prediction, Kheldar,” she said tartly.
“Ithink we’d all betterget some sleep,” Belgarath said. “The next couple of days are going to be hectic.”
The she-wolf followed Garion and Ce’Nedra to their room and entered with them. Ce’Nedra looked a bit startled at that, but the wolf went directly to the bed and put her forepaws up on it to look critically at the puppy, who lay sleeping on his back with all four of his paws in the air.
The wolf gave Garion a slightly reproachful look. “One notes that he has grown fat,” she said. “Your mate has ruined him with overfeeding and pampering. He is no longer fit to be a wolf. He no longer even smells like a wolf.”
“One’s mate bathes him from time to time,” Garion explained.
“Bathes,” the wolf said in a tone loaded with contempt. “A wolf should be bathed only by the rain or in the course of swimming across a river.” She dropped to her haunches. *’ One would ask a favor of your mate.”
“One will convey your request to her.”
‘ ‘One had hoped you might. Ask your mate if she will continue to care for the young one. One believes you need not add that she has spoiled him so badly that he is unfit to be anything but alapdog.”
“One will phrase your request cautiously.”
“What’s she saying?” Ce’Nedra asked.
“She wants to know if you’d be willing to take care of the puppy.”
“Of course I will. IVe wanted to do that all along.” Then she knelt and impulsively put her arms about the she-wolf’s neck. “I will care for him,” she promised.
“One notes that her scent is not unpleasant,” the wolf said to Garion.
“One has also noticed that.”
‘ ‘One was fairly certain that you had.” Then the wolf rose to her feet and silently left the room.
“She’s going to leave us now, isn’t she?” Ce’Nedra said wistfully. “I’m going to miss her.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Why else would she give up her baby?”
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“I think there’s a bit more to it than that. She’s preparing for something.”
“I’m very tired, Garion. Let’s go to bed.”
Later, in the velvet darkness as they lay close together in the bed, Ce’Nedra sighed. “1\vo more days and I’ll see my baby again. It’s been so very, very long.”
“Try not to dwell on it, Ce’Nedra. You need your rest, and thinking too much about it will keep you awake.”
She sighed again, and after a few moments, she drifted off to sleep.
‘ ‘Cyradis is not the only one who has to make a choice,” the voice in his mind told him. “You and Zandramas also have choices to make.”
” What choices are those ?”
“You have to choose your successors. Zandrafnas has already chosen hers. You should be giving some thought to your last task as the Child of Light. It’s going to be fairly significant.”
‘ 7 suppose that in a way, I ‘II sort of miss having that to carry around, but I’ll be glad to get rid of it. Now I’ll be able to go back to being ordinary again.”
‘ ‘You never were ordinary, you know. You ‘ve been the Child of Light since the moment you were born.”
“I know I’m going to miss you. ”
“Please don’t get sentimental, Garion. I may stop by from time to time, just to see how you ‘re doing. Now get some sleep.”
When he awoke the next morning, Garion lay in bed for quite some time. He had tried for very long not to think about something, but now he had no choice but to face it squarely. He had every reason in the world to hate Zandramas, but…
Finally, he slipped out of bed, dressed himself, and went looking for Belgarath.
He found the old man in the central room, seated with Cyradis. “Grandfather,” he said, “IVe got a problem.”
“There’s nothing unusual about that. What’s got you worked up this time?”