Within a short time, the expedition set out, thousands of weary men who muttered amongst themselves while throwing curious glances at the litter bearing, all too clearly, the person of the Shah. They had come a very long way for no better purpose than the chopping of a few ornamental trees, and there was muttering in the ranks as they straggled rather than marched, following the wind-blown tracks they had made coming out, paying little if any attention to the world around them.
The strange ship that hovered silently above the procession had to fire a glittering burst into the sand ahead of them to get their attention. The horses reared, the harpta bellowed, the army milled about, and the twenty-member crew of the ship took them all captive in a matter of moments by virtue of superior weapons. The announcement that the world of Haven had been conquered by an off-world power came to the Mahahmbi, and to Prince Delganor, as a total and most unwelcome surprise.
A worse surprise came when he and Ybon were searched and the box that had contained the Shah’s P’naki was found to be empty.
“It contained foot powder,” said Ybon, when their captors questioned the empty box. “My horse reared and it was spilled when we were taken prisoner.”
Aufors was kept waiting by the Aresians all the following day. In late afternoon, he was taken by a Captain Dunnel of the Tracker’s Team, to meet again with Terceth Ygdaleson.
Terceth smiled grimly at him. “There’s a so-called Prince Delganor with the Mahahmbi army.”
Aufors looked up, questioningly.
“We’ve captured the army, all of it. And the Prince is looking for someone about your size.”
Aufors shrugged. “Many men my size.”
“True. Tell me, if we wanted to know something about Mahahm, would it do any good to ask Mahahmbi women?”
Aufors shook his head. “Mahahmbi women don’t know anything. Mahahmbi don’t even talk to women.”
Terceth exchanged an exasperated look with his officer.
Dunnel offered, “This man isn’t likely to be the man the Prince mentioned, Sir. He’s the right size and general description, all right, but the one the Prince mentioned was upper-mid-caste from Havenor, wasn’t he? This one is just like all the other malghaste we’ve picked up.”
Terceth smiled, eyes fixed on Aufors. “By which you mean dirty and stupid, Dunnel? Dirtiness is a condition, not an attribute, and stupidity can be a strategy. You’re probably right, but we’ll hang on to him, nonetheless. You can let the woman, the boy, and the infant go. Let this one have his belongings, except for his weapon, but keep him until I can have the Prince take a look at him.”
The officer took Aufors to the room where Awhero was, and as he packed his few belongings he whispered a few quick words.
“They’re not letting me go, but they are freeing you and the boy. I’ll have to think of some other way to get loose.” Putting his hand to the back of his head, he winced, closing his eyes. The wound there was puffed and angry, probably infected. “Awhero, take my son to Galul. Promise.”
“Of course,” she said, giving him an anxious look. “I will do it, Aufors Leys. That wound needs attention.”
“I’ll attend to it when I figure out how to get away.”
Since the few captive Mahahmbi refused to have a malghaste imprisoned among them, Aufors was taken out onto the sands and chained to a metal ring set in the side of a hastily erected sentry hut. Something about the site bothered him. He was not far outside the malghaste gate through which he had entered the city. He stared at the gate and at the desert for some time before realizing that the much-guarded building he had seen through his glasses was gone. No, certainly not gone, though as certainly invisible. A great flow of sand had covered it.
Until this moment, he had assumed that the building would have been discovered by the Aresians, who would therefore also have discovered at least a few hardened Old Friends. Some of them must have accumulated over the years. Since they had not found P’naki in the palace, it stood to reason the Shah must have kept the stuff in the guarded building. If the building had been covered at the first alarm, however, then the Aresians had neither found the store of P’naki, nor had they seen what happened to Old Friends.