Geis of the Gargoyle

  Mentia turned to Surprise. “We can support you, but you are the one who must actually take and hold the philter. Can you handle it?”

  The child looked stricken. “I can do the magic I need. But nerve isn't magic, is it?”

  “No, dear,” Iris said. “It is a quality of character.”

  “I'm too young to have such character,” Surprise said, a tear forming at one eye or the other.

  “I have learned to use my messed-up magic in a new way,” Hiatus said. “Maybe you can use yours in a new way

  too, to get what you need.”

  “Gee, I can? How?”

  “Well, can you orient on what you need, as you did to find the jar of potion?”

  “No, I can't do any magic twice.”

  “But you can do similar magic. Suppose you could make things become visible, so—”

  “Sure.” Surprise crossed her eyes.

  Suddenly the chamber was littered with things. Gary looked around, trying to figure out what they were. It looked like so much garbage.

  “Talents“ Mentia said. “Those are individual talents made visible!”

  “She has the talent of seeing the talent of others,” Iris

  said. “In fact, she's given that talent to all of us.”

  “Sorry,” Surprise said. “The magic is so strong here that it turned out a whole lot stronger than I expected.”

  “And of seeing talents as individual entities,” Hiatus said. “See—you look like an illusion. Iris.”

  “And you look like a cluster of twisted roots,” Iris retorted. “But you do have a point. Gary looks like a horrendous stone gargoyle surrounded by pure water.”

  “You're beautiful,” Gayle told Gary.

  “But we must not be diverted from our need,” Mentia said sensibly. “I would love to collect all these talents and figure out what each one is. This one, for example.” She picked up a little ball of whirling whatevers—and puffed into psychedelic smoke. Gary felt seasick, watching it, and he saw Surprise getting wild. Even Gayle seemed quite nervous. Hiatus was waving his arms in some insane pattern.

  “Don't do that,” Iris snapped. “You're driving us crazy.”

  The ball dropped to the ground. Mentia's usual shape reformed. “That was the talent: that of driving people crazy.”

  “What are all these loose talents doing here?” Hiatus asked, bewildered.

  Mentia got sensible again. “This is just about the most powerful magic in Xanth, because of the focus,” she said.

  “When people fade out of the scene, it may be that their talents are left without hosts. So they must drift toward the Strong magic. Magic surely attracts magic. So they collect here.”

  “That does make sense,” Iris said. “But it doesn't solve our problem. We need nerve for Surprise.”

  “Maybe a variant,” Gary said. “Make qualities of character visible.”

  “Sure,” Surprise said, crossing her eyes.

  The talents faded. New things appeared, just about as oddly scattered. There were chunks of stone, splotches of mud, puddles of goo, portions of anatomy, chips of wood, and things that might have resembled squished insects if examined sickeningly close. These were qualities of character?

  “Some folk have strong backbone,” Mentia remarked, gazing at a fragment of human spine. “Some don't.” She looked at some goo. “But where's some nerve?”

  “Let me see,” the child said. She looked around. “Ah— there's what I need.”

  Gary looked. He saw a bit of string at the edge of the channel. He picked it up. “This? It's just lying around.”

  “That's nothing.” Hanna said derisively. “Pay it no attention.”

  “But look what it says,” Surprise said.

  He looked. The side of the string was printed with the word NERVE. That was what Hanna had said the child lacked. It seemed that it resembled a talent.

  So he took it to the child. She laid it on her little arm, and it sank in. “Now I have plenty of nerve,” she said confidently.

  “Curses, foiled again,” Hanna muttered.

  “I think she is giving up too easily,” Gayle murmured.

  Gary had to agree. The philter was as slippery and deceptive as any demon.

  “So now at last we are ready to harness the philter,” Iris said. “As I understand it, from our vision of the original conjuration of the Interface, Surprise must use her magic to pick up the demon, and the rest of us must speak the words of the conjuration. Then we add the potion in the jar-”

  “I don't remember the words,” Hiatus said. “And anyway, the philter's vision couldn't be trusted to show that part right. How do we know the real words?”

  “He's right,” Mentia said. “When you conjure a demon, you must have the ritual down perfectly, or it will turn on you and destroy you. That's why Hanna is being so submissive; she's expecting us to blunder ahead, thinking we are ready, when we're not. There must be a spellbook or something that tells how to do it.”

  “This is going on forever,” Iris exclaimed.

  “It has been three thousand years,” Gayle pointed out.

  “It will be another three thousand years, if we don't do it right.”

  “Point made,” Mentia said. “Surprise, can you do magic that will make whatever we need to do the conjuration appear? So we won't miss anything important?”

  “Sure.” The eyes crossed.

  Nothing changed.

  “Um—” Iris began.

  “I did it, really I did,” Surprise said.

  “But the philter is covering it over with illusion,” Mentia said, catching on. “Iris, if you can penetrate the illusion—”

  “Yes.” Iris's eyes assumed a faraway look. She turned around in a circle. “Yes,” she repeated. “They are glowing, under heaped layers of illusion. A little book, and a—a tangle of straps.”

  “Straps?” Mentia asked. “What do straps have to do with harnessing the philter?” Then she did a double take.

  “A harness! We need a harness! Of course. Most demons are conjured for spot purposes, but this one we mean to bind into the Interface. A magic harness will hold it there.”

  “Where are the book and harness?” Gary asked.

  “Not far away,” Iris said. “The original folk must have dropped them after they thought the job was done, and they've never been touched since.” She walked to the edge of the chamber, plunged her hand into the seeming wall, and came up with a book bound by a strap. Then she went to the other side and reached up toward the ceiling, bringing down that tangle of straps from some masked alcove.

  “Now we have it all. We can do the job.”

  Hiatus took the book and opened it. He read the instructions aloud. They were surprisingly simple. They had merely to take the philter, put the harness on it, pour the potion over it, and speak the words “Fil enter Interface, recompile.” Then put the philter in a safe place and depart.

  “Gary must speak the words,” Mentia said. “It's his mission.”

  “Why, anyone could do this,” Hiatus said, looking up.

  “Why did the Good Magician send us?”

  “Not anyone could do it,” Mentia said. “We needed you to find our way. Hiatus; you asked Desiree, who directed us to Jethro Giant, who directed us here. We needed Iris to counter the formidable illusions. We needed Gary to read the story in the old stones. And Gayle to give us the philter's true name. And me to counter the demonly aspects.

  And Surprise to do all the kinds of magic we needed along the way—and will need now, to pick up an unwilling demon. We are the only ones who can do this.”

  Suddenly it was all making sense. “Then let's do it,”

  Gary said. “If the philter is in this formation, I can find it.” He touched the stone, reading it. “There's a crevice here, and it's artificial.” He felt around the stone pedestal, and found a loose panel. He opened it, and there in a deep cubby was a flat disk, a ring with mesh across it.

  They peered in at it. “That
's it?” Hiatus asked. “That tea strainer?”

  Hanna appeared. “Of course not,” she said severely.

  “The philter is a huge mass of unfathomable complications, buried way too deep in the stone for you to ever reach. This is just a decoy.”

  “Obviously that's it,” Gary said with a smile.

  “And it is a demon,” Mentia said. “It will burn anyone who touches it unprotected. Surprise, make your hands invulnerable and take it out.”

  The child crossed her eyes. Her hands glowed. The philter assumed the form of a nickelpede, daunting her. Then she exerted her nerve and reached into the cubby and brought out the little object. It seemed like such a nonentity, after the phenomenal displays they had braved to reach it.

  Hiatus took the harness and brought it to the philter.

  There was a hiss, and he snatched his fingers away; it had burned him. So Surprise took it with her free hand and set it over the philter, and the straps enclosed it and drew themselves tight. “Ooh,” Hanna said, looking pained.

  Then Gary stood before the harnessed philter. He took the jar of potion and unscrewed the top.

  Hanna glared at him. “If you pour that potion, I'll destroy you,” she said fiercely. Gleams of dangerous light radiated from her eyes.

  Gary was daunted. But he reminded himself that this had to be a bluff. He continued to unscrew the lid.

  Hanna became a basilisk. She leaped for him, forcing him to meet her gaze. Gary was terrified, not sure whether that baleful glance would turn him to stone in human form, ruining his future with Gayle. But he forced his shaking arm to pour the powder over the harnessed philter.

  Hanna reappeared in her usual human female guise.

  “Then see this!” she cried, hoisting up her skirt.

  But Gary had steeled himself against that freakout. “Fil,” he said.

  “No!” Hanna cried, in evident anguish.

  “Enter,” Gary said.

  “You are destroying me!” Hanna said, looking distraught.

  “Interface,” Gary said, feeling guilty despite his knowledge that she was a mere illusion Grafted to appeal to him.

  “I beg of you,” she said. “Anything you want! Riches, power, fair women—”

  He was about to retort that he was a gargoyle, who needed nothing of those things. But he realized that this was another trap. He couldn't say anything except the words of the conjuration, or it would be spoiled, and might not be repeatable. The philter was still full of tricks.

  “Recompile,” he said.

  Hanna faded into smoke, with a heartrendingly despairing wail. The scene dissolved into a blinding flare of light.

  Then there was an image of darkness pierced by pinpoints of light. One of these expanded until it became a big bright ball, and near it was a small dark ball, and on the dark ball was a map of Xanth with a crown set on it. This was the mineral kingdom, Gary realized. From that map sprouted a tree, and the tree wore a crown and from it trees like it spread, covering all Xanth. This was the plant kingdom. Then an animal appeared, a seeming composite of all animals, and it wore a crown, and from it many types of other animals spread out, filling niches between the trees. This was the animal kingdom. Finally the human folk came on the scene, and made their villages, and from them spread out all the crossbreeds, and then the stone city of Hinge appeared, and from it came two invisible curtains: the Interface outside, and the limit of madness inside, and it was done.

  The scenes faded. The six people were left amidst the ruins of Hinge, standing on a weathered island in the middle of a tired pool, with barrenness all around. Their vision of madness was done. Yet somehow Gary did not feel exhilarated. The philter had been a rogue demon, selfish and sometimes dangerous, but it had put up a considerable battle and almost defeated them. It had shown them a significant aspect of the phenomenal history of Xanth. Hanna and Desi—had they really been no more than mindless figments? Now all the philter's illusions were gone. He wished it could have been otherwise.

  “Put it back in the cubby, and let's go home,” Mentia said. “We are finished here.”

  Gayle sniffed the water. “It's pure,” she said. “The geis of the gargoyle has been lifted.”

  “That means that we are free to do whatever we want,” Gary said, exchanging a significant glance with her. He was starting to feel better. “When I regain my true form.”

  “Yes,” she said demurely.

  Chapter 13

  RETURN

  They returned the way they had come, wending their way through the barrens of Hinge to the forest.

  Gary kept looking around, hoping to glimpse one more glimpse of the magnificence that was the bygone folding city, but that wonderful image was gone.

  “The philter may have been a selfish demon,” Iris said, “but it did craft a lovely vision.”

  “I'm almost sorry we had to harness it,” Hiatus said. “It had a lot of personality, for a simple object.”

  “It was a demon among demons,” Mentia said. “I can admire it, now that I'm not fighting it.”

  The others nodded agreement. They had done what they had to do, but the fruit of their victory seemed dull. Gary was relieved to know that he was not the only one to feel some respect for their vanquished and harnessed opponent.

  They followed Jethro's footprints until they reached the fallen giant. He was now sitting up. “I think you must have accomplished something,” he said. “The madness feels different.”

  “It is being confined,” Mentia explained. “It will retreat slowly to its former boundary, and remain there.”

  “That is good news,” the giant said. “Any day now I shall heave myself the rest of the way up and try to blunder back to Xanth proper.”

  They wished him well and went on.

  Next they came to Desiree Dryad and her tree. The two were still in sad state, but she looked more cheerful than before.

  Hiatus approached her. “I can help your tree,” he said.

  “I know.”

  “You know?”

  “I had this weird dream of you, being in the middle of a strange ancient city,” she said. “And in my dream I called myself Desi, and I—” She paused, looking modestly pained. “I think you are a nicer person than I thought before, steadfast and true, and if you would like to remain here—”

  “First let me mend your tree,” he said. He bent to its base, and concentrated, and round roots sprouted, displacing the square ones. Almost immediately the tree brightened, its leaves uncurling and turning green. The roots were performing.

  As the tree recovered, so did Desiree. She went rapidly from haggard to plain to radiant. By the time Hiatus straightened up from his exertion of magic, she was the very loveliest of ladies. And as he turned to face her, she stepped into his embrace and kissed him. Little red hearts flew out and dissolved, making the scene around them rose-colored.

  “Hiatus has his reward,” Mentia said. “And I think he likes it as well as anything the philter offered him.”

  The others agreed. They walked on, knowing that they would not be missed.

  They found Richard and Janet, and explained that the madness would be retreating, but it would take time. The two were reassured. “And I think Hiatus and Desiree will marry,” Ins said wisely. “I am sure they will want you to visit.”

  They passed Castle Zombie and informed Millie the Ghost of her son's success. Millie was duly gratified.

  In due course they reached the golem household. Surprise immediately reverted to golem size and leaped into the embrace of her mother.

  “But is she—?” Grundy inquired cautiously.

  Iris looked sober. “I know this will come as a regret to you, but Surprise discovered that she can perform each magic talent only once. She is determined not to waste any more magic. So she will be very restrained. In fact, she is apt to become a distressingly normal child, except in emergencies.”

  Grundy considered. “No more wild magic? No more out-of-control effects? That is a r
egret.” But somehow he did not seem unhappy.

  Rapunzel grew to normal human size and brought the child to them in turn. Surprise gave them each a tiny hug.

  “Thanks for the great adventure,” she told Gary. “We must do it again sometime.” Then she dissolved into a naughty titter. She was definitely normal.

  “That reminds me,” Iris said. “Surprise will tell you a fantastic tale that you will find almost impossible to believe. But you must make the effort, for it is true.”

  They made their way to the Brain Coral's Pool, promising the figgle nothing but giving it a fig at the end. As they approached the pool. Magician Trent came out to meet them.

  “When I was twenty-three the first time, my romance was bad,” Iris said. She looked very determined and feminine and appealing, which was odd because she was using no illusion at all. She had evidently come to a significant decision. “This time I'm going to make it good.” And she put her arms around Trent and shoved him into the pool.

  They sank together without a splash, kissing as they disappeared.

  “Ah, the follies of youth,” Mentia remarked. “It's a good thing that we who are many centuries old aren't like that.” But she looked somewhat wistful.

  “Are you really that dissatisfied with the situation of your better half?” Gary inquired.

  “After seeing how much you living folk enjoy romance, I'm beginning to wonder,” the demoness confessed.

  “Why not go back and try it, then?” Gayle asked.

  Mentia shrugged, her shoulders passing along the length of her body in her old, slightly crazy, way. “Maybe I will.

  But look, you illustrious animals—if you ever go out on another mad adventure—”

  “We'll be sure to invite you along,” Gary said.

  “Thank you.” The demoness vanished.

  Magician Trent emerged from the pool. His hair was disheveled and there were kisses all over his face. “I don't think I properly appreciated my wife before,” he remarked.

  “Youth is intriguing. I discover a new horizon of emotion and experience ahead, and am most interested in exploring its avenues. But there is something I have to do first.” He gestured, and suddenly Gary had his natural body back. He was a gargoyle again.