"There is only one hope," said Carolinus. He looked back at Jim. "And I am barred from even counseling you in ways to go about it, James. Somehow, you must reach the battlefield in time to stop the war with neither side having won, unmask the false Prince, and have the real Edward here with us recognized in his place. It is just past dawn now; and even though you have been up all night I counsel you start immediately. I have told Raoul where the meeting place will be—which is not too far from the location of that earlier Battle of Poitiers, the English having gotten word of the French advance and turned south to look for better defensive position."
What he said about the dawn was true, Jim suddenly realized. It hardly seemed that a whole night could have gone past, what with their escape from the castle and Carolinus's talk; but the light of the coming day was already brightening the sky to the east, paling the last flames of the fire, which had sunk down and burned itself out to the point of being little more than embers.
"I have horses for all of us," said Raoul.
"We have our own horses and gear back at our camp," said Brian. "We cannot be far from it, even now."
"You aren't," said Bernard. "I can go fetch them in moments."
"Their gear only, Bernard," ordered Raoul. He smiled sardonically at them. "It would be a strange thing if a French knight, in France, could not supply you with better mounts than those you have procured. And I have."
Chapter Thirty-One
"Horses for all of us" referred to horses on which the humans could ride, and these were very good animals indeed, furnished with saddles, bridles, and all necessary gear. But they were, necessarily, for the humans alone. Secoh and Aragh were left with no option but to travel under their own power.
This was no problem for Secoh, who could fly. As for Aragh, he traveled along with the horses quite easily, clearly deriving a certain amount of evil enjoyment from the fact that he made them nervous if he moved close to them. In fact, his deliberate scaring of the horses this way pushed things to the point where Jim had to ask him to stop it.
Aragh made no pretense of not understanding what he was talking about.
"I have to admit it's good entertainment," Aragh said.
"However, under the circumstances and considering the fact we've work before us, I'll do as you say, James, and keep off a little ways. That is, unless the road happens to crowd us together—then, if these big, four-legged clodhoppers of yours get upset because I'm close, don't blame me for it."
"In that case," said Jim, "I won't."
Secoh was not so well able to keep up with them on foot. A dragon walking on his hind legs, although it might be work for him, could keep up well enough with horses at a walk. However, Raoul took advantage of open stretches to trot the horses. This was a little hard on Jim; who had not yet, in spite of a year in this world, become a real horseman. But it was even harder on Secoh. A dragon could run on his hind legs, but it was an energy-expensive exercise and not one that he was built for. And Secoh's presence alongside had a tendency to spook the horses even more than Aragh's did.
A solution was found by Secoh being directed to a place later on where he could meet them, and taking off to get there by wing and await their arrival. This worked quite well, with Secoh flying anywhere from fifteen minutes to half an hour ahead of them, and then joining them when they stopped to breathe the horses, or to eat and drink.
The weather was still sunny, and warm without being too warm. They made excellent time and soon crossed the trail of the French army. They saw evidence and heard eye-witness accounts from local people whom Sir Raoul was able to approach and question—although these same individuals would have run from Jim or any of his other Companions—that confirmed that the army was at least a good two days ahead of them. The path of the French host seemed to be curving westward. They all took this to mean that the French had learned that the British forces were moving off in that direction and were now in active pursuit of them.
"You never did get to tell me how you come to be here. You're an Ambassador, you said?" Jim asked Secoh at one of their meal stops.
They were stopping more frequently now, on the excuse of resting the horses, or of eating or drinking something themselves, or just about any reason that one of them could dream up. The truth of the matter was that all of them, except Secoh and Sir Raoul, were dead for want of sleep; and no one wanted to be the first to fall asleep in the saddle.
"I never got to tell it right," said Secoh sulkily. "Carolinus stopped me before I could."
"I know," said Jim sympathetically, "but there's so many important things going on…"
He let the words trail off. Secoh brightened up a little and shed his sulkiness.
"Oh, well," he said, "what happened was that Carolinus told me about you and the Dark Powers; and how they were steering you to those two rogue dragons in the old château. So I went to the Cliffside Dragons again and suggested that they send me as an Ambassador to let you know what your rights were with the French dragons; in a case like this where two of them who had turned rogue had gotten hold of a valuable passport—for which they would all be held responsible. Well, to make a long story short, after not too much talk at all they agreed to let me go; even though it meant that they had to pony up a few extra jewels to accredit me as an Ambassador."
"That was good of them," Jim said. "I didn't think they were that concerned about me, actually."
"Well, truthfully," said Secoh, "they were really more concerned about the jewels they'd given you for the passport. Their jewels."
"In fact, the truth is," went on Secoh in a sudden burst of candor, "I was a little concerned about the jewel I'd put into the passport collection myself. You see, it was the only jewel I had left of my family hoard. It had first been acquired by my great-grandfather, eleven times removed; and each father swore his son never to part with it. My father swore me, and I never did let go of it, no matter how hungry I got out on the meres."
A single tear formed in one of his eyes and rolled down his long, bony muzzle.
"Now, maybe," he said, "it's lost forever."
"Secoh, that was wonderfully generous of you!" said Jim. "To put something that meant that much to you in, just to start the collection of jewels for my passport."
The tear now reached the end of Secoh's muzzle and his right nostril. He snuffled it up.
"Oh well," he said, "what are friends for? Besides, it wasn't actually like giving it away. I was sure I'd get it back."
"You will, Secoh, you will," said Jim grimly. "Either that or something just as good. I'll find those two dragons I dealt with and make them hand the passport back! And if I don't, I'll find some way—I don't know just how yet, but I'll find some way—of replacing it with one just as good."
"It's not easy," Secoh snuffled. "We dragons don't gamble, you know—not for anything as valuable as jewels, anyway."
"I'll still get it for you or replace it," said Jim. "First I'll try confronting those two dragons."
"If you can find them," said Secoh. "Remember, this is France, and they're French. They could know places to hide where you'd never be able to locate them."
"Anyway I'll do it—" Jim was beginning, when Secoh cut him off.
"Actually," Secoh said, "Carolinus thought, and I agreed with him, that it would be much better for you to put pressure on the community of French dragons in general. If they let a passport like that be stolen by one of their own dragons, and word of it gets out, no other community or nation of dragons anywhere is going to trust them, no matter what they bring as passports. Either that, or else all the other communities will feel free to help themselves to any passport they're offered. The French dragons have a lot to lose if you put pressure on them, James. Also, they'd be much better than you or I would, at finding those two rogue dragons and making them give up the passport."
"How would I put pressure on them?" Jim asked.
"Well, that's the point of my being an Ambassador," said Secoh. "You see, I can speak for y
ou. I can contact the French dragons, get a hearing with the responsible ones among them and explain the situation. I can convey any demand you want. You can authorize me to ask for anything you can think of as a penalty, including the return of the passport. The penalty can be something that's worth so much more than the passport, that they wont be able to wait to give it back to you instead of meeting your demand."
"Is that so?" asked Jim, suddenly very interested.
"Time to mount up and get going again." Sir Raoul's voice overrode the various conversations that were going on.
More than a little saddle-sore, Jim climbed back into the high cantled medieval saddle that had been his prison for the last seven or eight hours, groaning silently as the inside of his legs, where it felt as if the skin had been rubbed off, came once more in contact with the saddle leathers. The pain was only momentary; and his mind was once more wide awake. What Secoh had just told him had started him thinking.
As they set off again, his thoughts were busy. His first concern was what kind of price he could ask for the missing passport. There had to be some kind of opportunity there. At first he seemed to be able to think of nothing that could match the tremendous value of those oversized gems he had brought into France. If his guess was right, there was probably enough value in them to buy up half the land in France. He continued to think, however; and at last an idea came to him. At the next rest stop, about half an hour later, he took up the conversation with Secoh again.
"Tell me something," he asked the mere-dragon. "The French dragons don't like the French georges any better than the English dragons like the English georges, do they?"
"I should say not," answered Secoh promptly. "Oh, I don't mean that certain georges aren't likable—like yourself and Sir Brian, whom I've gotten to know now; and maybe this Sir Giles, since evidently he's half-seal, him being a selkie and not like other georges. But nearly all the georges, English and French both, are just like Sir Hugh—you remember Sir Hugh de Bois de Malencontri, who had your castle before you? He captured me and promised me my life if I'd call you down so they could capture you when you were headed out toward the Loathly Tower. You recall that? And then, after I'd done it and they'd captured you, he only laughed when I asked to be turned loose, and said he wanted my head for his wall."
"Then I've got an idea," said Jim. "I've been doing some thinking and it seems to me the thing to do is to ask a price of them that they can't refuse to pay, but that they will not, dare not pay; for one reason or another."
"I don't understand, James," said Secoh. "How can you come up with a price like that?"
"I'll tell you," said Jim.
It had occurred to him that he might be able to kill two birds with one stone—or rather shoot two birds with one arrow, to put it in the language of this world and period. "Suppose you tell them for me that I demand they show up with the jewels in three days. Also, every dragon in France of fighting age and condition has to turn up at the battlefield between the English and the French, to form a formation to fight on the English side against the French."
Secoh stared at him.
"I don't… Yes I do!" said Secoh suddenly. "They don't like individual georges, but they've got to live in France with them; and if all the georges here set out to make a job of getting rid of all the dragons, their lives won't be worth living. And that's exactly what would happen if they started fighting on the English side. They'll have to produce the passport—or if they can't, a bag of gems just as valuable! James, you must be the smartest george in the world!"
"I doubt that," said Jim, "and anyway, it doesn't matter. Will you carry that message to them then? Remember, use just the words I gave you. They are to show up in a formation to fight on the English side."
"Why are the particular words so important?" asked Secoh, looking at him oddly.
"Just take my word for it," Jim said. "As Carolinus said, this is something I can't explain. I couldn't and I wouldn't. It's critical you tell them exactly the words I just gave you."
"Oh I'll do that all right," said Secoh. "You want them to show up in formation ready to fight with the English, and with the passport, in three days. That's not much time."
"No, it isn't," said Jim. "Maybe you'd better start looking for them right now. Right away."
"I'll go right now!" said Secoh.
He waddled off to one side to get some wingroom, crouched a little, and extended his wings to their full length in the up position. There was a terrific clap of air from his initial downbeat as he sprang into the air and began quickly to mount into the sky. The tethered horses whinnied, screamed, and reared in alarm.
"What's going on?" shouted Sir Raoul from a little distance away. "Sir James, what is this?"
Jim decided it was time that Sir Raoul understood very clearly who was in charge of their party.
He walked over to where the others stood.
"Sir Raoul," he said, "none of us know your rank."
Sir Raoul frowned darkly.
"My family name and my rank are my secret, Sir James," he said, "and you still have not answered my question of a moment ago."
"I'm in the process of answering it right now," said Jim. "We respect your wish to keep your real rank and name a secret. But there is no secret about something else. That something else is that I am a magician. Are you a magician, Sir Raoul?"
Sir Raoul's frown became a scowl.
"What nonsense is this?" he said. "You know I am not!"
"Nor is anyone else here, I believe?" said Jim.
"Of course not," said Sir Raoul.
"Then perhaps you'll understand that there can only be one leader here," Jim said. "That is the knight who is also a magician. Myself. You are entrusted with showing us the way to the place that Carolinus told you of because none of the rest of us can find it as easily as you can. But I am in command. Do you have any disagreement with that?"
For a moment they stood with their gazes locked together. Then Sir Raoul looked down.
"No, Sir James," he said in a lower voice. "Indeed you are right. There can be only one leader; and that leader can only be yourself."
"Good. I am glad we're agreed," said Jim. "Now I'll tell you this once, but in the future I'll not explain things. I've sent Secoh off on a special mission. I'm sorry it disturbed the horses and perhaps yourself. But that's all you need to know about it, and all you will know."
Sir Raoul nodded slowly, and looked up at him.
Jim turned to look at the others, who had come alert at the sound of the two men's voices. Jim looked them over. They were all obviously out on their feet—all except perhaps Aragh, who may just have been better at hiding his reactions. Aragh lay on his belly with his paws stretched out before him, his head on his forepaws and his yellow eyes looking up at Jim.
It was remarkable, thought Jim, that Aragh showed no sign of weariness at all. He must be as tired as the rest of them. Or was he? Jim had a sudden memory of finding Aragh napping after they had all spent some time searching Malvinne's rooms for any sign of the color red. For a second Jim felt a slight twinge of jealousy; then he put it from him. That small nap could have made some difference, but it could not make much. Essentially, Aragh had been as awake and busy as the rest of them since they had left their camp the night before their rendezvous in the woods with Bernard.
He looked again at Brian, Giles, Dafydd, and the Prince. They all looked exhausted.
Brian and Giles, he knew, would fall out of their saddles rather than admit to being weary before somebody else did. The Prince, obviously, had been brought up in a comparable school. He was royal, therefore he should be able to do better than any other man there in anything—even if it came to staying awake. Nonetheless, it was time to put a stop to this. Jim turned back to Sir Raoul.
"I know it's only midafternoon," he said to the French knight, "but I think we've reached the point where we should rest. We'll find the closest protected place and catch up on our sleep. Better to start out at dawn with a full nig
ht behind us, than ride half-stupid with tiredness directly into some situation we might otherwise avoid. Do you know of any place close to here where we could put up for the night?"
"I have friends," said Sir Raoul simply. "If you will mount and follow me."
He led them less than three miles before they came to a small castle. It was as he had said; he was recognized immediately not merely by the owners of the place but by the guard at the gate. Gratefully and wearily, they accepted the quarters that their host offered them—all except Aragh, who as usual preferred to stay out from under a roof if he possibly could.
"I will do my sleeping in the woods," he said; and left them before there could be any argument.
Jim woke automatically in the gray dawnlight coming through the single window slit of the chamber in which he, Brian, Giles, and Dafydd—all except Sir Raoul and the Prince, whom Jim suspected of having been offered slightly better quarters of their own—were sleeping on pallets.
Jim found himself feeling remarkably refreshed and full of energy. It was not until he tried to get to his feet and discovered how stiff he was from riding, that anything marred this good physical feeling.
The castle was small enough that they had no trouble making their way to the Great Hall and finding a servant, whom Jim sent in search of Sir Raoul. When the other arrived, he arranged for breakfast; and shortly after that they were in the saddle once more, joined by Aragh.
The second day's riding, Jim discovered, was not as hard as the first. To a certain extent, as the morning brightened, he rode off his soreness. Also, he had taken advantage of his overnight stay to pad his legs under his hose in the area where they had rubbed against the leathers. That day, the signs that they were on the trail of the French army began to become very fresh, in the way of wagon tracks and horse droppings. Accordingly, they swung wide to bypass the army and continue safely toward the destination Carolinus had given.
They made good time; and before noon they came upon evidence that they were on the track of the English forces. The two armies were closer to each other than anyone had guessed.