“He will see something, Meliadus, that will show that your hatred for Hawkmoon is diminishing and that your love for the emperor is abiding and deep. Do not they tell us that love and hate are close together. Therefore

your hatred of Huon will become love, with a little doctoring on my part.”

“Good. Now let us discuss the rest of our project. First we must find a way of bringing Castle Brass back to this dimensionor else of finding a way through ourselves secondly we must discover a means of re-activating the Black Jewel in Hawkmoon’s skull and thus getting him into our power again. Lastly we must devise weapons and so forth to enable us to overcome Huon’s forces.”

Kalan nodded. “Of course. There are already the new engines I invented for the ships…”

“The ships that Trott left with?”

“Aye. The engines drive vessels faster and farther than anything ever before invented. Trott’s ships are the only ones so far equipped with them. Trott should be reporting to us soon.”

“Where did he go?”

“I am not sure. Only he and King Huon knewbut it must have been a good distance awayseveral thousand miles at the least. Perhaps to Asiacommunista.”

“That seems likely,” Meliadus agreed. “Still, let us forget Trott and discuss the details of our plan. Taragorm, also, is working on a device which might help us reach Castle Brass.”

“Perhaps it would be best for Taragorm to concentrate on that line of research, since it is his speciality, while I try to find a means of activating the Black Jewel,” Kalan suggested.

“Perhaps,” murmured Meliadus. “First, I think, I will consult my brother-in-law. I’ll leave you now and return shortly.”

With that, Meliadus summoned his slaves who brought his litter. He climbed into it, waved farewell to Kalan, and directed the girls to take him to the Palace of Time.

Chapter Three

Taragorm of The

Palace of Time

IN TARAGORM’S STRANGE palace, shaped like a gigantic clock, the air was full of clanks and whirrs and the whistling of pendula and balance wheels and Taragorm, in his huge clock mask which told the time as accurately as the other clocks in the palace, took Meliadus’s arm and guided him through the Hall of the Pendulum where, a short distance above Meliadus’s head, the huge brass bob, made to resemble an ornate, blazing sun, flung its fifty ton weight back and forth across the hall.

“Well, brother,” Meliadus shouted above the noise, “you sent me a message that you said I would be pleased to hear, but the message only told me to come to see you.”