‘Bear to the left once we’re through the doorway. The passages on that side lead to the kitchens and the storerooms.’

‘All right then. Let’s go.’

That alien smell Sparhawk had noticed when they had first entered the city was stronger here in the dark corridors of the palace. The knights moved cautiously, listening to the echoes of the shouts of the elite guards. The palace was in turmoil, and even in a place as vast as this there were bound to be encounters. In most cases, Sparhawk and his friends evaded these by simply stepping into the dark chambers which lined the corridors. Sometimes, however, that was not possible, but the Knights of the Church were far more skilled at close combat than the Zemochs, and what noise the encounters produced was lost in the shouting that echoed through the corridors. They pressed on, their weapons at the ready.

It was nearly an hour later when they entered a large pastry kitchen where the banked fires provided a certain amount of light. They stopped there and closed and barred the doors.

‘I’m all turned around,’ Kalten confessed, stealing a small cake. ‘Which way do we go?’

‘Through that door, I think,’ Sephrenia replied. ‘The kitchens all open into a corridor that leads to the throne-room.’

‘Otha eats in his throne-room?’ Bevier asked in some surprise.

‘Otha doesn’t move around very much,’ she answered. ‘He can’t walk any more.’

‘What happened to him to cripple him?’

‘His appetite. Otha eats almost constantly, and he’s never been fond of exercise. His legs are too weak to carry him any more.’

‘How many doors into the throne-room?’ Ulath asked her.

She thought a moment, remembering. ‘Four, I think. The one from the kitchens here; another coming in from the main palace; and the one leading to Otha’s private quarters.’

‘And the last?’

‘The last entrance doesn’t have a door. It’s the opening that leads into the maze.’

‘Our first move should be to block those then. We’ll want some privacy when we talk with Otha.’

‘And anybody else who happens to be there,’ Kalten added. ‘I wonder if Martel’s managed to get here yet.’ He took another cake.

‘There’s one way to find out,’ Tynian said.

‘In a moment,’ Sparhawk said. ‘What’s this maze you mentioned, Sephrenia?’

‘It’s the route to the temple. There was a time when people were fascinated by labyrinths. It’s very complicated and very dangerous.’

‘Is that the only way to get to the temple?’

She nodded.

‘The worshippers walk through the throne-room to get to the temple?’

‘Ordinary worshippers don’t go into the temple, Sparhawk – only priests and sacrifices.’