A key turned noisily in the lock and the gate creaked open. Suzy moved forward with the others sloshing along behind. The tunnel curved to the right and began to widen. Soon all three could walk abreast, and in the light from Suzy’s wings they could make out the shape of the Servant who was leading them past other tunnel openings, some of which had Servants standing in front of them, either at guard or out of curiosity to see who’d shown up.
I hope we are treated as honoured visitors, thought Arthur. I don’t know how the Key would protect me from one of their firewash projectors. I’d probably get horribly burnt but wouldn’t die …
They moved through the maze of tunnels for at least ten minutes and saw many Servants. The strange black leather-clad Denizens all had their snouted helmets on, and all of them watched silently, standing so still they might have been mistaken for statues.
At last they came to a larger space, big enough that they couldn’t see the walls or the ceiling in the light from Suzy’s wings. A Servant stood waiting for them. Arthur wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or dismayed when he saw the moonstone claws on her gloves and recognised One Who Survived the Darkness.
The Servant who had brought them to the place bowed to One Who Survived the Darkness and edged back out. Arthur nodded, Suzy gave a salute that was actually more respectful than she usually managed, and Fred bowed.
‘Greetings again,’ said Arthur. ‘I apologise for coming to your eyrie without an invitation. I have come to find Part Five of the Will of the Architect and I think it is here somewhere.’
He took out the crystal and held it up. As he did so, he noticed that the arrow was now pointing down at a sharp angle.
‘Oh! It was pointing here,’ he said. ‘Now it says farther down. Are there deeper levels?’
One Who Survived the Darkness made a series of signs.
Fred translated, ‘ “You are welcome, Lord Arthur. I have long known someone would come, from my own” … Hmm … Don’t know what that sign is … “My own,” uh, “interior”?’
One Who Survived the Darkness made another sign.
‘Close enough,’ said Fred. ‘Anyway, she’s known you would come here.’
‘Oh, right,’ said Arthur. ‘Good.’
‘“The place you seek lies below,” ’ translated Fred. ‘ “A guide will take you there to the … Interior” … no …“Inner Darkness.” ’ ‘Thanks,’ said Arthur.
‘ “Only you, Lord Arthur, may enter the secret place of the Winged Servants of the Night, but the others may go to the entrance.” ’
‘Thanks,’ said Arthur again.
‘ “Your guide will take you now. May we meet again” … uh, no … that’s actually “maybe we will meet again.” ’ ‘I hope we do,’ said Arthur. He turned to find a Servant standing silently directly behind him, and jumped.
The Servant beckoned and turned to go. Arthur nodded to One Who Survived the Darkness and quickly followed, with Suzy and Fred at his heels.
The guide led them through yet more tunnels and tunnel junctions, and once more past many Servants. Arthur wasn’t sure whether they were new ones, in which case there were an awful lot of Winged Servants of the Night inside the mountain. They all looked pretty much the same in their leather suits and snout-masked helmets.
After a while they reached a tunnel that slanted sharply down. It was barred by another iron gate, which the Servant unlocked with a key the size of Arthur’s hand. After the gate there was a series of very broad steps that took them down even more swiftly, and then at the base of the steps there was an iron manhole cover that would not have looked out of place in the Balaena, the Raised Rats’ submarine that Arthur and Suzy had travelled in under the Border Sea.
The Servant spun the locking wheel on the manhole cover and heaved it open. A wet, cold draft came billowing out, along with a curious, musty odour.
‘Phew! Bit of a stink,’ said Suzy as she held her nose. ‘What’s that from?’ …
The Servant made some signs.
‘ “The untrained animal,” ’ translated Fred.
The Servant shook his head and added some more signs and then repeated the first ones he’d used.
‘Oh, right,’ said Fred. ‘The Beast. A special kind of beast … the Beast in the Inner Darkness, or something like that.’
They all watched the Servant’s hands move again, the webbing between the fingers of its black gloves stretching as its fingers flickered, signing out another message.
‘ “We worship it … we fear it … ” ’ translated Fred. ‘ “It” … I can’t quite work out this bit …’