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as Jim knew from past experience, tucked safely into the pouch of one of his
cheeks.
"I told the Cliffside dragons to spread the word the French dragons would
help. They were very impressed," he said. "After that, I came here."
"Well done," said Jim, "and thank you, Secoh. You have more wisdom than I
have when it comes to saving what's worthwhile."
"Oh, thank you, m'Lord," said Secoh. Dragons could not blush, but judging
from the way Secoh ducked his head, if he could have blushed, he would have.
"I know it's not true, but it's very good of you to say it, m'Lord. Very
good!"
"Nonsense," said Jim grimly. "I meant every word of it. Now we've got to get
back to Sir John; and hope we didn't make him too angry."
"I don't understand why he's so important?" asked Secoh, as they went back.
Happily, the dragon still kept his voice down so that Chandos would not have
overheard him.
"It's a george thing," said Jim, shortly, with no time to explain fully.
" 'Thing'?" echoed Secoh puzzledly, behind him; but they were already back
with Chandos. He looked at them both and smiled agreeably. He had either got
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over his temper, or decided to lie back and see what might come, like the old
fox Jim knew him to be.
"I take it we can finish our talk now, Sir James?" he asked.
"Absolutely, Sir John," said Jim, "and again my apologies."
Chandos made a dismissing gesture with his right hand.
"Not necessary," he said, "but it will be something of a change for me, Sir
James. Some day, perhaps I can even finish that conversation I started with
Carolinus just before he vanished."
"I'm sorry about that too " Jim was beginning; but once more Chandos waved
his words away.
"Not at all. Pay no attention to what I just said," said Chandos. "I seem not
to be in my best manners. I will strive to amend that. Now, we were
considering the puzzle of how King Jean intended to invade in five days, when
he hadn't even started to embark his men. I believe you said something about
the sea serpents."
"Oh, yes," said Jim. "I was mentioning that he had the sea serpents to help
him. They can be useful helping to tow his boats out of difficulties or help
him across the Channel, if necessary; they're so large and powerful. But it
occurred to me that he also might think that sending them in first might be
considered the beginning of the invasion. I thought I heard you or Carolinus
say something about the fact that there were some already roaming this part of
the countryside, and I can see for myself how people have taken refuge in this
castle of mine because of it."
Chandos frowned.
"I don't like to think of our levies having to fight these enormous sea
serpents, from what I understand of them," he said. "We'll have enough trouble
with the French, alone, if they manage their landing."
"I think that's just it," said Jim. "They won't have any trouble landing if
they land unopposed. And they may well land unopposed if they have a screen of
sea serpents out in front of them clearing the way. Those who've been prowling
around here so far may be just the first ones to come. Scouts, to spy out the
land, as it were."
Chandos looked thoughtful.
"I suppose," he said. "Yes, Sir James, you could well be right. But if that's
the plan, we need to know it in advance. And how could we possibly find out? I
don't suppose we could ask one of these sea serpents and have him tell us?"
"Why not?" boomed the voice of Rrrnlf above them. "Stay here. I'll go get you
one."
As they both turned to look at him, he placed one hand on a solid portion of
the wall. Without warning, he vaulted over it, landing on the far side of the
moat with so much of his massive weight upon his relatively small feet that
his sandals sank deeply into the dry earth beyond.
The wall was too stoutly built to crumble, as Jim had immediately feared that
it would do. But it shuddered; and a quiver ran through the wooden walkway
under the feet of both Jim and Chandos; so that they both had to grab at the
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stone of the wall itself, to keep from falling over or even falling off.
He woke to the fact Chandos was speaking to him.
" And so, perhaps, Sir James," the older knight was saying, "perhaps at last,
now you might tell me all of your experiences and discoveries, since you last
chose to vanish from my sight just as I was about to send you to France."
Chapter Twenty-Nine
By the time Jim had finished telling Chandos the whole of their adventures,
the sun was out of sight behind the trees, and could only be just above the
horizon. Fantastically, still maintaining his balance on the walkway, Secoh
had tucked his dragon head under one wing and gone to sleep while Jim was
talking.
Jim had only noticed this after he had been talking for a while; and at first
it had puzzled him. Then he had realized that Secoh must be very, very tired
indeed after flying in to gather the young dragons, flying out to the boat
with them, then flying back to land again, visiting the Cliffsiders and then
coming here, very probably with only the slight pause at the Cliffsider cave
while he showed them the jewels and talked with them. It would have been
impossible not to talk with them for a while. The dragon way forbade that
impoliteness. But their conversation could not have been long.
Meanwhile, Chandos had been listening without a word. His face was as calm
and undisturbed as usual, except for one moment where he evidently could not
help lifting his eyebrows, at Jim's description of the size of Granfer.
Jim had been surprised that Chandos had not reacted earlier when he had first
mentioned a monster. But he had seemed to take that individual completely in
stride. Everybody in the fourteenth century knew that there were monsters in
the sea.
But the idea that the monsters could be any larger than the sea serpents he
had heard of, or the Sea Devil he had seen, stretched the limits of Chandos's
imagination beyond reasonable limits.
Nonetheless, he listened until Jim was through. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]