The Clocks of Iraz
- Автор: Де Камп Лайон Спрэг
- Серия: The Reluctant King #2
- Язык: английский
- Жанр: Фэнтези
Электронная книга - «The Clocks of Iraz». Краткое содержание книги:
"After his abdication, Forimar at first found it a relief not to be pestered by his ministers for decisions about public works, and hiring and firing, and foreign affairs, and law and order, and all those other tedious matters that take up a ruler's time."
"We know whereof you speak," said King Ishbahar.
"After a while, however, Forimar began to regret his lost kingship. Whilst his brother granted him an ample stipend, it was no longer enough to enable him to gratify his artistic whims. For ensample, he had an idea for an all-Novarian poetry contest, which he hoped to make into an annual affair and thus to place Kortoli in the front rank as a cultural center. As usual, he entertained grandiose ideas for the prizes. He had already spent his allowance on paintings, sculptures, and the like and had borrowed against it until his credit was exhausted. When he besought of his brother ten thousand golden marks for poetry prizes, Fusonio told him he was out of his mind.
" 'I have enough trouble rounding up tax money to repair the damages of your reign, dear brother,' quoth he. 'Get you gone and contemplate the beauty of a daisy in the field, or something equally cheap and harmless. You shall get no money for your schemes here, unless you save up your emolument.'
"It happened that a man named Zevager had lately set up an exhibition of waxworks in Kortoli City, showing such historical tableaux as King Finjanius defying the priests, the crowning of Ardyman the Terrible as emperor of Novaria, and the beheading of the rebel Roskianus. Zevager, who prided himself on the meticulous realism and authenticity of his exhibits, besought the former king to allow such an effigy to be made of His Highness and displayed. Forimar, who had never shown any sense about money but was now straitened by its lack, demanded a fee, which Zevager paid.
"Forimar took an interest in making the image, as he did in all the arts. Thus he discovered that Zevager, besides the usual techniques of making waxen effigies, knew something of magic. He cast a glamor spell upon the image, so that it looked even more like its living model then it otherwise would have. Forimar went to the Bureau of Commerce and Licenses and learnt that Zevager had no license to practise magic in Kortoli. This gave him a handle to use in dealing with the man.
"When the exhibit of the waxen Forimar proved popular, Forimar subtly insinuated into Zevager's mind the thought of making images of King Fusonio and Queen Ivrea. For a larger bribe, Forimar undertook to gain the permission of the royal couple to having their images put on display. He said it would cost him vast sums in bribes and contributions to worthy causes favored by his brother; but in fact it cost him nought. He simply asked his brother and sister-in-law at breakfast whether they would mind if he told his old friend Zevager that he might reproduce them in wax.
" 'Not at all,' said Fusonio, 'so long as his images do not make monsters of us. It will be good public relations.'
"Thus Forimar kept all the money that Zevager paid him, but he was still far short of the ten thousand marks needed for his poetry contest. So he became more and more intimate with Zevager. Soon he enticed the showman into a conspiracy against the throne. He inveigled the magician into his plot by, on one hand, dangling before him the post of Minister of Fine Arts when Forimar should become king, and on the other hinting that, if Zevager resisted his lure, he would denounce the showman for witchcraft or unlawful magic.
"In his magical arsenal, Zevager had a spell of immobility. To effect this spell, he had to get samples of Fusonio's hair and finger-nail parings. Forimar got these for him.
"One night, when Fusonio was out on one of his pub-crawls, Zevager cast the spell upon him as he was passing near the waxwork museum. Zevager and Forimar dragged the statuesque Fusonio within, exchanged his garments with those on the waxwork, and set him up in place of the image. The effigy they hid in a lumber room.
"Then Forimar hastened to the palace, awoke his sister-in-law, and gave her a document in his brother's writing. The document stated:
"My darling Ivrea: I have departed the kingdom for a secret meeting of all the heads of Novarian city-states in Xylar City, about threatening moves by the nomads of Shven. My absence should be kept quiet as long as possible. Meanwhile, my brother Forimar is named regent. Convey my love to the children and promise them that I shall be back in a fortnight or two.
Fusonio Rex
"Actually, the document was a clever forgery. Being an artist, Forimar could feign the calligraphy of anyone he chose. Ivrea was startled; but the tale sounded plausible, since there had been rumors of an invasion from Shven.
"So Forimar ascended the throne as regent. His first act was to announce his poetry contest and appoint a committee of judges. He entered no poems of his own, knowing that he would have an unfair advantage in such a contest. This would militate against making the contest a respected annual event. He was sincere in his desire to advance the art of poetry and to promote Kortoli as a center of culture.
"Forimar's next act was to begin a purge of his brother's adherents. He retired some, sent others to far places, and demoted still others. The posts thus vacated he filled with his own supporters. He moved cautiously, not wishing to arouse suspicion. He calculated that in a month, when Fusonio was due to return, he would have the machinery of state firmly in his grip and could declare himself king.
"As for Fusonio, now standing regally in Zevager's waxworks, Forimar would decide what to do with him later. He hesitated to slay his brother, since the family had an old tradition of presenting a united front to the world despite their internal differences. On the other hand, he knew his brother for a much abler man than he, who if left alive would surely devise means to usurp the throne from the usurper.
"He reckoned, however, without Queen Ivrea. When a fortnight had passed with no word of Fusonio, she became suspicious. She besought the aid of a scryer, who sent his mystic vision to Xylar and reported that there was no sign of an international conference in that city.
"Ivrea mourned, sure that foul play had befallen her man but uncertain what to do next. One day, missing him, she stopped at Zevager's museum to look at his waxworks. Fusonio's effigy, she thought, were better than no husband at all. Zevager was delighted that the queen and several of her ladies should patronize his establishment. He showed them about with much bowing and scraping.
"When Ivrea sighted the ostensible effigy of Fusonio, she exclaimed at its verisimilitude. In fact, she said, she could scarce believe that it was not her man in the flesh. When Zevager was talking to some of the other women at the other end of the chamber, she touched the hand of the image and found that it did not feel like wax.
"Then she conceived a daring plan. She made careful note of the costume on her own effigy.
"Back in the palace, she supped that even with her brother-in-law. 'I met your friend Master Zevager today,' she said, and artlessly told of her visit. 'He said something about seeing you there tomorrow.'
" 'Oh?' said Forimar. 'Methought it was the day after tomorrow— but then, I always get dates mixed up.'
"That night, Ivrea sallied forth with a single guardsman whom she trusted and another fellow lately released from gaol for burglary. For a suitable reward, the burglar picked the lock on the door of Zevager's museum, admitted her, and locked the door behind her. Ivrea climbed the stair to the loft where the images stood. Clad almost exactly like the waxwork, she hid the effigy of herself behind a curtain and took its place.
"When sounds announced the approach of Zevager and his first customers, she stiffened to immobility. One of the viewers said that the image of the queen was so lifelike that she could swear she saw it breathe. Luckily, Zevager took this as a compliment to his glamor spell.