Chapter 9
The King of Ramman listened to Archer’s story with great interest.
But his interest in the two travelers grew considerably when Archer demonstrated the power of his magic brush.
The smile disappeared from the king’s face.
He fell deep into thought.
So deep, and for so long, that the court physician finally asked:
“Your Majesty, is something wrong?”
Only then did the king snap out of his thoughts.
He smiled again and returned his attention to the saviors of the Four Crowns.
“What can the Crown do to repay you?” the king asked.
“Allow me to be a guest in your world and explore it,” Archer replied. “And allow me to travel to the terraforming machine and witness its reactivation.”
“Modest. Very modest,” the king said.
“I didn’t come to your world in search of riches,” Archer said. “I came for experience. For adventure.”
“Yes, indeed,” the king said. “What can a king offer a man who can simply paint anything he desires into existence?”
“Freedom,” Archer replied.
The king laughed.
“I suppose so,” he said. “Very well, Archer. As you wish.
“Go to the terraforming machine. Witness its reactivation. Find the experience you came here seeking.
“But I ask only one thing of you: don’t leave our world without saying goodbye.
“Come and visit me at least once more when you’re free.”
“Agreed,” Archer said.
“Captain Glimorsky,” the king said, turning to him. “What reward do you desire for your service?”
“Your Majesty,” Glimorsky replied. “Make me a baron.”
“Done,” the king replied without hesitation.
“Bring Sir Glimorsky the Baron’s Star,” he ordered.
Archer glanced at Glimorsky.
The captain’s eyes lit up.
He seemed unable to believe that becoming a nobleman had been that easy.
The Baron’s Star—a special insignia worn by members of the baronage—was brought into the throne room.
The king rose from his throne, took the star, and ordered Glimorsky to approach and kneel before him.
The captain obeyed.
The king fastened the star to Glimorsky’s military uniform, placed a hand on the man’s right shoulder, and said:
“Rise, and be known henceforth as Baron Sir Glimorsky.”
The people gathered in the throne room applauded.
Glimorsky rose to his feet amid the applause and proudly straightened his back.
There was a smile on his face, though a trace of tension remained.
When the applause died down, the king asked him:
“Am I to assume you’ll be retiring?”
“Your Majesty,” Glimorsky replied, “I would like to escort the aquameter to its final destination and be present when the terraforming machine is activated.
“As captain of the Green Ripper.”
“So be it,” the king said calmly. “Go with my blessing.”
The king returned to his throne and sat down.
Fenrik returned soon afterward and reported that the fleet was ready to depart.
The king instructed the admiral to arrange for the newly appointed Baron Glimorsky to participate in the activation of the terraforming machine and to allow Archer and Sol to witness it as well.
He clarified that, for the time being, Glimorsky would remain in the Royal Fleet as captain of the Green Ripper.
“It will be done, Your Majesty!” Fenrik replied.
The admiral took the aquameter from the scientific advisor and secured the artifact inside a protective case.
“All of you, with me,” Fenrik said to Glimorsky and his men, as well as Archer and Sol.
They left the throne room.
On the way out of the palace, Fenrik turned and looked at Glimorsky.
“A baron?” the admiral said, raising an eyebrow.
“To each his own,” Captain Glimorsky replied.
“Whatever you say, Sir Glimorsky,” the admiral said with a mischievous smile.
Glimorsky laughed.
“Listen,” Fenrik said without slowing down. “Word of the aquameter has reached the other kingdoms.
“The fighting stopped half an hour ago.
“Our analysts believe our expeditionary fleet may be attacked by the Vakit-Disserman coalition.
“If that happens, we won’t make it to our destination.”
Fenrik stopped, turned, and placed a hand on Glimorsky’s shoulder.
“If we’re destroyed, you must activate the terraformer yourselves.
“You can create another aquameter, can’t you?”
“What are you planning?” Glimorsky asked.
“The fleet will leave without the Green Ripper. You’ll take a different route to the terraformer, with griffins aboard.
“If your ship is intercepted, mount the griffins and fly close to the ground under cover of darkness.
“Reach the terraformer and activate it at any cost.”
“Does the king know about this?” Glimorsky asked.
“The king must not know,” the admiral said. “We believe members of the royal family are conspiring with Disserman.
“We don’t know who the traitors are or how many of them there are, but the king has been compromised—and so has the Royal Fleet.
“We have to act in secret.
“Do you understand?” Fenrik asked. “The Ripper. The long way around. Griffins. Terraformer.
“Make it happen.”
“What about you?” the captain asked.
“I have to behave as though I still have the artifact,” the admiral replied. “My crew needs to see it aboard my ship.
“Then I expect the coalition will come after me, and you’ll be able to slip through unnoticed.”
“They could kill you,” Glimorsky said.
“A small price to pay for saving the world.”
Fenrik continued walking.
Glimorsky turned to Archer and Sol.
“We’re going to need another aquameter,” he told Archer.
Archer reached into his pocket for the brush, but the baron stopped him.
“Not here,” Glimorsky said.
“Come on.”
They returned to the griffins, mounted them, and flew back to the harbor.
By the time they boarded the Green Ripper, five griffins were already waiting on the main deck.
Captain Glimorsky’s first order was for Besma to destroy the ship’s radio receiver.
The first mate was surprised by the command, but went to carry it out personally.
Then the captain turned to the navigator.
“We leave immediately.”
“Aye, Captain.”
The navigator hurried toward the bridge.
The ship sounded its departure signal. The mooring lines were cast off, and the Green Ripper took to the sky.
Archer and Sol were given quarters in the captain’s cabin.
“Archer,” Sol said. “You need to sleep.”
“What do you mean?” Archer asked.
“If you die, you come back to life at the place where you last rested, correct?” Sol asked.
“Oh. Yes, you’re right,” Archer said. “Right now, the last place I rested was the oasis in the dried-up sea.
“The oasis I erased.
“I have no idea where I’d even reappear if I died.
“Yes, you’re right. I need to sleep.
“Thanks, Sol.”
Archer took out the brush and saw that its charge was nearly full.
He was surprised by how much it had recharged from all the experience he had gained.
The Painter found himself wondering how much else he still didn’t know about the brush.
What other secrets was it hiding?
He painted himself a pair of earplugs and put them in his ears.
Then he painted a sleep mask, slipped it over his eyes, and lay down on one of the couches in the captain’s cabin.
Within an hour, he was asleep.
A week passed.
The Green Ripper continued along its indirect route toward the terraformer.
Captain Glimorsky worried about the main expeditionary force under Admiral Fenrik’s command.
The baron imagined a massive battle in the skies.
Cannons firing.
Boarding actions.
Ships’ ammunition stores exploding.
Griffins attacking.
“There’s one thing I don’t understand,” Archer said to the captain. “Why would the other kingdoms want to stop Ramman from activating the terraforming machine?”
“They’re afraid of losing power,” the captain explained. “With water as scarce as it is, a king is whoever controls the water sources.
“But if water becomes limitless, why would people need to obey kings?
“Why would they need a monarchy at all?”
“Then why isn’t the King of Ramman afraid of losing his power?” Archer asked.
“I’d like to think he cares more about the fate of the world than his own power,” Glimorsky replied. “He would gladly trade his crown for the well-being of his people.
“He’s a good man.”
On the tenth day of their journey, the Green Ripper reached its destination.
A mountain range stretched across the horizon. Hidden somewhere within it was the entrance to Arken’s Depths, named after the geologist who had discovered the vast underground network of artificially created caverns.
The depths extended for miles beneath the planet’s crust.
Far below the surface lay the control console for the terraforming machine.
Captain Glimorsky had descended into Arken’s Depths once before, during his first years of service in the Royal Fleet.
The place had become a pilgrimage site for many captains and nobles, as well as scientists and archaeologists.
When the Ripper came within a few miles of the entrance, the captain received word of another vessel.
An enemy ship was hovering directly above them, high in the stratosphere.
Unable to contact the Green Ripper by radio, the vessel resorted to signal lights, flashing a simple message:
Leave the area or be destroyed.
“What do we know about them?” Glimorsky asked the lookouts.
“Optical observation identifies the vessel as a cruiser,” one of the lookouts reported. “More detailed specifications are unknown. The ship refuses to identify itself.”
“It’s bigger than we are, and it has the advantage of altitude,” Glimorsky said, thinking aloud. “And we don’t know whether there are any other enemy ships in the sector.”
The captain looked down at the map.
“Turn us around! Signal the unidentified vessel that we’re leaving the area.
“Navigator, over here!”
The navigator handed his station over to his deputy and approached the captain.
Glimorsky marked a rendezvous point on the map with his pencil.
“Take the Ripper here—far enough away that we don’t provoke the enemy cruiser,” Glimorsky said.
“Our boarding party will fly into the caverns on griffins. I’ll lead them myself.
“When we’ve completed the mission, we’ll rendezvous with you at this location.”
The captain tapped the pencil mark on the map.
“Is that clear?”
“Clear, Captain,” the navigator replied.
“Carry on. I’m handing over command.”
“I have command!” the navigator said, immediately beginning to issue orders to his crew.
“Follow me,” the captain said to Archer and Sol as he left the bridge.
“We’ll fly into Arken’s Depths on griffins with the boarding party and hope no one spots us.
“The enemy may have people inside the Depths. Or they may not.
“We have to be ready for anything.
“Archer, how many aquameters can you create?”
“How many do you need?” Archer asked.
“We’ll take five griffins and ten people.
“Ten artifacts would be ideal.”
“All right,” Archer said, taking out the brush.
“Not here,” the captain said. “Come on.”
“Can Sol and I accompany you into the Depths?” Archer asked.
“You’re definitely coming with us,” the captain replied. “But understand that almost certain death may be waiting for us down there.
“You need to be prepared for that.”
“We’re ready,” Archer said.
The captain, Archer, and Sol descended to the lower deck and entered the cargo hold, where the griffins and ten members of the boarding party were waiting.
“Here,” the captain told Archer.
Archer began painting aquameters in the air, one after another.
Each materialized into reality, and Sol caught them as they appeared, gathering them in his arms.
“You, you, and you.”
The captain pointed to three members of the boarding party.
“You’re staying aboard today. Return to the upper decks.”
“Yes, sir,” the three men replied before leaving the hold.
Ten people remained, including Glimorsky, Archer, and Sol.
“Sol, give everyone here an aquameter. One per person.”
Sol went around distributing the artifacts.
“All right, gentlemen,” Captain Glimorsky addressed the group. “We have an important mission ahead of us.
“When the bomb bay doors open, we dive straight down on the griffins until we reach the mountains.
“We need to avoid detection, so we’ll fly as close to the surface as possible.
“We’ll head east to the entrance of Arken’s Depths. From there, we’ll descend on the griffins to a depth of about four and a half miles, where the main control console for the terraforming machine is located.
“Our objective is to install this artifact into the terraformer.”
The captain raised the aquameter in his hand.
“The monolithic aquameter.
“The terraformer’s console works without it, but the option to rehydrate the world will only become available once the aquameter has been installed.
“Memorize this symbol.”
The captain took out an old, battered booklet—a guide to activating the hydration process.
A strange pictogram was printed in the center of the page.
The captain tapped it with his finger.
“Once you’ve inserted the aquameter into its designated slot, press this symbol on the console.
“Do that, and our mission is complete.
“The water will return to the surface.
“The world will be saved.
“Once the mission is complete, return to the surface and head due west.
“The Ripper will be waiting for you about thirty miles from Arken’s Depths.
“Questions?”
“Yes,” said the commander of the boarding party. “Where do we get armor like those two have?”
He looked at Archer and Sol.
Almost everyone in the boarding party laughed.
“I could paint—” Archer began to offer.
“No, thank you, Archer,” the captain interrupted. “The commander is joking, as usual.
“Any other questions?”
“Are we expecting resistance?” the commander asked.
“We have to be ready for anything,” Glimorsky replied.
“Any more questions?” the captain asked.
No one spoke.
“Then mount up,” the captain said. “Open the bomb bay doors.”
The doors beneath the deck opened, revealing the mountains far below.
The members of the boarding party mounted four griffins.
Glimorsky climbed onto the fifth.
“Archer, you’re with me.”
Archer obeyed and settled into the saddle behind Glimorsky.
Sol took the empty seat behind one of the boarders.
The captain urged his griffin forward.
The creature leaped through the open bomb bay and plunged straight down.
The second griffin followed.
Then the third.
The fourth.
And the fifth.
The griffins plunged toward the mountains, spreading their wings only when the rocky terrain was almost upon them.
The captain looked up at the sky.
Somewhere far above, high in the stratosphere, the enemy cruiser was watching the Green Ripper through its observation optics—and, Glimorsky hoped, watching only the Ripper.
The five griffins reached the caverns in just ten minutes and began descending through the enormous caves.
Torches illuminated the entire route through Arken’s Depths, all the way down to the terraformer, allowing the griffins to navigate the darkness underground.
Glimorsky’s party encountered no one on the way down.
The descent took no more than five minutes and passed without incident.
The terraforming machine was an immense and imposing structure.
It was constructed from an incredibly durable metal unknown to humanity.
Its walls formed intricate, interwoven patterns, though whether they were decorative or served some practical purpose was impossible to tell.
The control console projected various symbols into the air above it. Touching them allowed the machine to be operated.
A group of scientists stood beside the console.
Captain Glimorsky’s griffins landed nearby.
The boarding party dismounted and drew their crossbows.
The scientists recoiled in alarm.
“Gentlemen, please don’t be concerned,” Glimorsky called out to them. “We won’t be here long.”
Glimorsky and his men approached the scientists.
“I don’t see any insignia identifying your allegiance,” the captain said.
“We belong to the Kingdom of Tonki,” the chief scientist declared proudly.
“Tonki,” Glimorsky repeated. “Would that happen to be your cruiser hovering over our heads?”
“I’m under no obligation to answer you,” the scientist replied.
Glimorsky stepped forward and punched him in the stomach.
The scientist collapsed, curling up in pain.
“I’m asking you to cooperate,” the captain said. “Do that, and no one will get hurt.”
“What do you want?” another scientist shouted.
Glimorsky reached into his bag, took out the artifact, and held it out to him.
The scientist froze.
“The monolithic aquameter...” he whispered.
“The very same,” the baron said.
“Now, if you would be so kind, show us where this artifact goes.”
The chief scientist got back to his feet, unable to believe his eyes.
“Where did you get the artifact?” he asked, holding a hand to his stomach.
“That doesn’t matter right now,” the captain said. “Help us activate the terraforming machine.”
The chief scientist spent another few moments trying to process what was happening.
Then he held out his hand to Captain Glimorsky.
“Give me the artifact.”
Glimorsky handed him the aquameter.
The chief scientist approached the console and touched one symbol, then another.
A column rose from beneath the floor, revealing a recess exactly the size of the aquameter.
The scientist carefully inserted the artifact into the recess and stood motionless for a moment.
Then, as if suddenly remembering what he was supposed to do, he turned back to the console and pressed the symbol shown in Glimorsky’s booklet.
The column descended into the floor.
Then the entire terraforming machine began to hum, so quietly it was barely audible.
New symbols appeared above the console.
The chief scientist let out a sigh of relief.
He turned to Glimorsky.
“May I know the name of the man who saved our world?”
“Archer,” Glimorsky said. “I’m not the man who saved our world. He is.”
The captain pointed to Archer.
“He created the aquameter.
“He’s the one you should thank.”
The scientist turned to Archer.
“All I did was create the aquameter,” Archer said modestly. “It was elementary.”
The scientist burst out laughing.
“Elementary!” he repeated through his laughter. “It was elementary!”
When he finally stopped laughing, he walked over to Archer and extended his hand.
“Allow me to shake your hand, Archer.”
Archer held out his hand, and the two men shook.
“My name is Irian Maglison,” the scientist said. “I’m the senior archaeologist and chief scientific advisor to Beorophon the Third, King of Tonki.
“I lead—or I suppose I led, until this moment—the effort to reactivate the terraformer.
“I’ve devoted my entire life to this problem, and I still couldn’t make the slightest difference. Before me, generations of scientists from my kingdom and others wrestled with the same problem, all without success.
“And now you come along and tell me the solution was elementary.”
The scientist smiled.
“Well. Fate has a sense of humor.
“Allow me to introduce my colleagues—”
“Enough!” Captain Glimorsky interrupted. “We’re not here for handshakes and pleasantries.
“Tell me—was the activation successful? Did the aquameter work?”
“Yes. The process has begun,” the chief scientist said.
“How long will it take?” Glimorsky asked.
“Hours,” Maglison replied. “Possibly days.”
“Can anything interfere with the process? Can it be stopped?”
The senior archaeologist laughed.
“We’ve spent thousands of years searching for the aquameter, and now you want to stop the process?” he asked sarcastically.
“I don’t,” the captain said. “Your king and his ally do.”
“Absurd,” the scientist said. “Why wouldn’t they want to restore the planet’s normal climate?”
“Because their monarchies will collapse if ordinary people gain unlimited access to water,” Glimorsky said.
The scientist opened his mouth to answer, then thought better of it.
He fell silent, considering the captain’s words.
“So can the hydration process be sabotaged?” Glimorsky asked.
“Yes...” the scientist replied, looking troubled. “But...”
He sighed, thinking.
“But what?” Glimorsky asked.
“The only people capable of stopping the process are standing right here in front of you.
“My colleagues and I.
“Everyone else who knows how to operate the console is far away in Tonki. They won’t be able to get here in time.
“So you have nothing to worry about.
“The process will be completed.
“Our world is saved.”
Glimorsky said nothing.
He simply stared at the scientist.
Maglison laughed.
“You don’t actually think I’m going to stop it, do you?”
Glimorsky stepped away from the scientist, taking several steps back until he was clear of his boarding party’s line of fire.
Then, without even looking back at his men, he gave a simple hand signal.
Crossbow bolts whistled through the air.
All five scientists dropped to the floor before they even had time to understand what was happening.
Archer froze.
Sol tensed.
The cavern fell silent.
“It was necessary,” the captain said. “A small price to pay for guaranteeing success.”
Archer said nothing.
The boarders reloaded their crossbows.
Archer walked over to Irian Maglison’s body and lowered himself onto one knee beside him.
“I don’t know if I would have done the same thing in your place,” Archer finally said. “But I understand why you killed them.”
“Good,” Glimorsky said. “Then I suggest we get out of here and return to the Ripper before we’re spotted and destroyed.
“Mount up!”
The boarding party, along with Archer and Sol, mounted the griffins and began the flight back to the surface.
The ascent took a little over ten minutes.
Everything was quiet when they emerged.
There wasn’t a soul in sight.
The group headed west.
An hour later, they rendezvoused with the Green Ripper and landed aboard.
The captain ordered the ship to return to Ramman by the same indirect route.
Accelerating to maximum speed, the Green Ripper climbed toward the stratosphere.