A favourable wind blowing from the Great Mountains in the west caught the little boat's sail as she moved away from the quayside at Bhuin. Telli was busy with the ropes, letting down just two yards of sail from the spar attached to the top of the mast, enough to move them, but not enough to cause their inexperienced hands to lose control. Setisia was in the stern at the tiller, waving goodbye to Jarith, Bartha and a few other friends who had come to see her off. The small amount of sail left a clear view ahead, so Telli came back and joined her when he had fastened the ropes to his satisfaction.

Going downstream with the wind behind them, sailing seemed easy. This fooled neither captain Setisia, nor her mate. They had decided to take it easy for the first day or two as they learnt the ropes. It was the third morning after the fire at the cottage in West Hartlet. Setisia looked charming to Telli's eyes. Her red locks were piled up and hidden under a broad brimmed hat, to protect her light skin from the sun she had told her friends. But Telli knew it was an attempt to hide her most recognisable feature. And it worked. From a distance it appeared there were two slight young men sailing the boat.

There were conventions to be observed when navigating a boat on the rivers of the Kingdom. Unwritten rules, these varied greatly from river to river, and even from one stretch to another of the same one. On the Bhuin, traffic must move on the left, those moving slowest close to the bank, the fastest vessels nearer midstream. All stationary fishing boats had the right to their place and must be avoided by moving traffic. All craft moving at night should show some kind of light unless in the first few yards from each bank where nothing should be moving at speed. With Bhuin and Larisroot the only major population centres upriver there was not much traffic, although Setisia estimated that about twenty boats left Larisroot every twenty-four hours at this time of year because of the town's huge business exporting the famous vegetable for which it had been named.

The Bhuin wharf was soon out of sight as they rounded the bend, and looking back they could see only the highest quarter of the town, where the old wall and the castle would be visible for some time. They had a good stretch of river ahead to themselves, only a few fishing canoes in sight, and Telli soon gave in to temptation and lowered the spar at the bottom of the square sail another yard. They could feel the boat pick up speed immediately, and Setisia responded by steering them out towards midstream as there were no fast boats approaching from behind.

"If this wind is steady, we shall easily pass Flarin this afternoon," she said.

"Captain and ship owner, I think we could continue through the night, taking turns to watch, and drifting without the sail." Telli had been advised to keep his raw gold and change it in Kellmarsh as its value increased with every mile they moved. Setisia was therefore owner of the boat, having mysteriously produced the forty crowns for her cousin, saying that a clever witch had little problem finding money when it was needed. She made great play of considering this suggestion.

"Bring me my charts, good man." Telli crawled into the comfortable little cabin they had made the day before, coming out with some rolls of parchment. They stood either side of the tiller and perused them.

"If we continue all night, we might reach Kharin tomorrow morning," Setisia said. "That is about one third of the way to the Great River, meaning that if all goes well, we could be there two days after. Let's try it, but if we find it too tiring, we'll tie up somewhere and rest."

"Fast boat coming," said Telli. "It's the one that was loading up beside us this morning." The boat behind them had rounded the bend from Bhuin, and was approaching with surprising speed. About forty feet long with a streamlined hull, it had its sail set at full length and was rowed by eight oarsmen.

"They make it to Kellmarsh in six or seven days if they go without stopping, day and night, and the winds are favourable," Setisia said, steering slightly in to the left to give the boat plenty of space. "See how they go straight down the middle of the stream because it moves fastest there. They can do this all the way, as boats coming upstream wish to avoid the centre for the same reason. I saw at the quay they were loading eating apples, which do not grow in the southern climate, and they will profit well by selling them at Kellmarsh market as fresh, which we could not do." The impressive, streamlined craft sped past them, the man at the tiller waving friendly acknowledgement to Setisia of her move towards the bank. She grinned in pleasure.

"I like being a captain. I could do this all my life. Couldn't you?"

"Yes, it's better than flying. We could have paid the way on one of the fast boats, though." Telli said, watching the other craft pulling away from them.

"Yes, but this way we take our own home with us. Do you not like our cabin?" Most of the previous day had been spent constructing the elaborate cabin in the stern of the boat. They were now sitting on its roof at the tiller. "We can live in the boat at Kellmarsh as well as on the way there and back."

"Also, they wouldn't let you be captain, would they?" Telli's voice was teasing.

"If they had any sense, they would. As the only woman on board I'd be the one with the most brains. Men are built for rowing, not thinking, so why don't you see how you manage with the oars, slave, and I shall give you wise directions."

They moved down the river all day, experimenting with their little boat, and making considerable progress as the wind remained steadily behind them. They had passed the town of Flarin, on the right-bank, by mid afternoon, thus entering territory new to Setisia as well as to Telli. In the evening Setisia cooked on a cleverly made iron stove, designed to contain a fire without risk of setting the vessel alight, and a luxury on such a small boat.

"This captain travels in style," she said as she served Telli a hot soup.

"I'm glad she does menial chores like cooking, as well as directing her one man crew. I'll try first watch tonight if you like. We'd better set the lamp when I've eaten." He hung a lamp on the mast and shortened the sail, but it was past midnight when Setisia retired to the cabin. Both were enjoying the warm summer night on the river. There were no fishing boats, and they had it to themselves most of the time. The occasional trading boat passed going upstream, and twice fast boats going their way overtook them. The noise of the forest on both sides came clearly across the calm water, as night animals went about their mysterious lives. Fireflies flashed tiny beacons of orange near the banks, and the stars twinkled silver and blue in a cloudless sky. It seemed a perfect way to travel.

*

Setisia took her watch in the early hours of the morning, and Telli again at first light, when they set the sail together, and ate a meal. They took turns in this way for three days and nights, stopping and anchoring near the bank occasionally when they both felt too tired to continue. On the fourth day, Telli emerged at around midday from the cabin to find an excited captain at the tiller, pointing ahead.

"We are there! That must be the Great River ahead," she said.

He looked over the bows to see that the river widened out, and its banks seemed to disappear, leaving only a large expanse of water ahead. On the right hand bank, just before this, he could see the walls of a town.

"That's Rislet?" he asked, feeling the excitement himself at their first sight of the Great River, and of the largest town either of them had ever seen.

"It must be, and we'll have to cross over soon if we wish to land there."

As they came level with the river port, they were too busy to marvel at the sight of the huge waterway they would soon be sailing down. Crossing the mouth of the Bhuin and entering the busy harbour whilst avoiding other craft was the first difficult bit of sailing they had had to attempt. But they managed well, and found a berth alongside several other small boats, directed there by a boy of about their own age. As they tied the boat to the quay, the lad explained his prices per hour, per day, and per week for the use of the berth, guaranteeing the vessel's safety while moored there. Setisia had been expecting this, and as the boy pointed to the armed guards patrolling the port, saying they would confirm his status as a licensed boat watcher, she paid the small fee, arranging to keep the berth for twenty-four hours. They wished to break their journey for the night, and replenish their stock of fresh food before tackling the Great River. After putting their little craft in order, the pair climbed onto the quay and set off for the southern end of the harbour, where they would have the best view out over the Great River. They were to stand watching it for more than an hour.

The Kingdom was bordered on the west by the great range of mountains Telli had crossed. On the east, another great range formed the boundary, both of these running its whole length north to south. In the far north, the ground rose again, forming a high, icy plateau. All water from these mountains, and from the lands between, would eventually reach the Great River, the Kingdom's backbone. It flowed south, down to the great lake on which Kellmarsh was situated, and then east, eventually leaving the Kingdom through a huge canyon it had fashioned in its south-eastern corner.

The voyagers had reached this great waterway at a point about five hundred miles north of Kellmarsh. The river was more than a mile in width, and ran fairly straight at this point, so they could see horizons where the water met the sky both up and down stream, the first such views they had ever seen. There was plenty to watch on the river, and they stared at the great cargo boats, some more than a hundred feet long and carrying several sails, which transported most of the goods traded up and down the Kingdom. Encouraging to them, there were also many smaller boats, right down to fishing canoes. While overawed at first sight of the river, they soon became confident that they could manage their little craft on it, at least during daylight.

They could happily have watched the river and its traffic all afternoon. It was Setisia who first saw, or rather heard, something else which interested her. A boat was arriving in the port having come from the north down the Great River. Music came over the water from it, the sound of a wailing string instrument, flutes and drums. Setisia listened for a moment, then said, "Mendai," and set off for the dock near their own berth where the boat was headed. Telli followed, seeing as he neared it that there were about twenty people on the vessel, men, women and children.

Setisia found a seat on some stone steps a few yards from where the boat was tying up. Telli sat down beside her, noticing she had removed her hat, and had let her long red hair fall down over her shoulders.

"Watch what happens," she said, smiling in anticipation. The occupants of the boat were negotiating with a wharf boy, and climbing out of their vessel one by one. They were colourfully dressed, and most were wearing hats or headscarves against the bright afternoon sun, but Telli could see reddish hair on several, showing under their headgear. Sure enough, a woman spotted Setisia, and called out to her in a strange and musical tongue, the first time Telli had heard a foreign language of men, Khrelling being something else. Setisia smiled at her, and shrugged. A man came over to them, grinning at Setisia, and saying something in the same language.

"I'm afraid I don't speak Mendai," she explained.

"But you are one of us, surely, as only a Mendai princess can be so beautiful!"

"My father was of the Mendai, but I never knew him, which is why I know nothing of your tongue. He was of the clan Dullai."

"The clan of my sister's husband's brother's wife! Then we are family. You must eat with us tonight, and your friend. I am Fhyfait, of the clan Rollai." Others from the boat joined Fhyfait as Setisia introduced herself and Telli, saying that they were not from Rislet, and having only just arrived would welcome the company of anyone who knew the place. Fhyfait, a jolly middle aged man with smiling green eyes, introduced his companions, who were all Rollai, and one large extended family. Telli noticed that although they did not all have red hair, every single face he looked at had the striking green eyes.

"There is a Mendai tavern here in Rislet. We go there now to eat, and meet our cousins. Come with us, and you may meet some of yours."

The gypsy family knew the town well as they passed often in their journeying up and down the river. They were performers, a travelling theatre, and would be setting up their act the following day in Rislet's market-square. Telli found them charming, and understood why Setisia had such a high opinion of her father's people. They spoke in Allenth out of respect for their guests, saying that all Mendai were fluent in it, and therefore considered it impolite not to use it when they were in the company of 'Allenthys', their name for all other citizens of the Kingdom. The tavern they preferred was Mendai owned, but Fhyfait assured Telli that it was used by many people other than the clans themselves.

"This is always the case," he said proudly. "Our taverns are renowned for their atmosphere, and are popular in every town where they are found."

This one seemed a small house from the outside, but on entering Telli and Setisia could see that it actually consisted of several houses knocked together around a small courtyard. There were fifty or sixty people inside, even before their own large party arrived. Music was being played at one end of the room, and Telli thought he had never heard such laughter and merriment in one place. Fhyfait introduced the owner to them, a very tall man known as 'Tree', explaining that the name referred not only to his height.

"We are a wandering people, and often give such names to the few from our tribes who settle in one place. He is a tree because he has put down roots, gathers moss, and therefore must have only wood between his ears. Tree, we have something for you to cook, and there should be a tasty morsel for the whole company present." Two of his cousins unwrapped a large package they had been carrying, and held up a giant squid for all to see. There were claps and cheers, but the two 'inlanders' (as dwellers on the Great River called others in the Kingdom) just stared in amazement at the creature.

"What is it?" Telli asked Setisia in a whisper.

"There are many great fish in the big river, and this monster must be one of them. It is new to me as well, but if it is good eating, maybe we should buy a large net."

It was good to eat as they found out later, the six-foot long tentacles providing a taste for everyone. They had passed a good afternoon exploring the town with willing Mendai children as guides. At the squid feast that night, Fhyfait introduced Setisia to the only man present from the clan Dullai, that of her father. His name was Rhyll, and he was a tough looking individual of about thirty years with several scars on his face, but proved very friendly to both Setisia and Telli, and talked with them at length. He had not known Setisia's father, but had met her grandfather, who had died a few years previously, a respected elder of the clan. He also remembered hearing the story of her father's murder, and gave her some information she had not known.

"We do not sit by when one of our number is murdered. I was young at the time, but I remember hearing of a delegation going to the King concerning an incident on the upper Bhuin. On such occasions, if the King does not act, we act ourselves. Tell me, little princess, was your father's killing avenged?" Setisia told him all she knew, including her recent sighting of Grenwald, and the story of the fire at her cottage. Rhyll showed great interest and concern.

"Do you know your letters, little one? Yes? Then you are cleverer than I. Can you write me a good description of this man? I shall see that copies get to all groupings of Mendai in the Kingdom. Tree, get us quill and parchment will you." Setisia wrote her description several times over, Rhyll explaining that each Mendai elder receiving one would have more copies made and sent on to others. One copy would stay with Tree to show to all coming through his tavern. Telli realised that from one showing of her hair, his clever little travelling companion had gained thousands of allies up and down the country. Rhyll said that he would enquire around Rislet himself, and would have no qualms about ridding the world of this madman with his own hands. He called Fhyfait to the table, and had Setisia repeat her story. The friendly Rollai showed a similar reaction, saying he would carry a copy of Setisia's message on his travels until he heard that the man had been caught.

Telli and Setisia left for their boat that night feeling they had found a whole tribe of new friends, and with a list of Mendai frequented taverns in towns on their way down river. Setisia's beacon of wavy red hair had brought her advantages to compensate for its part in betraying her identity to the conspirators in Bhuin.

*

The young voyagers retired early to their little cabin, and enjoyed a long and uninterrupted night's sleep for the first time since leaving Bhuin. Telli woke to the sound of Setisia's voice and the smell of fish frying on the wood stove. He came out of the cabin, stretching and yawning.

"Ah, here you are, lazy goblin, in time to thank our friends for a gift of fresh fish." Several of the Rollai children were standing on the quay, and Telli bade them good morning, and thanked them for his breakfast.

"You must come and see us tonight in the play," said a little red-haired cherub of about five years, starting a chorus of invitations to the performance. Telli was tempted to rest another night for this, and to explore the town at greater length, so was pleased when Setisia turned to him and said.

"What do you think?" He guessed she wished to see more of the Mendai.

"I would like to see the play, as I would like to see everything in the Kingdom that is so new to me. But you are captain, madam, and the weight of decision lies on your shoulders."

"Well spoken, my good slave, we shall rest another night then."

The children were treating them to a very skilled demonstration of their talents, turning cartwheels and walking on their hands, clapped and encouraged by the wharf-boy who guarded the berth.

"Very good, we shall certainly be at the play, and look forward to it. Please bid Fhyfait a good morning from us." Setisia turned to Telli as the children left for their own boat. "It's just as well, we shall only save ourselves a hard day's rowing. Feel the wind. It'll be even stronger out on the open river." A warm breeze was blowing steadily from the south, and the sail would have been of no use to them on such a day.

After eating their fish, the morning was spent bargaining in the market for fresh supplies. They had planned to do this quickly before sailing, but could now take their time, and enjoy the town while at it. At midday they made their way to the Mendai tavern, as Setisia wished to see Rhyll again. She had taken a definite liking to the tough Dullai, and Telli could see that this was mutual by the way his face lit up on their arrival. He had news for her.

"Your man has been in town, leaving for the last time four days ago. People remember the twitch on his face, which he cannot disguise, and you were right to describe that as his most important feature along with his height and the extreme thinness. All else has changed in recent months. When he passes through, he has the habit of staying in a hostelry known as Madam Feartha's, but he is no longer welcome there. One of the poor girls who entertains its clients was badly beaten last time he was there, and he had to pay Madam Feartha a bribe of five crowns to prevent her setting her strongmen on him. I spoke to the girl, only a little older than you are, and she will bear the scars for some time. I shall spare your young ears the details, little princess, but we are looking for an extremely sick and dangerous man. I was on my way to your boat this morning to warn you not to travel alone, but I saw some of the Rollai on the way, and they told me you would stay to see their play-acting."

"How did you find so much in such a short time, Rhyll?"

"I am of the crafty Mendai, I have friends and contacts, and I have coins in my pocket to make tongues wag," Rhyll smiled through his scars. "It was made easier because of your enemy's unusual characteristics and behaviour. Also because I knew that the chances of him having passed through here in the last few days were high, if he had been at your cottage the night of the fire. It is the first big town down river from your village where he might think himself safe in the crowds after the Lord of Bhuin's alert for him three months ago."

"I thank you from my heart, good cousin, but I must also refill your pockets if you have been paying the pot boys and scullery maids of Rislet's inns for their words," said Setisia.

"No, no, my pockets are always full. Rhyll the rich they call me, as gold and silver seem to flow in my direction with such ease. But there is one thing I wish to ask of you. I said that I wanted to warn you not to travel alone. I can see that Tellimakis is a good friend and would stand by you in adversity, but two friends are even better than one. I want you to wait an extra day here as I must finish some business, and then take me with you to Kellmarsh, where I was going in a few days time anyway." Rhyll was silent for a moment while they considered this surprise proposition. Then he got up, saying he would go for some beer, thoughtfully leaving the youngsters to discuss his suggestion. Setisia fixed her eyes on Telli's.

"What do your goblin powers tell you about our new friend, faithful slave?"

"I spoke with him for some time last night when you were talking with others. My powers say that he is a good man, and one who we might wish to have by our side in times of trouble, O captain and queen of witches and gypsies."

"Mine say the same. And in good times there is also the advantage to having one in my crew experienced on the Great River."

"True, O captain, and spoken wisely. It makes little difference to us to wait one day when we may wait a month or more for an audience with the King when we reach Kellmarsh. Anyway, we can move more quickly with his help. Follow your good instincts, Set."

Rhyll returned to the table, and the three were soon toasting their little boat and her newly enlarged crew.

*

The performance that night proved to be well worth staying for. Rhyll had given Telli a taste of what he would see that afternoon in the tavern, on hearing that the Elnesider had never seen a Mendai play. He stood on his hands on the table, then stepped down to the floor on them via his chair, and over to Tree's serving hatch.

"Good landlord, my world has been turned upside down, and I must have a drink to put things right." Tree poured a tankard of beer, and placed it between the acrobat's feet, eliciting an oath as he deliberately spilt some over Rhyll's crotch. Returning to the table, Rhyll lowered himself onto his back in a slow roll, managing to place the tankard on the table spilling hardly a drop. The performance showed astonishing strength and balance.

"I spent much of my childhood on the river in a troupe like Fhyfait's. His group is very good, and must be to play in the major towns like Rislet. The audience have seen many such things, so will only be impressed by fresh acts of quality. If you have nothing of importance to do, you might find it interesting to help the Rollai carry their props from the harbour to the square." Rhyll went off on his business when he had finished his beer, and the youngsters decided to follow this suggestion.

Telli was fascinated by the clever organisation of the gypsy boat. Much bigger than their own, it was home for twenty people, but also must serve to carry a large load which could be assembled to make their theatre. Fhyfait showed with pride how pieces of brightly painted wood for their stage and scenery doubled as the walls and roofs of the cabins they lived in. His family could take down their home and assemble their theatre in one hour on the occasions when they performed on a wharf beside their boat. The hard work in Rislet was to carry everything the few hundred yards to the market place, and it was here that Telli and Setisia could help. They made several trips carrying as much as they could, and watching a theatre appear at one end of these journeys as the boat's fittings disappeared at the other. The performance itself started so casually as to have no real beginning, the assembly of the theatre being in a sense part of it. As the surprisingly elaborate structure was nearing completion, individuals or pairs from the troupe would break into brief and seemingly spontaneous exhibitions of juggling or acrobatics, as if tempting onlookers to stay and see what was to come. When the theatre was finished, it seemed a work of magic in itself, being far larger than the boat from which its component parts had come. This was achieved through the construction of all parts that did not have to support any weight out of cloth stretched over thin wooden poles.

The nearest to a formal beginning came with the first entry of a performer onto the wooden stage itself, built about eight feet above the ground to give all in the fast growing crowd a good view. This was a man wearing two masks, one of a woman's face attached upside down to the back of his ankles. Standing on his feet, he delivered the speeches of a man, then flipping onto his hands, clothes cleverly tied to his back so they fell into place, he became a woman. In this way he portrayed a couple (from Rislet) arguing about whether or not they should go to a Mendai show that night, flipping his body and changing his voice with each character. It was very well done, bring peals of laughter from the onlookers as the couple's dispute became heated, and they began to insult each other in minute personal detail.

This was followed by an incredible variety of acts during a complete performance of more than six hours, Telli's eyes riveted to the stage like those of a small child all the way through. It was an evening of pure magic to the Elnesider, one that was to stay in his memory for life. He wished he could take such a company over the mountains for his people to witness the spectacle, knowing that the whole village would turn out all night and every night for as long as the troupe wanted to stay. He saw comedies, tragedies, dramas, shows of acrobatics and clowning, all accompanied by fine music, and all this performed by a family of only twenty members. If he had not known this, he would have thought a hundred or so people to have been involved.

"How do they do so much?" he asked Rhyll, who was watching with them.

"Oh, they have plenty of rest, and all have many different skills. Look, you see three on the stage at this moment. I can hear four instruments playing. There are no complicated movements of props at this moment, so that makes seven. Perhaps three are changing costume at this time, but the other ten could be sitting down, hidden under the stage, eating their evening meal for all we know. These are professionals, and they have everything well organised. We Mendai do not like to live under stress and strain, we seek to enjoy our lives."

Payment was entirely voluntary. A huge gold-painted cauldron had been placed in front of the stage, and the clang of coins thrown into it was a measure of the crowd's appreciation after each act. Sometimes a popular joke, often one at the expense of a rival town, would result in a hundred or so clangs in quick succession as pennies rained through the air. Setisia had to prevent Telli from throwing one of his lumps of gold ore at the pot, so great was his enjoyment of the show. She loved it also, having seen only a few less elaborate performances from groups prepared to venture as far from the Great River as Bhuin.

As the daylight faded, the troupe lit torches and hung lamps, cleverly placed to enhance the effect of the spectacle. At midnight, it was finally brought to a close, all twenty of the family appearing on stage to take their bows to huge applause, and the loudest clanging in the gold cauldron of all evening.

"They are one of the best small groups travelling the river at the moment," commented Rhyll as he wished Telli and Setisia a good night. They made their way to the boat feeling thankful that the Rollai children had persuaded them to extend their stay in Rislet that morning.