But the one legend that had always maintained its original shape under the battering of generations was the one about Ben Beatha, the Mountain of Life, being the dwelling place of Bas the Immortal and his androids and the Kalds. And somewhere under Ben Beatha was the Stone, whose possession could give a man life eternal and the powers of whatever god you chose to believe in.
Ciaran had toyed with that one in spite of his skepticism. Now it looked as though he was going to see for himself.
He looked at the Kalds, the creatures who didn't exist, and found his skepticism shaken. Shaken so hard he felt sick with it, like a man waking up to find a nightmare beside him in the flesh, booting his guts in.
If the Kalds were real, the androids were real. From the androids you went to Bas, and from Bas to the Stone of Destiny.
Ciaran began to sweat with sheer excitement.
Mouse jerked her head up suddenly. "Kiri—listen!"
From somewhere up ahead and to the right there began to come a rhythmic, swinging clank of metal. Underneath it Ciaran made out the shuffle of bare or sandalled feet.
The Kalds urged them on faster with the jewel-tipped wands. The hot opalescence of the tips struck Ciaran all at once. A jewel-fire that could shock a man to unconsciousness like the blow of a fist, just by touching.
The power of the Stone, perhaps. The Stone of Destiny, sleeping under Ben Beatha.
The shuffle and clank got louder. Quite suddenly they came to a place where the gully met another one almost at right angles, and stopped. The ears of the Kalds twitched nervously.