Even for a seasoned rider like Toshiro it was an exhausting exercise, but he pressed on into the evening of each day, s.n.a.t.c.hing a hot bath and a few hours' rest before rising at 0300 to resume his journey through the same grey twilight world he had left the night before.

Arriving at Yedo, the Herald exchanged the customary round of greetings with Kamakura, the ever-hopeful guard-captain, then, as protocol demanded, he presented his credentials to the Court Chamberlain's office. Ieyasu was unable to receive him personally, being indisposed with an intestinal complaint which had begun to plague him with increasing frequency.

To the princ.i.p.al private secretary who was holding the fort in his absence, Toshiro expressed his profound regrets at hearing of his ill.u.s.trious master's ill health, and he asked him to convey personally to Ieyasu his respectful, yet heartfelt, good wishes and fervent hopes for a speedy recovery. The secretary responded in the same fulsome manner, a.s.suring the Herald that the Chamberlain would be deeply gratified by his expressions of concern and goodwill. Et cetera, et cetera.

The ritual exchange ended with a series of bows and with Toshiro wondering if the Shogun had finally managed to find a poisoner with sufficient knowledge and subtlety to slip something past the troublesome old fox.

Yoritomo, the twenty-eight-year-old Shogun, received the Herald in his study on the first floor of the palace, overlooking the landscaped pool dotted with lilies and alive with red and white carp. The last message from samurai-captain n.o.buro, sent by carrier pigeon on the same day that Clearwater had been released, had put an end to the speculation about her ident.i.ty. Once again, the Herald's sources of information had proved utterly reliable.

Toshiro knelt before the raised section on which the Shogun sat with five of his bodyguards. As soon as the usual formalities had been dispensed with, the Herald a.s.sumed a cross-legged position and proceeded to relate his' own face-to-face meeting with Clearwater at Midiri-tana. It was, of course, a highly edited account: he said nothing about her admission that both she and her companion were unmarked Mutes. But he did reveal that n.o.buro Naka-Jima had brought another long-dog with him, and gave a brief outline of how he had fallen into the ronin's hands.

This individual, explained Toshiro, was a 'mexican', a secret agent of similar rank to his own, working on the direct orders of the Federation's 'shogun'. 'From his' responses to my questions, it became clear that I had drawn the wrong conclusion from the reports previously available to me. Lord Yama-s.h.i.ta has not entered into league with the Federation or their agents. To date, he has dealt solely with the gra.s.s-monkeys and the renegade long-dogs."

Yoritomo's face darkened as he lost a good 10 per cent of his cool.

'So, apart from proving that the gutter-b.i.t.c.h currently being humped by my dear brother-in-law is a long-dog, it now appears that your remaining charges are totally without foundation."

The young Shogun abhorred uncertainties. The conspiracy had been clearly defined, containment strategies had been planned, understandings with trusted allies had been reaffirmed, wavering loyalties had been bolstered by promises of hfird cash and quid pro quos, everything had been neatly tied together - and now it was all starting to unravel.

It was the thought of Ieyasu's reaction that annoyed Yoritomo more than the fact it had all been a pointless exercise. The ageing Court Chamberlain had never accepted losing control of the Office of Heralds, and seized every opportunity to discredit the present arrangement of direct access. When the old fox learned, as he most a.s.suredly would, that the latest round of fence-mending and buy-offs - in which he had been actively involved - had been based on a faulty premise of which he had not been advised or asked to comment upon, he would be laughing all the way to the nearest wh.o.r.ehouse.

'I'm not happy about this, my friend. Not happy at all.

I was reluctant to believe these stories from the very beginning, but I relied on your judgement - and it now appears you totally misread the situation."

'Not entirely, sire. Given time, I believe I can still provide you with first-hand evidence that ' 'Given time? Hah! What for? To weave more fairy tales? Kiyo Min-Orota, whom you named as Lord Yama-s.h.i.ta's princ.i.p.al partner, is involved in building these flying-horses because Ieyasu advised me to award the licence to someone we could trust! Are you proposing to come back in a month's time and tell me that the Court Chamberlain - the only person it seems I can rely on - is involved in this conspiracy too?"

The Shogun appeared to have conveniently overlooked the fact that Ieyasu - suddenly promoted from tiresome meddler to peerless sage - had also advised him to grant Nakane Toh-Shiba the hand of his fourth sister and the post of Consul-General.

Toshiro bowed deeply. This was the make-or-break moment. His life now depended on how the Shogun reacted to what he would say next. 'Sire, permit me to state once again that to serve you in death, as in life, is an equal honour, but I beg you to consider this. When the Seventh Wave reached these sh.o.r.es, the blood of the Hase-Gawa coloured the Eastern Sea - mingling with that of their brothers-in-arms, the lofty TohYota.

'No samurai born to such an ancient line would knowingly sully the name of another n.o.ble house with baseless accusations. To do so brings dishonour upon his family and upon himself- a stain that can only be removed by the act of seppuku as tradition demands.

'Whether I live or die does not alter the fact that the power and ambitions of the house of Yama-s.h.i.ta pose a growing threat to the present era of peace and stability.

My conclusion, based on the evidence presented to me, was incorrect, but my error was an honest one, a product of natural caution and an all-consuming desire to protect the Shogunate.

'But my intentions, however well founded, are of little consequence. A samurai, worthy of the name, does not plead mitigating circ.u.mstances.

If he has conducted himself correctly, his actions speak for themselves.

Whatever the verdict, be it harsh or merciful, a servant must always accept the judgement of his sovereign lord gratefully and without question, for he is the sole arbiter of justice and his authority must always be upheld."

'Well said. I wish everyone felt the same way."

Toshiro accepted this comment with another deep bow from the waist. So far so good, but he wasn't out of the woods yet. 'Sire, if I had found myself obliged to return empty-handed, I would have chosen to kill myself rather than lose face by confessing this grievous error of judgement. But I stayed my hand because the news I now bring is more important than anything we have hitherto spoken of."

'Go on..."

The Herald hesitated, his mouth suddenly dry. He ran his tongue around his teeth to moisten it, then said, 'The threat of a possible alliance between the Yama-s.h.i.ta and the Federation has been replaced by a direct threat from the Federation itself."

The Shogun's lips and eyes narrowed into three thin lines.

'The ruler of the Federation knows of the arrangement between the gra.s.s-monkeys and Lord Yama-s.h.i.ta - right down to the terms of the trade-off. A shipment of repeating rifles in exchange for one flying-horse complete with rider. The "mexican" also knew when and where the weapons were delivered. He claims his masters possess secret devices which allow them to spy on us from afar.

The phrase he used was - "They have eyes and ears all over the sky"."

'Did he explain what he meant by that?"

'No, sire. I a.s.sumed he was referring to devices fashioned by those versed in the secrets of the High Craft. So even if he had explained I doubt if I would have understood."

'Do you believe him'?."

Toshiro reached inside his robe and pulled out Steve's radio-knife now wrapped in a strip of black silk. 'The mexican offered this as proof of his ident.i.ty. It was taken from him by samurai-captain Naka-Jima."

Holding the ends of the slim package between his fingertips, he reached forward and laid it gently on the mat near the foot of the dais.

The five guards seated cross-legged in a semicircle behind the Shogun lifted their b.u.t.ts off the floor and craned their necks to take a peek.

Yoritomo gave it the once-over. 'What is it?"

'Something which I fear to touch or even speak of, but which duty requires me to lay before you."

'Are we talking about a device powered by the Dark Light?"

Toshiro bowed his head.

'Very well. You are hereby pardoned unconditionally for taking possession of such an object and bringing it into my presence,' said Yoritomo. 'And you are also absolved from any future charge of high treason arising from its subsequent retention or disposal as ordered by me. Does that make you feel happier?"

'A little less uneasy, perhaps." Toshiro would have preferred to have been offered this crucial dispensation in writing.

'You worry too much. Open it up."

Toshiro unwrapped the package, taking care not to touch the contents.

The Shogun gazed down at the combat knife. 'I hope, for your sake, there's more to this than meets the eye."

The Herald operated the pressure-catches that released the wooden sections of the handle, revealing the microelectronics mounted on the metal frame beneath.

Yoritomo, who had never seen any kind of electrical device, eyed the tiny radio transmitter with the caution of someone who half expected it suddenly to come to life and fill the room with death-dealing rays.

'What is it supposed to do?"

Toshiro repeated n.o.buro's explanation, adding that he had not questioned Steve further on the matter, preferring to keep him off balance by displaying a total lack of interest in what the disguised long-dog clearly thought was an attention-grabbing item.

'So, if I understand you correctly, by means of this device, the masters of this "mexican" can reach him anywhere at any time, day or night - and know exactly where he is?"