The thought of the rifles caused Steve to cross over to the floor storage units where he had hidden the handguns and the remainder of the grenades AMEXICO had dropped into the lake. The units were set along the edge of the raised floor section and were, in effect, boxes with hinged lids that matched the surrounding wood planking. They were covered, like the rest of the floor, with the ubiquitous tatarni.

Sliding one of the mats aside, Steve opened the centre trapdoor and lifted the corner of the folded quilt that lay inside. Beneath the quilt were four multi-shot air pistols with several spare magazines and pressurised cartridges, fragmentation grenades, smoke, phosphorus and riot-gas.

Steve and Jodi hadn't encountered this last type of grenade before but, according to Kelso, one sniff made you feel you'd been hit in the chest by a charging buffalo.

It apparently attacked the nerves or muscles or whatever it was that controlled the respiratory system, causing painful contractions of the lungs and throat. By rendering you almost incapable of breathing, it made you incapable of doing anything else. Depending on the degree of dispersion, the victim was immobilised for an hour or more; prolonged inhalation in a confined s.p.a.ce could kill.

Smoke grenades didn't damage your health, the other grenades you could at least try and duck away from, but these little horrors could sneak up on you when you weren't looking - which was why AMEXICO had thoughtfully included five face-masks with chemical air filters.

The fanfares and drumbeats grew louder still. Cadillac turned from the window. 'Here they come . . ."

As he spoke, the door to the study slid open. The two house-women who had shared the bathtub padded in with a curious stooping gait.

Stilling their fluttering hands, they bowed in Cadillac's direction.

'Ahh, you have, ahh, impah-tan visitah!" they stammered, and fell on their knees as Toshiro Hase-Gawa strode into the room.

The sight of the armed and armoured samurai caused Cadillac, Jodi and Kelso to go down on their knees.

Steve was already on his. He casually eased the trap-door back into place and stood up. 'Nice of you to drop in." It was asking for trouble, but he was so keyed up he was past caring.

The Herald's hand tightened on the hilt of his sword.

'I hear there's been a change of plan,' he said, through gritted teeth.

'Are we talking about the Consul-General?"

'We are."

'What's happened? Did someone cancel the trip?"

'No. It's still on. He's even been boasting about it."

'Then he'll be taken care of."

'That wasn't the deal, Brickman. You know what my client's wishes were. It was to be in the air. The way you showed me."

'Yeah, well, due to circ.u.mstances beyond our control, it's not going to be quite like that. But don't worry, he's still going off the top board."

'Do you mind telling me how?"

'I can't explain how. You wouldn't understand. But since your friends won't let me fly, I'm having to use a device powered by the Dark Light.

Okay? All I can say is you won't be disappointed. And I won't have to explain how I accidentally lost a very important pa.s.senger." He shrugged. 'So it works out fine for both of US."

'Oh, Brickman..." breathed Toshiro.

'Yeah,' said Steve. 'I know how you feel. But why speil all the runT'

The atmosphere became electric as they stared each other out.

Cadillac, Jodi and Kelso kept their heads down. The two Trackers had a feeling they'd seen the j.a.p before, but they didn't know who he was or why Steve was courting death by facing him down at such a crucial moment, or what was going to happen next. Just when the suspense was becoming unbearable there was another timid knock on the door.

A wavering voice addressed the Herald in j.a.panese.

Toshiro responded with a gruff command. The door slid open to reveal the two house-women kneeling outside, then Clearwater - still masked appeared between them and stepped through into the room.

Steve's heart leapt, but he didn't let it show in case the Herald got the wrong idea. 'What kept you?"

Toshiro, who didn't realise that the question was rhetorical, answered for her. 'I think you'll find her porters had to step aside to let the procession pa.s.s."

Clearwater didn't say anything. The only time she had met the Herald he had been swathed in black from head to toe. Although she had encountered him on the road and his voice was vaguely familiar, she didn't know who this imposing figure was or what he was doing there.

But since Steve was on his feet she stayed on hers.

The two house-women, crouched low over bent knees, shuffled in and deposited Clearwater's luggage: a cloth bundle and a bag.

Toshiro issued some kind of order in j.a.panese. One of the house-women picked up the bag and came forward on her knees to hand it to him. He gave them another order which they both acknowledged with a grovelling bow then backed out of the room, sliding the door shut behind them.

Steve heard their cottoned feet beat a hasty retreat down the corridor as Toshiro turned and tossed him the bag.

'The leaves you've been asking me for. That wraps up my half of the deal. Make sure you deliver yours."

Steve nodded. 'Nice doing business with you. Better go out the back way. If you were to be -' Toshiro cut him short. 'Brickman, advice from you is one thing I don't need. I thought it would have been clear by now you weren't dealing with an amateur."

Steve bowed politely.

Neither are you, gorgeous. Neither are you . . .

Seated with their chief lieutenants in the centre of the grandstand and separated from the other spectators by a three-deep wall of their own samurai, Lords Yamas.h.i.ta and Min-Orota surveyed their surroundings.

Immediately below them, hidden by the canopy erected to shield the Shogun from the view of any potential a.s.sa.s.sin, sat the Consul-General and the Herald Toshiro HaseGawa.

Their box was guarded on all four sides by government soldiers from the Mara-bara garrison.

To Yama-s.h.i.ta's right, the stand was filled with officials and merchants from his own domain; the other half was occupied by a similar group from the Min-Orota family. Ranged on the field before them was a line of eight flying-horses, with a second staggered row of four behind. All twelve were perched on wheeled trolleys.

Their gleaming white, silk-covered wings and bodies were marked on both sides with the hinomaru, the blood-red disc that was the symbol of Ne-Issan, Land of the Rising Sun. The tails carried two signs: a Tracker numeral and its j.a.panese equivalent.

The alien markings had been necessary to allow the original workforce of outlanders to identify the individual craft. This explanation came from Shigamitsu, the Heron Pool commander, who was seated behind the two domain-lords to answer any questions they might wish to put to him.

He also informed them that the first eight flying-horses were fitted with rocket-trays, whose efficiency would be demonstrated later: those behind were used as gliders for initial training.

'Two samurai - a pilot and an observer - stood by the nose of each craft and four ground-handlers were lined up under the high tails. The aircrews were dressed in all-white outfits, with headbands bearing the hinomaru flanked by two j.a.panese ideograms. Seven pilots were from the Min-Orota, five from the Yama-s.h.i.ta family, and their individual house symbol was emblazoned on the left breast and back of their loose-sleeved tunics.

The show began with a drumbeat parade of the cavalry and foot-soldiers who had accompanied the two domain-lords.

Bearing the tall narrow banners of the respective houses, the cavalcade pa.s.sed between the line of flying-horses and the grandstand in review order, led by a standard-bearer carrying the flag of the Toh-Yota Shogunate and a detachment of government troops. It was only a token presence, but it was customary for them to head any procession at which the Consul-General was present in his official capacity. And since all the spectators were, in theory, loyal subjects of the Shogun, they rose and declaimed the oath of allegiance as Yoritomo's flying-crane banner was carried past.

With the parade over, the troop detachments of the two domain-lords rea.s.sembled on either side of the grandstand, with the government soldiers ranged to the left of the Min-Orota and within a stone's throw of the wall separating the flying field from the tree-fringed grounds at the rear of the pavilion occupied by Cadillac.