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By Root 474 0

left behind by the departing army. I tried to imagine where they were now and what they were engaged in, but my mind would not stretch that far.

How would the men stand up to Ry'leh? How well had they been trained?

Would K'tcar'ch's people be waiting for them or would their entry be unopposed?

I could hear part of a conversation between the Doctor and Bernice concerning his period of captivity. Apparently his flight across India had taken almost as long as our train journey. He had only arrived a day or so ahead of us, and had been held captive in the Nizam's palace. The books, of course, had been taken from him.

'There's nothing here,' Bernice said finally. She sounded dejected. 'The action's moved on and left us all dressed up with nowhere to go.'

'The lad's right,' shouted Roxton from his little area of ground. I looked around for a moment before realizing that he meant Bernice. 'We're on a wild goose chase.'

'I have no choice but to follow them,' the Doctor said decisively. 'Thank you for your help so far.'

'We will accompany you,' Holmes said. 'Watson, can you remember the words of the chant?'

'You have to be joking.'

Holmes just stared at me.

'You're not joking,' I said finally.

'You've heard it three times now, Watson.'

'But I've got a tin ear.'

'I'm not exactly one of the De Reskes Brothers myself, but it's the only chance we have.'

I walked across until we were standing virtually nose to nose.

'Holmes,' I said quietly, 'has it occurred to you that we could just turn around and go home? We've done our bit. We can't be expected to do any more. Alien planets are outside our bailiwick.'

'I accepted a commission. I shall see it through. And besides, can you really see the Doctor succeeding?'

I glanced over to where the diminutive man was shaking rakshassa blood out of his umbrella, and sighed.

'Well, I had to try.'

Holmes smiled.

'The better Roman Emperors had servants who would whisper in their ear,

"You too are mortal". I value your level-headedness, Watson. Don't ever think that I don't.'

I didn't, of course, and I never have since.

'Lord Roxton!' Holmes called. Roxton came over.

'You'll be needing an old shikari like me,' he said. 'I've shot everywhere on Earth. Might as well have a crack at baggin' game up in the heavens.'

'I'm afraid not.'

Roxton sighed, and nodded.

'I thought as much. You'll be needin' someone to report back to your brother, and you can't trust Moriarty.'

'I'm glad you understand.'

Roxton held out a hand and Holmes shook it.

'You're a credit to your country, Mr Holmes, and there's not many I'd say that about.'

As he shook my hand, I wished him a safe journey.

'Gad, I hope not!' he cried, and laughed.

Bernice took his hand and pumped it vigorously.

'I hope you'll seek me out and tell me the outcome of this adventure when you get back to Blighty,' he said.

'Oh, Doctor Watson is the teller of tales,' she said diplomatically. 'I'm sure he'll be only too pleased to turn a minor skirmish into a major adventure.'

The Doctor saluted Roxton with his umbrella.

'Fare thee well,' he said.

Roxton looked one last time at us, saluted, and walked towards the stairway which coiled up the side of the cavern. I felt as though some vital force had been drained from our enterprise.

'Well,' said the Doctor finally. 'Let's get on with it.'

'How do we start?' I asked.

'We must all do our best to remember the words which were used in the ceremony,' Holmes snapped. 'I have trained my memory to the point where it rivals the Daguerreotype for accuracy. You, Professor Summerfield and the Doctor may be able to aid me in problems of intonation.'

I rummaged around in my pockets.

'I'd better write down what I remember, then.'

Pulling out a piece of paper and a fountain pen, I was about to start writing when I realized that it was the piece of paper Moriarty had given me. I tried to decipher his scrawl. The words were meaningless gibberish. Gibberish like . . .

'Holmes! Moriarty has written down