The Alchemist's Code (13 page)

“This nonsense will translate everything?”

Nostradamus sighed and opened a drawer. “Here is a deciphered version of the page you left in the dining room.”

It was his own version, and Vasco needed some time to decipher the scrawl and artificial letter groups. As he did, he grew paler and paler.

“The interesting thing,” the Maestro remarked, and now he was looking at me, although his expression gave away nothing, “was that
Circospetto
lied to us.”

“Yes, he did,” I agreed. Today was September 23. If Algol's fourth dispatch reported news of events on September 15, there had not been time for it to reach Constantinople and the Republic's spy there to copy it and report back to Venice. Of all the states Algol might be working for, even Rome, the closest, would require almost impossible timing. If the Ten were opening Algol's mail right here in the city, why did they not know the sender?

Vasco would never work that out, but before he rose to the bait, the door swung wide and in marched Bruno, carrying a bundle of firewood that would have flattened me. We have taught him to knock on doors, but he does not understand “audibly,” so it does no good. Beaming at us, he delivered his burden to the hearth, then strode out again, leaving the door open.

“Chilled?” Vasco inquired icily.

“Important business,” the Maestro said. “I must report to the chiefs. You are welcome to accompany us,
Vizio
. Go and pack up your things. You can be of no further use here.”

Almost no other commoner in Venice would have dared speak to Vasco like that, but he took it from the Ten's consultant. Glowering at me to indicate that our temporary truce was now ended, he stuffed the latest paper in his satchel and departed.

The Maestro detests having to go out, and I could not recall him ever doing so two days in a row. He must be expecting a handsome reward, in satisfaction, if not in coin. I hurried to my room to don my best. This time I decided to sacrifice good manners on the altar of security, for I knew we were on dangerous business and would be lacking Filiberto's dubious protection on the way home. I retrieved my rapier and dagger from the top of the wardrobe.

As Giorgio's strong oar sped us along the Grand Canal toward the Doges' Palace, I heard the bells of San Giacomo di Rialto tolling sunset.

S
o we returned to the palace and the same chamber we had left not twenty-four hours earlier, the
Sala dei Tre Capi
. The three chiefs themselves must have been rounded up especially to hear our report, for we were kept waiting only a few minutes and Marino Venier still had crumbs in his beard. The Pope himself could not have asked for greater deference than that. Obviously the government was still extremely worried;
La Serenissima
was anything but serene.

The heat of the day had left the room stifling. The lamps were lit, but their glimmer hardly showed against the remains of daylight. As the Maestro shuffled in, leaning on my shoulder, the chiefs were just settling behind their raised table, and the only aide in sight was Raffaino Sciara, the Grim Reaper in blue. Vasco had left us, gone to report to
Missier Grande
, no doubt. Sciara placed a chair for the Maestro and retreated to the secretaries' desk. I saw my master seated, then took my place behind him.

Three old men peered anxiously down at Nostradamus.

Trevisan was in the center. “Well, Doctor? You wasted no time. What news?”

I had never seen the Maestro's pussycat smile better displayed.

“I have not yet identified your Algol,
messere
, although I have my suspicions. To confirm or disprove those will take a little longer, but I am satisfied that he exists and I have broken his cipher. I deemed this sufficient cause to interrupt your supper.”

Six eyes turned toward Raffaino Sciara. I looked at him also, because I had never seen a skull look humiliated before.

“You will show Their Excellencies the restored plaintext?”
Circospetto
demanded acidly.

“I did not venture to pry into it all,” the Maestro said with false humility. I could tell he was enjoying himself hugely, although the others might not be reading the signals. “I have no need to know the Republic's secrets. I deciphered one page, just to be sure, and most of it seemed to be street gossip with a few nuggets of intelligence. I can confirm that the key is the same in all the four documents. Alfeo?” He handed me the fair copy I had made for him, and I stepped forward to hand it up to Trevisan. Three heads almost banged together as the chiefs all tried to read it at once.

“So what is the cipher?” Sciara demanded, quite as furious now as he was supposed to be.

“A simple polyalphabetic,” the Maestro said mildly.

“I am impressed, Doctor.” Sciara had to admit that, however sourly, after his minions had failed to crack it. “I have always understood that there was no way of breaking a polyalphabetic cipher.”

The three chiefs were still muttering together, jabbing fingers at the plaintext.

“The simple Cardano form used by this Algol person is vulnerable,” the Maestro said, rubbing salt in the wound. “Had he followed the subtler recommendations of the sagacious Monsieur Vigenère and used the plaintext to encode itself, then even I might have failed to break it. As it is, I showed it all to Filiberto Vasco. He will explain the technique to you.” He stretched his lips in a helpful smile.

I came very close to exploding. The thought of Sciara taking lessons from dear Filiberto was exquisite.

“We are deeply impressed, Doctor,” Marino Venier growled. “This document appears to be genuine. As you saw, it does include some covert information.” The chiefs were all smiling, though. Their decision to consult Nostradamus had borne fruit and the skeptics within the Ten would have to eat their doubts. “You said you had other evidence for us?”

“Nothing that you can put before a court,
messere
. May I inquire who named this spy ‘Algol'?”

The heads exchanged glances. The outer two nodded. Trevisan said, “We have reason to believe that his employers refer to him by that name. A codeword or a joke, perhaps.”

“I fear it may be more,” the Maestro said. “I may speak in confidence,
messere
?”

“You have certainly earned that right.”

I certainly did not expect him to mention that his foresight had been blurred or my tarot confused, for that would be tantamount to a confession of practicing witchcraft, but he came close.

“I have detected occult interference with my work. I have even had a premonition that Algol will seek to entrap me, planning to destroy my usefulness to the Republic.”

“We shall provide additional guards!” Soranzo barked as the other two spluttered in alarm.

That was the last thing Nostradamus wanted. “No,
messere
! I do not expect the entrapment to take the form of physical violence, for that would be too easily traced back to him. The attack will be of a supernatural essence. I can take steps to defend myself and
sier
Alfeo from it, but others would be more vulnerable. Even the admirable
vizio
—and I assure you that I have absolute faith in Filiberto Vasco's loyalty and dedication—even the
vizio
could be corrupted by black art. I ask that you remove him from my premises. His sword cannot defend against the powers of darkness, and he may merely get in the way of what I propose to do.”

Neatly done, I thought. He had used Vasco to rid himself of Danese and now was getting rid of Vasco also. That would be convenient, as long as he did not find Algol taking their place.

“May we inquire exactly what that is?” Soranzo asked narrowly. “Just what are you proposing to do?” Although far from being an outright skeptic like the doge, he was ranking doubter among the three chiefs.

“I propose to unmask Algol,” the Maestro said testily. “Quite apart from menacing the beloved Republic of which I have the honor of being an adopted citizen, he has used demonic powers against me and my apprentice, an intrusion I shall not tolerate. Doubtless he was originally a loyal subject of his ruler, who believed that he was serving a noble cause when he began to dabble in black arts, but the laws of demonology are infrangible, and he has undoubtedly fallen into the power of the Powers he sought to control. I shall identify him and report him to—”

I thought for a moment that he was going to continue, “—Holy Mother Church for exorcism.” That would have been disastrous. The last thing Venice ever wants is the Vatican trying to meddle in its affairs of state. He caught himself in time. “—your honored selves.”

The chiefs had sensed the hesitation and were frowning.

“Just how do you propose to identify this demon-wielder you describe?” Trevisan demanded, perhaps imagining holy water being splattered in all directions in the name of the Council of Ten. That would not do, either.

“No demon-wielder,
clarissimo
. A damned soul, fallen into the clutches of the Evil One. There is a procedure…I do not contemplate black magic, Your Excellencies, but of invoking certain elementals, spirits that are morally neutral, neither good nor evil. Fire elementals are particularly attuned to demons, understandably, but are not in themselves damned, because fire is one of God's boons to mankind. Fire can purify or it can destroy. Certain ancient authorities list some obscure procedures to elicit the aid of these spirits. I believe it would be possible to call on them to identify the possessed person or persons.”

Soranzo rolled his eyes. The other two chiefs crossed themselves.

“You can do this?” Trevisan demanded.

I suspected the Maestro could smell another thousand-ducat fee, maybe ten thousand. On the other hand, I did not think he would ever descend to witch hunting.

He sighed. “Alas, no. In my youth I might have essayed the effort, for it is a skill of the young. Now it would kill me. Fortunately my apprentice,
sier
Alfeo Zeno, here, is extraordinarily well attuned to pyrogenic forces. He has an astonishing natural talent for pyromancy. I believe I can guide him to…Of course the risks are bloodcurdling, so the final decision must be his alone.”

Every eye in the room fixed on me. As I had never heard of my natural talent in pyromancy before, I attempted to look modest and calmly courageous. What in Hades was the old rascal up to this time?

What exactly were these “bloodcurdling” risks?

“Let us get this straight,” Soranzo said. “You realize that you are still bound by your oath to give true witness in this inquiry, and you are stating that your apprentice has the power to identify any demons that may be wandering around the city?”

The Maestro waved a hand dismissively.

“Of course not! There are minor demons everywhere. Would you expect him to stand on the bell tower of San Marco and locate every cooking fire in the city? But if there happened to be a great building ablaze, then he should be able to locate that, surely? A major demon is a furnace of evil and this one has dared to meddle in my affairs. Alfeo is a brave and resourceful lad, and with my guidance…I am merely saying that there are methods he may be able to use to identify a
major
demon within the city, and I do not know any man with greater skills in this field.”

I made a mental note to demand a substantial raise before it was too late. Meanwhile the chiefs had realized that they were on the point of contracting Maestro Nostradamus to perform magic for them.

“Then we urge you to continue your investigations,” Trevisan said hastily. “The Republic will be generous if you are successful. Remember how confidential this matter is.”

What he meant was,
Go away and do it, but don't tell us.

H
aving seen the Maestro securely loaded on Bruno's great shoulders, and retrieved my rapier from the
fante
who had confiscated it, I led the way out of the palace by the Frumento gate with no small sense of relief. Dusk was settling over the basin, where a dozen galleys lately returned from distant lands had been unloading cargo all day and now were falling silent. Giorgio was chatting with a dozen other gondoliers on the Molo, and waved when he saw us. In moments we were skimming over the waters of the Grand Canal, homeward bound and rid of both our uninvited guests.

The long day was over, I hoped—I had a date with Violetta. Yet I had not forgotten all the firewood that Bruno had taken into the atelier. Pyromancy? I knew nothing about pyromancy and would happily wait until tomorrow to learn. It was too hot for pyromancy, although sunset was painting blood on great clouds to the east, the first clouds I had seen in weeks. The heat might be going to break at last.

Mama had supper ready, of course. Dismissing mention of it, the Maestro went straight to the atelier. Eating he considers a waste of time. I unlocked the door for him and detoured around him to get ahead and light the lamps, hoping we could have a discussion about those bloodcurdling risks he had mentioned and the decision that I was to be allowed to make.

He hobbled over to the red chair. “Bring me
Sun of Suns
, then go and eat.”

I was pleasantly surprised. “Thank you, master.”

“You need to keep your strength up.” Since he did not know about my date with Violetta, that last remark was not encouraging.

Restored by two helpings of Mama's excellent
granceole all ricca
, I returned to find him as I had left him, nose deep in Abu the Confusing. Without even looking up, he said, “Warn Giorgio that we are not to be disturbed on any account. First you must set the
Aegia Salomonis
. Let me hear the incantation.”

I sat down, regretting my second helping of spider crabs. “It is still early, master. Not all the Marcianas will be home yet.”

He dismissed my objection with a
Pshaw!
noise. “Residents returning will not harm the wards as long as they come with peaceful intent. The incantation!”

The Armor of Solomon was easily the longest and most complicated spell he had taught me, and I took a few moments to rehearse my memory. One slip during the actual ritual and I would have to start all over from the beginning. Then I drew a deep breath and repeated the incantation from start to finish.

“Not bad,” he admitted, which is effusive praise from him. “Proceed. Just remember it is your neck you are saving.” He went back to his book.

Inspired by this admonition, I fetched a fresh beeswax candle, our jar of balm of Gilead, and a twig of olive wood. The roof was the obvious place to begin, because that was where the candle was most likely to be blown out, another fault that would require me to start over. As I climbed the attic stair, I heard the youngest Angeli children being put to bed, but I managed to slip out the hatch to the
altana
without being detected. Absolutely the last thing I needed was a band of chattery witnesses asking what sort of devil worship I was engaged in now, or—even worse—trying to help. The clouds were ominously closer although there was no wind; it was the calm before the storm. I knelt, opened the jar of oil, and glanced around to see if I was being watched. I wasn't, so I lit the candle and began.

The ritual required me to draw the tree of life on the deck with the olive stick while holding the candle in my left hand and reciting the incantation. The tree of life schema comprises twenty-two paths connecting the
sephiroth
, the ten attributes of God, and again no errors are allowed, although the balm is so close to invisible that you have to locate each node as you go along pretty much by memory. This is not the sort of exercise you would want to try while calculating solar eclipses or dancing the
moresca
. I reached the end without a stumble, corked the jar, and set off back down the stairs, still clutching the lighted candle and wondering why I had not enrolled as an archer on a war galley instead of apprenticing to a philosopher.

Luck was with me, and I managed to descend all the way to the
androne
without encountering anyone. There I found a secluded nook behind a stack of wine barrels and repeated the ritual undisturbed. In the still, enclosed space, the balm suffused the air with its distinctive sweetness. When I finished this second station, the worst of my ordeal was over, because the aegis would already be powerful enough to protect me from casual interruption. Back up in the Maestro's apartment, I performed the ritual four more times—in my bedroom, the dining room, the kitchen, and finally in the atelier, each time writing the tree on the floor under the windows. The last time, the Maestro heaved himself off his chair to hobble over and watch. As I completed the drawing and the recitation, the candle went out of its own accord, signifying that the
Aegia Salomonis
was now in place. By warding Ca' Barbolano at zenith, nadir, and the four cardinal points, I had made it proof against satanic influences.

“Whew!” I sat down on the floor with a thud, feeling as if I had just swum the length of the Grand Canal in plate armor.

“Good,” the Maestro said, with heartwarming indifference for my exertions. “Now go and fetch the Guise of Night.”

With a sigh almost inaudible, if not quite, I rose to do as I was bidden. Of course no occult defense can withstand the evils of the world for long, and even the
Aegia Salomonis
could not deflect an armed intrusion. The moment a physical enemy gained entry, the spiritual barriers would fail also.

I store the Guise of Night in a bag at the bottom of my clothes chest, accompanied by some aromatic herbs, yet it still smells old and fusty, with an ominous overtone of singed. I returned to the atelier, locking the door behind me.

Without looking up, the Maestro said, “Lay the fire.”

I obeyed, although I was still decked out in my palace best. Nostradamus continued to frown over the book, comparing text on two or three different pages. Obviously he was not completely familiar with whatever procedure he was planning to inflict on me, which was not especially comforting. I finished placing the smallest sticks over the tinder and stood up, dusting my hands. Building a fire is something I have always been good at; my mother would always have me strike the flint for her.

“You want me to light it, master?”

He still did not look up. “Put on the Guise of Night.”

“I don't need to.”

Now he did look up. “Mm? What?”

“I can perform pyrokinesis without wearing the Guise. I never use it unless I am alone, as you warned me, but I don't need to get dressed up for it.”

He chuckled. “Of course you don't! You heard what I told the chiefs about your natural talent for pyromancy. Did you think I was making all that up? I remind you that I was under oath.”

“Oh,” I said. “Then do let's discuss the bloodcurdling risks.”

He shrugged his narrow shoulders. “I may have exaggerated just a trifle. What do you remember about the first spell I ever taught you?”

“About a month after you took me on. You made me dress up in that ridiculous
stuff
”—I pointed at the Guise of Night bundle—“and then you showed me how to ignite a scrap of tinder.”

“And you did it. Right off.”

“Well you told me it was an easy spell and it was.” That was how I had lit the candle for the
Aegis
spell.

He stretched his mouth in a close-lipped smile. “I told you it was easy just to give you confidence. It turned out to be child's play for you, amazingly so. You did it in a few minutes. It took me a month to master it when my uncle taught me. You know you have skill at calcining and vesication. Boy, you seethe with so much phlogiston it's a wonder you don't self-combust!”

I distrust the old rascal when he flatters. On the other hand, Violetta sometimes expresses similar opinions, couched in less-technical terminology. “Thank you, master.”

“I've never bothered to teach you any more pyromancy because I know you'll swallow it whole.” The fact that he expected me to be much better at it than he was would be quite irrelevant, of course. “Now put on the costume.”

“I don't need it,” I repeated. “I don't even need the ring.” There was an unlit candle on the mantel. I pointed my left thumb at it, turning my palm outward so that my fingers stood up like flames. I moved them gently, spoke the Word, and a wisp of smoke rose from the wick, followed by a tiny yellow flame. “See?” I probably smirked.

He sighed. “Your elemental balance is hopelessly skewed! No wonder you can't foresee in the crystal. No matter. We must follow the directions of the sagacious Abu Ibn Wahshiyah, so stop arguing and put on the Guise.”

Grumpily I picked up the bundle and went over to the examination couch in the corner. Feeling ridiculous, I stripped to the skin. The Guise is made of some rough cotton, dyed black. I don't know where it came from, or how old it is; it is big on me and would swallow the Maestro completely. I began with a waistband; then loose stockings that extended from toes to crotch and laced up to the waistband; then a thigh-length smock and gloves. Leaving the hood for later, I returned to the fireplace, feeling utterly absurd.

“The crystal shows the future,” he said, laying the book facedown on his lap. “As you know, glass won't work. It must be rock crystal, which is eternal. Fire both purifies and destroys; it shows spirits, both sacred and demonic. According to Ibn Wahshiyah, you must use a fire you ignited yourself with the Word and you must be wearing the Guise of Night. Here.”

He held out a gold ring bearing a ruby, which tradition requires but I do not need, at least for simple fire lighting. I slid it on my left thumb and donned the hood, so that only my eyes were visible.

“Early for Carnival,” I said, in a voice that sounded muffled even to me.

“Don't be flippant. How much frankincense do we have?”

“Half a jar.” I fetched it from the reagent shelves, being careful not to trip over the floppy ends of my hose.

“Scatter it over the pyre and then ignite it.”

With the ring to symbolize sunlight and fire, pyrokinesis was as easy as snapping fingers. I pointed my thumb at the tinder…the gesture…the Word…smoke curled. Then flames. I made the twigs and chips around it blaze up also.

The Maestro muttered something flattering. “Now you must extinguish all other lights and close the shutters.”

I admit that I was feeling skeptical. Perhaps my endless efforts to foresee in the crystal had made me give up hope of ever developing prophetic skills of my own. I should have remembered that I was skilled with the tarot and had been making progress in oneiromancy. I extinguished all the lamps and candles and returned to sit cross-legged on the hearthrug.

“Build up the pyre,” the Maestro said. “Use lots of wood, because this may take a while. Then just watch. Let your thoughts wander. We have all night.”

“I'll be well cooked in five minutes in this heat,” I grumbled.

Sitting staring into a fire by night is the most soothing experience I know. As a child I had sat for hours like that, in the tiny single room I shared with my mother, whiling away the tedium of winter nights. As predictor of my future the fire had served me poorly, for I had never foreseen the Maestro or my hands massaging away an ache in the doge's back. To a bored—and often hungry—boy, the glowing embers had illustrated great ships venturing out over the seas, bound for wonderful places. I had seen myself aboard them, strong and handsome, swaggering with a sword, massacring pirates, bowing before great ladies—although ladies had not interested me much back then. Now, I thought, I should be able to find Violetta fairly easily, but I searched the blaze in vain for her.

At first the flames were too unsteady but as the fire burned hotter, coals began to glow and images grew crisper. Unburned wood became stone and the brightnesses between morphed into caves and crypts and passages, leading deeper into labyrinths of infinite mystery. It seemed that my fancy should be able to penetrate inside those fiery voids, exploring around corners and onward, deeper into the fire; that I, shielded and made invisible by the Guise of Night, could wander unharmed within those vast caverns of heat. Stalactites of fire hung on every side, draperies of flame enclosed me in a world of red and black, but I strode freely on, seeing wonders all around. Glowing basilisks and demons on guard could not see me or challenge my right to pass into a truly magical world.

In my dreaming progress I saw sphinxes and cherry trees, galleons and gladiators, but I did not linger until I arrived at a dark alcove, a hallway on my left, vast and cryptical, where stood two men I could not identify, for they were men of flame that wavered as flames will. One was gold and the other red. Nor could I make out their voices through the busy crackling of the fire all about me, but I could tell that they were quarreling. Their dispute grew ever more agitated until Red suddenly charged, raising a weapon—a cudgel, I thought, from the way he held it. Gold leaped back and drew a sword. He tried to lunge, but Red struck his blade aside and closed with him. Two flames joined, Red and Gold striving for possession of the sword. Gold evidently lost, for he broke loose and tried to flee, but Red stabbed at his legs with the sword; he dropped to his hands and knees, and Red plunged the blade into his back. He collapsed, understandably. I caught a brief glimpse of Gold lying prone and the victorious Red standing over him before the tragedy vanished in a blizzard of sparks.