The Witch & the Cathedral - Wizard of Yurt - 4 Read Online Free PDF

could you do it?"
    I knew he'd ask that "Actually, no. I know such spells are possible, but it's very advanced magic, and I don't have my books with me."
    "What else can you do?"
    "The other possibility would be to sit on the construction site every night, watching for signs of magical activity, and then go up and confront the magician if he reappears."
    Joachim did not answer at once, and I hoped he was not summoning his small supply of tact to ask me to spend the summer with the watchman. "Why are the members of the cathedral chapter so concerned anyway? The crew foreman said it hasn't been much of a problem. He told me he thought it was little People."
    Joachim fixed me with his enormous dark eyes. "I thought fairies were just a story."
    "Down here, in the western kingdom, they probably are, but I'd believe anything of the land of dragons."
    "Fairies or wizards," said Joachim, "it's sacrilegious. The bishop feels that someone is violating the sanctity of a new edifice that will be consecrated to God."
    "And that's why he didn't like it when you sent for me? He felt that being saved by wizardry is scarcely an improvement over being violated by wizardry? I hope you explained to him that bringing in a wizard to deal with a magical problem is much more effective than trying to pray it away. The saints have better things to do than to worry about whether the new cathedral has fairies living in it. Besides, it may even be good for the bishop's soul to have to deal with magic, and I'm sure the saints know that."
    Joachim gave me a look without answering, having had long practice in ignoring my humor.
    "Do you want to go out and see if we can spot the magician tonight?" I asked.
    It was now full dark, and we had been slowly finishing the cheese. Joachim pushed back his chair and rose at once. He lit a lantern, and we stepped out his door under the low porch into the street
    "How long is it going to take to finish the cathedral?" I asked. We walked slowly because of the unevenness of the cobblestones; neither the lantern nor the shuttered windows of the other priests' houses did much to light up the street. Shadows danced crazily around our feet.
    "Originally they had spoken of being done within fifteen or at the most twenty years. But I think the provost may have changed his calculations. The workmen are certainly working hard, but there is a limit to how fast anyone can erect that much stonework. Some of the supplies are proving much more expensive than the chancellor had hoped; it's possible construction may have to stop for a time while we raise more money. It is good that it was decided to leave the old cathedral intact, within the circle of what will be the new one, as long as possible— it may even be generations before the new edifice can be dedicated." His voice was troubled. Since Joachim was dean, I reminded myself, the cathedral was his as much as Yurt was my kingdom.
    We came around the side of the cathedral to the edge of the construction site. So far, they had completed half a tower. I didn't want to think what this part of the city would be like once they had to start tearing down houses and moving streets to accommodate the new, wider size of the rebuilt church.
    "I like your cathedral," I said. "Why not just leave it as it is?"
    "It's six hundred years old," replied Joachim. "It's dark, it's old-fashioned, and its roof is too low, even compared to some of the regional parish churches that have gone up in the last decade or two. A cathedral is the heart of the Church's administration and care of souls, and it must reflect the glory of God."
    The watchman on the construction site came toward us when he saw our light, holding up his own lantern to illuminate our faces. "Good evening, Father," he said, recognizing the dean. "There have been no disturbances so far tonight."
    "I have brought a wizard to check for the presence of magic," said Joachim.
    We made our way through the maze of materials, even more difficult to