A huge steel screw glinted in Geser's hands. To be quite honest, I didn't even know that they made screws that large.
'I doubt if you know about this,' Geser told us. 'It's the only attempt ?at least, I hope it is ?ever made by the Dark Ones to spy on us using human means. In 1979 I had a very difficult conversation with Zabulon, and afterwards we signed an appendix to the agreement on prohibited methods of conflict.'
The screw was put back in the box. In its place two tiny brown 'tablets' were taken out.
'That was when they wanted to take our building away!' Ilya said brightly. 'In 1996, wasn't it?'
Geser nodded.
'Absolutely right. A certain ambitious young oligarch got the idea that the former state enterprise which had become the "Non-Ferrous Metal Mining Company" looked like a very tasty and absolutely defenceless little morsel of property. However, when their listening devices and external observation revealed the kind of people who simply dropped in for tea and a chat with the old director, the oligarch cut his ambitions back sharply'
'That was misinformation as well, of course?' Olga asked curiously. It seemed that the boss's unusually complicated introduction was intended for her, because she had missed all these old events.
Semyon giggled and drawled in a voice like Yeltsin's:
'You un-der-stand, my friend, you decide important matters at the city level, and you don't ask for any help... Call round if anything happens.'
Geser smiled and replied:
'"Call round if anything happens", is putting it a bit strongly.
But never mind, no one judges the victors... Right, those were cases from the past. But here is today's catch...'
He took something that looked like a Band-Aid out of the box. A thin white square, slightly sticky on one side - it was not easy for Geser to pull it off his finger.
'Technology is always developing,' I said, impressed. 'A microphone and transmitter?'
'You'll be surprised to know that there's a recorder here too,' Geser told me. 'Everything is recorded and then shot off in a three-second coded burst once a day. A fine little toy. Expensive. And you can't buy it just anywhere.'
'Get to the point, Boris,' Olga said.
Geser tossed the 'toy' back into the box, and glanced round keenly at all of us.
'A week ago Anton and Semyon spent some time in the city of Edinburgh. Something rather unpleasant happened there: without going into too much detail, a group of Others, including at least one Light One, one Dark One and an Inquisitor, tried to steal one of the most ancient magical artefacts in existence, with the help of paid human assistants who were equipped with magical amulets. The artefact is the so-called "Crown of All Things", created by the Great Merlin shortly before he withdrew into the Twilight.'
Ilya whistled. Olga said nothing ?either she had already heard about this from Geser, or she didn't think any display of emotion was required.
'I should add that the three Others were all Higher Ones,' Geser continued. 'Well... perhaps not all of them. Perhaps two of them. Together they could have taken the third one down to the sixth level of the Twilight.'
To my surprise, Ilya didn't say anything. He must have been stunned. I didn't think he had ever gone any deeper than the third level.
'This is already unpleasant,' said Geser.'None of us knows what kind of artefact Merlin hid on the seventh level of the Twilight, but there are serious grounds for believing that this artefact is capable of destroying all civilisation on Earth.'
'Another "Fuaran"?' Semyon asked.
'No, Merlin didn't have the knowledge to transform people into Others,' said Geser, shaking his head. 'But it is something very powerful indeed. Security measures to keep the artefact safe have been tightened up: the Inquisition is guarding it now, as well as the Night Watch of Scotland. But the situation is too serious. I have learned that attempts have been made to spy on Watches in Moscow, New York, London, Tokyo, Paris, Beijing ... in short, at all the key points on the planet. Everywhere the people involved have no idea who hired them. So far all attempts to find the insti gators have produced nothing.'
'Geser, what's down there, on the seventh level of the Twilight?' Ilya asked. 'I know it's not done to talk about the deeper levels to anyone who hasn't been there, but?
'Semyon will tell you what he saw,' Geser replied. 'He's been to the fifth level. And ask Anton if you like ?he'll tell you about