Three to See the King

would be achieved. By now the stage had been reached where a few hundred helpers were fulfilling the work of thousands.
    As I listened to all this I began to wonder if some sort of trickery wasn’t at hand, by which these people were being deluded. Indeed, I’d long suspected that Michael Hawkins had most likely discovered some natural fault, or fissure, out here on the plain, and then adapted it for his own use. The colourful account that Steve was giving me did nothing but confirm my scepticism. Ah yes, the canyon certainly existed. He’d not only seen it himself, but had actually taken part in its development. This, of course, was an indisputable fact, and the sight would no doubt be impressive. I was on my way to view a great work that offered purpose to numerous men and women. Nevertheless, I had a feeling it was being accomplished by hook and crook.
    16
    Steve was gradually quickening his pace.
    At first I hardly noticed the difference and continued to match him stride for stride. Then I became aware that Alison was having to break into an occasional trot just to keep up with the pair of us. It struck me that he probably didn’t even know he was doing it, and I was pleased to discover that in spite of some odd new traits, his inherent lack of patience remained intact. The slick smile with which he’d first greeted me had long since disappeared, suggesting that the original Steve Treacle wasn’t far beneath the surface.
    Eventually, though, the rate at which he was propelling us across the plain got too much for Alison.
    ‘Can’t we slow down a bit?’ she demanded.
    ‘Not really, no,’ replied Steve.
    ‘What’s the big hurry?’
    ‘I don’t want to miss out on anything.’
    ‘But the canyon’s going to be there for ever!’ she said. ‘I’m sure it’ll wait for you.’
    Steve did his best to ease up a little, and we pressed on at a slightly slower speed than before. Ahead of us I could see that the first dozen or so volunteers had come to a halt, allowing those behind to catch up. For some reason, however, the leading bunch didn’t appear to grow in size as the others joined it, but continued to number only about a dozen. All the rest were simply vanishing from sight. For a while I couldn’t work out what was happening at all, and only when we drew closer did I realize that, having reached the edge of the canyon, they were now making their descent into it. Each individual would arrive at a certain point, pause for a moment, then drop out of view. The remaining group slowly dwindled, one by one, until all had followed.
    Our small party still had a hundred yards to go, yet already I could see that the level of the plain had fallen away into nothingness. We carried on a bit further, and the far side of the canyon began to loom up into my line of vision. It was a sheer red wall, increasing in enormity as we got nearer. Finally we came to the precipice, where the sight that met us was truly unbelievable. I had never imagined it would be so deep and so wide, and I heard Alison gasp with astonishment. For several seconds I gazed down at the people, tiny as ants, moving around far below us. Then everything went hazy.
    Next thing I knew I was sitting with my head between my legs.
    ‘He’ll be alright in a minute,’ I heard Steve saying. ‘He doesn’t like heights, that’s all.’
    As I came to my senses again Alison put her arm round me.
    ‘Well, well,’ she remarked. ‘I didn’t think you’d be the type who fainted.’
    ‘I’m not normally,’ I said. ‘But I don’t think I can go down there.’
    ‘Why don’t you have another look and see if you feel better about it?’
    She took me by the hand and led me back to the edge, where I took a deep breath before peering over. This time I managed to maintain some dignity by reminding myself that I was standing on firm ground.
    ‘Isn’t it amazing?’ said Alison.
    ‘Staggering, more like,’ I replied.
    How on earth had Michael Hawkins managed this? The canyon was of stupendous proportions, and I just failed to see how it could have been created by human toil, no matter how many helpers there were. As far as I could tell from this distance, all they had to work with was shovels. The latest batch of volunteers was still descending into these depths, by means of a series of ladders and earth ramps that formed a route down. Positioned at various places were rope-and-pulley hoists, on which laden buckets were being hauled up, emptied, and