Tricksters Touch

ask the shift. Sirrey's a beautiful woman. We all know beautiful women aren't faithful. How can they be? They have men after them day and night—» Rowenaster stared at Gadorian. «You don't deserve Sirrefene.» There was a long pause. Gadorian knew he possessed more political clout in the city than Rowenaster. If Rowen chose to threaten him with regard to a twenty-year-old grade point, Gadorian would return the threat by draining certain funds out of the university financial office. Fair was fair, thought Gadorian. He suspected Rowenaster was bluffing, and indeed, Rowenaster was. Rowenaster thumbed through the stack of papers in his arms. «What did you want to see me about, Gadorian? I'm a very busy man—» «Nothing,» snapped the guildmaster, suddenly deciding not to ask the professor to tell him about the Tammirring prophecies. He was mad now. Mad at the world. At that moment, Rhu walked up. She handed Gadorian the note Timmer had written Cobeth last fall just before the drug raid at Rhu's house. She had written the note at Zendrak's request. If Zendrak had thought it through that fateful night, he would never have told Timmer to write it; however, he was hung over from a rich meal he had shared with the Greatkin of Love at the time, and so was thinking fuzzily. Now Rhu presented all the evidence Gadorian needed to shut down the Kaleidicopia. It didn't matter if the evidence was shaky or not; at this point, Gadorian only needed an excuse. Gadorian took the note roughly, hating Rhu for being Jinnjirri. «I thought you might want to see this,» she said calmly. Timmer's handwriting was distinctive. Catching sight of it out of the corner of his eye, Rowenaster felt goose bumps crawl along his spine. «What is it?» he asked Rhu, speaking as amiably as possible. Rhu smiled coldly at the Kaleidicopian. Gadorian turned to Rowenaster. «Cobeth was a housemate of yours?» Rowenaster cleared his throat, but said nothing. Outside in the city streets, Akindo crossed the university campus. He turned at the campanile. He was now heading for the Jinnjirri Quarter of the city. In half an hour, Akindo would reach the Kaleidicopia. *13* Although it was now well past noon, Zendrak and Kelandris had only just returned to the Kaleidicopia after Kel's injudicious attempt to ride to Suxonli Village late last night. The two Greatkin had been so tired that instead of asking Further to deposit them speedily back at the «K's» front door—where they would no doubt run into half the house still drinking cocoa in the kitchen—Zendrak and Kel had decided to spend the night at a Saambolin inn on the outskirts of Speakinghast. At four bell-morn, the two Greatkin had finally fallen asleep in each other's arms, both too exhausted to consider the possibility of making love. At dawn, they made their way back to the city with Further's help, thus avoiding any questions by disgruntled Saambolin gate guards. Such as, «How did you leave the city without a proper pass?» Famished, the two Greatkin rummaged in Barlimo's well- stocked kitchen for lunch. Finding cheese, bread, wine, and apples, Kelandris washed the fruit while Zendrak cut the bread. As Kelandris handed Zendrak a clean plate, Mab entered the kitchen. «Give me one, too,» said the little Piedmerri, extending her hand to Kelandris. «I've got to eat and run. Classes, you know.» Mab was a straight-A student at Speakinghast University. Nineteen and plump, Mab was Piedmerri through and through. Naturally interested in children, she intended to teach elementary grades when she graduated. The billowing tunic she wore hid her ample bosom and lap. Plopping down beside Zendrak—who smiled at her—she eyed the sweet cheese under his knife. «Want some?» Mab beamed at him and held out her plate. «Bread?» asked Kelandris, handing her two slices. Mab grinned and began buttering them lavishly. «What a morning,» she said conversationally. «Everything that could've gone wrong did. And wasn't Rowen in a poor mood! He snapped at everybody in class this morning. Then I lost my term paper in the wind. Presence, it's cold! Anyway, after that all happened, the happincabby I hailed took me the long way around. Wasn't watching out the window. I've this test tomorrow so I was reading. Guess the stupid Saam driver thought I was from out of town or something. He charged me for his thievery. Couldn't talk him out of it. That was my book money, too,» she added with a woeful sigh. Zendrak grinned. Mab's fondness for penny romances was well known at the «K.» Offering Mab half an apple, he asked, «I assume you slept through all the excitement last night?» «Like a log. You know me, Zendrak. Nothing wakes me up. Well, except earthquakes and Jinnjirri arguing outside my door. That always wakes me up,» she added, rolling her eyes. «Left over from childhood, I guess. Raw nerves. Wish I weren't so weird.» «No one in this house is normal, Mab,» said Zendrak reassuringly. «The fact that you grew up in the northwest border of Jinnjirri—» «And survived it,» laughed Kelandris. «—is to your credit,» continued Zendrak, He referred to the fact that placid, stable Piedmerri liked the ground stationary under their wide feet. The northwest border of Jinnjirri was particularly earthquake- prone. After her birth in Piedmerri, Mab had spent the eighteen years of her life in this treacherous corner of the world. Both of her parents were Jinnjirri. They had been vacationing in Piedmerri when Mab's mother «caught.» Mab shrugged. «I suppose. Still, I wish I could've grown up in Piedmerri.» «What, and miss the opportunity of coming here?» said Zendrak. «What do you mean?» asked Mab, her mouth full of bread and cheese. «If you'd been raised in Piedmerri, you would've been too wholesome for the rest of us at the Kaleidicopia,» said Kelandris, pulling up a chair and sitting down in it. «I'd have thrown you out personally.» Mab scowled at the tall Greatkin. «Considering I got here before you did, Kel, I'd have had seniority over anything you wanted—» Kelandris stiffened, clearly ready to argue the point. Zendrak put up his hands in a placating gesture. «Dear ones—please. Can we eat in peace?» So they did. As each person was finishing his or her last bite, Kelandris suddenly jumped to her feet, her eyes wide with fear. Holding her hands open in front of her, she shut her green eyes and reached with her Tammirring-born senses to find what threatened her. Zendrak watched his sister with interest. «What's wrong, Kel?» he said softly. «I don't know. Something. I've felt it before. Reminds me of Suxonli.» Kelandris backed up, her hands pressing against both ears. «Something's outside the house, Zendrak. I can hear it breathing.» Before Kelandris could stop Zendrak, he was on his feet, running to the front door of the Kaleidicopia. Kelandris called after him to stop. He ignored her pleas. Stepping outside the large house, Zendrak was the first of Rimble's Nine to be stung by one of Elder Hennin's poisoned holovespa wasps. Zendrak flung the wasp away with anger in much the same way Aunt had done. Zendrak was Rimble's own child—the son of the Old Yellow Jacket himself—so he expected no ill effects from the wasp. Still, it perplexed him why he had been stung. Walking over to where he had cast the wasp, he was amazed to find it still alive. Although he hadn't meant to throw the wasp away from him with such force, the surprise of the sting had caused him to react without thinking. Kneeling by the yellow jacket, he spoke to the wasp in its own tongue, apologizing for hitting it. The wasp responded by hurling itself at Zendrak for another go at him. This time Zendrak was ready for the wasp. Using the brunt of his coat arm, he smacked the wasp against the front entrance to the Kaleidicopia. Its guts exploded on the fuchsia-colored door. The wasp died promptly. Zendrak scraped the insect off the door and crushed the remains under his green boot. «Why did you do that?» asked Kelandris, horrified to see him kill one of the symbolic representatives of Trickster. In Suxonli all wasps and hornets were revered as message bearers from Rimble and therefore from the Presence. Zendrak shook his head. «I'm not sure.» «What do you mean?» asked Mab nervously, standing on the doorsill behind Zendrak. «I'm not sure,» he repeated, touching the part of his neck where the wasp had stung him. «It was drunk,» he added. «Drunk?» said Kelandris. «Drunk. It sounded drunk. I spoke to it. Something—oh, I don't know. It probably means nothing. Why bother going on about it?» he added angrily, and started back into the house. Kelandris frowned. As she turned to follow him, the holovespa wasp meant for her flew toward her with unusual speed. Before it could reach her, however, a lone univer-'silsila wasp intercepted it. Both wasps stung each other to death. Seeing this, Kelandris pushed Mab inside the safety of the Kaleidicopia and slammed the door. «You don't have to be so rough —» began Mab plaintively. «Shut up, Mab,» snapped Kelandris. Before the little Piedmerri could retort, Kelandris left the hallway in search of Zendrak. Kelandris found him in their bedroom. He was dying. Panthe'kinarok Interlogue Greatkin Phebene took off her garland of green roses and threw it like a weapon at Greatkin Mattermat, who sat across the table from her at the Panthe'kinarok. He was munching complacently on a breadstick. The garland, briars and all, hit Mattermat square on the forehead and made him bleed. Mattermat was so surprised by this act of hostility from his sweet and gentle sister that he was speechless. So was everyone else at that table. «What was that for?» asked Jinndaven in a whisper to Phebene. Phebene answered Jinndaven shrilly, her voice audible to all. «He's killing Zendrak! The bastard is killing Zendrak! I'll have you to know, Mattie, the love interest in the story is my department! You're on shaky ground, buster! Make no mistake about it!» Mattermat chuckled, using the half- eaten breadstick in his right hand like a pointer from a classroom as he spoke to Phebene. «I can't possibly be on shaky ground, Pehbene. I am the ground, and I'm not shaking.» «Well, you will be!» countered the Greatkin of Tender Trysts and Great Loves. «You will be! You think Rimble is a handful when he's mad? You haven't seen anything until you've seen the agony of love denied. It can move mountains—without your permission!» added Phebene furiously. Mattermat yawned and continued eating his breadstick. Phebene turned to Jinndaven. «Where are Troth and Rimble?» «In the kitchen. Or in Milwaukee. Maybe both.» «See you,» she said, standing up. «Where are you going?» «To find the Greatkin of the impossible possibility: Rimble. After that, I'll visit Neath. Troth and me go back a long ways. I'll fix you, Mattermat, I will!» Before Phebene could dematerialize, however, Greatkin Themyth interrupted, her voice commanding. «Phebene! Come to my side this instant!» Hearing this, Mattermat began to laugh. «She'll tie your hands for sure, Phebes. Civilization always does when it comes to love.» «Rimble is