'I knew they were kept in the temple, but I've never seen them.' ,
Paul picked up one of the figurines and found it to be surprisingly heavy. Metal of some kind—its surface gleamed a dull silver. His first impression was of an insect—a long, sticklike torso with four spindly limbs. But if it was an insect, it was one that walked on two legs. The details of the head and face were too fine to be discerned. The other figurines appeared to be of the same creature, but in different poses.
'Is this Lord Tern?' he asked. When Dorland didn't answer, Paul glanced at him and found him staring at the creature. 'Are you all right?' Dorland's eyes moved slowly to Paul. 'I think so,' he said.
Paul wasn't sure which question Dorland had answered. He replaced the figurine and closed the door. The next cabinet had a glass strip in the door, but in the dim light Paul couldn't see through it. Inside he found shallow shelves that held long, slender tubes. He examined one briefly and decided it might be a musical instrument. He replaced it and opened the door wide to step into the cabinet. It would be a trifle crowded, but he thought there was enough space for both of them to squeeze in between the front edge of the shelves and the doors.
He stepped back out, closed the door again and looked critically at the glass strip. In the dim light from the globes he was sure he and Dorland
wouldn't be visible inside the cabinet.
'What do you think?' he asked.
Dorland looked at him. 'About what?'
'About hiding in here. We can't go out that way.' Paul jerked a thumb toward the door. 'We have to get out of sight before the ceremony starts.'
Dorland looked at the cabinet. 'Seems okay,' he said simply, and without a word he stepped inside. Paul fitted himself in beside him and pulled the door closed.
104
William Greenleaf CLARION 105
Cleve Quintan saw something that made him go mad.
He swallowed. /'// keep my eyes closed, he told himself. When the ceremony starts, I won't look. That way I can't see anything that might... He decided he didn't want to think any more about that.
The globes provided enough light for a relatively good view of the chamber. Paul moved as far back from the door as he could. What if somebody decides to get something out of this cabinefl He touched the handle of the knife and made sure it was within easy reach in its sheath. Not that it would do much good if they were caught—
'Diana.'
Paul jumped a little, even though the sound had come from Dorland in a soft whisper. 'What?'
'I can feel her,' Dorland said. 'The fear has been bred into me. Its breath is mine, but I can overcome it because it has no flesh and bone.'
'What are you talking about?'
'Diana and Shari were flesh and bone. They are ... close in this place.' Dorland's voice was flat, but Paul could sense a deep, underlying emotion. 'How long has it been since I've thought of them? How long since I've allowed their flesh and blood and love to come into my mind? Our life together, our too-short life—'
The words choked off. Paul shifted nervously.
'Dorland, this isn't the time to—'
'Little Shari. Ah . . .'
Then Paul heard muted voices and the sounds of feet on the wooden floor of the outer chamber. Dorland fell silent. Through the glass Paul saw several men in robes enter the chamber and begin arranging themselves around the room. The robes were white, which meant the men were deacons, if Ogram knew what he was talking about. Slow
footsteps moved past the cabinet and a hazy shadow blocked the light, then moved on. Paul realized the deacons had taken positions against the wall, all around the cabinets. For a while there was only silence. Paul eased himself forward for a better view.
Another line of men came through the door and moved up close to the chauka. These were the elders, with white
