and a pen.'
'A sound idea. We'll do so next time, although I suspect that everyone else will have the same idea. In the meantime, I suggest this division of labor: You commit the confirmed clues to memory, while I'll memorize the unreliable ones.'
'Confirmed and unreliable?'
'Clue tokens we have seen, and clue tokens we have heard about secondhand. I don't doubt that our satyr friend made up the two clues he told us, but on occasion, someone may deal with us in good faith. And if we have unreliable clues that don't contradict each other, there's a chance they might be the truth.'
'Do you think that he was really lying to us?'
Jack simply laughed. 'I would have, had I been him. Come on-let's see what clues we can learn and what deceits we can spread.' Arm in arm, they moved on into the Game of Masks.
By the time midnight drew near, Jack had learned three important things.
First of all, he'd learned that many of the players were not interested in rushing willy-nilly toward the collection of every clue at hand. In fact, there weren't more than a dozen or so serious competitors who were trying to hound out clues as quickly as possible. For the majority of the Game players, the entertainment of the evening lay not in solving the puzzle but in playing the Game itself. It boggled Jack. Many players made small talk or thought up stories to tell about other players or the Red Lord, weaving a complex plot around the rather trite story that the Game coordinators had invented to justify the riddle. Players refused to trade clues, offered to trade clues if Illyth and he would do something to forward their own little plots and efforts, or just casually dismissed Lord Fox and Lady Crane outright, telling them to come back later.
Secondly, Jack learned that it was possible to deftly pickpocket clue-tokens from passersby, especially on the crowded dance floor. He managed to pull off the feat three times during the course of the night. Of course, he couldn't figure out how to let Illyth know that these clues were reliable, but he figured that he'd solve that problem later.
Finally, Jack learned that it was extremely inadvisable to be caught at filching tokens. Near the end of the evening, Jack found himself standing near a man concealed beneath a panther mask as black as coal. The fellow was engaged in a conversation with a pretty serving girl next to the buffet sideboard. Jack sidled up behind him, filled a plate with food, and casually bumped the man as if by accident. The panther jumped and whirled on him, at which point Jack 'accidentally' spilled his plate.
'Oh, please excuse me,' Jack said. 'How clumsy of me.'
'No apology needed,' the panther said, examining his clothes to see if any food had been spilled on him. He swayed a little, apparently a little in his cups. 'No harm done-here, what's this?' Quicker than Jack would have believed, the drunken man reached out to seize his wrist with the abrupt celerity that strong wine sometimes imparts. Lord Panther twisted Jack's wrist, staring at his own clue token. 'Huh? In a hurry to see my clue, eh?'
Jack winced. He shouldn't have pressed his luck-a good pickpocket worked with an accessory or two to help pass off loot quickly, just so this sort of thing didn't happen. 'Ah, I'll agree that this looks bad,' he said. 'I assure you, sir, that this is completely accidental, a freakish coincidence. I would never deliberately stoop to such a crass tactic.' He began to gain confidence in his bluster. 'In fact, your accusation is unjust and undeserved. The Red Lord's vintages have fuddled your wits.'
'How dare you deny your guilt when my token is in your hands!' Lord Panther growled. He seemed to be sobering quickly.
At that moment, Illyth disentangled herself from a nearby conversation and made her way over. 'Hello, Jack. What's the trouble?'
'Ah, my Lady Crane. I sincerely hope that you adhere to higher standards than your companion here, or do you intend to seduce me in order to gain access to my token?'
Illyth stiffened. 'I intend nothing of the sort. In fact, I don't much care for your words, sir.'
'And I don't much care for finding this guttersnipe's hands in my pockets,' Lord Panther said. 'You should be more careful in choosing your associates, my lady.'
'The lady has nothing to do with this,' Jack said. 'Listen, I am a reasonable man. Although I am under no compunction to do so, I'll show you my token by way of negotiating a mutually acceptable solution to our disagreement.'
Lord Panther pried his token out of Jack's hand. Then he shoved the rogue hard with his free hand. Jack kept his feet but knocked over a side table in doing so. A chorus of breaking dishes drew the attention of everyone nearby.
'I have no wish to settle anything, you cutpurse,' Panther said. 'Acknowledge your guilt and apologize this instant, or leave this Game at once.'
'Hold!' The crowd parted as the Red Lord appeared, tall and stately. 'What quarrel disturbs my revel?'
'It seems you have invited a thief to your party, my lord,' Panther said, nodding at Jack. 'I caught this cretin pawing through my pockets.'
'Lord Panther misunderstands,' Jack replied. 'It was a simple accident.'
'I misunderstand nothing,' Panther snapped. 'Come on, you. You're leaving right now.'
'Wait,' the Red Lord said. 'This is my revel, and I shall decide matters of justice. You claim that Lord Fox is a thief. Lord Fox denies the charge. There can be only one resolution.'
'What's that?' Jack asked, more than a little concerned.
'Trial by combat,' the Red Lord said. 'We shall let truth and piety decide the quarrel. No unrighteous man can stand before the truth. Bring me a pair of dueling swords!'
Jack was fairly certain that that statement was not necessarily true, but he was quite certain that he didn't want to fight a duel this very instant. Was this part of the Game, a mock fight to assuage Lord Panther's damaged honor? Or did the Game players and organizers expect to see blood on the marble floor before the night was through?
'I would be delighted to oblige, Red Lord,' he said carefully, 'but I have recently endured a long and debilitating sickness-not contagious, no need to worry! — and I'm not really up for a sword fight at the moment.'
'If you will not stand against your accuser, Lord Fox, we must rule that his claims are founded in truth and judge accordingly,' the Red Lord said. 'How can it be otherwise?'
'Perhaps I could designate a proxy?' Jack asked.
'In the kingdoms of the Faceless Lords, no such practice exists,' the Red Lord intoned. 'Why, you might choose a proxy based on nothing more than sheer physical skill for the purpose of gaining an unfair advantage!'
'That would never occur to me,' Jack said, pure sincerity in his voice. 'It was the farthest thought from my mind.' He licked his lips and rubbed his hands nervously at his hips. 'What of a battle of wits, then? Or a contest of balancing plates upon our heads? If Lord Panther is challenging me, don't I as the challenged have the privilege of choosing the weapons?'
'All true gentlemen know well how to argue with their blades,' the Red Lord said, 'and, if you have the strength of your convictions to shield you, no harm can possibly come to you. Now will you meet Lord Panther's challenge or not?'
Jack let the silence stretch so long that the gathering crowd began to grow restless. He might have ignored them despite the approbation in their eyes, but his gaze fell on Illyth. Even through the mask, he could see the mortification in her downcast face and slumping shoulders.
He couldn't disappoint her on the first night of the Game. 'I accept the challenge,' he declared in a ringing voice. 'Lord Panther has allowed your fine drink to addle his wits, my lord. I would rather not fight a man in such a state and did earnestly make every effort to avoid this passage of arms. I only hope that I can avoid injuring him in some lasting way!'
'Not only do I call you a thief, but a braggart and a buffoon!' Panther said. 'By Tyr's sainted ears, don't you ever shut up?'
A servant trotted up to the Red Lord, bearing a large wooden case. He opened it and bowed, presenting two
