pressure of leading this assignment was wearing him down.
'You go rest, Silverdun. I don't have anything more to tell you; in fact, the less I tell you, the better. Take Timha and Ironfoot here with you. Je Wen will find a place for you to lie down.'
'Thank you,' said Silverdun, visibly relieved.
'What about me?' asked Sela.
'Let's talk about you, Sela. Let me pour you a cup of tea, because this is going to take a while.' She looked up at the men. 'Go on, you three. Ladies only.'
Ironfoot, Silverdun, and Timha left the tent, and found Je Wen waiting for them outside.
'Was your conversation profitable?' he asked.
'I have no idea,' said Ironfoot.
Je Wen gave him a knowing smile. 'Come with me.'
The tent next to Lin Vo's held four mattresses piled with blankets and pillows, and not much else. Silverdun sprawled on one, his eyes wide open, and Timha was fast asleep on the other by the time Ironfoot got his boots off.
'I thought you were tired,' said Ironfoot, looking at Silverdun.
'I am. More exhausted than I can remember being in a long, long time.'
'That was an ... unusual conversation.'
Silverdun sat up, rubbing his temples. 'People like her drive me utterly mad,' he said.
'Did you see what she did to Timha?' Ironfoot asked. 'The way she used re?'
Silverdun shook his head. 'I haven't the slightest idea what happened there. I saw Timha channeling Motion, and the next thing I knew, he looked like he'd been dunked in a pond. Strangest thing I ever saw.' He lay back down and closed his eyes.
'Get some sleep,' he said. 'I have a feeling we've got a couple of long days ahead of us.'
Ironfoot lay down as well, but couldn't sleep either. When he closed his eyes he saw the patterns in his mind again, and the colorless color of Lin Vo's magic.
An undefined term. Division by zero.
Some time later, just as he was drifting off, Sela slipped into the tent. He caught a glimpse of her in the firelight from outside. Tears glistened on her face, but she didn't look sad. Quite the opposite: For the first time he could remember, she looked at peace.
Ironfoot awoke what felt like a moment later, although it must have been at least four hours, because gray dawn was already filtering in through the tent flaps. Though he'd slept little, and fitfully, when he stood up he felt fully awake and rested. Another perk of the change wrought upon him and Silverdun at Whitemount, whatever it had been. He needed little sleep these days, and what little he got worked wonders.
Hell, it even grew back a hand if necessary.
'About time you woke up,' said Silverdun. He was already up and pulling on his boots. He looked as refreshed as Ironfoot felt.
'How do you feel right now, Silverdun?' he asked.
'Just fine,' said Silverdun.
'After just four hours of sleep.'
'I'm not questioning it today,' said Silverdun. 'Just grateful for it. I woke up in fine fettle and don't intend to let anything bring me down today.'
'That's uncharacteristically optimistic of you,' said Ironfoot.
'Apparently my previous character wasn't doing me much good,' said Silverdun drily.
'Is it morning already?' said Sela. She sat up on her mattress and looked around, groggy. 'I feel as though I just fell asleep.'
Outside, the Arami tribe was already up and active. The central fire pit had been covered over with sand, and the tents were being struck. Timha walked through the camp, his eyes half-closed and suspicious, but took coffee and a pipe when they were offered. Je Wen was rolling up a portion of tent canvas when they found him.
'Good morning,' Je Wen said. 'I trust you all slept well?'
'Your trust is misplaced,' said Silverdun. 'We all slept poorly. But we're ready to go when you are.'
