unobstructed view of her. The bowl-shaped vehicles stopped where they were. The occupants slithered out to join the growing throng. Bookworms climbed walls and light posts to take a gander at Calypsa.
For her part, the Walt was making the best use of her audience. She flirted with the guys in the front row, tickling under
their chins with her feathered hands as she stepped and sashayed. She brought Ersatz into the act, spinning the gleaming blade over her head, then bringing it down and caressing it. Children were agog until their outraged mothers covered their eyes with one hand. I gawked, enjoying the show. Nothing seemed as important as what the slender Walt would do next.
Suddenly, a finger hooked itself in the corner of my mouth and turned my head. I found myself looking into Tananda's eyes. She shook her head.
'Can't ignore a pretty girl, can you?' 'Thanks,' I said.
'Don't mention it. She's good, isn't she?'
The effect on Froome was just as good as I had hoped. The Pikinise wizard stopped trying to pull away from me. He stared at Calypsa with his jaw hanging open. I let go of him, and tipped her a wink, careful not to watch her movements too closely.
'Keep him there until I come back,' I told Tananda. 'I have an idea.'
'You have an idea?' Asti said, as I pushed open the door. 'That's worth a headline.'
'Shut up,' I said, with great pleasure. 'We
I swaggered up to the desk. If the Tomburgian male behind it was surprised to have a Pervect addressing him, he hid it well. I gave him my most affable smile.
'Afternoon,' I said, calmly. 'I'd like to apply for a library card.'
Applause and gasps of admiration came in through the open door from the street. The librarian behind the desk straightened his goggle-thick glasses on his big nose and peered over my shoulder. 'What is going on out there?'
'Who knows?' I said. 'May I have the application, please?'
In no time at all, I was the proud possessor of a card for the Main Library System of Tomburg. Two minutes later, I was on the landing where Froome had stowed the Book. It slid
off the shelf into my hands without a catch or a fuss. Two minutes after that I was standing in line at the desk. The same librarian who had given me my card stamped it out.
'You can keep it as long as you need it,' he said. 'If there's an interlibrary request for it, we can use our crystal ball to find you.'
'You do that,' I said, blithely. 'Have a nice day.'
I sauntered out into the street with the Book under my arm. I waved over the heads of the crowd to Calypsa and Tananda.
'Got it!' I called.
With one final spin, Calypsa sheathed the Sword and stopped dancing.
'Awwwww!' The crowd let out a wail of disappointment. Bookworms glanced sheepishly at one another, then scattered about their business. Within moments, the sidewalk was clear of all but a few passersby.
Froome blinked a few times, then came to himself. He saw the Book, and made a grab for it. I stiff-armed him. He was taller than I was, but as weak as a strip club martini.
'Sorry. He's coming with us, now.'
'You'll never get away with it,' he gasped.
'I just did.'
'But, what will I do without him?' Froome said. 'He gave me so many ideas!'
'Ideas?' It was my turn to blink. 'You're a magician. Use the force lines, like everybody else.'
'Magician?' he said, puzzled. 'I'm not a magician. I'm a storyteller.'
'You're a what?' I asked, taken aback. 'We thought you were using Payge as a grimoire. You're a member of the Magicians' Club.'
'No, no!' Froome said. 'I do sleight of hand. It makes my live performances more interesting. Payge taught me to dimension-hop. It's so easy anyone can do it.'
'Not everyone,' I growled.
Froome didn't seem to notice. 'Payge is a great teacher. He is far more than a grimoire! He's full of amazing stories, dating back millennia. Some really astounding tales. A lot of them have to do with the Golden Hoard.' He stared at Ersatz and Kelsa. 'These are some of the treasures, aren't they? I recognize them from his descriptions. Are they really as marvelous as the legends say?'
'Shhh!' I growled, looking around at the foot traffic passing us on both sides. 'Yes, they are. Don't make headlines out of it.'
'Amazing.' Froome simply looked fascinated. 'I have always lived a very quiet life. All I do is sit in a small room and craft stories, which I sell to make my living. Nothing ever happens to me. One day, I went to a cave, to inspire myself to write a story about underground terrors, and found him there on a shelf, gleaming like a...'
'Like a beacon in the night?' I supplied.
'Yes! You should be a writer. Payge has been my best source material, better than any other book I've ever read. I've been so productive with him critiquing my writing. When I read in his archives that you were coming, I just panicked! I packed up everything I had and fled. He's more than a treasure, he's my friend, my mentor! Are you sure you won't just.. .give him back to me?'
'Sorry, kid. Win some, lose some.'
Froome was forlorn. 'How can I go to the Saylemanor Festival without him?'
'If leading us on a chase across the dimensions hasn't given you the material for a terrific epic,' Tananda said, 'then you can't be much of a storyteller.'
'Not to mention Calypsa's tale of woe,' I said. 'And you just met four of the other members of the Golden Hoard. That was Ersatz, the great Sword, at your throat up there in the library.'
'I...' Froome looked at each of us, enlightenment dawning. 'It was? Why, I DID have an adventure of my own, didn't I?'
'You certainly did,' Tananda said, giving him one of her killer smiles as she sidled up to him. 'And you can tell your listeners that you went up against the mighty Aahz, one of the toughest and smartest guys ever to come out of Perv, and that you beat him two times out of three.'
'Hey, wait a minute!' I said. 'Who's telling this, anyway?'
'Why, Froome will be,' Tananda said, giving me a wink. She ran her fingers up the sleeve of his robe. 'Won't you?'
He seemed to be afflicted with a terrible case of dry-mouth. 'Why, I.. .how can I resist it? Yes, it'll make wonderful telling! I'll be the hit of the festival. What.. .what's your name, beautiful green lady?'
'Tananda,' the Trollop said. 'Make sure you spell it right.'
The Pikinise was already mining through his capacious satchel for a quill and a notebook. 'And just what was it that you did to make me stop in my tracks, Miss Calypsa?' he asked.
'The Dance of Fascination,' she said.
'It was.. .it was fantastic,' he said, with an admiring glance. 'Good luck in freeing your grandfather.'
'Thank you,' she said, modestly. 'You are very kind to let me take Payge.'
'You're welcome,' he said. 'All I ask in return is that you let me know how it all comes out. And then, look out, Morigrim Festival of Champion Storytellers. Here I come!'
He blinked out of sight.
'WELL DONE,' ASTI said, grudgingly. 'That was almost
brilliant.'
I swaggered along the main street of Tomburg, looking for a handy alley that we could slip into, to avoid
