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"I just want to ask you a couple of questions If I ask soo ahead and punch me in the face"

Seth set his azed into his eyes "Tell me your name"

"Seth Sorenson"

"Tell rinned "Tell rin broadened "Are you a friend of the Society of the Evening Star?"

"Nope I’ht of the Dawn"

Bracken released his hands and scooted the stool back "I believe you In fact, I know sos about you You have friends here"

"My parents?" Seth said hopefully

"Your parents ht be here, but not in a cell we can access"

"So what are you, a hu people I wanted a close look at you They’ve sent down stingbulbs before Now I know you’re not a stingbulb, or a changeling More iht have been iances Hard to believe a shadow charmer could be on our side But now I’lad I passed your test Do you have soe?"

"I left ether "It still doesn’t prove whether I should trust you"

"Agreed I’d question your judgment if you did For starters, why don’t I take you to visit one of your friends?"

"Sure Do I have lots of friends here?"

"A few" Bracken grabbed the glowing stone

"Where did you get the light?"

"I ap in the back wall of the cell "I’m pretty close to powerless these days, but I still know a trick or two"

"What are you, a wizard?"

Bracken chuckled, closing the gap in the wall Then he started along a narrow corridor "A wizard stuck in cells like these would be a sorry wizard indeed I’ll tell you o quiet for a stretch The walls are thin up here, and a guard is posted nearby"

Bracken closed his fist around the stone so that only a little light escaped Seth followed hihtly The floor felt slick

The narrow passage eventually tapered to an end "This part is a little tricky," Bracken whispered He put the glowing stone in a pocket and pointed up A tiny globe of light the size of a ping-pong ball leapt fro upward The ball rose into a hole in the ceiling, which turned out to be a tall shaft

Bracing hie, Bracken spidered up until his feet ell above Seth’s reach The sure swiftness of his s in the shaft," he stage-whispered down, pulling himself into the vertical crawl space

Seth chi hi upward in increments The walls were spaced too wide to ained only a few inches with each movement When he reached the s and quickly reached up to a rung, then followed Bracken upward At the top of the damp shaft,

Bracken raised a wooden hatch Seth followed Bracken out into the new passageway The top of the hatch was disguised to match the floor after Bracken carefully closed it

Bracken recalled the floating ball of light, snuffed it out, and took the stone froh a hidden door, and along another passage until Bracken stopped

"Here we are," Bracken said, his voice less hushed "This character keeps his cell locked froainst the wall--four slow beats, two quick ones, a pause, and then three quick strikes A ee enough to crawl through Bracken entered first

"You bring hih "There he is!"

Seth looked up in surprise "Maddox?"

The burly fairy trader beamed down at hiood to see you" Offering a meaty hand, Maddox hauled Seth to his feet

"You’re alive!" Seth said "The last tibulb," Maddox said gravely "I hoped you all would h the charade"

"Not at first," Seth said "It did a good job But we figured it out before any real harbulbs cobulb trees are on this preserve I’ll be honest, if I ever eon, I’d be tempted to stick around and explore This is an ancient preserve Who knohat supposedly extinct species I ht encounter!"

Seth scrunched his brow "How can I be sure you’re not a stingbulb?"

"Good boy!" Maddox bellowed He glanced over to Bracken "This one thinks like a survivor"

"My sentireed

"Bracken can tell," Maddox told Seth "But I’ll wager you don’t trust hiuys," Seth said "I just don’t want to be an idiot"

"A stingbulb would have my memories," Maddox said "There isn’t much I can do to prove my authenticity For now, it’ll have to suffice that on’t press you for secrets"

"I’m not sure I have any in the first place," Seth said "The Society already knows everything I do"

"Now, don’t think like that," Maddox said "You never knohat odd detail e Keep those lips sealed"

"All right"

Bracken picked up Maddox’s eave an aard smile "I’ll be honest, I’ve eaten worse"

"Worse?" Bracken laughed "Where? Was it uncooked and deco they serve here He’s put on a good twenty pounds since they brought hi his hands over the ratty skins covering his belly "I’na I was starving when they brought me here"

"I can’t even bite the meat," Seth said