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"Good Silk!" Oreb assured His Cognizance

"It is not lanced gravely at his visitor, and read it again

"You needn't confide in me, of course I realize-"

The Prolocutor had raised a plump hand to silence him "It concerns yourself I will not conceal that frohtly, whether you repose trust in nizance"

"Then I tell you now that this missive concerns you, but I dare not let you peruse it Its substance I shall ily assist nizance"

"Exemplary" The Prolocutor looked toward a flower-decked porcelain clock "Less than an hour remains, and we shall each desire to spend precious moments in private prayer Let nizance"

"First, I shall h I myself shall read the victims Prepare yourself to address the devoted supplicants of the iods"

The white-haired man nodded

"Second, I ers who are said to purpose to carry you off to Blue I sentthese outsiders Helike that?"

"No cut!"

"It's nothing, Your Cognizance," the white-haired man said "Please continue"

"I was about to say that our solemn sacrifice may afford them an incomparable opportunity You,oneself into the devious schemes of the ill intentioned I invite you to believe it is quite otherith me If it were my intent to thus abscond with you, I should consider the abovedesignated soleolden opportunity"

"I'll be careful, Your Cognizance"

"Do so" The Prolocutor looked dubious "You are of an adventurous and mettlesome disposition Inculcate the innocence of the dove and the prudence of the turtle You nizance"

"I hope you do" The Prolocutor glanced at his clock again "Lastly, that communication General Mint desires to speak with you You need fear no bootless delay She is here in my Palace"

He was taken to a small but richly appointed room on the same floor by the prothonotary; a so the ar on his shoulder "This is a great honor, General Can I be of help to you?"

She nodded and ed to smile "Shut the door, please We haven't ti, so keep your voice low" She glanced about her "They , but there's not much we can do about it Sit close beside me, so that you can hear me and I can hear you This"

He waited

"This is so to do it right now My husband-well, never mind You're not Silk We settled that"

"I hope so," he said

"So I want to tell you so rand affair, he said, and he wanted me to come"

"So do I"

Her eyes widened "Do you really? Then perhaps I will But I must tell you first" Her voice, already low, fell until it was scarcely audible "And give you so"

He waited

"Echidna ordered ainst the Ayuntamiento, I suppose because I could ride Anyway, I did There was awhite stallion, and he let me have it I jus"

"I relad of that I jumped onto its back, and it reared I suppose that without a saddle it hadn't been expecting to be ridden As it reared, Silk threw me his azoth" She paused "You may have heard It was one of the most famous incidents of the war"

"I have," he told her "I've even written about it"

"Good, I'd like to read it sootten such a thing I simply used it"

She reached under the shawl on her lap "Later I learned that his wife had given it to hi afterward I would like to think it may have been because of the azoth"

He nodded

Her pinched face was paler and more serious than ever; and he sensed, belatedly, that she was in pain "That woman made him promise to, in return for the azoth It must have been like that He would've kept the promise and the secret It was hoas"

"I know"

"Do you also know that I still have it? The great, the famous weapon from the Short Sun Whorl? I do"

He watched her in silence, praying for her in his heart

"Aren't you going to ask what good an azoth is to a crippled wo the question"

He shook his head "Legs are for running away"

She considered, her head cocked to one side "So one can do"