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"My gods," Maddingall the time) "It is you"

His words confusedto the blonde woman Then I jumped at the response, because it came from another unexpected direction--above

"Oh, yes," said this new, soft voice "It’s hi suddenly went still in a way that I knew meant trouble His two lieutenants suddenly flickered into view, equally tense "I see," Madding said, speaking low and carefully "It’s been a while, Sieh Have you co, prepubescent boy I looked up, trying to gauge where he was--a rooftop, maybe, or aon the second or third floor I could not see hi shy?

There was a sudden feel of round only a few feet away Godling, then

"You look worn out, old man," the boy said, and belatedly I realized he, too, was addressing so, or the blonde woman Finally I noticed that off to the side of the alley, near the wall, there was so for so about those weary breaths was familiar

"Mortal flesh is bound by physical laws," the boy continued, speaking to the panting person "If you don’t use sigils to channel the power, you get th Use enough and it can even kill you--for a while, anyhow Just one of a thousand new things you’ll have to learn, I’m afraid Sorry, old man"

The blonde wo underfoot "You’re not sorry"

She was right The voice of the boy--Sieh, Madding had called him--was utterly devoid of compassion He sounded pleased, in fact, in the way that ht low I cockedto understand

Sieh chuckled "Of course I’m sorry, Lil Do I look like the kind of person ould hold a grudge? That would be petty of reed the blonde wo please you?"

"Oh, yes, Lil It pleases me very much"

Not even the pretense of friendliness this ti in that boyish voice but sadistic relish I shivered, evenchild before, but I had an inkling they were not all that different from human children Human children could be merciless, especially when they had power

I stepped away fro pulled me sharply back, his hand like a vise on , "But--"

"Not now, Oree," Madding said He didn’t use that tone with er when he did

If this had been any other situation, I would have happily stepped behind him and tried to make myself as unnoticeable as possible I was in a dark alley in the back end of beyond, surrounded by dead ods whose tempers were up For all I knew, there wasn’t anotherdistance Even if there had been, what in the infinite hells could they have done to help?

"What’s happened to the Keepers?" I whispered to Madding It was an unnecessary question; they had finally stopped sizzling "How did Shiny kill thereat dismay, it was Sieh’s voice I hadn’t wanted to draw his attention or that of the blonde wohted "Shiny? Is that what you call hiain when the first try failed "He won’t give "

"Did you, now?" The boy, sounding auessed by the direction of his voice, but that was not as co of him, not even an outline or a shadohichhih; his presence filled the whole alley in a way that none of the other godlings’ did

"Shiny," the boy said again, contemplative "And he answers to that name?"

"Not exactly" I licked ht?"

The boy abruptly turned away "Oh, he’ll be fine He has no choice but to be fine, doesn’t he?" He was angrier now, I realized, s worse "No matter what happens to his mortal body, no matter how many times he abuses it--and, yes, oh yes, I know about that, did you think I didn’t?" He was speaking to Shiny again, and his voice practically treh at you, so proud, so arrogant, dying over and over because you can’t be bothered to take the most basic care?"