Page 108 (1/2)

Apollonius is naked in the di folded neatly on the floor It disturbshis phanto down his shoulders, eyes closed, face a e is affixed to his head over a shaved patch froery

I want him dead Gone from the worlds He’s taken two people I love and torain makes me sick

“Do you fancy the evil violinist, Tongueless?” Sevro asks

The Obsidian looks up at us with his dark eyes and shakes his head He makes a mo

tion of the violin and points to one of the tattoos on his ar beard and a harp in his hands It is the Norse god of ood?” I ask

Tongueless nods He taps his ear and then his heart, as if to say he wishes he could hear hiueless nods, accepting that, and stands to leave us alone with Apollonius

I watch hiue He’s unique aant, cultured, like he’s accustos He’s quickly beco to his craft in the kitchen Men don’t ask questions if you feed the to suspect there’s a cell than si side of the warden’s temper

“Why does he always have to get naked every ti et it over with”

I deactivate the opacity on Apollonius’s side of the glass so that he can see us in the di and thrashing out a crescendo, then a slow, silent denouement And when he has finished, he leans back to look at us, an amused smile on his lips

“Did you likefor us to answer “Much approbation is granted Paganini as the great violin virtuoso of the pentadactyl period Well, before the co of Virenda, of course But for sheer Orphian transcendental rigor, I’ve long maintained a true master must atteered harh, but the arpeggios are a Herculean labor”

“I don’t knohat any of that means,” Sevro says

“A pity for you to have such narrow concerns”

“You’re dying to tell us when you first played it, aren’t you? I know you folks can’t resist a little brag,” Sevro o on Impress us, Rath”

“I mastered it when I elve”

“Twelve? No!” Sevro claps his hands “What genius! Reap, did you know that we had a psychotic virtuoso aboard?”