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should be minimal. In no way must it interfere with what we have come for-which should be of
basic interest to us all."
"And that is?"
"The question of trade-direct, between you and us."
All chatter had ceased. The silence lingered while Sernas studied me. He was a big
man, heavily muscled. His hair and beard were dark. His eyes and lips were as his-son's,
slack, red, and sensual. The richness of his garments proclaimed his wealth. His eyes then
shifted from me to the others of my party, lingered on Caroween and Murie. He finally asked,
"Who are you really, sir, to come here with this reprobate? For know this, though he calls
himself my son, his friendship will grant you no entry to my house. I ask again: Announce
yourself as is the custom..."
I sighed, rose high in my stirrups, the apparent protocol, to say strongly, "I, my lords,
am the Prince, Til-Cares, of the Selig Isles. This is my Princess, the Lady Meeres." I touched
Murie's arm. "With me is the Prince, Til-Keeves, and his Lady Carameer." I gestured. "The
others are our squires and our master swordsman, Og-Grisald. And now that you know us,
my lord, allow me to say that in our island-world of sea, wind, and ships, we have a thing
called courtesy. Guests are given respect until proven false. None are left to sit their mounts
outside our walls or to ply their ships before our harbor moles. As stated for the last time:
We will most certainly make amends for the wrong done to the Lord Haken. But there Still
remains the other, the business about which we have come."
The Lord Haken cried, "What of my daughter, sir?"
"'Tis no affair of mine. We but met this young lord on the road."
Haken continued-as Lord Sernas' advocate. "What business," he asked, "can you
possibly have which is not now granted us by the beneficence of our living god?"
I shrugged. "You refer to your Dark One? Well, know this. I have his agreement to this
meeting which, as stated, will be 'twixt yourselves and me alone."
At that they frowned and muttered, while Sernas pulled his beard and bit his lip. The
muttering grew. For I'm sure they'd never heard such a proposition in living memory.
A man stepped forward, the one I'd been waiting for. His garb was the crimson robe,
and he was the castle's priest-wizard. His black eyes glittered. "What proof," he demanded,
"do you have for this suggestion of yours-which I deem blasphemy?"
I smiled, brought forth the green and glowing disc. 'Without a doubt each lord
possessed one like it. But that I, an obvious outsider, should have one, too, was to my credit.
The disc, catching the sun as it did, glowed strongly, and with a Pug Boo's added glitter. It
must have seemed twice as big in their eyes. "The authority," I defined it flatly, "of your God!"
Then I turned direct to Sernas. "My lord," I asked. "What say you? Is there courtesy to your
house or is there not? If not, say so-and we'll be on our way."
The Lord of Sernas grinned, then laughed outright, "Through all of that?" He waved a
hand toward the five thousand warriors and knights. His laughter was joined by the roaring
guffaws of others until, in ever widening circles, it reached the horizon of his tents.
I looked slowly around, screwed up my eyes as if counting heads. I said solemnly,
"Well now, 'tis my thinking that our master-swordsman could do the job. He's killed three
hundred men, you know. And that by accident. But if he did need help, well, what with the
rest of us, I doubt me there'd be a problem."
At this bit of bravado the laughter mounted along with some applause which grew,
too, as my words were passed to those who waited. For above all else, before ever they
were warriors of Hish in Om, they had first been Alphians-true warriors who could
appreciate a man!
Lord Akin Sernas rode forward then to take my hand; the others likewise. He shouted
so that all could hear. "I welcome you, Prince of Selig. And let us hope, sir, that this business
whereof you speak will compensate for the insolence of your words." Seeing his son
beaming at this sudden twist of things, he scowled, said bluntly, "As for you, whelp, you'll
defend yourself, you hear, against my Lord of Haken's charges."
"Why Pod," young Lors said blithely, "mayhap I'll marry the bitch and end the problem
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