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did well. Now only he and John the Smith had not joined the crowd.
John the Smith, Kejesli recalled, was from one of the Navel Worlds, close to
the main centers of civilization. Those worlds no longer needed the
independent traders, not the way the people of the
Extremities did. Obviously, John considered himself too sophisticated to court
Hellsparks. Kejesli was mildly annoyed at the thought.
Another burst of thunder combined with nearby movement caught Kejesli s eye,
and he turned to find the arachne poised beside him like a hunting farrun that
had found its quarry. He stared back at it, surprised that it did not leave
when its inspection was completed. A moment later the Hellspark stood before
him, and the arachne was once again on its way.
With your permission, Captain? She gestured at the chair facing him. Her
gray cloak, still glinting silver droplets, cascaded softly about her as she
sat. She pushed back a tangle of red hair made darker by Flashfever s
downpour.
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The tangle caught momentarily. Only when she had tugged it free did he see the
cause of the snag: a pin of high-change was thrust through her cloak!
His first thought was that she must be mad only the desperate would choose to
take that risk but for all his sudden stare he could find nothing
desperate in those gold eyes, and nothing mad either.
Instead he found something disconcertingly familiar. He had seen those gold
eyes somewhere
He found himself fingering the pin of remembrance in his vest lapel. He had
worn it not for Veschke but for remembrance of Oloitokitok.
The Hellspark s gold eyes followed his fingers. He knew she could tell from
the pin s design that it was four years old, that being the last time he had
attended the Festival of Ste. Veschke. She smiled, indicating the pin. She was
Sheveschkem at that moment. Don t worry, she said, I ve tracked in
enough of Veschke s blessing from this year s festival to cover us both.
Thrusting out a foot to show him that it was covered with red mud, she went
on, I assure you only half of that is local.
Surprised to find that it did reassure him, he looked at her face again and
realized why she had seemed so familiar. He had seen those gold eyes a
thousand times in his youth, smiling triumphantly from an icon that depicted
Veschke s burning&
He suddenly wished for John the Smith s sophistication or his ignorance.
Where else but on a survey where his ship had not been blessed, where else but
on a world he had given the ill-omened name of Flashfever, could all
these things coincide? The death of Oloitokitok, Alfvaen (deny it as he
would, he was responsible for the twelve of Inumaru as well), and this woman
with the pin of high-change. Veschke was renowned for her sense of humor.
He fought the imagery: all he had to do was send a report to MGE and he could
leave this world. He made a conscious effort and his hand dropped from the pin
of remembrance.
Tocohl Susumo smiled at him again. She raised her cup, made Veschke s sign
with her left hand, and said. To Veschke!
To Veschke! he repeated, without intending to, and drank with her.
By the time Tocohl rejoined Alfvaen, the crowd had doubled in size; Buntec
beamed at this result of her handiwork. Amid a cheerful pandemonium of
greetings in a dozen different tongues, Tocohl spoke quietly to Alfvaen in
Siveyn, We have a local day s grace. Speak to your friends perhaps they ll
put some pressure on Captain Kejesli for us. Alfvaen set to the task, drawing
aside first one member of the survey team and then another.
Om im poured Tocohl another cup of the scarlet and gold drink, then, as if he
were the aide of a prince, he presented the surveyors to her one by one.
(Maggy, keep a file of faces and names.)
(I always do,) Maggy responded as Tocohl greeted each surveyor in his or her
native tongue with due respect to ritual. To Dyxte ti-Amax, she bowed; to
Vielvoye ha-Somol, she respectfully tipped a nonexistent hat; both were
Tobians but ha and spoke different languages. Hitoshi Dan, she greeted ti
with a soft version of a whistle that had originally developed to be
heard for several miles. And to
Timosie Megeve, the Maldeneantine, she raised her left hand, crossing it with
her right. Before he could reply, Alfvaen suddenly reappeared at Tocohl s
side.
Pointing to the doorway, Alfvaen said anxiously, There s swift-Kalat.
Tocohl laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. In Siveyn, to avoid offending
Buntec, Tocohl said, Toes. Don t move: let him come to you. And stop
worrying he ll appreciate your attempt even if your execution isn t perfect.
Unobtrusively, she took the added measure of placing a set of her own toes
where Alfvaen would stamp them if she backed away from swift-Kalat.
It was an old Hellspark technique for helping a child remember her
proxemics.
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