Five minutes later I was perched again at the Howdah, looking down at the rolling sand. The battle ground was already behind us, obscured by the same dune that used the attackers for ambush. The only hint that something out of the ordinary has taken place, were the excited sounds of the Lirrs, drawn to the scent of blood. I knew that any traveler who might stumble upon the site in an hour or so, will be oblivious to the drama that took place. That is the way of the Athasian desert, a place without memory. Maybe that is the reason of why so many people get lost in it forever.
The next two days were a test of endurance to the men and beasts.
We pushed through the entire day, not stopping even to rest in the hot
hours of the Athasian noon, through the entire night and the following day. There is a state of mind, the desert nomads call "MoachYavesh". When you have eaten enough dust, so that no matter how much water you drink, your throat feels like a sand, have felt enough hot wind upon your body, making the skin feel like sandpaper, and on the top of that being forced to stay awake , then you probably have the "MoachYavesh". A person who has the "MoachYavesh" rarely blinks, his sight becomes fixed at some point in the air (usually forward), never straying left or right. His all being is focused only in reaching his destination. People in that state sometimes forget to drink causing them to dehydrate or in some worst cases even to develop hallucinations. The hallucinations derived from "MoachYavesh" are called "ZakukLeabarbanel", and have five stages. The first includes mild hallucinations, during the fourth stage you become a babbling freak and the fifth means death. The only way to avoid "MoachYavesh" is to force yourself to drink regularly. Since we were almost third of our original size, and had no trouble of water, I ordered every person (including the slaves), triple of the regular quota. Even so, at the end of the second day we were all on the brink of collapse. Pushing the beasts another single step would have proven disastrous. Najim which has been pushing to limits he didn't know he had, summoned me at last to the Howdah.
"The Mekillots are becoming almost impossible to control". "They are extremely hungry and angry for not being able to rest, and I for once must agree with the stinking lizards" exclaimed our driver through clenched teeth. "So unless you want to become their next meal, I suggest you order that tracker of yours to go hunting" he concluded.
Najim and Sultani our psionic skilled drivers were actually permanent agents of house Shom and not hirelings like myself. Being Mekillots and Bulzai wagons handlers, they were treated as a low to medium ranking house merchants, which meant they could afford rather comfortable life style (that was, when they were not on the road of course). Najim for instance , whom had the same good looks as one of his Mekillots, kept four wives (In Balic, Tyr, Urik and Nibenay), each ignorant of the other three, believing she is the only flower of his life. He claimed it worked to the benefit of all involving sides. Knowing some people who keep all their wives in the same house, I can't help but to think the bald midget has it correct.
I do not mean to imply in any way that Najim was pampered by his lifestyle, on the contrary. What I mean is to display him the way he is, a respected professional, whose skill bought him his current position. This is the reason, when he called me I knew we had to stop immediately.
Picking two dunes that would keep us from the night wind and from prying eyes I ordered Sultani to stop. He and Najim positioned the wagons horizontally, thus making a safe buffer zone, in which we could make a safe camp for the night. I didn't allow anyone off the wagons though, knowing that the Mekillots were hungry enough now to take a bite at anyone near them. Me and Jevad had the Giths captives lowered carefully by ropes and pulleys used for hauling merchandise from the Bulzai wagon. The first lizard sniffed the hanging bound Gith all over, maybe pondering if it was edible before risking a chow. The other one displayed none of its partner's hesitation, it's long black tongue lashed forward, engulfing the screaming unfortunate warrior with a long swipe. While it was happily chewing, we fed the other Mekillot and the Bulzai in similar fashion. After a second round of Giths treats, I felt it was safe enough for us to go down. I quickly gave permission to open the wagons and begin with the night preparations. Between the two dunes and the concealing wagons, I was sure, no one would be able to see us. Nonetheless I allowed only a single fire lighted and ordered double the regular number of guards. Calling Ann'ar our psion master, I ordered him to try and contact Colin (our young Mul scout), since now we were sufficiently close to fort Alancor. Feeling at last content, I gave Felice command for the night and settled down in a quiet spot behind the wagons for hot Cocoa cup and a game of Phahngi Nibenay style with Jevad.
Stretching our legs we both gave a synchronized almost comical sigh (Would have been comical its just that no one dares to laugh at Jevad (not to his face anyway)) as we both lighted our ceramic pipes. Phahngi is a strategic game played on a small board of black and white Triangles, each pair of Black and white Triangles forms a square. The game has one hundred and twenty squares on it. A player figure stands on a single Triangle. Movement is made between triangles touching at one of their bases only if the two triangles have opposite color, a piece can move between two Triangle's of the same color only at certain events of the game. Phahngi has many forms of play, the rules for winning and figures movement change from place to place. What is common in most of the forms I know of, is the players part. One side plays the moons Ral and Guthay and one side plays the Crimson Sun. Every four game turns each of the sides is at its peak of power giving his soldiers some special abilities. Me and Jevad play the Nibenay style. The game is ended when four special triangles (called Nibenay's forts) are all occupied by one player at the peak of that player power.
Me and Jevad have a long history of games, the current one we were running for almost a month now. You might consider Phahngi too complicated for a Half Giant, and you would be absolutely correct. But the fact remains, Jevad beats me five games out of six, and I am a mean Phahngi player.
Happy Jevad (called Happy on account of a strike he got in the arena caused the right side of his mouth to be forever pointed up in a smirk) is a freak. It is not that he is extremely bright by his dull race standards, he is actually a genius by every race's standards. Born to the wrong body, happy Jevad should have been one of the era's greatest scholars or mightiest wizards. But fate chose differently for Jevad, being half giant meant he was forced to grow as one of Urik's Gladiators. He became a champion of the arena, whose name remained even today, seven years after his retirement, respected in the city of his birth. No, Jevad was not really a Half Giant, he displayed none of that race mental instability. I never saw him have shift in mood, nor did I ever seen someone as focused as Jevad. He did everything with the determination of a Lirr whom has just smelled a fresh corpse. On the top of all that, he managed to master alone the psionic arts to a skill that rivals many whom were tutored at it from birth. Jevad is a gem amongst his kind, in fact I believe he is not a true half giant at all. Like one of those freaks being born to the desert sometimes, Jevad forms a race of his own. I have never discussed it with him though, preferring to keep my theories to myself.
Looking at the board, I was trying to figure whether to move my defiler as if to threaten Jevad's Giantess when Tain joined us.
Tain on the other hand couldn't be taught Phahngi. It's not that he wasn't intelligent or curious enough to sit down and learn. He even tried once, but the whole concept of playing a game he considered dull was foreign to him. He held a steaming ceramic bowl containing a suspicious looking substance in which an even more suspicious looking lumps were floating.
"You want some Boss?" he asked fishing a round object with nimble fingers.
"Thanks, but I think I'll pass this time Tain" I said signaling him to sit beside us on the ground.
"Need me to go out into the desert and meet someone Boss?".
What I love about my two partners is that years of working together have made us able to guess each other thoughts.
"I'm fraid you are becoming too smart for your own good Tain" I said dryly.
"What should I tell her when I find her Boss?" Tain was drinking noisily the dubious looking soup while talking at the same time, some of the liquid landed on me. I gently removed the drops from my Quitchaktul (A sleeveless shirt made in Draj fit for the coldest nights of the Athasian desert).
"Tell her we have a change of plan but schedule remains the same". "Be careful", I've added at an afterthought, "She is a sharp one, don't try to trick her or she'll get suspicious, tell her the truth but only what she needs to know".
Tain made an offended look of "you don't have to tell me that" and disappeared into the desert air without saying a word.
"Where is he off to now?" asked Najim who came striding behind the Mekillot's wagon.
"Oh, I just sent him sniffing around, you can never be sure you know" I lied.
"You should come over Boss, that bitch of a merchant has gone completely mad".
I sighed "Looks like we will have to postpone our game for another time" I told my smirking colleague. "What is it now I asked, no let me guess, she decided we should go back to Balic by foot".
"Not funny Boss", said the short Mekillot driver, "She is making us take the Mekillot wagon apart, she says we have to inspect what was broken during the fight". "I mean it's like an obsession with her and that wagon", he continued " I wonder what's she's hiding there that's so damn important?".
Me and Jevad traded a quick glance, well, hell, I thought, you sometimes discover intelligence in the least expected of places.
Walking swiftly back behind the wagon, the sight that welcomed my eyes was not pleasant. Instead of resting like I ordered, the entire crew was busy at unpacking the Big wagon. Ceramic pots from Balic were strewn near salt blocks. Entire bands of Lirr feathers bound in numerous packages. Inix raw Leather, sacks of grain, rat wool, ten sets of armor made of tortoise men shell, Red and Yellow Cacti seeds, Silk made from the cocoons of the giant silk snake, copper from the Red hill mine, crates full of coal from the smoking hills of Ketal, Tiger Beetle chitin, Desert fox fur, Balician Olives Sap, Zephyr kiss Fruits, Thyme, Nana dried leaves and countless of other house Shom riches.
Distinguished amongst this wealth, were a bunch of slaves, who stood beside the merchandise, they were chatting happily, glad at the unexpected opportunity to stretch outside of the smelly wagon compound. They were all prime stock, being of the infamous Ushom farm near Balic.
House Shom, whom years of corruption have made their wealth and merchandise quality to deteriorate was still number one in prime slaves handling. When they decided to go hard into the slave market, they took to it with a vengeance and the zeal they lacked in every other territory. As first Step, they opened up two farms outside the city of Nibenay and Balic, with the sole purpose of producing slaves. Breeding intelligent races, the way one might breed cattle, they begun on a program of making better slaves. I heard they had quite a few difficulties in the earlier years. The farms were attacked many times by slave tribes, and I suspect to some extent by subcontractors of house Stel whom would have had been the first to lose profit to house Shom's new endeavor. Most of the first experiments went bad, insufficient food bad housing and other problems caused a high mortality rate. Also inner breeding between the slaves resulted in less than satisfying offspring. But the Merchant lords of house Shom are not easily deterred, having patience and the long sight of people capable of planning years and years ahead, they kept with their efforts, which now, almost forty years after the farms have been founded, have begun to bear fruits. House Shom produced now the best quality of slaves stock. You required a Gladiator, Shom's Muls were the sturdiest and the quickest, you needed an artisan, Shom's half elves could not be matched, you desired beautiful concubines, and house Shom's girls were the prettiest and the most skilled. I have once been to one of the farms, picking a caravan full of slaves for delivery in Tyr. Most of the farm is kept under security and secrecy, though what I was able too peek at were the stables. Big compounds, each containing up to two hundred females, all in some state of pregnancy. I learned that most have been there all their lives, being the selected for some sort of distinguishing trait to serve her life as a breeder. I heard that for each slave, they kept a family tree as much as five generations big, thus preventing inner breeding mishaps. They fed the slaves with some sort of diet that made them give birth to more than a single child each time. Birth of trios was rather common, and four and five were not unheard of (Though those births were quite dangerous for both mother and child). One of the Merchants proudly showed me a beautiful female elf slave in her possession whom have had eighty four children, all female all pretty like her, and was expecting many more years of child bearing. The males I did not see, but was told a selected few were kept in a different compound, and were only allowed to see the females at times of coupling. I can think of a much worse ways for a slave to spend his entire life on the harsh world of Athas than being one of the pampered stocks in Ushom farm. But even now, as I look at the small group standing near the wagon, I can't help but to reflect sadly at my visitation. Those breeding slaves in the farm have become nothing more than animals, although cherished and well cared, but still nothing but animals.
I was picking my way amongst the merchandize, searching for Odieve, when suddenly one of the slaves begun to sing. Afraid that his voice might attract some unwanted attention I thought of shutting him up, but then something stopped me. His voice was a clear soprano at first, rising high to octaves unachievable by human throat, then he went into the lowest of basses, going down below the ability of Half Giants. Listening to his him was a weird experience. His voice resonated down the spine and stomach, descending until you could feel it in your toes, only to soar the next moment into the tip of your hair, making your eyes burst of their sockets. Another singer and another followed him, they were all Half Elves, and displayed the same voice ability. Looking closer I saw that they were clearly of the same mother (if not of the same father), it was obvious why their parents were chosen for breeding. It wasn't the astounding sound though that captivated me and prevented me from stopping their singing, it was the song itself. An ancient Elven melody it was, a tune I must have not heard in thirty years or so. It sung of ancient times, before Athas was a barren dying desert, devoid of life and hope. It spoke of a happier times, when Elves have been proud race, shining brightly like stars above all other races. Of time where forests, the size of entire continents existed. Of a time when the words kindness and honor had a true meaning. The song had an impact on me as if running head first into a wall. Old memories rushed in like a storm on the sea of silt shores. I remembered the old Elven tribe of my childhood, the faces, the people, the clan, the tribe. I remembered the rain dance and the hunt dance and the raid dance. I remembered the happiness of living and the joy of the run. I remembered the wind and the Moons reflections upon the naked dunes. I remembered the old shaman Mariko star dancer, making her magic in the light of the fires. I remembered frightening chief Suan fast arrow, urging and invigorating his warriors before the raid. Last I remembered my mother, eyes always cast down, always sad, almost an outsider like her unwanted son between the happy people around her. "Alia" I whispered to myself, reflecting in shock that I haven't thought nor uttered her name for almost thirty five years.
"Why have you given up on me so easily Alia?" I thought, "how different things might have been for me".
I felt strong big arms grabbing my shoulders, "Your OK Boss?" asked Jevad with a worried voice "You look like you've just seen a ghost".
"No, nothings wrong" I lied " just feel like taking some air".
"Those singers, you want me to shut them up?" he kept giving me a troubled look.
"No, let them play, nothing in the vicinity to worry about anyway" I answered trying to give an imitation of a smile. I went and found a place to think by myself, Jevad didn't follow having guessed I need some space, and I thanked him in my heart for being as smart as he was.
As the melody continued, nine of the slave girls joined in with a dance. They formed a circle of beautiful figures, at its center danced the most exotic creature I've ever seen. Displaying two pointed ears and slanted eyes, she wasn't Elven or even Half Elven. She was one of the new races, the freaks, sometimes created by the desert. She had huge eyes that shown purple in the firelight, long glistening almost white hair, and skin color as gold as the dune. The only thing she wore while dancing, was a belt of bronze bells that jingled softly with her every move. She began with slow movements rising from a sitting position with a snake like slow motions that emphasized her strong body. She then picked up speed synchronizing with the growing intensity of the song, stretching herself to full view of the captivated men. The dancers around her were no less beautiful, some even more beautiful (as hard to believe as it may sound). Nonetheless all eyes were upon her and her alone. I don't think that Aildin (for that was her name as I later learned), ability to enchant men and women alike with her dance came just from her being exotic and pretty. She had a mysterious ability to force upon ones mind, that the dance she was dancing is being preformed especially and only for that person.
"They sing superbly, don't you think master Seno?" Odieve managed somehow to sneak on me (well maybe not so surprising since I was so enthralled by the beautiful display).
"That bunch of singers are like nothing I had ever heard before" I admitted.
"Yes" she smiled, "as a group they worth more than the entire content of that wagon, that was why I was so worried, I was afraid they might break."
If she was ever worried, none of it showed, in facet she looked more relaxed than I've seen her in a long time.
"That dancer is very beautiful too" I said "you must be the envy of many people to own such a rare gem".
"A natural indeed" she flashed me a mouthful of white teeth smile. "The fun part" she continued "is that I possess her thirty sisters, all equal to her in looks at home, and her mother has just begun another cycle of pregnancy". "Her mother's breed are really wild and can't be tamed, but when mated with an Elf or Half Elf they produce this lovely well behaved result" she concluded.
"You seem to bee in a good mood", I told her "I might suggest that you've found things in the Mekillot wagon to your satisfaction?" I asked, giving my voice an intonation of sarcasm.
"Oh don't start with that again Seno" (as if I were the one to start), "It's a lovely night, let's enjoy it without quarrelling like two kids".
She gave me a mysterious pat on the cheek, "thanks for saving me from the Gith Seno", she said suddenly". "Don't think that I have forgotten or that I'm not grateful".
I sighed "Odieve dear, you owe me nothing, what deeds I've made or haven't, were all part of my job, they are all Halawa now, buried under the sun and the sand".
As I rose on my legs, she grabbed my head, raising my lips to hers, she gave me a kiss. Short as it was, that kiss has been ferocious and passionate, I felt blood on my lips. I turned and walked away quickly, I could hear her laugh behind me.
As soon as I got to back to the fire, giving orders to pack the wagons again, I ended the dance to everyone's dismay. Next I ordered anyone who wasn't packing or on guard shift to get some sleep as we would be starting tomorrow before dawn. At last I allowed myself to curl into a tight ball and fall asleep. The best place to lay your head in a Caravan is under a Mekillot's wagon. First It is hot, having accumulated heat all day from the sands while the wagons flanks that protect it from being attacked from the underside, also prevent most of that heat from running away during the cold night. The flanks also protect you rather well from the chilly night wind. And as an added bonus, it is not half as smelly as the wagon interior above. On the downside, you have a slight chance of waking up in the morning only to find the Mekillot decided to move in the wrong direction shaping your head to an integral part of the wheels mechanism. Nonetheless it is my favorite spot. My method of surviving a night without being crushed I've learned from Golan, my mentor. What I do is to hang a hammock between two huge stirrers, thus in case the Mekillots decides to take a night stroll I am safe from harm. Golan also taught me my most important rule about sleep. Never lay down unless you put a mental Alarm whenever or wherever you are. This mental Alarm, that saved me a lot of inconvenient situations in the past, was ringing now.
I woke up with a start, knowing I was not alone under the wagon. I inherited my mother Elven night vision to some extent, but the interior was so dark, it didn't allow me to see the person sneaking on me. Leaping to the ground with a swift motion (which was rather tricky considering the ceiling was so low it allowed me only a crouch), I drew out one of my Boot knifes (I sleep fully closed and with armor on (better un-comfy than sorry)). One of the figures lighted a small lantern.
"Nothing to get head over tit about Seno" Odieve imitated my voice perfectly. I swear, when this trip is over I'm taking a long vacation, one in which my chances of meeting red headed giantesses are as good as meeting a two headed Kanks.
"Who is your friend ?" I asked wearily, wondering what her being here at this time might mean.
"This is Aildin", she said, letting the amazing bells dancer step forward, "I want you to have her as a gift, I thought you displayed some enthusiasm over her tonight" she smirked.
"I told you Odieve, delivering you safely to Urik is part of my job, your gratitude is appreciated if somewhat misplaced".
"Nonetheless Seno, I want you to have her as a gift". "In fact I already signed the ownership trade", she gave me a piece of trade parchment.
"You can brand your sign on her anytime you like", she was standing on her knees, since the ceiling height didn't allow her to stretch, and she was smiling broadly as if she just won a good match of Phahngi.
"Come on Seno, I can read you like the palm of my hand", "You are dying to get a bite, the only thing that holds you is a silly fear you might not like yourself in the morning". She licked her perfect lips and removed her halter displaying perfect breasts, swaying invitingly in the lamplight. I began to feel itchy below the waist line.
"Don't play the hard to get on me Seno, you don't know what you are missing". "Dancing is not the only thing she is trained at" at that she removed the dancer's small belt of bells, that wasn't hiding anything much in the first place.
"I stopped playing with myself when I was ten Odieve" (I lied). "The Two perfect ladies and, Mr. ugly Seno, is an appealing fantasy, but not my cup of Kank Honey".
She laughed "You are a strange man Seno, stronger than most I've met, I like strong men". "Aildin" her tone became commanding, "go back to the wagon, I have decided you now belong to Master Seno, understood ?".
"Perfectly lady Odieve", answered the dancer with a singsong voice and turned tail.
As soon as she was gone Odieve was on me, not waiting for us even to spread a blanket on the ground she threw me down ripping armor and garments. Tender skin and strong caressing hands. Sugar and spice, I knew I was going to hate myself in the morning.
Two hours later I was alone again hanging back at my hammock, thinking of what have just transpired, trying to guess what my next move should be. I handle life as if they are a vicious game of Phahngi, one with no rules and no rematches. It is a game I play better than Jevad. Golan once told me "A good player always knows his opponent, not just the exterior, but the inside as well". "What does he really desire, what makes him do what he does, how does he plan to achieve it" in short: "what makes him tick".
As for Odieve I knew more or less what she wanted. I had no delusions she really meant to thank me for saving her life. No, having saved her life would have earned me nothing but a knife in the gut if she would have suspected me of being in her way. Faday intervene on my behalf on the other hand, tipped the scales in a way she didn't like at all. She probably figured that a short love affair would tip the scales back in her favor. Odieve was famous for the army of lovers she kept at Nibenay, all ready at her disposal. I guess she filed me as one of those small lackeys. Little Seno is not going to give any more trouble, he is going to be a good boy from now on, and in case he is still not content, he can always play with his new toy. And that's that, case closed. The dancer is probably just another tool, I was given the gift for her to be able to keep a close eye on me. I had no doubt the dancing lady was reporting directly to her previous mistress.
While I was pondering optional next moves, my sensitive Elvish hearing picked out the sound of a shallow breathing, like someone trying to remain inconspicuous.
"Tain, is that you? " I whispered, knowing it couldn't be, since if Tain would have chosen to snick out on me, there wouldn't been a chance in the world of noticing him.
"It's me Aildin" whispered the dancer's in a sweet voice.
"I thought Odieve has sent you to sleep in the wagon tonight" I said nervously.
"Well since you are my master now, I don't take orders from her anymore" she reasoned "Do you mind if I sleep here for the rest of the night master? " she added after a pause.
An Ushom farm slave with will and intelligence of its own, life is full of little surprises. "Then Come on here into the hammock sweetie, you will freeze your buns seating on the sand".
"You danced extremely nice tonight", I said as she snuggled next to me.
"Thanks master", she whispered, "it is the dance of the Elven lost pride". "Odieve told us to perform it".
"Sweetie, will you stop with the Master thing, it's giving me cramps" I nudged her a little.
"So how should I call you master?" she whispered. If I did not already mark her to be a spy I might have felt sympathy for her. I could swear the girl was terrified of me, either that or she was just an excellent performer, far smarter than I suspected.
"Just call me Boss like everybody else does", I like being "Boss", while not being too respectful, it keeps a proper distance. "Wait a second", I suddenly yelped, "what did you just said?" .
I shouldn't have been so sudden, the girl jumped to the ground and covered her face, as if waiting to be struck. I looked at her trying to figure if I should intimidate her further (which didn't seem to be much of a problem), or should I leave her be instead.
"What did you said about the Dance?" I asked trying to make my voice calmer.
"We danced the Elven lost pride dance, master boss Seno" she stammered, "did it not please you? " she sounded on the verge of crying.
"I didn't mean the bleedin dance" I raised my voice again, "you say the song was not a spontaneous display of joy?". She was really crying now,
"No, mistress Odieve have told us to perform it when we were released from the wagon hold", "we would never have dreamed of performing without her permission".
But of course I thought miserably, how so stupid of me, it all fits perfectly now. Odieve preformed a superb diversion, and we were all fooled like little children. As for the impact the song had on me, I was beginning to have strong doubts too. Odieve, being a powerful Mind master could have exploited her abilities to force me into such a curious state of strong feelings. The music from my past plus gentle probing on her part could have caused me to lose emotional control without being aware of it. The thought of her mangling with my brain sent cold shivers down my spine. How deep did she go ? how much more does she know?. I lighted a candle from my pouch and turned again to Aildin who was now sobbing freely,
"Now listen very good and answer truthfully, cause your life depends on it" I sounded menacing even to myself,
"What did Odieve sent you here for?". "Nothing Boss" she stammered on the second word,
"she said I would be given to you as a present and that I should pleasure you with all my might, please" her voice was almost unheard "please don't throw me to the Mekillots".
"Is that all there is to it Aildin, think hard and be wary, I am trained in the way of the mind and can sniff a liar ten miles away". I held up her chin and looked into those huge almost hypnotizing purple eyes.
"I swear, Master, this is all I know" she wailed.
Truth is I am psionic, but my skill has never gone so far as to be able me reading of people thoughts. I am very good at reading people though, a skill I learned from working so many years under Golan, and damn me, if that girl was lying.
"It's all right Aildin, you have passed the test", I was certain that if she was part of a conspiracy, she had no knowledge of her part. Anyway I intended treading with care around her. She didn't stopped her crying though, "Come on, it's a bad habit wasting so much water on the desert" I tried to smile, knowing in the candle light it didn't improve my looks one bit. I wiped out a tear with my hands. Her cheek had a strange quality and I found out to my surprise that her golden skin was actually some sort of a delicate fur. I guided her to my swinging bed.
"Go back to sleep now sweetie, I need to go and do some thinking, you'll be quite safe here in the hammock".
She panicked again, "Odieve instructed me to keep you happy during the nights", I realized her fear from her previous mistress was even bigger than her fear from me.
"I don't doubt for a moment she did", I smiled, "go back to sleep, I promise you Ill tell her you preformed superbly". At last satisfied, she gave me an odd look, as if trying to assess me again, then curled herself into a tight ball and went to sleep. I waited till I could hear her soft breathing then I got out from underneath the wagon.
I needed to find Tain and Jevad, I needed to make another change in plans, and most of all I needed to clear my head. "Two can play the game of diversion Odieve", I thought. "And You have just got yourself a match".