Quite a fellow, this (calculatedly) sinister-looking youth, who had once told aroyal prince of Ranke that killing was the business of princes and the like, notof thieves; and yet who had killed two men one night, his first and his last, onbehalf of a fellow he respected but found mighty hard to like. Bom in Downwindof casually acquainted parents, he needed pride and any sort of respect badlyand was cockily, pridefully sure that he'd risen above Downwind. The Maze mightbe counted as above Downwind-about a spider's stride above.

Four people in Sly's signed to him or greeted him, two by his name and one byhis nickname. None of the four was either of the two awaiting him. He surveyedthe place with eyes like chips of anthracite or basalt, and when their gazetouched Zip, Zip pushed a finger into his nose as signal. The newcomer noted,looked on, nodded to someone, made a negligent gesture of greeting to a girlwoman named Nimsy (who winked), noted the two Zip's Boys three tables away fromthe disguised Zip, and did not change expression. He took a single pace acrossthe little landing and descended the step into the crowded dim-lit alcohol-fumedambience of Sly's Place.

"Think I'll join those two," he said almost regally to one who had called him byname and nickname both. "Watch that cheap beer, Maldu! Ahdio makes it in theouthouse."

And he passed, Maldu saying, "Aww, Hanse!" loudly and, to his two companions,quietly, "See? I told you. Me'n Hanse're old buddies. Ever tell you how heactually got the better of ole Shrive the fence-I-mean-changer ha ha?"

Hanse slid down into a chair at the round, three-chair table where Kama and Zipwaited. He glanced barward and raised his right hand, half-cupped into astanding right angle, took it higher than his head, then elevated three of thefingers. The bartender nodded and went about drawing three mugs of the goodstuff; the brew off which he blew the • foam so as to serve an honest measure tothose as paid for k.

"Want me to admit I didn't even know you in that black wig and droopo mustache?"Hanse said to Zip. "I didn't even know you."

"Hanse," the normally short-haired and clean-shaven Zip said, "this is Jes." Ina much lower voice he swiftly added, "Tonight-name's Kama."

Shadowspawn looked at the soft-faced youth with Zip- also mustached-and wasimpressed; she was tallish and the disguise was good enough that he hadn'tconsidered her female. Nothing changed in his face, including his eyes.

"Any friend of Zip's," he said affably, "is suspect."

She blinked, recovered, said, "Likewise, I'm sure."

Hanse's black, black, close-nestling brows went up and he blinked. His facelooked as if it were seriously considering a smile. He left it at that andflicked his gaze back to Zip.

"We've been waiting awhile," the Downwinder street-lord said.

Shadowspawn said nothing.

Ahdiovizun brought three glazed mugs of beer on a tray; Sly's Place didn't usebarmaids because that led to unbelievable stress, strain, strife, and worse.Everyone knew that his gimpy assistant left after closing with only a staffand not a copper. Ahdio was known to be from Twand, in truth was not, and waslarge. He was known to have killed, and had, and known to have felled aMrsevadan horse with a blow of his fist to the animal's head, and had. Thecoat of linked chain mail he wore was definitely unusual attire for atavemer. It was considered to be part of the color and ambience of Sly's Place.It was, of course, although that was not its purpose. Its purpose was the sameas when its like was worn by a soldier. Ahdio tended bar in Sly's Place and hadkilled a man or so and felled a horse (a big gray gelding, in fact, with twowhite stockings) with a single fist-blow to the head, and at times intervened infights. He also wore a mailcoat and did not leave at closing, alone, but sleptupstairs in company with two truly nasty cats, because Ahdio was not stupid.

"Here you go. Three of the best. These two are running a tab."

"Good for them. This round's on me," Hanse said.

Ahdio's smile was easy, open, and amiable. "You, ah, had a good night, Hanse?"

"No," Hanse said, and paused to drink half the contents of the mug Ahdio hadjust set before Zip. Hanse replaced it, and ignored the way the rebel patriotstared at the sadly depleted container. "As a matter of fact, I haven't. Thatwas last night."

Ahdio, who had never seen Hanse knock back anything that way, thought it best tosay, "Ah."

"Ah," Zip echoed, sensing a story. "But.. .you don't drink, Hanse!"

Shadowspawn looked at him. "I just did," he said, while his lean dark hand movedover to Kama/Jes's mug without the aid of his eyes. He glanced up at Ahdio,whose form occluded an incredible number of the tables behind him. "I came hereto meet these people, and I'm late. You'll stop fights so I won't have to takethem elsewhere?"

Ahdio nodded without changing so much as a single muscle in his face.Shadowspawn nodded in return.

"Ah, that's good, Ahdio," he said, and paused to put a serious dent in thecontents of Kama's mug. "No, Ahdio, I'll tell you, tonight has not been a goodnight. I have just killed a Stare-Eye."

Zip blinked in surprise, then grinned and looked significantly at Kama-whom hefound giving him a significant look.

"A good night for Sanctuary!" Zip said with enthusiasm.

"Stairae," Ahdio said. "Don't believe I know him. Her?"

"Stare... Eye," Hanse enunciated, and stared, unblinking.

"Ah!" Ahdio smiled again. "One of the froggies! A good night for us all! I'dbetter hurry, then. Three more of the same upcoming, on me."

Shadowspawn nodded and came very close to smiling. Ahdio departed. A customerreached out for him en passant and jerked back his hand to stare at fingertipsinstantly bereft of prints. Ahdio's coat ofquintuply-linked-and-butted chain wasabsolutely genuine.

"Shit," the customer said.

"Coming right up," Ahdio threw back.

Amid laughter. Zip leaned forward. "How'd it happen, Hanse?" (He was keeping hishands away from the brew Hanse had ordered and was buying. Shadowspawn was not akiller, had been living high and soft and with a lot of bed-company of late, andobviously had a sincere and monumental thirst this night.)

Hanse seemed to work at relaxing. His shoulders visibly lowered and he sat a bitdown in his roundpeg chair.

"The... creature accosted me. Like a Lord of the Earth, you know? Arrogant andcocky and expecting me to play sandworm under its feet. I didn't and it gotabusive. I endured that awhile, just wanting to be on my way to see what youwanted. It went on with it. Couldn't accept my lack of real response when itwanted foot-licking. It got more abusive. When it finally paused to see if I'ddrop dead or start in weeping from all its words, I asked politely enough whichhad been the fish, its mama or its papa. It took that as an offense, onlyIls knows why, and reached for a weapon."

They sat in silence, his table companions staring at him. Hanse noted thatsomehow he'd emptied his mug, said, "Not thirsty?" and reached over for Zip'smug. He drained it.

A fine sense of drama, Kama thought, a Rankan and a soldier and a woman in anIlsig tavern as a man, among Ilsigs only. One of us has to ask; he's forcing us.And she asked: "And then, Hanse?"

He leaned forward loosely, elbows thumping onto the table. "Jes, do not bealarmed when I touch your left shoulder."

Kama/Jes, seated on his left with her right shoulder next to his left, showedsurprise and lack of understanding. "All right," she began, and saw a dark blur,felt the touch on her far shoulder, and there was Hanse sitting there with hiselbows on the table, looking at her from expressionless eyes the color of thebottom of a well of a moonless midnight.