"They're puzzled," replied Bayub-Otal. "They don't know what to think. They can't make it out as yet, but they know you must be a sign from the gods, and that's all that matters. Tomorrow I want to present you a little more formally to the officers."

"How will they take it, d'you reckon?"

"Why, as we all do, of course," he answered. "For the best omen we could possibly have had. And when Suba's free, we'll-"

But now more soldiers were crowding round, and he broke off to speak to them. The continual, muttering excitement, together with the acrid smoke and muddy squalor of the camp, had begun to exhaust and repel her. She did not resume their conversation, and was glad when, soon after, the king called for a boat to take them back to the Star Court.

Here several people, some officers, others older men- contractors and petitioners-were waiting to speak to Kar-nat; but after listening to the first for no more than a few minutes, he broke off to ask Bayub-Otal to arrange for supper to be served within the hour. This seemed to surprise the Subans-as indeed it did Maia, since from what little she had seen of this country, the customary time for supper was either sunset or soon after, and to that it still wanted more than two hours. However, no one was going to disagree with the king, whose fine presence and gracious manners gave him a natural authority accepted by everyone; and Maia had hardly had time to wash the mud from her feet and rinse her eyes and mouth (which felt gritty) before Zen-Kurel was outside the door of the ladies' quar-

ters, presenting his majesty's compliments and hoping that the young saiyett would do the king the honor of sitting near him at supper. It was this that had first made her begin to wonder what his personal feelings might be, but by the time the fruit and rather insipid sweetmeats had been served, she had decided that his warmth stemmed from nothing more than diplomacy. She was the luck of Suba and he was treating her accordingly.

The same, however, could certainly not be said of the young staff officer, Zen-Kurel. He was plainly fascinated by her. Throughout supper he had talked to her warmly and freely in his excellent Beklan, partly about his military service and close connection with the king and partly about her night crossing of the Valderra, which he obviously thought showed great courage on her part. If that was what he chose to think, Maia had no wish to disillusion him. She told him nothing of what had really happened and, as soon as she could, led him on to tell her something of himself. His mother, now dead, had been a Beklan girl (a shearna, she somehow suspected) who had married a Ka-trian baron, Zen-Bharsh-Kraill. They had apparently met in Dari-Paltesh, though he did not say how. He himself had never lived in Bekla, though as a child he had spent several years in Dari. "Of course, that was long before the king occupied Suba." His father was getting on now. One day he would have to go home and take over the running of the family estate in northern Katria. "But not too soon, I hope," he said. "Soldiering-it's a wonderful life, especially now I'm actually with the king. I don't want to stay at home and breed goats-not yet. Or even get married," he added, smiling.

"No, that's dull," said Maia. "Breeding goats, I mean," she added.

Zen-Kurel laughed. "I'm sure you had something better to do in Bekla than breed goats, hadn't you?"

"Yes, I was a dancer. But I've danced as a goat-well, that's to say, as Shakkarn. Do you know the senguela- the dance about Shakkarn and Lespa?"

He did not, and listened attentively as she described it and went on to speak of Fordil's extraordinary skill as an accompanist.

"But if you danced in the Palace of the Barons at Bekla, you must be a very good dancer?"

"Well, I don't know. It was just that there was this party,

see, and I happened to be there. I was surprised how much they seemed to like it. But then if you're attending on the king, you must be a very good officer."

"Well, not really. It's just that I happen to speak Beklan, you see-"

They both burst out laughing again, thoroughly pleased with themselves and each other. He was an extraordinarily fine-looking young man, possessing both style and charm, and merely to have him seated beside her, hanging on her every word and never taking his eyes off her, was making her feel better and forget the strain and eerie bewilderment of the afternoon. She might not have known how to handle that-who would? she thought-but she knew how to handle this all right. Ah, if only they had been in Bekla!

"I suppose there'll be dancing or juggling and that after supper, will there?" she asked. "Is that why the king wanted it early-to leave time?"

"Nothing so pleasant, I'm afraid," answered Zen-Kurel. "No, the truth is-" dropping his voice and glancing sideways for a moment at Karnat, who was talking to his other neighbor-"the king's called a captains' meeting to be held after supper. I can't imagine what about. I thought we'd finished for today, but with him you never know. He may do anything at all, and he quite often does. Once, for instance, when we were down on the Belishban frontier-"

He was good enough to eat, she thought. He was even better than Elvair-ka-Virrion. His warmth and gallantry, his high spirits, his good manners-Suddenly she knew that if she could possibly help it she wasn't going to waste an opportunity like this.

"I dare say you'll be-er-very busy, then, all the evening?" she said, looking down at the grape she was peeling and slowly laying the strips of skin one by one along the edge of her plate.

"Well, as to that I can't say," he answered ingenuously. "A captains' meeting, you see-that could mean anything-"

Maia, still looking at her plate, let her knee touch his for no more than a moment. "Why?" he went on. "Is there anything I can dp to help you?"

"Well, the thing is, I very much need a new knife-a dagger, really-something with a blade and a point-and I was just wondering whether you could possibly get hold

of one for me. Only I lost mine crossing the Valderra, see-it was a good one, too-and these Subans don't seem to have anything that suits me at all."

"I'll bring you four or five to choose from," he said, "and sheaths to go with them. Shall I bring them round to your lodging? I don't know where it is, but if you can give me some idea-"

"Oh, that would be kind of you! I'd be so grateful. Only perhaps we'd better keep it a secret, do you think?-it's only-well, the Subans-they can be so touchy, you know."

"I won't give them the chance."

"I'll tell you where to come, then. You go-"

But at this moment they were interrupted, as Bayub-Otal broke off his conversation with the Suban lady on his right and once more turned to Maia at the same moment as the king. Soon Zen-Kurel was smoothly putting into Beklan the king's account of how he had once crossed the Telthearna into the wild land of the far north, where for the only time in his life he had seen the great blue eagles; that was in the Shardra-Main, the Bear Hills. Had Maia ever seen these eagles? Never, she replied, and to please him asked what they were like. Looking into Zen-Kurel's eyes as she listened to his smiling description, she felt she could have melted acres of the snowy wastes which they frequented.

Soon after, with supper ended, Karnat apologized to the ladies for the tedious necessity of holding a meeting of captains, both Terekenalt and Suban: however, he assured them smilingly, he would not be long about it-there were just a few trifles that needed discussion, nothing more.

Left among the ladies who had befriended her that morning Maia, after a decent interval of conversation, had no difficulty in pleading sleepiness and fatigue, and eagerly slipped away to her little house on the knoll. A lamp was burning, placed in a bronze basin as a precaution against fire, and three or four more had been left near-by, ready for lighting. She lit the lot, wishing as she did so that she had some pretty night-robe or dressing-gown, like the one she had put on-and then taken off-for Randronoth of Lapan on the night when he had stayed with Sencho. Well, there was no help for it. She would have to remain in the dress she had worn at dinner, and when Zen-Kurel came, pretend that some preoccupation or other had made her forget about changing. If he delayed too long, it wouldn't