Kneeling, he waved his hand.

“Come here, Diamond.”

Diamond didn’t obey and he didn’t retreat.

Something was a little bit funny, and the Archon let himself laugh. Then he winked again, saying, “Ask your parents. Ask them what the average person would think, if something as strange as you were put into their grasp.”

Father shook his head and sighed, and Mother stared at the ground.

“If any other ruler came upon creatures as different as you are, creatures with no obvious place in the world . . . then that important person would be entirely within his rights to call you abominations. You’d be judged threats against the norms of good society and what is permitted. If your friend the butcher were honest, he would have warned you: the average Archon would wish you dead. Yes, yes, yes. He and his citizens would sleep well knowing that an infestation of monsters had been destroyed—monsters that shouldn’t have been alive in the first place. Your great fortune, my boy . . . what you must appreciate first and always . . . is that in some ways I am as unique as you are. In the realm of Archons, I am one of a kind. No one else has both the power and wisdom to treat you and your brethren with the proper respect.”

Again, the Archon said, “Come here.”

And again, Diamond did nothing.

His stubbornness wasn’t humorous anymore. The Archon rose and motioned to King, and King grabbed Diamond beneath the arms, carrying him where he had to be.

To the Archon, King said, “He’s carrying a knife.”

“But he won’t hurt me,” the Archon said. “Nobody needs to be injured. I’m sure everyone has learned that lesson by now. And as long as you behave, these other people won’t suffer in the slightest.”

Diamond looked at his parents first, and then he glanced at Elata and Seldom, and Master Nissim too.

Every face was scared.

“What happens now?” Diamond asked.

“First, naturally, we return to the Ruler of the Wind, and as my guest, you enjoy a quick flight to the District of Districts. King should tell you about his grand home. Frankly, it’s a wonderful place for children who never break. You’ll have a hundred rooms to explore and the best tutors, and as time passes, we’ll all come to appreciate your significance, your potentials.”

Again, Diamond looked at his mother, his father.

“Merit and Haddi are allowed to reclaim their lives,” said the Archon, anticipating the question. “If they really want what’s best for you, they’ll keep the secrets and abide as they did before you arrived. I won’t even prosecute the corona slayer for stealing what never belonged to him.”

“Me,” Diamond said.

“Coronas are public property. You don’t belong to this man, and it’s only taken a thousand days to bring you back to where you should be.”

Master Nissim made an angry sound.

The Archon looked at him. “Yes?”

“That’s a narrow interpretation of law,” said the Master.

The Archon’s smile was stern, sharp. “An assistant of mine was hamstrung today. The criminal responsible deserves five thousand days in the penitence house, locked inside our tiniest cell, with nothing to read and no one to listen to his educated wind. I suspect that sentence would destroy the man. But I don’t want to throw anyone into such miserable circumstances. So I’m cultivating a gracious, charitable mood. I’ll interpret those laws so that Diamond’s friend remains free for now, and for as long as there is cooperation.”

Diamond said nothing.

“Walk,” the Archon insisted.

Diamond found a slow, even pace, and the humans formed a tidy line that marched up the wooded hillside. The old papio were out of sight. The doctor was in the lead, looking backwards as much as he looked ahead. The rest of the papio were waiting over the crest of the hill. Where the ground was still falling, they stood in two neat lines, watching the odd parade pass between. King was worth close study and a few comments, but it was the slayer’s son who was fascinating. One and then another papio chopped at a leg, describing the miracle about the foot that rejoined the body and healed, and they spoke to him in their language and with guttural human words.

“Are you smart?” one asked.

“Are you grown?” asked another.

Then a third whispered some papio words, and others barred their incisors, someone saying, “Quiet, you. Quiet.”

Then the Archon was surrounded by the papio, and that conversation ended, big golden eyes turned on him and that relentless, unnerving smile.

“List,” several of the papio said.

At the bottom of the hill, the Archon stopped suddenly and turned.

“Come here,” he said. Then he waved, attempting the same words in their language.

His bodyguards were flustered. One whispered some little warning, and the Archon laughed, giving the air a dismissive sweep of the hand.

The papio formed a half-circle above them.

“I have something to tell you,” List began. “Something important, something you need to tell all others.”

The smallest papio was larger than any human male. Men and women were the same size. Those strong mouths and thick arms were remarkable. Every face was decorated with elaborate, beautiful tattoos. Guns and knives were carried in plain view. Every head had the same bright pink hair, and the men often sported dense blood-colored beards while the women fancied soft beards hiding shyly under their chins. One woman made a low growling sound before wrapping her mouth around the words, “Talk to us.”

“These two children are marvels,” said the Archon. “And you might remind yourselves that they’re only just beginning to grow into men. Think what they’ll mean to my species, to humanity. Which is why on this momentous day, I want to graciously offer the papio some enlightened advice.”

The woman broke into a wild, quick laugh, asking scornfully, “What advice?”

“Take these boys from me,” the Archon said. “You should do that now. Immediately, no hesitations.”

The world fell silent, every face watching him.

“Kill me,” he said. “Murder me and steal these two treasures. That brings war, I’m sure. Assassinate the political leader of humanity, and you have to expect outrage and a terrible long fight. But if you can hold onto these warriors, and if you use them effectively in the future, your descendants will celebrate your bravery and vision. That’s my advice for the papio species. Start one awful war today and win the world. Or do nothing, let us walk away, and the world is lost.”

The hair on the woman’s scalp lifted. “Why make such stupid noise?” she asked.

“Because I know you,” the Archon replied. “This is a proven fact: creatures that live on solid ground are slow, unimaginative thinkers. Climbers adapt and change every moment of our lives. It’s a great lesson, knowing we can’t trust a branch to be here tomorrow. Meanwhile you live as you always have, and every tomorrow is the same as yesterday, and it’s impossible for you to believe that anything changes or that there is any better existence for your dusty kind.”

The papio stared at him, teeth bared, eyes blazing inside those deep sockets.

Then the tree-walker laughed and swept the air with his hand before he turned and walked away. The doctor was far ahead. The other humans followed the Archon. Diamond and King followed. They walked between the tents and past the dead corona. The chase had lasted for a long while. Scales had been yanked away from the carcass. Ugly holes were hacked from the flesh beneath. But the men who had done that quick work had already vanished, and nobody seemed curious where.

Master Nissim walked past Diamond, touching the boy’s head. He looked at him sadly before calling ahead. “Is this why you wanted to come here?” he asked the Archon. “So you could parade what you have in front the papio?”

The Archon stopped and turned.