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mention it "
"No, sir. Absolutely not." An enormous dragon emerged from the forest.
"Why not?" Zifnab appeared nettled, drew himself up indignantly. "I was a god
once, you know."
"Was that before or after you joined Her Majesty's Secret Service, sir?"
responded the dragon in a sepulchral tone.
"You needn't be insulting." Zifnab sniffed. He sidled close to Alfred, kept
his voice low. "I was so too a god. They find out in the last chapter. He's
just jealous, you know ..."
"I beg your pardon, sir?" said the dragon. "I couldn't quite hear that."
"Zealous," Zifnab amended hastily. "Said you were zealous."
"You are not a god, sir," repeated the dragon. "You must come to understand
that."
"Sounds like my therapist," Zifnab said, but he didn't say it very loudly.
Heaving a sigh, he twiddled his hat in his hand. "Oh, have it your way. Around
here, I'm pretty much the same as all the rest of you. But I don't mind saying
I'm extremely miffed about it." He cast a baleful glare at the dragon.
"But," Alfred argued, "then where is the higher power? I know there is one.
Samah encountered it. The Abarrach Sartan who entered the Chamber ages ago
discovered it."
"The Sartan on Chelestra did the same," Haplo added.
"So they did," said Zifnab. "So have you."
"Oh!" Alfred's face was alight, aglow. Then, slowly, his glow faded. "But I
didn't see anything."
"Of course not," said Zifnab. "You looked in the wrong place. You've always
looked in the wrong place."
"In a mirror," Haplo murmured, remembering his lord's last words.
"Ah, ha!" Zifnab shouted. "That's the ticket!" The old man reached out a
skinny hand, jabbed Alfred on the breast. "Look in a mirror."
"D-dear me, no!" Alfred blushed, stammered. "I don't! I can't! I'm not the
higher power!"
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"But you are." Zifnab smiled, waved his arms. "And so is Haplo. And so am I.
So is let's see, on Arianus, we have four thousand six hundred and
thirty-seven inhabitants of the Mid Realms atone. Their names, in alphabetical
order, are Aaltje, Aaltruide, Aaron . . ."
"We get your point, sir," said the dragon sternly.
The old man was ticking them off on his fingers. "Aastami, Abbie . . ."
"But we can't all be gods," Alfred protested, confused.
"Don't know why not." Zifnab huffed. "Might be a damn good thing. Make us
think twice. But if you don't like that notion, think of yourself as a
teardrop in an ocean."
"The Wave," said Haplo.
"All of us, drops in the ocean, forming the Wave. Usually we keep the Wave in
balance water lapping gently on the shoreline, hula girls swaying in the
sand," said Zifnab dreamily. "But sometimes we throw the Wave out of kilter.
Tsunami. Tidal disturbances. Hula girls washed out to sea. But the Wave will
always act to correct itself. Unfortunately" he sighed "that sometimes sends
water foaming up in the opposite direction."
"I still don't understand, I'm afraid," Alfred said sadly.
"You will, old chap." Zifnab smote him on the back. "You're destined to write
a book on the subject. Nobody will read it, of course, but hey that's the
publishing game for you. It's the creative process that counts. Consider Emily
Dickinson. Wrote for years in an attic. Nobody ever read "
"Excuse me, sir," the dragon mercifully interrupted. "But we don't have time
to discuss Miss Dickinson. There is the matter of the impending battle."
"What? Ah, yes." Zifnab tugged on his beard. "I can't quite see how we're
going to get out of this one. Ramu is a thickheaded, hardhearted, stubborn
old "
"If I may say so, sir," said the dragon, "it was you who gave him the wrong
information "
"Got him here, didn't I!" Zifnab cried triumphantly. "You think he would have
come otherwise? Not on your Great-Aunt Minnie! He'd still be hanging around
Chelestra, causing no end of trouble. Now, here, he's "
"Causing no end of trouble," concluded the dragon gloomily.
"Well, actually, that's not precisely true anymore."
Headman Vasu, accompanied by Balthazar, entered the glade.
"We bring good news. For the time being, there will be no battle. At least not
among ourselves. Ramu has been forced to resign his post as Councillor. I have
taken over. Our people" Balthazar glanced at Headman Vasu, who smiled "are now
forming an alliance. Working together, we should be able to drive back the
armies of evil."
"That is truly good news, sir. My kind will welcome it. You both realize," the
dragon added gravely, "that this battle will not be the end. The evil present
in the Labyrinth will remain here forever, although its effect will be
lessened by the advent of trust and reconciliation between your two peoples."
The dragon glanced at Alfred. "The Wave correcting itself, sir."
"Yes, I see," said Alfred thoughtfully.
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