"I don"t see that at all."

"You said that you thought stronger psychics were emerging as a sign of human maturity in the Void," Halan said.

"What?"

"I talked to Kanseen once," Hala said with a dreamy smile. "She has such fond thoughts of you, a little thread of longing never extinguished. I believe that"s why she recalls your time in the Jeavons squad together so clearly even after all this time. Back then, after your triumphant day of banishment, you told her that was your reason for enlisting Marcol as a constable: to tame him, to bind him to your vision. You saw the strong emerging from the ma.s.ses; that"s very prophetic. We respect that."

"And you"ve been keeping an eye out for others of strength ever since," Uphal said. "Bringing them into the establishment. The establishment whose throne you"ve claimed. Indoctrinating them with your ideals."

"But that was then," Tathal said. "When the strong were few, and afraid. Now our numbers are growing. Soon there will be enough of us that we can emerge from the shadows without fear. One day, all humans will be as us. As you."

"Really?"

"You doubt your own beliefs? Or do you dare not put a voice to them? You know we are right. For we are here, are we not?"

"What exactly do you see yourselves becoming?" Edeard asked.

The nest"s thoughts swirled around him again, faster than ever. This time he knew their amus.e.m.e.nt: tinged with derision, perhaps even a scent of disappointment. The great Waterwalker: not so impressive, after all.

"We are the children of today"s people," Tathal said. "And as with all children, one day we will inherit the world from our parents."

"Okay." Edeard cleared his throat. "But I don"t think you"re the type to wait patiently."

"We are simply readying ourselves for every eventuality," Tathal said. "I do not delude myself that the transition will be smooth and peaceful, for it is never a pleasant realization that your evolution has ended and a new order is replacing you."

"Unbelievable." Edeard shook his head wearily. "A revolution. You"re going to replace the Grand Council with your own followers. Is that the best you can do?"

"We have no intention of replacing the Grand Council. Can you not understand what we are? We don"t need to make the kind of empty political promises Rah made to the ma.s.ses, his ludicrous democracy. He knew the right of it when he established the families of the district masters. That was where he expected our true strength to emerge. The Grand Families tried; for centuries they have chosen their bloodstock on the basis of psychic strength. But we have supplanted them as the true heirs of Rah. Evolution is inevitable, yet it is also random. Isn"t that utterly wonderful?"

"So the weak don"t get a say in the world you control."

"They can join with us," Uphal said. "If their thoughts are bright enough, they will belong. That"s what we are: a union of pure thought, faster and more resolute than any debating chamber full of the greedy and corrupt that rules every town and city. It is democracy on a level beyond the reach of the weak. Your children will be a part of it, especially the twins. Marilee and a.n.a.lee are already open and honest with each other; that is a big part of what we are, what we offer. It"s a wondrous life: n.o.body alone, n.o.body frightened. And there are more of us out there, more than you know, Waterwalker."

Edeard gave him a thin smile. "I suggest you don"t threaten my family. I suggest that quite strongly."

"I"m not threatening anyone."

"Really? I"ve seen how you use dominance to bind people, to deny them free will. That"s how you"ve come this far. Control seems to be what you"re actually about."

Tathal grinned. "How is your campaign for Mayor coming along? Dinlay is putting an election team together for you, isn"t he? Always the loyal one, Dinlay. His admiration for you verges on worship. Do you discourage that?"

"If I become Mayor, it will because the people who live in this city say I can. And when that mandate is over, I will step down."

"Your n.o.bility is part of your appeal. To their kind."

"You talk as if you"re different. You"re not."

"But we are, and you know it. And to make your guilt burn even brighter, you belong with us."

"Dominance is psychic a.s.sault. It is illegal as well as immoral. I want you to stop using it against other people. You can start with Colfal."

Kiary and Manel laughed derisively. "This is why we"re cautious? Come on. He"s an old man we can squash like ge-chimp c.r.a.p." is why we"re cautious? Come on. He"s an old man we can squash like ge-chimp c.r.a.p."

Tathal waved them into silence. "Don"t do that," he said to Edeard. "Don"t fall back on righteous indignation; it does not become you. You were the first. You have a duty to your own kind. You are the bridge between us and the others. If you want to retain your self-respect, your grandeur, you will work with us. Continue as that bridge. People trust you; they will need your rea.s.surance that what is happening here is inevitable. You are essential for the transition, Waterwalker. You cannot stop us; we are nature. Destiny. Help us. Or do you consider yourself above that?"

Edeard held up a warning finger, grimly aware of how pathetic that must appear to the nest. "Stop interfering with other people"s lives; leave their minds alone. You are not their superiors. We are all-"

"One nation?" Tathal inquired; the mockery was palpable.

Edeard turned and left the room. He was somewhat surprised he was still alive and allowed to do so.

Mirnatha was in the ziggurat when a shaken Edeard arrived home. He"d completely forgotten she was visiting. She was up on the tenth floor, along with Olbal, her husband, and their children. Kristabel was on the floor of the private lounge, entertaining the two toddlers while the older ones were playing with Marakas and Rolar"s children in the big playroom on the other side of the ziggurat. The children"s excited laughter and squealing echoed down the vast stairwell, causing him to smile regretfully as he climbed the last few stairs. He pa.s.sed the short corridor leading to his bedroom and gave the closed door a pensive look. Kiary and Manel creeping in unseen to have their dirty little thrill was far too much like the time Mirnatha had been kidnapped. Too many memories Too many memories, he told himself.

By the time he reached the main lounge, he"d managed to compose himself and strengthen his mental shield. He smiled widely as Mirnatha rushed across to kiss him effusively, and then he shook hands warmly with Olbal. Everyone had been surprised when Mirnatha had married him. She"d spent her teens and twenties enjoying every delight and excitement the city could offer a supremely eligible Grand Family daughter. Then suddenly Olbal had come to town, and the next thing Julan, Kristabel, and Edeard knew was her engagement being announced and a wedding six weeks later in Caldratown, the capital of Joxla province. Kristabel had worried it would never last; Edeard had a little more confidence. He rather liked his brother-in-law, who owned a huge farming and woodland estate in Joxla province, to the north of the Donsori Mountains. Olbal didn"t care much for the city and its politics and its society events; he was a practical man whose brain was occupied with agricultural management and food market prices. Such a man offered the kind of stability Mirnatha needed. And here they were, still together thirty years down the line, with nine children.

"So what"s new?" Mirnatha asked as she settled back into a sofa and reclaimed her teacup from a ge-chimp.

Edeard hesitated. You really don"t want to know that You really don"t want to know that. "Not much. Still being bullied."

Mirnatha clapped her hands delightedly. "Excellent. Well done, sis. Keep them on a short leash, I say."

Edeard and Olbal exchanged a martyred look.

"We"ve said nothing, but he"s finally going to run for Mayor," Kristabel said.

"Really?" Olbal asked, intrigued.

"It"s all down to timing," Edeard explained.

"Will you change anything?"

Not me. But my word doesn"t count for much now. He looked at Alfal and Fanlol, the two toddlers, and smiled grimly. "I think things are pretty good as they are now. I"ll try and keep them that way." His third hand poked playfully at Alfal as the boy banged an old wooden cart against a chair leg. Alfal turned around, a mischievous smile on his sweet little face, and pushed back with his third hand. The force was surprisingly strong, in fact, very strong indeed for a three-year-old.

"He"s a tough one, my little man," Mirnatha said adoringly. "But then, they all are. That"s what growing up in the fresh air does to you. You two should spend more time outside the city."

"I"d love to," Edeard said. "I always wanted to take a long voyage across the sea to find some new continents."

"Like Captain Allard, hey?" Olbal asked. "Now that would be quite something. I might even join you."

"Over my dead body," Mirnatha said.

"Families would be voyaging with us," Edeard told her reasonably. "After all, it would take years."

"What? Including the children?"

He shrugged. "Why not?"

"There aren"t any ships that big," Kristabel said.

"So we build them."

"A fleet," Olbal said. "I like that idea."

Kristabel and Mirnatha looked at each other. "Man dreams," Mirnatha exclaimed. "It"ll never happen."

--- After dinner Olbal asked Edeard for a moment together, and they went out onto the hortus. Ku and Honious were both bright in the night sky, Honious in particular, its bulbous ruby clouds braided by sulfurous wisps surrounding a dark center where lost souls were said to fall. People were taking it as a bad omen that it was sharing the night with the Skylords. They were just visible above the horizon, five scintillations, growing steadily larger each night.

Edeard eyed them carefully. Normally he"d be excited and content at their impending arrival, but now that he knew the true nature of the nest, he couldn"t help but feel the doomsayers might be right.

"Are you all right?" Olbal asked.

"Yeah, sorry. Just distracted by this whole Mayor thing."

"That I can understand. Rather you than me."

Edeard gave him a false grin. "What was it you wanted to ask?"

"Ah." Olbal leaned on the thick rail and looked out across the Grand Central Ca.n.a.l. "I know this sounds stupid, that I"m probably making a big fuss about nothing."

"But?"

"My nephew, Constatin; he arrived in Makkathran three weeks ago. He was here to negotiate with merchants directly this year, agreeing on a price for this season"s apples and pears. We normally deal with Garroy of the Linsell family, and I wanted to keep that arrangement going."

"I know the Linsell family; they bring a lot of fruit to Makkathran"s markets."

"Yes, well ... the thing is, Constatin has disappeared."

"Are you sure you didn"t just miss him on the road?"

"He was with Torran. It was Torran who told me he didn"t come back one day."

"Okay. What happened?"

"It was a Tuesday. Constatin had arranged to meet Garroy for lunch at the Blue Fox off Golden Park to thrash out the new deal."

"I know it," Edeard said stiffly.

"He never got there. Garroy called at Torran"s inn that evening wanting to know what happened. He wasn"t there. Torran searched for a day and a half before going to the Ysidro constable station. There wasn"t much they could do, but the desk sergeant promised he"d keep his farsight stretched. Since then, we"ve heard nothing."

"I see."

"I didn"t think there were any gangs in Makkathran these days."

"There aren"t," Edeard said flatly. It was was strange. But then several station captains had mentioned that the number of missing people reported over the last couple of years had risen slightly. It was to be expected given how many visitors Makkathran was receiving and how unfamiliar they were with the city streets. strange. But then several station captains had mentioned that the number of missing people reported over the last couple of years had risen slightly. It was to be expected given how many visitors Makkathran was receiving and how unfamiliar they were with the city streets.

"It was morning, Edeard, broad daylight. What could have befallen him? Torran checked the hospitals and even the cemetery."

Edeard put his hand on Olbal"s shoulder, trying to push through a sensation of rea.s.surance. "I"ll speak with the station captain. I doubt it was a priority for them; at the least I can rectify that."

"Thank you, Edeard. I hate to use family like this, but my sister is badly worried. He was an only son."

"That"s okay." Edeard frowned, thinking about what else he should be asking. Mysteries like this were rarities in Makkathran. There was only one person he knew who solved such strange puzzles, but that was ridiculous; she was nothing but a figment of his bizarre dreams. However, she used a method of elimination to determine suspects, and gathering all possible information was essential to that method. "You said you wanted to deal with the merchants directly this year. Is that unusual?"

"Not really. I normally use their agents; they have them in every province. And Garroy visits us every few years to keep up a personal contact; I have dinner with him whenever I"m in town. You need that level of trust if you are in business."

"So what"s different? Why send Constatin here this time?"

"I was contacted by some new merchants seeking to buy our produce. They were offering a good price, a very good price."

"Is that bad?"

"No. And I fully expect to sell them a substantial percentage of our crop. However, I want to maintain our trade with the Linsell family; they are a reliable buyer, and the future is what I must look to, especially with so many children." He smiled fondly. "New merchants come and new merchants go. Constatin was sent partly as rea.s.surance that although we obviously wanted to squeeze the price up, we would not abandon the Linsell family."

"Who are the new merchants?" Edeard asked. He was getting a bad feeling about this.

"They worked for a supplier here in the city called Uphal."

"What"s the matter?" Kristabel asked. She was sitting up in bed, watching Edeard pull his silk pajamas on. "And don"t say "nothing." You"ve been quiet since you got back this afternoon."

"Yeah," he said, and rolled onto the bed. The walls remembered nothing. Kiary and Manel had taken away the memory usually contained within the city"s substance. He was going to have to find out how to do that for himself. "Sorry, but it"s not good news."

"I"m a big girl."

He smirked. For once she was wearing a sheer black negligee with a plunging neckline. Even after seven children she was still slim and, with her hair worn loose, very alluring. And she knew it; there was a calculating smile playing across her lips. "I"ll bear that in mind," he said, giving her figure an openly admiring look.

"Did somebody die?"

"No. There are some psychics in Makkathran who are at least as strong as I am. And there"s a lot of them."

"Oh. But you"ve found plenty of powerful psychics over the years; there"s Marcol, and Jenovan, and what"s that new girl who came to you last year?"

"Vikye. No, darling. What they"re doing is a lot bigger than anything we can handle."

"Why? What are they doing?"

"Same thing Ra.n.a.lee and One Nation were trying. Except this isn"t about establishing good sn.o.bbish blood as overlords; this is about strength pure and simple. If you"re a strong psychic, that means you have the right to rule everyone else."

"There"s a lot of us to try and quash."

"I know, and that"s what frightens me the most. Owain had guns and fear to keep people in line. The nest has dominance, which they haven"t been afraid to use. They also have the same skill I have with the city."

Kristabel gave him a sober look. "Oh. If their strength comes from numbers, then you pick them off one at a time."

"Won"t work," he said apologetically. "They call themselves a nest for a reason. They"re like a family of the mind; it"s quite weird to see them together. Back when old Chae was training us, he made sure our farsight was always aware of where the others of the squad were. The nest has a more sophisticated version of that technique. I"d never be able to isolate one of them."

"Ladyc.r.a.pit, what are you going to do?"

"I don"t know. But they"re young, and they want to forge ahead in their own fashion. They"ve never learned how to accommodate other people because they"ve never had to; if they"re allowed to carry on the way they are, they never will. That means I might have a small opening."