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affected?"
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"Wot's all this rot?" Mudge muttered. "Wot's a bloomin' nova and
wot's it 'ave to do with the sun, and wotever it is, we've only this chap's
word for it, anyways. And wot's it got to do with the question?"
"That's why I'm here. To see if I can't prevent that cataclysmic
change. The runes didn't tell me how it could be done, but they showed me
where it would have to be accomplished. I'm on my way there." He mistook their
silence for disbelief. "I told you you wouldn't believe me."
"On the contrary," Clothahump told him quietly, "we believe you more
man you believe yourself. Because, you see, the answer to our question is also
the answer to yours. We are bent on the same task. By different methods we
come to this place, intent upon achieving the same end."
Colin regarded each of them in turn, silently, seeing the truth in
their faces. "So that's it. The runes were more thorough than I thought. I did
not expect the help they predicted to appear so soon."
"Now 'old on a minimum, mate," Mudge urged him. "If anyone's goin' to
'elp anyone 'ere, 'tis you who are bound to 'elp us."
"It doesn't matter, Mudge," Jon-Tom told him irritably. "We're all
here for the same reason."
"True." The koala sounded disappointed. "The runes were thorough but
not accurate. As I read them they spoke of aid in the form of an army of
several thousand seasoned warriors." He shook off his disappointment. "But if
I'm to have the company of a quintet of oddities instead, so be it."
Mudge made a sound low in his throat. "Just who are you callin' an
oddity, fat face?"
"Quiet, river rat." Clothahump turned back to Colin. "Then your
reading of the runes is not always precise?"
"I'm afraid not. It's the nature of runes. You can't make perfect
predictions with imperfect materials, and there's no such thing as a perfect
rune. Half a year back I lost two months traveling in the wrong direction
before I knew I was off on the wrong track."
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"That's all right." Jon-Tom was naturally sympathetic. "I'm a
spellsinger myself, and there've been one or two occasions when the results of
my spellsinging were other than what I intended." He immediately turned a
warning look on Mudge, but the otter's thoughts were elsewhere, and he missed
the opportunity to insert the expected sarcastic comment.
"We shall help one another," Clothahump announced firmly. "Your
company and what assistance you can provide will be welcome. I know what is
causing these changes and approximately where it is located. By cooperating we
may define our approach more accurately."
It was clear that Colin was impressed. He glanced up at Jon-Tom.
"Tell me, tall man, does he speak the truth?"
"Most of the time. This time."
"Casting is something I have never practiced," the wizard was
saying, "because of its notorious inaccuracy. But it may be that you will have
the chance to supplement our collective abilities when such aid is needed
most. In any event, a strong sword arm is always welcome in such an enterprise
as this. We will seek to resolve this danger together."
"I'll be glad of the company. We koalas are sociable types.
Traveling solo hasn't been easy." He hesitated. "Not appearing to contradict
you, old one, but by the reading, we haven't much time left. We may not get
there in time."
"We may not get there at all," Clothahump admitted, "but it is a
waste of time to wonder about time. With due respect to your talent, where a
perambulator is involved, time itself is mutable. We may have more time left
to us than your reading would lead you to believe."
"I hope you're right and I'm wrong."
Clothahump lifted his gaze past them, toward the lower slopes of the
mountains that defined the northern horizon. "My greatest fear at this moment
is that despite his madness, whoever has trapped the perambulator in this
world is beginning to learn how to manipulate those perturbations."
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"That might not be all bad," Jon-Tom commented. "If he learns how to
do that, maybe he can keep the sun from going nova."
"Should he want to."
"But if that happens, then he'll be killed along with everyone else.
That's-"
"Crazy. Precisely, my boy. If the imprisoner is both mad and
unhappy, what better solution than suicide on a grandiose scale? My immediate
concern is that we may see perturbations directed at us specifically. It seems
incredible but it cannot be ruled out."
"You're not bein' very reassurin, Your Masterness."
"The truth rarely is, Mudge."
"Truth. Bleedin' slippery stuff. We still ain't 'ad no proof that
you're anything more than a sack o' 'ot air, big-ears."
Colin's eyes narrowed, and he put his hand on his sword. "You
calling me a liar, pilgrim?"
"Don't try that shit on me, mate. I believe you can 'andle that
sword. That ain't wot we need proof of." He eyed his companions. "Listen, you
gulliable lot, don't you want some proof this bloke ain't workin' for the one
whose arse we're after before we invite 'im to share our camp?"
"Mudge, sometimes you-" Jon-Tom started to say, but Colin raised a
hand to cut him off.
"No. The otter's right. Impolite, but right. You deserve more
conclusive proof than fast talk." He placed the leather sack on the ground in
front of him and knelt. Jon-Tom paid close attention but for the life of him
couldn't discern how the koala unfastened the incredibly complex series of
knots so quickly. Making certain the drawstrings were stretched out straight,
Colin carefully unfolded the leathern square.
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The resultant revelation was something of a disappointment. Jon-Tom
didn't know what to expect: brilliantly faceted gemstones perhaps or eerily
glowing bits of metal. What the pouch contained was a few pieces of wood, some
colored stones and old bones, and a few strips of dyed cloth.
"That's it?" Mudge wanted to know.
"Have you ever seen a set of runes before, otter? Not imitations or
fakes, but the real things? Some of these have been handed down from caster to
caster." He leaned forward to nudge a few of the pieces with a finger. "These
here are hundreds of years old."
"I can smell the power." Clothahump waddled over and asked Colin to
identify each rune in detail. Meanwhile Mudge eased over next to Jon-Tom.
"You know, mate, this 'ere meetin' may turn out to 'ave beneficial
consequences after all."
"It certainly will, if Colin's telling the truth about his
abilities."
"No, no, not that." The otter looked exasperated, then excited. "I
mean, 'ave a look at that junk! I can see meself now." The otter's mental
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