them, or if he would ever be last; in the worst case, I was prepared to pin our hopes on our courage and their fears, and take him from their midst. Fortune was with us—Purn soon lagged a few steps behind. Since succeeding to the autarchy, I have often led charges in the north. I feigned to lead such a charge now, shouting for pandours who consisted exclusively of Zak to follow. We rushed upon the sailors as though at the head of an army, flourishing our weapons; and they turned and fled as one man.
I had hoped to take Purn from behind, sparing my burned arm as much as I could. Zak saved me the trouble with a long flying leap that sent him crashing into Purn's knees. I needed only to hold the point of my dagger at his throat. He looked terrified, as well he should: I expected to kill him when I had wrung as much information from him as I could. For the space of a breath or two we remained listening to the retreating feet of the four who had fled. Zak had snatched Purn's knife from its sheath, and now waited with a weapon in either hand, glaring at the fallen seaman from beneath beetling brows.
"You'll die at once if you try to run," I whispered to Purn. "Answer me and you may live awhile. Your right hand's bandaged. How was it hurt?"
Although he lay flat on his back, with my dagger against his throat, his eyes defied me. It was a look I knew well, an attitude I had seen broken again and again.
"I haven't enough time to waste any on you," I told him, and I prodded him with the point just enough to draw blood. "If you won't answer, say so plainly; and I'll kill you and be done with it."
"Fighting the jibers. You were there. You saw it. I tried to get you, sure, that's true enough. I thought you were one of them. With that jiber—" His eyes flickered toward Zak. "With him with you, anybody would have. You weren't hurt, and no harm done."
"'As the viper told the sow.' So a man called Jonas used to say. He was a sailor too, Purn, but as quick to lie as you are. That hand was wrapped in bandages already when Zak and I joined the fight. Take the bandages off."
He did so, reluctantly. The wound had been treated by a skillful leech, no doubt at the infirmary Gunnie had mentioned; the tear in his flesh was sutured now, yet it was clear enough what sort of wound it had been.
And as I bent to look at it, Zak, bending too, drew his lips back from his teeth as I have sometimes seen tame apes do. I knew then that the wild conjecture I had been trying to dismiss was the simple truth: Zak had been the shaggy, bounding apport we had hunted in the hold.
Chapter XII
The Semblance
TO HIDE my confusion, I planted my foot on Purn's chest and barked, "Why did you try to kill me?"
For some men, there comes a moment when they accept the certainty of death, and so are no longer afraid. That moment came for Purn, a change as unmistakable as the opening of an eye. "Because I know you, Autarch."
"You're one of my own people, then. You boarded the ship when I did." He nodded.
"And Gunnie boarded with you?"
"No, Gunnie's an old hand. She's not your enemy, Autarch, if that's what you're thinking." To my amazement, Zak looked at me and nodded. I said, "I know more of that than you do, Purn."
As if he had not heard me, he said, "I'd been hoping she'd kiss me. You don't even know the way they do it here."
"She kissed me," I told him, "when we met."
"I saw it, and I saw you didn't know what she meant. On this ship, every new hand's supposed to have an old one for a lover, to teach him ship's ways. The kiss is the sign."
"Women have been known to kiss and kill."
"Not Gunnie," Purn insisted. "Or anyhow, I don't think so.
"But you'd have killed me for that? For her love?"
"I signed to kill you, Autarch. Everybody knew where you were going, and that you meant to bring back the New Sun if you could, turn Urth upside down and kill everybody." So stunned was I, not just by what he said but by his very evident sincerity, that I took a step
I had hoped to take Purn from behind, sparing my burned arm as much as I could. Zak saved me the trouble with a long flying leap that sent him crashing into Purn's knees. I needed only to hold the point of my dagger at his throat. He looked terrified, as well he should: I expected to kill him when I had wrung as much information from him as I could. For the space of a breath or two we remained listening to the retreating feet of the four who had fled. Zak had snatched Purn's knife from its sheath, and now waited with a weapon in either hand, glaring at the fallen seaman from beneath beetling brows.
"You'll die at once if you try to run," I whispered to Purn. "Answer me and you may live awhile. Your right hand's bandaged. How was it hurt?"
Although he lay flat on his back, with my dagger against his throat, his eyes defied me. It was a look I knew well, an attitude I had seen broken again and again.
"I haven't enough time to waste any on you," I told him, and I prodded him with the point just enough to draw blood. "If you won't answer, say so plainly; and I'll kill you and be done with it."
"Fighting the jibers. You were there. You saw it. I tried to get you, sure, that's true enough. I thought you were one of them. With that jiber—" His eyes flickered toward Zak. "With him with you, anybody would have. You weren't hurt, and no harm done."
"'As the viper told the sow.' So a man called Jonas used to say. He was a sailor too, Purn, but as quick to lie as you are. That hand was wrapped in bandages already when Zak and I joined the fight. Take the bandages off."
He did so, reluctantly. The wound had been treated by a skillful leech, no doubt at the infirmary Gunnie had mentioned; the tear in his flesh was sutured now, yet it was clear enough what sort of wound it had been.
And as I bent to look at it, Zak, bending too, drew his lips back from his teeth as I have sometimes seen tame apes do. I knew then that the wild conjecture I had been trying to dismiss was the simple truth: Zak had been the shaggy, bounding apport we had hunted in the hold.
Chapter XII
The Semblance
TO HIDE my confusion, I planted my foot on Purn's chest and barked, "Why did you try to kill me?"
For some men, there comes a moment when they accept the certainty of death, and so are no longer afraid. That moment came for Purn, a change as unmistakable as the opening of an eye. "Because I know you, Autarch."
"You're one of my own people, then. You boarded the ship when I did." He nodded.
"And Gunnie boarded with you?"
"No, Gunnie's an old hand. She's not your enemy, Autarch, if that's what you're thinking." To my amazement, Zak looked at me and nodded. I said, "I know more of that than you do, Purn."
As if he had not heard me, he said, "I'd been hoping she'd kiss me. You don't even know the way they do it here."
"She kissed me," I told him, "when we met."
"I saw it, and I saw you didn't know what she meant. On this ship, every new hand's supposed to have an old one for a lover, to teach him ship's ways. The kiss is the sign."
"Women have been known to kiss and kill."
"Not Gunnie," Purn insisted. "Or anyhow, I don't think so.
"But you'd have killed me for that? For her love?"
"I signed to kill you, Autarch. Everybody knew where you were going, and that you meant to bring back the New Sun if you could, turn Urth upside down and kill everybody." So stunned was I, not just by what he said but by his very evident sincerity, that I took a step
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