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"We'll offer him Barin's life if he guides us into Vruun, supposedly to liberate a Humanite
prisoner. Tark may accept."
"It sounds to me like a cursedly complicated and dangerous plan," Sloan commented
bluntly.
"But if it succeeded, it would clear the way for a quick blitz against the whole
Brotherhood," Nelson said thoughtfully. "I'll lead the attempt if the wolf can be talked into
guiding us."
"Have the guards bring Tark back in," Shan Kar told Diril.
The great wolf stalked back into the black hall, his chains held carefully taut by the
sword-armed guards who walked on either side of him.
Tark swept them with his gaze. Eric Nelson felt a chill, uncanny shock in meeting those
eyes that were like pools of cold green fire.
Shan Kar and the Humanites apparently found nothing strange in the scene. They were
too accustomed to contact and speech with the intelligent beasts of the Brotherhood.
"You must choose now whether young Barin is to live or die," Shan Kar told Tark.
thinking
His lips did not move, Nelson saw. He was to the wolf again, and Nelson and
his companions were picking up that thought through their thought-crowns. Tark's lips
writhed back from great white fangs in a soundless snarl His answering thought came
fiercely.
THE VALLEY OF CREATION
58
"A trick! You want nothing more than to kill both Barin and myself!"
"That is quite true," Shan Kar coolly agreed. "But even more than to kill you two we want
something else."
His thought raced on. "Hoik's brother, Jhanon, is a prisoner in Vrunn, as you know. We
wish to rescue him. We'll give yours and Barin's lives for his freedom."
"/ have not authority to release Jhanon," Tark retorted. "Only the Guardian can do that."
could
"But you guide a few of us secretly into Vruun, so we could release Jhanon
ourselves," pressed Shan Kar. "Do so, and Barin goes free."
Tark's thought came after a pause. "If I did that it would be a direct disobedience of the
Guardian's orders."
"But if you don't, the Guardian's son will die!" Shan Kar threatened. "Nsharra sent you to
watch over her brother, didn't she? And you failed, Tark! How will you face her and report
your failure?"
Tark's green eyes narrowed. The wolf looked from one to the other of them, then back to
Shan Kar.
"You are right," his telepathic answer came finally. "I will be committing a minor act of
treachery against the Brotherhood, but I must do it to prevent a worse thing happening."
"Then this very night we go to Vruun!" Shan Kar said swiftly. He pointed to Nelson. "He
and one of his comrades go with us, Tark."
Tark's eyes flickered back to Nelson's face, and the green orbs were inscrutable in
expression.
"That is well," he answered. "I promise to get you secretly and safely into Vruun."
When the guards had taken the great wolf away Nelson expressed his satisfaction.
"So far, so good! With the wolf guiding us, we've a strong chance of getting hold of Kree
and the girL"
DARING PLAN
59
Shan Kar looked at him with an ironical smile. "You still underestimate Tark's resolution
knows
and cunning. He that it's Kree and Nsharra we're really going after. He figures to lead
us inside Vruun and then suddenly turn on us and give the alarm."
"Then why are you going in there with him, if you think that?" exclaimed Sloan.
Shan Kar's smile hardened. "Because, if all goes well, we'll outguess Tark. Once inside
him
Vruun, we'll overpower before he can betray us!"
1
SECRET MISSION
Chapter VII
Night brooded over Anshan, a velvety darkness that enwrapped the city's glassy towers
and domes. Like glimmering ghost-bubbles the fairy spherical structures caught and
imaged the thousand stars that burned in the blue-black sky.
Nelson turned from the open window out which he had been gazing and looked across
the torchlit room at the others.
"The moon won't be up for hours, and that's good. With luck we can get in and out of
Vrunn before it rises."
"I wish that you were not going," murmured Li Kin, his bespectacled face troubled.
Lefty Wister had elected to accompany Nelson. He sat checking the service automatics [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]