He was very unhappy with what had seemed like a routine mission. None of the animals that had passed through his facility that day had been unusual except for their obvious adaptations to the climatic conditions of this peculiar placealthough the purpose of that extra bony layer on the nose of the curly-coated stallion still puzzled him. The interior nasal flap was listed as a characteristic of the breed and kept icy winds from penetrating to their lungs. And now Luzon was intimating that the creatures might bewell, psychic! He never willingly destroyed an animal wantonly. and certainly not a psychic one!
Utterly depressed, he went to the cubicle allotted to him and tried to sleep. He woke up, even more depressed, for his dream had been about a clouded leopard running across a snowy waste, its effortless stride as graceful as it was powerful.
Awake. Coaxtl found, one had a dreadful thirst. One’s body was slightly sore with pricks, scrapings, and bruisings, and one’s senses were dull. Rolling over, one ducked one’s head because of the low bushes under which one lay. A sniff brought no useful information as to one’s location. The pursuers, men who rattled as they ran and shouted, were gone, though Coaxtl seemed to remember them being close enough to pounce. No mind. Now they were gone,
Unfortunately, the youngling was gone as well, still, and if Coaxtl had escaped the men, they had triumphed in preventing Coaxtl from finding the youngling.
Coaxtl had seen the little female forced into a huge bird machine, bigger than the terrible creature that had carried Coaxtl, the youngling, the seal-man, and his mate to this land where the youngling was to live with her kin. Where the black-and-white Nanook had been interested in one as a mate. Nanook had had much to tell Coaxtl, who had listened with growing wonder. More than “Home” was changing, it would seem. “Home” had indeed altered, if one could be so robbed of sense and then dumped unceremoniously under a thicket.
There was, however, some snow still left in the center of the shrubbery, and Coaxtl licked at it. The cool silvery water relieved the nasty, stinging taste and dryness in one’s mouth, while the cold snow and the water seeping into one’s fur revived one further.
Food would be a good thing. One lifted one’s head and sniffed, sneezed. Too many humans, too many bad smells. Nothing appetizing nearby. Through the wind and the distant manmade noises came the rush of water. Water always held fish, and fish were edible. Yes, one could quite easily snag many fish on clever, swift claws and relieve one’s hunger. Then one could plan what to do next. Finding Nanook would be best. This was his territory. He would know where to seek the youngling.
As dawn broke over the low hills and the new volcano, Coaxtl scooped the fourth large fish from the icy river waters, then continued standing, motionless until more unsuspecting aquatic shapes passed nearby. Coaxtl had eaten well by the time the sun was up.
Marmion did sleep well, but more because of Sean’s infallible confidence than Sally’s reassurance about demonstrable facts. When she woke the next morning, she was more than ready for the battle about to ensue.
She was not ready for Sally bursting into her room, her eyes wide with fright.
“They did it. Gathered up every one of the people Luzon calls ‘renegades and traitors,’ using the commissioners’ shuttles and troops we didn’t even suspect were on board them,” she said in a spurt. “They’ve got them in detention cells on the far side of the field.”
“Whittaker? Marmion experienced an unusual pang of fear. Had she outsmarted herself last night? Whittaker would never have gone along with that sort of a ploy.
“No, he’s free, and so are Frank and Diego Metaxos, and I told Faber to stay with them. Millard’s dogging Whittaker, who is furious!”
Marmion bit her lower lip, ranging through alternative plans. Who, exactly, did they seize in such a highly irregular procedure?”
“Only half the damned planet, including the wildlife,” Sally said. By the time she had completed the list, Marmion found herself grinding her teeth.