Geo grinned suddenly and patted his stump with his good hand. “I guess Jelly-belly got something from me, after all.”
Urson took up Geo’s good hand and examined it. It seemed pale. Urson held his own forearm next to Geo’s and compared them. The paleness was in both. “I guess none of us got out completely all right. I woke up once while they were taking the scabs off. It was pretty bad, and I went to sleep again fast.”
Iimmi came in now. “Well, I was wondering…” He stopped and let out a low whistle. “I guess it really got you, brother.” His own arms looked as though they had been dipped in bleach up to the mid-forearms, leaving them pinkish until they turned their normal purple-brown at the elbows.
“How did this happen?” Urson asked.
“When we were back doing our tightrope act on those damn girders,” explained Iimmi, “our bodies were in the shadow of the girders and the rays only got to our arms. It’s apparently a highly directional form of radiation, stopped by anything like steel, but — ”
“A highly who of what?” Urson asked.
“I’ve been getting quite a course.” Iimmi grinned. “And I’ve got something you’ll be interested in too, Geo.”
“Just tell me where the hell we are,” Urson said.
“We’re in a convent sacred to Argo,” Iimmi told him. “It’s across the river from the City of New Hope, which is where we were.”
“That name sounds familiar; in the — ” began Urson. Snake gave him a quick glance; and Urson stopped and then frowned.
“We knew of your presence in the City of New Hope,” explained the blind Priestess, “and we found you by the riverside after you managed to swim across. We thought you would die, but apparently you have a stronger constitution than the inhabitants of Aptor do. After crossing the river, you managed to cling to life long enough for us to get you back to the convent and apply what art we could to soothe the burns from the deadly fire.”
There was no jewel around Iimmi’s neck either. Geo could feel the hands ripping it from his neck in the water again. Iimmi must have just made the same discovery when he looked at Geo, because his pale hand rose to his own chest.
“If you gentlemen will come with me,” said the blind Priestess of Argo. “None of you have had more than intravenous feeding for the past two days. You may eat now.” She turned down another hall; again they followed.
They arrived at an even larger room, this one set with white marble benches and long white tables. “This is the main dining room of the convent,” their guide explained. “One table has been set up for you. You will not eat with the other priestesses, of course.”
“Why not?” asked Iimmi.
Surprise flowed across the blind face. “You are men,” she told them matter-of-factly. Then she led them to a table with wine, meat, and bowls piled with strange fruit. As they sat, she disappeared once more.
Geo reached for a knife. For a moment there was silence as the nub of his arm jutted over the table. “I guess I just have to learn,” he said after the pause. He picked up the knife with the other hand.
Halfway through the meal, Urson asked, “What about the jewels? Did the Priestess take them from you?”
“They came off in the water,” said Iimmi.
Geo nodded corroboration.
“Well, now we really have a problem,” said Urson. “Here we are, at a Temple of Argo, where we could return the jewels and maybe even get back to the Priestess on the ship and out of the silly mess; but the jewels are gone.”
“That also means our river friends are working for Hama,” said Geo.
“And we are just being used to carry the jewels back to Hama’s Temple,” added Urson. “Probably, when they found we were almost dead after that thing in the city, they just took the jewels from us and abandoned us on the shore.”
“I guess so,” said Iimmi.
“Well,” Geo said, “Hama’s got his jewels then, and we’re out of the way. Perhaps he delivered us into Argo’s hands as a reward for bringing them this far.”
“Since we would have died anyway,” said Iimmi, “I guess he was doing us a favor.”
“And you know what that means,” Geo said, looking at Snake now.
“Huh?” asked Urson. Then he said, “Oh, let the boy speak for himself. All right, Four Arms, are you or are you not a spy for Hama?”
Geo could not read the expression that came over Snake’s face. The boy shook his head not in denial but bewilderment. Suddenly he got up from the table and ran from the room. Urson looked at the others. “Now don’t tell me I hurt his feelings by asking.”
“You didn’t,” said Geo, “but I may have. I keep on forgetting that he can read minds.”
“What do you mean?” Urson asked.
“Just when you asked him that, a lot of things came together in my mind that would be pretty vicious for him if any of them were true.”
“Huh?” asked Urson.
“I think I know what you mean,” said Iimmi.
“I still — ”
“It means that he is a spy,” exclaimed Geo, “and among other things, he was probably lying about the radio back at the city. And that cost me my arm.”
“Why, the…” began Urson, and then looked down the hall where Snake had disappeared.
They didn’t eat much more. When they got up, Urson felt sleepy and was shown back to his room.
“May I show my friend what you showed me?” Iimmi asked the Priestess when she returned. “He is also a student of rituals.”
“Of course you may.” The Priestess smiled. “However, as students of the rituals of Argo you show surprising ignorance.”
“As I tried to explain,” said Iimmi, “we come from a land where the rituals have changed a great deal with time.”
“Surely not that much,” said the Priestess, smiling. “But you make such a fuss. These are only our commonest prayers. They do not even touch the subjects of magic.” She led them down the hall. “And your amazement quite amazes me. Yours must be a young and enthusiastic people.”
A door opened and they entered another room similar to the one in which Geo had awakened. As she was about to leave, Iimmi said, “Wait. Can you tell us how to leave the room ourselves?”
“Why would you want to leave?” she asked.
“For exercise,” offered Geo, “and to observe the working of the convent. Believe us; we are true students of Argo’s religion.”
“Simply press the wall with your hand, level at your waist, and the door will open. But you must not wander about the convent. Rites that are not for your eyes are being carried out….Not for your eyes,” she repeated. “Strange, this phrase has never left our language. Suddenly, confronted by people who can see, it makes me feel somehow…” She paused. “Well, that is how to leave the room.”
She stepped out. The door closed.
“Here,” said Iimmi, “this is what I wanted to show you.” On his bed was a pile of books, old but legible. Geo flipped through a few pages. Suddenly he looked up at Iimmi.
“Hey, what are they doing with printed books?”
“Question number one,” said Iimmi. “Now, for question number two. Look here.” He reached over Geo’s shoulder and hastened him to one page.
“Why, it’s the…” began Geo.
“You’re damn right it is,” said Iimmi.
“Hymn to the Goddess Argo,” Geo read aloud. And then: