"Whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of these two," Teldin responded curtly. "I trust them." The emphasis he put on the last word was lost on no one.
Gomja looked anxiously at the others, then went on. "The elves warned me not to tell you they were communicating with me, because… there was a spy among your group," he said faintly, looking at Teldin. "Someone was signaling our plans to the scro behind us, and the elves, who were behind the scro, saw the signal lights. The elves didn't know who it was, but they were very much afraid for your safety. They asked me to find a way to go with you and protect you from any"-he looked again at Aelfred and Sylvie-"internal dangers, while the elves would try to fend off the scro fleet with their own ships."
"Old son," said Aelfred with an easy smile, "you're implying that either myself or this lady might be that spy."
Gomja looked Aelfred in the face as he spoke. "The possibility has crossed my mind on a few occasions. I've seen nothing so far that would imply that there was any truth to ii, and is obvious to me that Teldin trusts you greatly, but my first loyalty is still to Teldin's safety. When stake s are high, one should tread carefully and carry a big firearm."
"If you were so concerned about my safety," Teldin said abruptly, "then why did you lead that ship to me so that it could try to snatch me like some kind of war booty? What did they offer you? Gold? A ship? Smokepowder?"
Gomja turned pale blue, but he looked Teldin steadily in the eye. "I can't believe they would have done anything as crude as that, but in any event they offered me nothing, nothing at all. They merely said that if I cared for you, then I would have to help them protect you. They gave me accurate reports in the wildspace battle near Ironpiece. They apologized for firing on some gnomish ships in the confusion. They warned me of the attack on Port Walkaway, and I was able to prepare for it with the help of my troops. They continued to give me warnings about the scro when we were in the phlogiston and when we entered this crystal sphere, and they told me about the scro fleet's presence behind us when we left the rastipedes. They did help us, s-Teldin."
No one spoke. "The elves said that at some point they wanted to talk to you personally," Gomja continued. "They wanted to convince you to go with them to find the Spelljammer. They'd had a change of heart in not becoming involved in your quest, so they followed you. They said it was a good thing they did, too. All they wanted was a chance to talk and help."
"Are you at all aware of what they did when they found me?" Teldin asked heatedly. "They knocked you down on purpose, they tried to kidnap me, and they finally managed to paralyze me with their wands before their ship went out of control and was smashed by that giant. Talk to me? Hell, they wanted this"-Teldin grabbed an edge of his cloak in one hand and held it up-"and you almost helped them get it. Didn't you even have a clue about this?"
Gomja's ears drooped and he appeared to get even paler. His tiny eyes were wide and rimmed with white. "That can't be true, sir!" he cried, forgetting himself. "They promised me that all they wanted to do was to talk to you and help you find the Spelljammer! Maybe they were just trying to get you out of the area, away from the giant. They didn't hurt you, they?"
"If they weren't after me, then why did they turn their wands at me, and not at the giant?" Teldin shouted suddenly. "Why did they treat me like a criminal? Why?"
Gomja looked stricken. He started to say something, but no words came out of his mouth.
"Why?" Teldin said more quietly, stepping forward and leaning down to the giffs wide face. "I'll tell you why. Because they wanted my cloak. If I hadn't shot their helmsman, they would have had it, too." Teldin stabbed a finger into the distance. "You want to talk to the elves? They're over there, smeared over the ground in the wreckage of their ship! If you really were trying to help me, then damn you for not telling me about all this! Damn you for keeping it a secret and nearly getting me killed! Damn you for making me have to kill them!"
No one spoke. Teldin drew back, his face hard with rage. "The only difference between the Imperial Fleet and those scro is that the elves won't cut my throat right away to get the cloak. It must offend their sensibilities, but I have a feeling that they might change their mind on this before long. They can't resist the lure. I was betrayed by an old war comrade on Krynn for this cloak. Damn you, Gomja, I was betrayed by a woman I trusted completely. She tried to kill me, and I had to help kill her! But you! You, of all the-"
"I didn't betray you!" Gomja howled, drowning out Teldin's words. Teldin saw tears forming under the giffs eyes, and they slid down his heavy jowls. "I didn't betray you, sir! I have been trying to protect you ever since you landed on Iron-piece! By all the smokepowder in wildspace, I truly thought the elves wanted to protect you, too! You're my friend!"
For a long moment, Teldin and Gomja stared at one another. Gomja's eyes were now puffy and blue around the edges; he was almost panting.
Teldin felt as if his mind were locked inside a maze with no exit. Had the elves strung the gullible Gomja along? Was he lying through his thick teeth? Or was he just-
"He's telling the truth," said Sylvie quietly, "and he's not charmed. You can untie him and let him go."
Teldin and Aelfred turned to stare at her, as if the half-elf had just turned blue herself, like the giff. "What in the Nine Hells are you talking about?" asked Aelfred.
"I'm reading his mind," said Sylvie, lowering her hands from her mouth. The copper piece was gone from her fingers. "I cast the spell a little while ago. Gomja's telling the truth. I think Admiral Cirathorn found out about him somehow, learned about his past connection with Teldin, and gambled that he could get to Teldin through Gomja. Cirathorn probably would have abandoned the rest of us if he could have gotten the cloak. Teldin's right, too. Cirathorn's not going to stop, if he's really behind this."
"What?" said Gomja stupidly, scarcely daring to breathe. "You're reading my mind?"
Sylvie smiled at the giff. "Not all of it, but just enough to know the truth," she said. "Whatever you think of, I can sense it." Sylvie got to her feet and brushed off her clothes. "Let him go," she said. "We've got to see the fal before someone else dive-bombs us."
Teldin looked from Sylvie to Gomja and felt his rage slowly melt away, leaving behind a sea of emptiness and confusion. At a shrug from Aelfred, Teldin rubbed at his face, looked at the others, then walked over to untie the dirt-encrusted giff.
"Why couldn't you have done this before?" Aelfred mumbled to Sylvie as he moved to help Teldin.
"I couldn't find a copper for the spell, so I borrowed one from Gaye. If you ever need anything, ask a kender."
No one laughed, but it lightened the atmosphere anyway. Gomja sniffed, obviously relieved, and straightened his posture to build his shattered dignity.
"Next time," said Teldin, finishing with one of the giffs arms, "just tell the truth from the start. By the gods, I hope the fal didn't see us acting like this."
There was a pause of exactly two heartbeats.
I did, said a voice in Teldin's head.
Everyone jumped. Aelfred shot to his feet, tugging his sword free. Teldin and Sylvie spun around on their knees, crouching, while Gomja got one arm out of the ropes and hastily felt for a weapon that he no longer had.
The gnomes near the ship cried out, and Teldin heard Gaye shriek, "There it is!" He got up, his own sword in hand, and saw a huge black shape forming only twenty feet from the Perilous Halibut. Although smaller than the gnomish ship, it shared a similarly long and cylindrical form and was equally dark-but the surface of the new form slowly rippled and undulated. The nearer end rose from the ground to the height of a tall man and leisurely looked over the assembled crew.