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"I've worked in plenty of fortresses," said Kevin. "They make the floor plan
confusing on purpose, right? To slow down the attackers if the fortress is
invaded?"
"Right.But this one is more confusing than most.The windows, for example.
From the outside there are five levels of windows, because it is designed to
look like it has five floors. But actually there are seven, not counting the
levels underground."
Kevin nodded. But he was still surprised. At first glance, thereseemed to be
plenty of men in the fortress. Certainly there were enough to hold the walls
against a well-planned siege. But if Kevin was any judge, the Fortress did not
hold enough soldiers to mount an attack against any sizable army. Was there
really a threat to Deserae here? What could Voltmeter be up to?
He pressed his mustache again. In front of him, Valerie knocked on a
door,then opened it without waiting for an invitation. "Here's Stan. Stan will
get you an ID badge. Stan, here's the man from the village I told you about."
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Stan was a thin young man with an even tan, spectacles, and hair that was cut
very short on the sides and kind of moppy-looking on top. He had a very tight,
trim look, the body of a man who didn't do sports but spent a lot of time
working his abs. He wore a uniform, similar to that of Voltmeter's soldiers,
but without insignia. He was sitting at a desk in a small office, with an open
copy of Ovid'sMetamorphoses in front of him. Other books were on the shelves
around him. He rose to shake Kevin's hand. "I'm the Chief Minion," he said.
"So let me know if there's anything you need."
"You have a lot of books," said Kevin, looking over the volumes of Plato,
Homer, and Aristophanes that were stacked on the desk.
Stan shrugged disparagingly. "I brought what I could. It's a nice little
valley, but you have to admit it's pretty rural. It's hard to find
intellectual stimulation out here in the sticks. You don't play chess by any
chance, do you?"
"I'm afraid not," said the Prince. He actually played pretty well, but he
didn't think it fit in with his disguise.
"Stan has a university degree," said Valerie. "And he doesn't like us to
forget it."
"Two degrees," said Stan. "Alas, they were both in the liberal arts.History
and classical literature. They didn't leave me much in the way of employment
opportunities."
"History and literature?" asked Kevin. "I'm surprised. I thought there were
plenty of jobs for waiters."
"Nah, the fine arts people snap them all up. We get the security guard jobs.
That's what I was doing after I graduated. Then I heard that His Lordship was
interviewing for an educated minion, and the rest is history."
"You're not a security guard here, then? The uniform had me confused."
"Well, the guards are better paid than minions, but minions don't have to
work shift.Except we're on call one weekend per month."
Kevin turned to Valerie. "And you're a minion also?"
"No, I'm an Evil Assistant. So I don't have to wear a uniform."
"But you do have a uniform, Valerie," chided Stan. "And you're out of it
right now."
Valerie glared at him. "That is not a uniform."
"Call it a dress code, then."
"His Lordship was merely making a suggestion."
"Sounded pretty much like an order to me."
"How about if you just worry about your job, Stan, and let me worry about
mine?"
"Well," said Kevin, "I'll just get to work then." An argument seemed to be
brewing, and he wanted to stay out of it. He was eager to get away from their
sight so he could start searching the fortress.
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"Fine," said Stan. He took a card from his desk drawer, quickly filled it
out, blotted it, and handed it over. Kevin clipped it to the pocket of his
coveralls and wheeled his cart away. Stan waited until Kevin had turned a
corner before speaking to Valerie again. "By the way, we caught another one in
the ventilation duct.A babe. She could be trouble."
"Oh?"
"She's a comic sidekick."
"Oh?" Valerie said again."Whose comic sidekick?"
"Give me a break, Valerie. Who do you think?"
"Are you sure?"
"No, not really.Work her over and tell me what you find out. I didn't get
much of a look at her. She was covered with dirt and dust."
"That's why we need this new guy."
"Yeah.Anyway, I commend her to your hot little hands. You can find out who
she's working with. Oh, yeah, check these out." Stan stood up and unlocked a
cupboard. A sword and scabbard were leaning up against the inside wall. He
took them out and passed them to the Evil Assistant. "The guards took these
away from her."
It was definitely a barbarian's sword. Valerie saw that immediately. She
could tell just from the handle and the scabbard. But it also looked familiar.
She slid the sword partway out of its sheath, turned it over in her hands, and
studied it. Now she was certain she recognized it. "I'll see this woman right
away."
She made her way down to the dungeon. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]