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They were quite serious. Mym knew that there was no way to talk them out of this; the Rajah's word was
absolute. He bit his tongue.
Orb, bemused, accepted the package, but did not look at it.
"You will be given a few minutes to make your parting with the woman," the officer said. "You will not
need to take any belongings, Prince; we shall provide you with suitable raiment."
The blood flowed in Mym's mouth. His skin paled. Tiny bubbles appeared at his lips.
The officer kneeled before him, pitfffering the hilt of his sword. "If it pleases you, Prince, strike off my
head first, and any others you wish. We shall not take arms against our leader. But you will return to the
Kingdom."
"Mym!" Orb screamed, understanding. "They are only doing their duty! You must go with them!"
He paused. She was correct-but even if she had been in error, he realized that he would not expose her to
this.
She was not a creature of mayhem.
He turned his head and spat out the blood. Then he took the officer's sword, reversed it, and handed it
back. "A moment," he said, in this instance not stuttering.
"As my lord wishes," the officer said, seemingly unruffled. He sheathed the sword.
Mym turned to Orb. "I will return to you," he sang. "After I persuade my father that I will not serve.
Until that time, I give you this." He brought out the ring that was shaped like a little snake.
"But what is it?" she asked, her eyes glistening with tears.
"It is a royal charm. Wear it, and it will answer any question. One squeeze means yes, two mean no, and
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three mean it can not answer in that fashion. It will also protect you, if you ask it to."
"Protect me?"
He put the ring on his own finger. Demonstrate, he thought.
The little snake came to life. It slithered into his palm; then, as he brought it to Orb's hand, across to
hers. It reared up momentarily, issuing a tiny hiss, then coiled around one of her fingers and went
metallic again.
"You mean-it bites?" she asked, amazed.
"Deadly," he sang. "But only on command. This you can always trust. Wear it and be secure."
"Until you return," she said.
He nodded. Then he took her in his arms and kissed her deeply. Some of his makeup smeared on her
face, but that didn't matter. She was too lovely for any smear to alter.
He stepped to the officer. "Now I will go with you." he sang.
They brought up a fine horse, and Mym mounted. He paused to wave to Orb and to the others who had
befriended him. Then he rode out.
Chapter 3 - PRINCESS
The Rajah was older than Mym remembered him. Of course, Mym had been no closer to his father than
to his brother; it was not the royal way. He had encountered the man, physically, perhaps no more than a
dozen times in his life, and most of those during his childhood, before his mother had had the bad
judgment to bear a daughter and had been divorced and dismissed from palace life. Mym had had no
close family life thereafter, and realized now that this had been a considerable part of what he had
sought and found in Orb-true love and closeness between individuals. He was not about to give it up.
Still, the sight of his father was something of a shock. It was not just that the man was old, but that he
was both grand and ill. He was elegantly robed, of course, which was his normal state, with golden
embroidery and a necklace of bright rubies, but his bearing was a thing beyond dress. The Rajah could
have been naked and still radiated authority. His illness showed in the sallowness of his complexion and
the hollowness of his cheeks. Obviously magic had buttressed his health, but there were limits even to
magic, and the man was inevitably descending toward his release of this body. No wonder he was
concerned about the state of his Heir.
"It is necessary for the Heir to have an heir," the Rajah said. "You will be betrothed to a princess of the
royal house of Maharastra, a politically suitable alliance. We are now negotiating the dowry."
"Sire, I will not be betrothed," Mym sang.
The Rajah gazed at him, nodding. "So it is true. The wench taught you another mode of speech. This is
an improvement, though still not ideal."
"The wench," Mym sang between his teeth, "is the only one I will marry."
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