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and moving everything, down to the last miniature shovel and hearth. Of hurrying off through the desert
between inhospitable dunes that were hills to him and his friends but gigantic sand mountains to people
the size of the Swick. Of starting again from scratch, with the first choir singing out the first hole in the
base of a fresh, untouched dune.
Of doing it forty-five times and now having to face the unholy prospect of doing it for a forty-sixth.
He took in the wondrous construction surrounding them, all of it fashioned from nothing more than
laboriously worked sand. Contemplated the humming, thriving community, alive with craftwork and
farming and art. Considered, and tried to envision abandoning it all to inevitable ruination and starting
over again from nothing.
His gaze returned at last to the waiting Loswee.  I am sorry, but we cannot help you.
Simna looked momentarily startled, then relieved. Clearly, he had been expecting a different sort of
response from his friend. Behind them, Ahlitah rolled over and snored.
Loswee accepted the response gravely.  Outside, you agreed that if not help, you might be able to give
us some advice.
Ehomba shrugged diffidently.  I said  might. Loswee, I do not know what to say. You told us that
magic was needed to fight this Dunawake, and I replied that we had no magic. I am sorry to say that we
have no advice, either. We do not even know what a Dunawake is. Believe me, I feel terrible about this.
Men I know how to fight, and animals, and even certain circumstances of nature, but not a Dunawake. I
have never heard of one, seen one, or had it described to me.
 Perhaps if you saw it you would know how to respond. Backed by his silently watching Elders,
Loswee was unwilling to drop the matter.
 I do not see why. And if it is as dangerous as you say, and we confronted it without knowing how to
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respond or react, I imagine we would probably die. I do not want to die. I have an obligation of my own
to fulfill that does not, regrettably, include the Swick, and also a family that I am missing more than I can
say.
 Also friends, Simna added quickly.
 Yes, even that. Ehomba took a long, deep breath.  I am sorry, Loswee. For you and for your people.
But it is not like you are unused to moving.
 It never gets easier, the Swick soldier told him.  But if there is nothing you can do, there is nothing you
can do. These Elders and I will convey your response to the rest of the Council. Behind him, the senior
Swick genuflected once again. They had spoken, and having had their say, now added not a word.
 Finish your meal, Loswee advised as he turned away.
This the visitors proceeded to do: Ahlitah quietly, Simna without a thought, and Ehomba with perhaps
one or two but they were fleeting. He could not change the world, and in actual fact had no desire to
try.
If their hosts in general or Loswee in particular held any resentment against the travelers for their refusal
to help in the endless ongoing battle against their nemesis, they did not show it. The rest of the day was
spent touring other parts of the remarkable underground complex and in learning more of Swick culture.
It was ancient but not widely known, in large part because of the perpetrators secretive style of living.
 There are other dunes in other desert parts of the world where our distant relations thrive, Loswee
informed them,  and the human beings who live in close proximity to those dunes are completely unaware
of our presence nearby. They see tracks in the sand, but the tracks are those of the birds and other
animals we make use of.
 You are a very resourceful people, Ehomba admitted respectfully.
 Yes, declared Loswee with pride.  Our lands have always been safe from all trespass except that of
the Dunawake, though I fear that someday this may change.
 Why s that? inquired Simna, only half interested.
Loswee turned quite serious.  Humans have a great love for lamps, and our land floats on the liquid they
use to fill them. I am afraid that one day they may come to take it, smashing down the dunes and
trampling the plants in the ravines and wadis.
Ehomba looked up at the sand ceiling overhead.  Not these dunes, he commented reassuringly.  They
are too big, and this land is too remote.
 I hope you are right, my friend. Loswee sighed, the diminutive exhalation comical in the enclosed
space, like the wheezing of a mouse.  I am more sorry than I can say that you are not the magician we
had hoped for.
 So am I. It cost Ehomba nothing to agree. Sympathy was cheap.
 I know that you must be on your way. The tiny fighter summoned up a smile. Given the width of his
mouth, it nearly split his broad, flat face in half.  At least you have had the chance to experience Swick
hospitality. That is a treat few human beings have enjoyed.
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 We are grateful. As a courtesy, Ehomba dipped his head slightly.  We will take away good memories
with us.
 And I, if not the Elders, will remember you fondly. It seemed impossible that Loswee s smile could
grow any wider, but it did, defying the boundaries of his face.  Tomorrow morning I myself will conduct [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]