Han flew many missions for the Ylesians during the next three months. Several times he was able, with Muuurgh’s complicity, to make small “side runs” to hone his piloting skills and to allow Muuurgh to practice with the weaponry. Han successfully landed vessels on airless moons, on ice moons, even on a small asteroid, barely bigger than his ship. He learned to dock with a space station, matching airlocks perfectly on the first try.

As a result of Han’s run-in with the “pirates,” the Ylesian Hutts increased the weaponry and equipped their ships with better shielding. They also tightened the security surrounding the dates and locations of their shipments, and refused to agree to any more off-planet rendezvous points. Instead, Han was ordered to fly his cargo to a planet and exchange the processed spice for the raw materials planet-side. In a populated area, there was less chance of a double cross that might lead to an ambush.

Teroenza made it clear to Muuurgh that Vykk Draygo had passed muster as a trustworthy employee, so Muuurgh no longer felt compelled to spend every waking moment with the Corellian. The big Togorian was still bound by his promise to guard the pilot, however, and Muuurgh never forgot that.

True to his promise, Teroenza interviewed Bria and gave the Corellian woman the job of maintaining and cataloging his collection. Han was able to see her every day he was on Ylesia. Once she began getting better food in the mess hall, and healthy exposure to fresh air and sunlight, that pale, wan, too-thin look vanished, and her eyes grew bright, her step lighter, and her smile came more readily.

She liked her new job, both because she enjoyed caring for the antiquities and because she felt that serving the High Priest was a sacred honor. Bria continued to attend prayer times every morning and devotions every evening. When Han was on Ylesia, he usually walked her to and from the service.

Bria was offered a room in the Administration Center, but told Teroenza that she preferred to stay in the pilgrims’ dormitory. Not only did she enjoy the company of her fellow pilgrims at prayer time, but she found she was uneasy at the thought of occupying an apartment in the same building as Vykk Draygo. Bria Tharen was still wary of the Corellian, still unwilling to respond to the feelings he awakened in her. She was a pilgrim, she reminded herself constantly. Her loyalty, her duty, her spiritual self, was reserved for the One and the All.

Still, there was no doubt that she enjoyed Vykk’s company. He was so alive, so full of energy, so charming and attractive … Bria had never met anyone like him.

During the hour before evening devotions, when her daily work with the High Priest’s collection was done, Bria developed the habit of searching out Vykk and Muuurgh (they were almost always together) and then the three of them would go to the mess hall for a cup of stim-tea together …

   Bria walked through the jungle, enjoying the small respite from the heat that the lowering sun brought. A breeze was blowing in off the ocean, which was where she was headed. She walked quickly, feeling the skirts of her tan pilgrim’s robe brushing the plants that grew along the edges of the path. Brilliant flowers hung from drooping vines … scarlet, purple, and green-yellow. Their sharp, slightly astringent scent made her nostrils flare as she passed them.

The Exalted One, Teroenza, had told Bria that she was free to put on regular clothing, in place of her bulky pilgrim garb, pointing out that it would make it easier to tend his collection … but so far the girl clung to her robes, as she clung to her vows.

The young Corellian woman reached the mudflats and paused to make an obeisance before the mud wallow where two priests lounged. Both ignored her, but Bria was used to that. Priests paid little attention to pilgrims, unless they needed to direct them in their work. That was natural … their minds were on higher things, soaring on spiritual planes that humanoids like Bria could not hope to reach …

The first time Bria had seen the priests wallowing in the red stinking mud, she’d been shocked. It was unsettling to see them indulging in such a … secular … activity. But over the past three months, ever since she’d come to work for His Exaltedness, Teroenza, Bria had gotten used to seeing them.

She was glad that she no longer had to work in the darkness of the glitterstim factory. Working in the Administration Building was much nicer. Climate-controlled, with good lighting and the food … the food was much better. It had taken Bria nearly a full month to be able to eat a regular meal. At first she’d been so listless, so drained of energy, she’d just picked at her food, as she’d been doing for months. The medical droid had had to treat her for malnutrition, as well as traces of fungi-induced blood-sickness.

But now she was fine.

Things were much better for her, she had to admit, since Vykk had come into her life. If only …

Bria frowned, and sighed. If only Vykk were a pilgrim, too. Then they could worship together, attend prayer times together, and receive the sacrament of Exultation together. But Vykk … she couldn’t escape the fact that he was an unbeliever, even though he’d never admitted to it. Vykk believed in nothing but himself.

When they attended devotions together, he would hold her arm or her hand to steady her on the way back to her dorm. The touch of his hand made her question her devotion to the One, the All, and Bria didn’t like that. She wanted nothing to shake her faith or make her question her vows.

By now she’d reached the sand dunes. As she’d half expected, she heard the sound of a blaster bolt whine and sizzle. “Vykk!” she called, not wanting to sneak up on a man who was doing target practice. “Vykk, it’s me!”

As she climbed to the top of the dune, the wind grabbed her robes and whipped them about her legs. She had to hold onto her cap, lest it be blown off by the ocean wind.

Below her, on the beach, she could see Vykk, legs braced in a shooter’s stance, his blaster in its holster, which he wore slung low, far down his thigh. Muuurgh was some distance from the Corellian, holding several black ceramic target pieces. Without warning, the big Togorian flung two of the targets into the air, one high and to his left, the other low and to his right.

Vykk’s hand was a blur of motion so fast that Bria’s eyes could barely follow it. A blaster bolt shattered first the rightmost, then the left target piece. Tiny droplets of slagged ceramic rained into the restless Ylesian surf.

Muuurgh yowled his approval. Vykk turned, ready to practice distance shooting at the stationary target they’d set up, then he spotted Bria at the top of the dune. With a wave and grin, he holstered his blaster and loped toward her.

Bria was struck, as she always was, by how good-looking he was, with his regular features, brown hair and eyes, and lean build. Taken all together, he wasn’t actually a classically handsome man—but any woman who’d ever been on the receiving end of his smile wouldn’t notice that.

“Hi!” he yelled, running up to her.

Before Bria could fend him off, he dropped a kiss on her forehead. Breathless, she pushed him away. “No, Vykk. That’s against my vows.”

“I know,” he said unrepentantly, “but someday, honey, you’re gonna kiss me back.”

“I wondered if you wanted to go for stim-tea before devotions,” she said.

“Not today,” he said, suddenly serious, looking down into her face. “There’s something we need to talk about, Bria. I’ve waited until you were … better, because I’m afraid it’s gonna be a shock. But you gotta find out sometime.”

Bria looked up at him, wondering what was going on. “What are you talking about, Vykk?”

“Let’s go and sit down,” he said. “Over here, on the beach, okay?”

He led her over to a smooth spot in the sand, and when Muuurgh came up to see if they were going back, Vykk shook his head. “Give us a little privacy for a while, pal, okay?”

The Togorian walked away, up the dune. Bria watched as his inky form vanished behind the hill of sand.

Her heart began to race as Vykk took a small device out of his pocket. “This is the audio-log recorder I pulled out of the Dream’s control panel,” he told her. “I’m going to play a recording I made a couple of months ago, before Teroenza asked you to look after his collection. Just be patient and listen, okay?”

“I don’t know … I can tell I’m not going to like this,” she muttered. “I’ve got a bad feeling about that recording.”

“Please,” he said. “For me. Just listen.”

Bria nodded, her hands twisting in her lap. Suddenly the ocean breeze, instead of seeming pleasant, made her shiver despite the sun dipping toward the west.

Vykk turned on the recorder. Bria listened to the conference that ensued … heard Vykk greet the priests and heard them invite him to take a mud bath. Bria recognized Exalted Teroenza’s and Sacredot Veratil’s voices talking to the pilot. Mud baths. They were saying how relaxing mud baths were. Bria stirred restlessly, and Vykk held up a warning finger and mouthed, “Wait.”

She forced herself to sit still, though she was becoming increasingly uncomfortable. Surely the priests had not known that Vykk was recording their conversation—his actions were worse than eavesdropping, more like outright spying!

Then—Bria caught her breath in dismay—she heard Veratil and Teroenza laughing and talking about the Exultation—they were saying it was not a Divine Gift, they were saying it had nothing at all to do with the One or the All!

Bria’s eyes widened, then narrowed in fury, and she shot to her feet. The wind whipped her pilgrim’s cap off, allowing her golden-red curls to spring free, but she paid no attention. She was trembling with anger as she faced Vykk. Seeing her reaction, he shut off the recorder and stood to face her.

“How could you?” Bria demanded, her voice low and shaking. “I thought you were my friend.”

He stepped toward her, hands raised placatingly. “Bria, sweetheart, I am your friend. I did it for you … you need to know the truth. I’m sorry you’re—”

Bria’s hand and arm seemed to move of their own volition, coming up in a roundhouse slap! that connected solidly with his cheek. Vykk staggered back, hand pressed to his face. “You’re lying!” she cried. “Lying! You faked that to make me break my vows! Admit it!”

He dropped his hand and stood staring at her, and his eyes were full of sadness and pity. Slowly, Vykk shook his head. “I’m sorry, babe,” he said. “Sorrier than I can say. But I didn’t fake it. What you heard is the truth, and gettin’ mad at me won’t change that. Teroenza and his crew don’t have any Divine Gifts. They invented this whole scam just to get factory workers and slaves to sell.”

The print of her hand was darkening on his cheek, dull red where she’d struck him. Bria could see the marks of her fingers. She fought the impulse to throw herself at him, babbling apologies. How could she have hurt him like that?

At the same time, though, she was angry clear through. Bria could feel her face working. Her chin trembled as she tried to control herself. “No!” She clenched her hands. “No! That’s not true! You faked it. What are you … telepathic? How did you know about Sacredot Palazidar? You weren’t even here then!”

He shook his head. “I didn’t know, Bria. I didn’t know, and I didn’t fake this recording. I’m gonna prove that to you.” Digging into his pocket, he held out a small black vial.

Bria knew only too well what it was. “Glitterstim? Where did you get it?”

“Light-fingered it during a delivery,” Vykk said. “You know what it can do, right?”

Slowly Bria nodded.

“This is the only way I can prove to you I’m not lying. If you open it, expose it to light, then swallow it, it’ll give you temporary telepathic abilities. You’ll be able to read my mind, and you’ll know that I’m not lying about the Exultation—and that I didn’t fake that recording. Here”—he reached out and dropped it into her hand—“take it.”

Bria looked down at the tube. “I … I need to think about this, Vykk. I need to decide what to do.”

“I’m not lyin’, honey, I swear.” He came closer to her, reached out to take her hands. “Trust me.”

She backed away from him. “Just … leave me alone for now, Vykk. I’ll … see you later. After the devotion. Right now, I have to go.”

He looked at her. “You could skip it, this once. It’s not like anyone takes roll call.”

Skip the Exultation? Bria felt physically sick at the thought, and her reaction terrified her. What if Vykk was right? What if the Exultation was nothing more than a combination physical and mental vibration from an alien species? If no Divine Gift was present, then the pilgrims were no better than addicts getting a fix.

Bria gazed into Vykk’s eyes and had a queasy feeling that he was telling the truth. Her fingers tightened over the small black cylinder of glitterstim. Here lay her answer. With this, she could find out the truth …

She turned and began walking away, leaving him there on the beach. Bria heard Vykk call out to her, but she waved him away and kept moving. She didn’t have much time if she was going to make it to the devotion on schedule.

Half an hour later she stood amid the hordes of pilgrims, watching the sun set in bloody splendor behind the Altar of Promises. It was almost time for the Exultation. She glanced around her, thinking that if she was going to do this, it had better be soon. Surreptitiously her fingers withdrew the black cylinder from the pocket of her robe. Light … she needed light to activate the glitterstim. And yet … she couldn’t do it while anyone would see …

Finally, the moment came that she was waiting for—the signal to the faithful that the Exultation was about to begin.

Bria had stationed herself in the crowd so that she had a clear view of the High Priest and the Sacredots as they led the pilgrims in the devotion. But she was far back in the crowd, far enough back that she ought to be able to shield the glitterstim with her wide sleeve, so its activation wouldn’t be noticed by the t’landa Til. And the other pilgrims would be so busy with the Exultation that they’d probably barely notice a blaster bolt.

All around her, pilgrims were falling to their knees. Bria let herself follow them, and as she did so, she flipped open the top of the vial of glitterstim. Under the cover of her body as she bent forward from the waist, she pulled free the fibrous dose of the drug—and wondered, for an insane second, whether this was a dose she herself had prepared.

As the pilgrims prostrated themselves, the priests’ throat pouches began to distend. As the beginnings of the vibrating hum resounded through the air, Bria held the glitterstim before her, full in the last rays of the setting sun.

Within seconds it activated, sparking blue, but none of the pilgrims noticed, and the effect was hidden from the High Priest. Even though she’d never taken glitterstim before, Bria knew exactly how many seconds to wait. A moment later she shoved it into her mouth and allowed her saliva to quench the sparking substance.

As she mouthed the drug, then swallowed it, the Exultation began.

Bria shuddered as though she’d been blaster-shot. The effects of the glitterstim were immediate. Blood rushed through her body like a ship going into hyperspace. Her head pounded.

But the physical effects were as nothing to the mental ones. Her mind opened in a way she’d never afterward be able to describe. As the waves of the Exultation took her, she experienced the pleasure of all the other pilgrims in the crowd.

The sensation was so overwhelming that she almost passed out. Only the anger that had been simmering inside her ever since Vykk had played that recording kept her sane—and focused.

Got to … open … my eyes … she thought. Focus …

Gagging, gasping, Bria opened her eyes, shuddering as the waves of pleasure wracked her with such intensity they were nearly transformed into pain. She stared at Teroenza, forcing herself not to look away, to narrow her mind to only encompass his.

Images, alien images, flooded Bria’s mind, stamping themselves indelibly into her consciousness. No matter how much she wished to forget, she knew she never, ever would. Teroenza’s mind, like that of every sentient, was full of surface trivia—wondering what he’d have for dinner, boredom with the ceremony, thoughts of the new security measures the Hutts had ordered him to implement, a minor gastrointestinal churn in his middle …

There was not a hint of divinity in the High Priest’s mind. He did not believe in the One or the All. As a matter of fact, Teroenza was proud of himself for inventing the One and the All, so these credulous pilgrims could have something to believe in.

Bria gagged, her mouth filled with the bitter aftertaste of the glitterstim. It was hard to think with the Exultation going on, but she forced herself to stay attuned to the High Priest’s mind … sifting, making absolutely certain that what he was doing was purely a physical and mental trick—something that all males of his species could do on demand.

Suddenly Teroenza jerked, looking around him wildly. His mind filled with suspicion, then certainty—he knew he was being telepathically probed!

The Exultation wavered, then lessened abruptly as the High Priest stopped humming. The Sacredots continued in a ragged chorus, but without their leader, the Exultation stopped dead. Pilgrims cried out with shock, and some even fainted.

Bria pulled her mind free from Teroenza’s and joined the crowd of pilgrims who were moaning in distress, crying, and stumbling back and forth, disoriented. Some stood shivering and whining as they gazed beseechingly at the priests.

Teroenza lumbered off the dais by the Altar and began thrusting his way into the crowd. The t’landa Til peered down into faces, distractedly muttering blessings, as he tried to cover up the fact that he was desperately searching for the pilgrim who had just scanned his mind.

Luckily, Bria was far back in the crowd, quite near the end of the amphitheater. She let herself be shoved backward, off the permacrete, until her feet encountered gooey jungle loam. With a single quick, decisive movement, Bria dug her toe into a lump of trampled leaves and mud and lifted it. Her fingers released the glitterstim cylinder, and it fell, landing in the center of the hole.

Bria turned, and as she did so, her foot pressed the lump of mud back down into the jungle floor. The entire sequence of events had taken only a second.

She began edging her way along the back of the crowd, toward the path, allowing herself to be carried along with the tide of incoherent, querulous, confused, and dissatisfied pilgrims.

A cautious glance behind her assured her that Teroenza had abandoned his search, apparently having realized how hopeless it was, and how much his atypical behavior was upsetting the pilgrims. Bria hoped that he’d put the entire experience down to some relative newcomer deciding to experiment with a stolen vial of glitterstim.

She moved numbly down the path, her footsteps slow and unsteady. The effects of the glitterstim had faded so much that she was barely aware of the thoughts and emotions of those immediately around her.

She wasn’t surprised when Vykk fell into step beside her. As usual, he took her arm to help support her. Bria leaned against him, grateful for his support, and felt his arm go around her waist, until he was half holding her up.

The swift equatorial dark was all around them, now. Bria could barely see Vykk. He led her down the path, avoiding the worst of the mud puddles. Then, when they reached the dorm, she stopped. “I’m … not going in there just yet,” she mumbled. “I need … I need to talk to you, Vykk.”

He nodded, his features barely visible in the light cast from the open doors. “Okay. I don’t think anyone will mind if we go up to the mess hall for a cup of stim-tea. You look like you could use it.”

Together, they turned away, into the darkness. Bria leaned on Vykk as they went up the path. She had never felt so weary. A droid would have moved with more animation.

When they reached the mess hall, Vykk sat her down and fetched them cups of stim-tea, plus a sugared pastry, which he pushed at Bria. “Here,” he said. “Eat this. You look like you need it.”

Obediently she sipped her tea and nibbled on the pastry. She hadn’t had dinner, and the food seemed to steady her, bring the world back into focus.

She leaned toward Vykk, ready to talk, but even as she opened her mouth, he shook his head warningly. “Guess I’d better get you back to your dorm,” he said loudly. “That’ll teach you to skip meals, 921. I thought you were going to pass out on me back there.”

Taking the hint, Bria got to her feet in silence and followed him out.

When they reached the outside of the Administration Building, Vykk pulled out a pair of infrared goggles and pulled them on. “You got yours?”

Nodding, Bria located them and pulled them into place. The night suddenly resolved itself into ghostly black and greenish-white images. She could see Vykk’s face now, half-hidden as it was by the goggles.

His arm came around her again as they started down the jungle path together. “You took the glitterstim,” he said quietly.

“Yes,” she said, feeling as numb as if she’d been beaten into unconsciousness. “You were right. Forgive me for doubting you …”

“Hey,” he said, trying to sound cheerful and failing utterly, “I’d have wanted to check out my story, too, in your place. Was it … was it rough?”

She nodded, and suddenly feeling rushed back, in a black tide, leaving her shaking and gasping. “Oh, Vykk!” she babbled. “I was in his mind, Teroenza’s mind, and it was terrible! No Divine Gift, just a bored, selfish sentient who wants to get richer so he can add to his collection!”

“Take it easy,” he said, holding her shoulders to steady her. “You’ve had an awful shock.”

“I feel … I feel … so … betrayed,” Bria got out, between chattering teeth. “It was … terrible …”

“Hey, there, sweetheart …” His arms went around her, and the expression of sympathy was her undoing. Bria began to sob, huge, gulping, wracking sobs that hurt. Vykk helped her take her goggles off, then he just held her, stroking her hair, patting her back, murmuring soothing reassurances and endearments.

She held on to the front of his coverall with both hands, twisting and wringing the fabric, and weeping so hard she scared herself. Bria had never cried like this before. The sense of desolation was terrible.

“I … don’t … have anything left,” she choked out between spasms of crying. “Nothing … nothing …”

“Of course you do,” Vykk murmured, kissing her cheek gently. “You’ve got us, right?”

“Uh … us?” she whispered.

“Sure. We’re gonna be together, sweetheart. We’re gonna get off this hellish planet, and we’re gonna be happy.”

She raised her head, staring blindly into the darkness; her night-sight could barely make out the lighter blur of his face. “But they never let pilgrims go,” Bria mumbled. “I read that in Teroenza’s mind.”

“We won’t ask ’em, honey. We’ll just up and go.”

“Escape?” she whispered.

“You got it,” he said. “As soon as I can figure out a way to do it, we’re gonna get out of here. I’ve already begun thinkin’ about it.” He gave her a quick kiss on her cheek. “Trust me. I’ve had experience at this kind of thing. I’ll figure it out.”

“But … but your money,” she said. “You’re under contract, and you can’t break it. If you run away, you’ll lose your money. You told me you needed those credits they’re paying you to try and get into the Academy. How can you give that up?”

He shrugged. “One credit is as good as another. I’ll just have to get it outta Teroenza another way.”

Bria’s mind was fogged with exhaustion and the grief of betrayal. It took her a full minute to realize what Vykk was talking about. “The collection …” she whispered. “You’re planning to steal Teroenza’s collection and escape.”

“Pretty good,” he said approvingly. “You sure you’re not still having some of those glitterstim insights?”

“I don’t think so,” Bria said wearily. “I just know that you’ve asked me about it a lot of times, asked me what items are the most valuable. You really think you can break the security locks and steal the collection?”

“Not the whole thing,” he said. “It’d take a bigger cargo ship than any on Ylesia to haul it all away. I’m just gonna take the small stuff—the really valuable small stuff.” He looked at her intently. “And you’re gonna help me, right?”

She hesitated. Stealing antiquities was contrary to everything she’d ever believed in. But Teroenza’s antiquities weren’t in a museum, where the public could see them. They were being hoarded by a greedy private collector. If Vykk stole them, they’d be put back into circulation, and there was a good chance that at least some of them would wind up on public display in some store or gallery.

“Okay,” Bria said. She drew a long, shaky breath. “I’ll help you, Vykk.”

“Good. You and me, we’re gonna swipe a ship, and we’re getting ourselves off this planet. I’m sick of the heat, sick of the humidity, and sick to death of these priests and their hokey religion.”

Bria took a deep breath. Leave here? Never attend devotion and receive the Exultation again? How can I live without it?

Resolutely, she put the question out of her mind. She’d manage somehow. Maybe she could wean herself away from it over the next week or so, until they left.

“There’s just one more thing, Vykk,” she said uncertainly.

“What, sweetheart?”

“Muuurgh. What about Muuurgh? You told me that he’d given his word to guard you—that he’s as much your guard as your protector. What will you do about him?”

Vykk drew a long breath, and she saw the blur of his face move as he shook his head. “That’s the vrelt in the kitchen,” he said, using an old Corellian phrase for “bad luck” or “disaster.” “I don’t know what I’m going to do about him. I really like the big guy, but he’s told me about this word of honor code of his people. I’m afraid he’ll be loyal to Teroenza no matter what.”

“You mean if he finds out what we’re planning, he’ll turn us in?”

“Good chance of it.”

“Oh, Vykk …” There was a catch in her voice. “What are we going to do? What if we can’t get away?”

“Don’t worry, honey. Leave that to me.” Vykk sighed. “If I have to, I’ll deal with Muuurgh. I’m a better shot than he is, and much faster on the draw.”

“You’d shoot him?”

“If it’s a choice between you and me, or Muuurgh, yeah, I will. I just wish I could convince him to throw in with us. If he did, I’d take him wherever he wanted to go. And give him enough credits to continue his search.”

“Search?”

“Yeah. He’s looking for his mate, and he came here thinking she came to Ylesia. But he guessed wrong. Togorians are rare, so rare that I’d never even heard of ’em till I got here. If a female Togorian was here, she’d stick out like a sore thumb.”

Bria drew in her breath, startled. “But … Vykk! There was another Togorian here! I remember seeing one—oh, six, maybe eight months back. I just caught the one glimpse, but I’m sure of the species.”

“Really? Was it a male or female? What’d it look like?”

“I have no idea what sex,” she said. “I don’t think this Togorian was as big as Muuurgh. It was white, with orange stripes … I think. I saw it one evening, just after devotions, and it was getting dark.”

“I’ll have to tell Muuurgh,” Vykk said. “Those priests lie for a living. It’s entirely possible Mrrov—I think that’s her name—has been here on Ylesia the whole time. Maybe at Colony Two or Three.”

He fell silent. Bria stood there, mulling over what he’d just said, and finally, she couldn’t stand it any longer. “Please, Vykk,” she pleaded, “tell me you didn’t mean that about shooting Muuurgh if he tries to prevent us from stealing Teroenza’s collection! There’s got to be a way to avoid that!” Bria liked Muuurgh. Over the past couple of months she’d gotten to know him a little, and she admired the big felinoid.

“I’ll take care of him, whatever it takes. If I have to, I’ll shoot him.” Vykk’s voice was grim. “But maybe I can just … stun him, or give him a knock on that thick skull of his, leave him tied up, so the priests won’t blame him when we make our getaway.”

“Oh, Vykk …” Bria’s eyes filled with tears again. “Please try to figure out something, so Muuurgh doesn’t get hurt. You’re good at that.”

“I will, sweetheart,” he said, “I will …”

He leaned forward to drop a quick kiss on her forehead, and this time she did not remind him of her vows. I have no vows, Bria thought dully as they began walking back toward her dorm. No vows, no religion … nothing at all …

She glanced sideways in the darkness.

Nothing except Vykk …

   Muuurgh glided soundlessly out of the jungle and stepped onto the path. The Togorian’s night-vision was far better than a human’s; he could easily make out the distant pair walking down the path. They were almost to the dorm.

The felinoid had been creeping through the jungle with exaggerated care for the past couple of minutes, determined to get close enough to overhear their whispered conversation. The Togorian had only managed to get close enough to catch the tail end of what they’d been discussing—but he’d heard enough.

Pilot and Bria were planning to escape. They were planning to steal from his masters. Pilot was planning to “take care” of Muuurgh.

The Togorian shook his massive head unhappily. Muuurgh had given his word of honor to his masters—his course should be clear. But it wasn’t.

He knew well enough what he should do. He should go to Teroenza tomorrow morning and tell him what he’d overheard. Or perhaps he, Muuurgh, should kill Pilot himself and tell the priest why after the deed was done.

But he stood there, hesitating. It was obvious that Pilot was desperate enough to shoot him to get away. Muuurgh had given his word of honor to guard Pilot.

But Pilot was also Vykk … and Muuurgh had come to think of Vykk as a friend. Vykk was determined to protect his female. Muuurgh could understand that. He’d do almost anything to protect Mrrov … if he could only find her …

Muuurgh growled, low in his throat. Perhaps he should pretend to be friendly, so that Pilot would allow him to get close enough to use his teeth and claws. Muuurgh was an expert hunter. Once he’d gotten hold of his prey, there was no escape.

Could he kill Vykk to keep his word of honor?

Muuurgh growled again and turned back into the jungle. Tonight he would hunt, and he would kill. He would tear open and consume his fresh prey. Perhaps that would clear his mind, and then he would be able to decide what to do …

Muuurgh glided beneath the giant trees, as silent and invisible as a wraith …