Roc and a Hard Place by Anthony Piers;

Author:Anthony, Piers;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Open Road Media
Published: 2019-11-19T16:00:00+00:00

12

SCRAMBLE

“Who’s your next summonsee?” Kim asked.

Metria opened the bag. There were ten tokens remaining. “I don’t see how I’m going to serve all of these in time,” she said. “I’ve already used up several days, and the others are scattered all over Xanth.”

“And what you have already accomplished along the way is remarkable,” Ichabod remarked. “If I understand what I have heard correctly, you have enabled Princess Nada Naga to marry a Prince, shown the way to resolve the problem of a viable alicentaur species, reconciled a four-century alienation from your daughter, abolished a longtime curse on Castle Roogna, and discovered a significant lost history of the Kings of Xanth—and you haven’t yet finished your job. This reminds me of the type of chess problem I used to see in the newspaper, wherein the challenge is for White to win one pawn, but along the way occur casualties of rooks, bishops, knights, queens, and threatened checkmates. But the pawn is won.”

“What’s a pawn?” Metria asked.

“I think it’s a type of shrimp,” Jenny Elf said.

“That’s a prawn,” Arnolde replied with a face too straight. “However, it may do.”

“A pawn is a chess piece, generally regarded as insignificant,” Ichabod said, with a reproving glance at his friend. “Though at times it becomes a key element in the game. My point is that sometimes amazing things occur as the result of what seems like a rather simple task. It may be that the Simurgh is using you as a vehicle to accomplish a variety of significant things that are in need of accomplishment.”

“In short, the demoness may indeed be a pawn,” Arnolde said. “In the human sense.”

“I’m not human!” Metria said indignantly.

“To be sure,” Ichabod agreed. “Though you certainly appear so when you choose to.” He glanced at her legs. “At any rate, I believe it would be in order for us to facilitate your project with a bit of advice.”

“I could use advice how to fetch in all the remaining summonsees in one day,” Metria said. “So I could relax with my job done, and get my Answer from the Good Magician.”

“Not to mention getting the summonsees in this party to the Nameless Castle,” Arnolde said.

“And the two of you back to the Region of Madness,” Jenny Elf said.

“Precisely,” Ichabod agreed. “Would you like that admonition, Metria?”

“That what?”

“Counsel, guidance, recommendation, suggestion, advisement—”

“Advice?” she asked.

“Whatever,” he said crossly.

“Yes.”

“Pop over to Castle Roogna and ask Princess Electra if she would like to have her husband Prince Dolph out of her hair for a day or two. She will surely agree. Then ask Dolph to assume the form of a roc bird, so he can carry the summonsees directly to the Nameless Castle as you serve them. The process can be accomplished in a day, if you are able to locate them that rapidly, and if they are ready to go then.”

“Now, why didn’t I think of that?” Metria exclaimed, striking her head with the heel of her hand, which assumed the form of a heel of a shoe for the occasion.

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