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"Of course, your friend, the Honorable Marnark, enjoys priority of challenge; I'll take care of you as soon as I have, shall we say, satisfied, him." The earnest and rather consecrated-looking young man rose also, bowing to Verkan Vall. "Yirzol of Narva. I, too, have a quarrel with you, Lord Virzal; I cannot submit to the indignity of having my food snatched from in front of me, as you just did.
And we'll inspect all the rooms on this floor for evidence of cutting through from above." Sarnax nodded. "That's sense, Lord Virzal. How about the lifter tubes?" "We'll have to barricade them. Sarnax, you and Dirzed know the layout of this place better than the Lady Dallona or I; suppose you two check the rooms, while we cover the tubes and the well," Verkan Vall directed. "Come on, now."
"Lord Virzal, I've seen quite a few duels, but nothing quite like that," he said. "You should have been an Assassin!" That was a considerable compliment. Verkan Vall thanked him modestly. "I'd like to talk to you privately," the Assassin-President continued. "I think it'll be worth your while if we have a few words together." Verkan Vall nodded.
"I hadn't known the Assassin-President had given you a code word, Lord Virzal," he commented. "That doesn't happen very often." "The Assassin-President has honored me with his friendship," Verkan Vall replied noncommittally, as he, Dirzed and Olirzon climbed out of the airboat. Marnik was holding it an unobtrusive inch or so above the flat top of the dome, away from the edge of the pavilion roof.
"We're coming into Darsh, now," he said, and as Verkan Vall turned from the visiplate to the forward windows, he could see the white and pastel-tinted towers of the city rising above the hardwood forests that covered the whole Volga basin on this sector. "Your luggage has been put into the airboat, Lord Virzal and Honorable Assassins, and it's ready for launching whenever you are."
"I like you, Lord Virzal; a great Assassin was lost when you decided to reincarnate as a Venusian land-owner. I'd hate to see you discarnated without proper warning. I take it you're ignorant of the intricacies of Terran politics?" "To a large extent, yes." "Well, do you know who those three men were?"
Unlike Verkan Vall and Zortan Brend, who wore shoulder holsters under their short tunics, the Assassins openly displayed pistols and knives on their belts. "We heard that you were coming two days ago, Lord Virzal," Zortan Brend said. "We delayed the take-off of this ship, so that you could travel to Darsh as inconspicuously as possible. I also booked a suite for you at the Solar Hotel, at Darsh.
He was the man whose arm Dalla had been holding in the visiplate picture; Verkan Vall even recognized the extremely ornate pistol and knife on his belt. "Dirzed the Assassin," he named himself. "If you wish, we can visiphone Assassins' Hall for verification of my identity." "Lord Virzal of Verkan. And my Assassins, Marnik and Olirzon."
"I take it the leaders of the Volitionalist Party here are pleased with the result of the Lady Dallona's work?" "Pleased? My dear Lord Virzal, they're fairly bursting with glee over it!" Harnosh of Hosh declared.
"Not at all, Honorable Assassin-President," he protested. "But as I was going to ask these gentlemen to represent me, I thought it would be more fitting for the other gentleman to be represented by personal friends, also. In that way " "Sorry, Marnark," the gray-haired man at the table said. "I can't second you; I have a quarrel with the Lord Virzal, too." He rose and bowed. "Sirzob of Abo.
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