“This will be Beq’s first time in the field,” he said, “so I was going over her equipment list with her. Would you like me to draw up something basic for you?”

“Please,” Maya said. “I throw myself on your mercy.”

Varo smiled a little at that and started pointing at the map and scribbling with a pencil. His efficiency was impressive, as he quickly figured the distance from Litnin to the nearest Gate along the most suitable route and converted that into a list of supplies, including a substantial safety margin. It made Maya uncomfortably aware how much of the basics Jaedia had always handled—their lessons had focused on deiat, not how to find water that was safe to drink.

“You’ve been out quite a bit, then,” Maya said.

“More’s the pity,” Varo said, looking down at his list and frowning. “That’s the scout’s life, I suppose.”

“Better than being stuck in a damp basement fixing old blasters,” Beq said. “I’ve been looking forward to this for ages.”

“Travel isn’t all it’s cracked up to be,” Varo said, still working. “It’s mostly bad food, no sleep, and getting rained on. And you usually catch something right when it’s least convenient.” He perked up a little. “Sometimes there’s a good laugh, though. A friend of mine once used a Red Spider bush to wipe himself after a shit, and watching him try to walk the next day had all of us giggling. Of course, my other friend laughed a little too hard, so the first fellow found another Red Spider and stuffed it into his jock while he was sleeping—”

“Is that why you said Tanax would regret having you on the team?” Maya said. “Because you shove Red Spider bushes in people’s underwear?”

“That was my friend’s idea.” Varo shook his head. “And anyway, he fell through the ice into a lake we were crossing and drowned. Froze so solid that once we fished him out we used him as a sledge.” Maya raised her eyebrows doubtfully, but Varo went on. “No, the only problem with me is bad luck.”

“I don’t believe in bad luck,” Maya said.

“That’s what they all say, until they travel with me,” Varo said. “The other scouts call me Varo Plagueluck.” He stood up, lists in hand. “I’ll take this over to the clerk, then.”

“Do you believe that, about the boy who froze solid?” Beq said when he’d left the table.

“Probably not,” Maya said.

“I wouldn’t want to be stuck with Plagueluck for a cognomen, I know that.” Beq twisted the dials on her spectacles, returning her eyes to a more normal size, and blinked. “It’s different for centarchs, I know. The Council assigns your names.”

Maya nodded, her throat suddenly dry. For a moment they sat in silence.

“Am I doing something weird?” Beq said. “Sometimes that happens.”

“What? Why?”