Rhialto jarred the Egg with such effect that the Perciplex fell to its side, in which position it remained.

Ildefonse faced the Egg. "Adjudicator! Speak! It is Ildefonse the Preceptor who commands!"

No reply was audible.

Once again Ildefonse called out: "Adjudicator! Sarsem! I charge you: speak!"

Again, silence.

Ildefonse turned away. "Back to Boumergarth. The mystery is compounded. It is no longer trivial."

"Never was it trivial," said Rhialto.

"No matter," said Ildefonse curtly. "The affair, now that it concerns me, has taken on a new and large dimension. To Boumergarth!"

6

Assembling again in the grand hall, the magicians set up a colloquy of many voices. Ildefonse for a time listened to the somewhat formless interchanges without comment, darting his pale blue eyes from face to face and giving an occasional tug to his untidy beard.

The discussions began to grow heated. Vehement in his wrath was Haze of Wheary Water: a hot-eyed little wefkin who affected a green pelt and a thatch of yellow will-leaves in the place of hair. Moving with irregular starts and jerks, he asserted his opinions with ever-increasing agitation. "Willy-nilly, backwards, forwards, the Blue is the Blue! As Hache-Moncour averred, the text condemns Rhialto's conduct out of hand, and that is all we care about. I will gladly stand on my head to read such news, or look through a mirror, or peek from behind my handkerchief!" And Haze spoke on, ever more fervently, until the company began to fear that he might injure himself in a paroxysm, or even blurt out some terrible all-inclusive curse to disable everyone. Ildefonse finally invoked the Spell of Soft Silence, so that while Haze ranted as before, his voice no longer could be heard, not even by himself, and presently he returned to his place.

The corpulent and loose-featured Dulce-Lolo analyzed the peculiar reversal of the projection. "I suspect that Sarsem the Adjudicator became careless and allowed the Perciplex to project in reverse, then, observing our consternation, he brought a hiatus upon us and turned the Perciplex to its proper position."

Ildefonse stepped ponderously up on the dais. "I must make an important announcement. The prism you saw tonight is false: a fraud, a forgery. The question of reversal is irrelevant."

Darvilk the Miaanther, normally taciturn, emitted an angry cry. "Then why did you, in full and pompous authority, dragoon us and march us lock-step to Fader's Waft, if only to inspect what you claim to be a falsity?"

Shrue spoke out. "The Miaanther's question strikes the nail! Ildefonse, your conduct merits a reproach."

Ildefonse held his arms high. "The group is not addressing itself to the issue! I repeat again: the Monstrament, the basis of our association, is missing from the Judicial Egg! We are left without law; we are naked as the Egg itself to that faceless shape which walks among us! We cannot dare the duration of a day without undertaking strategies of protection."

Hache-Moncour said with a gentle smile: "Ildefonse, dear friend! Must you cry cataclysm in such wild despair? Our association is based on the wisdom of its members!"