"True," said Hache-Moncour. "Now, describe the new findings, if you will. Where, for instance, were they secreted?"

Ildefonse held up his hand. "Patience, Hache-Moncour! Do you recall the chain of events which stemmed from the impulsive conduct of Hurtiancz at Falu? He tore Rhialto's copy of the Blue Principles, thus prompting Rhialto to take legal action."

"I recall the situation perfectly: a tempest in a tea-pot, or so it seems to me."

A tall figure wearing black trousers, a loose black blouse and a loose black cap pulled low, moved forward from the shadows. "It does not seem so to me," said the man in black and moved back into the shadows.

Ildefonse paid him no heed. "If only from a theoretical point of view, this case absorbs our interest. Rhialto was the plaintiff; the group now assembled are the defendants. As Rhialto stated his case, the issues were simple. The Blue, so he claimed, declared that any purposeful alteration or destruction of the Monstrament or obvious and ostensible copy thereof, constituted a crime, punishable at minimum by a fine equal to three times the value of any wrongful losses sustained; at maximum, total confiscation. Such was Rhialto's contention, and he brought forward the torn copy both as evidence of the crime and as his documentation of the law itself.

'The defendants, led by Hache-Moncour, Hurtiancz, Gilgad and others, decried the charges as not only artificial but also a wrongful act in themselves. Rhialto's action, so they claim, formed the substance of a counter-action. To support this position, Hache-Moncour and the others took us to Fader's Waft, and where we examined the Monstrament there projected, and where Hache-Moncour asserted, and now I paraphrase, that any attempt to present a damaged, mutilated or purposefully altered copy of the Monstrament is in itself a crime of major consequence.

"Hache-Moncour and his group argue, therefore, that in presenting the damaged copy of the Blue as evidence, Rhialto committed a crime which must be adjudicated even before his own charges can be considered. They argue that Rhialto is clearly guilty, and that not only are his charges moot, but that the only real issue becomes the degree of Rhialto's punishment."

Ildefonse here paused and looked from face to face. "Have I fairly stated the case?"

"Quite so," said Gilgad. "I doubt if you will find dissent anywhere. Rhialto has long been a thorn in our side."

Vermoulian spoke. "I do not favor Forlorn Encystment⁸ for Rhialto; I say, let him live out his days as a salamander, or a Gangue River lizard."

Ildefonse cleared his throat. "Before passing sentence—or, for that matter, before arriving at a judgment—there are certain odd facts to be considered. First of all, let me ask this question: how many here have consulted their own copies of the Blue Principles in connection with this case? . .. What? No one?"

Dulce-Lolo gave a light laugh. "It is hardly necessary; am I not right? After all, we made that chilly and inconvenient visit to Fader's Waft for that very purpose."