Kara the Sharman came skimming toward him. She dipped her grapnd into the foliage and stopped herself next to Clave. "How are you doing?"

"You tell me. Does the fire look right?"

She looked. "Keep it that way. Feed it another branch a few hundred breaths from now. How's the leg?"

"Fine. Can we talk?"

"I've other fires to check."

The Sharman was Carther States' equivalent to the Scientist. Maybe the word had meant Chair,nan once. She seemed to have more power than the political boss, the Comlink, who spent most of his time finding out what everybody else wanted. Getting her attention was worth a try. Clave said, "Sharman, I'm a tree dweller. We're going to attack a tree. Shouldn't you be using what I know?"

She considered that. "What can you tell me?"

"Tides. You're not used to tides. I am, and so are these copsik runners. If you-"

Her smile was twisted. 'Put you in charge of our own warriors?"

"Not what I meant. Attack the middle of the tree. Make them come to us there. I saw them fighting in free-fall, and you're better."

"We thought of that-" She saw his grimace. "No, don't stop. I'm glad you agree. We've watched London Tree for decades now, and two

of us did escape once. We know that the copsiks live in the inner tuft, but the carrier is kept at the center of the tree. Should we go after that first?"

Science at the level of the carrier, the flying box, made Clave uneasy. He tried to set the feeling aside. . . "I saw how they use that thing.

They put their own warriors where they want them and leave yours

floundering in air. Yes. Get the carrier first, even if you can't fly it."

"All right."

"Sharman, I don't know how you plan to attack. If you'll tell me more, I can give you better answers." He'd said it before. It was like talking to the tree.

Kara freed her grapnel with a snap of the snag line. She was moving

on.Theefodder! Clave added, "One thing. If I know the Grad, he knows

how to fly the carrier by now, if be's had any kind of a chance at it. Or

Gavving might have seen something and told the Grad."

"There's no way we'll learn that."

dave shrugged.

"We'll go for the carrier and try for the Grad."

dave pushed a dead spine branch into the coals and resumed flapping his blanket.

Kara said, "You call yourself Sharman. . . Chairman of a destroyed people. I trust you know how to be a leader. If you learn things thatshouldnotbeknown toourenemies.. . if you rideto warinthe first gust of warriors . . . what would you tell my citizens, if you were me?"

That was clear enough. "Clave must not live to be captured and questioned.' Sharman, I have little to lose. If I can't rescue my people, I'll kill copsik runners!"

"Merril?"