It was rare to see Alfin smiling. He took his time answering. "Merril will kill herself sooner or later. But Glory will kill someone else. Slip at the wrong time. Easy enough to do something about it. Wait till we're higher, till the tide is weaker. Knock against her when she's off balance. Send her home the fast way."

"Well, that's what I was thinking too. You are a danger to us, Alfin. You hold grudges. We've got problems enough without watching our backs because of you. If you slow me down, if you give any of us trouble, I'll send you home the fast way, Alfin. I've got enough trouble here."

AllIn paled, but he answered. "You do. Get rid of Glory before she knocks someone off the trunk. Ask Jiovan."

"I don't take your orders," Clave said. "One more thing. You spend too much energy being angry. Save it. You're likely to need your anger. Now lead off." And when Alfin resumed climbing, Clave followed.

Chapter Three - The Trunk

DAY BRIGHTENED AND FADED AND BRIGHTENED AGAIN WHILE

they climbed. The men doffed their tunics and tucked them into their pack straps; somewhat later, so did the women. dave leered at Jayan and Jinny impartially. Gavving didn't leer, but in fact the sight distracted him from his climbing.

Jayan and Jinny were twenty-year-old twins, identical, with pale skin

and dark hair and lovely heart-shaped faces and nicely conical breasts.

Some citizens called them stupid, for they had no fund of conversation, but Gavving wondered. In other matters they showed good sense. As now: Jinny was climbing with Cave, but Merril had dropped far behind, and Jayan stayed just beneath her, pacing her.

Jiovan had lost ground after Clave resumed the lead. He cursed as he climbed, steadily, monotonously: the wind, the bark handholds, his missing leg. Alfin should have been one of the leaders, Gavving thought; but he kept pausing to look down.

Gavving's own shoulders and legs burned with fatigue. Worse, he was mpking mistakes, setting his claw sandals wrong, so that they slipped too often.

Tired people make mistakes. Gavving saw Glory slip, thrash, and fall two or three meters before she caught an edge of bark. While she

hugged herself ferociously against the tree, Gavving moved crosswise until he was behind and to the side of her.

Fear held her rigid.

"Keep going," Gavving said. "I'll stay behind you. I'll catch you." She looked down, nodded jerkily, began climbing again. She seemed to move in convulsions, putting too much effort into it. Gavving kept pace.

She slipped. Gavving gripped the bark. When she dropped into range he planted the palm of his hand under her buttocks and pushed her hard against the tree. She gasped, and clung, and resumed climbing.

Clave called down. "Is anybody thirsty?"

They needed their breath, and the answer was too obvious. Of course they were thirsty. Clave said, "Swing around east. We'll get a drink."