“It’s my way of telling you that only a child thinks that anything you build will last,” said Loaf.

“What we’re waiting for,” said Olivenko, “and we all know it, is Rigg.”

Since they all knew it, there was no point in commenting.

Umbo commented anyway. “He could have returned to us at any time. For instance, a half hour after he left, he could have walked back into our camp and told us what he had just spent the last week or month or five years doing. When somebody can jump from one time to another, it’s just rude to make other people wait.”

Nobody said anything.

“That was not just me being resentful of Rigg the way I used to be,” said Umbo into the silence.

“Nobody said it was,” said Olivenko.

“I’m just tired of waiting,” said Umbo. “And it is rude of him.”

“On the other hand, maybe he’s dead,” said Loaf. “In which case, our wait is truly pointless.”

“Who could possibly kill Rigg?” asked Param. “He already stopped Ram Odin from assassinating him.”

“And now he’s gone back to stop himself from stopping Ram Odin,” said Loaf. “Which means Ram Odin might still find a way to kill him.”

“Even with the mask?” asked Olivenko.

“He won’t try to kill me again,” said Rigg.

If anyone was startled by his sudden appearance, they didn’t show it. Umbo had to laugh, though. “How many times did you make a later entrance till you decided on this moment?”

“I came, I heard, I answered,” said Rigg. “I don’t have to time my entrances. You’re always arguing, and there’s always something to say that’s smarter than anything you’d come up with.”

“Good to have you back,” said Param. “To remind me that Umbo isn’t the only annoying boy in the world.”

“So Ram Odin is alive again,” said Loaf.

Rigg nodded.

“Is that a good thing or a bad?” asked Olivenko.

“Decide for yourselves,” said Rigg. “Because the way I fixed it resulted in more than saving Ram Odin.”

He raised a hand. Immediately two others emerged from the edge of the woods and came to stand beside him. An old man and . . . another copy of Rigg, facemask and all.

“This is so untidy,” said Umbo.

“Says the one who made two copies of himself already,” said Rigg.

“At least my copies are dead,” said Umbo.

“And mine is alive,” said Rigg. “He has chosen the name Noxon, so you’ll have a way to speak of us separately. But in a way, he’s a purer version of myself. He never killed anybody.”

“But I would have,” said Noxon.

“But you didn’t,” said Rigg.

“The Rigg twins even argue with each other,” said Loaf.

“Rigg probably had arguments with himself all the time,” said Olivenko.

“But we didn’t have to overhear them,” said Loaf.