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The short version is that he offered to "adopt" us, not as slaves or servants, but as full members in the Temtre Clan. He said this was very rare, but not unheard of since they have detached clansmen throughout the Donta Islands to serve as trade agents, couriers, spies, and such. Most are born Temtre, some were adopted, and a few of these adopted members were large islanders, such as ourselves. We'd be given a token that would identify us to any Temtre as an agent of the Clan-king, and could call on their assistance if needed. The value to us seemed marginal, I thought. But then, we didn't really need anything from him, but to be left alone, so it didn't matter. What he gained was our word of honor - as Temtres - to protect the secret of our clan and Dagger Island - and, unsaid, the treasure cave in the mountains. He never mentioned the cave, but I believe it was his main worry. There might be hundreds of gatherings worth of loot in that cave - doing nothing - which seemed to have a very great importance to the Temtres. I got the impression it was a physical measure of their success, and thus, needed to be guarded at all cost.
'I will, however, have to consult and gain the approval of the Clan-chiefs who are still here, including DinDay, to ratify your adoption. Given the stakes involved I don't see this as a problem. I will, however, need to meet with them in person. I could not deal with them as a captive. We have our pride,' said DeKan. And wiles.
Cin and I exchanged glances.
'Will they follow your lead?'
'I am the Clan-king. They will listen to me and follow, some reluctantly, but they will follow. That is the way of the Clan. Plus, I want you, and your magic, to be one of us - on our side, not against us.'
We sealed our understanding with a clapping of wrists.
'I trust you'll not take offense, Kin, but I believe I must give you another dart and carry you back to your ship,' said Cin with a smile, adding, 'I'm sure our friendship will grow in time, but we must not put temptation in your path so early in our new understanding. I have not forgotten that you gave us leave to return to the Assembly, only to ambush us the next time we did.'
'But that was different?' he protested. 'The word of honor of a Temtre is accepted throughout the Saraime as something inviolable. It is also accepted throughout the Saraime as something that is very, shall we say, precisely defined. For example, say, giving someone the freedom of the Assembly, would not necessarily mean that they would not face interrogation and possible execution for being spies. It merely meant they could move about the Assembly until such time as I choose to invite them for a little chat, or an execution,' he gave a depreciating little shrug. 'One might dispute that distinction, but those that deal with the Temtre know enough to get everything settled before we agree,' he added with another little shrug. 'In your case, the heritage of the Temtres was at stake. I could not take any chances at all. I am, after all, responsible for my Clan.'
'I trust we've reached that level of understanding, but we haven't had time to parse all your words, and, well, the same considerations apply now as well. So, to be on the safe side, a small dose. You won't even have a headache,' she said. 'Kin?'
He shrugged. 'As you will, though I hope you will protect Temtre secrets with as much vigilance.'
'We will,' she said and gave him a dart.
We waited for DeKan to revive in the jungle before releasing him. Siss would hang around the encampment, in order to take word of the results back to us.
As we watched DeKan walk up the cliff, accompanied by Siss, I said to Cin. 'I hope we're right. Word of honor or not, I have to wonder how many loopholes we left in our understanding.'
'Oh, don't worry, we have Siss to look after us.'
'Well, I worry about her, too. I'd think the Simlas are Temtre too, push come to shove.'
'Siss can look after herself,' Cin said simply.
I hoped so. It was a minor mystery why the Temtres' many Simla dragons didn't seem to play any role in this affair. Given their abilities, any of them should have been able to lead the Temtres directly to our hiding place, yet they seemed to stay clear of the whole affair. Perhaps they weren't called on by the Temtres, or perhaps they were convinced, telepathically, that we were no threat to the Temtres or their treasure, and so were content to let us humans settle the silly affair between us.
We returned to the gig to await the results of DeKan's consultations.
Chapter 10 Departures