Myth 13 - Myth Alliances Asprin, Robert (top 100 novels .TXT) 📖

the far end of the cellar. “Why would that work when rock like the original piece wouldn't?”

“Because of its relative translucency,” Zol explained. "I

believe that what you have just witnessed is a textbook ex?ample of near-​clear fizzin'."

I was too fascinated by the process to ask for a clarifica?tion. It was working.

It took a few days to produce a couple of buckets full of the anti-​magik material. Tananda provided security on the cellar, making sure that no one came down to see what we were doing, although my yell of “Yee-​hah!” probably raised a few eyebrows. I emerged from our laboratory, friz?zled hair and all.

“Are we ready?” Bunny asked.

“We are,” I announced, triumphantly. “The coup will proceed on schedule.”

Myth 13 - Myth Alliances

TWENTY-SEVEN

“But that trick never works!”

? SQUIRREL

Niki shouldered into her coverall and gulped down the rest of her coffee.

“Almost whistle time,” she told the others, who were in various stages of trying to wake up.

Oshleen peered up from her ledger full of red ink with gold lines showing in the yellows of her eyes. Vergetta threw aside her copy of the Perv News, their sole link with civilization in the dreary Wuhs backwater.

“The new line is running like a top. No trouble from the Wuhses. They went right from Pervomatics to personal re?minder pixies. The hypno chamber is really good. Even I almost forget what we're doing when I leave there.”

“Should patent it,” Caitlin stated, tapping away at her keyboard. “Look at the potential applications for secret in?stallations. There might be government contracts in a de?vice like that.”

“Oh, great, that's all we'd need,” Charilor groaned. "The

government already forgets half the stuff it's doing. Do you really want to add deliberate black holes to that?"

“I guess not,” the little Pervect shrugged, not looking up from her screen. “Should patent it anyhow. Won't keep the Deveels from copying it, but at least we'll have a legal rea?son for ripping their lungs out if we catch them.”

“I can't believe that there's been no heroic attempt to rescue you, little guy,” Vergetta told the paperweight in the middle of the table. “Nobody throwing themselves on the ramparts, no one scaling the walls, nobody battering down the door. Looks like all your friends are a bunch of Wuhses, eh?” She laughed heartily at her own joke. The Wuhs didn't join in.

“There was a retraction in the Ronko Gazette from the Great Skeeve,” Paldine announced. “I saw it when I went to pick up our stock. What I can't figure out is why.”

Vergetta looked dubious. “Why which one? Why he got in our way, or why he apologized?”

“The apology is the weird part.”

“Looks to me like he backed out of his contract with Shorty over there,” Tenobia declared, aiming a manicured thumb at the Wuhs on the table. “Nothing's happened for a week. He probably went back to his batcave with a big fat zero. Probably just figured out he's as likely to get paid as we are.”

The can hanging from the wall jangled. Niki frowned at it, then went over to pick it up. She listened, the scowl growing deeper.

“Something's wrong at Factory #9,” she told the others as she let the cylinder drop. “The Wuhses are refusing to sign in.” The can clattered again. She snatched it up and shouted into it. “I'm coming! What?” She threw it down. “Factory #2. They're protesting for better parking spaces.”

“I'll go,” Tenobia volunteered. “I'll give them parking spaces!”

“Don't all of them walk to work?” Nedira inquired.

“It's probably a notion one of them picked up on an?other dimension,” Tenobia snarled. “Ironic, isn't it? They found something for free that's still a pain in the rump!” She vanished.

The can jangled again. And again. The Pervects grabbed for it, another rushing off to handle each fresh situation.

“Hold on!” Vergetta shouted, as Charilor was about to blip out to handle a riot at Factory #3 about microwave popcorn privileges. “This is too fishy. Someone's trying to get us all going in a dozen directions at once.”

“Skeeve,” Oshleen sniffed. “He's back! But where?”

A shout from Caitlin made the remaining four turn around.

“We got him,” the smallest Pervect announced smugly. “He's trying to read our computer again!”

Her hands danced over the keyboard. Vergetta smiled her admiration as a ball of blue lightning built up in the air around Caitlin's head. As the little Pervect hit ENTER, the surge dove back into the computer and down the line. She crossed her arms. “That'll fix him.”

I jumped to catch Zol as a jagged ball of power leaped out of his notebook, knocking him flat. We were in a room of the castle on the same floor as the Pervects' headquarters waiting until the room was empty. Gleep sat in a corner happily crunching up more Kobold treats than I had ever let him have before.

“What happened?” I demanded.

Bunny lifted the little gray man's head. His eyes flut?tered open.

“Coley,” he gasped. “Where's Coley?”

I lifted the notebook and handed it to him. The screen had been blown outward, and all the lights were dark.

“No!” he cried. “Oh, Coley!”

He cradled the little computer, patting its case and rock?ing it. Tears ran down his face. The computer was ruined. Zol muttered nonsense to himself.

I was shocked. It was the most emotion I had ever seen from the impassionate little Kobold.

“They're joined for life,” Bunny reminded me.

“Zol, we've got to move soon,” I whispered. “How many are left?”

The Kobold whimpered at me, his big dark eyes open and anguished.

“He's in no shape