more, and so much less, than she once was. She fell back into herself and kept falling, hugging herself fiercely to keep from flying apart. Tears burned in her eyes, but she kept them back by sheer force of will. Tears over the memory of something great and wonderful, that had touched and transformed her, and then abandoned her.
Mary stepped forward and put an arm around Jenny’s shaking shoulders. “It’s all right. We understand. We’ll speak to the union leaders. They need to hear you, even if they don’t know it yet. You stay here. We’ll get things moving.”
She gave Jenny a last comforting squeeze, and gestured with her head for Topaz to open the door. She did so, her face entirely impassive. Mary steered Jenny back into her chair, then she and Topaz left the study, leaving Jenny Psycho slumped in her chair like an exhausted child. They shut the door firmly behind them and moved off down the corridor.
“Not too tightly wrapped, is she?” said Topaz.
“Few of us are, these days,” said Mary. “But she does seem to be an extreme case. If we don’t handle this one with kid gloves, we could end up with a multiple personality on our hands. And a bloody powerful one, at that. Did you feel the energy coming off her? It was like staring into a searchlight. I’ve never encountered anything like it before. Whatever touched her in Silo Nine, it was a power far beyond my experience. I’m not even sure it was human. Could it really have been the Mater Mundi?”
Topaz shrugged uncomfortably. “I’ve never been religious. Still, I saw everything you did. She might be crazy, but something manifested through her. Its mark is all over her mind, even now. The Mater Mundi’s as good an answer as any. Whoever or whatever that might be. You’re right, the leaders have to see her. If only so we can be sure of controlling her. God knows how much damage she could do if we let her run loose.”
“Like I did,” said Mary.
“That’s over now. You’re yourself again.”
“Maybe. Do you think I don’t know that you’re still watching over me for the Council? Not everyone’s convinced my deprogramming took.”
“I’m with you because I choose to be,” said Topaz. “Besides, you still have a lot of enemies here in Mistport. Everyone lost somebody to the esper plague.”
“I’ll never kill again,” said Mary. “I’ll kill myself first.”
“I know,” said Topaz.
“Poor Jenny. She’s been through so much.”
“Haven’t we all.”
Owen Deathstalker walked alone through the packed streets of the Merchants Quarter, scowling and seething. People passing took one look at his face and gave him plenty of room. Some even crossed to the other side of the street, just in case. Street vendors and stall holders cried their wares in a variety of colorful ways, but Owen paid them no notice. He was working his way into a world-class bad temper, and he didn’t care who knew it. His mood wasn’t helped by the fact that he wasn’t very good at following directions. It wasn’t that he was lost, exactly; he just didn’t always know where he was. He’d only been this way once before, and that was with Hazel leading the way, and he hadn’t paid much attention at the time. Luckily Ozymandius remembered the way.
Owen strode on through the Quarter, kicking at the thick snow and concentrating fiercely on where he was going so he wouldn’t have to think about Hazel, alone with John Silver. He had no right to be jealous, as Hazel no doubt would have been happy to tell him, but still . . . he loved her, in his way, and would no matter what she thought of him. If she ever thought of him. Owen sighed and pressed on, and eventually he ended up in front of the seedy ramshackle building that housed the Abraxus Information Center. Abraxus knew everything that was going on in Mistport, sometimes even before the people concerned knew it. Abraxus could answer all your questions, soothe your worries or confirm your worst
Mary stepped forward and put an arm around Jenny’s shaking shoulders. “It’s all right. We understand. We’ll speak to the union leaders. They need to hear you, even if they don’t know it yet. You stay here. We’ll get things moving.”
She gave Jenny a last comforting squeeze, and gestured with her head for Topaz to open the door. She did so, her face entirely impassive. Mary steered Jenny back into her chair, then she and Topaz left the study, leaving Jenny Psycho slumped in her chair like an exhausted child. They shut the door firmly behind them and moved off down the corridor.
“Not too tightly wrapped, is she?” said Topaz.
“Few of us are, these days,” said Mary. “But she does seem to be an extreme case. If we don’t handle this one with kid gloves, we could end up with a multiple personality on our hands. And a bloody powerful one, at that. Did you feel the energy coming off her? It was like staring into a searchlight. I’ve never encountered anything like it before. Whatever touched her in Silo Nine, it was a power far beyond my experience. I’m not even sure it was human. Could it really have been the Mater Mundi?”
Topaz shrugged uncomfortably. “I’ve never been religious. Still, I saw everything you did. She might be crazy, but something manifested through her. Its mark is all over her mind, even now. The Mater Mundi’s as good an answer as any. Whoever or whatever that might be. You’re right, the leaders have to see her. If only so we can be sure of controlling her. God knows how much damage she could do if we let her run loose.”
“Like I did,” said Mary.
“That’s over now. You’re yourself again.”
“Maybe. Do you think I don’t know that you’re still watching over me for the Council? Not everyone’s convinced my deprogramming took.”
“I’m with you because I choose to be,” said Topaz. “Besides, you still have a lot of enemies here in Mistport. Everyone lost somebody to the esper plague.”
“I’ll never kill again,” said Mary. “I’ll kill myself first.”
“I know,” said Topaz.
“Poor Jenny. She’s been through so much.”
“Haven’t we all.”
Owen Deathstalker walked alone through the packed streets of the Merchants Quarter, scowling and seething. People passing took one look at his face and gave him plenty of room. Some even crossed to the other side of the street, just in case. Street vendors and stall holders cried their wares in a variety of colorful ways, but Owen paid them no notice. He was working his way into a world-class bad temper, and he didn’t care who knew it. His mood wasn’t helped by the fact that he wasn’t very good at following directions. It wasn’t that he was lost, exactly; he just didn’t always know where he was. He’d only been this way once before, and that was with Hazel leading the way, and he hadn’t paid much attention at the time. Luckily Ozymandius remembered the way.
Owen strode on through the Quarter, kicking at the thick snow and concentrating fiercely on where he was going so he wouldn’t have to think about Hazel, alone with John Silver. He had no right to be jealous, as Hazel no doubt would have been happy to tell him, but still . . . he loved her, in his way, and would no matter what she thought of him. If she ever thought of him. Owen sighed and pressed on, and eventually he ended up in front of the seedy ramshackle building that housed the Abraxus Information Center. Abraxus knew everything that was going on in Mistport, sometimes even before the people concerned knew it. Abraxus could answer all your questions, soothe your worries or confirm your worst
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