Interphase Read Online Free Page B

strangers' mischief."
    Analara was nettled by his barely concealed warning. She had just met David, but she didn't think he was a troublemaker. She raised her chin and fixed Rupu with a challenging look. "Maybe he is a sage, with the power to appear and disappear as he chooses."
    Rupu laughed deeply, startling her. "A sage? One so powerful that a sapling like you found him with his nose in the dirt?"
    Analara slapped his belly and slipped out of his grasp before he could respond. "I am not a sapling. And you've no better manners than a beggar if you can make jokes about a wounded man's misfortune." She paused and cast a worried glance over her shoulder. "I only hope he had no other injuries."
    When she glanced at Rupu again, his gaze was fixed on the path ahead. He absently rubbed the mark she had left on his belly. "Have you considered what Varlath would have to say about this? Or Nathalion? Perhaps Shalaron himself?"
    "Shalaron?" Analara frowned. "Why would he say anything at all?"
    "The laws about strangers serve a purpose, Analara. They exist for Ilinar's protection." Rupu pinned her with a steady look, and she nodded. She knew what he meant. "If he is a wandering sage, which I still doubt," he continued, "that means he could be dangerous. They wield so much power. If this David is as untrained as you suggest—"
    Analara burst out laughing. "Since when do you know so much about sages anyway?"
    Rupu blinked, momentarily speechless, before his face lit with its usual grin. She smiled back. The sudden seriousness hadn't suited him at all.
    "What I am trying to tell you," he said as he grabbed her in a quick hug, "is be careful. I trust that's not too much of a challenge, 'Nala?"
    Charmed by his use of her childhood nickname, Analara slipped an arm around his waist. "Your 'Nala forever. Now don't start worrying yourself to death over me. I do know how to look after myself."
    "No thanks to me, I'm sure."
    She laughed with him, and they fell into a comfortable silence. She was glad to have Rupu's friendship and advice. He was a calming presence, even though he still pretended to be an unruly youth.
    His warning about David faded into the background. "Varlath would never object to any of my friends," Analara whispered to herself. And Shalaron… if he ever met David properly, then David wouldn't be a stranger and therefore no threat to Ilinar.
    Analara was mildly surprised by how much she hoped Shalaron would get the chance to meet David. She gave one final look over her shoulder as they walked through the city gate.
    If she ever saw him again.
    ***
    David awoke with the sun in his eyes. He glanced at the clock. 3:07 PM. With a groan, he sat up and stretched. Six hours of sleep wasn't much, but it was more than he'd gotten recently. He stared at the walls and tried to get a handle on the events of the morning.
    His mind felt hazy, unable to focus on any specific thought. He remembered racing, a girl, trees, but nothing beyond that. His gaze wandered to his sword, lying in the middle of the floor. He recalled tripping over it on the way to bed earlier. Setting aside his thoughts, he retrieved it and inspected it for damage.
    The blade was unsharpened and notched, the silver lion's head on the pommel tarnished. Despite its condition, it was an ancient family heirloom, and David was relieved to find no new wear from the tumble.
    He set the sword back on its stand and was struck by a fierce hunger. As he walked toward the kitchen, he resumed parsing through his memories. There'd been an accident. Someone had helped him. Even as he drew close to a name, his thoughts slipped away.
    David was almost to the kitchen when he suddenly remembered the hover-bike module and his blackmailer. Had something gone wrong during the demonstration? Did he just sleep through his own trial and sentencing? He raced to his computer.
    Two new messages. One was from the V-Net Health and Safety Department responding to an alert of severe physical distress