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something that hung about her neck, on a string that seemed to be made of small metal beads. Chimal
pried it from her fingers, angry at her now for her incomprehensible actions and lack of intelligible
response, and easily overcame her her feeble attempts to hold onto it. It was black, like everything else
about her, and just as baffling. Smaller than his hand, and in shape not unlike a small brick of adobe.
There were six deep openings cut into one side and when he turned it toward the light above he saw that
each of them had a number at the bottom of the opening.
1 8 6 1 7 3
This was meaningless, as was the shining rod that came out of one end. It did not push or twist, or
apparently move in any way. He tried to press on it but it hurt his finger: it was tipped with many small
barbs that bit into his skin. Meaningless. He dropped it and the girl snatched it up at once and pressed it
to her breast.
Everything about the girl was a mystery. He bent and touched the wide metal band that came up behind
her head. It was fixed to the material that covered her entire head, and hinged at the back of her neck so
it moved when she did. A shout sounded from far down the tunnel.
Chimal jumped back, his broken-bladed knife ready, as another girl hurried up. She was garbed like the
first and paid him not the slightest attention. Bending over the first girl she made comforting noises and
spoke to her softly. There were more shouts and a third, almost identical, figure came out of a metal
door and joined the first. This one was a man, yet he acted no differently.
Three more of them appeared and Chimal backed away from their growing numbers, even though they
continued to ignore him. They helped the first girl to her feet and talked together, all at once, in the same
maddening mixture of words and nonsense that the girl had used. They appeared to have reached some
kind of decision because, most reluctantly, they admitted Chimal's existence, darting looks at him then
turning quickly away. An older man, who had cracked lips and lines about his eyes, even took a pace
toward Chimal and looked directly at him, then spoke.
"We go to the morasoraver."
"Where?"
The man, strangely reluctant, and turning away while he said it, repeated the new word over and over
again until Chimal could repeat it although he still did not know its meaning.
"We go to the Master Observer," the man said again, and turned away as though starting down the
tunnel. "You come with us."
"Why should I?" Chimal said belligerently. He was tired, hungry and thirsty, and annoyed at these
things that he did not understand. "Who are you? What is this place? Answer me." The man just shook
his head hopelessly and made little beckoning gestures.
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The first girl, her eyes red and her face stained with tears, stepped forward. "Come with us to the Master
Observer," she said.
"Answer my questions."
She looked around at the others before answering. "He will answer your questions."
"The Master Observer is a man? Why didn't you tell me that in the beginning?" They did not answer; it
was hopeless. He might as well go with them, nothing could be gained by staying here. They must eat
and drink and perhaps he would find some of that along the way as well. "I'll come," he said, starting
forward.
They moved quickly away in front of him, leading the way. None of them thought to go behind him.
The tunnel came to a branching, then to another, passing many doorways, and soon he was completely
confused as to direction. They went down wide stairways, very much like the steps of the pyramid, that
led to more caverns below. Some of them were large and contained devices of metal that were
incomprehensible. None of them appeared to contain food or water so he did not stop. He was very tired.
It seemed a long time before they entered an even higher cavern and faced a man, an older man, who
was dressed just like the others except that his coverings were colored a deep red. He must be a leader or
a chief, Chimal thought, or even a priest.
"If you are the Master Observer I want you to answer my questions& "
The man looked past Chimal, through him, as though he didn't exist, and spoke to the others. "Where did
you find him?"
The girl gave one of those incomprehensible answers that Chimal was beginning to expect by this time.
Impatiently, he looked about the chamber at the twisted and brooding, infinitely strange objects. There
was a small table against one wall with some unidentifiable things on it, one of which might very well
have been a cup. Chimal went to look and saw that one of the containers held a transparent liquid that
could be water. He suspected everything in this world now, so he dipped his fingertip into it and tasted it
carefully. Water, nothing else. Raising the container to his mouth he drained over half of it at once. It
was flat and tasteless, like rain water, but it slaked his thirst well. When he poked at some gray wafers
they crumbled to his touch. Chimal picked one up and held it out to the man who was standing close by.
"Is this food?" he asked. The man turned his head away and tried to edge back into the crowd: Chimal
took him by the arm and spun him about. "Well, is it? Tell me." Frightened the man nodded a reluctant
agreement, then moved swiftly away as soon as he was released. Chimal poked the broken knife into the
waistband of his maxtli and began to eat. It was poor stuff, with no more flavor than ashes, but it filled
the stomach.
When he had taken the edge from his hunger, Chimal's attention was drawn back to the affairs in
progress. The girl had finished talking and the red-garbed Master Observer was considering her report.
He paced before them, hands clasped behind his back and lips pursed with thought: the room was silent
while they waited patiently for a decision. The worried lines about his eyes and the wrinkles into which
his frowning mouth was permanently set showed that responsibility and decision-making were his
accepted duties. Chimal, washing down the food with the remaining water, did not try to interfere again.
All of their actions had an air of madness about them, or one of the games children play where they
make believe someone isn't there.
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"My decision is this," the Master Observer said, turning, to face them, his motions heavy with the
weight of responsibility. "You have heard the report of Watchman Steel. You know where " his glance
flicked toward Chimal for the first tune, then quickly away, " he was found. Therefore it is my
statement that he is from the valley." Some of the audience turned to look at Chimal now, as though this
placing had given him a physical existence he had not had before. Tired and sated, Chimal leaned
against the wall and pried some of the food from behind his teeth with his tongue and swallowed it.
"Now follow closely my thoughts because they are of the loungst importance. This man is of the valley
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