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Ananthos appeared as upset as a spider could possibly be.
"to bring warmlanders into the capital is a great responsibili-
ty. by rights of history and legend i should turn you around
and send you back into the hole from whence you emerged.
and yet" he struggled with the conflict between prescribed
duty and personal feelings and thoughts "i cannot dismiss
the fact that you have made an impossible journey for reasons
i am not equipped to debate, if it is of the importance you
insist, i would fail did i not escort you to the capital, but to
see the grand webmistress herself..."
He turned away from them, whether from embarrassment
or indecision or both they could not tell.
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Alan Dean Foster
"Why don't you," said Caz helpfully, "take us int
protective custody, convey us to the capital under guard, an
turn us over to your superiors?"
Ananthos looked back at him, his head bobbing in that od_
side-to-side motion that was half nod and half shake. He
spoke in a whispery, grateful hush.
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"you have some understanding of what it means to be
responsible to someone placed higher than oneself, warmlander
of the big ears."
"I've been in that uncomfortable situation before, yes,"
Caz admitted drolly, polishing his monocle.
"i bow to your excellent suggestion."
144
IX
He leaned back and called breathily upward, "arethos,
imedshud! intob coom." Two of the watchful Weavers dropped
to the deck, their spinnerets snipping off the cables trailing
from their abdomens. They studied the warmlanders with
interest.
"these will accompany us on the journey, for i can hardly
claim to have you in restriction, as your tall white friend has
suggested, all by myself, yet i am charged with the watchfiuness
on this bridge and cannot leave it deserted, so three of us will
accompany you and three remain here.
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"we shall proceed upstream, a day's journey from here,
the river lamayad splits, several days further it splits again.
against that divide, set against the breath, is our capital, my
home."
He added wamingly, "what happens then is no longer my
responsibility, i can make no promises as to the nature of your
reception, for i am low in the hierarchy, most low, for all that
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Alan Dean Foster
no weaver lies in the mud and none soars above the others.
our hierarchy is a convenience and necessary to governing,
and that is all.
"as to an audience with the grand webmistress..." his
voice trailed away meaningfully.
"Diplomacy moves best when it moves cautiously," said
Caz, "and not in dangerous leaps."
"For now it will be more than enough if you see us to the
capital, Ananthos," Clothahump assured him.
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The spider seemed greatly relieved, "then my thoughts are
clear, i am neither helping nor hindering you, merely refer-
ring you to those in the position to do so." He turned and
ceremoniously detached the cable holding the bow of the
motionless boat.
Bribbens had remained by his oar during the discussion.
Now he leaned gently on it as once again the wind began to
fill the sail. The boat turned neatly on its axis as the cry of
"ware the boom!" rang out from the steersman. Soon they
had passed beneath the intricate webwork spanning the river
and were once again traveling upstream.
"i've never seen a warmlander." Ananthos was standing
quite close to Jen-Tom, "most interesting biology." Despite
ten thousand years of primitive fears, Jon-Tom did not pull
away when the spider reached out to him.
Ananthos extended a double-clawed leg. It was covered
with bristly hairs. The delicate silk scarves of green and
turquoise enveloping the limb mitigated its menacing appear-
ance. The finger-sized claws touched the man's cheek, pressed
lightly, and traveled down the face to the neck before with-
drawing. Somehow Jon-Tom kept from flinching. He concen-
trated on those brightly colored eyes studying him.
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"no fur at all like the short bewhiskered one, except on
top. and soft... so soft!" He shuddered, "what a terrible
fragility to live with."
146
THE HOUR OF THE GATE
"You get used to it," said Jon-Tom. It occurred to him mat
the spider found him quite repulsive.
They continued studying each other. "That's beautiful
silk," the man commented. "Did you make it yourself?"
"do you mean, did i spin the silk or manufacture the scarf?
in truth i did neither." He waved a leg at the others, "we
differ even more in size than you seem to. some of our
smaller cousins produce far finer silk than a clumsy oaf like
myself is capable of. they are trained to do so, and others
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