The Scarab Path Read Online Free PDF Page A

you want from me?’
    ‘Your
seal of approval. I happen to know a little more about Khanaphes than most. You
remember Kadro the antiquarian?’
    ‘Vaguely,
yes. I haven’t seen him around recently.’
    ‘I’m not
surprised, as he’s been in Khanaphes for several months. He’d followed the
Solarnese trail long before anyone was looking in that direction. I know
because he’s been writing to me for money, and I’ve been sending it. That makes
him my man.’
    ‘And
what has your man found out?’
    ‘My man
has been keeping his cards close to his little Fly chest.’ Drillen grimaced.
‘Which is why there will be an expedition sent to help him out. The first
official Collegiate expedition to Khanaphes. Our ambassadors will extend the
hand of friendship to our estranged brothers. Master Kadro will receive his
due, but I need results.’
    Stenwold
nodded patiently, letting the quietness spin out until he was finally forced to
ask. ‘So where do I come into all of this?’
    ‘Aren’t
you roused by the sheer academic challenge of it all?’ Drillen asked, still
grinning like a fool.
    ‘As it
happens I am, but where do I come in?’
    ‘You
propose the expedition, which I then agree to sponsor and fund.’
    ‘Do I
now?’
    ‘Because
if I tried it myself, then Broiler would be all over me, and I’d be fighting
tooth and nail every step of the way to stop him making it his expedition and his triumph. You, though … Broiler
hates and loathes every inch of you there ever was, but more than that, he
doesn’t have the guts to take you on. If it’s your expedition, he’ll mutter and
complain, but he won’t dare stick his neck out, and you know why.’
    Stenwold
cocked a surprised eyebrow at Drillen, seeing that his own suspicions about
Broiler’s loyalties were obviously not unique. He shrugged philosophically,
waiting for the catch.
    ‘ Please , Stenwold,’ Drillen said, in a pleading tone that
surprised both of them. After an awkward pause the fat man continued, ‘I’m a
devious bastard whose only aim is my own betterment, I freely admit it, but I’m
also on your side. A coup involving Khanaphes could be enough to swing the
voting next Lots. We need each other.’
    Stenwold
sighed. ‘This sort of politics has always been exactly the sort of thing I’ve
tried to avoid. So you want me to go to Khanaphes?’
    ‘No, no,
I need you here to continue shaking hands with me in public. I just want you to
drum up a few scholars to go there in your name, with my money. So people will
like me more and Broiler less. And also the academic knowledge of the College
will be expanded by another few feet of shelf space. That’s a secondary
consideration for me, but I do still care about it.’
    ‘I
know,’ said Stenwold tiredly. ‘That’s the only reason why I’ve been listening
to you for this long.’ Inside he was fighting his own battle. There was a lot
of him saying that once he started making these deals he was on a slope – and
his kinden were notoriously clumsy. That the future of Collegium might depend
on closet conspiracies like this one made him feel sick about the whole
business. Drillen was right, though: Stenwold needed support in the Assembly,
and he must pay for any services rendered.
    And he
was intrigued. Despite himself and despite everything he was intrigued. A
Beetle-kinden city located beyond Solarno. What might we
learn there? And on the back of that, another thought – the possible
solution to another personal problem.
    ‘I’ll do
it,’ he said. ‘I’ll regret it, but I’ll do it.’
    ‘That’s
my old soldier!’ Drillen clapped him on the shoulder with a meaty hand, and
poured out another two goblets of wine.
    Stenwold
took his and drank thoughtfully, turning implications over in his mind. ‘I
suppose you’ll want everything to look spontaneous,’ he mused.
    ‘Oh, of
course,’ Drillen agreed heartily. ‘The serendipitous meeting of two great
minds.’
    ‘Best if
it looks that