Wizardry - The Wizardry Quested Part 7

aNeutron spectroscope,a the manager explained. aWe get a lot of Asian customers with gold.a It took time to test the coins and more time to count out the cash. In the process Jerry had to sign a statement saying who he was, that the gold was legal and that he had paid all the applicable taxes. He noticed that the manager didn't ask them for identification.

aNow do we begin our search?a Bal-Simba asked as they threaded their way back through the casino.

aNow we go get our credentials,a Jerry said. aThat will take a good chunk of this money.a aExcuse me,a said a woman's voice off to one side. Both men turned and took a blinding light full in the face.

aThanks,a said a shadowy form perfunctorily as she lowered her camera and pushed by them.

Bal-Simba bunked as he tried to get his sight back. aWhat was that?a aThat was a reminder that we need some different clothes.a Jerry frowned. aBut that's going to take more time andaa Then his rapidly returning sight fell on an arcade of shops off beyond the registration area. aCome on. It'll be expensive, but we need to save time more than we need to save money.a The shopping arcade angled off from the registration area leading to one of the hotel towers. Beyond the frozen yogurt shop, the jeweler's, the furrier's and the aart gallerya selling brightly colored paintings whose kitsch was only exceeded by their prices, was the men's store Jerry had known had to be there.

The place had an Italian name that Jerry thought was some kind of sausage, but he wasn't picky. The interior was all white and old gold and decorated in a way that for some reason reminded Jerry of a tapestry woven of polyester. The salesman was tall, lean and dressed in an extreme version of Italian style. He was also showing a five o'clock shadow.

aMay I help you?a he said in tones that indicated he probably couldn't, but he was going to go through the motions anyway.

aUh, my friend and I need some clothes.a The man looked them up and down. aI'll say.a aThey lost our luggage and all we have left are our costumes. We need something for street wear.a aHmm,a the man said. aHmm,a he said again. aHey, Meyer, can you come out here a minute?a Meyer was a wizened old man with thick gla.s.ses set low on his nose. His trousers were dusty with chalk and he wore a tape measure draped around his neck like a shawl.

aThey need some street clothes,a the younger man told him.

Meyer looked them over with an obviously professional eye. aCome on back into the fitting room and let's see what we can do.a aHe keeps me around for color,a the old man confided as he led them into the back. aPfafh! Like I'm a museum exhibit or something.a Like its inhabitant the back room wasn't nearly as fancy but looked a lot more businesslike. Meyer whipped the tape measure off his shoulders and began to lay it against Jerry's body. aMy nephew. He should have learned his trade at his father's kneea"G.o.d rest hima" but instead he goes off and gets an MBA. An MBA! Better he should learn tailoring to run a haberdashery, no? But kids, you can't tell them anything. So, you want suits or what?a aSomething less formal,a Jerry said.

aHmm,a the old man said without stopping his measurements. aPity. I could do some real good things for both of you in suits.a He sighed. aBut these days, you don't get a chance to show off what you know. Well, at least it's not leisure suits any more.a Museum exhibit or no, Meyer knew his business. With hardly a pause he had both Jerry and Bal-Simba measured and the sample book laid out for them to pick the cloth.

aHere you go. Not a thread of polyester in the bunch. Just show me what you want and in two, three days we'll have you turned out sharp.a aWe were hoping for something today. Something we can wear out of here.a aYou want miracles too?a aWe can't go walking around like this.a aI don't see why not. You look like a bartender from the Excalibur. That's a hotel,a he added at Jerry's puzzled expression. Then he nodded toward Bal-Simba. aHim, he's a problem.a aIt can be just about anything. We're kinda desperate.a He looked at Jerry. aIn that case, you I can fit off the rack, almost. Your frienda"a He shrugged. aThat's special.a aHow long will it take?a aSo you're in a hurry too?a aLook, if it's a matter of moneyaa The old man waved him to silence. aIt's a matter of possible. A challenge like this I haven't had in a long time, but even soaa Again the shrug. Then he brightened. aWait a minute. I do have something a customer never picked up. I can even make you a price on ita A few minutes later Jerry stepped out of the dressing room the picture of Las Vegas casual. His polo s.h.i.+rt and slacks fit him beautifully. The clothing felt odd after the loose s.h.i.+rts, tunics and breeches he had worn for so long at the Wizards' Keep. The shoes were stiff and pinched a little after the soft leather boots of the other world, but he could get used to it.

aAre you ready?a he called into the dressing room where Bal-Simba was changing.

aI believe so,a Bal-Simba said, somewhat hesitantly.

Bal-Simba emerged wearing a puffy-sleeved pink s.h.i.+rt open to the navel. A fancy vest fitted tightly over the s.h.i.+rt. Tight tan bell-bottoms stretched across his ample rear. He had left his bone necklace around his chest and a snap-brim hat with a leopard-skin band completed the outfit. Meyer fussed around him, pulling down the vest here and tugging the s.h.i.+rt into position there.

Jerry looked his friend up and down. aWe don't have to guess the guy's profession, do we?a The old man shrugged. aSo who asks? Now come on up front and we'll get you taken care of.a Jerry gulped when he saw the bill, but he peeled off hundreds without comment. aThe rest of the stuff, four o'clock tomorrow,a Meyer admonished. aI swear not a minute sooner.a They found Moira outside by the dolphin pool, posing for pictures with a family of tourists while a couple of bemused security guards looked on.

aDon't you need a leash for that thing?a one of the guards asked when Jerry came up to rejoin her.

aAudio-Animatronics,a Jerry explained.

aNo kidding?a one of the guards said. aLike the showgirls?a Jerry wasn't sure whether he was joking or not so he just smiled.

There was a covered slideway from the lobby to the street, but Jerry led them down the ordinary sidewalk beneath it. He wasn't sure how his friends would take to a moving walkway and he wasn't at all sure Moira would be able to keep her tail out of the gears.

aHow do we begin our search for this wizard?a Moira asked as the three made their way out to the street.

aFirst things first. We gotta get registered. We do that at the main Convention Center.a aWhere is that?a aThere.a Jerry pointed to one of the towers springing up out of the desert. aIt's further than it looks.a aHow will we get there?a aWalk. I don't think they would let a dragon on a shuttle bus. Besides, we don't have credentials so they won't let us in either.a Bal-Simba nodded and the strangely a.s.sorted trio joined the knots of business-suited convention-goers drifting down the sidewalk toward the distant tower.

You would think that a twenty-foot dragon parading down the main street of a major American city would attract at least some attention. You would be wrong. Anyone who's been in Las Vegas more than forty-eight hours has found stranger things than that on the breakfast buffet. The only interest came from the occasional gawker in a car stuck in traffic, and truth to tell they seemed more taken with Bal-Simba.

aWhat is all this for?a Moira asked as they walked along. aWiz compared it to the Winter Fair once, but I never understood.a aIt's a trade show for the computer industry,a Jerry said. aAll these people are connected with computers somehow.a aAnd they are here to buy and sell them?a Jerry shrugged. aWell, they used to be. Then the distribution channels got better established and most of that business moved elsewhere. Then for a while everybody came to see the new products that were being announced. But the show got so big and there were so many announcements that most of the really big ones aren't made here any more. Then it was the place to meet people. But now it's so big you have trouble doing that.a He fell silent.

aThen why do people come here?a Moira asked.

aI guess,a Jerry said slowly, abecause it's here.a The air was cool and the desert sun merely warm rather than blazing. Even so, Moira was showing signs of stress before they reached their destination.

aI am sorry, My Lord, but this body cannot go much further,a Moira told them finally. aIt is worn out and I, I am feeling unwell.a The way she said it made Jerry wonder about what happened when a dragon barfed. He decided not to be in front of her if it happened.

That's okay. I told you it was further than it lookeda He glanced down the street. aLook, the Convention Center is right down there. Why don't I go ahead and you two follow when she can? I'll have to wait in line for a while anyway.a Registration was in a big blue-and-white tent erected in the parking lot at the Convention Center. Jerry breasted his way through the thickening crowds around and inside the tent to get a place in line to register.

aHow many?a the woman behind the counter asked.

aTwo, no make that three sets.a aFill out the forms over there and when you get done bring them back here.a Secure in the knowledge that no one would pay any attention to what was on the forms until he was away from this world, Jerry indulged in an orgy of mendacity. By the time he was done he was president of his own company, Bal-Simba was aWizard In Chief* and Moira bore the t.i.tle of aExhibit A.a Since he had signed them all up for the seminars as well as the exhibit halls, the bill was in four figures. So much so that he was momentarily taken aback.

What the heck, Jerry thought, it's only money.

By the time he emerged, the better part of an hour later, Bal-Simba and Moira were waiting for him.

aHere.a He handed Bal-Simba a paper bag of literature. aMost of this is junk but we can go through it later.a Next he gave Bal-Simba his badge. aDon't lose this. You have to have it showing all the time.a The big wizard raised his eyebrows.

aIfs, uh, a talisman, to get you into the exhibit areas.a Bal-Simba nodded and clipped it to his vest.

aWhere shall I attach mine?a Moira asked.

aJust clip it to youra Ah, right. That is a problem.a Then it occurred to Jerry there might be a bigger problem. Even with a badge it would be nard to get a dragon into the exhibit areas.

aWait a minute,a Jerry said, aI've got an ideaa Ignoring the thronging crowds, Jerry went over to a banner decorating the side of the building. He quickly cut the ropes and gathered the banner as it fell.

aHere,a he said to Bal-Simba, ahelp me drape this over her.a With Bal-Simba holding one side of the sign, he threw the other over her back and crawled under her stomach. He barely missed being decapitated when Moira involuntarily raised a ma.s.sively clawed hind foot.

aBe careful, will you?a aWell, it tickles,a Moira said.

With a little tugging and tr.i.m.m.i.n.g he managed to get the cords tied under the dragon's belly. That left the sign draped like a horse blanket over her sides. As a finis.h.i.+ng touch he pinned Moira's badge to the banner.

In the process Jerry noticed they had gathered a knot of onlookers.

aA dragon?a he heard one of them say.

aThat's the code name for IBM's third-generation Personal Digital a.s.sistant,a announced woman in a serious gray business suit with Raiders shoulder pads and a pale silk jabot tied like a bow tie. aThey're pre-pre-announcing at the show to build momentum.a Her companion, a middle-aged man in a three-piece suit and a pony tail, looked unimpressed. aI think they should have stuck with the Little Tramp.a aI thought Harris was the company that used the dragon,a said another bystander.

aSee?a Jerry said softly to Moira. aThis way everyone will think you're advertising for a producta aBut the people who own the sign will know she is not with them, will they not?a Jerry smiled up at the dragon. aForget it. It's IBM. They're so big and so confused everyone will just think it's from another division.a He turned to Moira. aIf anyone asks tell them you were part of the Lotus acquisition. That'll really keep 'em guessing.a Dragon and wizard in tow, Jerry made for the main entrance. The closer they got the thicker the crowds became. Although most of the throng was white and in business suits it was a wonderfully diverse group. Perhaps a quarter were women, dressed in everything from business suits to bunny suits (literallya"someone had a product code-named aEastera). There were Indian Sikhs in business suits and turbans, American Sikhs in cotton pajamas and turbans, there were Chinese (both kinds), j.a.panese and Koreans from the Far East dressed in business suits. There were Chinese-Americans, j.a.panese-Americans and Korean-Americans, mostly in the American techie outfit of short-sleeved sport s.h.i.+rts and slacks. There were impeccably tailored Europeans and rumpled Americans. There were full beards and pony tails, although both were tending to gray and the pony tails started further back on the head than Jerry remembereda"a reminder that the original technically oriented generation was being replaced by the corporate types, which made him a little sad. Here and there you could see the long white robes of an Arab or the rainbow robes of a West African.

They were standing in line waiting for shuttle buses, sitting on the gra.s.s eating off paper plates, leaning against the building resting their feet, handing out newspapers, rejecting newspapers, and talking, talking, talking. In addition to English of every conceivable variety, there were French and Spanish, Chinese and Korean, j.a.panese and Hindi, German and Russian, and a couple of things Jerry wasn't even sure were languages at all.

He drank it all in in pa.s.sing and flowed with the current of humanity toward the gla.s.s doors that led into the exhibit hall.

Three steps through the door and Jerry was in information overload. The place was not merely packed, it was stuffed. There were thousands of people in every direction, crammed shoulder to shoulder and seemingly all in motion. You couldn't stand still unless you sought the lee side of an object to protect you from the flow.

aMy Lord, I do not think I have ever seen so many people in one place at a time,a Moira said in Jerry's ear.

aNeither have I,a Jerry told her. aThey're estimating two hundred and fifty thousand attendees this year.a aI see why you said this would be complicated,a Bal-Simba rumbled.

Jerry flicked him a tight smile. This isn't the complicated part.a Their first stop was the message center, in the hope that Taj had left someone a message saying where he was. Jerry didn't have a lot of hope for that and he was right. After battling their way through the crowd and waiting in line at a terminal, Taj's message box contained nothing but a couple of junk-mail announcements.

As they turned away and prepared to press onward, a man stepped in front of them waving his arms.

At first Jerry thought he was a high-tech mime. He had the jerky arm motions and sudden head movements.

aAmazing, isn't it?a said a voice in his ear. Jerry turned and saw a man standing beside him with an armload of literature. He was trapped and he knew it aIt's the first completely integrated Cybemautics system,a the man said as he pressed a glossy brochure into Jerry's hand. aThere's a P6 with a graphics accelerator in the backpack, transparent LCDs in the goggles and the gloves are 3-D pointing devices. There's also a high-bandwidth cellular modem so you're always hooked up. Right now he's net surfing, playing Doom n and watching the Browns play the Bears, all at once. The next step is to install the ultrasonic proximity locators and the differential GPS system so he'll never get lost.a In spite of himself Jerry was impressed. The demonstrator continued waving his arms and jerking his head, oblivious to the conversation and the crowd.

aWhat do you do? Besides hand out literature.a The man looked apologetic. aI'm his guide. Without the ultrasonic locators he keeps b.u.mping into walls.a Suiting his actions to his words, he took the cybernaut's elbow and steered him away through the swirling throng.

aI think,a Jerry said to Bal-Simba, athat's a concept that needs a little development.a Then he was all business. aNow let me see the show guide. Sigurd said Taj was interested in scientific visualization software.a If anything the human ma.s.s was thicker and more congealed flowing through the doors of the main exhibit hall. Once inside things opened out slightly and the aisles were merely packed. Their first stop was a abooth,a actually a carpeted area cut up by movable walls, about a third of the way in and halfway back. There were oversized television screens showing a dizzying array of images, and workstations on pedestals displaying other images, but not many people. The area on the carpet was relatively uncrowded and Moira breathed a sulfurous sigh of relief. One or two of the employees started to drift toward them but Jerry kept scanning, paying special attention to the feet.

Finally he spotted an attractive blond woman in a tan business suit who had just finished talking to two other employees.

aExcuse me,a Jerry said. aI wonder if you could help me.a aThat's what we're here for. Has, ahaa She gave a quick glance at Jerry's badge. aMagic Dragon got a need for visualizaton software?a aSort of. I'm Jerry Andrews, CEO of the company, and this is, uh, Mr. Simba. He's our chief wizard.a aElaine Haverford,a the woman said extending her hand. Then to Bal-Simba she said aJambo. I like the t.i.tle. I may steal it.a aJambo,a Bal-Simba repeated, for all the world as if he knew what it meant. aAnd you are welcome to the t.i.tle, My Lady, if it pleases you.a Elaine Haverford took the wizard's polite address for a compliment and dimpled.

aActually, we were supposed to meet one of our consultants here,a Jerry went on smoothly. aE.T. Tajikawa. But we seem to have missed connections.a Taj? He was here yesterday, but I haven't seen him today. Hey, Henry!a she called over her shoulder, ahave you seen the Tajmanian Devil around today?a Then she shook her head at the answer. aNot today. I think he said something about attending the Mauve reception at the Towne Centre, though.a Jerry handed her a card, fresh out of the vending machine in the registration booth. aIf you see him could you have him leave us a message on the board saying where he's going to be? We really can't move on the visualization software without his advice.a aSure will,a Elaine Haverford said. aMeanwhile, if there's anything I can help you with,a she handed over one of her own cards, ajust ask.a aExcuse me, My Lord,a Bal-Simba said as they pushed out into the aisle again. aWhy did you ask that person and not one of the others?a Jerry, an old hand at trade shows, recognized the question as a sign of severe information overload. When you're overwhelmed, you concentrate on the little things, even the irrelevancies.

aHer shoes.a aBut she was not wearing any.a aExactly.a Jerry looked smug. aA woman's shoes are a giveaway at a trade show. See, high heels are murder on these concrete floors and you walk a lot, so the only women who wear high heels are the booth bunniesa" hired modelsa"and the low-level employees. If a woman wears flats she's with the company and probably has some status, an. engineer maybe. Running shoes and she's probably high-level management. Now shea"a he jerked his head back toward the booth. aShe was barefoot with her business suit.a aWhich means?a Moira asked, intrigued in spite of herself.

Jerry tapped Ms. Haverford's business card. Dr. Haverford, he saw. aWhich means she owns the company.a Moira sighed and shook her head. In doing so she took her eyes off the crowd and nearly collided with an eight-foot-tall man in a gorilla suit. The dragon reared back and hissed in surprise and the man inside the gorilla suit nearly fell off his stilts.

aForgive me, My Lordaa Moira began.

aWhy don't you watch where you're going?a demanded the man in the gorilla suit, a former professional wrestler who had been hired for his size more than his temper.

aShe said she was sorry,a Jerry snapped, but the potential confrontation was cut short by a blaze of light The news crews at the show were desperate for visuals. Because of its importance everyone felt they had to cover it But for all its importance, the computer show was one of the most relentlessly un-visual of all trade shows. After you had gotten your crowd shots, your geeks-playing-computer-games shots and your booth-bunnies-in-revealing-costumes shots there was almost nothing worth picturing. A giant ape and a dragon together were irresistible. A dozen flashguns and two sets of TV lights zeroed in on the accidental pair.

The dragon reared up and let out a steamwhistle hiss, which only brought a new round of flashes and even more TV lights. Except for his tail, Fluffy wasn't dangerous, but Jerry had visions of thousands of computer types trampled in a panicked stampedea"the physical equivalent of what happened every time Microsoft introduced a new operating system. Fortunately, Moira was able to brine tie body under control and they moved away as quickly as they could.

aWhat's this for?a asked a blond TV reporter, shoving a microphone under Moira's nose. The dragon blinked and flinched under the sudden glare of the TV lights.

aThe new IBM announcement,a Jerry said hurriedly as he stepped between Moira and the crew. aExcuse us, please, we're late.a aWhat newa ra aThe kits are in the press room,a he called over his shoulder.

Normally TV reporters aren't so easy to discourage, but the press of the crowd made it hard to follow them and Bal-Simba was bringing up the rear.

aThat will be all, My Lady. Please.a He emphasized his request with a polite smile.

Since Bal-Simba was about six-foot-eight and decked out like a 1970s pimp, he was hard to argue with. When he smiled and snowed teeth neatly filed to points the TV crew lost all interest in the little group.

Meanwhile the gorilla's handlers, recognizing a heaven-sent opportunity, b.u.t.tonholed the reporters, shoved press kits on them and began to explain Gigantopithecus Software's latest announcement in multi-part high-decibel techn.o.babble.

aWhat was that about?a Moira asked as they got free of the knot of people.

aAdvertising. He's promoting something.a Jerry paused and looked back and squinted to read the sign on the giant's back.a 'Sasquatch.' I wonder what that is?

aForgive me if I do not share your curiosity,a Moira snapped. aIn fact I can think of nothing which is likely to have less bearing on our search.a aYeah, but stillaa aIt is utterly irrelevant. Now please, let us at least find a place where we can rest for a moment.a Jerry looked closely at her. Even though he wasn't used to judging the moods of dragons he could see she was tired.

aSure, Moira. Come on over this way.a Off at the edge of the hall was a s.p.a.ce between the booths for a fire door. The guard looked at them suspiciously as they made their way through the crowd into the temporary clearing, but since none of them sat on the floor or otherwise blocked the exit she didn't say anything.

aHi there.a Jerry turned and found himself right across the table from a couple of guys in the booth bordering the fire exit. He was trapped and he knew it, so he resigned himself to listening to a sales pitch.

He smiled as if he might be interested and studied the pair. One was hefty, slicked back and smarmy and the other was skinny, chinless and frenetic. Jerry couldn't read their badges so mentally he dubbed them aLeisure Suit Larrya and aThe Squirrel.a aAre you interested in imaging?a Larry began. aIf so we've got the hottest product at the show.a aIt's truly revolutionary,a The Squirrel picked up. aThey're cracking down on adult GIF files on bulletin boards, right? Okay, with Peeping Tom's Inverse Steganographic technology you don't need a GIF. Any data file of more than two megabytes is displayed as an X-rated picture.a Jerry nodded in spite of himself. aGIF,a of course, was a standard encoding method for storing and transmitting pictures for personal computers. He was trying to piece the rest together when The Squirrel went charging on.

aYou know about steganography, right? How you can encode a message in a picture file like a digitized TV picture so it looks like noise or just part of the picture?a aI've heard of ita aWell,a said The Squirrel triumphantly, athis is the same thing only backwards. Instead of specifying the encoding scheme and using the picture as the variablea" the cyphertexta" to get the plaintext, we take the file as the given and apply various decoding schemes until we get the appropriate plaintexta"the picture. With Peeping Tom's Inverse Stenographic technology, combined with our easy-to-use Windows front end, you select the kind of picture you want as an output from our menu and Peeping Tom goes until it finds it.a aAre you saying,a Jerry said slowly, athat you can always find a dirty picture, ah, 'adult GIF' in any data file?a aGuaranteed,a Leisure Suit Larry boomed.

aa.s.suming the file's big enough,a The Squirrel added. aOver two megabytes.a aAnd this is going to avoid censors.h.i.+p?a aHey,a Larry said virtuously. aCan we help it if those files contain dirty pictures?'

aYeah,a The Squirrel chimed in, awe just decode them.a There was a flaw in that argument, but just then Jerry didn't have the time to go looking for it However his curiosity was piqued.

aHow big is the program?a It takes ten Meg of disk s.p.a.ce,a the big one said.

Yeah, but how big's the executable, the main program file?a aAbout five Meg,a The Squirrel put in.

aWhat happens if you feed it the executable?a Jerry asked. aYou Know, let the program examine itself?a aWe didn't put any pictures in there,a Larry said. aNothing but code.a The Squirrel, however, looked puzzled. aHmm. I never thought of that. Let me try it and see.a aWe're running a show special,a Larry said as his companion began pounding the keyboard. aJust $199 for the basic package. Runs under 3.1, NT and Windows 95 anda a aJesus Christ! The Squirrel yelped. aHey, take a look at this!a Sales pitch forgotten, his partner rushed to join him at the screen. aWow,a Larry said reverently after a minute. aI mean I'd heard the expression, but I didn't think anyone could really do that.a Between their heads Jerry caught a glimpse of the screen and blanched. He didn't know if you could get busted for p.o.r.nography in Las Vegas, but what was on that screen had to violate some law and he didn't want to be around when the cops figured out which one. aCome on, folks,a he said to Bal-Simba and Moira, aI think it's time we moved on.a The rest of the day wasn't much more productive. People at one or two of the booths they visited had seen Taj the day before, but no one had seen him today. Jerry guessed he was visiting one of the other exhibit halls, but that didn't help much.

The fact was that they could spend the rest of the week at the show and never catch sight of E.T. Tajikawa. Jerry had known that before they came, but the physical reality of the place drove the point home like a pile driver. Not only was it too big, it was too spread out and too crazy. It was going to take either bund luck or a really clever piece of strategy if they were going to find him.

He explained all this to Bal-Simba and Moira on a snippet of lawn outside the exhibit hall. The late-afternoon sun was casting lengthening shadows over the lengthening lines of showgoers who were trying to get seats on a shuttle bus back to their hotels. The buses roared in and out of the rank constantly but still the lines grew.

aBasically, we're going to have one more shot to try to find him tonight,a Jerry told the pair. That's at this reception downtown.a He didn't say what they'd do if they didn't find Taj there and the others didn't ask.

aHow shall we get there?'

Jerry looked at the dragon and sighed. aI'm sorry but there's only one way. We'll have to walk again.a It was a hike of several miles and they took it slowly, resting every few blocks for Moira's sake. The sun sank, the shadows deepened and Las Vegas lit up for the night aThis is truly a wonderland,a Bal-Simba said at one of their rest stops, awed by the explosion of colored lights and rivers of traffic around them. aYour world is indeed a fantastic place.a aWell, this is fantastic even by the standards of our world,a Jerry said aLake I told you, Las Vegas is unique.a aIs it all like this? The town, I mean.a aOh no. Most parts of Las Vegas are really quite normal. It's supposed to be a pretty nice place to live, actually.a aWill we go there? The normal parts, I mean.a Jerry looked at the twenty-foot-dragon and the giant black wizard dressed like a 1970s pimp. aNooo, I don't think so.a It took them several hours to reach the Towne Centre a hotel in the older aGlitter Gulcha downtown casino district. By now it was full dark and so late Jerry was afraid they might miss the reception completely. An even bigger worry was Moira, who was obviously getting more and more run down. Even with more frequent rests she was nearly punchy by the time they reached the alley behind the hotel.

aWhy don't you wait out here?a Jerry suggested. Moira just nodded.

aPerhaps I had best stay too while you go inside,a Bal-Simba said.

Jerry considered. Anyone who found Moira by herself probably wouldn't ask questions. Bal-Simba, on the other hand, would be expected to answer them. While Jerry had he was much less sure of his ability to concoct a story that wouldn't get him hauled off to jail by Las Vegas' finest. Especially in the get-up he was wearing.

aI think you'd better come with me,a he said. aMoira, you stay here. No, over here next to the dumpsters. Stay out of that yellow painted area, otherwise they're likely to tow you away. If anyone comes by, just freeze like a statue. Pretend you're not alive. We'll try not to be too long.a Moira nodded and sank down in the s.p.a.ce beside the dumpsters.

Bal-Simba's size and appearance may have attracted attention, but it made it remarkably easy for them to get an elevator. In fact as soon as the door opened on the first car the four tourists in the front row took one look at them and bolted. The other pa.s.sengers pressed back against the walls, leaving them plenty of s.p.a.ce.

They paused just outside the elevators and Jerry briefed Bal-Simba on their mission.

aOkay, this is going to be a little tricky since we're not on the invite list. So we'll just have to fake our way in. Act like you belong, smile a lot and be noncommittal.a aWill they not know we do not belong?a aThey'll know we're not on the guest list, but they can't be sure we won't do them some good. We only need a few minutes to find out if Taj is here anyway. Follow my lead. And remember, smile a lot and say as little as you can.a Putting his advice into practice Jerry smiled at the people manning the table outside the door and picked up a press kit as if he was interested. Then they walked into a wall of noise.

If the show floor had been a madhouse, this was bedlam. Up on stage a lounge band was backing a female impersonator belting out torch songs. The place was packed, of course, and everyone seemed to be trying to talk over the band and each other. Along the walls four bars were going and a huge buffet table dominated the center of the room, complete with a melting ice sculpture of what was probably supposed to be an orchid. There were orchids everywhere. Clouds of them. Wreaths of them. Garlands of them. Orchids as boutonnieres, orchids as corsages. Orchids as centerpieces. And where there weren't orchids there were crepe streamers in orchid purple and white.

Jerry parked Bal-Simba by the bandstand and set out to work the room in search of Taj. Trying to look inconspicuous, he jammed into the crowd around one of the buffet tables and scarfed a handful of shrimp. The crab claws were already gone he saw, so the party had been going on for a while. Meanwhile he scanned the crowd, hoping to see Tajikawa, or at least a friendly face.

He couldn't see either and the more he looked the less likely it became. This wasn't the right kind of party. The ratio of suits to ponytails was way too high and there was hardly a laptop open anywhere.

He was still scanning, looking for technical types amid the noise and chaos, when a perfectly coifed woman in a blue suit slid in next to him.

The woman smiled brightly. aSnarf mafoozle gleeber justik,a she said.

aI beg your pardon?a She leaned closer and raised her voice to be heard over the din. aI said what did you think of the big announcement?a It occurred to Jerry that he was laboring under a severe disadvantage here. Not only didn't he know what the abig announcementa was, he'd never even heard of Mauve Technology. And hadn't the faintest idea whata" if anythinga"it made. He thought about opening the press kit and actually reading it but he discarded the notion instantly. For one thing the light was so poor he wouldn't be able to read anything and for another it would make him suspicious. He decided to play it safe.