Into the Void

Even when Ria

Ria

Teldin's own situation was different, too. Once it was established that Ria

As the days passed, there was no way he could keep his new face hidden. At first, crew members had shown surprise over the "new man" aboard the Probe, but his own voice-which he was still incapable of disguising-quickly gave away his true identity. The crew's reaction to this had surprised him deeply. He'd expected that people would question him, but that simply never happened. Instead, the crew just shrugged and seemed to write it off as another magical eccentricity of the "fighter-mage" in their midst. He learned that Estriss, as captain, had quietly passed the word that no crew member was to tell Ria

Teldin made no effort to speak to Ria

So, for the first five days after her arrival on board, Teldin saw Ria

There was no way that could continue, of course. On the sixth day after the Probe had encountered the Mosquito, Teldin found himself unable to sleep. As he usually did on occasions such as this, he went to the officers' saloon.

When he opened the door, he saw that Ria

Ria

Teldin hesitated. There was no way he could leave now without being unforgivably rude…. Plus he had to admit that he found the tall blonde very attractive, and the chance to talk to her alone wasn't something to pass up lightly.

His hesitation was long enough for Ria

Quickly he stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. "No," he answered, "I'd like to." He took the chair she had indicated. It was close to her, close enough for him to notice a subtle aroma. Some kind of musky perfume? None of the other women aboard wore scent. Or was it just her natural fragrance? He sat in the chair a little stiffly, then forced himself to relax. For the first time, he had the opportunity to study the woman from close up. At this range, it was possible to be a little more critical. Taken individually, her features weren't as perfect as they appeared from a distance. Her mouth, for example, was a little large for her face, filled with white teeth. When she smiled, her upper lip pulled back to display a line of pink gum. Her jawline was hard, giving her a "stubborn" chin.

But that was nit-picking. When he looked into Ria

He'd never been good at judging women's ages-and that fact had gotten him into minor trouble on occasion. Ria

If Ria

"My name is Aldyn Brewer," Teldin told her, a name that Estriss had suggested he use. Its rhythm was much die same as his real name, as were the sounds of its individual syllables. The illithid had reasoned that Teldin would be better able to remember-and respond to-a name with a cadence similar to his own.

"Aldyn Brewer," Ria

"No," Teldin answered honestly. "I often come here to relax."

"To be alone with the stars," Ria

"Sometimes," he replied, "but I enjoy conversation, too."

She chuckled throatily. "Well spoken. What kind of conversation would you enjoy now?"

He shrugged, returning her smile. "Any that you'd care to give me."

"Ah-" she laughed "-the give and take of witty repartee. All right, then. Where do you hail from, Aldyn Brewer?"

Teldin's stomach went cold. He had a false name, but no false story to go with it. He desperately searched his memory. "From Wayspace," he said, clutching at the name of a crystal shell that Aelfred had mentioned visiting. "From Waypoint," he said, naming what he thought he recalled being the major world in that sphere. When she nodded, he asked, with a sinking feeling, "Do you know it?"

She shook her head. "Know it, no," she answered. "Know of it, yes. I've heard the name, but I don't know much about it. Tell me about your life on Waypoint, Aldyn."

"It's not that interesting," Teldin mumbled uncomfortably.

Ria