Myth-Gotten Gains

Buirnie turned large, sympathetic emeralds toward her. "Well, little lady, I am sorry. This program that I'm working on boosts the self-esteem of thousands of would-be performers of many races. The needs of the many, you understand, outweigh the life of one, no matter how devoted, fan. How bad could prison food be? And torture—let me tell you about

torture! I have to listen to thousands of untrained singers just to find a few who can get up on stage and belt it out! I have another week here, then I go to Imper, then Zoorik, then Chimer, so, it was nice seeing all of you, but unless you want tickets, there's nothing more I can do for you."

"This is important!"

"So is this, little lady."

"To your ego, perhaps, mighty fife," Ersatz said.

The Flute let out a blast that made my teeth curl. "It's not just my ego! If you knew how many lives were being changed here, you wouldn't be so dismissive. Sure I get some ego-boo out of it. This is a battle for the fine arts, for the souls of these people. There's a harmonic convergence on the way that will join together force lines in six dimensions. Peace will flow among these races. It'll be the greatest thing to happen since...well, since never. Well, it was nice to see you. I hope it never happens again. Maybe by the time my tour ends you'll figure out some other way to rescue Calypsa's grandfather. Bye!"

I shook my head with a sigh. "You know the trouble with you, pal, is that you protest a lot, but you've got one big weakness." "What's that?"

"You're portable." I reached for him.

"No! Don't touch me!" He let out a tremendous shriek. The sound went right through my sensitive ear drums and into my brain, but I couldn't move my hands to protect my ears. Suddenly, the tune changed. One of my feet lifted and set down again. Then, the other one rose and fell. My arms developed their own personality, something they were channeling from an insane disco dancer. They waved and flailed as grace-lessly as drunks at a wedding, but that was nothing compared with what my feet were doing. Hop-hop-hop, slide, hop-hop-hop, slide, kick, kick. The music was irresistible. I couldn't stop moving.

"Aahz!" Tananda shouted, twirling like a Dervish in drag. "Do something!"

"I am," I growled, through gritted teeth. "I'm doing the Spanish Panic."

The obvious solution was to get Buirnie to stop playing. Fighting my disco-infected feet, I struggled to move toward him. I felt as though I was swimming upstream. The harder I fought to control myself, the more frenziedly I danced. Calypsa whirled and pirouetted around us like a ballet dancer caught in the spin cycle of a tumble dryer. I got within a couple of feet of the Flute, but I couldn't force myself any closer.

"Stop the music," I ordered Buirnie.

"No!" he said. The music continued even while he was talking. Evidently he was an expert at multi-tasking. "Not until you agree to go away and leave me alone. I'm happy here."

"Since when," Ersatz asked, jouncing along on Calypsa's back, "were you or any of us meant to be happy?"

"Well, I admit that I came to it late in life, old pal, but it's really nice. You should try it!"

"I have no intention of 'trying it.' My joy lies in service to others. You cannot keep these people dancing forever."

"Don't have to," Buirnie said. "My Trolls will throw you out into the street, and that'll be that."

"They're stuck in your musical spell, too," I pointed out. "If you let them go, we're free, too."

Buirnie looked past me. The two Trolls were slam-dancing. All around us, the stage hands had broken into a boogie. The Flute's personal assistants danced the hora in a circle in the wings.

"Oh," he said. "I forgot. Well, if you promise to go away, I'll stop playing."

'You made me a promise," Calypsa said. "You will come with me now."

'You can't make me, little lady," the Fife said, with smug satisfaction.

"I can!" Calypsa said, throwing back her head easily. Her feet flew. 'You do not trifle with the line of Calypso! Music will not stop me!"

With that, she began double-stepping the music, adding flourishes and twists. Her nostrils flared, and her hands rose over her head, fingers clicking together to the drum beat. She twirled from toe to toe, moving ever closer to Buirnie. She was dancing as I had never seen anyone dance before. I was so fascinated I forgot my feet were prisoners. Buirnie upped the tempo, driving her back, but Calypsa wasn't pushed far. She stayed right with him. When he piped staccato, she drummed her heels on the floor. When he whistled a tarantella, she kicked and frolicked along. He tried hot jazz. Her big eyes flashed as she leaped in the air and came down in a split, then bounded up again and rolled over backwards to come up on one foot like an ice skater. The Flute's jeweled eyes followed her, glowing with fascination. I was fascinated, too, but I wasn't about to show it. As far as I was concerned, I wanted him to think this was a walk in the park for Calypsa.