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"There are only two kinds of people," the deaf man said loudly. "The graced and the fallen.
We are warning to the fallen."
"Cutting them up's not enough," Glass said to a Wolf scout. "Had to take their shoes too.
Cruel I understand, but that's just mean."
The Moondaggers probably wanted to make sure we caught up to them, Valentine thought, just as the Wolf voiced the same sentiment.
"Webb ub uss," the tongueless man said.
"Let us pass," the blinded one said. "We've said our words. Let us pass."
"First tell me what happened," Valentine said.
"Did you not see?" the blind man asked, his voice cracking.
Ediyak wrote something on a sheet of paper and handed it to the deaf man. He read it and looked at Valentine.
"We surrendered. We followed every instruction. They made us cut down trees and smash our guns on the stumps. Then they bound us in a line, and that's when they started working on the cages," the deaf man said, loudly and a little off key. "They laughed as the fires started. I can still hear the laughter."
"Why did they pick you three?" Valentine added on to the end of Ediyak's note.
The deaf man took it and read. "We were chosen because we all knew the Kurian chatechism."
"What's that?" Tikka asked. "I never had much to do with the Church."
Brother Mark cleared his throat.
"Who are they?"
The wise old gods of our childhood.
"Where are they from?
Kur, the Interworld Tree's branch of Wisdom.
"When did they come?
In our darkest hour.
"Why did they come?
To guide mankind.
"How may we thank them?
With diligent obedience."
Brother Mark had tears in his eyes when he was done. He turned away.
"Your church gives orders for this kind of thing?" Tikka asked.
"Former church, daughter. Former. This most terrible sect of a misguided faith isn't spoken of much in the marble halls," he said. "But I fear they find them useful at times."
"Tikka, can you spare a rider to get these men home?" Valentine asked.
"I'll have to check with the veep," she said. "But the Mammoth have been friendly to us most of the time."
