Deathstalker 03 - Deathstalker War

stabilize him, but there's no telling how long that will last. In the end, there's no substitute for time and rest."
    Finlay nodded his thanks and started forward. The doll put up a hand to stop him. "One more thing. The tests revealed that Mr. Skye is an esper. He must not use his abilities. One short use on the way here was apparently enough to cause serious damage to the brain tissues. Further use would almost certainly kill him."
    Finlay waited a moment, to make sure she'd finished, then moved forward again, Evangeline at his side. The other nurse doll smiled as they approached the bed and moved away to give them some privacy with the patient. Julian smiled up at Finlay, and then briefly at Evangeline. He was still pale, but color was beginning to come back into his cheeks, and his gaze and his mouth were firm.
    Finlay didn't smile back.
    "You lied to me. You told me the underground medics gave you a clean bill of health."
    Julian's shoulders moved in something that might have been meant as a shrug. "If I'd told you the truth, you wouldn't have let me come on this mission."
    "What's so important about this mission?" snapped Finlay. "There would have been other things we could have worked on together."
    "This one was special. Vital to the rebellion. I didn't want to be left behind.
    I owe you."

    "You don't owe me anything!"
    "That's my decision to make, not yours. I thought I was fit enough. Turns out I was wrong. But I'm here now. And I'm feeling a lot better."
    "You're staying right here," said Finlay. "In Toystown. They'll look after you till we get back."
    "Nice try. But I can't stay here. When word gets to the bad toys that there's a human in Toystown again, they'll trash this place from one end to the other to get at me. I don't want any dead toys on my conscience."
    "Dammit, I can't take you with us!" said Finlay, knowing he was raising his voice and not giving a damn. "You'd be a liability to the mission!"
    "I can pull my weight," said Julian coldly. "I was running missions for the underground when you were still a pampered aristo."
    "You can't use your esp!" said Finlay. "The nurses say it'll kill you."
    "And what the hell do a couple of dolls know about espers? Odds are they've never even seen one before. No, I'm going with you. Get used to the idea."
    Finlay looked like he was about to explode. Evangeline squeezed his hand hard to remind him she was still there. "He's right in one thing, Finlay; we can't leave him here. Not if it would leave Toystown at risk. So it looks like we won't be breaking up the winning team after all."
    Finlay sighed and shook his head. "Doomed. We're all doomed."
    The River lay half a mile outside Toystown's northern boundary. The toys called it the River, because it was the only one in all the world. It meandered through the hills and valleys, branching here and there, but always coming back to itself. It began and ended in the great Forest, in the center of the world that Shannon made. It was wide and deep and dark, and composed of a popular soft
    drink, sweet and heady and very refreshing. The humans had to try it, but the novelty wore off very quickly.
    The six humans had gathered together on the River-bank, studying the transport the toys had provided to take them to Vincent Harker. Evening had fallen, but the light from a long string of paper lanterns was more than enough to illuminate the full-sized, steam-driven paddle steamer. It was fifty feet long, perfect in every detail, and, as always, painted in bright primary colors. Toby was beginning to wish he'd brought sunglasses. The paddle wheels were intimidatingly huge, and looked more than solid and strong enough to last the journey. Most things in Shannon's World were built for show rather than function, but this was the real thing.
    Bruin Bear and the Sea Goat were right there with the humans. Finlay had tried halfheartedly to talk them out of it, but in the end none of them had the heart to say no. He was, after all, Bruin Bear. The Sea Goat they could live with.
    "This is the good ship Merry Mrs. Trusspot," said Bruin Bear. "And no, we didn't name her that. Humans did. Some day I hope to find the human who did it, pin him to a wall, and ask him why in a very determined tone. Like everyone else, the ship is self-aware, but she doesn't say much. She's deeply philosophical, thinks furiously on any subject you can name, and hates being interrupted from her deep and significant musings. Toys used to come and ask her