Maertyn didn’t sense any special scrutiny from the others in the car, but when the train was less than a half hour from Semelin, he stood and walked from his seat to the facilities in the middle of the car. Once inside a stall, he eased the special stunner from his shoulder bag into his jacket pocket. The weapon, except for the standard power pack, was totally biologic in construction, and assembling it years earlier had proven both expensive and time-consuming. After finishing in the stall and then washing his hands and face, he returned to his seat to wait for the arrival in Semelin. He had no doubts that someone would be waiting for him. In fact, not finding someone awaiting would have been quite a surprise. Continuing to wear a lord’s colors certainly made Maertyn more obvious, but it also allowed him to discover who was after him—and the jacket and undervest offered more protection than could any more proletarian garb he could have obtained while in Caelaarn. Maertyn did not stand immediately as the tube-train glided to a halt at the platform at Semelin.
