"You talk of disaster from Mundania; I fear the disaster of the perversion of our culture. I must oppose you, in whatever way I can."
Trent seemed perplexed. "I don't believe you can oppose me, Bink. Whatever your strong magic is, it has never manifested tangibly. The moment you acted against me, I should have to transform you. I don't want to do that."
"You have to get within six feet," Bink said. "I could strike you down with a thrown rock."
"See?" Iris said. "He's within range now, Trent. Zap him!"
Yet the Magician desisted. "You actually wish to fight me, Bink? Directly, physically?"
"I don't wish to. I have to."
Trent sighed. "Then the only honorable thing to do is to terminate our truce with a formal duel. I suggest we define the locale of combat and the terms. Do you wish a second?"
"A second, a minute, an hour-whatever it takes," Bink said. He tried to quell the shaking he felt in his legs; he was afraid, and knew he was being a fool, yet he could not back down.
"I meant another person to back you up, to see that the terms are honored. Chameleon, perhaps."
"I'm with Bink!" Chameleon said immediately. She could comprehend only a fraction of the situation, but there was no question of her loyalty.
"Well, perhaps the concept of seconds is foreign here," Trent said. "Suppose we establish an area along the wilderness border, a mile deep into the forest and a mile across. One square mile, approximately, or as far as a man might walk in fifteen minutes. And it shall be until dark today. Neither of us shall leave this area until that time, and if the issue is undecided by then, we shall declare the contest null and separate in peace. Fair enough?"
The Evil Magician seemed so reasonable-and that made Bink unreasonable. "To the death!" he said-and immediately wished he hadn't. He knew the Magician would not kill him unless he were forced to; he would transform Bink into a tree or other harmless form of life and let him be. First there had been Justin Tree; now there would be Bink Tree. Perhaps people would come to rest under his shade, to have picnic lunches, to make love. Except that now it had to be death. He had a vision of a fallen tree.
"To the death," Trent said sadly. "Or surrender." Thus he nearly abated Bink's exaggeration without hurting his pride; he made it seem as if the Magician arranged the loophole for himself, not for Bink. How was it possible for a man so wrong to seem so right?
"All right," Bink said. "You go south, I'll go north, into the forest. In five minutes we'll stop and turn and start."
"Fair enough," the Magician agreed. He held out his hand again, and Bink shook it.
"You should get out of the duel zone," Bink told Chameleon.
"No! I'm with you," she insisted. She might be stupid, but she was loyal. Bink could no more blame her for that than he could blame Trent for pursuing power. Yet he had to dissuade her.
"It wouldn't be fair," he said, realizing that it would be futile to try to scare her by thought of the consequences. "Two against one. You have to go."
She was adamant. "I'm too dumb to go by myself." Ouch! How true.
"Let her go with you," Trent said. "It really will make no difference."
And that seemed logical.
Bink and Chameleon set out, angling into the jungle to the northwest. Trent angled southwest. In moments the Magician was out of sight. "We'll have to figure out a plan of attack," Bink said. "Trent has been a perfect gentleman, but the truce is over, and he will use his power against us. We have to get him before he gets us,"
"Yes."
"We'll have to collect stones and sticks, and maybe dig a pit for a deadfall."
"Yes."
"We have to prevent him from getting close enough to use his power of transformation."
"Yes."
"Don't just say yes!" he snapped. "This is serious business. Our lives are at stake."
"I'm sorry. I know I'm awful dumb right now."
Bink was immediately sorry. Of course she was stupid now-that was her curse. And he might be exaggerating the case; Trent might simply avoid the issue by departing, making no fight at all. Thus Bink would have made his stand, and have a moral victory-and have changed nothing. If so, Bink was the dumb one.
He turned to Chameleon to apologize-and rediscovered the fact that she was radiantly beautiful. She had seemed lovely before, in comparison with Fanchon and Dee, but now she was as he had first met her, as Wynne. Had it really been only a month ago? Now she was no stranger, though. "You're great just the way you are, Chameleon."
"But I can't help you plan. I can't do anything. You don't like stupid people."
"I like beautiful girls," he said. "And I like smart girls. But I don't trust the combination. I'd settle for an ordinary girl, except she'd get dull after a while. Sometimes I want to talk with someone intelligent, and sometimes I want to-" He broke off. Her mind was like that of a child; it really wasn't right to impose such concepts on her.
"What?" she asked, turning her eyes upon him. They had been black in her last beauty phase; now they were dark green. They could have been any color, and she would still be lovely.
Bink knew his chances of surviving the day were less than even, and his chances of saving Xanth worse than that. He was afraid-but he also had a heightened awareness of life right now. And of loyalty. And of beauty. Why hide what was suddenly in his conscious mind, however long it had developed subconsciously? "To make love," he concluded.
"That I can do," she said, her eyes brightening with comprehension. How well she understood, or on what level, Bink hesitated to ponder.
Then he was kissing her. It was wonderful.
"But, Bink;" she said, when she had a chance. "I won't stay beautiful."
"That's the point," he said. "I like variety. I would have trouble living with a stupid girl all the time-but you aren't stupid all the time. Ugliness is no good for all the time-but you aren't ugly all the time either. You are-variety. And that is what I crave for the long-term relationship-and what no other girl can provide."
"I need a spell-" she said.
"No! You don't need any spell, Chameleon. You're fine just the way you are. I love you."
"Oh, Bink!" she said.
After that they forgot about the duel.
Reality intruded all too soon. "There you are!" Iris exclaimed, appearing over their makeshift bower. "Tut-tut! What have you two been doing?"
Chameleon hastily adjusted her dress. "Something you wouldn't understand," she said with purely female insight.
"No? It hardly matters. Sex is unimportant." The Sorceress put her hands to her mouth in a megaphone gesture. "Trent! They're over here."
Bink dived for her-and passed through her image cleanly. He took a tumble on the forest floor. "Silly boy," Iris said. "You can't touch me."
Now they heard the Evil Magician coming through the forest. Bink looked frantically for some weapon, but saw only the great boles of the trees. Sharp stones might have been used against these trees-therefore all stones had been magically eliminated. Some other area might have potential weapons, but not this highly competitive wilderness, this fringe near the farms that were always in need of more cleared land.
"I have ruined you!' Chameleon cried. "I knew I shouldn't have-"