Free Summoning Light by Babylon 5 Page A

something less pleasant." Galen got the impression Fed was speaking from experience. "You're staying in Room 244, with me. We're roommates. Your lifetime dream, I'm sure. My stuff's a little messy right now. Just ignore it; I'll clean it up later.
    "All the rooms are claustrophobia traps, so don't get your hopes up. If we keep to schedule, we should be out of here in two weeks. Any disputes should be brought immediately to a member of the Circle. I have to say that, because there have already been so many fights, things are getting pretty crazy. It's air-lock fever; it's the tension." Fed shrugged. "It's us."
    "Where is Elric?"
    Fed jerked a thumb toward the far end of the hangar. "If you go out that door, you'll find him in Room 288, down the hall to the right. The Circle has gathered there." He added, hesitantly, "I think they're examining Kell's body."
    Galen started down through the tall rows of supplies, his staff and breather in his right hand, valise in his left.
    Fed followed. "Is it true that Elizar and Razeel killed Kell?" His voice had grown softer.
    "Yes," Galen said.
    "You saw Kell?"
    "Yes."
    Fed bowed his head, uncharacteristically thoughtful. "Kell helped me once. With some trouble I was having. It was nothing major. It was pretty stupid, actually. But he took the time to talk to me." Fed was silent for a few seconds. Galen didn't think he'd ever seen Fed quiet, except when someone else was speaking. "When I saw Elric come out of that ship with a body, I felt – outrage, I guess is what it was. How could they do that?"
    Galen kept his voice neutral. "The same way they killed before."
    "Elizar always seemed to take that mage arrogance thing a little too seriously. And Razeel, she was just plain creepy."
    Galen wondered how Fed would categorize him.
    "How could they have overpowered Kell? And how could they have found out where we are? Kell resigned the Circle before those decisions were even made," Fed said.
    "I don't know."
    "A traitor?"
    Galen did not answer. They didn't have enough information.
    "We're going to have to move, aren't we? If they know we're gathering here, they could follow us to the hiding place."
    "I expect so." They had reached the far side of the hangar, and Galen stopped, hoping that perhaps Fed would return to his post.
    Fed glanced into the plain beige hall and seemed to force the crooked smile back onto his face. "I'm lobbying for someplace warmer and more comfortable for our next gathering place. A nice resort with a beach. A bunch of pale-skinned techno-mages in black robes would fit right in."
    Down the hall to the right, a large group of mages blocked the passage. Carvin stood out in her colorful Centauri silks, her head buried in her hands as she sobbed. Alwyn stood beside his former student, an arm over her shoulders, his jaw tight with anger. After Elric, they were the two mages he felt closest to. But Galen did not want to join them in their mourning.
    "Word travels pretty fast around here." Fed shrugged.
    Galen had no doubt Fed had been the one to start the news spreading. He had always been a conduit of gossip. Secrecy seemed to be a part of the Code with which he was unacquainted. "Which way is our room?"
    Fed nodded down the hall in the same direction as the crowd. "No way around them." Fed tilted his head. "Have you noticed, Galen? I can never get more than a sentence out of you."
    "I haven't much to say."
    "But I've never known someone more full of things to say." Fed's eyes were narrowed in humor, though they remained fixed on him, revealing a more serious intent. Perhaps Fed wanted more gossip to spread. Or perhaps Fed simply wanted to be his friend, to encourage him to unburden himself. Fed had always behaved as if they were good friends, though Galen felt they barely knew each other. He certainly didn't understand Fed. He didn't know how someone could become a mage with minimal discipline, no sense of mage history, and little respect for the Code. In any case, Galen had