Chapter Text
The hunt had a problem.
Nobody agreed on what they were hunting.
Flame thought Wemmbu was deliberately hiding.
Parrot thought Wemmbu had created a new identity.
LettuceK thought Wemmbu had simply abandoned everything and gone somewhere nobody had bothered searching.
Arachn1d thought Wemmbu would eventually come back for Egg.
Spoke thought the entire situation was too convenient.
The Null Commander thought Spoke was overthinking it.
Wifies thought everyone was making the same mistake.
And Remby?
Remby was currently lying face-down beneath a collapsed stone bridge, waiting for six armed players to walk past him.
He had been there for eleven minutes.
His cheek was pressed against dirt.
One arm was numb.
His sword was tucked beneath him.
His invisibility potion had nearly run out.
Above him, footsteps passed.
“Search underneath.”
Remby closed his eyes.
Fuck.
He had picked this ruin because nobody had used it in years.
Apparently somebody had started using it again.
The footsteps stopped.
A player leaned over the edge of the bridge.
Remby could see their boots.
“Nothing.”
“Check the other side.”
Another pair of boots appeared.
Remby slowly reached into his inventory.
Sword.
No.
Too loud.
Invisibility potion.
Maybe.
He pulled it out.
The player above suddenly spoke.
“Wait.”
Remby froze.
“There are tracks.”
Another player crouched.
“Where?”
“Here.”
Silence.
Then:
“They're fresh.”
Remby stared at the dirt.
His own footprints were visible.
He had forgotten to cover them.
“Could be anyone.”
“They lead under the bridge.”
Remby's fingers tightened around the potion.
One.
Two.
Three.
He drank.
His body vanished.
The player above jumped down.
Boots landed less than ten blocks away.
Remby held his breath.
The player walked toward him.
Five blocks.
Four.
Three.
Two.
Remby moved.
Slowly.
Silently.
The player stopped.
Remby stopped.
The player looked around.
Remby waited.
Then a voice came from above.
“Found something!”
The player immediately turned.
Remby went the opposite direction.
He crawled beneath the bridge, climbed the embankment, and disappeared into the trees.
Only when he was several hundred blocks away did he allow himself to stop.
He leaned against a tree.
Looked back.
Then laughed quietly.
“Okay.”
He pulled the hood farther over his head.
“This is getting annoying.”
He had no idea why people were suddenly searching this area.
He didn't know that the search party had not been looking for him.
Not specifically.
They had been looking for Wemmbu.
And that distinction was becoming increasingly useless.
Far away, Flame was having a much worse day.
“That's not him.”
Parrot looked at him.
“You've said that about every person we've seen.”
“Because none of them were him.”
“You've been wrong twice.”
“I was right eventually.”
“That is not how being right works.”
Flame ignored him.
They stood outside a ruined settlement.
A trail of footprints led through the mud.
Parrot crouched.
“Two people.”
“Three.”
Parrot looked closer.
“Two.”
“Third set is hidden.”
Parrot glanced sideways.
“You're irritating.”
“So I've been told.”
They followed the trail.
It led to a small abandoned building.
Inside were supplies.
Food.
Torches.
A bed.
Nothing unusual.
Parrot picked up a sword.
“Recent.”
Flame examined the blade.
“Not his.”
“How do you know?”
“Wemmbu hates this type.”
Parrot stared.
“You can identify someone based on their weapon preferences?”
“Can you?”
“No.”
“Then shut up.”
Parrot smiled.
“That's actually useful.”
Flame frowned.
“What?”
“You keep saying you know what Wemmbu would or wouldn't do.”
“Because I do.”
“So let's use that.”
Parrot walked around the room.
“If Wemmbu wanted to disappear, where would he go?”
“Somewhere nobody knows.”
“That's obvious.”
“Somewhere with enough resources.”
“Still obvious.”
“Somewhere he could fight if necessary.”
Parrot stopped.
“Now we're getting somewhere.”
Flame looked at the map.
“He wouldn't stay in one place.”
“No.”
“He wouldn't travel with anyone.”
“No.”
“He wouldn't trust a settlement.”
“No.”
“He'd probably avoid major roads.”
Parrot nodded.
“And he'd hate being predictable.”
Flame looked at him.
“So?”
Parrot pointed at the map.
“Then we stop looking for where Wemmbu would go.”
Flame's eyes narrowed.
“We look for where he'd think we'd never look.”
“Exactly.”
Flame smiled.
“That sounds like him.”
Parrot smiled back.
“Unfortunately.”
They turned toward the wilderness.
Neither noticed the tiny piece of black cloth caught beneath the ruined building's doorway.
It had been torn from Remby's cloak two days earlier.
It meant nothing.
At least, not yet.
Elsewhere, Spoke was having a very different conversation.
The Null Commander stood beside him as they looked over a map spread across a table.
Several areas had already been marked.
Old battlefields.
Abandoned bases.
Former territories.
Roads.
Settlements.
Places where Wemmbu had previously disappeared.
The Null Commander tapped one of the markings.
“You're wasting your time.”
Spoke didn't look up.
“Which part?”
“All of it.”
“That narrows it down.”
The Null Commander pointed at the map.
“We don't know where he went.”
“We know where he didn't go.”
“That's the same thing.”
“No.”
Spoke moved a marker.
“He didn't return to the Kingdom.”
“Probably because Arachn1d wants him dead.”
“Arachn1d wants him back.”
“Same difference.”
“Not to Wemmbu.”
The Null Commander folded his arms.
Spoke moved another marker.
“He didn't go directly to the main server.”
“You don't know that.”
“If he had, someone would have seen him.”
“Unless he used invisibility.”
Spoke paused.
Then looked at him.
“Exactly.”
The Null Commander frowned.
“You think he has changed how he moves.”
“I think we're making the mistake of assuming he hasn't.”
Spoke tapped the map.
“Everyone is searching for the Wemmbu we know.”
The Null Commander glanced at him.
“And you think that isn't who we're looking for anymore.”
“Maybe.”
“That sounds suspiciously like a theory.”
“It is.”
Spoke leaned back.
“But look at the evidence.”
He pointed toward the western territories.
“No confirmed death.”
Then the old roads.
“No confirmed destination.”
Then the abandoned settlements.
“No sightings that actually match him.”
The Null Commander stared at the map.
“Except Remby.”
Spoke went quiet.
That name had only recently entered the reports.
A traveler.
Dark armor.
Sword.
Alone.
Avoiding settlements.
Appearing near roads Wemmbu had once used.
Then disappearing whenever anyone approached.
The Null Commander noticed the silence.
“You've been thinking about him.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Spoke looked down at the map.
“Because everyone keeps treating Remby as a separate problem.”
“And?”
“And I don't think he is.”
The Null Commander frowned.
“You think Remby is Wemmbu?”
“I think that's possible.”
“That's a big difference.”
“I know.”
“You have proof?”
“No.”
“Then why are we wasting time?”
Spoke smiled faintly.
“Because Wemmbu has done this before.”
The Null Commander knew exactly what he meant.
Invisible Knight.
A false identity.
Different armor.
Different name.
Same person.
“He could do it again.”
“Yes.”
“And if he did?”
Spoke gathered the map.
“Then searching for Wemmbu is pointless.”
The Null Commander stared at him.
“What do we search for?”
Spoke looked toward the door.
“Remby.”
The Null Commander sighed.
“I already hate him.”
“You've never met him.”
“Exactly.”
Spoke walked out.
The Null Commander followed.
Their search had just changed.
They weren't going to search for where Wemmbu would go.
They were going to search for where a person pretending not to be Wemmbu would go.
And that was a much larger problem.
Meanwhile, Wifies had found a different problem.
He was sitting in front of a stack of old records.
The identity-changing item wasn't supposed to be easy to track.
That was the point.
But there were logs.
Not names.
Not faces.
Usage records.
Time stamps.
Locations.
And one thing had immediately caught his attention.
The item didn't create a new identity.
It changed the displayed one.
That meant a person could switch between names whenever they wanted.
Wifies leaned back.
“So whoever Remby is…”
He looked at the record.
“…could still become someone else.”
He frowned.
Then checked the records again.
Nothing.
No recent activation.
That made no sense.
If Remby was using one of these items, there should have been some trace.
Unless—
Wifies sat upright.
“Unless the item isn't registered.”
He grabbed his coat.
He needed someone who knew more about old systems.
Unfortunately, finding that person was easier said than done.
He eventually found MinuteTech.
Unfortunately, MinuteTech was currently arguing with ClownPierce.
“You cannot just take my map.”
“I can.”
“You literally stole it.”
“Borrowed.”
“You have had it for three days.”
“Long borrowing.”
MinuteTech snatched it back.
Clown laughed.
Wifies walked into the room.
“I need help.”
Clown turned.
“With what?”
“Identity systems.”
Clown's smile widened.
“Oh, this should be good.”
MinuteTech looked at Wifies.
“What did you find?”
“Someone is using a display-name-changing item.”
“Remby?”
“Maybe.”
Clown leaned against the table.
“You think Remby is Wemmbu.”
“I think Remby is someone who doesn't want to be recognized.”
Clown grinned.
“That's not the same thing.”
“No.”
Wifies pointed at the records.
“But the behavior is interesting.”
MinuteTech read them.
Then looked up.
“There's no activation record.”
“Exactly.”
Clown folded his arms.
“So?”
“So either the item isn't registered…”
Wifies paused.
“…or someone is using an older version.”
MinuteTech's expression changed.
“That's possible.”
“Very possible?”
“Unfortunately.”
Clown laughed.
“So we're chasing a ghost with a fake name.”
Wifies looked at him.
“Basically.”
Clown's grin widened.
“I'm interested.”
Wifies immediately regretted coming here.
Back in the wilderness, Remby had discovered a lake.
It was enormous.
Clear water stretched between cliffs, reflecting the sky.
He stood at the shore for several minutes.
Nobody was around.
No roads.
No buildings.
No search parties.
No one asking his name.
Perfect.
He dropped his bag beside a tree.
Then jumped into the water.
For the next hour, he forgot about the hunt entirely.
He swam.
Explored underwater ruins.
Found an old structure half buried beneath the lake.
There were markings carved into the walls.
He couldn't understand most of them.
One symbol, however, was familiar.
Remby stared at it.
Then frowned.
He knew the history.
He knew who had built the structure.
He knew why it had been abandoned.
He shouldn't.
He realized that several seconds too late.
A voice came from behind him.
“You know what that means?”
Remby spun around.
A player stood on the shore.
Remby immediately reached for his sword.
The player raised both hands.
“Whoa.”
Remby stared.
“Who are you?”
“Wato.”
Remby's grip tightened.
He knew that name.
Of course he did.
Wato had been around before.
Remby had met him.
That made this worse.
Wato looked at him.
“You're the guy people have been talking about.”
Remby said nothing.
“Remby, right?”
“Yes.”
“You know what this place is?”
“No.”
The lie came too quickly.
Wato noticed.
Remby noticed him noticing.
Neither said anything.
Wato looked back toward the ruins.
“Funny.”
“What?”
“You looked pretty confident for someone who doesn't know.”
Remby shrugged.
“Lucky guess.”
Wato laughed.
“Sure.”
Remby picked up his bag.
“I've got to go.”
“Why?”
“Because I don't like questions.”
“That makes two of us.”
Remby started walking.
Wato watched him.
“Hey.”
Remby stopped.
“You fight like someone I know.”
Remby looked over his shoulder.
“Lots of people fight.”
“Not like that.”
Remby stared at him for a moment.
Then drank an invisibility potion.
Wato blinked.
“Seriously?”
Remby disappeared.
Wato laughed.
“Okay.”
He looked toward the empty path.
“Definitely weird.”
He didn't follow.
But he remembered.
And that would matter later.
Back in the Kingdom of the Caves, Egg had finally had enough.
He kicked the bars of his room.
“Arachn1d!”
No answer.
He kicked them again.
“Arachn1d!”
The door opened.
Arachn1d stepped inside.
“What?”
“I'm leaving.”
Arachn1d smiled.
“No.”
Egg stared at him.
“You moved me closer to the surface.”
“Yes.”
“You've been telling everyone I'm alive.”
“Yes.”
“You're using me to lure him back.”
“Yes.”
Egg's expression hardened.
“And now you're surprised I'm angry?”
“I expected it.”
“Then why are you smiling?”
“Because it is working.”
Egg went silent.
Arachn1d placed a hand against the door.
“Reports are coming from the west.”
Egg's stomach dropped.
“Reports of what?”
“A traveler.”
“What traveler?”
“Remby.”
Egg stared at him.
For the first time, Arachn1d noticed something change in Egg's expression.
Recognition.
Not certainty.
Something worse.
Understanding.
“You know that name.”
Egg slowly looked away.
“No.”
Arachn1d smiled.
“You're lying.”
Egg said nothing.
Arachn1d stepped closer.
“Who is Remby?”
Egg looked back at him.
“Someone you shouldn't find.”
Arachn1d's smile disappeared.
“Why?”
“Because if you do…”
Egg paused.
“…you'll ruin the one thing Wemmbu actually wanted.”
Arachn1d went completely still.
He had heard the name.
Not from the traveler.
From Egg.
Wemmbu.
Egg had said it without saying it.
Arachn1d turned toward the door.
“Double the search.”
Egg closed his eyes.
“Fuck.”
He had just made everything worse.
Far away, Remby was running.
He didn't know that Wato had reported the encounter.
He didn't know that Egg had almost exposed the connection.
He didn't know that Flame and Parrot had begun searching based on behavior rather than location.
He didn't know Spoke and the Null Commander had started searching for Remby instead of Wemmbu.
He didn't know Wifies had discovered the possibility of an unregistered identity item.
He didn't know Arachn1d had finally realized that Remby might not be random.
He only knew that someone had spotted him again.
And that was enough.
Remby reached the top of a hill.
Below him was another settlement.
Bigger than the last.
Too big.
He pulled out an invisibility potion.
Then stopped.
He looked at the settlement.
Looked at the potion.
Then put it away.
“No.”
He was tired of hiding.
He walked down.
Halfway there, someone spotted him.
“Hey!”
Remby kept walking.
“Remby!”
He stopped.
Three players approached.
One pointed.
“That’s him.”
Remby stared.
“Who?”
“You.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
Remby looked around.
“There’s nobody else here.”
The player hesitated.
“Can you come with us?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because you asked.”
The player frowned.
“That doesn't make sense.”
“It makes perfect sense.”
The other two exchanged a glance.
One stepped forward.
“We just want to talk.”
Remby's hand drifted toward his sword.
“Then talk.”
“We heard you're traveling near the old Wemmbu routes.”
Remby went still.
The players didn't notice.
“You know anything about him?”
“No.”
“Have you met him?”
“No.”
“Ever?”
“No.”
One player squinted.
“You're acting weird.”
Remby smiled.
“You're asking weird questions.”
The player reached for their weapon.
Remby's sword was already out.
“Don't.”
The player stopped.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then another voice shouted from behind them.
“Remby!”
Everyone turned.
More people.
Remby's eyes widened.
Five.
Then seven.
Then—
“Fuck this.”
He threw an invisibility potion at his feet.
The world vanished around him.
Someone shouted.
“HE'S GONE!”
Remby ran.
He sprinted through the settlement, jumped a wall, cut across a rooftop, dropped into an alley, climbed another wall, and disappeared into the wilderness.
Behind him, chaos erupted.
“WHERE DID HE GO?”
“CHECK THE ROOFS!”
“HE WENT EAST!”
“No, west!”
“WHO SAW HIM LAST?”
“YOU DID!”
“I SAW HIM FIRST!”
Remby kept running.
He was laughing now.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was completely fucking ridiculous.
He had wanted to become nobody.
Instead, he'd somehow become a mystery.
And somewhere behind him, people were already arguing over what kind of mystery he was.
Remby slowed only when the voices disappeared.
He leaned against a tree.
Pulled out the identity item.
The name REMBY glowed beneath his fingers.
He stared at it.
Then smiled.
“Still nobody.”
He put it away.
Behind him, six different theories were being born.
And none of them were completely wrong.
Remby stayed against the tree for another minute.
The settlement behind him was still loud.
Even from this distance, he could hear people shouting.
Someone had apparently decided that he had gone east.
Someone else was insisting he had gone west.
A third person was apparently blaming the first two.
Remby smiled.
“Idiots.”
He pushed away from the tree.
Then immediately stopped.
A voice came from somewhere above him.
“Are you talking to yourself?”
Remby looked up.
A player was sitting on a branch.
His stomach dropped.
Ferre.
Remby knew that face.
He knew the voice, too.
He had fought Ferre before. Talked to him before. Seen him around the server enough times that recognizing him wasn't even a question.
Which meant this was bad.
Very bad.
Ferre looked down at him.
“You're the Remby guy.”
Remby forced his expression to stay neutral.
“Who?”
Ferre laughed.
“Remby.”
“Oh.”
“You know your own name, right?”
“Obviously.”
Ferre jumped down from the branch.
Remby's hand immediately moved toward his sword.
Ferre noticed.
“Relax.”
“No.”
“Fair.”
Ferre looked him over.
Remby knew exactly what he was looking for.
Face.
Armor.
Weapon.
Posture.
Anything familiar.
Remby shifted his stance slightly.
Ferre's eyes narrowed.
“You're weird.”
“So I've been told.”
“Have we met?”
Remby's heart skipped.
He kept his face blank.
“No.”
Ferre stared at him.
Remby stared back.
The silence stretched.
Then Ferre smiled.
“You sure?”
“Yes.”
“Because you look familiar.”
“Lots of people look familiar.”
“Not like that.”
Remby shrugged.
“Maybe you're confused.”
Ferre stepped closer.
Remby resisted the urge to step back.
“You know what?”
“What?”
“I don't think you're telling me everything.”
“That's because I don't tell strangers everything.”
Ferre laughed.
“Strangers?”
Remby realized his mistake.
He knew Ferre.
Ferre didn't know that Remby knew him.
He quickly corrected himself.
“People I don't know well.”
Ferre tilted his head.
“Right.”
Remby could practically see the suspicion forming.
He needed to leave.
Immediately.
He reached for his invisibility potion.
Ferre noticed.
“You're going to do that again?”
“Do what?”
“Disappear.”
Remby pulled the bottle.
Ferre laughed.
“You really don't like people.”
“No.”
“Fair enough.”
Remby drank.
He vanished.
Ferre stared at the empty space.
Then laughed under his breath.
“You're definitely weird.”
Remby walked away.
He didn't look back.
He waited until he was several hundred blocks away before removing the potion effect.
His heart was still beating too fast.
Ferre recognizing him hadn't happened.
Not really.
But Ferre had noticed something.
And that was enough.
Remby pulled his hood farther over his head.
“This is getting annoying.”
He continued north.
He had made a decision.
No more settlements.
No more roads.
No more talking to people.
He would stay in the wilderness.
That would be easier.
It lasted four hours.
Then he found a house.
It wasn't abandoned.
Smoke rose from a chimney.
Remby stopped.
“No.”
He kept walking.
Ten minutes later, he turned around.
He stared at the house.
Then at the wilderness behind him.
Then back at the house.
He was hungry.
He had food.
He knew that.
He simply wanted something warm.
That was all.
He approached.
Knocked.
Nothing.
He knocked again.
The door opened.
Lomedy stood there.
Remby froze.
Lomedy stared.
Neither spoke.
Then Lomedy looked at the sword.
Then the armor.
Then the hood.
Then back at Remby's face.
“...Remby?”
“Yes.”
Lomedy squinted.
“You're the guy everyone is looking for.”
“No.”
“You are.”
“No.”
“You're literally wearing the same armor description.”
“A lot of people wear armor.”
“Not like that.”
Remby sighed.
“I just want food.”
Lomedy stared at him.
Then grinned.
“Sure.”
Remby immediately became suspicious.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Why are you smiling?”
“Because you're funny.”
“I haven't said anything funny.”
“You don't have to.”
Remby should have left.
He knew that.
Instead, he stepped inside.
Lomedy handed him food.
Remby ate.
Lomedy watched.
Remby looked up.
“Stop.”
“What?”
“Watching me.”
“I live here.”
“Then look somewhere else.”
Lomedy laughed.
Remby kept eating.
After a few minutes, Lomedy spoke again.
“So.”
“No.”
“I didn't ask anything.”
“You were going to.”
“Maybe.”
Remby finished eating.
“Thanks.”
He stood.
Lomedy leaned against the table.
“You fight well.”
Remby stopped.
“Thanks.”
“You use a sword differently than most people.”
Remby looked at him.
Lomedy smiled.
“It's almost like you've spent your whole life fighting people stronger than you.”
Remby said nothing.
Lomedy's smile grew.
“Interesting.”
Remby walked toward the door.
“Bye.”
“Wait.”
Remby stopped.
Lomedy tossed him an apple.
Remby caught it.
“Why?”
“Because you look like you need it.”
Remby stared at the apple.
Then at Lomedy.
“Thanks.”
He left.
Lomedy watched the door close.
His smile slowly disappeared.
“That was weird.”
He looked at the empty chair.
Then at the door.
“Really fucking weird.”
He pulled out a communicator.
He hesitated.
Then put it away.
“No.”
Lomedy smiled again.
“I want to see where this goes.”
Several hundred blocks away, Flame slammed a sword onto a table.
“He's alive.”
Parrot looked up.
“We don't know that.”
“He's alive.”
“You're basing that on what?”
Flame pointed at the map.
“Nothing.”
Parrot stared at him.
“Nothing?”
“Yes.”
“That isn't evidence.”
“I know.”
Flame leaned over the map.
“But if he was dead, something would've happened.”
Parrot frowned.
“What?”
“Wemmbu doesn't disappear quietly.”
“He literally disappeared.”
“Exactly.”
Parrot rubbed his forehead.
“That's not helping.”
Flame looked toward the window.
“He's hiding.”
Parrot was silent.
Then:
“Remby.”
Flame turned.
“What?”
“Remby.”
“You think he's Wemmbu?”
“I think it's possible.”
Flame scoffed.
“Possible isn't enough.”
“No.”
Parrot pulled out a piece of paper.
“But we have something.”
He placed it on the table.
A description.
Dark armor.
Sword.
Travels alone.
Avoids settlements.
Disappears when approached.
Flame read it.
Then laughed.
“That's not enough.”
“No.”
“Anyone could do that.”
“Yes.”
Parrot tapped the page.
“But he was seen near three locations Wemmbu used before.”
Flame stopped laughing.
“Which ones?”
Parrot showed him.
Flame stared.
Those weren't random.
They were places Wemmbu had used when he didn't want people following him.
Parrot watched his expression.
“You see it.”
Flame nodded slowly.
“Maybe.”
“That's all?”
Flame looked up.
“Get moving.”
Parrot sighed.
“This is going to be awful.”
“Yes.”
They left.
Neither of them knew that Ferre had already encountered Remby.
And Ferre was beginning to wonder why the mysterious traveler had reacted to his presence like someone who already knew him.
Elsewhere, Spoke was having a very different conversation.
The Null Commander stood beside him as they looked over a map spread across a table.
Several areas had already been marked.
Old battlefields.
Abandoned bases.
Former territories.
Roads.
Settlements.
Places where Wemmbu had previously disappeared.
The Null Commander tapped one of the markings.
“You're wasting your time.”
Spoke didn't look up.
“Which part?”
“All of it.”
“That narrows it down.”
The Null Commander pointed at the map.
“We don't know where he went.”
“We know where he didn't go.”
“That's the same thing.”
“No.”
Spoke moved a marker.
“He didn't return to the Kingdom.”
“Probably because Arachn1d wants him dead.”
“Arachn1d wants him back.”
“Same difference.”
“Not to Wemmbu.”
The Null Commander folded his arms.
Spoke moved another marker.
“He didn't go directly to the main server.”
“You don't know that.”
“If he had, someone would have seen him.”
“Unless he used invisibility.”
Spoke paused.
Then looked at him.
“Exactly.”
The Null Commander frowned.
“You think he has changed how he moves.”
“I think we're making the mistake of assuming he hasn't.”
Spoke tapped the map.
“Everyone is searching for the Wemmbu we know.”
The Null Commander glanced at him.
“And you think that isn't who we're looking for anymore.”
“Maybe.”
“That sounds suspiciously like a theory.”
“It is.”
Spoke leaned back.
“But look at the evidence.”
He pointed toward the western territories.
“No confirmed death.”
Then the old roads.
“No confirmed destination.”
Then the abandoned settlements.
“No sightings that actually match him.”
The Null Commander stared at the map.
“Except Remby.”
Spoke went quiet.
That name had only recently entered the reports.
A traveler.
Dark armor.
Sword.
Alone.
Avoiding settlements.
Appearing near roads Wemmbu had once used.
Then disappearing whenever anyone approached.
The Null Commander noticed the silence.
“You've been thinking about him.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Spoke looked down at the map.
“Because everyone keeps treating Remby as a separate problem.”
“And?”
“And I don't think he is.”
The Null Commander frowned.
“You think Remby is Wemmbu?”
“I think that's possible.”
“That's a big difference.”
“I know.”
“You have proof?”
“No.”
Spoke smiled faintly.
Their search had just changed.
They weren't going to search for where Wemmbu would go.
They were going to search for where a person pretending not to be Wemmbu would go.
And that was a much larger problem.