Chapter 36

He hadn't wanted to ask the question, didn't even know where it came from--he knew what he was--and now that the question was out there, Wil thought he'd give just about anything to not have to hear the answer.

Millard's smile slipped into melancholy, and he peered at Wil with unhappy compassion. "You are the badger, fierce when cornered, snapping razor teeth, but you must mind where you strike." Wil gasped, a spangling little shudder rippling down his backbone. "You are the crow, flying too fast to see the dangers of clear panes of glass until you find yourself broken-winged and broken-necked in your haste to find the things you think you want but do not need. You are the chimera, the Father's Gift, and your time runs short." He reached out, touched Wil's cheek with a warm hand. "Reject the Mother's Gift and you deliver yourself into the hands of your enemies."