"Here?"
"I saw him wandering out there and sent Kenra Sarg to bring him in. He is asleep in one of our guest rooms now. I was just performing the Guest Rite for him when you came."
Polla San sank to his knees alongside Marik. "This is serious, Marik. If he is a guest of yours, he is inviolate. He will sleep here in the home of Carthule after having committed the greatest of desecrations, and we must serve him and feed him and shelter him. It's not right, Marik!"
Marik turned in amazement. "You're not questioning the Word, are you? The Guest Rite is inviolable. As long as he is our guest, we cannot harm him. To punish him for his act would be a greater violation than the act itself."
"But can we let this Earthman remain a guest of Carthule, Marik? Let him sleep down there with the eye in his pocket, and not do a thing about it! He could flaunt the jewel under our noses and we'd have to nod our heads and offer him more food."
"The way of Carthule is the right way," Marik said. "The Guest Rite is inviolable. We will continue to treat this Earthman as we would Carthule Himself."
"But what can I do, Marik? My temple is no longer a temple without the eye!"
"Carthule will show us the way, Polla San. Suppose we pray."
The following morning the Earthman, after a hearty meal, stretched himself luxuriously and looked out across the desert.