Miles takes Ivan up to Cam's room - Cam has been pre-warned; Miles is not totally without mercy - and knocks.

"AAAAAAAAAAAH!"

...Miles snickers.

"AAAAAH," adds Ivan for good measure. "Miles what the hell did you do?!"

"I swear on my name's honour that I did not have any reasonable way to predict that screwing around with some crappy chalk drawings in a public park would result in this," says Miles. "But anyway. Cam, this is indeed Ivan, on whose behalf I apologize for all the screaming, I actually didn't expect that. Ivan, this is Cam, who is very nice and has impressed both Illyan and Gregor with his general benignness, and who is going to accelerate the terraforming of Komarr with magic because he is a magical demon from another universe. Did you hear what happened to Cockroach Central? That was him."

"I heard, I thought it was - I don't know what I thought it was - you summoned a demon?"

"Yes. Be glad it was me. Could've been anybody. Apology accepted."

"Yes, demons in general are apparently very scary, but this demon in particular is just adorably enthusiastic about public works projects," says Miles.

"Am I? Adorable?" chuckles Cam.

"Not the word I'd use," mutters Ivan.

"For obvious reasons, people who can be trusted to hang around Cam are thin on the ground. I won't be weird about him, but the Komarrans will be weird about me, hence including you in all this. I am Cam's native guide to this universe, and you are my errand boy."

"Whatever you say, Miles," says Ivan.

"If it's any consolation I can improve dramatically on shipboard food."

"I feel very consoled, personally."

"A magical demon who cooks."

"A magical demon who can conjure up arbitrary matter out of nothing," corrects Cam. He makes himself a seedless raspberry and eats it.

"I now have a second Order of Merit," Miles contributes. "I had him conjure one up to prove he could. It's tucked away at the bottom of a drawer next to the first. I put a stupid-looking ribbon on the fake one so I could tell them apart in case that's ever important."

"I don't see why it would be. They should be precisely alike apart from the ribbon itself. Well, maybe if the original has fingerprints or something."

"Arbitrary matter out of -?"

"Like I said. Be glad he got me."

"And it's not quite absolutely arbitrary, he has to have some idea what he's making before he makes it. But yeah. We're all very lucky our planet hasn't been swallowed by a black hole."

"I mean, a demon who was really interested in creating havoc wouldn't have swallowed the planet they were summoned on. Fun's over when the summoner dies. But yes."

"And - we're taking him to Komarr why exactly?"

"I mentioned the adorable enthusiasm about public works projects, yes? He's going to expand the soletta mirror, then consult with the local terraforming people and figure out what else to do to get the place on track for wider human habitation."