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companion and the restless, grunting baby that he awkwardly dandled on his knee? The raven added, unnervingly, ôEmil is sitting with Karis while she sleeps. The room is dark, like this one. Karis is asleep on the floor, near the fire. She has hardly slept since Long Night, and he does not wish to wake her up. He asks that you speak with him instead of her. How can he win your confidence?ö ôWho is Emil?ö The raven said, ôEmil was commander of South Hill company for twenty years, and is now a General of Paladins, and a councilor of Shaftal.ö ôHe was the commander in South Hill?ö Clement stared at the raven and demanded, irrationally, ôWhat happened in South Hill? When that woman in our gaol, who used to be a warrior of the AshawalaÆiùö ôKatrim,ö corrected the raven. ôKatrim,ö she said irritably. ôShe became a Paladin in South Hill, didnÆt she? Under EmilÆs command! And something happened there.ö ôThe storytellerÆs name then was Zanja naÆTarwein. She came to South Hill Company wanting to kill Sainnites. But she turned her back on this war, and opened the way for others to follow herù Emil, and Medric, and Karis. Zanja became a hinge of history, an opener of doors.ö ôWell, she had better get some more doors opened quickly, for she is going to be executed tomorrow, at dawn.ö The raven said nothing at all. Clement stumbled on, scarcely able to believe what she was doing, even as she did it. ôIÆd like to save her, but I canÆt. Perhaps thereÆs something you or the GÆdeon could do.ö The raven said, ôEmil asks for your patience. This is a painful problem.ö Clement had been pacing the cold room, but now she sat down abruptly, in a chair near Gilly. ôI make a traitor out of myself to a raven,ö she muttered, ôAnd I get only silence in response. Who do I complain to?ö The raven finally spoke. ôIt is better that the storyteller be killed.ö ôWhat? How could it be better?ö ôIt is difficult to explain. Zanja naÆTarwein is no longer alive, and the storytellerÆs death will be a gift to her.ö ôHer separated spirit can be made whole by killing her?ö said Gilly. ôYes.ö ôThis makes sense to you?ö Clement asked. Gilly shrugged crookedly. ôI believe itÆs fire logic.ö ôIt is fire logic,ö the raven said. As the raven fluffed his feathers in the heat, Gabian watched the black bird with fixed fascination. Clement finally said, ôI want to come over the wall tonight, and join the GÆdeonÆs service.ö It was impossible to understand nuances in the ravenÆs inhuman voice. But the Page 255 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html promptness of his reply suggested a lack of surprise. ôLieutenant-General Clement, you will serve Shaftal best by remaining where you are.ö ôNow IÆm in disgrace, thereÆs nothing I can do except bring my son to safety before your people attack.ö ôThere will be no attack. We are here to make peace.ö ôBut the GÆdeon said her offer of peace was CadmarÆs only chance.ö ôShe said she would make peace without him,ö the raven said. Something in the ravenÆs words gave Clement pause. Gilly said, ôThat is what she said.ö He also paused. ôOh, bloody hell,ö Clement breathed. ôGilly, where is Cadmar?ö Gilly said sharply, ôYouÆve got to keep away from the general! If something happens to him, youÆll be blamed! Clem, listen to me!ö ôLook after the baby,ö she said, and ran out the door. Chapter Thirty-Seven Garland found the kitchenÆs oven to be quite cantankerous, but he and his fellow cooks eventually managed to get it to produce a halfway decent tray of meat turnovers. He brought one to the Paladin who sat writing a letter by candlelight as he kept watch outside the parlor door. He took another into the parlor to give Emil. Emil, seated in an upholstered chair, flanked by a flock of extremely weary ravens, made a silencing gesture. Karis, bolstered by feather pillows and wrapped in blankets, slept on the floor. Before JÆhan was half finished with her, she had fallen profoundly asleep: oblivious as he stripped her to the skin, unconscious when several people lay hands on her to help turn and arrange her nerveless form. Garland had taken KarisÆs clothing into the kitchen, but then lost custody of it to the people who could sew. The worn state of her relatively new clothing offered an appalling measure of how hard Karis had been working. Garland put the plate at EmilÆs elbow, and then quietly added wood to the fire. KarisÆs big hand was outspread on the floor, as though even in her sleep she was trying to hold the pieces of a broken thing together. Emil said in a low voice, ôRaven, tell me what is happening now.ö A raven spoke. ôThe Lucky Man has placed the baby in the basket. Now he speaks: æI see you are a subtle people.Æ His tone is ironic.ö The fire, rising in the fireplace, crackled softly. ôTell the Lucky Man he can remind Clement that reluctance to take power is a virtue here. Is he following her to see whatÆs become of the general?ö ôYes.ö ôTell him itÆs not contagious.ö The raven said, ôHe seems nonplused. He has left the room now.ö ôYou birds have an astonishing vocabulary,ö Emil muttered. He stood up stiffly. ôGarland, the storyteller is to die at dawn. How can they kill her with all their weapons broken?ö Garland felt a twist of sickness. ôA heavy ax on the back of the neck.ö Emil flinched. Then he took a breath and said in an even voice, ôWithout a Page 256 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html sharp edge, the executionerÆs going to need a good aim.ö ôThey donÆt miss,ö Garland said. ôItÆs a point of pride. But that wonÆt make you feel any better.ö ôNothing will. Not only did I have to kill her, but I have to keep killing her. My ethical training has rarely seemed so inadequate. All I can do is endure, but to endure such an awful thing seems impossible.ö Emil looked at Karis then, with a wrenching interlarding of compassion and pride. ôMust I awaken her?ö ôDonÆt you dare!ö ôShe has to be told.ö ôYou keep away from her! Sit down and eat your supper! Leave that poor woman alone!ö If GarlandÆs rolling pin had not been in the kitchen, he would have made himself ridiculous by brandishing it. Emil sat down and picked up the plate from the table. He took a bite of the turnover, and shook his head in amazement. ôI donÆt know how you do it.ö Then he looked up, and smiled faintly at GarlandÆs face, which must have had a strange expression. ôNo, I donÆt know how I do it either,ö he said. ôAre you going to be up all night?ö ôYes, Emil. I expect we all will. People are out there sewing Karis a new undershirt, knitting new gloves, mending her boots, stitching up her popped seams, and patching the holes in her breeches. Other people keep dropping by to [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ] |
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