System

34b. Memories

Cob-luth-ach had already left the city when the sun appeared over the distant hills. His camel train had been loaded during the night, and they had a long way to go before their first water stop.

He glanced back at the city where the early morning church bells were ringing out, calling the faithful to prayer. The morning sunlight was suddenly reflected from the windows of the citadel and shone out brightly like a lighthouse in the dawn sky.

He grumbled to himself about humans and their love of grand buildings and complicated schemes.

The old man turned his back on the city and strode off across the desert, pulling his bad-tempered camel behind him. The sand felt good between his toes and he enjoyed the feeling of being out in the open air again. With any luck, it would be a while before he would need to come back this way. He was already planning out an extended trade route in his head.

Cob-luth-ach was known locally as 'the old merchant' but few people knew how old he really was. He belonged to another time - another world - and another body. Sometimes he could almost feel his missing limbs and imagined he could slide over the ground again on six feet rather than two.

Three of his best men had died during the night. The hunter had cut through them as if they were meaningless objects, and now they were gone. He would provide for their families, but they would never again sit with him under a star-lit night, weaving legends and chanting old songs.

He grunted again.

Humans.

-

The Chief Steward spent the morning supervising the clean-up. The hunter had left an incredible mess behind him as his numerous clones had fought their way through the citadel. The damage to doors, fittings and furniture was extensive and it would take a long time to catalogue the necessary repairs. One of the kitchens had been turned into a minor battleground and the floor was buried under a layer of broken crockery.

He moved through the citadel with a large notebook in his hand, recording details and making long lists. There would be a lot of work for carpenters and joiners - and the merchants would earn a tidy profit before everything was restored to its proper order.

The Council Chamber had been left as it was. The chess set was still on the table with the pieces in place. No one had dared to touch it after the game had finished. He made a note to bring in some specialists to make it safe.

He glanced down at the floor where a tiny black pill was still lying where it had fallen.

Very quietly and discretely he bent down, picked it up and slipped it inside his pocket. You could never know when something like that might come in useful...

He made another note in his book and descended back down the stairs. There was so much to do...

-

The 'big whore' was counting her losses. It had not been a good night. The fight with the hunter had definitely made a dent in her funds.

She sat behind her little desk, pouring over the figures. Several tapestries had been ruined and an antique chair had been smashed. Four girls had been killed and another two were injured. That would all cost.

She contemplated writing a stern letter to Fidriss demanding compensation, but thought better of it. He would have his own problems.

She sighed and levered herself upright.

It had been a long night.

'Are you still here?'

'I am,' the fortune teller replied. She had not moved since the hunter's arrival.