"Daley,.Brian.-.Coramonde.2.-.Starfollowers.Of.Coramonde" - читать интересную книгу автора (Daley Brian)

2

think he'd come on a fool's quest for mercy? There was a vast
stirring somewhere in the colossal temple.

Yardiff Bey was slammed to his knees, by no force he could see.
Without his will, his hands came up to rend the front of his robe, in
mourning and contrition.

"List us your failures," came a disembodied command, "and
number your faults."

He was cast headlong on the cold floor, held as a doll beneath a
man's boot would be held, by the stacked, murderous weight of the
will of the Masters of Shardishku-Salama. He sobbed for breath
that wouldn't come, and that weight retreated the merest bit. He
knew a meager flicker of triumph; he hadn't been condemned out
of hand, and so had the opportunity to say on. He brought his head
up a degree, neck trembling with effort.

"Waste not the tool," he strained, "before h mends its errors. Let
me make my reparations." He slumped again, drawing breath only
with horrible exertion. He felt, by tingling of images not quite seen
on his inner eye, that the Five were conferring.

The air was suddenly icy, carrying thick, infernal stenches. There
was a new, an overwhelming Presence in the Fane. The sorcerer
recognized its awesome savagery. His patron, Amon, a chief
among demons, had come, after ignoring all previous pleas.
Before Amon, even the Masters were silent, deferential in their
intangible, unmistakable way.

When the demon spoke, words lashing like whips, the walls of the
huge Fane shook in the lightlessness.

"More vainglorious plans, unworthy one? Are my agents in Salami
to be twice fools, and trust you a second time?" Amon asked. "List
me your failures. You had the whole of Coramonde hi your grasp.
Your puppet-son was enthroned over the most important country in
the Crescent Lands. You had the rightful Heir Springbuck trapped,
along with the wizard Andre deCourteney and his enchantress
sister Gabrielle. How was all that dashed asunder?**

Yardiff Bey groped for response. "IЧI sent the dragon Chaffinch
against them, oh Lord. He should have slaughtered them easily.
But they had with them the alien Van Duyn . . ."

3