"Gordon R. Dickson - The Last Dream" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dickson Gordon R)

carven staff of wood.

тАЬBy the Powers!тАЭ he said. тАЬI was in time. Look there!тАЭ

He lifted the staff and drove it point down into the soil. It went in and stood erect like some denuded
tree. His long arm pointed past them and they turned around.

The darkness was gone. The fens lay revealed far and wide, stretching back a long way, and up ahead,
meeting the thin dark line of the sea. The Causeway had risen until they now stood twenty feet above the
mere-waters. Ahead to the west, the sky was ablaze with sunset. It lighted up all the fens and the end of
the Causeway leading onto a long and bloody-looking hill, whereonтАФtouched by that same dying
lightтАФthere loomed above and over all, amongst great tumbled boulders, the ruined, dark and shattered
shell of a Tower as black as jet.

==========

III

тАЬтАФwhy didnтАЩt you wake us earlier, then?тАЭ asked Jim.

It was the morning after. They had slept the night within the small circle of protection afforded by
CarolinusтАЩ staff. They were sitting up now and rubbing their eyes in the light of a sun that had certainly
been above the horizon a good two hours.

тАЬBecause,тАЭ said Carolinus. He was sipping at some more milk and he stopped to make a face of distaste.
тАЬBecause we had to wait for them to catch up with us.тАЭ

тАЬWho? Catch up?тАЭ asked Jim.

тАЬIf I knew who,тАЭ snapped Carolinus, handing his empty milk tankard back to emptier air, тАЬI would have
said who. All I know is that the present pat-tern of Chance and History implies that two more will join
our party. The same pattern implied the presence of this knight andтАФoh, so thatтАЩs who they are.тАЭ

Jim turned around to follow the magicianтАЩs gaze. To his surprise, two dragon shapes were emerging from
a clump of brush behind them.

тАЬSecoh!тАЭ cried Jim. тАЬAndтАФSmrgol! WhyтАФтАЭ His voice wavered and died. The old dragon, he suddenly
noticed, was limping and one wing hung a little loosely, half-drooping from its shoulder. Also, the eyelid
on the same side as the loose wing and stiff leg was sagging more or less at half-mast. тАЬWhy, what
happened?тАЭ

тАЬOh, a bit stiff from yesterday,тАЭ huffed Smrgol, bluffly. тАЬProbably pass off in a day or two.тАЭ

тАЬStiff nothing!тАЭ said Jim, touched in spite of himself. тАЬYouтАЩve had a stroke.тАЭ

тАЬStroke of bad luck, IтАЩd say,тАЭ replied Smrgol, cheerfully, trying to wink his bad eye and not succeeding
very well. тАЬNo, boy, itтАЩs nothing. Look who IтАЩve brought along.тАЭ

тАЬIтАФI wasnтАЩt too keen on coming,тАЭ said Secoh, shyly, to Jim. тАЬBut your granduncle can be pretty
persuasive, your woтАФyou know.тАЭ