"Craig Shaw Gardner - Wuntvor 01 - A Difficulty With Dwarves" - читать интересную книгу автора (Gardner Craig Shaw)

тАШTalk about Brownie Power!тАЩ the voice added.

There was no doubting it now. A small, brown figure jumped merrily up and down on a pile of sneezing
wizards. It had to be Tap the Brownie.

тАШBoy, is it great to be back!тАЩ Tap continued. тАШI had a hard time leaving you before, let me tell you. I
mean, who wants to go back to making shoes when you could visit Vushta, the city of a thousand
forbidden delights! But now I can do all the visiting I want. That is, once I deliver my message!тАЩ

Tap unfolded a piece of brown parchment which had been stuck in his belt. тАШThis is an official
proclamation from his Brownieship,тАЩ he began.

Tap paused to clear his throat, then spoke in a clear, high voice above the constant sneezing: тАШThree
hundred twenty pairs of laces; two thousand two hundred four buckles; four hundred twelve yards of -тАШ

His tiny voice died in his throat. тАШThis appears to be an inventory list,тАЩ he remarked as he rapidly
searched beneath the rest of his belt. тАШOh, dear, I must have left the proclamation in my other suit. Well,
never mind. WeтАЩll get it later. Let me just say that, from what our superior Brownie Intelligence has
gathered, you folks are in a lot of trouble. Yes, even more than before!тАЩ

Only now did he seem to notice the roomful of sneezing wizards. The Brownie whistled. тАШLooks like I
didnтАЩt get here a moment too early! With whatтАЩs going to happen, youтАЩre going to need all the Brownie
Power you can get!тАЩ

What did this all mean? I turned to my master, to ask him what to do. But the BrownieтАЩs arrival had
been too much for his malady. Now Ebenezum, like all the dozens of other wizards in this great hallway,
was sneezing uncontrollably.

TWO

тАШThe sages say that тАЬYou cannot have too many friends,тАЭ and for a change, the sages are largely correct
in their sagacity. Anyone can see, for example, that the friendlier a crowd, the better a wizardтАЩs chances
for survival after his spell has gone seriously awry.

тАШHowever, there are some circumstances when even friends can become burdensome to the working
sorcerer. Wizards, after all, need their privacy, especially when involved in extremely complicated and
delicate conjurations of powerful magical forces, or when dealing in spells concerning the concealment of
large sums of money.

тАШBut friends do form a very important part of a wizardтАЩs life, especially when said mage must go on a
fearsome quest far from his native land and thus needs someone at home to take care of his cat.тАЩ

THE TEACHINGS OF EBENEZUM, Volume XXVII

The door that led from the Great Hall outside crashed inwards then smashed against the floor, its hinges
ripped from the wall with the force of its opening.

тАШDoom!тАЩ the immense warrior Hendrek intoned. His bulk filled the large doorway, a huge shadow that
blotted out the late summer sun. He held the doomed warclub Headbasher in one immense hand, the club