"Paul S. Kemp - Erevis Cale 3 - Midnight's Mask" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kemp Paul S)

тАЬA present, Azriim?тАЭ the Sojourner asked, letting his
gaze fall on Riven as he ямВoated forward across the room.
Outside the light of the glow globe, the Sojourner was
reduced to a shadow in RivenтАЩs sight.
With great effort, Riven kept his face a maskтАФno fear,
no wonder, no dreadтАФeven while his mind moved through
possibilities.
Azriim said, тАЬYes, Sojourner. This human was . . . help-
ful in our successful use of the Weave Tap. His clothes
are unfortunate, I acknowledge. And his taste is poor in
general. But neither of those are fatal ямВaws.тАЭ
Riven did not bother to correct Azriim, though he had
been more than merely helpful with planting the Weave
Tap seedтАФhe had been instrumental. Without RivenтАЩs
intervention, Cale would have killed Azriim.
But instead of speaking, Riven made a stiff bow. The
gesture did not come easily to him.

MidnightтАЩs Mask тАв 19
 тАЬSojourner,тАЭ Riven said.
The creature did not acknowledge him, and Riven
dared take no offense. The Sojourner stopped in the air
two paces from Riven. Up close, his power was even more
palpable. Fear threatened, but Riven managed to hold
his ground and his expressionless mask. RivenтАЩs eyesight
adjusted somewhat to the darkness and he could again
mark the SojournerтАЩs features.
Though he was not a slaad, the nose slits, spotted skin,
and the shape of his eyes reminded Riven of something
slaadlike, or at least reptilian. He wore a short-sleeved
robe of red silk, trimmed in gold, over which hung an
ermine-trimmed black cape clasped at his throat with a
silver pin. His thin body swam in the clothing, and both
robe and cape hung off his frame as though he were made
of sticks.
The Sojourner ямБxed Riven with a stare, started to say
something, but stopped, blinked, and inhaled sharply.
At ямБrst Riven did not know what had happened, then it
hit him. The Sojourner had felt a stab of pain.
тАЬFather?тАЭ Dolgan asked.
Beside him, Azriim wore a sneer nearly the match of
RivenтАЩs.
The Sojourner had to be sick or injured, Riven rea-
soned, which explained why the creature had moved his
body hardly at all since entering the room. Perhaps even
small movements pained him.
Riven tried to ямБgure how that ямБt into his calculations,
if at all.
The SojournerтАЩs spasm passed as quickly as it had
appeared.