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

тАЬI selected these carpets myself,тАЭ Azriim said, his tone
mildly hurt.
тАЬIтАЩm not surprised,тАЭ Riven answered, putting a sneer
in his voice.
Dolgan said to Azriim, тАЬWhy canтАЩt I just kill him?тАЭ
тАЬI am tempted,тАЭ Azriim said lightly, тАЬgiven his view of
my carpets.тАЭ
Riven stared into DolganтАЩs face, the features indistin-
guishable in the darkness. тАЬHis permission to try wonтАЩt
make it so, slaad. IтАЩd put you down in less than a tencount,
darkness or no.тАЭ
Riven kicked away the cushions near him, to clear
any trip hazards. Both hands went to saber hilts and
he balanced on the balls of his feet. Dolgan took a step
forward but Azriim stopped him with an arm across
his chest.
тАЬEnough,тАЭ Azriim commanded, smiling indulgently.
тАЬYouтАЩre adding to his tension.тАЭ
Riven kept his gaze on Dolgan but said to Azriim, тАЬYou
havenтАЩt yet seen me tense, slaad.тАЭ
тАЬI can smell your sweat at ten paces,тАЭ Azriim said.
Dolgan glared at Riven and said, тАЬI do not understand

14 тАв Paul S. Kemp
why we have not killed him. His brood killed Serrin,
wounded you, wounded me.тАЭ
тАЬBrood?тАЭ Riven asked derisively. тАЬIтАЩm a man, oaf. I
donтАЩt have a brood. And youтАЩre fortunate that it wasnтАЩt me
who gave you the wound. If it had, you wouldnтАЩt be stand-
ing here to annoy me.тАЭ
Azriim ignored Riven and said to Dolgan, тАЬYou enjoy
being wounded, Dolgan, so no harm done. And besides, I
like him.тАЭ He looked at Riven and smiled broadly. тАЬEven
though he has poor taste in clothes, friends . . . and
carpets.тАЭ
Dolgan started to speak but Azriim cut him off,
saying,тАЬSilence, now. The Sojourner comes.тАЭ
Riven felt something . . . a presence . . . join them, ямБll
the space. He could ямБnd no other way to characterize it.
The slaadi looked past him, their eyes wide.
Riven could not help himself, though it meant turning
his back to the slaadi. He turned around to see a circular
hole in the wall where none had been before. Floating
a handтАЩs-breadth off the ямВoor before it was a humanoid
creature that could only be the Sojourner. The instant
Riven laid eyes on the creature, memories from the Plane
of Shadow ямВooded him.
тАЬFather,тАЭ said Dolgan, awe in his tone, and Riven heard
the big slaad abase himself.
Azriim stepped forward and put a hand on RivenтАЩs