"Katherine Kerr - Deverry 06 - A Time Of Omens" - читать интересную книгу автора (Kerr Katherine) As Bardekian merchantmen go, the ship was a good one, soundly built and deep, with room enough in
the hold for the troupeтАЩs gear and room enough on deck twixt single mast and stern for them to camp under improvised tents. The troupeтАЩs horses had a comfortable place up on the deck tethered by the bow rather than in the stinking hold. During the crossing Jill spent most of her time in their equine company. Even in normal circumstances the troupe lived in a welter of spats and jests, gossip and sentiment, outright nghts and professions of undying loyalty, and now that they were sailing off to unknown country, they were as tightly strung as the wela-wela. Tucked in between the horses and the bow rail, Jill could have privacy for her meditations. Every now and then Keeta joined her, for a bit of a rest as the juggler put it. тАЬI donтАЩt know how you stand this lot sometimes,тАЭ Jill remarked to her one morning. тАЬNeither do I.тАЭ Keeta flashed a grin. тАЬOh, theyтАЩre all good people, really, and the only family IтАЩve ever had or am likely to have. But they do carry on so. ItтАЩs MarkaтАЩs marriage, you see. She started out as nothing, the apprentice, the waif we all pitied, and now here she is, the leaderтАЩs wife. EveryoneтАЩs all stirred up and jockeying for position.тАЭ тАЬAnd SalamanderтАЩs really become the leader, hasnтАЩt he?тАЭ тАЬOh, yes. No doubt about that, my dear, none at all.тАЭ At that moment Jill realized why sheтАЩd objected to SalamanderтАЩs marriage. HeтАЩd so loaded himself up with responsibility for other peopleтАЩs lives that she couldnтАЩt possibly reproach him for letting his dweomer studies lapse. She said nothing, merely watched him over the next few days as he busied himself with the troupe or sat grinning beside his new wife. Perhaps he knows best, she would think. Perhaps he simply destiny. Yet, despite this sensible reasoning, she felt that she was mourning a death. For NevynтАЩs sake, she would do her best to keep him from squandering his talent, but a crowded ship was no place to confront him. From the moment the troupe landed, Jill hated Anmurdio. While Orystinna was every bit as hot, it was a dry heat there, thanks to the way the mountains channeled and deflected the prevailing winds. Anmurdio, the collective name for a group of volcanic islands, caught the tropic-wet winds full in the face. It seemed that if it wasnтАЩt actually raining, then the wind was howling round, or if the air was still for a brief while, then it became so humid that everyone wished it would rain. The townsтАФrandom clusters of wooden housesтАФsagged in the ever-present mud between stretches of primal jungle. The water wasnтАЩt safe to drink without a good dollop of wine in it; beef was unknown, and bread rare. Yet all of these aggravations might have been bearable if it werenтАЩt for the mosquitoes, drifting in twilight clouds as thick as smoke. Traveling in heavy wagons would be impossible, but fortunately all the hamlets in the archipelago lay right on the ocean. Swearing and sweating over the expense, Salamander made a bargain with the owner of a little coaster that would just barely hold the troupe. The wagon horses, which Marka loved like pets, had to be stabled at a further cost in the main townтАФcity being far too dignified a word for Myleton NoaтАФrather than merely sold and abandoned. Just when all these expensive arrangements were concluded, it began to rain, a dark sodden pour that Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html |
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