"02 - Torment" - читать интересную книгу автора (McGough Scott)

crushing waves of people and the ringing shouts in the

marketplace, the young man pressed on. He called himself

Chainer, and for the first time in a long, busy day he was

unscheduled. He picked his way through the dwindling foot

traffic, moving against the flow of people headed into the

city. As he navigated around the last pedestrians in his

path, he relished the rare gifts of free time and solitude.

Without a training exercise to complete, an incantation to

memorize, or a schedule to keep, Chainer was determined not

to be found. He was a member of the Cabal by choice,

ritual, and oath, and the Cabal demanded much from its

initiates. His superiors would pounce on an idle boy

proclaiming, "Nothing to do? I can fix that." Chainer hated

being rewarded for good work with more work. Rather than

waiting for that inevitable hammer to fall, Chainer ducked

down an alley when no one was looking and headed for the

gates.

His pace slowed once he was clear of the city. It had

been so long since he'd had any time to himself that he had

all but forgotten how to enjoy it. He wondered what other

people did when they weren't serving their own masters.

More to the point, what did they do when they weren't

trying their best simply to stay alive?

As he wandered and pondered, Chainer walked through the

squatters' shacks outside the city and into the salt flats