"Elizabeth Moon - Those who Walk in Darkness" - читать интересную книгу автора (Moon Elizabeth)

Those Who Walk In Darkness
Fantasy, unlike science fiction, is expected to have weather. It
arises from the depths of the mind, those tectonic impacts when
buried axioms clash and thrust new mountain ranges up to poke
holes in the mindтАЩs atmosphere, to change climate into stormy
chaos, star-crowned. DonтАЩt be surprised when the mountain ranges,
explored, show ancient fossils around every corner. The mountains
are new; the rock itself is not.
Those who have read The Deed of Paksenarrion will recognize
instantly which night a frightened boy wanders the streets of
V├йrella. For the rest of youтАФbe careful. Some of these fossils have
undergone extensive metamorphosis.

тАФ┬лтАФ┬╗тАФ

He was feverish and shaky; they had made him stay to the end.
Now he slipped away from his father in the crowd, swerving
quickly into a side passage, and forced himself to hurry on the
stairs. His back hurt still, four days after the beating.
It was already dark outside, and cold. Torches flickered in the light
wind, sending crazy shadows along the street. He took a long breath
of fresh air, grateful for it. The streets were strange again. Every
time they stayed below too long, he had trouble adjusting to the
movement and noise. He had tried to say that, but his father had


file:///J|/sci-fi/Nieuwe%20map/Moon,%20Elizabeth%20...ivity%20SS%2010-%20Those%20Who%20Walk%20in%20D.html (5 of 38)16-2-2006 15:54:26
Moon, Elizabeth - Lunar Activity SS 10- Those Who Walk in Darkness


silenced him with threats. Just as the priests silenced his father with
threats.
They had not silenced the paladin. He hunched his shoulders,
remembering her last words. She had refused to acknowledge the
Master; she had claimed the protection of the High Lord and Gird.
The priests always said there was no High Lord, but when they
unbound her legs the terrible burn wounds closed over as everyone
stared. Even the priests; he could tell they were frightened too, by
the way they screamed at the crowd and drove them away.
He slid behind Sim the baker, and flicked a roll from the tray while
Sim bickered with a customer who wanted a discount this late in the
day. Sim caught the movement and kicked at him, but the kick
didnтАЩt land. Sim didnтАЩt mean it to. The roll was cold and hard, that
morningтАЩs baking, but better than nothing. He sank his teeth in it,
pulled off a mouthful. The paladinтАФtheyтАЩd had to taste her blood.
He hadnтАЩt wanted to, but after the other he knew better than to stand
back. It tasted like anyoneтАЩs blood, after all. Salty. The bread stuck