"Thieves World - Beyond The Veil" - читать интересную книгу автора (Morris Janet E)

searching out his purse and his wallet, and even the belt at his waist in which
was secretedЕ somethingЕ something he'd been at pains to protect. Anger pushed
back death's croon for a moment. Then it could not.

* * *

The body still lay as it had been found, askew on the Dark Horse's back steps,
when Randal the Hazard-class mage arrived on the scene, the iron grip of the
Stepson, StratonЧwho'd come banging on the mageguild gates, disturbing half-cast
spells with this unwelcome summonsЧclamped numbingly upon his arm.
Around the corpse was an efficient cordon of uniformed specials, keeping back
the idly curious stablehands and a few patrons. On the staircase itself,
crouched over the body in a pool of torch light, were two of the most
shadowyЧand deadlyЧ personages in Tyse: the specials' commander, Grillo, chief
of operations in Rankan-occupied Tyse and the entire northern theatre, a black
marketeer of renown; and Critias, the Stepsons' task force leader and second in
command of that private army of Sacred Band pairs and mercenaries which the
Riddler, called Tempus, had brought north from Sanctuary to the front a few
months back in search of "honor and glory," as well as riches and territory, in
the ongoing war with the Mygdonian Alliance.
They'd gained some of each. Randal ought to know. Randal had fought in the war
to drive the rival Nisibisi mages off Wizardwall and make all Nisibisis free.
Thus he'd come to know these men, whom no safety-conscious, self-respecting mage
of the Tysian guild should be seen consorting with, and become embroiled in
their affairs of war and death. It hadn't been Randal's idea: it had been fate;
the intervention of AЪkelon, the lord of dreams; and the urging of his own
venerable First Hazard, which had made Randal the favorite sorcerer of the
armies. The Tysian First Hazard had jumped at the opportunity to make a pact
with the Stepsons' commander, the virtually immortal and redundantly bloody
Riddler, Tempus, who had been an enemy of the black artists for better than
three centuriesЧever since an archmage had laid upon him a far-reaching and
horrendous curse. Randal's mentor, First Hazard of the Tysian mageguild and
nameless, as were all top-echelon wizards, had "offered" Randal the "honor" in a
way Randal couldn't refuse: Randal had been a junior Hazard for two years longer
than was appropriate for further advancement; it had been his last chance to
revitalize his ascent through the ranks of magic. Perhaps, the ancient archmage
had prognosticated with glittering eyes, Randal would acquire attributes
sufficient to outweigh the debit of his allergies ЧRandal was allergic to furry
animals, especially when he became one. And the First Hazard had been proved
right; Randal gained sorcerous spoils in the razing of the Nisibisi wizards'
high keeps. He'd acquired a globe of power. He was now a fledgling adept, a
Hazard of the seventh level, a person of power.
But Randal now had a curse of his own to contend with: the murderous crew of
fighters called Stepsons considered him one of their number; the scrofulous
Sacred Band pairs counted him as a brother. Whenever their superstitious fear of
wizardry was overcome by the reality of need, it was Randal they called upon to
banish impotence or make a lame horse sound or grant them luck in gaming. And
this was happening more and more frequently, as it became clear to the followers
of the Rankan war god that their deity was not answering their prayers. It was
said that Vashanka, one of the primary gods of the armies, was plane-locked,