"Lawrence Watt-Evans - The Palace of al-Tir al-Abtan" - читать интересную книгу автора (Watt-Evans Lawrence)

could no longer stand the idea of his home being lost amid filth and poverty.
He did not see that his own actions were the cause, but rather cursed Allah,
in his folly, for sending this blight upon his city. He declared open war upon
his own people, accusing them of treason in their failure to maintain his city
despite the burdens he placed upon them and the mistreatment and injustice he
perpetrated. His men were sent out with torches, instructed to burn the
tenements and brothels to the ground; but most of these soldiers simply
disappeared forever in the maze of streets, either through desertion or
because the unhappy citizens had ambushed them and cut their throats. The
fires that began were short-lived and ineffective.
 The only outcome was the incitement for the populace, and it was then
that the Sultanate of Tahrir ended, as the sultan's subjects stormed the
palace, and tore it stone from stone, and treated all those within its walls
in barbarous fashion, leaving none whole enough to be recognized.

When the Sultan's corpse lay sprawled upon the floor of his own throne
room, and his head adorned a spike on his own gate, the beggar-king who had
led the mob and usurped the throne looked about himself and was well pleased
with what he saw. His ragged followers had slaughtered every noble and man of
wealth left in the city, staining the floors of the remaining great houses
with their blood; he was absolute ruler of everything in Tahrir.

Everything, that is, except the palace of al-Tir al-Abtan.

That, the beggar King saw, would not do. He did not intend to let anyone
remain who might interfere with his rule.

He knew that the palace was the work of a mighty magician, and he did not
care to face such a foe himself. Instead, the new overlord of Tahrir
determined to send a single expert thief into the Palace, to see whether the
enchanter, whom no one had seen in years, still lived.

Chosen for this task was a lad of twenty, whose name was Abu al-Din; this
name was known throughout much of the city as the most promising housebreaker
of the time. He was a bold and brash fellow, and when news of his selection
reached him he proudly accepted the commission as his due. The King summoned
him to the royal presence, and charged him as follows:

"You will enter the palace of the wizard al-Tir al-Abtan, by surmounting
the wall that guards it, since there is no gate to be found. You will explore
the grounds, taking careful note of all traps, pitfalls, and sentinels; you
will enter the palace, and learn as best you can its plan and arrangement,
once again taking note of all safeguards. Should you be spotted by any
resident, slay him; should you find the necromancer, alive or dead, bring back
his head. Do you understand?" Abu al-Din nodded and said, "I understand, and I
obey." He bowed low, with perhaps a touch of mockery in his action, and then
took himself quickly home to his little attic to prepare. Perhaps thirty
enthusiastic fellow citizens followed him, calling advice and encouragement,
and waited outside his window to see if he would actually do as he had
promised, and enter the demon's lair. Abu ignored them. He ate a fine meal,