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very ignorant. Probably only a few of the common warriors saw
Moosko when he arrived. Those same men would not be on watch
now. Furthermore, it is night, and with the darkness and the rain the
danger that your imposture will be discovered is minimized."
"It is worth trying," I agreed; and, going to the body of Moosko, I
found the ring and removed it from his finger. It was too large for me,
as the ongyan had gross, fat hands; but if any one was stupid enough
to accept me as the ongyan he would not notice so minor a
discrepancy as an ill-fitting ring.
Now Duare and I crept silently out of the chamber to the head of the
stairs, where we paused, listening. All was dark below, but we heard
the sound of voices, muffled, as though coming from behind a closed
door. Slowly, stealthily, we descended the stairs. I felt the warmth of
the girl's body as it brushed mine, and a great longing seized me to
take her in my arms and crush her to me; but I only continued on
down the stairway as outwardly cool and possessed as though no
internal fire consumed me.
We had reached the long hallway and had groped our way about half
the distance to the door that opened upon the street, a feeling of
optimism enveloping me, when suddenly a door at the front end of the
corridor opened and the passageway was illuminated by the light
from the open doorway. I saw a portion of the figure of a man
standing in the doorway of the room he was about to quit, he had
paused and was conversing with someone from the room beyond. In
another moment he might step into the corridor.
At my elbow was a door. Gingerly I tripped the latch and pushed the
door open; the room beyond was in darkness, but whether or not it
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was occupied I could not tell. Stepping through the doorway I drew
Duare in after me and partially closed the door again, standing close
to the aperture, watching and listening.
Presently I heard the man who had been standing in the other
doorway say, "Until to-morrow, friends, and may you sleep in peace,"
then the door slammed and the hallway was plunged into darkness
again.
Now I heard footsteps; they were coming in our direction. Very
gingerly I drew the sword of Moosko, the ongyan. On came the
footsteps; they seemed to hesitate before the door behind which I
waited; but perhaps it was only my imagination. They passed on; I
heard them ascending the stairway.
Now a new fear assailed me. What if this man should enter the room
in which lay the dead body of Moosko! He would spread the alarm.
Instantly I recognized the necessity for immediate action.
"Now Duare!" I whispered, and together we stepped into the corridor
and almost ran to the front door of the building.
A moment later we were in the street. The drizzle had become a
downpour. Objects were undiscernable a few yards distant, and for
this I was thankful.
We hastened along the street in the direction of the wall and the gate,
passing no one, seeing no one. The rain increased in violence.
"What are you going to say to the sentry?" asked Duare.
"I do not know," I replied candidly.
"He will be suspcious, for you can have no possible excuse for wishing
to leave the safety of a walled city on a night like this and go out
without an escort into a dangerous country where savage beasts and
savage men roam."
"I shall find a way," I said, "because I must."
She made no reply, and we continued on toward the gate. It was not at
a great distance from the house from which we had escaped and
presently we came upon it looming large before us through the falling
rain.
A sentry, standing in the shelter of a niche in the wall, discovered us
and demanded what we were doing aboard at this hour of such a
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night. He was not greatly concerned, since he did not know that it was
in our minds to pass through the gateway; he merely assumed, I
presume, that we were a couple of citizens passing by on our way to
our home.
"Is Sov here?" I demanded.
"Sov here!" he exclaimed in astonishment. "What would Sov be doing
here on a night light this?"
"He was to meet me here at this hour," I said. "I instructed him to be
here."
"You instructed Sov to be herel" The fellow laughed. "Who are you to
give instructions to Sov?"
"I am the ongyan, Moosko," I replied.
The man looked at me in astonishment. "I do not know where Sov is,"
he said, a little sullenly, I thought.
"Well, never mind," I told him; "he will be here presently; and in the
meantime, open up the gate, for we shall want to hurry on as soon as
he arrives."
"I cannot open the gate without orders from Sov," replied the sentry.
"You refuse to obey an ongyan?" I demanded in the most ferocious
tones I could command.
"I have never seen you before," he parried. "How do I know you are
an ongyan?"
I held out my hand with the ring of Moosko on the index finger. "Do
you know what that is?" I demanded.
He examined it closely. "Yes, ongyan," he said fearfully, "I know."
"Then open the gate, and be quick about it," I snapped.
"Let us wait until Sov comes," he suggested. "There will be time
enough then."
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Click here to buy
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"There is no time to be lost, fellow. Open up, as I command. The [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl aikidobyd.xlx.pl
very ignorant. Probably only a few of the common warriors saw
Moosko when he arrived. Those same men would not be on watch
now. Furthermore, it is night, and with the darkness and the rain the
danger that your imposture will be discovered is minimized."
"It is worth trying," I agreed; and, going to the body of Moosko, I
found the ring and removed it from his finger. It was too large for me,
as the ongyan had gross, fat hands; but if any one was stupid enough
to accept me as the ongyan he would not notice so minor a
discrepancy as an ill-fitting ring.
Now Duare and I crept silently out of the chamber to the head of the
stairs, where we paused, listening. All was dark below, but we heard
the sound of voices, muffled, as though coming from behind a closed
door. Slowly, stealthily, we descended the stairs. I felt the warmth of
the girl's body as it brushed mine, and a great longing seized me to
take her in my arms and crush her to me; but I only continued on
down the stairway as outwardly cool and possessed as though no
internal fire consumed me.
We had reached the long hallway and had groped our way about half
the distance to the door that opened upon the street, a feeling of
optimism enveloping me, when suddenly a door at the front end of the
corridor opened and the passageway was illuminated by the light
from the open doorway. I saw a portion of the figure of a man
standing in the doorway of the room he was about to quit, he had
paused and was conversing with someone from the room beyond. In
another moment he might step into the corridor.
At my elbow was a door. Gingerly I tripped the latch and pushed the
door open; the room beyond was in darkness, but whether or not it
a
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T
n
n
s
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f
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Click here to buy
Click here to buy
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was occupied I could not tell. Stepping through the doorway I drew
Duare in after me and partially closed the door again, standing close
to the aperture, watching and listening.
Presently I heard the man who had been standing in the other
doorway say, "Until to-morrow, friends, and may you sleep in peace,"
then the door slammed and the hallway was plunged into darkness
again.
Now I heard footsteps; they were coming in our direction. Very
gingerly I drew the sword of Moosko, the ongyan. On came the
footsteps; they seemed to hesitate before the door behind which I
waited; but perhaps it was only my imagination. They passed on; I
heard them ascending the stairway.
Now a new fear assailed me. What if this man should enter the room
in which lay the dead body of Moosko! He would spread the alarm.
Instantly I recognized the necessity for immediate action.
"Now Duare!" I whispered, and together we stepped into the corridor
and almost ran to the front door of the building.
A moment later we were in the street. The drizzle had become a
downpour. Objects were undiscernable a few yards distant, and for
this I was thankful.
We hastened along the street in the direction of the wall and the gate,
passing no one, seeing no one. The rain increased in violence.
"What are you going to say to the sentry?" asked Duare.
"I do not know," I replied candidly.
"He will be suspcious, for you can have no possible excuse for wishing
to leave the safety of a walled city on a night like this and go out
without an escort into a dangerous country where savage beasts and
savage men roam."
"I shall find a way," I said, "because I must."
She made no reply, and we continued on toward the gate. It was not at
a great distance from the house from which we had escaped and
presently we came upon it looming large before us through the falling
rain.
A sentry, standing in the shelter of a niche in the wall, discovered us
and demanded what we were doing aboard at this hour of such a
a
a
T
T
n
n
s
s
F
F
f
f
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Click here to buy
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.
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night. He was not greatly concerned, since he did not know that it was
in our minds to pass through the gateway; he merely assumed, I
presume, that we were a couple of citizens passing by on our way to
our home.
"Is Sov here?" I demanded.
"Sov here!" he exclaimed in astonishment. "What would Sov be doing
here on a night light this?"
"He was to meet me here at this hour," I said. "I instructed him to be
here."
"You instructed Sov to be herel" The fellow laughed. "Who are you to
give instructions to Sov?"
"I am the ongyan, Moosko," I replied.
The man looked at me in astonishment. "I do not know where Sov is,"
he said, a little sullenly, I thought.
"Well, never mind," I told him; "he will be here presently; and in the
meantime, open up the gate, for we shall want to hurry on as soon as
he arrives."
"I cannot open the gate without orders from Sov," replied the sentry.
"You refuse to obey an ongyan?" I demanded in the most ferocious
tones I could command.
"I have never seen you before," he parried. "How do I know you are
an ongyan?"
I held out my hand with the ring of Moosko on the index finger. "Do
you know what that is?" I demanded.
He examined it closely. "Yes, ongyan," he said fearfully, "I know."
"Then open the gate, and be quick about it," I snapped.
"Let us wait until Sov comes," he suggested. "There will be time
enough then."
a
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Click here to buy
Click here to buy
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"There is no time to be lost, fellow. Open up, as I command. The [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]