supposed to—die,” said the thief, advancing.
“I don’t think I’m due to die,” said Mort, backing away. “I’m sure I would have been told.”
“Yeah,” said the thief, who was getting fed up with this. “Yeah, well, you have been, haven’t you? Great steaming elephant turds!”
Mort had just stepped backwards again. Through a wall.
The leading thief glared at the solid stone that had swallowed Mort, and then threw down his knife.
“Well,----me,” he said. “A----ing wizard. I hate ----ing wizards!”
“You shouldn’t----them, then,” muttered one of his henchmen, effortlessly pronouncing a row of dashes.
The third member of the trio, who was a little slow of thinking, said, “Here, he walked through the wall!”
“And we bin following him for ages, too,” muttered the second one. “Fine one you are, Pilgarlic. I said I thought he was a wizard, only wizards’d walk round here by themselves. Dint I say he looked like a wizard? I said—”
“You’re saying a good deal too much,” growled the leader.
“ I saw him, he walked right through the wall there —”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah!”
“ Right through it, dint you see? ”
“Think you’re sharp, do you?”
“Sharp enough, come to that!”
The leader scooped his knife out of the dirt in one snaky movement.
“Sharp as this?”
The third thief lurched over to the wall and kicked it hard a few times, while behind him there were the sounds of scuffle and some damp bubbling noises.
“Yep, it’s a wall okay,” he said. “That’s a wall if ever I saw one. How d’you think they do it, lads?”
“Lads?”
He tripped over the prone bodies.
“Oh,” he said. Slow as his mind was, it was quick enough to realize something very important. He was in a back alleyin The Shades, and he was alone. He ran for it, and got quite a long way.
Death walked slowly across tiles in the lifetimer room, inspecting the serried rows of busy hourglasses. Albert followed dutifully behind with the great ledger open in his arms.
The sound roared around them, a vast gray waterfall of noise.
It came from the shelves where, stretching away into the infinite distance, row upon row of hourglasses poured away the sands of mortal time. It was a heavy sound, a dull sound, a sound that poured like sullen custard over the bright roly-poly pudding of the soul.
V ERY WELL , said Death at last. I MAKE IT THREE . A QUIET NIGHT .
“That’d be Goodie Hamstring, the Abbot Lobsang again, and this Princess Keli,” said Albert.
Death looked at the three hourglasses in his hand.
I WAS THINKING OF SENDING THE LAD OUT , he Said.
Albert consulted his ledger.
“Well, Goodie wouldn’t be any trouble and the Abbot is what you might call experienced,” he said. “Shame about the princess. Only fifteen. Could be tricky.”
Y ES . I T IS A PITY .
“Master?”
Death stood with the third glass in his hand, staring thoughtfully at the play of light across its surface. He sighed.
O NE SO YOUNG …
“Are you feeling all right, master?” said Albert, his voice full of concern.
T IME LIKE AN EVER-ROLLING STREAM BEARS ALL ITS …
“Master!”
W HAT ? said Death, snapping out of it.
“You’ve been overdoing it, master, that’s what it is—”
W HAT ARE YOU BLATHERING ABOUT, MAN ?
“You had a bit of a funny turn there, master.”
N ONSENSE . I HAVE NEVER FELT BETTER . N OW, WHAT WERE WE TALKING ABOUT ?
Albert shrugged, and peered down at the entries in the book.
“Goodie’s a witch,” he said. “She might get a bit annoyed if you send Mort.”
All practitioners of magic earned the right, once their own personal sands had run out, of being claimed by Death himself rather than his minor functionaries.
Death didn’t appear to hear Albert. He was staring at Princess Keli’s hourglass again.
W HAT IS THAT SENSE INSIDE YOUR HEAD OF WISTFUL REGRET THAT THINGS ARE THE WAY THEY APPARENTLY ARE ?
“Sadness, master. I think. Now—”
I AM SADNESS
“I don’t think I’m due to die,” said Mort, backing away. “I’m sure I would have been told.”
“Yeah,” said the thief, who was getting fed up with this. “Yeah, well, you have been, haven’t you? Great steaming elephant turds!”
Mort had just stepped backwards again. Through a wall.
The leading thief glared at the solid stone that had swallowed Mort, and then threw down his knife.
“Well,----me,” he said. “A----ing wizard. I hate ----ing wizards!”
“You shouldn’t----them, then,” muttered one of his henchmen, effortlessly pronouncing a row of dashes.
The third member of the trio, who was a little slow of thinking, said, “Here, he walked through the wall!”
“And we bin following him for ages, too,” muttered the second one. “Fine one you are, Pilgarlic. I said I thought he was a wizard, only wizards’d walk round here by themselves. Dint I say he looked like a wizard? I said—”
“You’re saying a good deal too much,” growled the leader.
“ I saw him, he walked right through the wall there —”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah!”
“ Right through it, dint you see? ”
“Think you’re sharp, do you?”
“Sharp enough, come to that!”
The leader scooped his knife out of the dirt in one snaky movement.
“Sharp as this?”
The third thief lurched over to the wall and kicked it hard a few times, while behind him there were the sounds of scuffle and some damp bubbling noises.
“Yep, it’s a wall okay,” he said. “That’s a wall if ever I saw one. How d’you think they do it, lads?”
“Lads?”
He tripped over the prone bodies.
“Oh,” he said. Slow as his mind was, it was quick enough to realize something very important. He was in a back alleyin The Shades, and he was alone. He ran for it, and got quite a long way.
Death walked slowly across tiles in the lifetimer room, inspecting the serried rows of busy hourglasses. Albert followed dutifully behind with the great ledger open in his arms.
The sound roared around them, a vast gray waterfall of noise.
It came from the shelves where, stretching away into the infinite distance, row upon row of hourglasses poured away the sands of mortal time. It was a heavy sound, a dull sound, a sound that poured like sullen custard over the bright roly-poly pudding of the soul.
V ERY WELL , said Death at last. I MAKE IT THREE . A QUIET NIGHT .
“That’d be Goodie Hamstring, the Abbot Lobsang again, and this Princess Keli,” said Albert.
Death looked at the three hourglasses in his hand.
I WAS THINKING OF SENDING THE LAD OUT , he Said.
Albert consulted his ledger.
“Well, Goodie wouldn’t be any trouble and the Abbot is what you might call experienced,” he said. “Shame about the princess. Only fifteen. Could be tricky.”
Y ES . I T IS A PITY .
“Master?”
Death stood with the third glass in his hand, staring thoughtfully at the play of light across its surface. He sighed.
O NE SO YOUNG …
“Are you feeling all right, master?” said Albert, his voice full of concern.
T IME LIKE AN EVER-ROLLING STREAM BEARS ALL ITS …
“Master!”
W HAT ? said Death, snapping out of it.
“You’ve been overdoing it, master, that’s what it is—”
W HAT ARE YOU BLATHERING ABOUT, MAN ?
“You had a bit of a funny turn there, master.”
N ONSENSE . I HAVE NEVER FELT BETTER . N OW, WHAT WERE WE TALKING ABOUT ?
Albert shrugged, and peered down at the entries in the book.
“Goodie’s a witch,” he said. “She might get a bit annoyed if you send Mort.”
All practitioners of magic earned the right, once their own personal sands had run out, of being claimed by Death himself rather than his minor functionaries.
Death didn’t appear to hear Albert. He was staring at Princess Keli’s hourglass again.
W HAT IS THAT SENSE INSIDE YOUR HEAD OF WISTFUL REGRET THAT THINGS ARE THE WAY THEY APPARENTLY ARE ?
“Sadness, master. I think. Now—”
I AM SADNESS
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