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Not a sorcerer, Haramos? You lied to me about that. Could it be that you lied also about how my son
died?
No, sire believe me, I told the truth! Despite the fact that he was unarmed save for a pair of small
concealed knives, the merchant resisted the soldiers. But it was hard to fight with someone when there
was a foot of sharp blade and six feet of wooden shaft between you and your opponent. Such was the
advantage of the steel-tipped pike.
That is the murderer, down there! That uncouth, uncivilized southerner. And he is no sorcerer, by his
own word! Though I admit to being fooled by the sorceral devices he carries with him.
You are right about one thing. Beckwith paused as he crouched to pass beneath the low overhang of
the escape portal. His guard fought to keep a curious great white away from their Count. Someone here
is being fooled. I wish I had the time to sort it out. He hurried into the concealed passageway. One by
one, his soldiers tried to follow him. Many succeeded. Others lost limbs and, in a couple of cases, their
heads to the rampaging shark.
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Falling back, bin Grue pressed himself against the wall and began to make his way toward the nearest
exit, edging steadily away from the royal dais. Before him was being played out an unparalleled spectacle
of remorseless carnage. He had nearly reached the door when he made the mistake of bolting. The rapid
movement caught the attention of one of the marauding great whites. When he turned, the merchant did
not scream in fear but instead cursed violently. His end, therefore, was in keeping with his nature all his
life, a reflection of internal toughness and perpetual ire. It made no difference to the shark, which bit him
in half.
Out on the floor of the reception hall there were now eight great whites circling slowly in search of
additional prey. The once grand chamber had taken on the aspect of an abattoir, with blood, guts, and
body parts scattered everywhere. The last live soldier had fled.
Sloshing through the shallow lake of unwillingly vented bodily fluids, Ehomba advanced on his still
imprisoned friends. Simna followed, hugging as close to his tall friend as possible without actually slipping
into his clothing. He had seen how fast the floating sharks could move and had no intention of separating
himself from their procreator even for an instant. Soulless black eyes tracked his movements, but the
sharks did not attack. A number had settled to the floor and were feeding, gulping down whole chunks of
soldier, uniform and all.
You are a very canny man. With a free hand the herdsman rubbed his sore face and shoulders. As
soon as the opportunity presents itself, I intend to pay you back for your canniness.
Hoy, bruther, I had to make it look real, didn t I? I needed to distract them from what I was doing
behind your back. Any sleight of hand needs a good diversion to be effective. He grinned. I was
beginning to wonder if you d ever pick up on what I was trying to do.
I admit you had me concerned at first. What finally revealed your true intentions was the degree of your
pleading. I think I understand you well enough to know that you would go down fighting before you
would grovel.
Depends on the circumstances, the swordsman replied without hesitation. If the need arose, I could
grovel with the best of them. He nodded in the direction of the throne. But not because of a lie, and
never in front of a fat toad like bin Grue. His tone was harsh. I saw him go down. He won t be putting
anybody in a cage ever again.
Ehomba replied somberly. Not all the methods a man perfects to protect himself work all the time. That
is one thing about sharks: They cannot be reasoned with, distracted, or bribed. Stay close to me.
The swordsman did not have to be reminded. The presence of twenty tons or so of floating, fast-moving
great white rendered the immediate surroundings decidedly inhospitable.
Let me guess. You re not working any magic whatsoever. You have no idea how this is happening.
You re just making use of the enchanted sword fashioned for you by the village smithy Okidoki.
Otjihanja, Ehomba corrected him patiently. That is a silly notion, Simna. A smithy works only with
metals. He hefted the tooth-lined bone shaft. This sword was made by old Pembarudu, who is a master
of fishing. It took him a long time to gather all the teeth from the shore and mount them together on the
bone. It is whalebone, of course. A shark has no bones. It is one of the reasons they make such good
eating.
Keeping low, Simna ibn Sind made hushing motions with one hand. Don t speak of such things, Etjole.
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One of these finny monsters might overhear and get the wrong idea.
The herdsman smiled. Simna, are you afraid?
By Ghogost s gums, you bet I m afraid, bruther! Any man confronted by such sights who did say he
was not would be a liar of bin Grue s class. I m afraid whenever you pick up a weapon, and I m afraid
whenever you pull some innocent little article out of that pack of yours. Traveling with you, I have learned
many things. When to be afraid is one of them. Still smiling, but grimly, he gazed evenly up at his tall
companion. You re not a man to inspire fear, Etjole, but your baggage that s another matter.
Ehomba did his best to reassure him. So long as I hold the sword, I command its progeny. See ...
Lowering the weapon, he touched the tip to the metal netting in which Ahlitah was imprisoned.
Immediately, the nearest shark turned and swam toward it. Snarling, the black cat backed as far away as
it could from jaws that were even more massive and powerful than its own.
With a snap, the great white took a mouthful of mesh. Thrashing its head from side to side, it used its
teeth like saws. When it backfinned and drew away, it left behind a hole in the net large enough for the
litah to push through.
Under Ehomba s direction, two sharks performed a similar favor for the fourth member of their party.
Expanding the resultant gap with one shove of his mighty arms, Hunkapa Aub emerged to stand
alongside his friends.
Big fish, bad bite.
Simna nodded. I would say, rather: bad fish, big bite but the end is the same. Looking around, he
surveyed their tormented surroundings. The reception hall had been the scene of solemn slaughter. Let s
pick up our gear and get out of here. I ve had about enough of Laconda north, south, or any other
direction.
Soldiers chase? Hunkapa wondered sensibly as they cautiously exited the room.
I do not think so. Sea-bone sword held out in front of him, Ehomba led the way. Forming two lines of
four each, the great whites fell into place on either side of the travelers.
Their measured departure from the lowlands of Laconda created a stir among the populace that lay the
groundwork for stories for decades to come. As was common in such matters, with each retelling the
participants expanded in size and ferocity. Ehomba became the malignant warlock of the sea, come to
wreak havoc among the gentle floating fishes of Laconda. Simna ibn Sind was his gnomic apprentice,
wielding a sword impossibly larger than himself. Hunkapa Aub was a giant with burning eyes and long
fangs that dripped olive green ichor, while the black litah was a streak of hell-smoke that burned
everything it touched.
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