They baited, staring at the kneeling crowd. The
voice was cold and passionless as the face, but courteous.
Bring me water to drink, I said,
emphatically.
We went by groups of silentlysaluting
soldier-women; we went by many transverse passages.
But I would have given much to have recalled the
words. I pushed the soldiersaside and walked to Tibur.
A drawbridgebegan to creak, and to drop down over
the gap. Sinister the black citadel might be, but it did not seem tocast any shadow
on the people of Karak.
We went into that andthe slab closed, leaving us in
pitch-darkness.
Whenhe answered me his voice had lost all
truculency.
There was a table glistening with gold and crystal;
tallcandles burned upon it.
I walked around the table and dropped into one of
the chairs besidehim.
I wrenched it from her grip andslipped it m my
girdle. He was up again like acat, sword athrust at me.
I drank while they were bathing me, and I drank
whilethey were trimming my hair and shaving me.
He smiled up at me, opened his mouth and
pointed.
Butwhen he passed within Khalkrus temple, I held
back.
I wanted some more wine, and I wantedto know when,
where and how I was going to eat. On each side ofhim was another of the thrones. The
reasons for that I do not know, I said, casually.