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here. None
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Arkadi and Boris Strugatski. Hard to be a god
of those present paid the slightest bit of attention to the
newcomer. If
somebody entered, then that was the way it was supposed to be; but
in case
it was not the way it was supposed to be, then you blinked just
once and
that person disappeared. You could search the wide world over and
never find
a trace of him . . . The pucker-faced old man busily scratched his
pen over
the paper; the people along the wall did not budge. From time to time
one of
them would sigh deeply. Up and down the walls scurried
invisible
salamanders, hunting for flies.
The motionless men along the wall were the leaders of robber
bands.
Rumata had known some of them by sight for quite a while now.
These dull
brutes were not worth anything, actually. Their psyches were
no more
complicated than that of the average shopkeeper. They were stupid,
brutal,
and very handy with .knives and cudgels. But then there was the man
at the
high desk.
He was called Waga Koleso, and he was all-powerful; there
was no
competitor who would have contested his position as chief of
all the
criminal forces in the land, from the Pitanian swamps in the Western
regions
of Irukan to the maritime borders of the mercantile republic of Soan.
He had
been cursed and expelled from all three official churches of the
empire
because of his excessive haughtiness, for he claimed to be the
younger
brother of the ruling prince. He had at his disposal a standing
nocturnal
army, some ten thousand men strong; had a few hundred thousand gold
pieces
in his treasure chests; and his agents penetrated as far as the
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Arkadi and Boris Strugatski. Hard to be a god
very heart
of the government machine. He had been officially executed at
least four
times during the past twenty years, each time in the presence of
a large
populace. According to an official version he was currently
languishing
simultaneously in three of the darkest jails of the realm.
Don Reba,
however, had repeatedly issued commands "regarding the rebellious
spreading
of rumors and legends by enemies of the State and other malevolent
persons
regarding a certain so-called Waga Koleso, who in actuality does
not exist
and thus belongs to the realm of legends."
According to certain rumors, the same Don Reba summoned several
barons,
who disposed of strong troops of warriors, and promised the
following
reward: five hundred gold pieces for Waga's body and seven thousand
for Waga
alive. In his time, Rumata himself had had to spend a great deal of
effort
and money in order to establish contact with Koleso. He felt
violently
repelled by the old man but Koleso was occasionally very
useful, even
literally indispensable. Besides, Waga was of scientific interest
to him,
namely as a most intriguing specimen in Rumata's collection of
medieval
monsters, and as a person who apparently lacked any trace of a past.
Finally, Waga put his quill aside, straightened up his back
and said
with a croaking voice:
"Well, then, my dear children. Two and a half thousand pieces
of gold
within three days. And expenses run only 1996. Five hundred and four
little
round pieces of gold in three days. Not bad, my dear children, not
bad at
all..."
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Arkadi and Boris Strugatski. Hard to be a god
Nobody moved. Waga .left his place behind the high desk, took a
seat in
a comer and forcefully rubbed his dry palms together.
"Isn't that something to make you jump for joy, my dear
children?" he
said. "These are good times for us, these fruitful years . . . But
we must
work hard for our daily bread. Indeed, how hard! My older brother,
the king
of Arkanar, has set his mind on annihilating all learned men in
his own
kingdom as well as in mine. Well, he in his wisdom ought to know what
should
be done. After all, who are we to doubt the wisdom of his judgment?
It does
not behoove us to criticize his most exalted decisions. On the
other hand,
we may--nay, we must--extract some profit from these decisions. And
since we
are his loyal subjects, we must serve him. As we are but his
nocturnal
subjects we will not deliver into his hands our modest part of these
profits
without further ado. He, of course, won't notice it, and therefore
he will
not be annoyed at us. What is the matter?"
Nobody moved.
"I had the impression that Piga was sighing over there. Am I
right,
Piga, my son?"
There was a slight commotion, somebody fidgeting in
his seat,
apparently, as nothing could be seen in the darkened room. A
slight cough
came from a comer.
"I didn't sigh, Waga," said a coarse voice. "I wouldn't.. ."
"That's it, Piga, just keep quiet! Excellent! Now hold your
breath and
listen to me carefully! Look sharp and set to work and nobody will
bother
you at your difficult task. My older brother, His Royal Highness, has
let it
be known through his mouthpiece, the noble Don Reba, that he
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Arkadi and Boris Strugatski. Hard to be a god
has set a
rather considerable sum of money on the heads of several learned men
who are
in hiding or who wish to flee from here. We must deliver these
heads into
his royal hands, just to humor the old man. On the other hand,
though, some
of these scientists want to hide from my older brother's wrath,
and are
willing to remunerate whoever will assist them in it. Out of
compassion, in
the name of pity, and also to guard my brother's soul from the
burden of
excessive misdeeds, we will help these people. And if later on
His Royal
Highness should still be in need of these heads, he can still get
them from
us. At a good price. Very cheap ..."
Waga fell silent and lowered his head. Tears were trickling
down his
cheeks all of a sudden--the slow tears of an old man.
"I am getting old," he sighed, trying vainly to stifle a sob.
"My hands
are trembling with age, my legs fail me and my memory begins
to fade.
Indeed, I forgot completely that inside this tiny, stifling cage a
noble don
is languishing in our midst--surely he does not care to hear about
our petty
money deals. I am leaving you, I will rest. But meanwhile, my
children, let
us ask the noble don to be gracious enough to forgive our
oversight . . ."
Moaning and groaning he rose to his feet, arched over to make a
bow. The
rest of the men also got to their feet and bowed before
Rumata, but
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