[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.“A made-up story.”“I know what a novel is.”“Sorry.”He looked back out the window.They were coming to Eastgate.Lad hadn’t been outside the city in five years.The last time he had passed this portal, he’d been a different person, less than human, bereft of emotion, and ignorant of what he was.Sometimes he longed for that blissful ignorance again.Wiggen…“Didn’t you bring anything to do during the trip?”“No.” Lad glanced at her with a flash of irritation.“I suppose I should have brought a novel along.”Ignoring his sarcasm, Mya opened her handbag and withdrew another book.This one was larger, with a leather binding and colorful paint on the edge.She handed it over.“Here.This will pass the time, and might even be helpful.”“The City of Tsing, Heart of the Empire Past and Present,” he read aloud.It had never occurred to him to read about Tsing before arriving.Though long familiar with reconnaissance, he generally learned through experience, firsthand observation, and exploration.The notion of reading a published tour guide to learn about their destination beforehand now seemed ludicrously obvious.Why didn’t I think of this?“It’s pretty dry reading, but there’s a lot of information, and even some maps.” Mya sat back again and opened her book.“It’s a big city.I thought it would help to at least know our way around.”Though seemingly relaxed, she sat stiffly, and Lad took a moment to surreptitiously examine her more closely.Her foot jiggled under the folds of her dress, and her finger tapped on the spine of her book, uncomfortable or nervous.Why? Maybe it was the carriage.“Yes.It should be useful.” He flipped open the cover and read the foreword, then thumbed ahead until he found a map.Streets crisscrossed the page, buildings jammed together in long blocks.It was a big city.Then he flipped the page and found another completely different map, and another, and another.“There are maps of several cities here.”“Those are just Tsing’s districts.” Mya looked up with a hint of amusement in her eyes.“There are six of them, and the Imperial Palace besides.”He counted the number of blocks across a single district.“But each one of these is as big as Twailin!”“Yes, and most are much more heavily populated.” She went back to her book.“I told you it was a big city.”“Yes, you did.” He’d known that, but he’d had no real sense of how big.In all his years living in Twailin, he’d never seen a map of the entire city.He’d learned its streets, alleys and rooftops by walking them, not by reading about them.It had taken him weeks to fully explore it, and months to learn all its nooks and crannies.Tsing would take years to learn.“Have you been there?”“No.” Mya didn’t even glance up, but her foot tapped faster.Of course.She’s nervous about being summoned by the Grandmaster.Lad had been so focused on his own problems that he’d forgotten her predicament.Masters were rarely summoned thus, and when they were, it generally wasn’t good.He had no idea how he might ease her fears, or if he should even try.“This will be helpful.Thank you.”“You’re welcome.” Her eyes continued their back and forth migration across the pages.Lad flipped through the maps, piecing together the districts of Tsing in his mind, marveling over the vastness of the city.What would it look like? What the people would be like? Turning to the table of contents, he perused the chapter titles: A Millennium of History, Biographies of Fifty-eight Emperors and Empresses, Economics and Trade, The Military, The Rise of Nobility, Laws Past and Present, and a final section on Entertainment and Leisure.This would be helpful indeed.He glanced back to Mya.She’s always thinking ahead, planning and plotting, looking for every advantage.I just stumble through, reacting to whatever comes my way… She was right; he didn’t think like an assassin.She, however, most certainly did
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]