son was but the latest in a series of unusual occurrences: the war brewing to
the north; the raid on Jubal’s estate; and the disappearance and later
reappearance of both Tempus and One-Thumb-all were like the rumble of distant
thunder heralding a tempest of monumental proportions.
Omat had said the storm season was months off, but not all storms were forged by
nature. Something was coming, the storyteller could feel it in the air and see
it in the faces of the people on the streets-though he could no more have put a
name to it than they could have.
For a few moments he debated making one of his rare visits to a temple, but as
always the sheer number of deities to be worshipped, or appeased, daunted him.
With petty jealousies rampant among gods and priests it was better to abstain
completely than risk choosing wrong.
The same coins he could have given as an offering might also buy a glimpse of
the future from a bazaar-seer. Of course, their ramblings were often so obscure
that one didn’t recognize the truth until after it had happened. With a smug
grin, Hakiem made up his mind. Instead of investing in gods or seers he would
quest for insight and omen in his own way-staring into a cup of wine.
Quickening his step, the storyteller set his course for the Vulgar Unicorn.
EXERCISE IN PAIN
by Robert Lynn Asprin
There must be trouble. Saliman had been gone far too long for his mission to be
going smoothly. Some might have had difficulty judging the passage of time
during the period of time between sundown and sunrise, but not Jubal. His early
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