Waylander 3 – Hero in the Shadows By David Gemmell

She averted her eyes. ‘This is not easy for me,’ she said, ‘for I need to ask your forgiveness a second time.’

‘I have already said—’

‘No, not for my earlier words. In coming here I may have placed you in some . . . danger. My followers and I are being hunted. It is possible – though I hope unlikely -that we will be found. I felt obliged to inform you of this, and to offer, with genuine intent, to leave immediately, should you desire it.’

‘You have broken some Chiatze law?’ he asked.

‘No, we are not law-breakers. We are seekers of knowledge.’

‘Then who hunts you, and why?’

Now her eyes met his. ‘Bear with me, Grey Man, while I explain why I cannot yet tell you. As I have already shown, your thoughts and memories are known to me. They blaze from you like the rays of the sun, and like those rays they radiate out over the land. All human thoughts do this. The world is awash with them. Far beyond this palace there are minds attuned to such thoughts, seeking out a resonance that will lead them to me. If I told you the names of those hunting me they would form part of your thinking. And merely by thinking them you might alert those who seek to kill me.’

Waylander smiled. ‘Since I do not understand the ways of magickers let us move on,’ he said. ‘Why did you come here?’

‘Partly because you are here,’ she said simply, then fell silent.

‘And the other part?’

‘That is even more complicated.’

Waylander laughed. ‘More complicated than magical enemies who can read thoughts over great distances? It is a bright morning, with a fresh breeze and a blue sky. I am fresh from a cooling swim. My mind is clear. Speak on, Lady.’

‘This is not the only world, Grey Man.’

‘I know. There are many lands.’

‘That is not what I meant. We dwell at this time in Kydor. But there are other Kydors, an infinite number of them. Just as there are an infinite number of Drenai worlds. Many have identical histories, many are different. In some the assassin Waylander killed the Drenai king and the land was overrun by Vagrian forces. In others he killed the king and the Drenai won. In some he did not kill the king and there was no war. You follow?’

Waylander’s good humour seeped away. ‘I murdered the king. For money. It was unforgivable. But it happened. I cannot change it. No one can change it.’

‘It happened here,’ she said softly. ‘But there are other worlds. An infinite number. Somewhere, at this moment, in the vastness of space there is another woman, sitting with a tall man. The scene is exactly as this one, save perhaps that the woman is wearing a blue robe and not one of gold. The man may be bearded, or dressed differently. But she is still me, and he is still you. And the land they dwell in is called Kydor.’

Waylander took a deep breath. ‘He is not me. I am me.’

‘I am sure he is saying exactly that.’

‘And he is right,’ said Waylander. ‘He might also be about to ask the point of this conversation. What does it matter if there are two Waylanders, or two hundred, if they never meet or interact?’

‘A good question. I have seen some of these worlds. In all of them, no matter what the outcome, the man known as Waylander has a part to play.’

‘Not in this world, Lady. Not any longer.’

‘We shall see. Do you wish us to go?’

‘I will think on it,’ he told her, rising from his chair.

‘That is kind of you. One other small matter …”

‘Yes?’

‘You did not ask Keeva how she killed the pigeons she cooked for you.’

‘No, I did not.’ He gave a wry smile. ‘I had other matters on my mind.’

‘Of course. She used your crossbow. She missed with the first bolt, but then killed all three – the last as it took flight.’

‘Impressive,’ he said.

‘I thought that it would interest you.’