LITMIR.BIZ

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sight of them filled Ezratah with pride, but the Tari was not impressed.

      'I guess now that the Mirayans govern this land, they have replaced all the Seagani chieftains with Mirayan lords, yes? But what about all these farms? Where have they come from?' Yani asked. 'It is not like the Seagani to part with their land willingly.'

      'When Prince Alexus was offered the chieftainship, the Seagani were united. Over the years there have been rebellions against him and their land has been confiscated. Or the local lords have given grants of land that are unused.'

      'Unused?'

      'Well, as far as I can see the Seagani leave most of the land unused. I mean they pick up every three years and move. It's so wasteful.'

      'I imagine they do it so that the life spirit of the land they have been farming can recover. The spirit of this land is not very strong and gets worn out by being farmed all the time. Just because it's empty doesn't mean it is unused. It's resting.'

      'Well, that's ridiculous. I'm a nobleman - no expert on farming of course - but Mirayan farming methods can produce much more from a single piece of land. You put manure on it and rotate crops and other things like that… ' He should have known better than to have troubled himself with enlightening the Tari. He'd continue to ask questions like some silly child. Why should the Seagani change their farming methods? Why were Mirayan farming methods better? Why did the Mirayans grow fruit trees where there was obviously not enough water for them?

      The arrogant bumpkin wound up lecturing him - him! - and going on about the life spirit and harmony and all kinds of other superstitious native rubbish. He truly believed the native way was superior.

      'Mirayans don't believe that inanimate objects contain life spirit,' Ezratah said at last, just to shut him up.

      'That's quite obvious,' Yani said tartly.

      The cheek of the fellow! It was the complacent assumption of rightness that most annoyed Ezratah, the more so because it was so very wrong. But how could he convince this stubborn barbarian that the primitive belief in the life spirit was wrong? Every civilised person knew that only people had life spirit. It was the hierarchy of nature. People were superior to, and thus the rulers of, other creatures, plants and the earth, just as the high-born were superior to and natural rulers of the peasantry.

      As they travelled along, however, Ezratah came to understand why the Tari had such an overweening opinion of himself. Every time they went through a village, the natives flocked around him, cheering and laughing. The women asked him for blessings for them and their children - which he gave - and made requests for healing - which he declined, saying that he was not a mage. A couple of times people were angry at his denial and once, as they left a village, someone threw a clod of mud at him. The Tari's hand caught the mud before Ezratah had even seen it coming. Yani walked along for several steps afterward, tossing the clod thoughtfully in his hand.

      'Disturbing,' Ezratah said at last.

      'Yes,' the Tari said, tossing the clod away. 'But on the whole I am surprised I have not had more of this. These people call my people the Guardians and my people have done nothing for them for over twenty years. I had expected more anger and instead I have received only love and kindness, for which I feel most unworthy.'

      His words set off alarms in Ezratah's head. There must be some kind of religious connection between the Tari and the Seagani. They looked on him as some kind of leader. There was no doubting that Yani had leadership qualities and a sense of responsibility for them. Yes, very worrying. The Southern Seagani were a restive, unruly people who bore the limitations of law and order unwillingly. There had been a number of uprisings against Prince Scarvan. Ezratah prayed he was not witnessing the beginning of another. It was a good thing he was here, travelling with the Tari. Once he got to Olbia it was imperative that he inform someone of the Tari's disturbing effect on the natives. Whomever he informed was sure to be grateful.

      Maybe it was the heat. As the day went on and Ezratah's irritation grew, he found himself needling the fellow, who of course refused to rise to the bait in a sickeningly superior way. Only once did he ruffle Yani's annoyingly calm surface. He had asked the fellow about his earlier life, and Yani told him that he had served in the Danian army.

      My chance to scoff, thought Ezratah. 'Queen Sharma,' he said. 'Is she as lascivious as they say? Does she really have ranks of men-at-arms whose duties are to pleasure her?'

      'Queen Sharma is very happily married,' Yani said coldly.

      'Oh, come on! I doubt that! What kind of man could be happy letting his wife rule? It will be the ruination of that country, this inversion of natural order. It's like expecting a serf to general an army. Mir did not make women to rule. They are victims of their baser passions with no grasp of logic or diplomacy.'

      'What are you talking about?' Yani asked. 'Is that why you keep your women imprisoned?'

      'They are not imprisoned,' Ezratah said. 'They are protected from the hard world of men. Mir created them to be mothers and their world is - and should be - the world of family and children. In the household they are the rulers just as men are the rulers outside it. A man's intellect and self-control is superior. That is why Mir put him at the pinnacle of the natural order. And that's why a woman ruler… I've even heard she has a regiment of bodyguards who are women. Do they provide bedmates for her husband? Is that how she keeps him quiet?'

      'Women can fight and they are very fine fighters,' Yani said. 'In the old days the queen's husband won her through combat. Now it is all done with champions, which is much fairer. The strongest man does not necessarily make the best consort. Sometimes, in the past, male bodyguards took advantage of their power to kill the king and forcibly marry the queen. A female bodyguard is not so open to that temptation.'

      'What a way to run a country! All the power in the hands of women. How do Dani men bear it? The queen ought to want a strong man to help her rule. What must it do to a woman to have to give orders? Their nature is submission. They are happiest being directed. Well, some women do like to rule but they are the worst sort and they always do it badly. I can imagine this queen… hard, cruel, and no doubt promiscuous.'

      At that moment he tripped over something and fell flat on his face. At the same time he heard the sound of steel being drawn. He rolled over just in time to see Yani finish drawing his sword.

      'Sir,' Yani said pleasantly, though his eyes were cold. 'I have sworn to uphold the queen's honour. I must ask you to cease talking about her like this or I will be forced to challenge you to a duel in her name, and I have no wish to kill a mage.'

      'You'd be stupid to try,' Ezratah said, who was nonetheless a little nervous.

      'But I will do it,' Yani said. 'Queen Sharma is a fine and good ruler who has shown me great kindness. I will not listen to her being slandered like this. It is a matter of honour.'

      Ezratah looked quickly around. Now was the time for any followers to attack if they were going to. There was no sign of them though.

      'Sir,' Yani said. 'Your answer please. Are we to fight?'

      'Of course not,' Ezratah said. 'I too have my honour and it does not include duelling with those who have no magic.'

      'And… '

      'What do you mean?'

      'We will not talk about the queen, yes?'

      'If it offends you, I am willing not to speak of it.'

      'Good,' Yani said. He put his sword back in its sheath.

      That stupid Tari! Ezratah honestly thought the fellow would have attacked him. Mad. Mad as a headless chicken. When he'd stopped being stunned, he was even more angry. What about all the times the Tari had offended him today? All those things he'd implied about Prince Scarvan being a liar and a merchant. What about his feelings of offence? Hah! Personal kindness, huh! The fellow was probably bedding the queen himself. The whole thing was disgraceful.

      It was all part of the fellow's blatant arrogance. Ezratah was looking forward to getting to Olbia so the Tari could see for himself just how fine Mirayan civilisation was compared

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