A score of people were already seated on the Bokhara carpets that covered the ground, while a group of musicians played soft music in the corner. A graceful young woman danced on a raised platform to entertain the waiting supplicants.
'This is very civilized.' Melcorka remembered the roaring, ranting, drunken mobs that filled the halls of Alban and Norse nobility. 'We have come up in the world, Bradan.'
'I feel as if I am a barbarian in a much more advanced culture.' Bradan watched the dancer, thought of Dhraji and quickly looked away.
'We are barbarians compared to these people.' Melcorka settled down on the carpet. 'We are travelling to gain knowledge and learn about new places. Well, Bradan, here is an Empire that can teach us much, as long as it does not succumb to Dhraji and the ra
