As they hurried down to the road, Iethen said, “They was always at odds, but I never saw the likes of that afore. There’s badness in the air today.” She pulled her shawl about her and began to run.
~
AS DUSK CREPT UP on the town, the ox was being turned slowly over a fire. The aroma of cooking meat mixed with that of freshly baked bread and new-made puddings coiled in the air over the tables. Eorthas announced the players were ready to perform Shivara and the Black Emperor, and everyone assembled before the wagon once more, keenly expectant, but Thaljhaz, determined to prove himself, had not returned, and his wife and daughter had shut themselves in the inn. Some of the townsfolk had seen the play before and of those who hadn't, many had heard of it. It was a serious piece, full of drama
