Penny

The Sorceress and the Slave

It had worked, knowledge that she could not have taken into herself had passed into the slave. Knowledge that generations since the Prophet, Blessed be his Name, had sought to destroy or possess was hers for the price of a few pieces of silver. The writings that she had followed had proven themselves correct after all. Perhaps the city of Enchantment was within her reach.

A sudden tramping sound in the street drew her attention and she moved quickly to the door of the small shop. Coming down the street were a score of the Pasha's guard in their red and grey livery with slung pikes. The merchants shouted protestations and a few went so far as to hurl fruit but mostly they just grabbed up thier wares to protect them from the steel shood feet of the soldiers. Their seemed little doubt of their destination. The snappily dressed eunuch at the back of the prossession, clearly in command for all he skulked behind the saftey the men provide, removed any lingering doubt she may have had.

"Allah curse them for breathing," she muttered and looked around quickly for some other way from the dwelling. None presented itself.

"We need a way out of here before the Jannisaries arrive," she declared, the slightest hint of anger on her voice at the disruption of the plan.

@POOHEAD189

Grim Galaxy: Shots and Chances

"Contact," Sayeeda reported as her PPI flashed the new signal. Her hands flew over the controls targeting sensors and examining readings. It didn't have the multiple frequency reading that a ship would have, they bi-product of hundreds or thousands of motors, pumps and actuators, It only emitted one signal, a slowly growing diffraction wave.

"All clear," she said by reflex, "looks like its only a comet or some other chunk of space rock. Moving fast though and seems to be... how is it possible for a rock to be accelerating."

"Captm, It mus have onatural high concentrations of antimater that be sublimin to cause thrust," Lonney chipped in. Sayeeda blinked rapidly, momentarily defeated by the dialect the damn computer used. A few finger strokes converted the analysis to text without the accent.

"Hardly fair!" Looney grumped.

"Looks like its going to pass within one standard unit of us, Looney says that it must have a vein of some sort of anti matter rich ore that is subliming to give it its thrust. Sensors can't predict if we will need to maneuver."

@POOHEAD189

Frokane's Mildly Politcal Hangout Thread

<Snipped quote by Penny>
I hate to say it but of course they did.

@POOHEAD189

I think its fair to say that any Republican candidate that wasn't caught sleeping with under aged girls would have won in a landslide.

Frokane's Mildly Politcal Hangout Thread

Also I have just been informed Roy Moore wants a recount.

@POOHEAD189

Fox called it in favor of Jones so its probably beyond any serious margin of contention. If there was any realistic hope they would be banging the drum for it.

While having Jones is better than Moore, the real story is that 40+ percent of Alabama voters still went for Moore.

Frokane's Mildly Politcal Hangout Thread

The problem of evil is one of the oldest theological challenges. Basically all arguments on this point are explanations for why the world looks like there is no divine plan at all and people are just making it up as they go along. Weird.

Frokane's Mildly Politcal Hangout Thread

You're awfully stupid with nothing of worth to contribute, but God will forgive you.

@Andreyich

Please, tell me more of this God of which you speak!

Frokane's Mildly Politcal Hangout Thread

You can still enjoy the fascinating discussion of how people are doing Iron Age cult practice wrong.

The Sorceress and the Slave

The old man staggered back his face an ashern grey, as though the effort of a few moments had taken a years hard labor from him. Brass tinkled as he sagged against a bench of age cracked teak. Tools tumbled from the table onto the timber floor with a clattering crash. Amira stepped around the still stunned Rhaak and approached the old man. With a slender hand she reached up and unfastened her veil and allowing the silvered fabric to hang free. The old man gasped and held up a trembling hand in weak protestation.

"Anhouri, please..." he begged in a rasping whisper. Implacably and without hurry she lay three fingers on his forehead and with her free hand reached into the old mans shirt and jerked. A cord of leather which hung around his neck snapped and came away in her hand, an odd bronze coin the size of a thumbnail still dangling from it by some surprisingly ornate knotwork.

"Salem," she said grimly and pressed forward slightly with the three fingers. The old man toppled and slumped to the floor, his head striking the wood with a hollow thump. His eyes were filmed with death and his tongue began to lol. Carefully she refastened her veil and turned to face Rhaak, slipping the coin into a fold in her garment.

"Now you must tell me what you saw."

@POOHEAD189