The Thin Executioner

us inside. Once there, I’ll petition the god. When he sees that I am of the true faith, he will bless me with invincibility and great strength and send me forth to do the work of the Um Biyara. Impervious to harm, with the beating of any man, I’ll bring not just all of the people of Abu Saga to their knees in worship of the Biyara gods, but all of Makhras too. It’s time for the sinners of this world to see the light or perish.”

“You can’t,” Jebel said. “Only a quester can—”

“Don’t tell me my business!” Qasr Bint shouted, and kicked Jebel in the ribs. “You can guide us willingly, or we can force you. Choose.”

Jebel glanced from Qasr Bint to Tel Hesani, trying to think of a way out of this, but he couldn’t see any.

“All right,” Jebel said quietly. “I’ll do as you command.”

“A wise call.” Qasr Bint pointed to the two surviving men. “Grab the slave and bring him, in case he makes a miraculous recovery and sneaks up behind us.”

“Wouldn’t it be simpler to kill him?” one of the men asked.

“I want him to witness my ascension,” said Qasr Bint. “I want him to gaze into my eye before he dies and understand the greatness of the Um Biyara.”

Tel Hesani tried to respond but only coughed up blood. As he lay wheezing, the Um Biyara picked him up and moved to the mouth of the cave, where they stopped. “What if the fire comes again?” one of them asked.

“It won’t,” Qasr Bint said. “We have the quester with us now.”

“But if it does?” the man persisted. “How do we know that anyone ever walked out of there alive? The legends of successful questers might be nothing more than lies.”

Qasr Bint frowned, then jerked his thumb at the woman. “Go in with the boy.”

“But—” she started to protest.

“No arguments!” Qasr Bint barked, and pointed at her with the sharpened end of his staff. “If you don’t go, you’ll suffer far worse than death by fire.”

The woman cursed, then got off Jebel, grabbed his ear, and hauled him to his feet. He winced but didn’t struggle as the woman pushed him ahead of her, then past the men and Tel Hesani, into the shadows of the cave.

The heat increased the moment they entered, and grew by the second until Jebel thought that he was going to melt. Flames licked the walls around them, spouting from the rock. Fiery fingers extended towards Jebel and the woman, to consume them. But then they spat angrily around the pair and retreated.

“See?” Qasr Bint shouted, advancing excitedly. “I told you we’d be safe with the quester. Never doubt me again, you worthless worms!”

The two men holding Tel Hesani followed Qasr Bint into the cave, although they didn’t look as confident as their leader. When they reached Jebel, Qasr Bint grabbed the boy’s elbow and shoved him forward. “Don’t forget what I told you. Say nothing when the god appears. The glory will be mine alone. You are a mere tool. If you interfere, I’ll—”

“WHO BREAKS THE SILENCE?” came a godly roar.

Everybody stopped and stared. Far down the cave, they saw a ball of light floating closer — the source of the voice.

“WHO ENTERS THIS CAVE?” the voice roared, even louder than before.

Qasr Bint spread his arms. “Great god of the Biyara! Hear your loyal servant, Qasr Bint, and grant me the mercy of an audience.”

The ball of fire continued towards them and drew to a halt several feet short of the ecstatic Qasr Bint. For a moment it burned silently save for the crackle of the flames. Then the voice came again.

“I KNOW OF THE UM BIYARA. WHY ARE YOU HERE?”

“We have quested,” Qasr Bint cried. “We come seeking power, to do the will of the mighty Biyara gods.”

There was a short pause. Then the voice said, “YOU LIE.” As Qasr Bint stared at the fire, astonished, the voice spoke to Jebel. “YOU ARE NOT UM BIYARA. YOU AND THE DYING ONE ARE DIFFERENT. WHERE ARE YOU FROM?”

“Abu Aineh,” said Jebel quietly. He wasn’t afraid of the fire, not after having sailed with Rakhebt Wadak on the river of death.

“AND THE DYING ONE IS YOUR SACRIFICE?”

“Yes,” Jebel said.

“Wait!” Qasr Bint shouted. “The boy and his slave don’t matter. They’re just—”

“YOU HAVE QUESTED?” the voice asked Jebel. “YOU OBEYED THE RULES OF THE QUEST AND TRAVELED ONLY BY LAND?”

“Yes,” said Jebel.

“THEN I WILL HEAR YOUR PETITION.”

“No!” Qasr Bint screamed. “You will listen to me! I am of the true faith, not a false idolater like—”

“I CARE NOTHING FOR FAITHS,” the voice cut him short. “I CARE ONLY FOR THE TRUTH. YOU ARE NOT A QUESTER. YOU LIED TO ME. SO FOR YOU AND YOUR FOLLOWERS, THERE SHALL BE ONLY THIS .”

The ball of fire exploded. Flames covered Qasr Bint and the last of the Um Biyara. They shrieked and thrashed around the cave as their skin bubbled away and their bones turned black, but their agonies were short- lived. They collapsed within seconds and were mounds of ash moments later — then not even that, blown away by a soft breeze that came from somewhere deep within the cave.

With no one to support him, Tel Hesani dropped to the floor. Jebel ducked to help him. He laid the Um Kheshabah flat, then tore off his tunic and jammed it into the hole in the man’s chest, trying to stop the flow of blood. Tel Hesani gazed at Jebel with a resigned expression. He shook his head and smiled faintly. “No use,” he whispered.

“No!” Jebel moaned. “I won’t let you die! I’ll—”

“QUESTER,” came the voice of the fire. When he looked up, a giant cobra with a man’s face hung in the air. Flames of gold ran up and down the snake’s spine, and its eyes were fiery red. It was the god he had traveled all this way to see — Sabbah Eid.

“YOU ARE A TRUE HERO,” Sabbah Eid said. “COMPLETE YOUR QUEST AND RECEIVE YOUR REWARD.”

Jebel stared at the god and didn’t reply.

“HURRY, BOY. THE SLAVE IS DYING. KILL HIM QUICKLY BEFORE HE IS LOST TO YOU.”

“No,” Jebel said softly.

“Jebel!” the Um Kheshabah coughed. “Don’t play… games. Kill… me.”

“No,” Jebel said, without glancing away from Sabbah Eid’s fierce, inhuman eyes. “I won’t. I can’t.”

“But… your quest,” Tel Hesani gasped. “If you… don’t kill… me, you’ll be…” Blood filled his throat, and he couldn’t continue.

Jebel looked away from Sabbah Eid and tilted Tel Hesani’s head to one side, allowing the blood to drain from his mouth. “I don’t care. You’re my friend. I won’t kill you.”

“But… I’m dying… anyway,” Tel Hesani protested weakly.

“It doesn’t matter,” Jebel said, tears dripping from his cheeks. “I can’t do it. The gods and my people will damn me for this, but I don’t care about them. I don’t care about anything right now except you.”

Tel Hesani groaned, then gave a weak chuckle. “What a time… to develop… a conscience!” He reached for Jebel’s hand and squeezed. “I am… proud of you… my… friend.”

Tel Hesani smiled at Jebel. As he did, the smile froze, and in the depths of his eyes Jebel caught a brief glimpse of a supernatural river and a boat drifting slowly away from them.

Jebel lowered his friend’s head, closed the unflickering eyelids with his fingers, then said a prayer over the corpse of Tel Hesani and asked his spirit to wait for him awhile, as Jebel was sure he would be joining him soon on Rakhebt Wadak’s ferry of the dead.