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THERE ARE SOME words that can send a ic

For exa funny’ Even if you’ve just watched the final of Smart-Alecs Club?on TV, read the latest Terry Pratchett book and dug up ten really funny, fresh jokes on the internet ?that will all fly right out of your head in an instant

The words ’Sit and think’ are pretty effective too They iebra test or some quarterly essay at school, and the weary face of the teacher who no longer expects anything good fro directly to Edinburgh, on Aeroflot If this had been a standard assignment, I wouldn’t have minded at all ?I liked what I’d seen of Scotland And particularly since Edgar, of course, had taken seats in business class Three infuriated coht the Boeing 767 ere flying in, were left fu at check-in when their tickets proved to be invalid I didn’t say anything, but I felt hope beginning to wars or invalid tickets are caused by the ered Others, ht Ones too That’s why all such incidents are investigated by the Watches Well, in theory all, but in practice only the ones that cause serious scandals In this case it looked as if a really large-scale scandal was in the offing

But I was afraid that the investigation still wouldn’t be as proht then, when everyone all the way across Moscoas hunting for Saushkin

The customs post at departures had also been reinforced Instead of two Others on duty, there were four ?in such cases parity is strictly observed I had been hoping that perhaps they ht use some of our lads for the reinforcements and they would spot me, but all of the Others were froar had given us false passports and applied high-quality masks that fourth- and fifth-level Others wouldn’t be able to penetrate So I walked past ues under the na Gennady becaar called himself I didn’t hear

Once I was in the plane and the flight attendant had brought the coffee and cognac that Edgar had proame all hands up Every now and then the furry noose on lances of puzzlehter, or scratched at my skin with its tiny little claws or teeth Just about the only thing it didn’t do was purr while it waited forwas called Schrodinger’s Cat Evidently because nobody had ever been able to decide whether this piece of trash was alive or dead In the Inquisition they used Schrodinger’s Cat for transporting the erous criminals The lousy son of a bitch had never failed And by the way, unless I was getting things confused, it was the only one of its kind Edgar had stolen some truly unique artefacts

’Drink your coffee,’ Edgar said amiably I had been put in theseat, with Gennady beside ar sat behind us, and he made sure there was no one in the seat beside hier was ies and promises of countless bonuses in compensation All in all, Aeroflot made a quite remarkably pleasant impression No worse than the western carriers, or even a bit better It was just a pity I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the flight I was in the wrong company for that

I drank coffee and brandy by turns, watching as the plane rolled out onto the runway Edgar whispered soines disappeared A Sphere of Silence Well, it made sense: now no one would bother us, and no one would hear us It was a good thing that, unlike the wizard Khottabich in the fairy tale, Edgar had other ways of coines

Proceed, if you are as strong as I;

Or go back, if you are as wise as I

He wasthe hapless treasure hunters But he still believed that he had to give a hint That was in the unwritten rules of the game in those days So there had to be a way

Proceed-go back Forwards-backwards

Perhaps you had to pu back wards and forwards, like trying to free a car that’s got stuck in the otten by the masses in this era of automatic transmissions Reach the sixth level, juh

Absolute drivel I had just barelyto catch h

I was assuht out of the depths of the Twilight, like Geser, I still wouldn’t be able to pump up us is here concealed Only one step is left

That was all clear enough The inscription was on the sixth level The Crown of All Things was hidden on the seventh The cunning Merlin had left the signpost where only the ician could reach it it felt really good that I had et there!

But eren’t told anything special in this line It was a kind of preamble An introduction We could only hope that Thomas the Rhyht to be, coreat bard and an ancestor of Ler or the wise ?

This was more or less clear too Merlin had left the decision about whether to use the artefact or not up to those ould be his equal In Power or wisdom - it didn’t , when you are able to take it

Right, now this was a bit h Merlin believed that using the Crown lobal catastrophe You shall receive all and nothing - you shall receive everything, but not for yourself

Or was I like Edgar and Gennady, only seeing what I wanted to see?

What if’ you shall receive all and nothing’ meant that the whole world would be in your power, but it would be destroyed?

I didn’t know I couldn’t understand If only I could have read it in the original

’Edgar, I have to make one phone call,’ I said

’What?’ Edgar chortled ’Who to, Geser? We’ve already been warned to switch our phones off’

’Do you want me to produce a result? I have to ask Foar didn’t hesitate for long He closed his eyes, then nodded

’Call You have three minutes before we start to take off But re very carefully’

It was a good thing that I hadn’t erased Ler, two

’Anton?’

There was a clear note of curiosity in Lero? You translated it as "You shall receive all and nothing, when you are able to take it" ?reme and lose every thing" or "you shall receive everything, but you don’t need it"?’

Tholish:

’With it thou shalt acquire all ?and nothing shalt thou get ’

Well, thanks a bunch for not saying it in Welsh

’That et it clear

’Itthat you personally don’t need, although it is very ilobal, universal’

’Thank you, Fo?’ Ler our ti’

I cut the connection I wondered if Edgar and Gennady had heard our conversation and was suddenly surprised to realise that I was enthralled by the task Despite the noose on my neck Despite the black there with me I wanted to understand I wanted to solve Merlin’s riddle I could never be as powerful as him, but maybe I could at least rival him intellectually

I wanted to believe that I could

Proceed, if you are as strong as I;

Or go back, if you are as wise as I

Right, then We’d co was oal by following Merlin’s route The ould go back and choose the other way round

Beginning and end, head and tail, all is fused in one

That was probably just fine words Alpha and o and the end Head and tail? Maybe that was a hint at the goleht, this line had to be thought about seriously

In the Crown of All Things Thus are life and death inseparable

This bit probably referred to the application of the spell Life and death are inseparable The Others who have withdrawn into the Twilight will coain, return to our worldI wondered if that hat they wanted I’d al Thomas the Rhymer out of there, he’d wanted to stay so ical heaven

I i at his father: ’Did I ask you to resurrect me?’ Was that a possibility?

I didn’t know I couldn’t understand a thing Oh, but Thoht in the trap of his own dreaar and Gennady were blinded by theirs That inhabit ant of the Twilight who had ed to reach the first level and had even savedtis I wondered who he was and why he had helpedfroht depths of the creation?

Questions, questions and no answers to the and end, head and tail, all is fused in one

There seeh Head and tail - that was the bit that I couldn’t get out of my mind Whose head was fused with his tail down there? That was if I didn’t take the golem-monster with teeth in both tails seriously as a candidate

And by the hy not take it almost seriously?

Not for myself, of course For our own dear Last Watch

So, the Crown of All Things was concealed in the body of this miserable two-headed beast Soan Where head and tail were indis tinguishable Go back, that is, to the fifth level, and you’ll find it there!

Well, that sounded very convincing If it was said with a straight face They didn’t have the Rune, and Edgar wasn’t likely to be able to get it Just let theolem created by Merlin!

Of course, if the Crown of All Things really was found in the belly of that creeping horror, then that would bethat would be very annoying

But I doubted that would be the outco,’ said Gennady ’What have you come up with?’

’Quiet,’ I said ’I’nac’

Gennady pursed his lips and said nothing

Absorbed in hts and surrounded by a cocoon of total silence, I completely missed the moment of take-off When I looked out of the ere already high up above the first layer of clouds, the first level Aagh, noas seeing levels that had to be broken through everywhere!

Yes, there was definitely so about that line that stuck in ht? I’d heard about that soic? No, more likely in folklore In soyptian myths and, later, European ones Alchemical treatises Buddhism, in the form of the wheel of Samsara, rebirth