Pearl beyond price [antikvár]

"May you live in interesting times."Ancient cursePrologueMaraghain modern AzerbaijanFebruary 1265Chinkai's body was as cold as the dawn.Thierry gritted his teeth at the volume of spilled blood, knowing that he would never grow used to the killing.The wan fingers of light straining above the horizon did naught to warm the air, though their meager illumination showed Thierry the pallor of the old warrior's skin. Chin-kai had been dead for some hours, mayhap since the previous eve. Too late, Thierry recalled that the grizzled warrior had left the khan's funeral celebrations and not returned.That Chinkai's death was not a natural one was beyond doubt. No mistaking was there the viciousness of the slash across the throat that had ended his life, nor the copious quantity of dried blood staining his kalat. Indeed, it seemed the old warrior's eyes were still glazed with shock at the suddenness of his own demise.Thierry swallowed carefully and forced himself to touch the older man's wizened flesh. 'Twas cold as stone.Indeed, he had expected naught else, but still his bile rose. He lifted his gaze and scanned the silent camp, seeking some clue of what had transpired but knowing all the