Elric at the End of Time

9 In which Mrs Persson At Last Makes Contact with Her Old Friend

They stood together beneath the striped awning of the tent while a short distance away armoured men, mounted on armoured horses, jousted, were injured or died. The two members wore appropriate costumes for the period. Lord Jagged looked handsome in his surcoat and mail, but Una Persson merely looked uncomfortable in her wimple and kirtle.

"I can't leave just now, " he was saying. "I am laying the foundations for a very important development."

"Which will come to nothing unless Elric is returned, " she said.

A knight with a broken lance thundered past, covering them in dust.

"Well played Sir Holger! " called Lord Jagged. "An ancestor of mine, you know, " he told her.

"You will not be able to recognize the world of the End of Time when you return, if this is allowed to continue, " she said.

"It's always difficult, isn't it?" But he was listening to her now.

"These disruptions could as easily affect us and leave us stranded, " she added. "We would lose any freedom we have gained."

He bit into a pomegranate and offered it to her. "You can only get these in this area. Did you know? Impossible to find in England. In the thirteenth century, at any rate. The idea of freedom is such a nebulous one, isn't it? Most of the time when angry people are speaking of 'freedom' what they are actually asking for is much simpler — respect. Do those in authority or those with power ever really respect those who do not have power?" He paused. "Or do they mean 'power' and not 'freedom'. Or are they the same…?"

"Really, Jagged, this is no time for self-indulgence."

He looked about him. "There's little else to do in the Middle East in the thirteenth century, I assure you, except eat pomegranates and philosophize…"

"You must come back to the End of Time."

He wiped his handsome chin. "Your urgency, " he said, "worries me, Una. These matters should be handled with delicacy — slowly…"

"The entire fabric will collapse unless he is returned to his own dimension. He is an important factor in the whole plan."

"Well, yes, I understand that."

"He is, in one sense at least, your protege."

"I know. But not my responsibility."

"You must help."

There was a loud bang and a crash.

A splinter flew into Mrs Persson's eye.

"Oh, zounds! " she said.