The Thin Executioner

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

Jebel wept over the dead Tel Hesani, silently observed by the floating snake god, Sabbah Eid. As he cried, the serpent shimmered and changed. The flames died away, its coils turned to flesh, and the god transformed into an ancient woman in a blue robe, with long grey hair and warm eyes. The woman said softly, “Jebel?”

Jebel looked up and frowned through his tears. “Who are you?” he gasped.

The woman shrugged. “I have many names. You can call me Sabbah Eid if that is what you are most comfortable with.”

“I don’t understand. Are you Sabbah Eid, or aren’t you?”

“I am,” the woman said. “But I’m many other gods too. Or demons. Or ghosts. It all depends on what a quester expects to find. I alter my shape to suit the demands of those who come in search of me.”

“But you’re a god, aren’t you?” Jebel asked, wiping tears from his eyes.

“No. I have some of the powers of a god, but I was born as you were and will die as you will, although I hope to be around for a few more thousand years before death crooks its finger at me.”

“Then Sabbah Eid isn’t real? The legends are lies?”

The woman made a face. “The legends are true to an extent. My powers are real, and although I’m not an actual god, I can take the form and function of one when I have to.”

Jebel stood shakily. “Can you bring Tel Hesani back to life?” he croaked.

The woman shook her head. “Nobody can reclaim a spirit from the lands of the dead. Even the real gods aren’t that powerful.”

Jebel sighed, bid Tel Hesani farewell, then squared his shoulders and glared at the woman. “Go ahead,” he said stiffly. “I’m ready.”

“For what?” the woman asked.

“Death,” Jebel said. “I didn’t make the sacrifice, so you can kill me now. I won’t protest or beg to be spared.”

The woman smiled, and although she was the oldest crone Jebel had ever seen, wrinkled and bent, she was beautiful when she smiled.

“The world is full of vicious people,” she said softly. “It is a violent, dangerous place. That has always been the case, as it will be for a long time to come. But Makhras is not as bad as it was, and hopefully things will continue to improve.

“I am of a race long since gone,” she went on. “For much of our time we lived apart from humans. We thought they were base creatures who could not learn or grow. Towards the end of our age, we realized that we were wrong, and we decided to help them.

“Unfortunately our influence by that time was weak. As death claimed us, we poured the last of our power into a cave and left a sentinel behind to help rid the world of some of its worst tyrants. We spent our final few decades spreading rumors and legends, then all passed on except me. I have remained, alone, sealed in this cave, the last of my kind.”

“How can you get rid of evil people if you’re trapped in a cave?” Jebel asked.

“They come to me,” the woman said. “We sowed the seeds of an enticing legend among races the world over. We told them that a god — spirit, or whatever — lived in this mountain and would grant invincibility and great strength to anyone who made their way here and offered up another person as a sacrifice. We guessed such a promise would draw the more unscrupulous men and women of the world.

“And it has. They’ve come in their droves, the ruthless, the determined, the coldhearted, in search of the power to control others.” She smiled grimly. “They have all perished here, burned to ash like the Um Biyara I just disposed of.”

Jebel gaped at the woman. “You mean you killed all of the questers?”

“I had to,” she sighed. “Most people can be educated and reasoned with, but I don’t have the time or ability to do that. I’m not a teacher, just an executioner.”

Jebel frowned. “But questers have come back. It’s been a long time, but some returned, powerful, invincible, dying only of old age.”

“Yes.” The woman moved forward to cup Jebel’s chin with a hand. Her fingers were warm and softer than Jebel had expected. “Every so often a quester sees the error of his ways as he travels here. He learns compassion and mercy. In most cases such people do not complete their quest but return home or go in search of peace in some faraway corner of the world. But a few carry on, stopping only at the last instant, like you.

“Those are the few I spare,” the woman said, her fingers tightening. “They are the ones I bless.” Heat spread from her fingers to Jebel’s chin, then through the rest of his body, a sudden burst, gone almost as soon as it formed. The woman released him and stepped back. “You may go now.”

“Go?” Jebel echoed, feeling light-headed.

“The power is yours. Use it well, as others before you have, to change the world for the better. I won’t tell you how to live your life — you will find your own way. All I ask is that you maintain the myth and claim that you completed the quest by killing your slave. You can tell your loved ones the truth if you wish, but when speaking to others please keep the lie alive. If the wicked and unjust learned of the truth, they would stop coming, and the world would suffer that bit more.”

Things were happening in a whirl. Moments before, Jebel had been anticipating a fiery death. Now, if the woman was to be believed, the legends were a trap, the strong and ruthless were executed instead of rewarded, and his punishment for weakness was in fact the very prize he had set out in search of.

“It will make sense later,” the woman said, having seen this reaction in others before him. “You will have plenty of time to reflect upon this day. I predict a long, glorious life for you, Jebel Rum.”

“But the quest is over? It ends like this? Suddenly, without any… any…”

The woman chuckled. “I could have lights explode overhead and the cave fill with music and cheering, but wouldn’t that be rather pointless?”

“I suppose,” Jebel muttered. His gaze came to rest on Tel Hesani again. “What about my friend?”

“I will bury him. I know the customs of the Um Kheshabah. I will see that he is given the ceremony he would have wanted.”

“Can I stay to help?” Jebel asked.

“I would not recommend it. I took the liberty of glancing inside your mind when I touched you. I know of the mukhayret and Tel Hesani’s wife and children. Time is against you. If you set off now, you will probably make it, but if you hesitate…” She shook her head.

“All right,” Jebel said, too tired and dazed to argue. He turned to go back the way he had come.

“Not that way,” the woman stopped him. “It would take too long.”

“What other way is there?” Jebel asked with a frown.

“There is a path deep underground. The crust of Makhras covers a series of mazes and tunnels. You can get to most places down there. Follow me.”

The woman set off. Jebel bent, touched the forehead of Tel Hesani, tearfully wished him luck in the afterlife, then hurried after his strange host.

The woman led Jebel to the rear of the cave and down through a hole in the floor. It was a difficult climb, but the rocks were so tight around him that Jebel could stop as often as he liked, jam himself between the walls, and rest.

They descended for an hour, maybe more, coming to an eventual halt on a hard, warm floor. It was completely black down there, but a faint glow came from the woman — her body was flickering with flames. As Jebel stared around, one of the flames broke away from the woman and brightened until it was the size of a torch.

“Follow this,” the woman said. “It will guide you to a spot close to your city. From there you can climb to the surface and be home within three or four days. If you march swiftly through the tunnels, stopping only to sleep, you should make it back in time for the mukhayret.”

“I don’t know if I can,” Jebel said. He felt totally drained.

“Of course you can,” the woman assured him. “You’re invincible now, stronger than any normal man. You can push your body to extremes you would never before have dreamt possible.”

“What about food and water?” Jebel asked.

“Water is readily available,” the woman said. “Food is scarcer, but there are plants and fruits that grow in the darkness. Most are inedible, but you can eat anything — poison won’t upset your stomach! Eat whenever you see anything that looks like it can be eaten, keep marching, and you’ll be fine.”

The woman kissed Jebel’s cheeks. “We won’t see each other again,” she said, “but I will think of you every day. I hope you have a good, long life. I’m certain you will.” Before Jebel could think of a reply, her form faded, and he was alone in the tunnel with the floating ball of light.

Jebel waited for his senses to stop spinning. When they didn’t, he put his doubts on hold, faced the light, and started walking. The light moved ahead of Jebel, guiding him away from the sacred mountain of Tubaygat and the mysterious, powerful, incredibly lonely woman who dwelt within.