216

You soon enter a public square where a throng of men have gathered at the ruins of a fountain. They are listening to the frenzied speech of a man dressed in red from head to toe; each man in the crowd is wearing a strip of the same coloured cloth, which covers the lower half of his face.

‘They’re Adu-kaw—“the veiled ones”,’ says Banedon nervously. ‘It sounds as if they’re declaring a blood feud on their old enemies, the men of Tefa.’

You follow Banedon to the shelter of a toa tree, where you will be less conspicuous. The speaker is denouncing the Tefarim for imposing a heavy tax for safe passage through their town and for use of the highway to Kara Kala. His ranting begins to stir the crowd to fever pitch.

Suddenly he points to where you stand and shrieks, ‘Tefarim spies!’

If you want to try to reason with the crowd of screaming fanatics that are now running towards you with their swords drawn, turn to 284.

If you wish to follow Banedon’s example and run for your life, turn to 340.