No Choice by K.J. Parker

Author:K.J. Parker [Parker, K.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub

“You can’t just leave,” they told me. “There’s too much to do.”

“You do it,” I told them, and left.

I only just made the boat, which was the only one we had in the harbour at the time. The next day a whole fleet of supply ships would be arriving, mine to do what I liked with as soon as they dropped anchor, but the next day was completely useless if I wanted to get back to the city in time for the plenary session of the House.

The sawbones gave me a hard time, needless to say; if you put any pressure on that leg, it’ll burst the stitches and I won’t be accountable for the consequences. I told him that was fine. He shouted something else after me, but I didn’t hear it. Actually, he was quite right; the stitches did burst, but luckily there was a medic on the ship.

It’s five days from the city to Olybria but nine days (if you’re lucky) from Olybria to the city. This is because of prevailing winds or something equally technical; I don’t know anything about ship stuff. Nine days when there was absolutely nothing I could do except feel ill and get under the feet of the crew. I was terrified all the time, goes without saying, because there are so many things that can slow down a ship, and I had absolutely no time to spare. Nine endless days of having no time to spare, and every minute of those nine days scared to death.

I should have used them writing a speech to make to the House, but I didn’t. Literary composition isn’t one of my talents (you’ll have noticed that, I guess); I can’t do it unless I concentrate absolutely, and I can’t do that when my head is splitting and my stomach feels like it’s full of boisterous squirrels scrambling about among my ribs. The only thing I could do under such circumstances was feel sorry for myself, so I did that, very thoroughly.

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