The figure wandered into the great city of Ankh-Morpork, the smell making
him dizzy. It was his first time to the twin city but yet he felt
something, like he belonged, which he had never felt before. His clothes
were dusty from travel and sweat glistened on his tanned skin. He strolled
slowly down the thronged streets of the city, through the bustling crowds
as a smell and a voice rang out like a siren.
'Get your hot sausages! Luverly pork hot sausages! Get them while they're hot!' the voice shouted.
The wafting smell of food did the impossible task of blocking out the smell of Ankh-Morpork and the figure's stomach growled in hunger. He stumbled out through the crowd into a junction between a number of roads, the sound of cattle audible under those of everyday city life, the smell leading him to a short, skinny, rodenty man with a tray of food.
'Ah you look hungry sir. Care to try a genuine pork hot sausage?' the vendor asked.
The figure nodded and the vendor handed him over a hot sausage after taking the money. The figure sniffed the hot sausage and proceeded to ram it into his mouth, chewing vigorously. The vendor stared at the figure in amazement with a few passer-bys also gathering to stare. They all knew what was supposed to happen when someone ate one of Dibbler's sausages and were waiting for it to come.
The figure swallowed the last mouthful and licked his lips. 'Tasty.' He said grinning while a gasp of awe went up from the crowd.
'You new here lad?' Dibbler asked nervously waiting for the usual reaction to his food.
'Yeah. Do you know where there's a place to stay?' the figure asked.
'Werl, there's always Mrs. Cake's in Elm Street but that's not the place for a lad like you.' Dibbler told him.
'Why's that?' the figure asked.
'They say she has weird lodgers. Zombies and what-not.' Dibbler answered surreptitiously.
'I see. Well where is this Elm Street?' the figure asked.
'Down that way lad.' Dibbler pointed. 'You wan' another hot sausage before you go?' he asked hopefully.
'Some other time.' The figure told him and strode off up along Elm Street favouring his right leg slightly.
'Weird lad.' Dibbler thought to himself and started yelling his wares again.
The figure came to a door and rapped on it hard. It opened to show a short fat woman dressed in black.
'Yes oi am.' She said politely before he could say a word.
'Are you Mrs. Cake?' he asked.
'Drat. Oi keep forgetting to switch it off.' She said.
'Why are you answering me before I say anything?' the figure asked, his brow wrinkled in perplex ion.
Mrs. Cake wiggled a finger in her ear.
'Sorry about that dearie. All sorted now. Can oi help?' she asked.
'Um yes I heard you had a room?' he asked.
'That I do. It's five dollars a month up front.' She told him.
'That's fine.' He told her and took five dollars from his pouch.
'Follow me.' Mrs. Cake told him, taking the money and leading him into the house and up the stairs to a small brown room.
'There you go.' She told him as he walked in and gave it a cursory glance.
'Thanks.' He told her smiling and shut the door behind her as she left.
He gazed out the window at the bustling city. 'Five years and I'm finally here. Now all I have to do is find him and show him what he really is. Then we can fulfil our destiny.' He thought to himself.
He found a key on a nail in the wall and put it in his pouch before deciding to wait for night.
He had heard so much about Ankh-Morpork, how Lord Vetinari had made it such a great city that worked. The Guilds, the dwarves, the trolls... the Watch. Not that the Watch would present him any problems in what he had to do but the fact they had a werewolf was interesting. He grinned to himself as he lay on the musty bed. No doubt Vetinari knew of him and his intentions. He wondered how the man would react.
In the Patrician's Palace Lord Vetinari had other problems to worry about than some mysterious stranger. Leonard da Quirm had become more restless since his time in the Kite and had been relentlessly trying to recapture that moment, hence the shaking of the rooms. Vetinari peered through the thick acrid smoke and ducked absent-mindedly as a fragment of wood flew out through the door. He sighed softly and entered the room to find Leonard sat in the smouldering remains of his latest invention.
'I take it the Gods are not looking too kindly on your persistence to fly?' Vetinari asked.
'So it seems my Lord.' Leonard replied brushing the soot from his face and clothes.
'Well I'm sure something will distract you from this and the Gods will stop smiting you. In fact I may require your services soon.' Vetinari told him sitting on the remaining stool among the ashes.
'How so my Lord?' Leonard asked as he started busily designing a broom.
'The Watch is going to have a visitor who may prove troublesome.' Vetinari told him.
'Why not arrest this visitor now?' Leonard asked as he pieced together remaining parts of wood into a triangular brush.
'Some things have to be discovered.' Vetinari replied gnomically. 'I'll send a new bed and materials up to you. Try not to get them incinerated.' He added and left the room, hopping and touching panels back down the passage.
The figure watches the half moon rise, the most magical phase, and decides to leave.
'Time to meet with him.' he thought and walked down the stairs. He jumped back as the front door opened and a woman in watchman's armour and long blonde hair nearly walked into him.
'Who are you?' she demanded with a penetrating gaze.
'I'm sorry. I'm Jayson. I just got a room here.' He replied staring back.
'Oh sorry, I'm Angua. It's been a while since we had anyone new.' She replied backing down.
'Pleased to meet you. I'm sorry I can't chat but I have things to do and no doubt you want to relax from your shift.' Jayson replied and headed out the open door leaving Angua speechless.
'So that's the Watch's werewolf. Angua von Uberwald. No doubt I could have fun with her later.' Jayson thought to himself.
He made his way to Pseudopolis Yard, what he had been informed was the Watch's headquarters. 'Surely he'll be here.' Jayson thought to himself.
He flung himself in the shadows as two figures approached. One was tall and broad in the shoulders, his muscles bulging and gleaming in the moonlight as he politely nodded and waved to passer-bys. The other was shorter and older wearing slightly tarnished officer's armour.
'Him...' Jayson muttered to himself. 'If it isn't Lord Vimes himself. But it is too soon for me to play with him right now.' He thought as he watched them enter the Watch building.
Jayson continued to walk towards Pseudopolis Yard eyeing the walls. He knew Vimes had the place rigged with tricks and things to stop Assassins but he had to get in. He leapt over the spiky fence and gripped the bricks in the wall, slowly pulling himself up finding footholds in loose mortar. He nearly slipped as a brick shifted but he dug his fingers into the mortar and used the hole of the fallen brick to help himself up.
He made it to a window and gazed into the bare room with little more than a desk, a bed and a cut away drawing of a mineshaft on the wall. There was no- one in the room so he slowly move d a hand to a pocket and pulled out a blade, slicing it under the window pane and levering it up slowly until he could slide in.
He crouched in the shadows of the room breathing softly for a while before getting up. He noticed armour neatly hung up on a rack and pulled the sword that was there from it. It was a heavy, long, dull sword with many notches in with a good balance. He swung it a couple of times before gazing intently at the faint inscription on the blade. The door to the room opened flooding him with light. Jayson spun round, the sword in his hands. The figure stepped forward and grabbed his shoulders pinning him to the wall making him drop the sword.
'Who are you?' the figure asked pleasantly.
'This doesn't seem like the kind Captain Carrot I heard about.' Jayson replied his feet off the ground.
Carrot's expression flickered but he still held Jayson up. 'How do you know me?' he asked.
'Wouldn't you like to know?' Jayson replied grinning as he brought his hands up and grabbed Carrot's wrists digging his nails in and twisting, forcing Carrot down.
Carrot grunted in pain and tried to push back but Jayson gripped and pushed harder forcing Carrot to his knees.
'Who are you?' Carrot repeated through gritted teeth.
'You should ask who you are.' Jayson replied.
There was a twang as a crossbow was fired and Jayson flung Carrot away and flipped back as the bolt flew past his ear. He rose from his crouch to see Vimes standing in the doorway another bolt in his crossbow ready.
'What are you doing here?' he growled his steady gaze not leaving Jayson.
'I'm afraid now's not a good time to play Sir Samuel. I'll be seeing you.' Jayson answered smiling before he dived through the window in a shower of glass and rolled as he hit the ground, getting up and running before the crossbow bolt hit the ground beside him.
'Blast!' Vimes yelled as he lowered the bow and turned to Carrot.
'Carrot you okay?' he asked walking over.
Carrot sat up, his arms dripping blood. 'Just a flesh wound sir.' He replied trying to stand but stumbled.
'We'd better get you to Igor lad.' Vimes told him slipping an arm round his waist and grunting as he helped him up.
'Damn Vimes!' Oh well I guess I won't be going to Mrs. Cake's now. No doubt Angua will come for me.' Jayson thought to himself as he entered the Shades.
Carrots wounds had been cleaned and sewn up by Igor and he was in his bed when Angua came running in.
'What happened?' she asked Vimes looking worriedly at Carrot's pale face.
'Some damn bottle covey got into Carrot's room and attacked him. He seems to know us but I'll be damned if I knew him.' Vimes replied.
Angua sniffed deeply. 'I've smelt him before but I can't place him.' she said and started to leave the room.
'Where are you going Sergeant?' Vimes called to her as she walked down the stairs.
'I'm going to find the bastard.' She replied and disappeared leaving Vimes just to nod grimly.
'Get your hot sausages! Luverly pork hot sausages! Get them while they're hot!' the voice shouted.
The wafting smell of food did the impossible task of blocking out the smell of Ankh-Morpork and the figure's stomach growled in hunger. He stumbled out through the crowd into a junction between a number of roads, the sound of cattle audible under those of everyday city life, the smell leading him to a short, skinny, rodenty man with a tray of food.
'Ah you look hungry sir. Care to try a genuine pork hot sausage?' the vendor asked.
The figure nodded and the vendor handed him over a hot sausage after taking the money. The figure sniffed the hot sausage and proceeded to ram it into his mouth, chewing vigorously. The vendor stared at the figure in amazement with a few passer-bys also gathering to stare. They all knew what was supposed to happen when someone ate one of Dibbler's sausages and were waiting for it to come.
The figure swallowed the last mouthful and licked his lips. 'Tasty.' He said grinning while a gasp of awe went up from the crowd.
'You new here lad?' Dibbler asked nervously waiting for the usual reaction to his food.
'Yeah. Do you know where there's a place to stay?' the figure asked.
'Werl, there's always Mrs. Cake's in Elm Street but that's not the place for a lad like you.' Dibbler told him.
'Why's that?' the figure asked.
'They say she has weird lodgers. Zombies and what-not.' Dibbler answered surreptitiously.
'I see. Well where is this Elm Street?' the figure asked.
'Down that way lad.' Dibbler pointed. 'You wan' another hot sausage before you go?' he asked hopefully.
'Some other time.' The figure told him and strode off up along Elm Street favouring his right leg slightly.
'Weird lad.' Dibbler thought to himself and started yelling his wares again.
The figure came to a door and rapped on it hard. It opened to show a short fat woman dressed in black.
'Yes oi am.' She said politely before he could say a word.
'Are you Mrs. Cake?' he asked.
'Drat. Oi keep forgetting to switch it off.' She said.
'Why are you answering me before I say anything?' the figure asked, his brow wrinkled in perplex ion.
Mrs. Cake wiggled a finger in her ear.
'Sorry about that dearie. All sorted now. Can oi help?' she asked.
'Um yes I heard you had a room?' he asked.
'That I do. It's five dollars a month up front.' She told him.
'That's fine.' He told her and took five dollars from his pouch.
'Follow me.' Mrs. Cake told him, taking the money and leading him into the house and up the stairs to a small brown room.
'There you go.' She told him as he walked in and gave it a cursory glance.
'Thanks.' He told her smiling and shut the door behind her as she left.
He gazed out the window at the bustling city. 'Five years and I'm finally here. Now all I have to do is find him and show him what he really is. Then we can fulfil our destiny.' He thought to himself.
He found a key on a nail in the wall and put it in his pouch before deciding to wait for night.
He had heard so much about Ankh-Morpork, how Lord Vetinari had made it such a great city that worked. The Guilds, the dwarves, the trolls... the Watch. Not that the Watch would present him any problems in what he had to do but the fact they had a werewolf was interesting. He grinned to himself as he lay on the musty bed. No doubt Vetinari knew of him and his intentions. He wondered how the man would react.
In the Patrician's Palace Lord Vetinari had other problems to worry about than some mysterious stranger. Leonard da Quirm had become more restless since his time in the Kite and had been relentlessly trying to recapture that moment, hence the shaking of the rooms. Vetinari peered through the thick acrid smoke and ducked absent-mindedly as a fragment of wood flew out through the door. He sighed softly and entered the room to find Leonard sat in the smouldering remains of his latest invention.
'I take it the Gods are not looking too kindly on your persistence to fly?' Vetinari asked.
'So it seems my Lord.' Leonard replied brushing the soot from his face and clothes.
'Well I'm sure something will distract you from this and the Gods will stop smiting you. In fact I may require your services soon.' Vetinari told him sitting on the remaining stool among the ashes.
'How so my Lord?' Leonard asked as he started busily designing a broom.
'The Watch is going to have a visitor who may prove troublesome.' Vetinari told him.
'Why not arrest this visitor now?' Leonard asked as he pieced together remaining parts of wood into a triangular brush.
'Some things have to be discovered.' Vetinari replied gnomically. 'I'll send a new bed and materials up to you. Try not to get them incinerated.' He added and left the room, hopping and touching panels back down the passage.
The figure watches the half moon rise, the most magical phase, and decides to leave.
'Time to meet with him.' he thought and walked down the stairs. He jumped back as the front door opened and a woman in watchman's armour and long blonde hair nearly walked into him.
'Who are you?' she demanded with a penetrating gaze.
'I'm sorry. I'm Jayson. I just got a room here.' He replied staring back.
'Oh sorry, I'm Angua. It's been a while since we had anyone new.' She replied backing down.
'Pleased to meet you. I'm sorry I can't chat but I have things to do and no doubt you want to relax from your shift.' Jayson replied and headed out the open door leaving Angua speechless.
'So that's the Watch's werewolf. Angua von Uberwald. No doubt I could have fun with her later.' Jayson thought to himself.
He made his way to Pseudopolis Yard, what he had been informed was the Watch's headquarters. 'Surely he'll be here.' Jayson thought to himself.
He flung himself in the shadows as two figures approached. One was tall and broad in the shoulders, his muscles bulging and gleaming in the moonlight as he politely nodded and waved to passer-bys. The other was shorter and older wearing slightly tarnished officer's armour.
'Him...' Jayson muttered to himself. 'If it isn't Lord Vimes himself. But it is too soon for me to play with him right now.' He thought as he watched them enter the Watch building.
Jayson continued to walk towards Pseudopolis Yard eyeing the walls. He knew Vimes had the place rigged with tricks and things to stop Assassins but he had to get in. He leapt over the spiky fence and gripped the bricks in the wall, slowly pulling himself up finding footholds in loose mortar. He nearly slipped as a brick shifted but he dug his fingers into the mortar and used the hole of the fallen brick to help himself up.
He made it to a window and gazed into the bare room with little more than a desk, a bed and a cut away drawing of a mineshaft on the wall. There was no- one in the room so he slowly move d a hand to a pocket and pulled out a blade, slicing it under the window pane and levering it up slowly until he could slide in.
He crouched in the shadows of the room breathing softly for a while before getting up. He noticed armour neatly hung up on a rack and pulled the sword that was there from it. It was a heavy, long, dull sword with many notches in with a good balance. He swung it a couple of times before gazing intently at the faint inscription on the blade. The door to the room opened flooding him with light. Jayson spun round, the sword in his hands. The figure stepped forward and grabbed his shoulders pinning him to the wall making him drop the sword.
'Who are you?' the figure asked pleasantly.
'This doesn't seem like the kind Captain Carrot I heard about.' Jayson replied his feet off the ground.
Carrot's expression flickered but he still held Jayson up. 'How do you know me?' he asked.
'Wouldn't you like to know?' Jayson replied grinning as he brought his hands up and grabbed Carrot's wrists digging his nails in and twisting, forcing Carrot down.
Carrot grunted in pain and tried to push back but Jayson gripped and pushed harder forcing Carrot to his knees.
'Who are you?' Carrot repeated through gritted teeth.
'You should ask who you are.' Jayson replied.
There was a twang as a crossbow was fired and Jayson flung Carrot away and flipped back as the bolt flew past his ear. He rose from his crouch to see Vimes standing in the doorway another bolt in his crossbow ready.
'What are you doing here?' he growled his steady gaze not leaving Jayson.
'I'm afraid now's not a good time to play Sir Samuel. I'll be seeing you.' Jayson answered smiling before he dived through the window in a shower of glass and rolled as he hit the ground, getting up and running before the crossbow bolt hit the ground beside him.
'Blast!' Vimes yelled as he lowered the bow and turned to Carrot.
'Carrot you okay?' he asked walking over.
Carrot sat up, his arms dripping blood. 'Just a flesh wound sir.' He replied trying to stand but stumbled.
'We'd better get you to Igor lad.' Vimes told him slipping an arm round his waist and grunting as he helped him up.
'Damn Vimes!' Oh well I guess I won't be going to Mrs. Cake's now. No doubt Angua will come for me.' Jayson thought to himself as he entered the Shades.
Carrots wounds had been cleaned and sewn up by Igor and he was in his bed when Angua came running in.
'What happened?' she asked Vimes looking worriedly at Carrot's pale face.
'Some damn bottle covey got into Carrot's room and attacked him. He seems to know us but I'll be damned if I knew him.' Vimes replied.
Angua sniffed deeply. 'I've smelt him before but I can't place him.' she said and started to leave the room.
'Where are you going Sergeant?' Vimes called to her as she walked down the stairs.
'I'm going to find the bastard.' She replied and disappeared leaving Vimes just to nod grimly.