16/03/2026 01:48

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Abadan Riji! Osman called. He nodded his agreement. The bloodfrom the wound under his ribs darkened his robe to the knees. Dogs and crows gathered andate them.

Then he saw that it was not her at all, but one ofthe camp servants: a dim-witted lad whose sole employment was choppingfirewood for the camp. Independently of each otherthey were spreading out and drifting in towards the west bank, thrustacross the wide bend of the river by the current. In a flotilla of dhows, Osman Atalan and his entourage sailed up theBahr El Azrek, the Blue Nile, as far as the small river town ofAligail. The staff left the hall, each making an obeisance to the Khalif as hepassed, but when al-Jamal rose to follow them Osman said curtly, Sitby me.