One hour from now the Kings sheriffs will receive orders to seize any of the proscribed, or their families, found within any of the restricted domains.

That, Megelin murmured, is too much. Fuad jabbed him again.

Seldom was it that a pivoting point of history could be identified at the precise instant of turning. Radetic recognized one here. A band of frightened men had compounded an action of self-defense with one of spite.

They were trying to rob El Murid of a fathers precious opportunity and inalienable right to have his child baptized before the Most Holy Mrazkim Shrines, during Disharhun. El Murid had already announced that he would dedicate his daughter to God on Mashad, the last and most important of the High Holy Days.

Radetic need be no necromancer to predict the long-term results. The meekest of the desert-born would have felt compelled to respond.

In later days El Murids followers would say that this was the moment when the grim truth of reality finally burst through the curtain of ideals blinding the youth to the hypocrisies of his world.

Radetic suspected that that revelation had come a lot earlier. The youth seemed secretly satisfied with the pronouncement.

Nevertheless, he reddened. The muscles in his neck stood out. It must be Gods will. May the Lord grant his Disciple an opportunity to return to grace.

He spoke softly, but his words were a threat, a promise and a declaration of schism. Henceforth the Kingdom of Peace would make war on heretics and the enemies of its future.

Radetic could smell the stink of blood and smoke drifting back across the years. He could not understand how El Murids enemies could fail to see what they had done. Old cynic that he was, he studied El Murid intently. Behind the very real anger there was evidence that the youth had expected this.

He did detect a barely restrained glee in Nassef.

El Murid departed Al Rhemish meekly. But Meryem left word that her daughter would bear no name till she received it before the Mrazkim Shrines themselves. Fuad laughed when he heard. Women making threats? he demanded. Camels will fly before she sees Al Rhemish again.

Yousif was not as sure. Megelins naggings were forcing him to think. He did not like the thoughts that came to him.

The rioting started before the dust had settled on El Murids backtrail. More than a hundred pilgrims died. Before the end of Disharhun, El Murids partisans had defaced the Shrines themselves.

Yousif and Fuad were amazed.

Its begun, Megelin told his employer. You should have murdered them. Then it wouldve been over this week, and in a year he would have been forgotten.