The Carpet People Read online

  ‘Something for everyone,’ said Bane. ‘We should talk about it—’

  A wight stepped forward, and pulled back his hood, revealing that he was in fact a her.

  ‘I have to speak to you,’ she said.

  All the wights in the room removed their hoods.

  ‘My name is Tarillon the minemaster. We are leaving now. We think . . . we think we can feel a future now. We . . . are remembering once more.’

  ‘I’m sorry?’ said Bane.

  ‘We have chosen a new Thread.’

  ‘I don’t understand you.’

  ‘We are wights again. Proper wights. We think we are beginning to remember a new history so now, if you please, we will go back to our lives.’ She smiled. ‘I remember I said this!’

  ‘Oh,’ said Bane. He looked embarrassed, a practical man faced with something he was too busy to understand. ‘Well. Good. I’m glad for you. If there’s anything we can do—’

  ‘We will meet again. We are . . . sure.’

  ‘Well. Thank you again—’

  The wights were already filing out.

  Snibril slipped away after them. Behind him, he could hear people starting arguing again . . .

  It was morning. The wights were hurrying away through the ruins, and he had to hurry to catch up with them.

  ‘Tarillon?’

  She turned. ‘Yes?’

  ‘Why go away? What did you mean?’

  She frowned. ‘We tried this, this . . . deciding. We listened to Athan. He told about the way of making choices. We have tried it. It is terrible. How can you do it? Living and not knowing what will happen. Unsure at every waking morning that you will see the night. It would drive us mad! But we’re wights. We can’t change what we are. We’ve helped create a new history. Now we think we can remember it again.’

  ‘Oh.’

  ‘What power you must all have, to be able to face such uncertainty.’

  ‘We think it’s normal,’ said Snibril.

  ‘How strange. Strange. Such courage. Well. Goodbye. You have made up your mind to leave Ware.’

  ‘Yes, I – how did you know that?’

  She looked joyful. ‘I said – we can remember things again!’

  He found Roland where he had tethered him. Snibril didn’t have much in his pack now. The piece of lucky dust had got lost. So had the coins. He was wearing the spare pair of boots. All he had now was a blanket, some knives, a piece of rope. A spear. You didn’t really need much else.

  Pismire spoke from right behind him, just as he was adjusting the saddle.

  ‘Leaving?’

  ‘Oh. I didn’t hear you,’ said Snibril.

  ‘I’ve spent a lot of time with you Munrungs. You know how to creep up. And, I might add, how to creep away.’

  ‘I’m sure people are going to sort things out,’ said Snibril.

  ‘So long as they never stop arguing,’ said Pismire.

  ‘Very important, arguing.’

  Snibril turned. ‘I just want to find out about the Carpet,’ he said. ‘What Fray is. What’s at the end of it all. You said we should always ask questions ...’

  ‘Right. Very important, questions.’

  ‘Do you think Bane’s idea will work?’

  ‘Who knows? It’s the time to try new things.’

  ‘Yes.’ Snibril climbed into the saddle. ‘Did you know the wights think we’re courageous because we can make decisions? They can’t do it! They can’t cope with it! And we thought they were special. Amazing what you learn.’

  ‘Haven’t I always said so?’ said Pismire.

  ‘Well, I want to find out more! And I want to go now, because if I leave it, I’ll never go. I want to see things you told me about!’ Snibril said. ‘The Chairleg. The Hearth. The Edge.’

  ‘Let me know what they’re like, then,’ said Pismire. ‘I only read about ’em.’

  Snibril stopped. ‘But when I was little, you told me all sorts of stories about the Carpet! You mean they weren’t true?’

  ‘Oh, they were true. Otherwise they wouldn’t have been written down.’ Pismire shrugged. ‘Always wanted to travel, myself. Never had the time, somehow. If you can, you know, ever find the time to jot down a few notes ...’

  ‘Right. Hah. Yes. I will. If I find time. Well, then . . . Goodbye?’

  ‘Goodbye.’

  ‘And say goodbye to—’

  ‘I will.’

  ‘You know how it is.’

  ‘Probably. Goodbye. Come back and tell us about it, some time.’

  This last word was a shout, for Snibril had urged Roland forward. When he was no more than a speck on the road he turned and waved again.

  Pismire walked slowly back to the argument.

  Snibril stopped again, a little way from Ware, and breathed deeply of the Carpet air.

  He felt a little sad. But there would always be somewhere to return to, somewhere. He smiled, and patted Roland’s neck. Then, with rising hope and streaming hair, he urged the white horse into a gallop and they disappeared among the crowding hairs.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  TERRY PRATCHETT is one of the most popular authors writing today. He is particularly well known for the phenomenally successful Discworld series, which includes three titles for younger readers – The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents, The Wee Free Men and A Hat Full of Sky.

  Terry’s books have appeared on a number of children’s award shortlists, and The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents won the 2001 Carnegie Medal.

  Terry Pratchett lives in Wiltshire, and finds his days are rather full.

  THE BROMELIAD

  Terry Pratchett

  Truckers

  To the thousands of tiny nomes living under the floorboards of a large department store, there is no Outside. No Day or Night, no Sun or Rain. They’re just daft old legends. Until the devastating news that the Store is to be demolished. Now the nomes have to think. And they have to think BIG . . .

  ISBN 0 552 55100 7

  Diggers

  A Bright New Dawn is just around the corner for the nomes when they move into an abandoned quarry. Or is it? For when humans turn up, they begin to mess everything up again. Now the nomes have two choices: to run, or to hide. Or, maybe, they could . . . fight. But for how long can they keep the humans at bay – even with the help of the monster Jekub?

  ISBN 0 552 55101 5

  Wings

  It’s a ridiculous plan. Impossible. To hitch a ride on a truck with wings – Concorde. And then steal one of those space shuttle things. But home is home, and the nomes want to get there. They don’t mean to cause any trouble. Really . . .

  ISBN 0 552 55102 3

  Hilariously inventive, marvellously witty and highly original, Truckers, Diggers and Wings form a magnificent trilogy of tales about a race of little people struggling to survive in a world full of humans: The Bromeliad Trilogy.

  THE AMAZING MAURICE

  AND HIS EDUCATED RODENTS

  Terry Pratchett

  Maurice, a streetwise tomcat, has the perfect money-making scam. Everyone knows the stories about rats and pipers, and Maurice has a stupid-looking kid with a pipe, and his very own plague of rats – strangely educated rats . . .

  But in Bad Blintz, the little con suddenly goes down the drain. For someone there is playing a different tune and now the rats must learn a new word.

  EVIL.

  It’s not a game any more. It’s a rat-eat-rat world. And that might only be the start . . .

  ‘Ethically challenging, beautifully orchestrated, philosophically opposed to the usual plot fixes of fantasy’ Guardian

  ‘Simply gripping story-telling’ The Times

  ISBN 0 552 54693 3

  THE WEE FREE MEN

  Terry Pratchett

  ‘Crivens! Whut aboot us, ye daftie!’

  There’s trouble on the Aching farm – nightmares spreading down from the hills. And Tiffany Aching’s little brother has been stolen away. To get him back, Tiffany has
a weapon (a frying pan), her granny’s magic book (well, Diseases of the Sheep) – and the Nac Mac Feegle, the Wee Free Men, the fightin’, thievin’, tiny blue-skinned pictsies who were thrown out of Fairyland for being Drunk and Disorderly . . .

  Set on the Discworld®, this wise, witty and wonderfully inventive adventure comes from the author of The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents, winner of the 2001 Carnegie Medal.

  ‘Quite, quite brilliant’ Starburst

  ‘Plenty to laugh at here, not least Pratchett’s ability to put a 90 degree spin on the familiar’ The Times

  ‘A clear example of a comic fantasy classic and well . . . Crivens! It deserves t’sell a millyun copies’ Sunday Express

  ISBN 0 552 54905 3

  ONLY YOU CAN

  SAVE MANKIND

  Terry Pratchett

  IF NOT YOU, WHO ELSE?

  As the mighty alien fleet from the latest computer game thunders across the screen, Johnny prepares to blow them into the usual million pieces. And they send him a message: We surrender.

  They’re not supposed to do that! They’re supposed to die. And computer joysticks don’t have ‘Don’t Fire’ buttons . . .

  SHORTLISTED FOR THE GUARDIAN CHILDREN’S FICTION AWARD

  ‘An impressively original book with its thrills and spills, its inventiveness, its wit and continuous readability’ Daily Telegraph

  From the author of the phenomenally successful Discworld® series and The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents, which won the 2001 Carnegie Medal.

  ISBN 0 552 55103 1