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'It was attacking a dragon!' shouted Vimes 'One that wouldn't back down!'

He pulled himself to his knees and tapped Carrot's breast-plate

'You polish that up real bright!' he said 'You can see yourself in it So can anything else!'

'Oh, yes, of course there's that,' said Lady Sybil 'Everyone knows you should keep dragons away from mirrors--'

'Mirrors,' said Carrot 'Hey, there were bits of--'

'Yes He showed Chubby aer than hi here,' said Vimes, 'with a twisted mind'

'Oh, no! You think so?'

'Yes'

'Butnoyou can't be right Because Nobby ith us all the time'

'Not Nobby,' said Vion, I doubt if he'd er people in this world than Corporal Nobbs, my lad'

Carrot's expression slid into a rictus of intrigued horror

'Gosh,' he said

Sergeant Colon surveyed the butts Then he removed his helmet and wiped his forehead

'I think perhaps Lance-Constable Angua shouldn't have another go with the longbow until we've worked out how to stop herher getting in the way'

'Sorry, sergeant'

They turned to Detritus, as standing sheepishly behind a heap of broken longbows Crossboere out of the question They sat in his boould be a deadly weapon in his hands, just as soon as he ged

'Sorry, mister,' he said 'Bows aren't troll weapon'

'Ha!' said Colon 'As for you, Lance-Constable Cuddy--'

'Just can't get the hang of aiht dwarfs were famous for their skills in battle!'

'Yeah, butnot these skills,' said Cuddy

'Ambush,' murmured Detritus

Since he was a troll, the s Cuddy's beard bristled

'You devious troll, I get eant Colon quickly, 'I think we'll stop training You'll have tosort of pick it up as you go along, all right?'

He sighed He was not a cruel uard all his life, and he was feeling put-upon Otherwise he wouldn't have said what he said next

'I don't know, I really don't Fighting a your oeaponsI ? Now, it's nearly noon, you take a few hours off, we'll see you again tonight If you think it's worth turning up'

There was a spang! noise Cuddy's crossbow had gone off in his hand The bolt whiffled past Corporal Nobbs' ear and landed in the river, where it stuck

'Sorry,' said Cuddy

'Tsk, tsk,' said Sergeant Colon

That was the worst part It would have been better all round if he'd called the dwarf some names It would have been better if he'd made it seem that Cuddy orth an insult

He turned around and walked off towards Pseudo-polis Yard

They heard his muttered comment

'What him say?' said Detritus

' "A fine body of round, which didn't take long on account of its closeness Then he reached under his cloak and produced, like a conjuror extracting a size 10 rabbit from a size 5 hat, his double-headed battle axe And started to run

By the tiet he was a blur There was a rip and the dummy exploded like a nuclear haystack

The other tandered up and inspected the result, as pieces of chaff gently drifted to the ground

'Yes, all right,' said Angua 'But he did say you're supposed to be able to ask theot to be able to answer therimly

'Lance-Constable Cuddy, deduct one dollar for target,' said Detritus, who already owed eleven dollars for bows

' "If it's worth turning up"!' said Cuddy, losing the axe soain 'Speciesist!'

'I don't think he ht for you,' said Cuddy

'Why?'

' 'Cos you a h to pause for a moment to think this over

'A wo'

'Only in broad tero and have a drink'

The transient moment of camaraderie in adversity completely evaporated

'Drink with a troll?'

'Drink with a dwarf?'

'All right,' said Angua 'How about you and you coua removed her helmet and shook out her hair Feh the rowth of lichen, and a female dwarf is more likely to be complimented on the silkiness of her beard than on her scalp But it was just possible the sight of Angua scraped little sparks off some shared, ancient, cosmic maleness

'I haven't really had a chance to look around,' she said 'But I saw a place in Gleam Street'

Which meant that they had to cross the river, at least two of the to indicate to passers-by that they weren't with at least one of the other two Whicharound

Which meant that Cuddy saw the dwarf in the water

If you could call it water

If you could still call it a dwarf

They looked down

'You know,' said Detritus, after a while, 'that look like that dho make weapons in Rime Street'

'Bjorn Hammerhock?' said Cuddy

'That the one, yeah'

'It looks a bit like hi in a cold flat voice, 'but not exactly like hiua

'Because Mr Ha hole where his chest should be'

Doesn't he ever sleep? thought Viet his head down? Isn't there a roo on the door?

He knocked on the door of the Oblong Office

'Ah, captain,' said the Patrician, looking up from his paperwork 'You were coot e?' said Lord Vetinari