The Swords of Zinjaban

Book information

That's Show Biz!

Reith pulled on the aya's reins and set the brake on the carriage. Across the road ahead shambled three huge Krishnan beasts: a female bishtar and two young. The adult bishtar was of elephantine size and build with six legs and a hide covered with glossy fur of purpled brown with cream-colored spots. The head resembled that of a tapir, though vastly larger, with small trumpet-shaped ears and a long muzzle ending in a pair of stubby, meter-long trunks.

"We ought to have one of those things in our movie," whispered White. "Do they have tame ones for rent?"

Reith replied. "The Dasht of Ruz has one in his zoo; but he'd never lease it. We'd have to go to Majbur to find one of the tame bishtars the Krishnans use to pull railroads."

"One good action shot of that animal would be worth a hundred meters of an animated model—" White began.

"Oh, hell!" said Ordway. "We can't run all over the planet on the budget they gave me!"

"But Cyril, don't you see—"

The two executives from Cosmic Productions had gradually raised their voices. Reith said, "Hey, pipe down! You're bothering the animals."

The female bishtar had turned to face the carriage and stood with ears twitching and trunks sniffing. Then it opened its vast maw, gave a thunderous snort, and began shuffling with appalling speed towards the travelers ...

The Swords of Zinjaban

L. Sprague & Catherine Crook

de Camp

THE SWORDS OF ZINJABAN

This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.

Copyright © 1991 by L. Sprague de Camp and

Catherine Crook de Camp

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.

A Baen Books Original

Baen Publishing Enterprises

P.O. Box 1403

Riverdale, N.Y. 10471

ISBN: 0-671-72039-2

Cover art by Tom Kidd

First printing, February 1991

Distributed by

SIMON & SCHUSTER

1230 Avenue of the Americas

New York, N.Y. 10020

Printed in the United States of America

To Don and Christine Scfolf,

who helped with the

movie-making background of this story.