Dr Hannah came to the door to welcome him into her rooms as though he were an old friend. News of his ennoblement had reached her and she greeted him as 'Lord Taita'. One of her first concerns was to ask after Meren, and she was delighted when Taita told her of his continued excellent progress. There were three other dinner guests. Dr Gibba was one and, like Hannah, he greeted Taita affably. The other two were strangers.
'This is Dr Assem,' Hannah said. 'He is a distinguished member of our Guild. He specializes in the use of herb and vegetable substances in surgery and medicine.'
Assem was a small, sprightly man with a lively, intelligent face. Taita saw from his aura that he was a Long Liver of vast knowledge, but not a savant.
'May I also introduce Dr Rei? She is an expert on reknitting damaged or severed nerves and sinews. She understands more than any other living surgeon about the bony structures of the human body, particularly the skull and teeth, the vertebrae of the spine and the bones of the hands and feet. Dr Assem and Dr Rei will assist with your surgery.'
Rei had rugged, almost masculine features, and large, powerful hands.
Taita saw that she was clever and single-minded in the pursuit of her profession.
Once they had settled round the board, the company was convivial, and the conversation fascinating. Taita revelled in the interplay of their superior intelligence. Although the servant kept the bowls fully charged, they were all abstemious and none did more than sip their wine.
At one stage the conversation turned to the ethics of their profession.
Rei hailed from a far-eastern kingdom. She described how the Qin emperor had handed over to his surgeons the captives he had taken in battle. He had encouraged them to use the prisoners for live dissection and experiment. All the company agreed that the emperor must have been a man of vision and understanding.
'The vast majority of human beings are only one cut above domestic animals,' Hannah added. 'A good ruler will make every effort to see that they are provided with all the necessities of life and many of its comforts, depending on the means at his disposal. However, he should not allow himself to be persuaded that the life of each individual is sacrosanct, to be preserved at all costs. As a general must not hesitate to send his men to certain death if the battle is to be won, so an emperor should be prepared to dispense life or death according to the needs of the state, not by some artificial standard of so-called humanity.'
'I agree entirely, but I would go further still,' said Rei. 'The value of the individual should be taken into account when the decision is made.
A slave or a brutish soldier cannot be weighed against a sage or a scientist whose knowledge may have taken centuries to accumulate. The slave, the soldier and the idiot are born to die. If they can do so for good reason, then so much the better. However, the sage and the scientist whose value to society is incalculably higher should be preserved.'
'I agree with you, Dr Rei. Knowledge and learning are our greatest treasures, far outweighing all the gold and silver of this earth,' said Assem. 'Our intelligence and our ability to reason and remember lift us above the other animals, above even the masses of lower humanity who lack those attributes. What are your views, Lord Taita?'
'There is no clear or obvious solution,' Taita answered carefully. 'We could debate the matter endlessly. But I believe that what is in the common good must be preserved, even if it means cold-blooded sacrifice.
I have commanded men in battle. I know how bitter the decision to send them to their death can be. But I did not hesitate to order it when the freedom or welfare of all was at stake.' He had told them not what he believed but what he knew they wanted to hear. They had listened attentively, then relaxed and their attitude towards him seemed easier and more open. It was as though he had shown his credentials and they had lowered a barrier to allow him into their fellowship.
Despite the good food and wine they did not sit for long. Gibba was the first to come to his feet. 'We must rise early on the morrow,'
he reminded them, and they all stood to thank Hannah and take their leave.
I
Before she allowed Taita to depart she said, 'I wanted you to meet them because they will assist me tomorrow. Your injuries are much more extensive than that of your protege and, what is more, they have consolidated over the years. There will be considerably more work for us, and we need the extra hands and experience. Furthermore we will not be able to work in your quarters, as we did with Colonel Cambyses. The operation will be carried out in the rooms where I made my initial examination.' She took his arm and led him to the door. 'The other surgeons will join me tomorrow morning to conduct the final examination and plan our surgical strategy. I wish you a peaceful night, Lord Taita.'
The major-domo was waiting to show Taita back to his quarters, and Taita followed him without taking account of their route through the complex of passages and galleries. He was thinking about the conversations in which he had participated that evening when his reverie was interrupted by the sound of weeping. He stopped to listen. It came from not far away, and there was no doubt that it was a woman's. She sounded as though she was in the extremes of despair. When the major-domo realized that Taita had paused and was no longer following him closely, he turned back.
'Who is that woman?' Taita asked.
'Those are the cells of the house slaves. Perhaps one has been punished for her faults.' The man shrugged with indifference. 'Please don't concern yourself, Lord Taita. We should go on.'
Taita saw that there was no point in pursuing the matter. The man's aura showed that he was intractable, and that he was simply following the orders of his superiors.
'Lead on,' Taita agreed, but from there he noted their route carefully.
After he has left me, I will return to investigate, he decided. However, his interest in the weeping woman faded rapidly, and before they reached his quarters it had been obliterated from his mind. He lay down on his sleeping mat and fell almost immediately into an easy, untroubled sleep.
The major-domo came for him as soon as he had breakfasted; He led Taita to Hannah's rooms, where he found all four surgeons awaiting his arrival. They began at once. It was strange for Taita not to be consulted and instead to be treated like a piece of insensate meat on a butcher's slab.
They began with the preliminary examination, not neglecting the product of his digestive processes, the smell of his breath, the condition of his skin and the soles of his feet. Dr Rei opened his mouth and looked at his tongue, gums and teeth. 'Lord Taita's teeth are much worn and corroded, Dr Hannah, the roots badly mortified. They must be causing him pain. Is that not so, my lord?' Taita's grunt was noncommittal, and Rei went on, 'Very soon they will constitute a serious threat to his health and eventually his life. They should be removed as soon as possible and the gums seeded afresh.'
Hannah agreed at once. 'I have taken such eventualities into account and made arrangements to harvest more essence than we will need for the regrowth of the damaged area in the groin. There will be sufficient for you to use on his gums.'
At last they arrived at the site of his injuries. They hovered over his lower body, pressing and touching the area of the cicatrice. Rei measured it with a pair of calipers, and made notes on a papyrus scroll in small, beautifully drawn hieroglyphics. While they worked they discussed the mutilated area in dispassionate detail.