"I mean it's fascinating to think that such momentous events in history can come down to not just the acts of one man. But that man's immune system of which the man had absolutely no conscious control!"
Hugh stifled a yawn and stared at the swathes of rain through window of the inn's dining room. The inn was of a modern design all concrete and glass. It wasn't as though the architect had designed the inn purely for function it was pretty in it's own way but the design had nothing to do with the landscape. Sat at the foot of another fantastic mountain range at the beginning of yet another plane yards from the arduous silk road.
Day dreaming about the topography the yawn finally caught him out. Hiendric frowned at him but didn't miss a beat of his speil. The others at their table didn't seem to notice Hugh's yawn as they were enthralled by Heindric's conversation, as had Hugh been the first time he'd heard it when he met Heindric in Vienna three months ago but since then he must of heard it a hundred times as they had ridden the silk road together. Infact, Hugh thought, he'd heard it so many times he could probably recite it word for word.
"It is a well documented fact that Mongke khan fell ill whilst personally leading a great campaign in china. Scientist today speculate he must of caught malaria or typhoid which even today are considered deadly. Can you imagine the world if Monge hadn't reigned as great khan for fifty years."
The travellers at the table suddenly looked uncomfortable Heindric's speech seemed close to blasphemy; Imagining the death of a Great khan. The edginess of Heindric's conversation was partially what had drawn Hugh to him. Technically no one had been prosecuted for such a blasphemy for hundreds of years but it's still considered bad form to wish the khan dead.
To spice up the evening Hugh jumped in continuing Heindric's pater before Heindric could. "Heindric's not asking you to consider the death of our Great Khan or even wish the death of Monge, rather he's just asking you to consider the immense social ramifications of such a death and compare it to the actions of a virus in a body." Heindric smiled at Hugh knowing by now that Hugh meant malice.
One of the travellers spoke "Yes I think I see what your saying. As a graduate of history I can tell you that Monges death would of had a profound social change. I might even surmise that the Khanate might of fragmented. Yes Heindric your supposition is definitely food for thought. "
At that point a High speed train passed the inn it's resonance caused the a slight vibration in the dining room and the cutlery and crockery rattled. A passing waitress said to the table. "It's only the high speed trains which do it unless you were looking you wouldn’t even notice the freight trains pass."
A physicist at the table took the opportunity to explain why this was. Already knowing Hugh zoned out and stared longingly at the ten pairs of rail tracks which entwined the silk road laid out before them like an artistic excersise in perspective.
He had been travelling for a year and he was still six months away from reaching the end of the road. Although his body had gotten used to the pain and discomfort of riding forty miles a day something about his journey was making him feel empty. It was suppose to be the adventure of a lifetime every ambitious graduate in the world journeyed to Karakorum and it was tradition that one should ride horseback as the ancient scholars once had summoned by the khan. When Hugh had planned his journey he had been excited but six months in he had begun to feel that it was a waste of time. Before he had taken his camera and captured images of the detail of every city on route and every panoramic view from every mountain but now he barely touched his camera. He had concluded the road was too tame. The bridal path ran adjacent to the motorway and railway. Every twenty or so miles stood an inn for the academic traveler beautifully designed by an former patron serving the local delicacies it felt all too contrived. Far from meeting a world full of new people he had consistently journeyed with same a hundred or so faces the same like minded people. The thought had occurred to him to dally a day and see if the next caravan to the inn were any more interesting. But he knew the truth the interesting people were the ones in the high speed trains or in the jet planes that would be leaving vapour trails above him if the weather hadn’t been so wet. Perhaps, he thought, his journey would be more interesting if he took the road south from Kabul to Islamabad and then down through the Indian subcontinent and maybe rejoining the road in Nepal.
....
"Man you're so stoned." Heindric was right Hugh was stoned but only as stoned as he. They sat in a teahouse sipping strong sweet tea and smoking hashish through a brass hooker.
"No I mean it man, don't you ever feel that something isn't right with the world. That deep down we're not really free, just automatons working for the Khanate." Hugh stared intently at the chessboard.
Hiendric shook his head in disbelief. "No man, we're free! We serve the Khanate from choice."
Now Hugh shook his head. "No man, but there's no alternative." he shot Heindric with eye contact and they spent a moment staring at each others bloodshot eyes. "That can't be a choice serve the Khanate or work for a company that's partially owned by the Khanate. There should be more. More... Choice." Hugh went back at staring at the board he had his next five moves planned out and was waiting for Heindric to move his queen, his only real choice, but Heindric had been deliberating for at least twenty minutes.
"But you have choices Hugh, you can choose where to live, who to marry, how to spend your money and most importantly how you can best serve the Khan. All choices you are free to make. You can ranger bison in the Americas, farm elephants in africa, become a bureaucrat in Australasia, an academic in siberia, a bard in Tibet, an astronaut on the moon. How much choice do you need?"
"An elephant farmer?" Hugh smiled at his friend. "Really?"
Hiendric smiled back "no, honestly, it's a thing somebody left quite an interesting agricultural journal in a restroom I used to frequent. If you think about the milking potential of just one... "
Hugh raised his hand before Hiendric could stray off topic. "But it doesn't matter what career I choose I will still be serving the Khan." Hugh was getting a little frustrated that Heindric still hadn't played his turn. "I feel like this queen he indicated the playing piece, you need to move it but no matter where you put it it'll be your choice not hers." Hugh hoped Heindric would take the hint. He sat back into his cushioned seat frustrated and inhaled a lung full of sheesha. Holding it and exhaling it slowly.
But the "Khan serves the people, so by serving the Khan you're serving the people. What's more Noble than that? By the way it's your move, you're in check. My bishop checked you when I moved my knight."
Surprised Hugh sat up and re-examined the board. "but you didn't say check!"
"I said 'haha!', like 'gotcha!' I thought you knew what I meant. When you said 'very clever'."
"But that's not 'check!' the time honoured indicator of indication that you're threatening your opponent." Hugh caught his temper he smiled at Heindric and tipped his king over. "I think I'm too stoned for this I'll concede you the game."
Heindric smiled and shrugged and sunk back into his own cushioned chair. "Do you know in the Americas they smoke tobacco leaves. it's only a mild stimulant but by all accounts highly addictive maybe more so than the poppy?"
Hugh did know this as it was one of Heindric's full back conversation starters he always brought it up when he was stoned and because he was stoned he never remembered. Hugh hadn't finished though, he knew had a bee in his bonnet but felt it helped him reflect by bouncing thoughts off of Heindric. Suddenly he felt paranoid maybe Heindric only brought the tobacco fact into play when he was board of Hugh's conversation. Hugh signaled a waiter and ordered an ace juice, the vitamin c will take the edge off, he thought. Heindric ordered an orange. Hugh felt frustrated again 'whys he always trying to best me' then the paranoia lessened as he considered the foolishness at being angry at being bested at taking an edge off a high. He laughed at himself.
Heindric stared at him and laughed. "What are you laughing at?"
Hugh smiled "It doesn't matter... Do you really believe the Khan serves the people' story? The man was born to a role what does he know about the people?"
"I never really see the Khan as an individual more of an office of state. He rules because someone has to and he may not know much about the people but he is advised and many key functions of state are done his name by... " Hiendric gesticulated at the air in front of his face as he searched for a word as he found a suitable word he seemed to pluck it. " functionaries. State functions like wealth redistribution..."
Hugh looked past Heindric as he noticed a woman at the bar who appeared to be staring at him. She was Caucasian but heavily tanned, her black hair was worn loose and dropped beneath her shoulders. Hugh smiled at her and gave her a friendly nod. Hugh thought he recognised her but couldn’t remember how.
Having not noticed Hugh's attentions were elsewhere Heindric continued. "Wealth distribution is the most important, it could be argued, function of the Khanate. It's one of the first laws of economics that if the market was not closely regulated the world would be in chaos large firms would hold massive political sway and the gulf between the rich and the poor would be ludicrous, in such a society who would fund the scholars?" Heindric's last remark was close to being a quaff but Hugh was no longer interested in the debate he was racking his brains trying to place the black haired woman. She had met his smile with her own and then turned back to the bar to speak to the group of people she was with.
The waiter came back with their order and Hugh took the opportunity to settle his bill and Heindric followed suit. Hugh downed his drink and stood up to leave Heindric stared at him and Hugh realised that he hadn't discussed leaving with his friend. "I'm sorry Heindrich but I'm feeling in a funny mood perhaps I'm too tired or too stoned but i think i will take myself back to our inn and turn in for the night."
"No problem Hugh, I will accompany you back as I was relying on your sense of direction to see me safely home.
The friends readied to leave and fastened the jackets readying themselves for the cold night air. Once outside the cool on their faces soon sobered them up as Hugh took the lead.
They were in the old district of Kabul and like the old districts of all the silk road cities the roads were a deep black granite cobble and the buildings were white marble clad renaissance architecture. Hugh was never sure if Heindrich was serious about getting lost as every Silk road city had been built to the same plan only deviating to adjust for the natural lay of the land of occasionally a pre renaissance piece of existing architecture. Kabul was no different Hugh swiftly took them from the old district to the enlightenment district where there inn could be found. The khan's architects had carried the theme of granite cobbles and marble facade through but this district had long tree line boulevards and each building was palatial irrespective of it's function. Be it tenement living or government offices the buildings were all four stories tall from the ground with two sub basement levels and lofty roofs with dormer windows. The buildings were usually rectangular with as many windows large windows as the architect could squeeze in. The buildings were always built in quads enclosing a large yard or garden in the middle. Their inn was no exception it's central quad the size of a football pitch housing a large stables and a couple of small ornamental gardens for its guests.