Feet of Clay (Discworld 19)

'A pig-knuckle sandwich... Never tried a pig knuckle? You just can't beat it,' said Nobby.

'It is ... perhaps... not the most delicate food?' said Lady Selachii.

'Oh, you can cut the crusts off,' said Nobby. 'Even the toenails. If you're feeling posh.'

Sergeant Colon opened his eyes, and groaned. His head ached. They'd hit him with something. It might have been a wall.

They'd tied him up, too. He was trussed hand and foot.

He appeared to be lying in darkness on a wooden floor. There was a greasy smell in the air, which seemed familiar yet annoyingly unrecognizable.

As his eyes grew accustomed to the dark he could make out very faint lines of light, such as might surround a door. He could also hear voices.

He tried to get up to his knees, and groaned as more pain crackled in his head.

When people tied you up it was bad news. Of course, it was much better news than when they killed you, but it could mean they were just putting you on one side for killing later.

This never used to happen, he told himself. In the old days, if you caught someone thieving, you practically held the door open for him to escape. That way, you got home in one piece.

By using the angle between a wall and a heavy crate he managed to get upright. This was not much of an improvement on his former position, but after the thunder in his head had died away he hopped awkwardly towards the door. t did not move.

The fist stopped a hair's-breadth from Carrot's unblinking eyes.

'I didn't think you could,' he said, as the golem swung again and the fist jerked to a stop a fraction of an inch from Carrot's stomach. 'But sooner or later you'll have to talk to me. Write, anyway. '

Dorfl paused. Then it picked up the slate pencil.

TAKE MY WORDS!

'Tell me about the golem who killed people. '

The pencil did not move.

'The others have killed themselves,' said Carrot.

I KNOW.

'How do you know?'

The golem watched him. Then it wrote:

CLAY OF MY CLAY.

'You feel what other golems feel?' said Carrot.

Dorfl nodded.

'And people are killing golems,' said Carrot. 'I don't know if I can stop that. But I can try. I think I know what's happening, Dorfl. Some of it. I think I know who you were following. Clay of your clay. Shaming you all. Something went wrong. You tried to put it right. I think... you all had such hopes. But the words in your head'll defeat you every time... '

The golem stayed motionless.

'You sold him, didn't you, ' said Carrot quietly. 'Why?'

The words were scribbled quickly.

GOLEM MUST HAVE A MASTER.

'Why? Because the words say so?'