The Dragon's Breath

by James Boschert

  “Climb, climb!” The girl, by now almost mad with fear, clambered onto his shoulders and reached up for the nearest branch.

  It was too late. In three bounds the huge cat covered the ground between them and was onto the youth’s back. Its forepaws clawed his face and head while its back claws tore away the flesh of his back and legs.

  The youth gave a strangled scream, released his hold on the trunk and fell backwards, turning as he fell to face the animal, which also fell back; but then with another blood-chilling roar, carrying all the rage it felt for the human tormentors, it leapt on the wailing youth. The boy was in agony, his back ripped to shreds. No longer possessing a face, he did not see the fearsome beast as it came again to finish him off. Its back claws eviscerated the boy, tearing out his entrails, then its jaws closed onto his throat, choking off any further sound as it snapped his neck. The body was still twitching when the animal began to tear at its flesh.

  The girl was overcome by the gruesome horror just below; her grip loosened, and she began to slip. She slid screaming down the tree trunk to land within feet of the dead boy and the tiger. With another shriek of terror she picked herself up and began to run. Anywhere, it didn’t matter, as long as she could get away from the ghastly sight of the dismembered boy.

  The tiger looked up from his preoccupation with the corpse and saw her. The sight of an animal fleeing triggered a predator’s response. It leaped after the shrieking girl and brought her down in a flurry of dust and limbs. His fangs tore into her shoulder and then into her neck. The huge cat, its jaws and muzzle covered with blood, stood over the corpse and roared out its victory to the huddled humans on the walls above him. The crowd on the walls gave a collective moan of horror as the tiger seized an arm and dragged the body of the girl backwards to dump her next to that of the dead youth. He settled down to eat his fill, growling to himself and glancing up at the humans who lingered on the walls above with his yellow, hate-filled eyes.

  *****

  Talon stood on the steering deck with Reza and the captain and observed while the captain conned the ship into the harbor. The shipping was sparse; Captain Dandachi informed them that this was surprising for the time of year. The monsoons were due to reverse direction soon. They were slightly out of time because of the delays and their time on the islands of Langabulos, where they had spent a week making minor repairs to the ship’s bows and taking on fresh water, fruit and vegetables, along with several woven cages of squawking chickens.

  The tall island to the west of their location provided a good natural shelter from any storms that might fall upon them from the West, as this was still the season for the great winds that came to the Indian ocean.

  Hsü was up on the steering deck with them, but he gave the captain a wide berth, having noted the look of fierce concentration on his face. Hsü quietly observed how well the captain carried out the complicated maneuvers of moving his ship past some dangerous looking sandbanks into a good anchorage.

  Over the last couple of weeks, Talon had come to know Hsü better and had spent as much time as he could with the man. For Talon this was an opportunity to gain an insight to a culture he knew almost nothing about, and he still wondered at how fate had arranged the meeting.

  Hsü had been accommodating and helpful, offering much in the way of information to an interested audience. Talon noticed that there was a coolness between Hsü and his son Fuling but didn’t give it much thought; he was interested in learning what the young man had to say too, he spoke a smattering of Arabic and seemed eager to talk about his home country. Rav’an and Jannat had joined in the conversations, as the Chinese did not seem to exclude women folk, as did the Arabs, being comfortable around them in a circumspect manner.

  The woman who had come with Hsü was initially very shy, but before long she had come to relax in the company of these strange people who had saved their lives. She began to practice her own vocabulary of limited Arabic with Rav’an and Jannat.

  The ship finally came to a point where the captain could drop anchor without obstructing any other vessels. The great lateen sails came down and were lashed and secured. The after anchor was dropped, and they came to a stop altogether.

  It was then that Talon really became aware of the dense humidity of the air around them. He was sweating freely under his cotton clothing and realized that, while it was fine to have these layers in the dry desert, they were an uncomfortable annoyance here in the tropical coast of Malaya. He heard the unwelcome whine of an insect seeking his blood and sighed. This was reminiscent of his time in Egypt. He hoped he would not succumb to the fever while here.

  The town of Kuah on the island of Langkawi consisted of a nondescript collection of white lime-washed houses along a single street, behind which were many thatched buildings on high stilts, with godowns or warehouses lining the east side of the large island. The town faced the distant, flat, jungle and the mangrove swamps of the mainland coast only a couple of leagues away. The island formed a natural harbor, providing exits to the North and South along the strait between the island and the swampy mainland. Behind the main town were some larger buildings, which Talon guessed belonged to the sultan and the wealthier merchants who dealt with both the Chinese and the Arab ships that docked here.

  Captain Dandachi, who had been here once before, informed Talon and Reza that although there was a sultan, he was a mere figurehead. The town was ruled by a powerful man known as Sing who was half Malay and half Arab. The trading station itself was owned by the sultan, but the rule of law was dictated by Sing. It would not do to get on the wrong side of this man, he informed Talon. It was rumored that he not only owned the island but controlled the piracy in the region and gave his protection to whomsoever paid him the right amount in bribes.

  Hsü came over to Talon as they watched from the railing the activity on the shoreline. “I can only see one vessel that is Chinese in the harbor, Talon,” he said. “I would like to talk with the captain and find out if he is going back to China and can take us with him.”

  Talon was concerned. If there was only one Chinese ship, he wondered, who would buy his cargo? Boulos had mentioned that there were merchants who lived on the island who had godowns which could hold a large amount of cargo, pending the arrival of ships going in the right direction. He wanted to sell his present cargo and leave for Oman as soon as possible. The winds were going to change direction in the next two months and he didn’t want to be stuck, unable to sail into prevailing winds by the time they arrived on the western side of the continent of Al Hind.

  “I would like to come with you, Hsü,” he said, mopping his forehead with a cotton cloth. “I need to see to my own cargo, as well as to make sure you find a boat. I can’t believe how humid it is here!” he protested.

  Hsü grinned. “You are not used to this humidity, are you, Talon? These countries are all like this. Even my own city, which is in a large delta, can become very humid in the summer time just before the real monsoons.”

  Taking Reza and Fuling with them, they clambered down into the boat provided by the captain and had themselves rowed to the Chinese ship. As they approached, Talon had a chance to observe the design. It was built in an entirely different manner from his own, but appeared just as seaworthy. The hull swept upwards at both the bows and the after end, but they were blunt rather than sharp. The sails were made of some material that looked more like oiled cloth and had thin strips of wood set along their length, but because they were folded he couldn’t see much more. The decks were high: there were at least three after decks, and a large rudder projected out of the rear of the boat.

  They were hailed from the waist by a member of the crew, and Hsü responded in kind; there followed a rapid exchange in Chinese. The man disappeared for a moment, then he reappeared at the ship’s side and waved them alongside. As they clambered aboard, they found themselves facing three men dressed in fine silk clothing with very bright colors and designs painted or stitched on their long-sleeved jackets. Beh
ind these three, the main crew were dressed very much like sailors anywhere. They wore rough trousers, or in one case a sarong, many were bare chested, and several wore ragged turbans. The crew were armed and looked ready for trouble. Talon glanced around and saw that preparations for going to sea were in process.

  Hsü, meanwhile, had bowed deeply to the merchants and begun a rapid conversation with them. Their bland expressions changed as he spoke, and all three bowed deeply to him. Then one of them called out a sharp command and waved to their group to follow him into the interior.

  Even the smell of this vessel was different, Talon decided. There was much more in the way of scented woods, and the smell of old smoke was pervasive. Their new hosts brought them to a spacious cabin that had windows opening out onto the glittering water of the harbor and provided a modicum of air movement.

  After following Hsü’s example and bowing to their hosts, they all seated themselves on cushions placed on a thick carpet pile. Hsü turned to Talon and Reza and said, “I have explained who I am and what happened to my ship. Now that they know about this they are more friendly, but we shall see.”

  Talon sipped his tea and listened with half an ear to the sing-song chatter of the Chinese people as they launched into what appeared to be an intense discussion. To judge by Hsü’s tightening expression and Fuling’s worried looks, things were not going as well as Hsü might have hoped. Finally, after half an hour of this, Hsü held up his hand to the men facing him and turned to Talon.

  “They are very regretful, but they are waiting for the winds to change so that they can sail for India. They cannot take us back to China, Talon. I tried to persuade them, even with bribes, to be paid when we arrived in Guangzhou, but they respectfully declined, as they are part of a consortium of merchants from Fu-Čou, a large port further north of Guangzhou. They would not be able to make the decision without the permission of the consortium, which of course cannot be obtained while here. I did my best to persuade them, but to no avail.” Even with his seemingly bland Asiatic features Talon could see that Hsü was concerned.

  Talon became worried himself. “I am very sorry to hear this, Hsü, for myself as well. If they will not be going to China, do they know of a merchant who would be willing to buy my cargo and keep it here in a godown until a Chinese merchant could come and buy it?”

  Hsü turned back to the three men in front of him. They had round, expressionless faces with jet black hair bound at the back, and thin mustaches that drooped to waxed points. Their clothing was of expensive material and their hands were well-manicured, unlike his own hands or those of his companions, who by contrast looked positively ragged. Even Hsü looked unkempt by comparison to these people.

  Hsü launched into another discussion with the merchants, who responded volubly and with an emphatic shake of their heads. They talked amongst themselves for a few more moments, and then Hsü said to Talon.

  “They told me that while you might find a merchant ready to take your consignment, there are not many Chinese on the island at this time. There have been... difficulties with the local population; several Chinese merchants have been murdered, their godowns pillaged and burned. The remainder of them are trying to protect what they have, and many have left.”

  “Why? Is there a problem?” Reza asked. “Is it pirates?”

  “Most likely, Reza.” Hsü responded. “They tell me that this man called Sing is probably behind the trouble, but no one can prove anything, and the sultan is weak. Sing has great influence in this region, especially on the island. He is a dangerous and ambitious man who has no respect for the sultan, who lives on the mainland in Kalah Bar. Recently he has begun to behave as though he is the true owner of this island and the port. They advise great caution at this time.”

  Talon was dismayed; this sounded ominous. Not only was Hsü stranded, but his own merchandise was in jeopardy and there was not much likelihood of selling it for a good price here. He stood to lose much of his precious investment.

  Hsü was still talking to the men, but it was clear that the meeting was over. He bowed from the waist and began to stand up. Everyone hastened to follow suit, and then there was even more bowing and high-pitched chatter before they exited onto the main deck.

  As they were being rowed away, Fuling and Hsü held an animated conversation with much pointing towards the shore and the ship they had just left.

  It was a somber group that boarded the Sea Eagle soon afterwards and went their several ways. Reza and Talon walked onto the steering deck, where they were joined Rav’an and Jannat, who were seething with curiosity as to what had transpired on the Chinese ship. Rav’an noticed their glum looks.

  “What is the matter, Talon, Reza? Is something wrong?” she asked, as Rostam came running up the steps and stood with his mother.

  “Were you on that Chinese ship, Papa?” he piped.

  “Yes, we were, Rostam,” Talon said to him with a smile. “We didn’t understand a word, but Hsü and Fuling told us that the ship is not going to China, so Hsü is stranded here in this steam bath of a place, while we are going to have a hard time selling our cargo. He told me that even in Kalah Bar, which is just across the straits, there are no Chinese traders.”

  Rav’an and Jannat looked surprised and then worried. “Is there no one on land who could buy the cargo and wait for a boat to come?” Jannat asked.

  “That is for us to find out,” Talon said with a hard note to his voice.

  *****

  The next day, with Hsü and Fuling in attendance, as well as the captain, Talon and Reza set out for the wharf, which was a short row away. One of the houses, according to Hsü, was a meeting place for merchants and ship’s captains looking for trade. Leaving the rowers to guard the boat, the men, this time armed against any trouble, made their way along the crowded pier towards a row of houses set off the side. Talon took note of the strange looking weapon that Hsü wore in his belt.

  Hsü lead the way, and Captain Dandachi agreed that the best place to make a deal was the more imposing building, so they walked up to the main entrance. They were waved by two doormen into the shadow of a vast room with a tall ceiling of palm thatch and rough beams. Large openings for windows allowed for some ventilation; and the whine of insects, which had plagued them since they had landed, was less annoying here. The room was half full of a strange assortment of people dressed in an equally varied assortment of clothes. The loud chatter ceased as the newcomers were observed by men who could have been anything from sailors or pirates to merchant men, it was hard to say.

  Talon saw Chinese wearing their mode of dress that he now recognized, and a number of villainous looking Arab sailors along side smaller brown men, whom he took to be Malays; they wore sarongs and were naked from the waist up and they seemed at ease among the Arabs. He noticed some tall, very black-skinned men who had come from southern India, and other, less dark, better dressed men from further north of the continent, along with a smattering of other people of Asian extraction.

  Hsü led the way across the room towards a table by the window, where two sharp-eyed men, Chinese by their clothing and looks, were seated. Hsü bowed to them before engaging in a conversation while indicating Talon.

  The men returned their nods and waved the visitors to nearby benches. The murmur of the room returned to its former noise as the traders lost interest in the new arrivals.

  Tea was served by a Malay servant, to whom the Chinese men spoke in a language Talon had never heard before, and then he left. Talon could smell the odor of rancid coconut oil wafting from the kitchens at the back of the large room; this combined with the smell of unwashed bodies and thick, moisture-laden air, was almost overwhelming. He smiled as he watched Reza’s nose wrinkle, and decided that he would not eat here. Tea, however, might be safe enough.

  Reza and Talon sipped the hot brew from porcelain cups that were much too fine for an establishment like this, while Hsü spoke at length with the two merchants, describing and negotiating for Talon’s me
rchandise. After much discussion amid their noisy slurping of the tea, Hsü turned to Talon and explained.

  “They are interested in your cargo, but they have full godowns because they are waiting for ships to take their own freight to China. Rumor has it that there have been bad storms in the seas the other side of this land, and ships have been lost in great numbers, so the traffic has been very slow. They are also afraid to buy more, as this could be a temptation to pirates who now infest these waters.” Hsü paused, and then added, “They are afraid of something or someone.”

  “What kind of price are they willing to pay for our goods?” Reza asked.

  Hsü, who already knew the quantity of their load and their quality, went back to speaking with the two merchants. Watching them, Talon could read that they were interested, but they kept shaking their heads.

  One of them pulled over a small abacus from his side of the table and began to flick the beads back and forth along the slides. He stopped and said something.

  None of them had noticed that their Malay waiter had disappeared from the building.

  Hsü leaned back and pursed his lips, looking embarrassed.

  “What did he say?” Reza prompted.

  “I am not sure I want to tell you. Their price is so low as to be insulting,” Hsü told him.

  “Try me,” Talon said.

  Hsü sighed. “He is offering one and a half thousand taels of silver and two tons of cloves. We all know that the cargo you are carrying is worth far more than that.”

  Talon looked at Reza. “We can let it go for four and a half thousand taels and three tons of cloves. Nothing less,” he stated. Hsü nodded, and then translated Talon’s reply.

  The man muttered something and thoughtfully clicked the balls back and forth for a few seconds, then made a comment to Hsü; he also made a motion with his hand to indicate that this was a far as he would go.