He brought his mind back to the task in hand. Ombissu was probably ashore by now and probably worried that his captain and first officer had been taken to an unknown destination by an unknown and therefore potentially dangerous group of armed hunters. He would have been told that their absence was voluntary, but he must be concerned. It would therefore be a good idea to return or at least to send a message. He would have to get this idea across to Eln-Tika.
The next few minutes were among the most miraculous he had ever experienced. He saw no reason not to borrow Eln-Tika’s communication technique, so, after attracting Eln-Tika’s attention, he drew a mark in the dust then pointed to himself. He then drew and circle round the mark and pointed to the camp. Eln-Tika touched her head. He then drew a wavy line, which he hoped represented the river, and more marks. Finally he drew the ship. With his finger he pointed to himself then moved his finger to the river. He then drew a line from the ship to the line that represented the river and then he mimed talking. Eln-Tika seemed to be following this intelligently so he said slowly "I need to return to the others where I will talk with my executive officer."
At which point the miracle took place. Eln-Tika said clearly, "Very well. I will come with you. Can you ride?"
He did his best not to look astonished, but he knew he had failed. Eln-Tika grinned again and pointed to the blenjis. "Do you think you can ride a blenji?" she asked.
Reffurio had no idea whether he could or not, but he was quite willing to try. He stood up, smiling, and said to Fallassan, "I am going back to our camp to meet with Ombissu. You stay here until we come back. Try to learn as much as you can and help them if they want it."
"Right. Are you going to ride one of those things?" she asked, pointing to the blenjis.
"Why not? I’ll try anything once."
Fallassan laughed. "This I have to see."
Eln-Tika selected the quietest of the blenjis, fitted the saddle, then asked it to lower its neck. She then moved a small wooden table into position and invited Reffurio to step onto it. While Eln-Tika held the reins, Reffurio very cautiously lifted his leg over the neck and settled into the saddle. The blenji immediately lifted its neck and Reffurio very nearly fell off, but holding firmly onto the reins he remained in position. Eln-Tika mounted her blenji with ease and with her leading they set off down the hillside.
Chapter 23
To say Ombissu was alarmed was an understatement. He had despatched his two senior officers into what he had assumed was a country uninhabited by anything other than grazing animals and their predators and what had he just learned? That they had gone off with a band of hunters who, by the account he had just heard, were intelligent, fearless and armed. He drove the rowers on with an urgency driven by near panic. He arrived at the camp to find his sailors calmly putting up their shelters. After a few questions he began to relax. The hunters were friendly, apparently, and there had been no coercion. Reffurio and Fallassan had disappeared up the hill without a care in the world, it would seem. Well, he supposed it was all right. His officers were not fools. He looked around wondering what he should do.
The business of making camp was progressing in such an orderly manner that useful occupation of his time was not obvious. It seemed he could take time out for a little exploration and perhaps a little hunting. Taking his rifle and accompanied by one of the sailors, he wandered upstream alongside the river. It was a clear stream that rushed through rounded boulders, shaded by overhanging ferns. The intermittent sandy banks were littered with debris from a time when the river was higher. He stepped onto one of these banks and almost instantly one of the fallen logs moved rapidly towards him, its mouth wide open. He just had time to notice the lines of pointed teeth before he leapt back in shock. An arrow came out of nowhere and flew into the open mouth. The animal writhed violently then lay motionless.
While Ombissu was still staring at the animal in amazement, two figures appeared through the ferns to his left. For a few moments he did not know what he was looking at, then he saw, to his astonishment, that one was Reffurio sitting on top of a large animal. The other was an unknown chanit similarly mounted.
Reffurio was the first to speak. "That, apparently, is a snapper. They’re dangerous. Eln-Tika here just saved your life, assuming, of course, that you didn’t have time to shoot it. I suggest you thank her. She’ll understand."
There were so many facts to take in from these remarks that Ombissu found it difficult to know where to start. Eventually, he settled on thanking Eln-Tika. She grinned and said, "You should not have walked along the river. It is dangerous."
Ombissu turned to Reffurio in astonishment.
"It’s a long story," Reffurio said.
*
Back at the camp, Reffurio described the events on the day. Ombissu did not know which astonished him the more: Eln-Tika’s telepathy and remarkable facility with their language or Reffurio casually riding an animal he had never seen until today. Compared to this, the skill in archery shown by Eln-Tika passed by almost without comment.
At the conclusion of his description of the day’s events Reffurio said, "So you see, Ombissu, my friend, there are interesting times ahead. These people could well be useful allies. There seems to be much to be learned from them and from this country."
"Yes, I see all that. The ability to detect danger from a distance is uncommonly useful, I must say. Without it I imagine I would be lunch for that snapper."
"She detected the danger while we were still halfway up the hill. We raced to the river as fast as we could go and were just in time. You must have been at least a hundred paces from the snapper when she detected the danger, so she must have an ability to predict the near future, that is, in this case, the possibility of you being eaten."
"Perhaps," Ombissu said dubiously. "I am not so sure that it is possible to predict the future. I suspect she detected the situation and realised what might happen."
"In practical terms it’s the same thing."
"Well, yes."
Eln-Tika had been listening to the dialogue intently. She could follow the gist of the conversation quite easily, but the meaning of many of the words eluded her. Nevertheless, she saw no reason not to comment.
"To some extent, I can predict the future. What you are suggesting is that I see an event in the present and extend it to the near future, thus predicting an event in the near future. This is not difficult. You can do it. It was obvious that if you are about to step on a snapper then the next event is the snapper trying to eat you. I can do more than this. I can - to a certain extent - predict the future from no facts at all."
There was an awed silence after this speech.
Ombissu said to Reffurio, "You realise that we do not understand a word of their language yet Eln-Tika is almost fluent in ours after a day. It’s unbelievable."
"It helps to be a telepath," Eln-Tika said drily.
"True. It means, Eln-Tika, that you are a remarkable chanit. Tell me, are your friends similarly gifted?"
"I am the only telepath. One of our children was a telepath but he left with the new octet. Wath-Moll knows a few words, and I expect the others will pick up your language eventually."
Ombissu had an interesting thought. He said to Reffurio, "I can’t wait for Mekbill to meet Eln-Tika. He is in for a shock. He thinks we are superior to everything and he has just been proved wrong."
Reffurio said quite seriously, "I know. I thought that while I was at their camp. Interestingly, Fallassan has met Eln-Tika and the others and she did not seem offended in the slightest - on the contrary."
"Fallassan is not Mekbill. By the way, Fallassan should be back here. She should not be on her own."
Eln-Tika interrupted abruptly. "Who is Mekbill? He sounds important but seems to be a figure of fun to you."
"He is our priest," Ombissu said.
Eln-Tika looked blank. "I do not understand that word," she said.
"A minister of our religion."
"Now there are two
words I do not understand."
Ombissu had to think of ways to define the word religion and found it surprisingly difficult. Reffurio decided to intervene.
"I think, my friend," he said to Ombissu, "you are taking on more than the situation can handle. A discussion on religious philosophy is somewhat too advanced for day one of a language course, even for someone of Eln-Tika’s ability."
Ombissu laughed. "You are right, of course." He turned to Eln-Tika. "For the moment, it is too difficult to explain. But you will be meeting Mekbill soon. With your telepathy you should be able to understand then. We are looking forward to the meeting."
"So I sense, but I don’t understand why."
"I can’t explain, Eln-Tika. I would like to but I can’t. For the moment, it is too difficult. You will have to wait."
"Very well, I will wait."
Reffurio turned to more practical matters. "These blenjis," he said pointing to their two mounts now grazing peacefully nearby. "Can you get more? They would be very useful for us."
Ombissu said to Reffurio, "I’d almost forgotten. How in the world did you learn to ride one of those? You’ve never ridden another animal in your life - none of our people have, we don’t have anything like it. In fact I am finding the idea quite wonderful. It’s almost a new dimension."
"It was surprisingly easy," Reffurio said with self-conscious casualness. "Eln-Tika gave the animal an order, it lowered its neck and I got on. The actual riding was quite straightforward."
"Ha!" This was Eln-Tika. "You are too confident. I picked the easiest animal for you to ride. She is docile and well trained. If you want new animals then you have to train them. This requires skill and patience. You have to be prepared to fall off."
"Oh."
"Also, you will need to make saddles. These do not make themselves. Do you have any skills for working leather?"
Ombissu and Reffurio shared glances. Their admiration for their new friend was growing apace. Not only was she awesomely clever, but she was very entertaining company.
"Yes, we can work with leather," Reffurio said. "We require many skills to sail our ship. I expect we could make saddles if you showed us how."
"Very well. We will catch some blenjis and then you will be able to ride with us. It is not good for your dignity to have to walk everywhere."
And this time Reffurio and Ombissu really laughed.
Chapter 24
It was a hunting party with style, Ombissu was thinking. He and Reffurio were mounted on blenjis and were accompanied by three of the hunters - Wath-Moll, Sil-Jeve, and the youngster Voi-Til. For once, Eln-Tika was parted from Wath-Moll, busy being taught their language by Fallassan, who, it turned out, had a natural aptitude as a teacher.
Ombissu found sitting on one of these remarkable animals an exhilarating experience. It had been straightforward for Wath-Moll to order the blenji to lower its neck and for him to climb onto the light wood and leather saddle. It had been almost as straightforward for him to guide the blenji using a combination of leg pressure and rein control. It had been less straightforward when Wath-Moll had urged his mount into a run and the others had automatically followed. The speed was tremendous. He had never moved so fast in his life, not even in Icefall. The blenjis raced across the ground in great bounding strides. They crashed past the ferns, the fronds hitting him in the face. He hung on to the reins and kept his thighs pressed into the sides of his blenji’s neck; he had no intention of falling off.
The ride was very fast but very smooth. The blenji seemed to be able to keep its neck absolutely steady even though it was racing over tussocks and hidden rocks and swerving round the ferns and trees. It was tremendous fun.
In very little time at all they were off their hill and into the next valley. Wath-Moll drew his blenji to a steady walk and the others followed suit.
"There is a herd of blenjis near here. We need to let our blenjis find them. Before long they will start calling. When they do, the wild animals will answer. We will then move in slowly and quietly."
Wath-Moll lead the party steadily through the fern-scattered valley. Nobody spoke and the tension slowly mounted. Ombissu knew this feeling very well. He had hunted in the forests of his homeland many times and he loved this sense of anticipation when he knew he was in the territory of his prey. Somewhere, probably not very far away, was a herd of these beautiful, incredibly fast animals. They were a worthy animal to hunt, except, in this case, they were to capture, not to kill - a much more difficult challenge.
Suddenly, Wath-Moll’s mount lifted its head into the air and gave a high, long drawn-out call. Ahead of them, in the distance, a similar call answered. Wath-Moll increased his speed slightly and again the others responded.
Ombissu could feel his mount quivering below him. It had become excited and, for the first time, he wondered if he would be able to control it when the hunt began. Wath-Moll had assured him that their animals were perfectly trained and had done this kind of thing before, but, even so, he felt slightly concerned. He looked across at Reffurio who looked perfectly at ease on his blenji and he smiled to himself at the thought of two sailors riding these wonderful animals. If they managed to bring a few of them home they would create a sensation.
The lead blenji was calling more often now and the answering calls were much closer. Wath-Moll unhooked the coil of rope that was fastened near his right hand and led his blenji using only his left hand. The other hunters did the same. It dawned on Ombissu that they would be racing into the hunt using only one-handed control. He realised he was about to witness some very skilful riding indeed.
Sil-Jeve and Voi-Till split away from the others, moving out and ahead on opposite sides of the central group. It was a pincer attack with Wath-Moll’s animal as the bait. Wath-Moll maintained his steady pace; he and Reffurio continued to follow behind. The wild blenjis were close now but he still could not see them. Then, suddenly, there they were, a group of about twenty staring with interest in their direction. Wath-Moll continued his steady progress; the blenjis made no move.
Ombissu was wondering when they would realise that this was no friendly encounter when the herd started to move slowly away. He noticed a movement ahead and saw that Voi-Till had emerged from behind a large fern, his coiled rope at the ready; a moment later Sil-Jeve appeared. The herd immediately began running and the chase was on. Wath-Moll charged at the fleeing herd.
He and Reffurio had been given strict instructions not too get to close when the action started so as not to get in the way, but he was finding it difficult to keep his blenji in check. The suddenness at which Wath-Moll had accelerated into the herd had surprised him and he had not reacted quickly enough to prevent his blenji from taking off after Wath-Moll. He had been taught how to slow his mount down, but it was not easy. In desperation he pulled back the reins and the blenji stopped so suddenly he nearly shot over its head onto the ground. Grimly hanging onto the reins he hauled himself back into the riding position.
He had almost missed the excitement. The three hunters were closing in on the herd from different directions and the animals did not know which way to go. With superb skill the hunters raced alongside the animals they had selected. The ropes streaked out and two looped over the necks of their targets. The third, from Voi-Til, just missed and hit the top of the blenji’s head. The animal shook its head furiously and the noose slid harmlessly down its neck as it raced away.
They had caught two blenjis - one for him and one for Reffurio. He thought that was a pretty good effort and he said so when the hunters returned with the two blenjis walking quite peacefully beside them.
"Catching blenjis is easy," Wath-Moll said haltingly as he strived to find the words. "They are friendly animals."
Ombissu leant over to touch the head of the animal Wath-Moll had caught. It gazed at him with its large dark brown eyes. It seemed mildly interested in him and quite unconcerned.
"They seem not to be afraid," Ombissu said.
"No. They are not frig
htened of us."
"It will be easy for me to ride this one, then?"
"No, it will not be easy. But not too difficult."
Ombissu and Reffurio shared a glance. Wath-Moll’s idea of not too difficult was probably different from theirs.
*
The breaking in of the two blenjis took three days. Although the animals were docile they did not like being ridden on. Voi-Till and Gre-Hann did the riding while the sailors watched with interest. Ombissu and Reffurio had wanted to break in the blenjis themselves but had been dissuaded by the hunters. Now they could see why. This was riding skill of the highest order. The beautifully smooth ride that they had experienced was simply not present. These wild blenjis twisted and turned their necks so that the riders had the greatest difficulty in staying on. Ombissu and Reffurio soon realised that they would not have lasted for more than a few moments. But Voi-Til and Gre-Hann, showing extraordinary levels of patience and skill eventually tamed the essentially docile blenjis into creatures that Ombissu and Reffurio could ride.
The two officers took to riding between the two camps and soon the route down the hillside to the river was as familiar as the deck of Techyspay. It was so obvious that riding was a convenient and enjoyable way of travelling that the sailor persuaded the hunters to capture and tame four more blenjis for the use of the other three officers and Mekbill. The welfare of the animals was added to the duties of the sailors, who, in fact, enjoyed looking after these beautiful and intelligent creatures.
The introduction of Mekbill to the hunters had been dramatic. The priest had been startled by the obvious intelligence of the hunters, particularly by Eln-Tika who had learned the basics of their language in such a short time. It seemed to him that they ought to be brought into their religion immediately in case the sailors became tainted by the company of these heathens. He stated his intentions to Ombissu, who immediately became alarmed. He did not want to chance making any changes to their good relationship with the hunters; he certainly did not believe they were in any danger of becoming tainted, and, during an evening gathering round the fire at the riverside camp, he said so.
The First Riders Page 17