by Alan Black
Seenger had no family. Beyond the crew of the White Wind, he had no friends in Holden. For all Tanden knew, Seenger thought of the crew as his family and the White Wind as his home.
As for himself, Tanden did not know if he had any living blood relatives. His mother had died when he was so young he could not remember her face. How could a man know his future if he did not know his history?
A change in I-Sheera’s breathing told Tanden the woman had fallen asleep sitting upright. She twitched and mumbled so softly in her sleep he could barely hear it. No clear words escaped her lips. He should not tolerate sleeping on watch and should wake her. He realized now was not the time to be unbending. She had done more than he had any right to expect from a woman. He rationalized that they would travel faster tomorrow if the girl was well rested. He did not want to admit to himself that he just did not want to wake her. He wanted her rested and happy.
Tanden was not aware of how much time had passed while he daydreamed or how long the others had been asleep, before he realized being alone on watch was foolish. If he fell asleep, they would be unprotected. He located another small pebble. Twisting easily, he spotted Seenger’s shadow—no one else cast as large a silhouette. He tossed the pebble at the ogre missed entirely. It clattered in the silent night, but the sound, as loud as it was, blended in with nature’s serenade.
The shadow rose to a sitting position and waved. Tanden caught the motion as darkness against a black backdrop. He was certain Seenger was now on watch. He would stay on watch a little while longer and wake his replacement when he grew too tired to be alert to new noises.
Without conscious awareness, Tanden’s arm reached out to the fitfully sleeping woman. He drew her head down to his lap, letting her rest there. Gently, he stroked her hair. During the day, her hair looked thick and tangled like the end of a frayed, blackened hemp rope. Here in the night air, her hair felt soft and smooth. Stroking her hair quieted her sleep. It also soothed Tanden. He smiled as she quietly moved closer to him in her sleep, resting a hand against his leg.
Storm clouds continued to blot out the sky. Without the stars, Tanden had no way to estimate the passage of time. Had eons passed since he was dragged from his berth aboard the White Wind? He knew he should sleep soon. The entire group was close to the point of exhaustion. Whom should he waken? Gadon had gone without extended sleep longer than any of them, having been on watch the night of the mutiny. Durrban was older and had less stamina than the rest. Tuller and Seenger had slept by the river earlier in the day, but they stood watch most of the night before this one. How much longer could he continue to rely on them to carry the burden of sleeplessness?
Tanden worried the problem through his thoughts. He added the hours of sleep each man had gotten in the last two days, trying to match that man’s capabilities to go without rest. Tanden remained on watch, as he was unable to calculate that anyone—man, woman, or ogre—was more rested than he was. The truth of the matter was that he enjoyed I-Sheera’s touch and he did not want to move. He continued stroking her hair, listening to the night around them.
Tanden noticed Tuller rise. He found a smooth place on the rocks to sit, facing upstream with his back to Tanden. Tanden leaned against his crewman, laying his head on Tuller’s shoulder and slept.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The pre-dawn hour was cold and gray when Tuller placed his hand softly on Tanden’s arm to waken him. The dim moonlight flickering down from the Egg and Lumpy was doing less to light the sky than the sun, still hidden by the horizon. Tanden raised his head slightly, but otherwise, he didn’t move. From where he sat, Tanden could not see Tuller. Shifting his eyes, he looked at Seenger. The ogre raised an index finger, pointed at his ear and then pointed upstream. Tanden listened. Finally, he heard it, the scrape of rock on rock coming from upstream, then a second noise, a small splash.
Tanden nodded to Seenger, raised a finger to his lips, and pointed to the sleeping forms of Gadon and Durrban. In silent obedience, Seenger moved to where Gadon lay, remaining hunched over to stay hidden from the stream below. He put one hand gently over the sleeping man’s mouth and one hand lightly on his shoulder. Gadon awoke wide-eyed and alert. Seenger patted him on the shoulder and moved to awaken Durrban in the same manner.
Taking a cue from the ogre, Tanden reached down to place a hand over I-Sheera’s mouth, but she sat upright silently before he could touch her. Tanden felt an empty chill where she had pressed against his body. He shook his head to clear his mind from invading sexual thoughts. Picking up the bow slowly and quietly, he notched an arrow from the quiver. Checking around him, he noticed the entire group had noiselessly re-armed themselves. Even I-Sheera picked up her short sword without as much as a scrape against the rock.
Gadon and Durrban sat quietly where they had slept. Seenger moved to the far side of the ledge. His flanking movement was as wide as Tanden could have hoped for here on their little plateau.
Tanden looked at Tuller. He was stretched out flat, close to the edge near a patch of scruffy weeds. He was able to see the stream without being seen. Tuller returned his look and raised two fingers. He slid one finger down across his cheek in a slashing movement. The position of the slash told Tanden that Seekin was one of the two men in the stream below them. Tanden nodded and deliberately made eye contact with the other members of his group. Each silently acknowledged they had seen the signals.
Tanden turned to focus on Tuller. This time, Tuller pointed at himself then at Seenger and pointed two fingers at the stream. Slowly, Tuller drew a finger silently across his own throat, with a question in his eyes.
Tanden shook his head slowly. Tuller nodded his acceptance. Tanden recognized that neither crewman agreed with his decision. Everyone held their breath while the two men tracking them passed by in the stream below.
Tanden was beginning to believe he had made an error by not killing the two Hummdhars, when he heard another splash from upstream. Then, he heard another and another. A full five minutes passed before the men following the two advance scouts waded along the stream below the group. Tuller signaled with a flash of fingers that he counted a dozen men leading their sauruses.
Tanden realized if they had killed the two advance scouts, the larger body following would have swarmed over them like hungry ants on a dead bug. He had counted on there being a smaller force. His original hastily developed plan was to attack the second group, using the element of surprise, but there were more barbarians than they could effectively kill without receiving unacceptable losses of their own.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Tanden wanted the Hummdhar sauruses, but he shook his head and with an open hand, patted downward, signaling his crew to stay put and not attack. Tanden was thankful he had worked together with these men for a long time. Effective communications didn’t always require words.
A tense five minutes later Tuller looked over the side and pointed downstream indicating the barbarians had all gone that way.
Tanden whispered, just loud enough his men could hear, “Then we will move upstream, quickly and quietly.”
Tuller and Seenger gathered their weapons and slipped over the side of the ledge in tandem. Even this close, Tanden heard no more than a gentle tinkling of water. Staying low to the rocks, Gadon and Durrban moved forward. Swinging their legs over the edge, they slid off the ledge to hang by their hands before dropping into the waiting arms of Tuller and Seenger, who eased them noiselessly into the stream.
From the ledge, Tanden signaled the men with a fast flash of hands. Following his signs, Gadon stepped quickly with Seenger a few yards downstream. They watched the curve of the hillside and the bend of the stream for any Hummdhar returning their way. Durrban carefully waded upstream as an advance guard. Tuller remained below to assist Tanden and the woman.
I-Sheera swung her legs over the edge. Tanden, who was lying next to her on the rocks, grasped her wrists and lowered her down to Tuller’s waiting arms. Tanden dropped his weapons down to the woman and
followed as fast as he could. The six waded quickly upstream through the swift water. Gadon and Seenger keeping a constant watch behind them.
Tanden signaled for Tuller to catch up to Durrban. Durrban halted at a bend in the stream where trees and bushes obstructed his view. He peeked cautiously around the corner then nodded to Tuller, who swiftly continued past him, moving on upstream. Durrban waved to Tanden and the others, signaling all clear, silently calling them forward. He dashed out of sight after Tuller.
Tanden and the others came upon Tuller and Durrban waiting quietly hunkered down in the cold water after two or three more bends in the stream. Durrban was washing in the cold morning water. Tuller splashed water over his head—droplets clinging to the clumps of his hair not burned away by the young Hummdhar.
Looking to the east, Tanden judged they had a few moments before sunrise. The clouds overhead were dark and threatening so the sun would not shine brightly this morning. A stiff breeze from the west caused more than one of them to shiver.
Tuller said, keeping his voice low, “This is where they entered into the stream. Look. I guess twenty or thirty men riding sauruses split up here. Half went upstream and the other half passed us by downstream. It looks like they dismounted to scan for any footprints we might have left when exiting the water.”
Tanden said, “Or to come on us quietly and catch us unawares.”
Hoofprints and boot prints of numerous men trampled both streambanks. Tanden’s group could leave the water here with virtual impunity. They must still hurry. No one could guess how far the Hummdhars hunting them would travel in each direction before turning back.
Tanden said, “Watch your step getting out of the stream. Try to walk backward so our prints match those who entered the water here. Tuller and Durrban, forward. Seenger and Gadon, behind.”
Tanden watched their footprints as they left the water. It did indeed look as if a small band of men had entered the water. They should avoid recapture as long as no one recognized his group left different prints than Hummdhar boots. I-Sheera was wearing boots taken from Bransch, but the others still wore their soft soled, shipboard boots.
They continued walking backward for twenty yards before turning to run south toward another grove of trees, falling easily into pairs as Tanden instructed. Tuller and Durrban ran ahead quickly. Gadon and Seenger covered their rear, ever watchful of the stream behind them. The cold morning air pulled their breaths from their lungs, leaving wisps of vapor that blew away and disappeared as they ran. The exercise warmed them faster than any morning fire would have. Tanden signaled his lead men to run straight through the first grove of trees. He was unwilling to go around, believing the loss of speed they would experience running through brush and around the trees would outweigh their need to be hidden from sight before the Hummdhars doubled back.
Tanden was of two minds on the Hummdhars hunting them. On one hand, if the barbarians remained in large groups, as they had been, he and his small band might miss detection. His group could not survive a running battle against a sizable force. On the other hand, if the Hummdhars split up, their chances of discovery rose dramatically. Still, they might survive an encounter with a smaller force.
The grove proved to be more difficult than Tanden anticipated. The trees grew in tight clumps, with tangles of thorny nettles weaving through almost every open space. Each runner faired according to their size and agility. I-Sheera fairly sped through the tangle, she was small enough to slip easily through spaces that forced the larger men to go around. The leather garments she had taken from Bransch protected her from thorns and stinging nettles. Gadon’s size and the torn, flimsy clothing he wore seriously slowed him down.
Gadon was running close behind Tanden, cursing and puffing heavily, yet Tanden could only hear about every fourth word. “...dog vomit...flat...butt-licking...overfed donkey...kiss my...pile of...egg stealing...” Tanden did not try to figure out who or what the heavyset sailor was railing about. Gadon sometimes cursed just to be cursing, or he cursed to get a laugh, and at times, he cursed to cover his own fears and worries.
A cloud-covered sunrise broke the horizon just as Tanden’s crew ran into the clearing beyond the tangled grove. Another grove stood a hundred yards to the south. The grove behind them blocked the view of the stream. The time for stealth had passed and was yet to come. Distance was of prime importance now. The group ran onward as fast as they could.
Durrban’s stamina was waning noticeably. Tuller slowed his pace to match the older man’s, causing each pair to slow down to maintain their rough formation. It was obvious to Tanden that I-Sheera, Seenger, and Tuller could quickly out distance the others. Making the situation worse, a light mist began to fall. The air was thick with moisture and taking in enough air became difficult. They would have to seriously slow their pace down soon, but for now, they continued pushing on as fast as they could.
They ran through the next grove, across another clearing, and into the grove after that. They covered a mile or more in just a few minutes. Durrban and Gadon were both gasping and coughing. Their pace slowed to a fast trot. Their forward progress ceased when Durrban, tired and out of breath, attempted to jump over a fallen log. He hooked a toe and tumbled face first into a tangle of thorny nettles. As painful as the thorns poking the man must have been, he lay there, face down, sucking air.
Tanden and the others stopped in various conditions of disarray. Gadon dropped to the log to sit with his head between his knees. Tanden put his hands on his knees and resisted the urge to try to empty his already empty stomach.
Durrban recovered his breath enough to say in a deadpan voice, “Ouch.”
Laughing, Tuller and Seenger stepped over to Durrban and lifted him from his bed of nettles.
Durrban looked solemn and said, “I haven’t had so much fun since my youngest son had diarrhea for a week. Captain, the next time you decide to sail around the world, please don’t forget to invite me along, I want to be able to laugh in your face.”
Gadon laughed with the rest of them and added, “If there is a next time.”
Tanden smiled and said, “There will be a next time, my friends. We’ll quit this land and once again stand on the deck of the White Wind. Believe what I say. Just think of it. Can’t you just see it? Gadon standing at the helm. The ship running before a stiff breeze with the wind at our backs and the sun on our faces. Seenger standing at the bow with the salty seawater spraying his face and a cargo hold full of Tuller’s trade goods. Each of us with a belly full of Durrban’s world famous seafood stew holding a mug of ale. And a soft, warm bed for our beautiful, young lady here. Just think on it! Are we going to let barbarian rabble keep us from this? I think not. The White Wind is out there. She’s ours, let’s go take her back.”
Gadon looked at Tanden and said, “Who are you trying to convince? You or me? If you’re talking to me, you’re wasting your breath. I’ll set foot on the White Wind before any here or I’ll buy the next round of ale.”
Tuller looked at Durrban and said in mock amazement, “Oh my, Durrban! We must hurry. That’s a promise I’ve yet to see filled in all my days. Let’s move. I can taste Gadon’s ale even now.” The two men moved on through the grove feeling more refreshed than either should have.
Tanden noticed I-Sheera looking at him. He smiled at her. She could have easily stepped over the log lying before them, but he placed his hands on her slender waist and exaggeratedly lifted her high over the log. He set her gently down on the other side. Tanden vaulted over the log and motioned Gadon and Seenger to follow. Tanden did not look back, but heard Gadon berating Seenger for not lifting him over the log and for not respecting his elders.
Tuller and Durrban surveyed the clearing ahead of them. A hard rain was falling and a cold wind was blowing out of the west. There were no signs of Hummdhars in pursuit. The silhouette of the next tree line lay across the top of a long hill more than two hundred yards away. Both men charted a course straight up the slope. They moved at a slow trot wi
th Tanden and the others following.
Tanden recognized the slope ahead of them from his scouting trip the night before. The trees at the top marked the end of scattered groves and the beginning of the forest. Rolling terrain was before them as they moved farther from the flat of the river basin. Numerous creeks and streams crisscrossed the area. The next hill beyond was where Tanden heard the voices of men in the distance.
Tanden thought, “Once we enter this forest, we should be able to cover our tracks and still move quickly to the south, circling around to those ridges and high hills in the distance.”
Halfway up the slope, Tanden felt the heavy beats of saurus feet on the ground long before he heard them. He whirled about, looking through the morning rain, scanning the area around them. No riders were in sight, but the hoofbeats were growing closer. There were no hiding places on the slope or the clearing behind them. He prodded his crewmen to run for their lives.
Pushing I-Sheera before him, he said, “Run. Get under cover.”
A triumphant shout from behind them told Tanden they would not reach shelter before the Hummdhars caught them. Even well rested, a runner could not outrun a man riding a saurus. Halting, he spun about to face their pursuers.
Four Hummdhar barbarians rounded the grove his group had recently quit. In the lead was scar-faced Seekin. At his command, a rider wheeled about, racing back toward the stream. The remaining saurus riders whooped as their sauruses pounded up the slope toward Tanden’s troop.
Tanden pulled three arrows from the quiver strapped to his shoulder. He stuck two arrows in the ground before him and notched one arrow to his bowstring. He stood, waiting for the riders to come into range.
Seenger stepped up on Tanden’s right. He hefted a spear in his hand, testing its balance. Tanden felt sure the ogre would be more comfortable using the spear as a pike rather than throwing it at a moving target. Seenger returned his look with a shrug and set his feet.