by Джеффри Лорд
As they rode to the water’s edge Thane said a little prayer to the Hitt gods he had forsaken. «Give me the head of Galligantus this day,» he finished, «so the bones of my Trosa may rest in peace.»
Their chargers were skittish and did not want to enter the sea, unknowing of the planks a foot below the already bloodstained water. For the current here set to the east and, even as they forced their horses, the first corpses came bobbing into sight.
Blade put the spurs to his beast and forced it into the water between the red flags. As soon as the animal felt the planks beneath it all was well; it began to move, fetlock deep, out upon the hidden pontoon. Thane came after Blade and they paused for a moment. Blade turned in his saddle and raised an arm and let out a bellow.
«Men of Zir-follow me!»
He and Thane set out across the channel, the horses moving well but cautiously. The far shore loomed through the mist, desolate and forsaken. Nothing moved in the cove that was Blade’s first objective. He grinned at Thane and glanced back. The first troop of cavalry was already on the pontoon, crossing in twos, and behind him the foot soldiers were forming in fours.
Thane peered at the far shore. «Not a sign of them. I think we’re going to do it, Blade. By the gods, I do. Aha-I shall have wine tonight.»
«We will not count our fortunes until we have made them,» Blade warned. But he felt good. It looked good. They were halfway across.
The mist cleared fast. From half a mile to the west came the iron clamor of battle. From his vantage in the middle of the channel Blade could see great columns of greasy black smoke rising. Fires blazed. Some of Ogier’s picket boats were burning. Dozens of leathermen, on their crude wings soared down from the cliffs and dropped stinkfire.
Thane said, «Ogier has bitten off a tough chew.» He pointed to the corpses bobbing near them. «Most of those are Zirnian. See-there is but one Hitt, and she is a woman.»
Blade had been studying the battle upstream. A transport was loading at the end of the pontoon. As he watched, it pulled away and another took its place. The pontoon was a solid mass of troops, four across, as far back as the Zirnian shore where others waited. He counted six of the transport barges already at the beach, three of them wrecked and burning. There was hand-to-hand fighting on the beach now. Ogier had a foothold, precarious as it was.
He turned his attention to the corpse Thane pointed out. It was that of a young woman, clad in leather armor braced with metal, with her yellow hair cropped short. She floated face up, her blue eyes open and staring. A stone or some such missile had taken off the top of her head.
«Even the children will fight,» muttered Thane. «Come. Let us to it.»
They pushed on. Blade looked back again. His cavalry was fifty yards behind, and behind them came the foot like a metal-and-leather centipede. The cove, with its broad beaches, was only a hundred yards distant now. Blade let his steed feel the spurs.
Thane and Blade were within twenty yards of the shore when a leatherman sailed down from the cliffs and dropped stinkfire. It was Blade’s first close look at these air warriors with their bat wings and wood frames into which their arms fitted. He reined in and watched as the leatherman dove toward them with a faint hissing of wings. The man was naked but for a loincloth and wore no helmet. In each hand he carried a leather sack. He came so low that Blade could see the snarl, the teeth flashing, the eyes full of hate and fury. The leatherman let go a sack and there was a flash of fire and smoke and a stink filled the air.
«Close,» said Thane. He drew a short spear from his saddle scabbard and stood in the stirrups. He took aim and hurled. The leatherman went fluttering into the channel with the spear through his middle.
Thane laughed, then opened his mouth wide and bellowed the Hitt war cry: Yeeeeee-ahhhhhhhh.
«Leave off,» Blade commanded. «Enough confusion lies ahead. Remember that you are no longer a Hitt.»
«It is in the blood,» said Thane. «And blood cannot be denied. But for those bastards, Bloodax and Galligantus, I would be fighting against you, Blade.»
They were ashore. They rode onto the sands of the cove, the horses curveting and prancing, glad of solid earth again, and reined aside to let the first troop of cavalry land. They cantered past, jungling and shining, with pennons flying, and Blade shouted at their Captain. He was to take them immediately into the ravines and low hills beyond the cove and guard the landing of the foot soldiers.
Hardly had he given the order when the attack came. First the blood-curdling war cries ringing in the crisp morning air, yeeeeee-ahhhhh yeeeeee-ahhhhhhhh-and then they came swarming from concealment. For a moment Blade felt panic and thought he had been ambushed, then saw how few they were. Less than a hundred. Most of them old, some crippled, a motley guard left as a matter of routine. Bloodax had expected no attack here. He had not guessed at the sunken pontoon.
So Blade first saw the mettle of his enemy. They came on and on, yelling and hurling spears and stones-he did not see an archer-and as they were cut down and the corpses piled up, the Hitts behind climbed the piles and still came to death with defiant screams. Blade and Thane stood aside and let the troop of cavalry handle it. Pity and admiration stirred in Blade. He had never seen the like of these men. He gazed at Thane in wonderment. «They do not know the meaning of fear.»
Thane laughed deep in his throat. «I had not told you, Blade, but the word is unknown to them. This I mean in a literal sense-there is no word for fear in Hitt. Nor any for coward. That is because they are stupid barbarians and-«
«Another time.» Blade pulled his horse around. «Now we must hurry. You remain and see the troops safely ashore. I will take the second and third groups of cavalry and ride back into the hills. March after me as soon as you have formed the men. Make haste, Thane, for it is my thought that Ogier is having a hot time of it. He will be watching for our signals with impatience.»
Thane rode back to the pontoon head. Already a thousand foot were ashore and forming on the sands. Blade rode out through a narrow ravine and into a lush meadow that sloped gently upward. Behind him came his second and third cavalry units. He found the first group deployed as pickets near the upper meadow. Blade put his charger to the gallop and sought out the Captain of horse.
«What sign of Hitts, man?»
The Captain of horse, a young fellow wearing the blue and yellow of his service, did not salute. Such was Blade’s order, for he did not want his officers marked by the enemy.
«No sign, Prince.» So was Blade called by the lower ranks. «We have made a fool of Bloodax,» the officer went on. «But for those few back there, now slain, there is no smell of a Hitt. My men are anxious to ride, sir. Have I the order?»
«When I give it you will have it,» Blade said sternly. «And be careful that Bloodax does not make a fool of you. Now, when the second and third cavalry have formed with you we will ride. In echelon, so.»
Blade dismounted and scratched a pattern on the ground with his sword point. «You will ride the point,» he instructed, «and I will come along in command of third group. Second group will be to your left and a quarter-mile behind as I will be on your right. Mind you grasp this well. I have no mind to ride into an ambush.»
The young officer was somewhat chastened. «Aye, sir. The Hitts are very good at ambush.» Then he cocked an ear and grinned at Blade. «But by the battle sounds Bloodax will have no men to spare for ambush.»
«I will worry about Bloodax when I come to him,» said Blade. «Now go. Ride off. You will go a mile deep, no more, and seek for trees to screen us. When you make your turn to the west, signal with a flag. Keep always screened by forest if you can-for our purpose is to come in behind the main body of the Hitts on the cliff meadows. If you encounter Hitts, any Hitts, they must be taken prisoner or killed. None must be allowed to escape and warn Bloodax that we are behind him. This is understood?»
«What of women and children, Prince?»
«Take them prisoner if you can-if not, they must be killed.» That de
cision came hard, but there was no alternative.
When the first cavalry group had ridden off, Blade gave like orders to the leaders of second and third horse. Blade placed himself at the head of third group and they moved out. Still no sign of Hitts.
A courier found Blade when they had gone half a mile inland.
«The Captain Thane says that all foot soldiers are ashore, sir, and are formed and beginning the march. I am ordered to remain with you to carry messages if need be.»
Blade looked to the rear. The van of the foot had just come into sight, a glittering column of spears glinting in the first rays of the sun. Even at the distance Blade could make out the bronze mirror of Thane’s horned helmet.
The courier was little more than a boy. Blade eyed him. «How are you called, son?»
«Marko, sir.»
Blade smiled and patted his arm. «Then ride with me, Marko. And let us hope I find no use for you-for that would mean plans gone astray and trouble.»
Thane knew what to do. He and Blade had fought and mapped the campaign a dozen times this last week.
For half an hour they rode inland. The battle din faded as they found heavy stands of trees and disappeared into them. Blade was watching the sun anxiously now for he dare not let Ogier bear the brunt too long. That Captain was wasting men, lavishing blood on a beach that could hardly be taken as Bloodax fed reserves down the defiles from the cliff meadows above. That was the essence of Blade’s plan-that Ogier engage Bloodax hot and heavy, keep him pinned down, make him feed a constant flow of fresh troops to the beach whilst Blade moved in behind. So far it was working, but time and fatigue were factors. Ogier had second and third-rate troops. and how long they would fight was a guess.
Marko broke into Blade’s thoughts. «There is a signal, sir.»
Blade rose in his stirrups and peered ahead. A scarlet banner was waving far ahead, hardly more than a dot of color at that distance. Then a heliograph began to flash, catching the sun and glittering. Blade swore beneath his breath. If Bloodax had scouts this far back they would see those flashes.
«Read me that,» he commanded Marko.
Marko stood on his saddle and deciphered the mirror flashes.
«The first horse unit turns west now, sire. No Hitts have been seen. They have found a village, deserted even of fowl and cattle. The officer deems that two miles will put him squarely behind the Hitt line of battle. He awaits orders or response.»
«Send him this-you have a mirror?»
Marko drew a small mirror from his blouse.
«He is to make his turn south after two miles west. He will remain out of sight, using trees and hills for screening. When his forward scouts come into view of the Hitt rear, he is to halt and draw back a quarter-mile and wait until I come up. Be sure he understands and acknowledges.»
The boy rode better into the sun and flashed his mirror for a time. They waited. Answering flashes came.
Marko rode back to Blade. «He understands and proceeds.»
«Good. Now, Marko, you ride back to the Captain Thane and tell him what I told the first horse group. The same message, but that I will await his coming just as the first horse awaits me. His men are to triple-time. Tell him he is to whip them to it if need be. Go.»
Marko went galloping off and Blade rode back to the head of his column. They cantered on. Soon they were passing through the village. Blade gave it a brief study as they rode through: streets laid out in neat rectangles, houses of wood and wattle, some mud-daubed, all painted in bright color. Windows and doors were open and there was a smell of cooking in the air, but nothing live moved. Blade grimaced. He had been told aright-when the Hitts fought it was a total effort.
The forward cavalry scout obeyed orders exactly. Blade found them waiting in trees at the foot of a long slope. They were dismounted and quiet, the troopers tending their mounts and breakfasting on dried meat. From beyond the ridge came the battle sound, louder now and fiercer. Blade dismounted and went cautiously to the edge of the trees, peering at the sky for any sign of leathermen. The young Captain of horse, walking beside him, laughed and said, «We have seen none of the flying warriors. No life at all on this back ridge. I think that the Captain Ogier engages them so closely that they have no time to look elsewhere.»
Blade studied the slope. The gradient was easy and the land smooth and grassy, pocked only here and there by trees and bushes. A line of bare rock lay along the ridge, but he saw no hazard in this. Beyond the ridge the terrain did not drop, insofar as he could see, but continued level.
«I sent a man on his belly to the ridge,» said the young officer. «He was not seen. The meadow is there, straight to the cliff edge over the beach. And the Hitts’ main reserve.»
Blade had given no orders for this, but he let it pass. The scout had not been seen or they would be facing Hitts now.
«What of numbers? Did your man count?»
The Captain shrugged. «He guessed. He did not linger, as you may suppose. He guesses near ten thousand, and they are not much concerned with battle. They loaf and gamble and, unless my man is a liar, a couple made love in the bushes not fifty yards from him.»
Blade smiled briefly. «No leathermen?»
«None. I doubt that any live. They are a special breed and the Hitts have but few.»
Again Blade studied the slope. It was a mile long and half a mile to the ridge. It was almost too easy, too good to be true.
«No stragglers,» he muttered. «No camp-followers, no deserters or skulkers. I do not understand it.»
The young cavalry Captain waxed a little bold. «That is because you do not understand Hitts, Prince. They die so gladly that it is hard to understand. Your Hitt deems it a privilege to die for his rulers and will even fight for the honor of doing so. They are a strange people, my Prince.»
«Yes,» Blade agreed. «I could wish that I had an army of them to fight them. But yonder comes the second cavalry-post a man to them and tell them to take up position on the right flank. You will move to the left and I will take the center.»
In a few minutes Marko came galloping up, his horse all steaming and lathered. «The Captain Thane is but minutes behind, sir. He will move into line soon. He begs leave to let his men catch their wind-they have been running most of the way.»
Blade looked at the sun. «Ten minutes, no more. When you have delivered that, see to it that signal fires are laid and ready for lighting. You will go to supply for the red powder.»
Now that the moment was nearly upon him, Blade found himself nervous with impatience. He dismounted and paced up and down within the sheltering line of trees. He sent for his officers and when they came and saw his mood they were silent and sat or stood in groups, whispering among themselves.
Thane came at last, sweating heavily, his yellow hair drenched beneath the bronze helmet. He grinned at Blade and clapped him on the shoulder.
«I near ran the guts out of the foot, but they are here. Give them time for breath and they will fight well.» He nodded toward the ridge and cocked an ear to the battle sounds.
«Ogier will be glad to see us, I wager. By now he has probably damned us thrice over and I do not blame him-he could fight on that beach all day and never take it.»
Blade summoned his officers around him and drew his plan on the soft black soil. «I will lead the attack in the center with the third group of horse. The first and second will each take a flank. We will keep the battle line and will top the ridge at the same time. The center will lag then for a few seconds in order to let the flanking horse curve forward and in, so that our line of battle will look like a crescent moon. I want no Hitts slipping away beyond our perimeter. A single platoon of lancers will keep to the rear, remaining out of the action, to hunt down such stragglers as do get through. Now-is all clear?»
«Aye. Let us begin.» His Captains spoke as one voice.
Blade looked at his aide, Marko. «Are the signal fires ready, lad?»
«Ready, sire. They await but the torch and the po
wder.»
«Touch them off»
A dozen fires blazed up, spewing a thick red smoke as the powder was cast into them. Blade, mounted and at the head of his cavalry group, watched as the first smoke drifted above the trees. A little higher and Ogier would see it and know that the attack from the rear was beginning. He would then press the battle with all his might, throwing in his last reserves to pin Bloodax to the beach. Ogier was the anvil, Blade the hammer-and betwixt them the Hitts.
Blade rose in his stirrups and waved his sword. He pointed it toward the ridge half a mile distant. He bellowed the charge and heard it echoed and repeated up and down the line.
Blade’s mount, unleashed at last, with nostrils flaring and armor glinting, screamed and pawed the air. Blade brought it to tight rein and spurred and they were off. He was twenty yards in front of his men.
The sound of iron-shod hooves mounted in a crescendo of thunder. The earth trembled. Just before they topped the ridge Blade looked back over his shoulder and saw the line of foot soldiers, a mile wide and three deep, running and shouting. From somewhere he heard Thane’s brazen voice flung to the skies and reverberating-Yeeeeeeahhhhh.
They were over the ridge. Horseshoes struck sparks from the barren rock and some mounts skittered and went down. When they had crossed the rock Blade held up a hand to slow the charge and let the flanks move forward in the enveloping movement. He began to count off the seconds.
Before him, on a great meadow that sloped to the cliff edge, was vast confusion. Women screamed and children ran to the Hitt warriors milled as they sought to come about and form a backward-facing battle line. They had had less than two minutes’ warning. Now they poured cursing from black tents and from under flat-topped wagons where they had been sleeping, and they tried to fight back. Some began to tip over the wagons to form a makeshift fortress.
Blade finished his count and glanced to left and right. The flanking cavalry had moved ahead and were curving in to make a trap. They were already heavily engaged. The Hitts were forming little groups, back to back, and using their long spears to make a bristly defense. As Blade watched he saw horses gutted on those spears and the cavalry fall back for a moment.