Riddley Walker

by Russell Hoban

  He said, ‘I can fynd it by insterment. Ive got a knife and spear plus Ive got the dogs to look after me dont you worry over me.’

  I said, ‘Dont you want me to go with you?’

  He said, ‘Back there when you brung me out of the hoal you dint say, “Wherewl we go?” You said, “Wherewl you go?”’

  I said, ‘Wel now Im saying, “Wherewl we go?” Any where you go its the 2 of us going.’

  He said, ‘You know how it is with me I wunt ask you to come. Me I dont have nothing to lose they ben going to put my head on a poal any how. It aint the same for you parbly you can stil go back to your fents and Blobs your nunkel.’

  I said, ‘No odds. If the Ram aint after me all ready for what I all ready done theywl be after me soon a nuff for some thing else. We myswel joynt the effert.’ When I said that I thot on Fister Crunchman what he said about connecting with a mans doing and how I had follerme. Yet there hadnt no 1 follert me and here I wer follering the Ardship nor I dint care what kynd of doing it wer.

  So off we gone. I pirntowt we bes not go the straites way. Keap off the main tracks where we cud. I wer jus going to say les Eas roun by Monkeys Whoar Town and Norf up a long the Nellys Bum when I had like a mynd flash of colourt lites with clicking and bleaping it wernt like nothing I ever acturely seen nor heard only in dreams. I cud like feal the woal circel of the dead towns in me and see a line of grean lite sweaping roun that circel from the senter.

  Lissener said, ‘What is it?’

  I said, ‘What dyou mean?’

  He said, ‘Im lissening some thing nor I dont know what it is. And youre lissening me.’

  I said, ‘Dont break the circel yet.’ The words jus come out of me by ther selfs I bint thinking them at all.

  He said, ‘What dyou lissen else?’

  I said, ‘I dont know its jus a line of grean lite sweaping and there come up blips.’ Which Id usit that word times a nuff but never til then did I ever think of putting the word blip to a blob of grean lite.

  He said, ‘Blips where?’

  I said, ‘I dont know.’

  He said, ‘Say Fools Circel 9wys.’

  I begun it:

  Horny Boy rung Widders Bel

  Stoal his Fathers Ham as wel

  Bernt his Arse and Forkt a Stoan

  Thats where I stoppit. Fork Stoan be come sharp in my mynd. I said, ‘Fork Stoan.’

  He said, ‘Why cud you lissen me nor I cudnt lissen my self?’

  I said, ‘May be it aint nothing.’

  He said, ‘No its true foller I can lissen that much. If we go to Fork Stoan weare keaping the circel which thatwl be axel rating the Inner G you know. Thats what you do when you Power roun a ring. Which it looks like we bes ful that circel on a wyl yet.’

  So we Souf and Eastit then for Fork Stoan which that put the wind on our lef side in stead of in our faces. That wind it jus kep fulling on and the rain like sling stoans in our faces. I wer thinking how it mus be out at sea. Which I wer beartht at Crippel the Farn near Fork Stoan and the sea is all ways somers in my mynd no matter where I am. I said, ‘I wunt want to be out this nite.’ Then I had to larf and shake my head calling to memberment Durster Potter and how he said them same words that rainy nite after the Eusa show which it seamt so long pas yet it wernt no moren 3 nites back. Now I wer wel gone out in to that rainy dark he dint want to be in and where wer he?

  Nearing on to Bernt Arse outers we come thru some old bernt over common it use to be a fents there long time back but long since emty gone to scrub and runty woodling they callit Hagmans II. I pickt up a stoan and put it in my pockit for memberment I said, ‘Les hoap Aunty lets us get on top.’

  Lissener said, ‘She ever do that?’

  I dint tel him the story then it wer too hard talking in all that wind and rain plus I wantit to keap on the lissen but now Iwl write it down here which it like stans for some roading time. I had it from a Eusa show man Wayman Footling.

  The Bloak as Got on Top of Aunty

  Every body knows Aunty. Stoan boans and iron tits and teef be twean her legs plus she has a iron willy for the ladys it gets red hot. When your time comes you have to do the juicy with her like it or not. She rides a girt big rat with red eyes it can see in the dark and it can smel whos ready for Aunty. Even if they dont know it ther selfs the rat can smel if theyre ready.

  Time back way back after Bad Time there come playgs in the towns and they wer berning out the Badstock and the clevverness and that. Aunty she wer here and there and every where on her rat. She wer larfing and singing she wer doing the juicy right lef and senter she never got a nuff of it. Every 1 wer hiding out from her the bes they cud what ever hoal or shelter they cud fynd. It dint help them nothing that rat smelt them all out any how. Bloaks even if they dint think they cud get it up for Aunty jus 1 look from her and they wer ready. Theywd have ther go with Aunty but they never done it moren Ice. Ice Aunty clampt down with her bottom teef it wer Bye bye all bes no mor Trubba in this worl.

  There wer a bloak his wife and childer dead from the playg and them what wer berning out the town wer after him with torches. Flames jumping up behynt him he dint have much chance but on he run from 1 hoal to a nother. He wer so much out of Luck his numbers all gone randem and his progam come unstuck he startit in to crave for Aunty he cudnt think of nothing else. He fealt ready only he dint see no red rat eyes nor he dint hear Aunty coming.

  He gone looking for her then and calling to her he wer yelling, ‘Come on Aunty Im ready for you and I want it now.’ He mus not have smelt ready tho becaws the rat dint come after him. He begun to foller on the rat then. He wer faslegging it thru the berning looking for jynt rat shit til he cawt up with Aunty. He said, ‘Drop your nickers Aunty you are for me.’

  Aunty larft she said, ‘Whyd you come running after me do you have a iron willy or what?’

  He said, ‘I dont have nothing special Im jus dying hard.’

  Aunty said, ‘All right then but you mus let me get on top thats how I all ways do it.’ When Aunty got on top of any 1 her stoan boans and iron tits wud crush them down and her bottom teef wud finish the job.

  This bloak tho he said, ‘Not this time Aunty. Every thing else has got on top of me but I wil get on top of you.’

  Aunty larft and let him do it becaws she liket how he come running after her. That bloak never had any thing like it he dint know if he wer dead or a live he said, ‘Am I dead now or what?’

  Aunty larft she said, ‘No youre not dead becaws you got on top of me and I pult in my bottom teef for you. I done that becaws you dint hide you come running after me. Off with you now and keap in mynd nex time its arga warga for you.’

  Off he gone then he come to that place which now its callit Hagmans II. He seen a woman there she wer the 1st he seen since he ben with Aunty. He said to her, ‘I done the juicy with Aunty and Im stil a live.’

  She said, ‘Prove it.’

  He said, ‘Iwl prove it right a nuff but wud you tel me 1st what do they call this place?’

  The woman tol him, ‘Hangmans Hil.’

  The bloak said, ‘Wel les call it some thing else now becaws Ive ben with Aunty and Im stil here. Jus a littl wyl back I ben ready to dy but now Im ready to live a littl and in joy with you so les call this place Hagmans Thril.’

  The woman said, ‘If thats the name wewl do the same.’ There wernt much else to do in that place it wernt nothing only smoaking runes dead bodys from the playg and nothing to eat.

  The bloak went with her then he went agen he went all day and all nite he woar his self out and tirely he cudnt put out no mor input.

  The woman fealt him going she said, ‘Dont you fancy me no mor?’

  He said, ‘It aint that its jus Ive overwent my self I think Iwl res a littl now.’

  She said, ‘I think youwl res a littl longern you think.’

  He said, ‘Whyre you looking at me that way who be you and whats your name?’

  She said, ‘Who I am is Auntys saymling sister and my name is A
rga Warga.’

  When the bloak heard that he tryd to run but he wer that woar out he cudnt move and she jumpt on him and et him up. From then on they callit that place Hagmans II.

  Hagman Hogman big or small

  Thats the end Ive tol it all

  Time back when Wayman Footling tol me that story I askit him, ‘Be that realy how that place got its name?’

  He said, ‘No not realy. There use to be a fents there it ben Hogmans Kil Fents befor it be come Hagmans Il.’

  I said, ‘Why wer it callit Hogmans Kil?’

  He said, ‘Bloak namit Hogman he wer the Big Man they use to make pots there. Hogmans Killen wer what it wer but every body callit Hogmans Kil.’

  I said, ‘Howd it get to be Hagmans Il tho?’

  He said, ‘Hogman had a fight with his wife and she kilt him.’

  I said, ‘O that musve ben why they callit Hogmans Kil then.’

  He said, ‘No it ben callit Hogmans Kil befor she done him in. After she done it they callit Hagmans Il. Becaws she ben a rough and ugly old woman and it come to il he marrit her.’

  I said, ‘Then whered the other story come from? The 1 of the bloak as got on top of Aunty.’

  He said, ‘It come in to my mynd.’

  I said, ‘You mean you made it up.’

  He said, ‘Wel no I dint make it up you cant make up nothing in your head no moren you can make up what you see. You know what I mean may be what you see aint all ways there so you cud reach out and touch it but its there some kynd of way and it come from some where. That place Hagmans Il I use to wunner about it every time we come by it til finely that story come in to my head. That story cudnt come out of no where cud it so it musve come out of some where. Parbly it ben in that place from time back way back or may be in a nother place only the idear of it come to me there. That dont make no odds. That storys jus what ever it is and thats what storys are.’

  Ice we got a good offing from Bernt Arse we come down be twean Brabbas Horn and Sel Out Form. They ben manooring ther arrabl we wer smelling cow shit on all sides of us. We come on to the A20 then which the Ram hevvys all ways roadit that track be twean Bernt Arse and Fork Stoan but I wernt looking for nothing to be moving on it this nite.

  After a wyl the wind easit off and there come thunner and litening. Meat smoak in the rain and fires we cudnt get warm at. It snuck me how soon that come to seam the naturel way of things it fealt like I ben roading in the rainy dark with Lissener and them dogs for years. Yet when the litening flasht and Iwd see all them dog backs wet and shyning in the rain then it wer like a dream.

  Ice Lissener said to me, ‘Dyou have the gethering dream?’

  I said, ‘Whats that?’

  He said, ‘Its where theres all the many nor there aint no end to you there aint no place where you begin nor leave off. Mountins of us valleys of us far far lans and countrys of us. Tits and bellys it wud take you days to walk acrost. Girt roun bums and arms and legs all jynt big and long and long and girt jynt man and woman parts all mullerplying back to gether all what ben de vydit. No mor oansome in the gethering. No mor edge where you leave off and the nex begins jus all of us as far as you can see with all the eyes of us it dont matter whose eyes youre looking out of you dont nead none of your oan. You have that dream?’

  I said, ‘No we have the ½ dream.’

  He said, ‘Whats that?’

  I said, ‘It aint a parper dream realy its a fealing comes on you when youre falling a sleap. Youre jus going off easy when suddn its like a bersting in you like youre bersting in 1000 peaces then you come a wake with your hart going fas.’

  He said, ‘Funny. It ben the Puter Leat give you that dream yet we dont have it our self.’

  It realy glitcht my cool how he said that. He dint even have no parper face on the front of his head. Him the Puter Leat. I said, ‘What ben the Puter Leat any how?’

  He said, ‘What Goodparley calls Eusas head which it ben a girt box of knowing and you hook up peopl to it thats what a puter ben. We ben the Puter Leat we had the woal worl in our mynd and we had worls beyont this in our mynd we progammit pas the sarvering gallack seas WE PROGAMMIT THE GIRT DANTS OF THE EVERY THING. WE RUN THE BLUE THE RED THE YELLER WE RUN THE RED THE BLACK WE RUN THE SEED OF THE RED AND SEED OF THE BLACK. WE RUN THE MANY COOLS OF ADDOM AND THE PARTY COOLS OF STOAN. HART OF THE WUD AND STOMP YOUR FOOT. 1 AND 2 AND SHAKE OF THE HORNS AND 1 AND 2 AND SPLIT OF THE SHYNING …’

  That wer when I clappt my han over his mouf it wer giving me the creaps how he wer going on. He wer stomping in the mud he wer dantsing and shouting and his face all wite with no eyes in the litening flashes. He begun to groan then like some terbel thing wer taking him and got inside him. He startit to fall and I easit him down I knowit he wer having a fit I seen that kynd of thing befor. I stuck the clof part of the hump back figger be twean his teef so he wunt bite his tung. I wer on my knees in the mud and holding him wylst he twissit and groant and that hook nose head all black and smyling nodding in the litening flashes. The dogs all gethert roun and them close to him grovvelt with ther ears laid back. Holding Lissener I cud feal how strong he wer tho he wernt putting out no strenth agenst me he wer sturgling with what ever wer inside him. I wunnert what wud happen if it got pas him and out. It dint tho. It roalt him roun and shook him up it bent him like a bow but finely it pult back to where ever it come out of. When it gone he wunt do nothing only sleap nor I cudnt get him to walk 1 step.

  By then wed come off the A20 we wer on what they call the Iron Track tho there aint no iron to it only some times in the summer youwl see red dus coming up. I put Lissener over my sholder and forkt off the track and looking for some shelter. Come the nex litening flash I seen a old stoan rune I knowit the place they callit Rose & Power it ben from wel befor time back way back. It wer mosly jus a jumbl of stoans ben dug out here and there for sheltering 1 time and a nother.

  I got Lissener inside and covert him up with his doss bag then I huddlt in with all them wet dogs. Warm and coasy it wer plus that pong wer some thing you cud get hy on you dint nead to smoak. After a littl I thot may be there wer a nother smel in there as wel I cudnt say what it wer tho. I stayd sharp and scanful long and long then I thot I myswel catch a littl sleap my self.

  When I woak up it fealt like the nite mus be about ½ gone. The storm wer pas the raind littlt off to a girzel. I got Lissener on his feet and off we gone. It wernt no moren a 6fag and we wer in Fork Stoan outers. Its only be twean 4 and 5 faggers from there to the senter so I begun to think on what we myt be going to do when we got there. Suddn it come down hevvy on me how many things I dint know. Dint even have no idear of. Me with my grean lites and my blips. I said to Lissener, ‘How many Eusa folk be there in Fork Stoan?’

  He said, ‘There aint none there jus now. When its time for Goodparley and the Ardship to do the askings roun the circel they put all the other Eusa folk in Cambry and they keap the dead town hoals all emty for the Ardship.’

  I said, ‘How many Eusa folk be there all to gether?’

  He said, ‘45 counting me. Which they axel rate it roun the circel you see. Counting from Horny Boy its 1 in the 1st then 2 in the 2nd and so on til you have 9 in No. 9 which the pirntowt is 45. They all ways breed us up to moren a nuff and then they kul us down to that.’

  I said, ‘Be you telling me there aint no moren 45 Eusa folk in the woal of Inland?’

  He said, ‘Thats right.’

  I thot: 45 Eusa folk. 40 bleeding 5. Wunt you know it. Some how wylst we ben roading to Fork Stoan Id begun to see in my mynd me and Lissener with 100s and 100s behynt us and stomping the Ram flat. There it wer tho. Which ever side Im on theres all ways mor on the other side. I begun to wish I dint know nothing moren I knowit befor I come to Bernt Arse that morning. Iyther you dont know nothing or you know too much it dont seam like theres any thing in be twean. Lissener dint seam to have no worrys tho. He jus roalt a long with a easy kynd of sylents coming out of him I have to say it over loadit my serkits jus that littl bit. I said to h
im, ‘You dont seam worrit nor nothing.’

  He said, ‘Why shud I be? When I ben in that hoal it lookit like there cudnt only 1 thing happen. Now it looks like any thing myt happen.’

  I said, ‘Yet it mus be hard for you with no eyes you cant even see what youre walking in to.’

  He said, ‘No 1 can. Onlyes diffrents is them with eyes they think they can.’

  I tryd to ease up a littl. I myndit my self itwd parbly be a nother 6fag befor we come in to any bother so why not in joy that peace of time the bes I cud. Stil it takes you strange walking in your old foot steps like that. Putting your groan up foot where your chyld foot run nor dint know nothing what wer coming. All them ins and outs and ups and downs of Fork Stoan outers ben my vencher place when I ben littl. Me and my kid crowd. Some of them dead befor they ever growt up. Follery Digman dog et. Ender Easten kilt in a digging. Belgrave Moaters dead of the coffing sickness. Ferny Carpenter took off by a feaver. And here come Riddley Walker walking thru that dead town dark with his blyn moon brother. Smelling the dead town smel of old grean rot old berning old piss on the stoans. Old littl Riddley Walkers from time back running a head of me and follering behynt. Yelling ther sylents and singing ther rimes and clyming over old walls stumps and stannings.

  We kep getting closer to the senter. I hadnt never seen the out poast but I knowit about where it wer and wewd perwel be in it in a minim or 2. I said to Lissener, ‘I know I ben the 1 as said Fork Stoan but here we are coming in to the senter of it nor I dint have no progam what about you?’

  He said, ‘Im lissening enn I.’

  I said, ‘Youwl lissen us right in to Grabs your Aunty in a minim if we keap on walking dont you have nothing in mynd?’

  He said, ‘I dont know til I get there do I. Youre all ways worrying your self with littl myndy askings. Dont you know if you keap getting a head of your self youwl jus only fall over your self when you get to where youre going?’

  I said, ‘I thot may be you being such a telling head you myt even know some thing befor they acturely put your head on a poal.’