The Ruins Of Kaldac

Chapter 4

The band of warriors kept going until long after nightfall. They moved surely and swiftly, like people who knew exactly where they were going. After darkness hid the city behind them, they started talking more freely. Blade listened as he marched along.

The warriors were from the city of Kaldak, and Kareena and Bairam were the children of Peython, Kaldak's leader in war and Keeper of the Law. They'd come to Mossev, the city of the towers, to find «Oltec,» and found more than they'd expected. Their enemies, the people called the Doimari, didn't claim Mossev, so hadn't taken much from it.

The Kaldakans were satisfied, and were getting ready to make camp among the ruined suburbs when the rats attacked. Apparently the rats had never before attacked in such numbers outside the heart of a city.

Eventually they marched down a steep hillside to the bank of a small stream and made camp. They built an enormous bonfire for warmth and a smaller fire for cooking. Small animals, birds, and even snakes came out of packs, were cut up, then roasted. Someone handed Blade a half-charred bird's wing and a piece of flat hard bread. The bird was gamey and needed salt, and the bread was as hard and tasteless as wood, but Blade was much too hungry to care.

After eating, the Kaldakans tended each other's wounds. Both the men and the women stripped off their clothes to do this, so casually that Blade assumed the Kaldakans had no nudity taboo. Even Kareena stripped, dressed only in boots and her sword belt, and tended her bother's leg. She was much better looking naked than clothed. Her legs were long and powerful, her breasts high, firm, and large-nippled, and all her movements as graceful as a cat's. The triangle of curly hair between her thighs was even bluer than the hair on her head, and the light of the fire brought out the red tinge in her skin. As she moved around the camp, she looked like the bronze statue of a war goddess miraculously brought to life.

Blade felt a tingle of desire as he watched Kareena, but controlled it firmly. Obviously nudity wasn't a sexual invitation in this Dimension. He wondered what was, suspected he'd find out sooner or later, but doubted he'd find out from Kareena. She was the local equivalent of a princess and not the sort of woman to tumble into a man's bed just because he'd saved her baby brother. If she ever came to him, she would come when she wanted to, for her own reasons.

Blade found that he was getting sleepy and decided not to fight it. He had food, warmth, weapons, and a place among people who weren't exactly friends yet but certainly weren't enemies. In some Dimensions he'd started off in prison, as a slave, or wandering in a wilderness filled with dangerous animals. If his travels hadn't taught him anything else, they'd taught him to know when he was well off.

It was a good thing Blade went to sleep early, because Kareena's whistle woke the camp well before dawn. Bairam dug some clothes for Blade out of a pack, and after much trying Blade was able to get into everything except the boots. By the time there was light in the sky, the party was on the move again.

They marched all morning without a pause, with scouts carrying laser rifles well out in front. They'd been confident enough last night to build fires and relax, but now they seemed like a patrol moving through enemy territory. Blade wondered if the enemy they feared was human or animal.

The scouts' rifles didn't go into action that morning. Just before noon they reached a camp of leather tents. There were also more than twenty baggage animals, the munfans, tethered to stakes driven into the ground. The munfans looked like a horse-sized cross between a rabbit and a kangaroo, with long ears and tails and shaggy brown coats with white patches. Their immensely powerful hind legs were armed with long claws, but they seemed docile enough. Each wore a complicated bridle with a long leading rein and a carrying harness dripping with hooks and straps.

The arrival of Kareena's party was the signal for a burst of activity in the camp. Blade was forgotten as the Kaldakans bustled about, striking the tents, tying the packs and bags to the munfans' harnesses, emptying garbage, putting out the campfires, or simply standing guard. Blade noticed that the sentries all carried bows and arrows and spent most of their time looking at the sky. It was another gray day, with a sky full of low-hanging clouds. Blade had no idea what they expected to see coming out of those clouds and everyone was running about too fast to let him ask.

Eventually the bustle died away. Blade saw men kneeling beside each munfan, tying long heavy leather hobbles to brass rings around their hind legs to keep them from taking a full stride. That made sense. Judging from the size of those hind legs, a munfan could run much faster than a man. If an unhobbled munfan bolted, there'd be no way of catching it and no way to save its load other than shooting it.

The last hobbles were being tied into place when Bairam came over to Blade, carrying two laser rifles. He handed one of them to Blade.

«Blade, you saved my life. My honor demands that you carry Oltec, though not living Oltec.»

«Your sister-«began Blade, but the boy silenced him with an angry gesture.

«Kareena takes too much on herself. I am not less than she in war or in knowing the Law.» Blade seriously doubted this, but it would hardly be tactful to say so.

«This is so,» he said quietly. «But my honor as a warrior of England demands that I not break a promise. I have promised Kareena that I will carry no Oltec. Would you have me break my promise to her and lose honor?» He wished he could speak more bluntly. Bairam was rapidly becoming a brave and well-intentioned young nuisance.

«You do not have what Kareena can call a weapon if you carry a dead thing of Oltec that has lost its power,» said Bairam insistently. «That is the Law. She can say nothing, yet those who see you will not know that it is dead. This way Kareena's not trusting you will bring you no shame. I cannot have you be shamed. My honor will not let me.»

Again Blade wanted to answer bluntly, «Your honor will not let you be quiet either, it seems,» but held his tongue. Bairam was going to be stubborn about this, and if Blade argued much longer Kareena or Hota would notice that something was going on. Then there would be another quarrel for everyone. Short of turning Bairam over his knee and spanking him, Blade didn't see there was anything he could do except make the best of a bad situation.

«I thank you, for your care for my honor. I will take this dead Oltec and care for it as though it lived.» He took the laser rifle and for lack of any better idea went through the British Army's manual of arms with it. Bairam watched, fascinated.

«Now, I will go to Kareena and explain this,» said Blade, when he'd finished. «She must-«

«Oh, no. I will tell her myself. If there is to be another quarrel, I must not let you suffer for it. More honor and many kills, Blade of England.» Before Blade could reply, the boy turned and ran off, so fast that Blade couldn't have called to him without letting the whole camp hear. He felt like throwing the rifle to the ground in frustration but knew that would not be a good idea if Oltec really was sacred. At least the damned rifle had a sling, so he could carry it across his chest while he carried the spear on one shoulder.

Whatever Kareena said to her brother, she didn't bother saying anything to Blade. Her whistle shrilled again, the man leading the first munfan jerked the rein, and once more the Kaldakans were on the move. Blade brought up the rear, along with two men carrying rifles and three more carrying bows and arrows. He noticed that the riflemen carried their weapons at the ready, the archers had their bows strung, and all five were watching the sky. Blade watched the munfans instead.

Without the hobbles they certainly would have been out of control within minutes and out of sight soon after that. Their hind claws threw up gravel and clods of earth, while their tails flicked back and forth through long arcs, hard enough to break bone if they hit a man. The carrying harnesses creaked and jingled and the heavy packs and bags bounced so that Blade expected at any minute to see one burst open or fall to the ground.

By mid-afternoon blue sky was showing overhead, but there were still wide patches of gray cloud to hide whatever the Kaldakans feared in the sky. Twice Kareena came back along the caravan but hardly looked at Blade. He began to wish he'd done something to protect his feet. The ground underfoot was getting stony and rough, and even his tough soles were taking punishment.

Another hour or so, and Kareena's whistle signaled a break. The men leading the munfans led them down to a pond to drink, then turned them loose along the bank to graze on ferns and grass. Blade was watching them munch busily, when he heard someone shout. He turned and saw a sentry pointing up into the sky. Following the man's gesture, Blade saw three hawklike birds circling low over the grazing munfans. They flew gracefully, and as they banked Blade saw golden patches under their wings and on their bellies. Handsome birds, but what was all the excitement about?

Then one of the birds flew into the clouds, and suddenly Blade realized they weren't flying low at all. He guessed that if they looked so large up near the clouds, their wings must have a spread of twelve feet from tip to tip.

Blade didn't believe that figure at first, then he watched the birds again and decided that fifteen feet would be a better guess. Of course a bird that size was a theoretical impossibility, but he didn't know enough about this Dimension yet to be sure how much Home Dimension theory applied. There could be mutations, there could have been genetic engineering, the birds might be robots….

Meanwhile, none of the Kaldakans seemed to be worrying about theory. They were getting ready to meet the birds. Blade saw the archers picking arrows and the riflemen unslinging their weapons. Meanwhile the people with swords and spears were spreading out into a circle around the munfans, to keep them from bolting. Blade started over to join them, since his only usable weapon was his spear. This was going to be a long-range fight.

Then a rifleman ran up, carrying a second laser under one arm. Blade recognized Sidas, who'd brought him the spear yesterday. «Here, Blade,» said the man. «Your Oltec seems to be dead. Since you can carry one now, you should have a live one.» He pushed the second laser into Blade's hands and hurried off to rejoin his comrades before Blade could either thank him or protest. After a moment's hesitation Blade followed Sidas toward the other riflemen. He certainly wasn't going to waste time arguing with Kareena or Hota now!

As Blade joined the riflemen, the giant hawks swept low over the caravan with harsh cries. The munfans squealed and some of them danced about as wildly as if the ground under them was red-hot. One tried to break through the circle, but two men drove it back with the butts of their spears.

The birds came over a second time, and now several archers notched arrows and shot. Blade saw two arrows strike home, but the birds flew steadily on until they were out of range. Blade heard Kareena cursing the archers who'd shot, and he hoped his laser had plenty of power. Those birds were going to take a lot of punishment. He also wondered why some of the riflemen hadn't opened up already. Feathers could burn, even if the laser beam didn't get through to a vital organ.

Then the three birds were banking in a wide turn, sliding down until they were just above the treetops, and coming back again. They were enormous, and they were coming straight at Blade. He knelt, raising his rifle. Bowstrings thrummed, arrows whistled, and one of the birds let out a harsh screech. Two more panic-stricken munfans charged the men around them. Blade saw the middle bird growing steadily larger, curled his finger around the trigger

«Blade, no! You can't!»

Blade recognized the voice shouting. It was Bairam. He ignored him. The bird grew until it filled his whole field of vision. He saw a gaping hooked beak two feet long, red eyes glow into his, the great wings thrashing the air with a rippling hiss. His finger squeezed the trigger, and the world vanished in searing green light as the laser beam leaped out of the rifle straight into the bird's open beak.

The bird never knew what hit it. It flew on for a few feet, then did a somersault in midair and landed bellyupward practically at Blade's feet. Its talons jerked a few times, one wing twitched, then it was dead. Blade stepped forward, wanting to study the wound made by the laser. He was about to sling his rifle and bend over when somebody grabbed him by the shoulder. At the same time he felt a sword point in his back, and heard Hota's angry voice.

«Blade! In the name of the Law, I declare-«

Blade's reflexes took over. He twisted away from the sword point and out from under the clutching hand. At the same time he raised the rifle butt, ready for a stroke. As he whirled to face Hota, he slammed the butt down on the man's sword arm. Hota's fingers opened nervelessly and his sword fell to the ground. He was opening his mouth to shout when Blade drove the rifle butt into his stomach. His mouth stayed open as he writhed on the ground, but no sound came out.

Blade returned his rifle to firing position, then heard Kareena's voice. «Bairam, you fool! You gave him live Oltec and now he's used it against the Law twice!»

«I gave him a dead Oltec, Kareena.»

«I don't believe you. And if you did, then who-«

«Don't call me a liar, or-«

Another voice, «I saw Sidas give Blade Oltec. He thought-«An incoherent shout, followed by the sounds of a scuffle.

Blade fired the laser into the grass among the munfans. Several of the spearmen ducked, and one of the munfans collapsed out of sheer fright. In the sudden silence Blade was able to speak.

«It seems I've done something wrong. I don't know what it is. I would like someone who does know to tell me, now! Meanwhile, everyone else keep quiet, and nobody lays a finger on Sidas. Otherwise I start shooting your munfans.»

Kareena gave a wordless snarl and turned to Blade, her eyes wide and mouth working. For a moment he thought she was going to leap on him with her sword. Then she shook all over and began to speak, although her voice trembled with rage.

«Blade, there was no death-danger to you or any of us from that bird. Yet you killed it with Oltec. That is one thing you did against the Law. Then you used Oltec against Hota when he was not using it against you. That is a second thing against the Law.

«For both, the punishment is death. You would die here and now, except for two things. One is that two others aided you in your breaking of the Law. I could punish Sidas here, but not my brother. Also, you are someone my father Peython would like to see before you die. So you will live, as little as you deserve it. Put down your rifle. I have nothing more to say.»

Blade saw nods and heard murmurs of agreement. He pointed the muzzle of his rifle at the ground, to make sure no trigger-happy Kaldakan would kill him on the spot. Then he shook his head. «I have more to say, Kareena.

«Sidas has done nothing wrong. He gave me living Oltec because he thought I was within the Law. I would have given the Oltec back to him, if he had let me. Sidas has made a mistake, not broken the Law.»

He raised the rifle and aimed it at the munfans. Two spearmen almost in the line of fire hastily stepped aside. «I want it sworn here and now that Sidas will not be punished. Otherwise I begin shooting your munfans. I will count to ten, then start shooting. One, two-«

Kareena's lips were bloodless and her voice level. «You will die for that, Blade.»

«I am already under a sentence of death, Kareena. Why should it matter to me how soon I die? Also, can you use Oltec to kill me when I am only killing your munfans? I bring no death-danger to you.» He saw Bairam grin, knew that he'd guessed correctly, and went on briskly. «You can use other weapons to kill me, of course, but not before I kill many of your munfans. Do you want to pay such a price, merely to punish a good man who made a mistake?»

There was a long silence, in which all eyes turned to Kareena. Blade thought some of the Kaldakans were looking at him sympathetically. Then the woman sighed, although her body was still taut and quivering like a bowstring.

«Your honor demands that Sidas go unpunished?»

«It does.»

«Then-«She flung her hands wide in disgust. «Very well. If it is your honor at stake…» With a heroic effort she steadied herself. «By the Law, I swear that nothing shall be done to Sidas for this day's work. I also swear that your life, limb, and honor shall be safe from me and from all who obey me, until judgment is passed upon you.» Her calm broke and she stamped her foot like a small girl having a tantrum. «Is that enough for you, Blade of England?»

«It is. In return, I swear to make no attempt to escape, as long as I am under the protection of Kareena, daughter of Peython, leader of the warriors of Kaldak.» Holding the laser rifle by the muzzle, he handed it to Kareena.

Blade would have preferred more guarantees of safety but knew he'd won about as much safety as he could hope for. Besides, Hota was back on his feet again and looked ready to attack Blade on the spot, Law or no Law. Blade didn't quite trust Kareena to stop the man if he did. He was alive, they'd accepted his parole, and he suspected that defending Sidas had made him some friends who might guard him from Hota if not from Kareena. For now, this was enough.