"Is he crazy?" groaned Green to a sailor.
"Like a zilmar," replied the sailor, referring to a foxlike animal that dwelt in the hills. "We must get to Estorya first if we would realize the full value of our cargo."
"Utter featherbrained folly," snarled Green. "That ship doesn"t carry live fish. It can"t possibly compete with us."
"No, but we"ve other things to sell. Besides, it"s in Miran"s blood. If he saw another merchant pa.s.s him he"d come down sick."
Green threw his hands into the air and rolled his eyes in despair. Then he went back to work. There was much to do yet before he"d be allowed to sleep.
The days and nights pa.s.sed in the hard routine of his labor and the alarms and excursions that occasionally broke up the routine. Now and then the gig was launched, while the "roller was in full speed, and it sped away under the power of its white fore-and-aft sail. It would be loaded with hunters, who would chase a hoober or deer or pygmy hog until it became exhausted; then would shoot the tired animal. They always brought back plenty of fresh meat. As for water, the catch-tanks on the decks were full because it rained at least half an hour at every noon and dusk.
Green wondered at the regularity and promptness of these showers. The clouds would appear at twelve, it would rain for thirty to sixty minutes, then the sky would clear again. It was all very nice, but it was also very puzzling.
Sometimes he was allowed to try target practice from the crow"s nest on the gra.s.s cats or the huge dire dogs. These latter ran in packs of half a dozen to twenty, and would often pace the Bird, howling and growling and sometimes running between the wheels. The sailors had quite a few tales of what they did to people who fell overboard or were wrecked on the plains.
Green shuddered and went back to his target practice. Though he ordinarily was against shooting animals just for the fun of it, he had no compunction about putting a ball through these wolfish-looking creatures. Ever since he"d been tormented by Alzo he"d hated dogs with a pa.s.sion unbecoming to a civilized man. Of course, the fact that every canine on the planet instinctively loathed him because of his Earthman odor and did his best to sink his teeth into him, strengthened Green"s reaction. His legs were always healing from bites of the pets aboard.
Often the "roller would cruise through gra.s.s tall as a man"s knee. Then suddenly it would pa.s.s onto one of those tremendous lawns which seemed so well kept. Green had never ceased puzzling about them, but all he could get from anyone was one or more variations of the fable of the wuru, the herbivore bigger than two ships put together.
One day they pa.s.sed a wreck. Its burned hulk lay sideways on the ground, and here and there bones gleamed in the sun. Green expressed surprise that the masts, wheels and cannon were gone. He was told that those had been taken away by the savages who roamed the plains.
"They use the wheels for their own craft, which are really nothing but large sailing platforms, land-rafts, you might say," Amra told him. "On these they pitch their tents and their fireplaces, and from them they go forth to hunt. Some of them, however, disdain platforms and make their homes upon the "roaming islands.""
Green smiled but said nothing about that fairy story because disbelief excited these people, even Amra.
"You"ll not see many wrecks," she continued. "Not because there aren"t many, for there are. Out of every ten "rollers that leave for distant breaks, you can expect only six to get back."
"That few? I"m amazed that with such a casualty ratio you could get anybody to risk his fortune and life."
"You forget that he who comes back is many times richer than when he sailed away. Look at Miran. He is taxed heavily at every port of call. He is taxed even more heavily in his home port. And he has to split with the Clansmen, though he does get a tenth of the profit of every cargo. Despite this, he is the richest man in Quotz, richer even than the Duke."
"Yes, but a man is a fool to take risks like these just for the remote chance of a fortune," he protested. Then he stopped. After all, for what other reason had the Nors.e.m.e.n gone to America, and Columbus to the West Indies? Or why were so many hundreds of thousands of Earthmen daring the perils of interstellar s.p.a.ce? What about himself, for instance? He"d left a stable and well-paying job on Earth as a specialist in raising sea crops to go to Pushover, a planet of Albireo. He"d expected to make his fortune there after two years of not-too-hard work and then retire. If only that accident hadn"t happened...!
Of course, some of the pioneers weren"t driven by the profit motive. There was such a thing as love of adventure. Not a pure love, however. Even the most adventurous saw Eldorado gleaming somewhere in the wilds. Greed conquered more frontiers than curiosity.
"You"d think the ruins of "rollers would not be rare, even if these plains are vast," said Amra, breaking in on his reflections. "But the savages and pirates must salvage them as fast as they"re made."
"Your pardon, Mother, for interrupting," said Grizquetr. "I heard a sailor, Zoob, remark on that very thing just the other day. He said that he once saw a "roller that had been gutted, by pirates, he supposed. It was three days" journey out of Yeshkayavach, the city of quartz in the far North. He said their "roller was a week there, then returned on the same route. But when they came to where the wreck had been it was gone, every bit of it. Even the bones of the dead sailors were missing."
"And he said that that reminded him of a story his father had told him when he was young. He said his father told him that his ship had once almost run into a huge uncharted hole in the plain. It was big, at least two hundred feet across, and earth had been piled up outside, like the crater of a volcano. At first that was what they thought it was, a volcano just beginning, even though they"d never heard of such a thing on the Xurdimur. Then they met a ship whose men had seen the hole made. It was caused, they said by a mighty falling star..."
"A meteor," commented Green.
"...and it had dug that great hole. Well, that was as good an explanation as any. But the amazing thing was that when they came by that very spot a month later, the hole was gone. It was filled up and smoothed out, and gra.s.s was growing over it as if nothing had ever broken the skin of the earth. Now, how do you explain that, Foster-father?"
"There are more things in heaven and earth than ever your philosophies dreamed of, Horatio," Green nonchalantly replied, though he felt as though he wasn"t quoting exactly right.
Amra and her son blinked. "Horatio?"
"Never mind."
"This sailor said that it was probably the work of the G.o.ds, who labor secretly at night that the plain may stay flat and clean of obstacles so their true worshipers may sail upon it and profit thereby."
"Will the wonders of rationalization never cease?" said Green.
He rose from his pile of furs. "Almost time for my watch." He kissed Amra, the maid, the children, and stepped out from the tent. He walked rather carelessly across the deck absorbed in wondering what the effect would be upon Amra if he told her his true origin. Could she comprehend the concept of other worlds existing by the hundreds of thousands, yet so distant from each other that a man could walk steadily for a million years and still not get halfway from Earth to this planet of hers? Or would she react automatically, as most of her fellows would do, and think that he must surely be a demon in human disguise? It would be more natural for her to prefer the latter idea. If you looked at it objectively, it was more plausible, given her lack of scientific knowledge. Much more believable, too.
Somebody b.u.mped him. Jarred out of his reverie, he automatically apologized in English.
"Don"t curse at me in your foreign tongue!" snarled Grazoot, the plump little harpist.
Ezkr was standing behind Grazoot. He spoke out of the side of his mouth, urging the bard on. "He thinks he can walk all over you, Grazoot, because he insulted your harp once and you let him get away with it."
Grazoot puffed out his cheeks, reddened in the face and glared. "It is only because Miran has forbidden duels that I have not plunged my dagger into this son of an izzot!"
Green looked from one to the other. Obviously this scene was prearranged with no good end for him in view.
"Stand aside," he said haughtily. "You are interfering with the discipline of the "roller. Miran will not like that."
"Indeed." said Grazoot. "Do you think Miran cares at all about what happens to you? You"re a lousy sailor and it hurts me to have to call you brother. In fact, I spit every time I say it to you, brother!"
Grazoot did just that. Green, who was downwind, felt the fine mist wet his legs. He began to get angry.
"Out of my way or I"ll report you to the first mate," he said firmly and walked by them. They gave way, but he had an uneasy feeling in the small of his back, as if a knife would plunge into it. Of course, they shouldn"t be so foolish, because they would be hamstrung and then dropped off the "roller for the crime of cowardice. But these people were so hotheaded they were just as likely as not to stab him in a moment of fury.
Once on the rope ladder that ran up to the crow"s nest, he began to lose the p.r.i.c.kly feeling in his back. At that moment Grazoot called out, "Oh, Green, I had a vision last night, a true vision, because my patron G.o.d sent it, and he himself appeared in it. He announced that he would snuff up his nostrils the welcome scent of your blood, spilled all over the deck from your fall!"
Green paused with one foot on the rail. "You tell your G.o.d to stay away from me, or I"ll punch him in the nose!" he called back.
There was a gasp from the many people who"d gathered around to listen. "Sacrilege!" yelled Grazoot. "Blasphemy!" He turned to those around him. "Did you hear that?"
"Yes," said Ezkr, stepping out from the crowd. "I heard him and I am shocked. Men have burned for less."
"Oh, my patron G.o.d, Tonuscala, punish this pride-swollen man! Make your dreams come true. Cast him headlong from the mast and dash him to the deck and break every bone in his body so that men may learn that one does not mock the true G.o.ds."
"Tahkhai," murmured the crowd. "Amen."
Green smiled grimly. He had fallen into their trap and now must be on guard. Plainly, one or both of them would be aloft tonight during the dark hour after sunset, and they"d be content with nothing less than pitching him out over the deck. His death would be considered to have come from the hands of an outraged G.o.d. And if Amra should accuse Ezkr and Grazoot she"d get little justice. As for Miran, the fellow would probably heave a sigh of relief, because he"d be rid of a troublesome fellow who could carry damaging stories of a certain conspiracy to the Duke of Tropat.
He climbed up to the crow"s nest, and settled gloomily to staring off at the horizon. Just before sunset Grizquetr came up with a bottle of wine and food in a covered basket.
Between bites Green told the boy of his suspicions.
"Mother has already guessed as much," said the lad. "She is a very clever woman indeed, my mother. She has put a curse upon the two if you should come to harm."
"Very clever. That will do a great deal of good. Thank her for her splendid work while you"re picking up my pieces from the deck, will you?"
"To be sure," replied Grizquetr, trying hard to keep his sober face from breaking into a grin. "And Mother also sent you this."
He rolled the kerchief all the way off the top of the basket. Green"s eyes widened.
15.
"A ROCKET FLARE!".
"Yes. Mother says that you are to release it when you hear the bos"n"s whistle from the deck."
"Now, why in the world would I do that? Won"t I get into tremendous trouble by doing that? I"ll be run through the gauntlet a dozen times for that. No sir, not me. I"ve seen those poor fellows after the whips were through with them."
"Mother said for me to tell you that n.o.body will be able to prove who sent up the flare."
"Perhaps. It sounds reasonable. But why should I do it?"
"It will light up the whole ship for a minute, and everybody will be able to see that Ezkr and Grazoot are in the rigging. The whole ship will be in an uproar. Of course, when it is discovered that somebody has stolen two flares from the storeroom, and when a search is conducted, and one flare is found hidden in Ezkr"s trunk, then... well, you see..."
"Oh, beamish boy!" chortled Green. "Calloo, callay! Go tell your mother she"s the most marvelous woman on this planet-- though that"s really not much of a compliment, now I think of it. Oh, wait a minute. About this bos"n"s whistle. Now, why should he be warning me to send up a flare?"
"He won"t. Mother will be blowing it. She"ll be waiting for a signal from me or Azaxu," Grizquetr said, referring to his younger brother. "We"ll be watching Ezkr and Grazoot, and when they start to climb aloft we"ll notify her. She"ll wait until she thinks they"re about halfway up, then she"ll whistle."
"That woman has saved my life at least half a dozen times. What would I do without her?"
"That"s what Mother said. She said that she doesn"t know why she went after you when you tried to run away from her-- from us-- because she has great pride. And she doesn"t have to chase a man to get one; princes have begged her to come live with them. But she did because she loves you, and a good thing, too. Otherwise your stupidity would have killed you ten times over by now."
"Oh, she did, did she? Well, hah, hum. Yes, well...!"
Thoroughly ashamed of himself, yet angry at Amra for her estimate of him, Green miserably watched Grizquetr climb down the ratlines.
During the next half-hour, time seemed to coagulate, to thicken and harden around him so that he felt as if he were encased in it. The clouds that always came up after sunset formed, and a light drizzle began. It would last for about an hour, he knew, then the clouds would disappear so swiftly that they would give the impression of being yanked away like a tablecloth by some magician over the horizon. But he"d cram a highly nervous lifetime into those minutes, wondering if perhaps there wouldn"t be some unforeseen frustration of Amra"s schedule.
The first webby drops struck his face, and he wondered if perhaps that wouldn"t be what the two would wait for. They"d probably taken the first step up the rigging, but he mustn"t expect her whistle for some time yet. If they were clever they wouldn"t climb up directly beneath him, but would go aft, ascend to the top, then climb over to him. It was true that they"d have to pa.s.s others who, like Green, were also stationed aloft on watch. But Ezkr and Grazoot knew the locations of these. So dark was it they could pa.s.s within touching distance and not be seen or heard. The wind in the rigging, the creak of masts, the rumble of the great wheels would drown out any slight noise they might make.
The "roller did not stop sailing just because the helmsmen could not see. The Bird followed a well-charted route; every permanent obstacle along here had been memorized by helmsmen and officers alike. If anything formidable was expected in their path during the dark period, a course would be set to avoid it. The officers on duty would advise the helmsmen on their steering by means of an ingenious dial on a notched plate. His sensitive fingers, following its flickerings back and forth, and comparing them with the directional notches, would tell him how close to the course they were keeping. The dial itself was fixed to the needle of a compa.s.s beneath it.
Green hunched his shoulders beneath his coat and walked around the walls of his nest. He strained his eyes to make out something in the blackness that wrapped him around like a shroud. There was nothing, nothing at all.... No, wait! What was that? A vague outline of a white face?
He stared hard until it disappeared, then he sighed and realized how rigidly he"d been standing there. And of course he"d been open to attack from behind all that time.
No, not really. If he couldn"t see an arm"s length away, neither could the other two.
But they didn"t have to see. They knew the ropes so well that they could grope blindfolded to his nest and there feel him out. A touch of a finger, followed by a thrust of steel. That would be all it would take.
He was thinking of that when he felt the finger. It poked into his back and held him like a statue for just a second, quivering, paralyzed. Then he gave a hoa.r.s.e cry and jumped away. He s.n.a.t.c.hed out his dagger and crouched down close to the floor, straining his eyes and ears, trying to detect them. Surely, if they were breathing as hard as he, he couldn"t fail to hear them.
On the other hand, he realized with a sudden sickishness, they could hear him just as well.
"Come on! Come on!" he said soundlessly, through clenched teeth. "Do something! Make a move so I can pin you, you sons of izzots!"
Perhaps they were doing the same, waiting for him to betray himself. The best thing was to hug the floor where he was and hope they"d stumble over him.
He kept reaching out in front of him, feeling for the warm mesh of a face. His other hand held his dagger.
It was during one of his tentative explorations that he felt the basket where Grizquetr had left it. At once, seized with what he thought was an inspiration, he pulled out the flare. Why wait for them to close in on him and butcher him like a hog? He"d send up the flare now, and in the first shock of its glare he"d attack them.
The only trouble was, he"d have to put down his dagger in order to take his flint and steel and tinderbox from his pocket. He hated not to have it ready for thrusting.
Solving this problem by putting the dagger between his teeth, he took out his firebox, paused, and swiftly put them back. Now, how was he supposed to get the tinder going when it was drizzling? That was one thing Amra, with all her cleverness, hadn"t thought of.
"Fool!" he whispered to himself. "I"m the fool!" And in the next moment, he was removing his coat and putting the flint and steel and box under its protecting cover. He couldn"t see what he was doing, but if he held the tinder close enough a spark should fall on it. Then he"d have a flame hot enough to touch off the fuse of the flare.
Again, he froze. His enemies were waiting for him to reveal himself through noise. What better giveaway than flint sc.r.a.ping against steel? And what about the sound of the rocket flare"s spiked support being driven into the wooden floor?
He suppressed a groan. No matter what he did he was leaving himself wide open.
It was then that the shrillness of a whistle below startled him. He rose, wondering frenziedly what he should do next. So convinced was he that Ezkr and Grazoot were poised just outside the nest, he could not believe that Amra had not misjudged the time it had taken them to climb to him or that she had not been held up for some reason and now was frantically trying to warn him.
But, he realized, he couldn"t just stand there like a scared sheep. Whether Amra was right or not, whether they were within dagger"s thrust or not, he had to take action.
"Do your d.a.m.ndest!" he growled at whatever might be in the dark, and be struck steel against flint. The materials were under his coat, blocking his view, but he lay down again so he could see between his arms and under the coat held over them. The tinder caught at once and blazed up, then began a small but steady glow in the harder wood of the box. Without waiting to look around, Green rammed the flare"s spike into the deck of the nest. Swiftly he brought the punk up, still holding the coat over it for protection from the drizzle and also from any watching eyes. He held it against the fuse, saw the cord catch flame and sizzle like a frying worm. Then he had ducked around the other side of the mast that supported the nest, for he knew how unpredictable these primitive rockets were. Like as not it would go off in his face. Hardly had he rounded the big pillar of the mast when he heard a soft whooshing sound. He looked up just in time to see the rocket explode in a white glare. The moment it dispelled the darkness he jerked his head to the right and the left in an effort to see if Ezkr and Grazoot were on him, as he"d known they must be.
But they weren"t. They were still half a ship"s length away from him, caught by the light in the rigging, like flies in a spider"s web. What he had thought was a finger poking him in the back must have been the bolt that held the support for the muskets which were to be fired from the nest during combat.
So relieved was he, he would have broken into loud laughter, but at that moment a great cry broke from the decks below. The mate and the helmsmen were shouting in alarm.
Green looked down, saw them pointing, and his gaze followed the direction of their extended fingers.
A hundred yards ahead, rushing at them on a collision course, was a towering clump of trees!
16.
THEN THE FLARE had died and had left nothing but its afterimage on the eye-- and panic on the brain.
Green did not know what to make of it. In the first instant he had thought that it was the "roller alone that was speeding toward an uncharted forest-grown hill. Immediately after, he"d seen that his senses were deceiving him and that the ma.s.s was also moving. It had looked like a hill, or several hills, sliding across the gra.s.s toward them. But even as the darkness came back he"d seen that there were other hills behind it, and that the whole thing was actually a sort of iceberg of rocks and of soil from which grew trees.
That was all he could make out in that confusing moment. Even then he couldn"t believe it, because a mountain just didn"t run along of its own volition on flat land.
Credible or not, it was not being ignored by the helmsmen. They must have turned the wheel almost at once, for Green could feel the leaning of the mast to port and the shift of wind upon his face. The Bird was swinging to the southwest in an effort to avoid the "roaming island." Unfortunately it was too dark for the men to have worked swiftly in tr.i.m.m.i.n.g the sails even if a full crew had been aloft. And there were far too few on the top, as it was not thought necessary to have them on duty when the "roller was running in the post-sunset drizzle.