Shadow on the Stones Caldecott Moyra

[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.His men stood poised and uneasy.Not sure what they had done.Not sure what there was still to do.And as they listened, they began to hear, fine andeerie, a high pitched note, that seemed at first so faintthat it could have been one of their own body-sounds,and then, gradually, gradually becoming so strong thatthey were aware of it outside themselves, andeverywhere surrounding them.above them.in theair.in the sky.It was unearthly.It was like nothing they had heard before.It chilled their hearts.Some flailed about with weapons trying to find thesource, but there seemed to be no source.The sound was everywhere in equal intensity.strange, thin, hollow, inhuman.It seemed to pervadethe universe, and grow stronger every instant.The warriors who had been so bold and confident, partof a well-disciplined unit, began to break up in panic.Each man suddenly seemed to be alone, in the dark,with some mysterious and unknown force homing in onhim.Terrified, Na-Groth s rabble scattered, stumbling andfleeing, the sound pursuing them, rising in pitch, until itseemed to be the sound of mockery and of triumph.Above them the sky slowly reddened, appearingmenacing to Na-Groth s men, but friendly to the men ofKarne who were merry as they climbed down from thetrees, holding the small reeds through which they hadbeen blowing, high above their heads, as an offering ofgratitude to their God and his hieroglyph, the Sun.The torn and gashed condition of their sleeping rugswas a small price to pay for their lives, and they sangas they prepared their breakfast, already incorporatingthe name of their leader, Karne, into a hero s song.* * * *The coming of dawn brought more problems to Gya.Grey faced with weariness he looked helplessly aroundhim, wondering how he could possibly escape noticeduring the daylight hours.The palace was so heavily guarded it seemed animpossible task to approach it, and he was beginningto despair of ever helping Isar.He must find somewhere to hide.Even as he reached desperation, he found Berka, theragged child of the night before, staring at him again.She seemed to have an uncanny way of seeing himwhen he thought he could not be seen.He stared back at her, unsure whether she was friendor enemy.He tried smiling to put her at her ease, but the smilewas not as relaxed as he had intended it to be.She did not smile back, but after another prolongedstare she suddenly beckoned to him to follow her.Hehesitated.There was still no overt enmity in her eyes,but he could not be certain that there was friendshipthere either.He decided to allow his intuition to guide him, andfollowed her.The fact that she led him from cover tocover and was constantly darting looks, not only athimself, but in every direction, convinced him at lastthat he was right to trust her.If she were going to givehim up to his enemies she would surely have led himstraight to them.They had a few narrow escapes, and each time it wasthe presence of mind of the child that saved him.Sheseemed to be used to this kind of secrecy.She knewthe movements of her people, and how to avoid them.She brought him eventually to a halt beside a pile ofwood and rotting hide that must once have been ashack.The best timbers had been removed, andrubbish of all sorts had been piled up against theremainder.The smell was sickening, and Gya couldnot imagine what she intended.He was startled when,with calm assurance, the self-possessed little girlbegan to move some boards and revealed that thewhole heap was hollow inside and would affordadequate shelter.Obediently he crept past her as she indicated, and shenodded with satisfaction as he took up his crampedposition inside.She pointed at him and mimed sleep.He nodded, and whispered thank you, but, as he wasstill not sure if she understood his language, he blewher a kiss.This place was bad, but it was better thanbeing captured.She seemed to understand the kiss and, for a moment,something like unguarded warmth flickered across herwary eyes.Then she replaced the wood, and was gone.He was in darkness.* * * *Inside the palace Isar had waited miserably for thedawn, but saw nothing of it when it came.The small room he was in had no opening, except theone heavily covered with hides and carefully guarded.The air was stuffy and oppressive, and his onecomfort, a small chalkstone lamp with its flameguttering in a pool of oil, had been removed by theguard not long after he was brought to the place.The little chalk-stone lamp had reminded him of hishome and he ached to see the smooth, gentle,feminine curves of the chalk-stone hills around theTemple.This was a harsh and rugged land, the hillshigh and craggy, Na-Groth s plain, a stronghold.Would he ever see his home again?He doubted it.He fell to fitful sleep about the time Gya was beingshown to his hiding place by Berka, and Karne s menwere celebrating their victory.He did not wake againuntil he was roughly shaken and dragged out of theroom.He was taken to a larger one where he was pushed onto his knees before the same old man who hadoriginally led him into the palace, the priest of Groth,Gaa-ak.This time he was too tired, too dazed and too much inpain even to contemplate defiance.He remained kneeling, looking around him withbloodshot eyes, amazed at the richness and variety offurs that hung upon the walls. I trust you are well rested, Gaa-ak said.Isar looked at him stupidly.The guard poked at him. I slept a little, Isar muttered with a dry throat, thinkingof water. You are a carver of wood, the old priest of Groth nowsaid, more as a statement than as a question.Isar showed surprise. We knew of your coming, Gaa-ak said in reply toIsar s unspoken question. We were waiting for you. How? We knew. I was coming. Isar started to say and then stopped. To see Janak, the greatest wood carver this side ofthe Great Ocean, prompted the harsh voice of Gaa-ak.Again Isar looked surprised. Is he.? He is dead, the old man said coldly.Isar was shaken.Janak was a great man and therewas no one to match him in his skill. Na-Groth ordered his death before he knew who hewas.A pity.We need him nowIsar stared at the man. We will just have to use you instead, Gaa-ak addedcoldly.He was watching the boy closely. Did you hear what I said? he said sharply.Isar looked at him again, but said nothing. We need someone skilled at woodcarving.Your lifehas been spared only because of this.Isar had wondered why they had not killed him.He looked around gloomily at the sombre walls, thedark columns.He had seen no carving in the palace [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

Linki