To the south, a lee shore raised prow-cleaving cliffs. Those wave-breakers slewed as the ship plumbed the sea's hollows. Morgan Hearst braced for balance as the Skua heaved up again, breaking free from the weight of the waters. He challenged the shrill scream of wind through rigging: 'Ahyak Rovac!'
Lightning forked across the sky. Bone-breaking thunder followed. His enemy menaced him. Hearst grunted, striking: 'Huhn!'
Swords swung: metal to metal. One blade shattered. 'Huhn!' said Hearst. Driving his blade home.
His enemy gaped, pain too wide to scream. Hearst drew free his sword as the ship plunged down, then turned to face another challenge. He felt no fear: he was more than ready for death.
'Huhn!' said Hearst, as the ship recovered the sky.
It was a threat: but his enemy closed. Sword, cuirass, helmet. Cold steel with the sea-sting beaded upon it, grey upon grey. Eyes, sea-red, mad with fear and anger. Hearst swung left-handed, a cripple in combat. His enemy parried, almost took him with a quick thrust.
– So it's death then.
– This death as good as any.
– Hastsword, my hero.
– My brother in blood.
Hearst struck one desperate blow, sword wide-slicing for the hope of death with glory. Then he was open, whore-wide open, off balance and falling. Metal thrust for his belly. Falling, he twisted to one side, evading the thrust.
His enemy shouted, raising his sword for a killing blow. Then a rip-rent squall struck, hit so fast that all went down as the ship heeled. The wet-wood deck canted, sliding to the sea's yawn. Hearst clawed his steel hook-hand deep into the wood as he started to slip. The mast gave with a sick greenstick snap.
Slowly the ship lumbered up toward level. Hearst worked his hook-hand free from the deck. Getting to his feet, he stood with his sword Hast in his left hand, looking for his enemy. Gone. Overboard. Sea's spray drenched the deck as a wave struck. A moment later came rain with the sting of ice in it. A buffalo-shouldered brawner came lumbering through the sleet toward Morgan Hearst.
'Huhn!' said Hearst.
Swords clashed.
The brawner knocked his blade to the sky.
So there he was, Hearst disarmed and his enemy chopping for the kill. Then the ship heaved up as a wave went whale-under. The brawner staggered, sliding. Hearst closed, for to close the distance was the only chance he had.
Hearst's hook-hand, right hand, dextrous, sliced through the side of the brawner's neck. The big artery gave with a spurt of blood that shot three paces, and would have gone a dozen but for the wind feathering it to a red mist soon lost in the sleet. Hearst saw his sword Hast caught in a raggage of rope and canvas. He grabbed it. He braced as another wave struck the ship.
The wave surged over the deck, sliding the brawner to the scuppers and gone, overboard: vanishing into grey waves with one flash of colour where sealight glanced from a ceramic tile slung round the dead man's neck. With quick-blink despatch, the body sundered under for once and for all.
Gone.
'Ahyak Rovac!' screamed Hearst.
And turned: steel seeking steel, challenge seeking challenge. But no swordsman faced him. He glanced right, glanced left. The Collosnon were cleared from the deck: the pirates had victory. Ohio's voice rose against the wind, thundering orders. The deck was a shambles of blood, canvas, spars and rigging; the lee shore was closing; it would be a near thing. Morgan Gestrel Hastsword Hearst sheathed his blade and set his hand and his hook to the work.
The Skua almost came to grief on the coast, but managed to find haven in a narrow strait between the coast and an island which lay only a little way offshore. A Collosnon vessel that tried to follow it was wrecked: the pirate blades were ready, and the few survivors failed to survive their survival.
For ten days the Skua lay at anchor while storm weather swept the seas; when it ventured out again, there was no sign of the Collosnon fleet or of the other pirate ships.
Riding the winter weather along the northern coast of Argan, the Skua headed westward. They struck once at a fishing village, a place of low houses and narrow graves which sheltered in a bay called Edge by a mountain called Scarp; they gained a haul of heavy-armoured lobster, glissando fish, broad-wing depth-ray and red-veined whiplash-eel. They sailed away leaving the sky behind them smudged with smoke.
Hearst worked words in his head, marking the monotony of their progress:
Cold is the cold sea, Grey is the grey sky, Wet is the wet wave, Diy is the clear eye.
And what would Saba Yavendar have thought of those lines? Hearst remembered the poet so clearly: a squat little man, not much bigger than a dwarf, who used to drink so he was buoyed up by alcohol when he stood up to recite in his battlesword voice:
Down from the mountains the open veins Run blood-red to the sea-coast plains. Sing Talaman-ho! Tala is a he-ro!
There had been a sneer in the word "hero". And Talaman's face had darkened with anger as Saba Yavendar went on to detail Talaman's heroism: the celebrated rape of his sister's son. the slaughter in the city of Hunganeil which had surrendered without resistance, the week of feasting on 'small pig' at the mountain called Quinneroom, and the murder of the oracle of Ellamura.
Oh yes. if ever true heroes walked the earth then Saba Yavendar was one of them. But in truth Hearst had never met the poet; he recalled only the memories of the wizard Phyphor. He lacked the curiosity to explore those memories further: he lived only to seek his death in battle.
He almost found it when the Skua encountered another Collosnon warship. In a desperate light, the Collosnon ship was set ablaze and the Skua went aground on a shoal close to shore. The pirates had victory, but they had to wait until the incoming tide floated their ship off the rocks before they could go anywhere; meanwhile, the smoke from the burning enemy ship slowly drifted up into the sky.
Morgan Hearst sat on the canted deck of the Skua, 328 watching the smoke of the burning Collosnon ship and brooding on his fate.
His closest friend, Elkor Alish, had become his enemy. He had lost his right hand, becoming a cripple. And he had lost his faith in the warrior ethos of Rovac, and had nothing with which to replace that faith.
So he wished to die – but in battle the habits of a lifetime did not allow him to do anything less than his best. He had fought well: something which other people had noticed.
'You did well,' said Ohio, coming up to Hearst, who was cleaning the last blood from his sword Hast, if you say so.* said Hearst. it's the act which makes it so, not the saying. One day you must tell me where you learnt to fight.' it's a long story,' said Hearst, sheathing his sword.
'So is life,' said Ohio. 'There's time enough for all the stories. You could tell me now: we'll have time enough before the tide floats us off these rocks.' i doubt it,' said Hearst.
'Try,' said Ohio.
'Death is my story, and the carrion crow will tell it.'
'There's no crows in this country,' said Ohio. 'Just skua gulls. Why so sour, friend Hearst? You fought well, but from the look on your face a guess would have to say you'd lost the battle." if you say so,' said Hearst.
'You're a strange one, you are,' said Ohio.
He scanned the sea, looking in case any other ships had come in sight. But there was only the burning hulk of the Collosnon warship. The sky was clear: the light wind aired the smoke toward the shore. The tide was slowly rising.
'How are you?' said Miphon, coming along the deck toward the two men. 'No injuries here.' said Ohio. 'Not unless you want to count this," said Hearst. 'Oh, your hand,' said Ohio, seeing the ugly blood bruise under Hearst's left thumbnail. 'You'll lose that nail for sure.'
'No,' said Miphon. 'I'll fix that. Wait.'
Miphon picked his way along the canted deck of the ship to where a group of pirates were heating up a brew of red wine and spices over a fire built on a bed of sand. He scraped some hot coals into a small pannikin and returned to Hearst. Miphon blew softly on the coals; they glowed cherry-red; he heated the blunt end of a needle.
'No,' said Hearst.
'It won't hurt.'
'That's not the point.'
'Then what is the point? You'll lose that nail unless you let me work on it.' 'The point…' 'Tell me,' said Miphon. 'I'm tired of…'
'Of what? Being attended to by a pox doctor? Do you think they'll get to hear about it on Rovac? Come on, give me your hand.'
Hearst extended his hand. Miphon heated the needle again and touched it to the thumbnail. He did it several times, slowly burning a hole through the nail.
'Does it hurt?' said Ohio.
'No,' said Hearst.
'But then, if you're a Rovac warrior, you wouldn't admit to the pain.'
'It shouldn't hurt,' said Miphon.
'I knew you were something special,' said Ohio, i always knew you weren't just the wandering swordsman you claimed to be. But I never guessed you were from Rovac'
Miphon touched needle to nail again. is that a Rovac sword?' said Ohio. 'How much is it worth?'
'The sword is from Stokes, where all the best steel comes from,' said Hearst. 'As to what it's worth, well, there's no price that would buy it.'
And he looked hard at Ohio. 'I've no designs on your property,' said Ohio, i was just curious.'
Miphon touched needle to nail one last time. Blood welled up from the hole he had made.
'That should take the pressure off,' said Miphon. 'There's no reason now why you should lose the nail, so long as you're careful with it.'
'Good,' said Hearst.
'Tell me about Rovac,' said Ohio.
'About Rovac?' said Hearst.
'Yes.'
'It's a place where the ground's the ground and the sky's the sky,' said Hearst. 'The people there are born of women, some nine months after their parents couple. To live they eat and drink; at the end of living they find they die.' "But seriously,' said Ohio. 'Tell me -'
There was a shout as a pirate cried out in alarm. Looking to sea, they saw a Collosnon warship rounding a point of land. It was about five hundred paces away. Some of the crew cried out in panic. •Stand fast!' shouted Ohio. 'We'll be afloat before long! Stand fast, you – we can outfight that ship. Stand fast!'
There were murmurs of protest still among the crew. With their ship stuck fast they were in a bad position, unable to manoeuvre. They had taken heavy casualties in their last battle. Under the circumstances, they had little stomach for facing up to the Collosnon yet again.
On the enemy ship a battle-banner was run up high. Marines on the deck could be seen arming and armouring. Then four harpoon-head arrows slammed into the deck of the Skua. Each was armspan-long; they had been hurled by arbalests, winch-cranked crossbows used most commonly in siege warfare.
The Skua's crew began to take to the water. Ohio shouted at them, but four more outsize bolts hit the deck. This time each was wrapped around with fiercely burning rags saturated with whale oil. Fires started. A few men tried to put them out. Then one was cut down by a crossbow bolt. The enemy ship was three hundred paces away and closing.
The death completed the rout of the pirates. Ohio was left standing on deck, bellowing obscenities at those who were fleeing. They were clumsy swimmers, most using dog-paddle; their labouring efforts disturbed the dog-brown seals which lay on rocks near the shore. The fire on the ship was now out of control.
T could swear this ship is afloat,' said Ohio.
'It is,' said Hearst.
A small wave rocked the ship, scraping it against the rocks beneath. Only Miphon, Hearst, Blackwood and Ohio were left on deck. Four men could scarcely hope to put out the fire, let alone sail the ship.
'I'm going,' said Hearst, with a glance at the enemy craft. It was approaching slowly, with a man at the bows dropping a lead line to make sure the warship did not run aground on a shoal; it was too close for comfort.
Hearst, Miphon and Blackwood took the plunge to the cold shock of the sea. Burdened by clothes, boots and swords, they floundered through the bitter chill of the sea.
Ohio swore, then, drawing a knife, cut his thigh-high seaboots down to ankle length, then jumped. And was dragged straight down, for he wore a heavy treasure-belt at his waist. Ohio cut the belt free and bobbed up to the surface, a pauper. Trying to breathe, swear and spit out water at the same time, he almost drowned himself.
In the end, Ohio gained the shore, and, shivering uncontrollably, followed the other three up the tidal rocks, finding graspholds and footholds amidst slippery seaweed. Limpets and chitons clung to the rocks, armoured against the sea. Crabs retreated, some sidling into pools of water, others clattering into deep crevices.
Then the climbers reached the higher rocks, bare but for barnacles.
Ohio, gasping, sat down to catch his breath.
'You'd better hurry,' said Miphon to Ohio, 'or you'll never catch your crew.'
'What?' said Ohio. 'That cut-throat mob of Scourside eagermouths? What good's a crew without a ship? And where do they think they're running to? There's no fireside to the east for a hundred leagues. Would you run that way?'
'No,' said Hearst, getting the words out with difficulty because his teeth were chattering so hard. 'We'll go west.'
'Then I'll come with you, unless you object.' i don't mind,' said Miphon.
'The more swords the better,' said Hearst.
From the Collosnon ship came a shout: 'Sagresh!'
'I wish I knew what they were saying,' said Ohio.
'They're calling on us to surrender,' said Hearst. 'But they'll never catch us in the hills. Come on, let's go.'
They set off quickly to try to generate enough heat to warm themselves. Ahead lay a steep, rocky climb leading toward a high ridge. Mosses, lichens and stubborn salt-wind grasses grew amongst the rocks, but there was not a scrap of vegetation that could reasonably be considered as cover. The four knew they could be seen by the Collosnon, and that their progress would be followed closely; gaining the heights, they did not immediately try and hide, but instead turned to survey the shore.
The incoming tide had allowed the Collosnon warship to come right in beside the rocks of the shore.
'There's nobody ashore yet,' said Miphon.
'They won't follow us,' said Hearst. 'We've got too much of a start: they'd never catch us.'
But even as they watched, the ship started to disembark large white animals.
'Horses!" said Ohio.
'They must be dreaming." said Miphon. 'They'll never get horses up that slope.' i don't think they're horses.' said Blackwood.
'I know a horse when I see one,' said Miphon. 'Even at this distance.'
Riders mounted up; a party of twenty turned east to follow the pirate crew, while eight started to make their way up the slope toward Hearst, Miphon, Ohio and Blackwood.
'Those aren't horses,' said Ohio.
'What did I tell you?" said Blackwood.
'They're the size of horses,' said Hearst, 'but they climb like goats. Miphon, what do they look like to you?'
Miphon listened, trying to catch the thoughts of the animals, but they were still far away. Besides, his powers were at a low ebb. He had been forever seasick on their voyaging, and had scarcely been able to practice the meditations at all.
T don't know what they are.' said Miphon.
'Who cares?' said Ohio. 'Let's run!'
Inland, a few leagues south, mountains rose abruptly from a landscape of peat bogs, lakes, pools and tarns: the broken country in between, with its skull-smooth outcrops of grey rock, offered no vegetation of any height. if we can make it to the mountains,' said Blackwood, 'we'll be safe.'
'You go then,' said Hearst, iil make my stand here. With luck I can hold them up long enough to give you a chance.'
'Don't be a fool,' said Ohio. 'For all we know, they'll turn back rather than chase us inland. Come on.'
And they began to run. There was only a light wind; there was no sound of bird or insect. Their feet went soft over grass and the worn-down nubs of rock outcroppings. Jogging south, they wasted no breath on talk.
Arriving at the top of a small bluff overlooking a tarn, they disturbed two gulls, which rose from the dark waters, leaving silent circles spreading ripple by ripple across the surface. The gulls wheeled silently overhead, grey feathers in flight in a grey sky, and then were gone.
The four scrambled down the rock face of the bluff and skirted round the edge of the tarn; underneath grass, mud quaked beneath their weight. Another slope confronted them; up they went.
The hunted men began to feel they were moving in a dream, where there was no end to the cool, odourless air, the black pools, the salt-wind grasses, the silent grey rocks and the grey sky reaching away to the horizon.
Then they heard the white riders hallooing behind them: 'Yo-dar! Yo-dar!'
'Sa-say!'
Then it was no dream any more: it was sweat, heat, strain and gut-wrenching effort as they tried to force themselves along faster. Finally they paused on a high point, panting, faces flushed, limbs shaking with fatigue.
'We can't outrun them,' said Miphon. Hearst drew his sword. 'So it ends, then,' he said.
– So make a stand, song-singer, sword-master, leader of men. Make a stand, Hast, my hero, my brother in blood.
'Lpt's split up,' said Ohio. 'If we separate, one of us might get away, if we run quick enough.'
'You run,' said Hearst. 'I'll take my chances here.' if you take odds like that, I'll gamble against you any time,' said Ohio. 'Don't be a fool: run.'
The riders were having difficulty getting their animals down a slope that was almost sheer, but soon they would be past that obstacle.
'They will remember me as a brave man, at least,' said Hearst.
'I'd rather be remembered as an old man,' said Ohio.
'No chance of that,' said Hearst.
'Yes,' said Blackwood. 'There's still one chance.'
He held up the green bottle which they had been carrying with them, and which they had avoided entering for all these days, believing Elkor Alish to be waiting inside.
'If we go in there, we'll have to face Alish,' said Hearst.
'He's one man, we're four,' said Miphon. 'It's a good idea – the only idea. Come on.' "What's this about?' said Ohio. 'Follow,' said Blackwood.
They left the high point and plunged down a slope, so they were out of sight of the pursuers. Blackwood threw the green bottle so it fell into the dark waters of a tarn.
'Ohio,' said Blackwood, 'Hold my shoulder.'
'Why?' said Ohio.
'Do as you're told.'
When they were all in contact, Miphon, who was wearing the ring commanding the green bottle, turned the ring.
Green went the world.