Posted by AlOmega on January 20, 2000 at 18:48:41:
In Reply to: Arena 2 - Waiting posted by AlOmega on January 20, 2000 at 18:45:39:
ARENA
Chapter 3
Journey To the Rift
by
AlOmega
Took them long enough. Packed food even though I thought it a waste. ‘Twas easy enough to live off country. I also told them I’d do the hunting but that they refused seeing I had not bow nor arrow. Foolish Humans.
So I had a bit of fun last night. Chrissy and Barbanne had taken their bows expecting to find some game nearby. Using the excuse I wanted to pee, I followed them. Foolish Humans with their silly noises and smells actually scared the quarry away. I saw what they were hunting. What was funny was that the "What" saw them and kept just out of bow range. Typical prey prefers to see the stalker and keep an eye out. But this was easy prey. Not like the Morphei or Grasseaters back home. To avoid the obvious, I simply circled downwind, shifted, and laid one of those ‘deer’ low. Think the thing was more surprised to ‘see’ the real Me than anything else. Didn’t need to draw fang nor claw nor draw blood. A quick blow to the head broke the stupid herbivore’s neck. So when the Human’s returned with some rabbits it was to the smell of roasting venison. The grasseaters were so plentiful, I could have gathered more. But why? Hunting for sport or killing for pleasure is not Honorable.
But today did not go uneventful. We were attacked by a band of Nazile - or so I was told by the Humans. Another group of Humans I found out though on the civilization scale, they appear to be further away from what I would consider ‘civilized’. Not that the Human band we’re with is much better. But from the breath of these ‘Nazile’, I suspect they ate rancid meat. The Humans managed to kill several before the others were driven off. However, it wouldn’t do to have that happen again. I suggested that the Twins could augment their established point positions explaining that they were pretty good warriors and quite adapt at this. I reasoned also that besides providing an early warning of other insurgencies, they would keep out of trouble.
I should have known better. Farther afield they roamed. I received two warning thoughts - enough to apprise Petra and company about the ambushes just a little before the outriders reported the small attack forces. Thus twice we escaped with little more than scratches while the opposition sustained heavy losses. When the outriders reported a small band to the west - which we easily avoided - I should have suspected something.
The attack on our unprotected northern flank caught everyone completely by surprise. As I pieced it together afterward, the first two ambushes had been feints to lull us into maintaining our outriders. No one had considered they might have secreted a large party beneath brush and dirt. And I was as guilty as anyone else. But the Twins should have smelled them out. As the first wave advanced, I sent out a call and then another. No response. But I didn’t have time for that as a large male rushed forward his sword ready for a swipe at my head. Stupid Humans, I thought not for the last time. I could hear his sword cut through the thick air as I drew my blades. Easy to read his thoughts, I mused. Claret blades looks quite thin - more like ice picks than swords. They don’t seem to have an edge but can cut meat quite well. Anyway, as he advanced swing his sword in a foolish attempt to confuse me, I gripped both blades lightly. He launched a furious series of swings expecting to overwhelm me with power and grace perhaps. But that didn’t last long as he ‘heard’ them for the first time. When Claret blades are ready to taste blood, they sing. It is a peculiarity of the metal along with the pinkish glow of the blades. More than one attacker has backed down. The ‘singing’ increases with the clash of metal against metal.
I guess this Human had something to prove because he still advanced. I could see that Toupia was handling another with just his knife. I was mindful that he need a good scolding when this was over. But my attention returned to the male who made his first move. Another who had advanced for a backstab was rewarded with a thrown knife. As she clutched her chest, I called just in time to meet the first Human’s down-thrust with crossed knife and sword. He sought to bear down and drown me in his strength. I released my position, turned, and lashed out with my sword. He met it with a small studded wooden buckler. Bad move. I cleaved through shield and arm and stepping forward thrust my knife through his unexpectedly stilled heart. Blood pulsed over me as I withdrew. His eyes were very wide in surprise mixed with terror. But was it from death cleaving his heart or my snarl of victory? I repressed the impulse to change as well as the craving to taste fresh blood. To me and mine, these were little better than Morphei. For are not Humans and Morphei omnivore? But even that is not why I write.
I could see Vicky take out another male rather easily. Petra at first had difficulty with the much larger female. But her footwork and breathing indicated she was able to match blow with blow. I suspect when one fights the same foe long enough, one becomes used to the tactics. Again I called to the Twins. This time a faint answer. I saw the one who the Twins called ‘Pixy’ engage a male nearly twice her height. I moved to aid her struggle. However, before I could engage, another female crossed swords with me. I was getting rather tired of this. We had come for the Rift; not to fight.
Like the one before, she heard my blades sing. But either she couldn’t hear or she didn’t care as she tried to take my head with a battle-ax. I leaped over her as she attempted to slice me in two with her double-bladed ax. That spoiled her backhand. I engaged yet a third while delivering a sword thrust through her back. The point probably showed between her breasts I figured as her body stumbled into my back. My knife kept the third Human’s spear from skewering me between the ribs. I stepped inside her guard and grabbing her from behind with my left arm - my sword still dripping with blood from the previous foe. I drew my pink blade across her pretty throat leaving a trail of red. Humans have a lot of blood you know. And that was about it for me that day. I turned to see Lisa the Pixy make an end of her foe. Big Humans should beware of Little Humans, I suspect. Smaller means faster sometimes. And even the High Priestess, Vicki, had done well, I noticed. Of course it didn’t hurt when I threw my Claret knife in the heart of a fire hound which was about to attack.. She turned just in time to see the blade fly to my waiting hand.
Barbanne and Chrissy had done as well. An account had them fighting as one. They each claimed the other as Sword Sister and I could understand why. Barbanne was perhaps ten years Chrissy’s senior yet they fought the same.
There were others who recounted their battles around campfires that night. Ray-Shell and Mysti both had taken two warriors and a fire hound. And Si had taken two fire hounds individually. The females thought what he had accomplished was marvelous even for a female. For a male to do this was quite an accomplishment (and from the sounds in the tents later, he was being amply rewarded). The fire hound is not only a rather large wolfhound but it does exude from its jaws a saliva that eats through skin and bone and feels like fire. Another male called ‘Lighthands’ - though I believe his real name was something else, had done well also. I once asked Petra why he was called ‘Lighthands’. Her giggles surprised me until I read her thoughts and had to smile also.
But all had not gone well for us. A warrior woman who had journey from a far distant land was grievously wounded. She was named Juli. Within minutes she was dead. Chrissy with enemy blood on her own face and shoulders was cradling the lifeless Juli. At first I thought she might have been asleep. Then I saw the dart under her left breast. Petra looked at it and at once knew it had been smeared with some sort of poison. She asked if Juli could be brought back to life by the Twins. But I explained that the Twins could not bring the dead back to life. So I lied a bit. I just didn’t want some legend of a religious nature to crop up here. I may not know about religion. But fanatics I do know about. Still her death bothered me and still does even if I did not know her well. To have come so far and died without family near was tragic.
We had a few wounded to care for but Petra considered the party lucky. And now that the battle was done, I was growing angrier. Toupia came up to me smiling his pleasure at making one kill when out of the forest came the Twins.
What does one do? How can one ever scold someone who can’t understand? They had become sidetracked with a group of Janks who lived in a pool nearby. They were sorry for the mistake but they were always ‘sorry’. And deep in my heart I knew they would do it again if they felt the need. What they did impart though was that they had discovered a new Lifeform. Within the forests unknown to Janks or Humans was a Lifeform colony of creatures that looked more like a cross between squirrels and flyers. The individuals used the heavy air to glide from tree to tree. But over the eons, an Intelligence had evolved between them. Now that included over twenty thousand individual beings.
Lor-T-An would love this, I knew. But I was more concerned with using that Intelligence - which called itself The Gen - as an early warning device. Evidently the Twins had established contact. For aiding us in reconnoitering, It asked that two representatives could leave with us when we departed. I had no trouble with that but did consider it foolhardy since It might be unable to communicate with Itself (so to speak) after we left.
So how does one punish a subordinate for failure to do a particular job when they return with the solution to the problem itself?
Little need be said of the trip to the Rift. But I saw that Vicki did not look at me with vengeance. Something had changed. To this day I don’t know what had done it. Maybe the fight. Maybe something else. However, a quick check of her surface thoughts indicated that she had changed her mind about me. This was good since I did not wish her death - a certainty if she had continued on the path to destruction that she had chosen.
Thus, this day had gone well. Petra indicated we would arrive at the Rift near midday tomorrow. That was fine with me. We could fix it, find some excuse to leave, depart this inhospitable planet unobserved. Even the Twins agreed on that point. So as we prepared for sleep, I remained optimistic that no further conflicts would ensue.
I was never more wrong.