CHAPTER 8: 'THE WOLF CREATURES"
I passed each moment, in agonizing pain, awaiting the sound of my back bones breaking. But as the pressure increased and it did not happen, I remembered the words of my trainer Sung Li, that my bones had been strengthened by Rau and could not be broken. As this realization came over me, I let go of the spear and went limp. Immediately the bird's grip loosened and the crushing pressure disappeared. Thinking its prey now subdued, the creature rose on a gust of wind, gliding towards its destination.
But I was not subdued. Now that I could catch my breath, I knew what to do. Closing my eyes, I breathed deeply, murmuring a litany of chants from the Book of Knowing the Creatures of the Taut. After several attempts, I hit upon one that worked, and the effect of its power was immediate.
Shuddering, the bird became disoriented and released me. Reaching up quickly, I managed to seize a leg to keep from plunging to my doom. I held on tightly, chanting louder, since I could see it was making the bird fly even more erratically. Soon the bird's head drooped low, blood ran from its beak, and it's large golden eyes struggled to stay open. Moments later it's huge wings ceased flapping and trust out rigidly. Then we slowly descended towards the ground.
Just above the tops of the trees, I looked to the east. There was the white-capped mountain that Kho-An-Sa said was our destination. Much closer and to the north there was a small village, which would be my first stop, if I could only get to the ground alive. I knew the landing would be hard, but I had no choice but to let go of the bird's leg just a few cubits above the ground.
Tumbling head over heels, I landed roughly atop thick bushes without much injury. Pulling free from the vegetation, I looked up, just in time to observe the bird's violent landing. After crashing through a stand of bushes, it flipped violently end over end, before finally smashing against the trunk of a huge tree. Raising it's head once, it gave a sharp, piercing cry, and then fell silent forever.
I managed to get to my feet, but only very slowly, my back aching from the bird's grasp and the fall. I then made my way over to the creature to retrieve my spear. But upon close inspection I found the tip of my weapon poking from it's feathery back, driven completely through from the impact of the fall.
Hesitating momentarily, I pulled two other spears from its breast that had been thrown there by the other warriors. After wiping the blood from the blades upon its white feathery chest, I settled down beneath a nearby tree. There I sat for quite a while, staring at the giant bird and contemplating the strangeness of this land.
When Aten rose to midday, the pain in my back subsided and I set out for the village. Remembering Kho-An-Sa words, that nothing was as it should be, I held one spear poised to throw and carried the other over my shoulder. I had no way of knowing what strange beasts I would encounter, but I wanted to be ready.
After a brief trek, I stepped from the forest into the fields surrounding the village. I found it much smaller than it had seemed from above. Perhaps five dozen small thatched huts were the whole of it. A well-worn road led into the village from the west, then stretched on to the east, marking this place as a major stopping point for those journeying to the great mountain.
But as I observed the area and I could sense there was something wrong. The fields were covered with the husks of unharvested crops that were blown over with sandy, parched earth. I saw no people in the village nor travelers on the road. Indeed the site before me was as still and as silent as death.
Walking cautiously into the village, I immediately noticed the carcass of an ass, its bones poking through a leathery hide that looked as if it had been shredded by tremendous claws. Nearby I spied a pile of clothing and poked it with my spear. When I felt the bones inside and heard the dry clacking as they knocked together, I knew it was the remains of a man.
I took a look around at the dwellings and noticed signs that some great violence had befallen the place. The doors of the huts had been torn down, while deep cuts marred the window sills and walls. Fences had been trampled to the ground and tools and other items were scattered about. Animal and human remains were everywhere.
As I continued through the village, the grim truth became apparent: Something had attacked this place and killed every living thing, and from the chewed and twisted state of most of the remains, it seemed likely that the population had been devoured.
Turning on my heels, I rapidly headed back the way I had come, intending to leave this place of death. But on the outskirts of the village my rumbling empty gut forced a thought upon me; if this place had been destroyed as rapidly as the evidence indicated, then there might be some food left. Food which the dead villagers no longer needed, but which I needed desperately.
With this in mind I turned back to begin my search, looking around cautiously for signs of movement. The first hut I came to had gruesome splashes of blood on the walls, but in a corner I found a bag of grain. From a nearby dwelling I scrounged a sack of dried fruit and nuts. I drew water from a well in the middle of the village, then settled down in the cooking area of another dwelling to prepare a stew.
As the light of Aten waned, I sat cross-legged before the pot and a small fire, stirring my stew with a wooden spoon. Suddenly I heard the sound of footsteps from outside. Seizing a spear, I crept quietly to the window and drew aside the curtain. There stood a small Tamahu boy. His eyes closed and his nostrils flared, he was apparently enticed by the smell of the stew. He was dirty and tattered, with long filthy hair the color of straw and so thin he must have been near to starving.
I was happy to see that someone had escaped the carnage that had overtaken the village, and, without thinking, tapped the window sill to get his attention. Startled, the boy looked up quickly and our eyes met. I smiled warmly, but he turned on his heels and ran.
"Wait!" I cried.
Darting from the hut, I shouted again, but the boy was gone. Then I heard the sound of rapid feet to the left and ran in that direction. Soon I saw him, running amazingly fast, darting between huts and fences.
I realized then that I had been a fool. There was no way to know the state of the child's mind after witnessing the death of his people. Besides that, he had probably never seen a Kushite before. From my brief look at him, he seemed to be no more than 10 years old; and I, a very tall man, chased after him holding a spear. There was no reason for the child not to be terrified.
With the boy still a good distance ahead, I stopped running and tossed down my spear. "Child, wait," I said in the most gentle voice I could muster. "Please stop."
The boy looked over his shoulder, then stopped and turned hesitantly. He gazed at me briefly with a confused expression, then took off again, disappearing behind a nearby hut. Leaving my weapon behind, I walked toward the dwelling with my hands outstretched. Since the doorway faced me, and the boy had not emerged from the other side, I walked around the hut expecting to see the child there, cowering in fear.
But nothing was there but an empty water trough, once used by the now-dead animals. I was puzzled. After walking around the hut several more times, I finally accepted that the child had disappeared.
Picking up my spear, I walked back to the hut for my stew, wondering all the while where the child had gone. I poured some stew into a bowl and placed it outside near the doorway, then sat inside the hut, eating silently. I hoped the child would take the food, but I heard nothing.
By the time I finished eating, the village was in total darkness and I thought about how I should proceed. I did not feel safe here, but I had no wish to travel in the dark, alone and in unknown territory.
With great trepidation I decided to bed down there for the night, but not before taking precautions. First I propped the door that had been knocked down back into place, pushing a table and several stools against it. Then I took a mound of bedding and skins that were heaped into a corner and spread them atop my body for concealment. Placing my spears close by, I tried to appear as much like a mound of clothing as I could before drifting off to sleep. I think lat
er this tactic saved my life.
After an undetermined period of fitful sleep, I awoke to the sound of loud slurping noises. Smiling, I thought of the child finding the stew, perhaps eating his first cooked meal since the death of his people. Then I heard loud scraping and sniffing noises, followed by a low growl.
Peeking through the cloth and skin, I found the light of the full moon streaming through the window, and the night air being pierced by a loud, bone-chilling howl. My blood ran cold. The wolf creatures! I thought about the fate of the villagers, and suddenly it all made sense.
Peering up at the window again, this time I saw two red eyes staring in. Then a long, dog-like snout poked past the curtain, sniffing at the air and growling dangerously. When the eyes and snout disappeared, my mind raced in a near panic to come up with a plan.
As I wondered what I should do, a loud crash resounded, the table and stools flew back and the door crashed to the floor. The sniffing grew louder as two large clawed hands wrapped slowly around the doorway. Then my heart stood still as a pair of huge, wolf-like beasts crept into the room. Each of them was silver-gray, a full cubit taller than me, and stood upright like a man. Their stooped backs and strangely shaped legs were poised as if to spring, and it was clear that they were hunting. I knew they were hunting for me.
The creatures lumbered through the hut until they were standing above the pot of stew. Snatching it up, one of them pulled the pot to its snout and began slurping. The other tried to snatch it away and they growled and snapped momentarily. Then, after a few more guzzles, the waiting creature snatched the pot to finish what was left.
Continuing to peek through the cloth, I watched them eat the stew, terrified and fascinated by these strange creatures. Finally, they tossed the pot to the floor and headed for the doorway. But before they stepped through, one sniffed the air again. The other raised its nose also, and then they looked at each other, growling as if in agreement. Slowly they turned and shuffled toward me.
I had positioned my arm so that I could seize my nearby spear. Though I did not expect to win a battle against these creatures, I was prepared to defend myself rather than die like a sheep at the slaughter. I could hear their raspy breathing as they came closer, teeth bared and claws extended. My fingers were already gripping the shaft of the spear and I steadied myself to plunge it into the body of the one that got to me first.
But just as they hovered right above me, a thundering roar came from outside, shaking the very walls of the hut with its ferociousness. Immediately it was followed by several howls and the growls of other wolf-creatures. The two monsters before me raised their heads to the ceiling, howling in unison as they returned the call of their companions. Turning away from me, they leapt to the doorway, stopping only briefly to look back my way. One creature curled its clawed hand into a fist and shook it at me, and then they both bounded away.
Moments later I heard the sound of a tremendous battle. Tossing off the cloth and skins, I seized a spear and ran to peek outside. Another heavy roar shook the air as my eyes focused in the moonlight. There in the distance was Kho-An-Sa's Herukhuti cat, locked in a furious struggle with the wolf-creatures. Several of them lay dead at the cat's feet, while it shook another in its huge jaws.
Leaping up and down around it, the wolf-creatures were obviously afraid of the huge beast, which was three times as large as any one of them. Though eight of them surrounded the feline, they hesitated, growling furiously and howling in frustration.
Suddenly a crunching sound ripped through the air and, the cat tossed its latest victim aside. The body landed several cubits away, broken and still. Four of the wolves rushed over, howling mournfully. Angered by the death of their companion, they circled the giant cat until one of them found the nerve to jump astride its back. Biting and pawing furiously, the wolf beast tore at fur and flesh until the cat finally threw it off. An instant later the attacker was dead, gutted by the lightning-fast claws of the feline.
Then the remaining wolf-creatures leaped forward to attack, including the four mourners who left their dead companion and joined the onslaught. There was a furious flurry of activity as the creatures rolled around under the moonlight, howling and growling, pawing and scratching. One wolf-creature was thrown from the melee and limped out of sight.
Though I hoped the cat would be victorious, it was clear that it was gravely hurt. There were now three more wolf-creatures dead at its feet, but blood dripped from terrible wounds on the cat's sides. Yet still it stood, roaring defiantly.
Circling warily, the remaining wolf creatures searched for an opening. The giant cat stumbled, causing one of the wolves to leap boldly, only to be snatched by a claw as quick as a flash, then dragged in to the powerful jaws and brutally decapitated.
There were only three wolf-creatures left, and I knew it was only a matter of time for them. But then I saw that the wolf creatures were more formidable than I had suspected. My eyes widened as the one who had limped away suddenly reappeared, carrying a long bow and a quiver of arrows.
Howling to signal the others, it notched an arrow, and let it fly as soon as they moved away. The missile landed in the huge cat's side and it roared in pain. This caused the other wolf-creatures to howl gleefully, jumping up and down in delight.
Looking on in horror, I knew I could not let them kill the cat, because then they would turn on me. Springing quickly from the hut, I ran forward with my spear poised, intending to kill the wolf creature with the bow before he could notch another arrow.
"Ho, monster!" I cried. "Look this way!"
The creature turned toward me and looked quickly, then howled towards its companions. I was poised to throw the spear, but one of them had detached itself from the battle and was bounding toward me. Throwing my weapon now would leave me defenseless, so I held on to it, readying myself to fight.
The archer notched another arrow and pointed it at the giant cat as its companion came upon me. Growling menacingly, it tensed itself to spring, while I held my spear low and gripped it firmly.
After eyeing me for a long moment, he finally pounced, coming down upon me as a dog does a cornered rabbit. But I brought the point of the spear up with all my strength, piercing its hairy chest in midair.
Yelping in pain, it tried to grasp me with its long, sharp claws. But as the blade entered the monster's hairy chest, I planted the butt of the spear in the ground and rolled aside. The beast came down hard, forcing the blade clear through its back. It broke off with loud snap as the beast hit the ground.
Seizing the broken shaft, I smashed it upon the creature's head until its struggles finally ceased. There I stood above the dead beast, breathing heavily, holding the bloody shaft of the spear. My body shook terribly from the shock of what I had done and, I could scarcely believe that I survived the attack of such a creature.
But there was no time to gloat, as an arrow shot past me, then another, forcing me to dive to the ground. More arrows came close and I scurried for cover behind a broken wagon. Peeking from behind it, I looked on as the monstrous archer turned back and shot arrow after arrow into the giant cat. When its back and chest were bristling with arrows, the valiant feline finally fell as the three remaining wolf-creatures leapt to extract their revenge.
As I watched the wolf-creatures tearing at the giant beast, I wondered what I should do. They would surely come after me next and there was no place to run where they could not find me. Suddenly, I heard a whistle. Looking over my shoulder, I spied the young boy who had run away earlier. Crouching low beside a nearby hut, he beckoned me to follow. Taking a quick glance back at the wolf-creatures, I saw them tearing the cat to pieces and rolling around in its blood. Keeping low, I slowly made my way toward the boy.
Quietly he led me through the village, towards the hut where I had lost him earlier. Every few cubits he would stop, reach into a bag hanging at his waist, and toss a handful of powder over our footprints. I recognized the smell of the strong spice, for we used something similar in th
e rituals of Kamit. The boy was tossing crushed red pepper to cover our scents.
Slinking low behind the hut, he led me to the long animal trough I had noticed earlier. Shoving it to the side, he revealed a large hole in the ground and gestured for me to jump in. As I did, he took a branch, swept away our footprints for a few cubits, then spread more of the crushed pepper on the ground. Pulling a formidable knife from his belt, he leaped in beside me. I helped him pull the trough back over the hole and we settled down quietly.
It was not long before we heard the wolf-creatures. Howling and growling for more blood, they were trying to sniff out my trail. We sat silently in the dark, listening to them shuffling and sniffing, then sneezing and wheezing as they inhaled the hot red pepper.
Several times the sounds came quite close and I could feel the boy's body tense and tremble. Reaching out in the darkness to touch his hand, I found it clutched tightly around his knife. After an hour or so the wolf-creatures gave up the search and the boy and I drifted off to sleep.
Hours later I awoke to see the rays of Aten slipping through the cracks in the trough. The boy stirred also and we listened for a while for sounds. When we were satisfied that none of the creatures still lingered, we pushed the trough aside and emerged.
Looking around cautiously, I stretched my limbs. The child slipped the knife back into his belt and did the same. Then I beckoned him to follow and we cautiously went back through the village. There we saw the remains of the huge cat that the wolf creatures had taken their terrible revenge upon. No part of its red hide was not scored by clawmarks and its entrails lay scattered for many cubits around. I tried to cover the child's eyes and turn him away, but he pushed my hand aside and stood where he was.
As we pressed on, I looked down at the boy, amazed at his strength, ingenuity and his will to live. He had knowledge beyond his years and much toughness. I thought then that we should be introduced, and after bending down so that my eyes were level with his, I pointed to myself. "Memna-un," I said. "My name is Mem-na-un."
The child simply looked at me.
"Memna-un," I repeated, thumping my chest with my knuckles.
The child's expression remained blank, but he nodded as if he understood. I pointed at his chest. "What is your name?" I asked.
He continued to look at me blankly, so I pointed first at my mouth and then at his and asked, "Can you speak?"
The child did not respond. After several more attempts I finally gave up and we made our way back to the hut where I had first encountered the wolf-creatures. I made us another pot of stew and the boy ate ravenously. Noting his hunger, I made another and he ate it also. Then he stretched out on the floor without a word and went to sleep.
As he lay there, I contemplated the situation. The only option that seemed reasonable was to go to the mountain and hope to meet up with Kho-An-Sa and his men there. I had no doubt that the magician thought me dead, but, having come so far and endured so much, perhaps he would have the weapons created regardless.
Looking at the child lying near me, I considered his fate. I could not bring myself to leave him alone in this village. For despite his cleverness, it was only a matter of time before the monsters would catch him. The boy would have to go along with me. As he lay there asleep, I gathered the provisions I had found the day before, stuffed them into a sack and prepared to leave. Then I shook the boy and he immediately sat up, eyes clear and alert. I motioned for him to follow and we left the hut.
Soon we arrived at the outskirts of the village, near the road leading to the mountain. But when he saw my intentions, the boy shook his head and pulled my arm, pointing back instead to the village. He seemed very fearful of leaving, repeatedly pointing towards the hole that was his refuge. Shaking my head, I pointed towards the road, and then up towards the mountain.
The child let go of my hand and stood still. I walked a few steps further, then turned to beckon to him. He only shook his head again. The giant dead cat was within sight and I pointed to it. After he looked at it, then back at me, I raised my hands in a claw-like gesture, baring my teeth to mimic the wolf-creatures. The boy's eyes grew wide and he looked back at the dead cat again. Turning around, I headed for the road, smiling slightly. After a moment or two, I heard the boy's footsteps as he ran to catch up with me.
The boy and I traveled down the road for many days, during which he proved himself as resourceful as he had been in the village. He seemed to know the surrounding country well, pointing out stopping points for water and food like an experienced guide. He made snares for small game and foraged for wild edible plants with ease. But most of all he knew how to avoid the strange creatures that lurked in this strange land.
During the day he sensed when the giant birds soared overhead in search of prey, pulling me off the road many times as a large shadow swept over us. It was due to his insistence that we slept in trees at night, after he had spread more of the crushed pepper over our tracks. There we would lie, high among the branches, tied to them tightly so as not to fall. Below us were the wolf-creatures and other beasts, prowling for prey during the night. If not for this mysterious child, I would never have survived the trip to the mountain.
Looking up one day, about three-quarters of a moon into the trip, I found the mountain filling the landscape before us. Our destination was perhaps a day's travel away but I and the boy were both road-weary. We sat down at midday to lunch, I eating nuts and roots found for me by the boy, and he eating a small bird he had roasted on a fire. The child was hungrily biting into the meat when he suddenly stopped and looked up the road alongside us.
Handing me his food, he walked over to the road, dropped to his knees and put his ear to the ground. After several moments, he jumped to his feet and trotted towards the forest, gesturing for me to follow. He had saved us too many times for me to question him, so I kicked dirt over the small fire and followed him into the brush. There we crouched for long moments, looking down the road expectantly.
Soon I felt rumblings coming from the ground, and then I heard the unmistakable sound of galloping four-legged beasts. In the distance a large group of creatures appeared, kicking up dust as their thundering hooves rapidly pounded the road. I could make out no chariots, so at first I thought it a large contingent of horse riders, rare in Kamit due to the scarcity of large northern horses. Then they came closer I was astonished to see what they really were.
As they ran past us, I gazed up from their pounding hooves to their thickly muscled horse bodies, to the stout human torsos and heads atop them. The creatures were half horse and half man. All of them carried clubs and looked very fierce, with large bushy eyebrows and thick beards of brown, yellow or gray. Their long manes, starting out as human hair on their heads, stretched down their human necks, down their human and horse torsos, ending in a normal horse's tail. A few wore protective leather helmets and vests over broad muscular chests.
There were dozens of them and I was totally breathless as they ran by. I had heard of such creatures in legends and had always dismissed them as myths. But since meeting Kam-Atef and coming to this strange land, I had already begun to rethink what was real and what was not.
My immediate concern, however was that they seemed to be heading for our destination, the mountain, and that they did not seem friendly at all. The boy was insisting that we not get back on the road, so we traveled instead through the nearby forest for the rest of the day. After bedding down for the night, we gazed down from the trees, observing a strange and fascinating sight.
Many more of the horse-men ran by in the darkness. Carrying torches, they galloped through the night in an eerie display of light and sound. They seemed to be in a hurry, and for some reason this worried me. I hoped that their business would not interfere with my own.
Walking through the forest the next day, we spotted a group of men in the distance camped in a clearing. The boy noticed them first and pulled me into the bushes. Moments went by as we listened and watched. Then I saw a warrior patrolli
ng the area who seemed familiar to me. After recognizing familiar voices, I realized that this was the group I had come to this land with. It took much coaxing, but I finally convinced the boy that it was safe to emerge and we approached the guard.
At first the man jumped back, startled, brandishing his spear, until he recognized me.
"Memnon!" he cried, calling me by the name the northerners preferred. He shouted again and more men came running. Surrounding us, they touched me and swore many oaths while escorting us into the camp. There Kho-An-Sa greeted me with a nod, smiling broadly as I approached him.
"Young panther," he said. "My...devices said you still lived."
"Indeed?" I replied.
Kho-An-Sa looked me up and down. "But they could not tell me your condition. Tell me, young panther, are you sound?"
I thumped my chest with my fist. "I am in one piece."
Kho-An-Sa smiled broadly again. "Excellent! Excellent, for we have much work to do. But first tell me, what happened after you were swept away from us?"
We sat down and I told Kho-An-Sa what had transpired. He nodded as I recounted the tale and seemed greatly impressed by the way I had handled myself. He was also interested in the boy after I told of his part in the story.
"Very good, Memnon," he said. "It seems my investment has been worth while."
He then gave the boy a curious look. "Interesting child," he said. "Very interesting."
The boy squirmed under Kho-An-Sa's gaze. It was clear he did not like the magician and I could not blame him, for the look the magician gave him was akin to a herder appraising livestock.
Then Kho-An-Sa stood up abruptly, saying, "I will reward the child later, Memnon. But now we have other matters to attend to. You and I must go up the mountain to take the sky-metal to the great blacksmith. There he shall forge you weapons like no others. But there is a problem."
"And what is this problem?" I asked.
Kho-An-Sa motioned for me to follow and we walked away from the camp. The boy stayed behind, ravenously eating a bowl of food given to him by the men. Soon we caught up with Cronn, who was patrolling the area like a great stalking beast. He showed no emotion at the sight of me, merely nodding a quick greeting. Then we continued on until we came to the edge of the forest.
Ahead the huge mountain loomed above a huge grassy plain. Movement attracted my eye to the far right, and there, hundreds of the horse-men we had seen earlier were milling about a large armed camp. Some jousted with their clubs while others ran in formation under commanders wearing helmets and leather jackets.
Kho-An-Sa tapped my shoulder, then pointed to the other side of the plain. There hundreds of other strange creatures moved about. They were tall and manlike, but had curling horns jutting from their heads. Shaggy hair covered their bodies and pointed beards jutted from their chins. Their legs, strangely bent, yet well muscled, were also hooved. I was looking at a contingent of goat-men.
These creatures jousted with one another also, but with spears, throwing javelins and slings. Just like the creatures they resembled, they were very agile, often jumping high into the air from a standing start. All wore leather corselets and kilts, with knives strapped to their sides. Wondering what was going on, I turned to Kho-An-Sa for answers.
"Memnon, what you see are preparations for war," Kho-An-Sa said.
"Why?" I asked. "Why are these creatures at war?"
Kho-An-Sa shook his head.
"That I do not know, young panther. I only know that neither will allow the other access to the trail up the mountain, which runs up from the middle of this plain. Nor will they allow any others access."
"Perhaps we could wait until after their war is over..." I started. Kho-An-Sa threw up his hands.
"No, young panther, that will not do. Our business must be taken care of within the next few days, during this, the month of Sekmet. We must go up this mountain today."
I shrugged my shoulders. "How are we to do this?"
"My devices can shield us from their sight for a few moments, long enough to get through their defenses and out of their sight. Come, let us return to camp and prepare."
We went back to the camp, where Kho-An-Sa told his men to wait for us and to avoid contact with any of the creatures. Gathering up some of his small vases and instruments, he put them into a sack, which he slung over his back. I carried the sky-metal and some other provisions in my bag. Then we both slipped into long, thick cloaks to withstand the cold of the higher parts of the mountain.
Before we left I tried to explain to the boy that he had to stay behind, but he either did not understand or had no wish to comply. Kho-An-Sa and I tried to leave several times, but the boy refused to stay behind. Finally, we had two warriors restrain him as we left. At the edge of the forest, Kho-An-Sa explained to me what we were to do.
"I shall make us invisible. It will only last a few moments but it should be enough, Memnon," he said. "You and I will not be able to see each other when it takes effect, so you must hold on to my arm. Walk carefully and quickly and we will pass through these creatures without their ever knowing."
Kho-An-Sa reached into his bag, pulling out a handful of yellow, sweet smelling herbs. After crushing them into his mouth, he closed his eyes and began to chant. Suddenly, as I held onto his arm, he disappeared. Then I watched as the effect crept up my arm also, overtaking my chest, torso and legs. When I could no longer see myself, Kho-An-Sa's voice came from the air near me.
"Hold tight, Memnon," he said. "We go now."
Strolling out from among the trees, we started across the middle of the plain towards our destination. Guarding the path up the mountain, a line of horse-men stood a few cubits across from a line of goat-men. They gestured menacingly at each other, their mutual hatred apparent.
"Soon we will be between their lines Memnon," Kho-An-Sa whispered, "Walk very quietly."
Suddenly the field was in an uproar as the creatures cursed and snarled at something behind us. With a feeling of dread, I turned to look. There I saw my young friend, bursting from the protection of the forest. He began running across the field, stopping suddenly when he spied the field full of monsters. He then tried to turn back, but several creatures rushed to cut him off. I looked on with grave concern for the boy who had saved my life. He must have heard us speak of going up the mountain and somehow escaped the men in the camp. Now, determined to catch up with me, he had ran out to his doom.
As the child stood in breathless fear, a horse-man detached himself from the line, moving towards him with a huge club. Then a goat-man leapt forward to intercept him with a javelin. Feeling the tension in my body, Kho-An-Sa blurted out his orders. "Memnon, do not let go!" he hissed. "Keep going! Leave the child..."
Ignoring his orders, I let go of the magician's arm and dashed toward the boy.
"Memnon, no!" Kho-An-Sa shrieked.
Another roar went up as I materialized before the creatures in the field. They hesitated in surprise for a moment, which was all I needed to rush forward and scoop the child into my arms. Realizing what I had done, I looked around desperately for an escape route. But the forest was too far away and the field ahead was filled with hostile monsters.
On my right the horse-man galloped forward again, swinging his huge club, uttering a fearsome cry. On my left the goat-man bounded towards us, the point of his javelin aimed at my chest. Shoving the child to the ground, I crouched defensively above him, preparing to fight for our lives.