[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
the skies? He'd never heard a mention of that, but the Matrites had never
heard of sanders, either, except as distant legends.
He shifted his eyes forward, watching as the next meadow came into view, and
with it, the long and low structure from which flame poured skyward. Even from
more than a hundred yards away, Alucius could feel the heat.
Beside the access road to the summer sheep station lay the body of a gray-
haired woman in brown trousers and tunic, sprawled on her back. One side of
her temple was gone and beneath the streaks of blood, what remained of her
face showed an expression of shock.
'Squad halt! Rifles ready!"
No riders, no other people remained alive around the burning building.
Looking down, Alucius could see dark splotches in the dirt, well away from the
building, indicating possibly that some of the attackers had been wounded or
killed. But there were no bodies other than those of the Matrites.
'Last four Denal, Daafl, Alucius, and Fustyl circle around to the back!"
Alucius followed the other three, keeping his rifle ready, even though he knew
there were neither shepherds nor raiders alive behind the building.
Three other bodies lay in the dirt behind the main building of the station,
one older man and two women, all shot as they tried to escape the
conflagration, Alucius gathered. The stable doors were wide, and the stalls
empty.
'Shot anyone who tried to escape and took all the mounts," Denal noted.
Daafl swung down out of the saddle and studied some hoofprints in the dust.
He looked up. "Southern Guard shoes& got that star."
'There was blood on the road," Alucius pointed out, "but no bod ies.
'Didn't want to leave proof it was them," replied Denal. "Check the stable.
Alucius?"
'I'll do it." Alucius eased Wildebeast up to the low stable with the
lean-to-type roof, then dismounted and tied his mount to a post. Carrying his
rifle at the ready, he stepped through the open doors.
All the stalls were empty. On a low pile of hay was the body of a young woman,
scarcely more than a girl. Her body below the waist was unclothed. Her throat
had been slashed. Her hair was the same color as Wendra's. Alucius swallowed,
and turned, studying the rest of the stable, but there were neither any
mounts, nor any more bodies. He finally stepped out.
Alben waited with the others. "What did you find?"
'No mounts. There's a woman in there. They used her and cut her throat."
Alben's face froze for a moment. "Bastards! Always do that. Captain will have
to know that." He dismounted and walked past Alucius and into the stable,
returning within moments. "Nothing we can do. Mount up! We'll see if we can
track them."
Alucius untied Wildebeast and mounted.
Alben led the way back to the road, as seventh squad followed the trail of the
marauding Southern Guards. Alucius knew that the Lan-achronans had far too
much of a lead to be caught, and he had no doubts that Alben knew that also.
But they had to make an effort. That was also clear.
Daafl looked at Alucius. "Matrial won't like this."
'More patrols, you think?"
Page 185
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
'Wager we have both companies up here within the month, with orders to wipe
out any Lanachronan we find."
Alucius nodded. He wouldn't have taken that wager, not after what he had
already seen in Madrien.
SI
Seventh squad was formed up on a section of the southwest high road, just
below a crest of the road a mere ten vingts from the border with
Lanachrona. All of Fortieth Company had been called out, and they had ridden
northeast for four days, following Thirty-second Company, which had ridden out
a day earlier.
The early summer sun beat down on Alucius, its heat going through his felt
trooper's hat, enfolding his face, almost as if his face had no protection at
all. He leaned forward in the saddle. After a moment, he glanced ahead at the
browning grasses flanking the high road, and at the wavering heat lines that
rose from the highway and from the dry and rocky hills to the northeast, the
lower slopes of the coast range. The slopes on both sides of the high road
were mostly rock, sand, and red dirt, with occasional patches of summer-dried
grasses, scattered clumps of low pines and junipers, and occasional cacti that
bore a slight resemblance to quarasote, except that their spines were shorter,
and less deadly, and their color more of a bluish green.
'& what we waiting for?"
The murmur came from behind Alucius, who was in the second rank in the left
hand file, directly in back of Kuryt.
'& what we always wait for& someone to make up their mind& "
The murmurs died away as Alben rode back from the front of the company and
reined up before his troopers. "Seventh squad! Listen up!"
The squad leader waited for a moment. "There's a company of Southern
Guards on the back side of these hills. We're going to turn back and ride just
out of sight, and behind the next lower line. Thirty-second Company is already
in position to keep them from riding south along the sheep road. They'll move
north along the road and flush them out toward us. The first five squads of
Fortieth Company will keep moving eastward on the high road until they pass
the next cut in the hills. Then they'll turn and reform. That will keep the
Lanachronans from retreating. Our job is to wait until the Lanachronans start
westward. We'll be on the south side of the road, along with sixth squad& "
'We'll need to be ready when Thirty-second Company starts to flush them out
toward us. The foot squads are already in the hidden trenches along the sheep
road they'll have to take to reach the high road. We'll let them get to the
high road, those that can, we'll be waiting behind these hills." A hard look
crossed
Alben's face. "It's time to teach them not to raid Madrien."
The squad leader stood in his stirrups, turning and looking back eastward.
After several moments, he ordered, "Seventh squad, to the
" 1 i JJ
rear, ride!
Alucius brought Wildebeast around with the other mounts, keeping station in
the squad formation. As his eyes crossed Denal's, the other trooper raised his
eyebrows, as if to suggest that the tactics were less than ideal. Rather than
express agreement, even silently, Alucius just shrugged. Denal shook his head,
minutely, before looking ahead and keeping formation.
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]