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Tyl and Ruu-an watched them go.
"What a strange folk," the First Scholar declared. "I listen in amazement to
the accomplishments you tell me they have achieved, and then something like
this is done, something which a child of but a few years can see is useless."
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"They are full of contradictions." Tyl's gaze was still on Etienne's
retreating back. "One moment they are very wise and the next, foolish as
little Mai. I
think their souls must be in perpetual confusion."
"Thee believe they have souls, then?"
"I am convinced of it, though other teachers of Turput argue otherwise."
"It may be that their minds are variable, that they are adults one moment and
cubs the next. Very strange folk. I am glad I was able to meet and talk with
one of them before they died."
"Yes, I will miss them. The female came to me day after day and asked endless
questions, which allowed me to make a close study of her and her ways. Now
that they have left us we will have only that to remember."
He turned and helped the elderly Ruu-an as they started back toward town,
continuing the discussion as they walked.
There were plenty of switchbacks which over the years the Na had developed
into a recognizable pathway, so the climb was not as difficult as Etienne
first feared. He still had to stop at regular intervals to catch his breath.
Common sense insisted on calling regular halts while his nerves tried to force
him to greater haste. The supplementary breathers wouldn't last forever and he
tried to ration the flow of the one clamped over his face.
Despite the frequent pauses they reached the plateau sooner than he'd dared to
hope. Gaps in the thick clouds afforded only an occasional glimpse of Jakaie
and its valley sitting far below and behind them. Above the rest of the real
world brooded the mountain called Aracunga. A thick cloud of ice crystals
trailed southward from its crest, looking like smoke flowing from a volcano.
In the distance rose a white ghost, the impossible bulk of the sky-scraping
Prompaj
Mas-sif.
A few trees stood ready to greet their arrival, thin wispy branches applauding
their achievement at the behest of a steady wind. Nearby, green-brown bushes
clung to the ground. Etienne bent to examine the nuts they produced, found
them hard to extract from the poor soil. They hugged the earth with hooks of
wood.
In the light dusting of snow they saw tracks of animals that walked on broad
but delicate feet, with long strides. Etienne visualized something tall and
thin running fast. As they left the rim they encountered larger spoor,
indication that a large predator had recently passed.
Whenever their course was in doubt Yulour would drop his head toward the
ground and employ his oversized proboscis to sniff out the scent of the Na.
"Not far," he told Etienne by the end of the day.
"No reason for them to cover ground." Etienne squinted into the growing
darkness, an occasional snowflake tickling his skin. "Probably they've picked
a comfortable spot to relax and reminisce about their attack on Jakaie. If
they have that much sense, that is. We should come up on them soon, then?"
"Yes, soon." Yulour straightened. "Then what we do?"
"I'm not sure. Depends on how they set their camp."
They saw the glow from the earth before Yulour caught the scent of the tribe.
The fire itself wasn't visible because it lay in a depression. Heeding
Etienne's request for silence, Yulour followed the Teacher as they crept up
the side of the low ridge and found themselves looking down into a small
crater in the rocks. It was deep and offered excellent pro-tection against the
wind. On the far side, stone overhung part of the depression, and the alcove
was packed with sleepy, sated Na. Only a few of the primitives were moving,
mostly to tend to the roaring fire. The odor from the burning chips was
strong.
For the first time Etienne saw Na females, along with two-meter-tall cubs.
Unlike the children of most species, the offspring of the Na were not cute.
They moved nervously in their sleep, their bare feet kicking toward the warmth
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of the fire.
Vegetation was unusually abundant in the depression, not only due to the
presence of nutrients unintentionally supplied by Na but also because the
hollow served as a watertrap. The pool lay directly below Etienne, the fire on
the far side. A large pile of dried animal dung helped to reflect as well as
freshen the blaze.
Yulour pointed and whispered with childlike excitement. "Look there, Teacher,
look there
Etienne's gaze traveled to the right of the fire. Stone and bone had been
heaped together to create a crude kitchen. Attached to a long bone suspended
over a smoking fire was a shape that he didn't immediately recognize. It took
him a moment to see that it was a dead Tsla shorn of its fur. He glanced
sideways at his companion. There was no fury, no hatred in the porter's face.
"It doesn't bother you?"
"What bother me, Teacher?"
Etienne gestured toward the firepit. "They're cooking one of your own kind
down there."
"Everyone must eat," Yulour said ingenuously.
Etienne turned away. Obviously a great deal more re-search would have to be
performed before they could fully understand the Tsla.
Of more immediate interest was the cage that rested against the far right-hand
base of the depression. It was made of the curving rib bones of some big
creature, lashed together with cured sinew. Four-no, five-Tsla were clustered
together within. Along with one figure clad in bright blue. His pulse raced,
threatening to set his fingers trembling.
Lyra was alive and apparently intact, from what he could see. The collar of
her
shirt was buttoned all the way up over her neck and her long hair was wrapped
around her face. The Na had left their carrying sacks in with the prey, and
Lyra lay beneath one for further protection from the cold.
A single young male squatted sleepily in front of the cage, idly tossing
pebbles into the fire and ignoring his charges.
"Soon he may steep, Teacher," Yulour said of the guard. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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