'I will, in a moment.' She was silent again for a long while as she explored his altered body. Then she said softly, 'Taita, where did he come from? How did it happen?'
'Miraculously. In the same way as my appearance was changed. I will explain it all later. Now we must sleep. There will be many other opportunities for you and the little stranger to become better acquainted.'
'May I hold him, Taita?'
'You are already doing so,' he pointed out.
She was quiet again for a while. Then she whispered, 'He is not so little, and he is growing bigger and bigger.' A little later she added happily, 'It seems to me that he is already a friend, no longer a stranger.
So now there are three of us. You, me and him.' Still holding him, she fell fast asleep. It took Taita much longer to do the same.
It seemed only minutes later that Nakonto woke him. 'What is it?'
Taita sat up.'¦ 'Cavalry on the road from the west.“
'Have they crossed the river?'
'No. They are bivouacked on the far side. I think that they did not want to chance a crossing in the dark.'
'Rouse the others and saddle up, but do it quietly,' Taita ordered.
In the faintest glimmer of dawn Taita lay on his belly on the rim of the cliff overlooking the ford. The two girls were at either side of him.
On the far bank of the river the Jarrian bivouac was stirring, the troopers throwing wood on the watch fires. The smell of roasting meat drifted to where the three lay. Now the light was strong enough for Taita to count heads. There were about thirty men in the troop. Some were at the cooking fires, others at the horse lines tending their mounts. A few were squatting among the bushes at their private business. Soon it was light enough to make out the features of some.
'There is Onka,' Sidudu whispered fiercely. 'Oh, how I hate that face.'
'Truly I understand your feelings,' Fenn whispered back. 'We will seek the first chance to deal with him.'
'I pray for it.'
'There is Aquer, and that is Ek-Tang with him.' Taita pointed them out.
The two oligarchs were standing a little apart from the others. They were drinking from bowls that steamed in the cool morning air. 'They have not been able to contain themselves. They have rushed ahead of their regiments.
They will start to cross the ford soon, and when they do so they will give us an opportunity. If they don't, we will shadow them until Hilto brings up our reinforcements.'
'I could put an arrow through Aquer from here.' Fenn narrowed her eyes.
'The range is long and the dawn wind treacherous, my darling.' Taita laid a restraining hand on her arm. 'If we give them warning, the advantage passes to them.' They watched as Onka selected four of his men and gave them curt orders, at the same time gesticulating towards the ford. The men ran to their horses and mounted, then trotted to the river and plunged in. Taita signalled their movements to Meren.
The four horses were swimming before they were half-way across, struggling against the current and lunging forward again as they felt ground under their hoofs. They came out with water streaming from their coats and the equipment. The scouts looked around carefully before they started up the narrow defile. Meren and his men kept hidden and
let them through. On the far bank the rest of Onka's troops were drawn up in three ranks, standing at the heads of their mounts. They all waited.
At last there was a clatter of hoofs and one of the scouts galloped back down the defile to the riverbank. He stopped there and waved his arms over his head. 'All is clear this side!' he shouted. Onka called out an order to his men, who mounted and began to move down towards the ford in single file. Onka remained with the rearguard, where he could better control the crossing, but Taita was surprised to see that Aquer and Ek-Tang were in the forefront. He had not expected that. He had thought they would take position in the middle of the column where they were protected by the men around them.
'I think we have them.' His voice was tight with excitement. He signalled to Meren to be ready. At the head of the column the two oligarchs spurred their mounts into the river. Half-way across they began to swim, and the file lost its tight formation as the current pushed them downstream.
'Get ready!' Taita warned the two girls. 'Let the oligarchs and these three riders behind them reach the bank, then shoot any others who try to follow. At least for a short while, until Onka can regroup his men we will have the oligarchs cut off from the main body and at our mercy.'
The current was strong, and large spaces opened in the column.
'Nock your arrows!' Taita ordered quietly. The girls reached into the quivers on their backs. Aquer's horse found the bottom and scrambled up the bank. Ek-Tang followed, with three troopers bunched behind him. Then there was a gap in the line and the rest of the column was still scattered across the river.
'Now!' Taita shouted. 'Shoot the riders coming up behind the leaders.'
Fenn and Sidudu sprang to their feet and drew the long recurved bows. The range was short, almost point- blank. They loosed and the two arrows flew silently downwards. Both struck home. A trooper reeled in the saddle and screamed as Sidudu's flint arrowhead buried itself in his stomach. The man behind him took Fenn's in the throat. He threw up both hands and toppled backwards into the water with a splash. Their horses turned and collided with those that followed them, throwing the rest of the column into confusion. Aquer and Ek-Tang spurred forward into the defile.
'Oh, yes! Fine practice.' Taita applauded the girls. 'Have at them until I give the order to break and run.' He left them and ran down the pathway into the defile.
Meren let the oligarchs enter the mouth of the defile, then he and
