“Strange? What? You must tell me.”
“I must show you so that you will understand.”
Stallan led the way in silence to that part of the city closest to the river. Heksei waited here, standing watch over a tightly wrapped bundle. Her skin was filthy and scratched and she began to wail in protest as soon as they appeared. Before the first words had been spoken Stallan struck her on the head and hurled her to the ground.
“Worse than useless,” Stallan hissed. “Lazy, noisy on the hunt, filled with fear. Slowed me down and almost got us both killed. I want nothing more to do with her.”
“Nor does Alpeasak,” Vainte said in quick judgement. “Leave us. Leave the city. Join the ambenin.”
Heksei started to protest, but Stallan kicked her cruelly in the mouth. Heksei fled, her screeches of agony rebounding from the aerial roots and leaves overhead. Vainte put the worthless creature instantly from her mind and pointed at the bundle.
“Is this the killer animal?”
“It is.”
Stallan pulled at the covering and Hastila’s corpse rolled out onto the damp earth.
At the sight of it Vainte spoke wordlessly of horror and amazement. Controlling her feeling of revulsion she stepped forward slowly, then prodded it with her foot.
“There were four of the creatures,” Stallan said. “All smaller than this one. I found them and I followed them. They did not walk on the shore but were in the ocean. Nor did they have a boat. Instead they sat on a tree in the water and pushed it forward with bits of wood. I watched them kill other fur animals, just as they must have killed the males and their guards on the beach. They do not use teeth or claws or horns because they are hornless as you can see, while their teeth and claws are small and weak. Instead they do their killing with a thing like a sharp tooth fixed to a length of wood.”
“They do many tricks, these fur animals. They have brains.”
“All creatures have brains, even a primitive hesotsan like this,” Stallan tapped the weapon hanging from her shoulder.
“But this hesotsan is not dangerous by itself if handled correctly. These things are. Now, if you would, look closely at the beast. They have much fur here, as you can see, on the top of their bodies about the head. But this other fur, lower down, does not belong to the creature but is bound about it. It bears a pouch, and in the pouch I found this. What appears to be a shaped piece of stone with a sharp edge. See, this bound-about skin comes away and the creature has its own fur beneath.”
“It is a male!” Vainte shouted. “A male fur-creature with a dim and bestial brain that now is bold enough to threaten us, the Yilane. Is that what you are trying to tell me? That these ugly beasts are a danger to us?”
“I believe so, Vainte. But you are Eistaa and you are the one who decides what thing is what thing. I have merely told you what I have seen, shown you what I have found.”
Vainte held the hard sharpness of the stone between her thumbs, stared down at the corpse for a long time before she spoke again.
“I believe that it is possible that even a ustuzou might grow to have a low kind of intelligence and cunning. Our boats understand a few instructions. All animals have brains of some kind. Enteesenat can be trained to search out food in the sea. In this savage part of the world so far from our own, who can possibly say what strange things have happened since the egg of time? Now we are beginning to find out. There are no Yilane here to order and control things. It is therefore possible, and hard to deny since the evidence is here before our eyes, that a species of disgusting mammal has attained some form of perverted intelligence. Enough to find bits of stone and learn to kill with them. Yes, it is possible. But they should have remained in their jungle, killing and eating each other. They mistakenly ventured forth. Vermin like these, male vermin, and they have killed our males. So understand now what we must do. We must seek them out and slaughter them all. We have no choice if our city is to live on these beaches. Can we do that?”
“We must do that. But we must go in strength, taking everyone who can be spared from the city. All of them armed with hesotsan.”
“But you said there were only four of the beasts? And only three of them remain alive now…”
Realization came to Vainte as it had come to Stallan when she had found the small group moving north. “Could there be others? More of these?”
“There must be. These few must have voyaged away from the main pack for some reason. Now they return to it. I am sure of that. We must move in force and find them all.”
“And kill them all. Of course. I will issue the orders so we can leave at once.”
“That would not be wise since the day is long advanced and there will be many of us. If we leave at dawn, take only the best fed and fastest boats, we will easily catch them because they move slowly. Follow them and find the others.”
“And butcher them as they butchered the males. It is a good plan. Have this creature taken to the ambesed and spread out for all to see. We will want supplies, fresh water, enough to last a few days at least so we won’t have to stop.”
Fargi were sent hurrying to all parts of the city, spreading the word, ordering the citizens to gather in the ambesed until it was crowded as it had never been before. An angry murmur rose from the mass of Yilane as they pushed each other for a chance to see the body. Vainte herself was entering the ambesed when her eye was caught by Ikemend signaling for attention; she stopped instantly.
“A few words, please, Eistaa.”
“There is no trouble with your charges?” Vainte asked in sudden fear. Ikemend, her efensele, had been appointed to the vital position of guarding and sheltering the males. After the briefest session of questioning the previous guardian had revealed that it was her lack of control that had resulted in all the deaths on the beach. She had sickened and died when Vainte had stripped her of her name.
“All is well. But the males have heard about the dead ustuzou and want to see it. Should they be permitted?”
“Of course — they are not children. Let them think about their responsibilities. But not until the ambesed is clear. We don’t want any hysterical scenes.”
Ikemend was not the only one seeking her attention. Enge blocked her way, nor would she move when ordered aside.
“I have heard what you plan to do, follow and kill the fur-beasts.”
“What you have heard is correct. I am going to make the public announcement now.”
“Before you do that — there is something that I must tell you. I cannot support you. None of the Daughters of Life can. It goes contrary to everything that we believe in. We cannot be a part of this killing. Base animals are as they are because they lack the knowledge of death. To destroy them because of this is not possible. We kill when we must eat. All other killing is forbidden. Therefore you understand that we cannot…”
“Silence! You will do as I order. Anything else will be treason.”
Enge answered her rage with cold reason. “What you call treason we call the gift of life. We have no recourse.”
“I do. I can have you all killed at once.”
“You can. Then you will be the murderess and the guilty one as well.”
“I have no guilt — just anger. And hatred and loathing that an efensele of mine could betray her race in this manner. I won’t kill you because I need your bodies for hard work. Your people will be chained together until we return. You will be chained with them. You have no more special privileges. I disown you as an efensele. You will work with them and die with them. Disowned and loathed for your treachery. That is your fate.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Alitha thurlastar, hannas audim senstar, sammad deinarmal na mer ensi edo.
The deer is killed, a man may die, a woman grows old — only the sammad endures.
Kerrick was in his usual position in the prow of the boat, tending the fire. But this was a boy’s work and he
