Crystal Gorge (Page 31)
- Page 1
- Page 1
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 2
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 3
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 4
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 5
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 6
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 7
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 8
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 9
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 10
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 11
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 12
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 13
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 14
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 15
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 16
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 17
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 18
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 19
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 20
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 21
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 22
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 23
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 24
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 25
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 26
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 27
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 28
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 29
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 30
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 31
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 32
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 33
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 34
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 35
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 36
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 37
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 38
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 39
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 40
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 41
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 42
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 43
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 44
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 45
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 46
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 47
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 48
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 49
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 50
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 51
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 52
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 53
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 54
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 55
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 56
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 57
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 58
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 59
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 60
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 61
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 62
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 63
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 64
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 65
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 66
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 67
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 68
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 69
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 70
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 71
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 72
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 73
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 74
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 75
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 76
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 77
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 78
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 79
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 80
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 81
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 82
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 83
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 84
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 85
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 86
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 87
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 88
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 89
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 90
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 91
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 92
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 93
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 94
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 95
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 96
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 97
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 98
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 99
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 100
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 101
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 102
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 103
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 104
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 105
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 106
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 107
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 108
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 109
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 110
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 111
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 112
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 113
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 114
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 115
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 116
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 117
- Page 117
Rabbit shrugged. “I prefer living on board a ship,” he said. “A steady drizzle of pine needles might be sort of irritating after a while.”
“They would keep the streets—if you could call them streets—from turning into mud when the rainy season rolls in,” Keselo pointed out.
The center of the village had several structures that were quite a bit larger than Rabbit had seen to the south in Zelana’s Domain. “Are they trying to build palaces?” he asked Longbow.
“Not really,” his friend replied. “Those are what the Tonthakans call ‘Nation Lodges.’ It’s part of what emerged when Dahlaine established what he calls ‘the Nations’ as a way to put an end to the tribal wars. The Tonthakans are supposed to talk rather than fight. There are three groups of tribes here, and they have general meetings every five years. There are ‘Nation Lodges’ here, others in a village to the north, and more in a village in the mountains. Any time a disagreement occurs, they gather in those ‘Nation Lodges’ and talk at each other until they reach some sort of agreement. Athlan told me about a meeting that lasted for three years on one occasion.”
“Three years?” Rabbit exclaimed.
“I think they forgot what they were arguing about after about six months, but they kept on talking anyway. They finally agreed that they’d think about it and then get together again. From what Athlan told me, I guess the subject never came up again.”
“That’s ridiculous, Longbow.”
“Maybe so, but nobody was killed. I think that was what Dahlaine had in mind in the first place. As long as people are talking instead of fighting, nobody loses very much blood—unless he happens to bite his tongue.”
They entered one of the large structures, and there was a tall, grim-faced native of middle years with silver-touched hair waiting there.
“What’s going on off to the north, Kathlak?” Dahlaine asked.
“We don’t really know for sure, Dahlaine,” the native replied. “The northern tribes keep shouting about ‘insults’ and ‘violations,’ but they refuse to be specific. They seem to think that somebody from one of the southern tribes did something that’s forbidden, but they won’t tell us who it was or what he did. Of course, it’s a little hard to hear what they’re saying, because they won’t come within bow range of any of our people, and they start howling threats if we try to get anywhere near them.”
“I seem to be catching a faint smell of tampering here, big brother,” Zelana said. “Somebody appears to be just a little bit unhappy with your ‘nation’ concept.” She frowned. “I’d almost suggest that it might be one of the servants of the Vlagh, but wouldn’t that be just a little complicated for them?”
“I wouldn’t swear to that, sister. They’re developing much faster than any of us thought was possible. If they can somehow manage to stir up some intertribal wars, they might be able to use that to their advantage. I’m not going to discard any possibilities at this point.”
“I think maybe I’ll drift on up to that part of your Domain, brother mine, and see what I can pick up.”
“That’s my responsibility, Zelana,” Dahlaine objected.
“It’s mine as well, Dahlaine,” she said, “and I can move around more quietly than you can. I’m sure that your pet thunderbolt is very nice and terribly impressive, but she’s noisy. I’ll ride the wind, and none of the people up there will even know that I’m around.”
“You’re going to insist, I take it.”
“How terribly perceptive of you, dear brother,” she said, fondly patting his cheek.
And then she was gone.
“It’s something Rabbit came up with during the war in Zelana’s Domain last spring,” Longbow explained to Athlan and Kathlak. “Sorgan Hook-Beak called it ‘a lumpy map,’ and it turned out to be very useful. Red-Beard had been hunting in that ravine for years, and he knew exactly where every streambed and outcropping of rock was located. It saved a lot of lives.”
“Where did you come up with that idea, Rabbit?” Athlan asked curiously.
“I’d been making molds for arrowheads out of clay,” Rabbit explained, “and when Red-Beard told the cap’n and Commander Narasan that a flat map didn’t have enough details, I suggested that he could add the details he thought we’d need if he carved the map out of clay instead of drawing it with a pen. That’s when Red-Beard started building a little duplicate of the ravine. It showed us exactly where everything was up there—how steep the slopes were, how wide the river was, and all sorts of other things. We all studied it, so we knew almost as much as Red-Beard did about that ravine. Things went pretty well—right up to the time when we found out that the bug-people had been burrowing tunnels in that area for centuries. That really worried us, but it turned out to be their mistake instead of ours. The fire-mountains filled those tunnels with boiling rock, and that cooked thousands of our enemies.”
“I’ve heard about ‘fire-mountains’ a few times,” Kathlak said. “Do they really spout liquid rock hundreds of feet up into the air like some people told me?”
“I’d say that ‘hundreds of feet’ doesn’t even come close,” Longbow said with a slight smile. “Five miles would be more accurate.”
“I’ve never seen one of them,” Kathlak admitted.
“You’ve been lucky, then,” Rabbit told him. “It’s one of those things that you don’t want to see—particularly when it’s uphill from the place where you’re standing.”
“Did fire help you win the second war as well?” Athlan asked curiously.
“Not all that much,” Longbow said. “Water was more important in that war. The first war was fairly simple. The second one was very complicated.”
“You won, though, didn’t you?”
“I’m not really sure,” Longbow replied. “Our main job that time involved getting out of the way. It seems that we have a friend who can make very peculiar things happen.”
“What’s your friend’s name, Longbow?” Kathlak asked.
“I really don’t know, but when she says ‘get out of the way,’ you’d better start running.”
“It’s a woman?” Kathlak sounded startled. “Can a woman actually do things like that?”
- Page 1
- Page 1
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 2
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 3
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 4
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 5
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 6
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 7
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 8
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 9
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 10
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 11
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 12
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 13
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 14
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 15
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 16
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 17
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 18
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 19
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 20
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 21
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 22
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 23
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 24
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 25
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 26
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 27
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 28
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 29
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 30
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 31
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 32
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 33
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 34
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 35
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 36
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 37
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 38
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 39
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 40
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 41
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 42
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 43
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 44
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 45
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 46
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 47
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 48
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 49
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 50
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 51
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 52
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 53
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 54
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 55
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 56
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 57
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 58
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 59
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 60
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 61
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 62
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 63
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 64
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 65
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 66
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 67
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 68
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 69
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 70
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 71
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 72
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 73
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 74
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 75
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 76
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 77
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 78
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 79
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 80
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 81
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 82
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 83
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 84
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 85
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 86
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 87
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 88
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 89
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 90
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 91
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 92
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 93
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 94
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 95
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 96
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 97
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 98
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 99
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 100
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 101
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 102
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 103
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 104
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 105
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 106
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 107
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 108
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 109
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 110
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 111
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 112
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 113
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 114
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 115
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 116
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 117
- Page 117