“I can try – ”
“You will not have very long,” he commented. “These can show such speed that we shall not be able to find them again if they run.”
I could have done without a warning, which put even more strain on me. They were looking at us now, and I feared they would turn and make off. So I acted quickly, looking down into the grass as if searching for something and holding out my hand as I called, coaxingly, “Griffy, come! Griffy! Griffy!”
I dared not look up to see if I was making any impression on the group before me. Instead, I added what I hoped would be the crown of my performance.
“Griffy? He must be here somewhere! Help me find him- Griffy!”
“Griffy!” I had not called that time. It was a younger, shriller voice. “Griffy, here! Where – where is he?”
One of those hoofed figures burst from among the rest to run toward me. Two others started, as if to head off their fellow. But they swerved aside and ran back as Kosgro tackled the small body, which immediately began to fight. Then the others broke and ran. And they moved with such surprising speed that I knew I could never have caught up with them.
Kosgro mastered his captive with some effort. He was panting as he stood holding Oomark, while the boy’s hoofs kicked and tore at the ground.
As I came to them, Oomark shrilled, “Let me go, let me go! You lied! Griffy isn’t here. Let me go! I’ll call Bartare. She’ll get the Lady and make you sorry – very sorry.” He was all small boy now. In his fury he had lost that strange-ness of speech that had come with his chance in appearance.
“I want Bartare, Oomark. If you can call her, I shall be most grateful – ”
He stopped his struggles so suddenly that I was suspicious. I hoped that Kosgro would be, too, enough not to relax the hold he had on him.
“You don’t want to see her. She’ll make you awfully sorry -She and the Lady. They know how to do a lot of things to make a person sorry. You’ll see!”
“I want to see Bartare. And I think you know where she is. You said you did – you were taking me there.”
“That’s not my place. I have the tree Folk-they’re my people now. Let me go with them.” He stood quietly and now was ready to plead for freedom rather than fight for it. Only there was a slyness in the gaze he kept on me, which promised that we had better not trust him. Those in whose company he had been had now vanished from sight.
“Oomark, you’re not of this world,” I began, and then I saw Kosgro shake his head. I thought I knew he meant that the boy could not be moved by that argument. No, but perhaps anger might work.
“I do not believe you really know where Bartare is. You were only saying that. If you did, you would prove it – ”
If he refused to cooperate. I did not know what we could do. We might keep him prisoner, but we could not force him to lead us. Or if he volunteered to do so, we could not be sure that he was leading us right.
“You’ll be sorry, very sorry!”
“Very well, I shall be sorry. But still I must see Bartare.”
“She is with the Lady. I don’t like the Lady. I don’t want to go there – ”
Perhaps his distaste for Bartare’s dream companion was such that no argument might move him. I could only keep on trying.
“You want to be free to go with your friends. Take us to Bartare. Then, if you still wish, you will be. But until you do, we shall keep you with us.”
Perhaps enough of the old Oomark still existed in that shaggy body to let him feel the weight of adult authority, and by habit he responded to it.
“All right. Anyway, I won’t worry about you – either of you – after the Lady sees you.”
“We’ll go now,” I said.
Oomark grinned. “Better for me. Then I can see the end of you!” And there was more than childish malice in his tone. As with Bartare earlier, I caught the feeling he had dipped into such knowledge as no child should ever have.
That alien part of him was again in command, his human side covered.
He looked up and around at Kosgro. “You can let me go, Between One,” he said with the force of an order. “I shall not run from you. Do you wish me to swear that by Turf and Leaf?”
Kosgro stepped back. “I accept your promise.”
“If you will come, then let us!” Oomark was all impatience as he started on, looking back at both of us.
We followed. He led, and he held to a pace that made us trot to equal. As we came among the bushes where the berries hung, I heard rude noises. Bits of soft earth mixed with squashed berries came out of nowhere to bespatter us – until Oomark threw up one arm and gave a crowing cry. After that there was nothing, and his fellows, who might have planned to lay an ambush, let us be. When I looked back once, I saw that they had not deserted Oomark, but had fallen into a compact group, trailing us.
That we were moving into one of the great dangers of this world, I did not question. Nor did Kosgro’s demeanor in any way lighten that foreboding on my part. He kept glancing from side to side, as if awaiting attack. Oomark’s friends had dropped so far to the rear that they were half hidden by the mist.
“How far is it?” I asked at last.
Oomark sent me one of his sly looks. “How far is it? If Bartare does not want you, it can be doubly far.” Which made no sense to me, but seemed intelligible to Kosgro, for he stopped short. Oomark turned around.
“What are you waiting for? You want to see Bartare. If you want to see her, come on!”
“Not if you take us by the dale way,” Kosgro returned.
Again I did not understand. But I was ready to let him argue since it was apparent he did.
Oomark shifted from one hoof to the other in a dance of impatience. “I would not waste time. Come – or let me go!”
“Not by dale way.”
Oomark answered that with a flare of temper. “What do you know of the ways? In ways, out ways, dale ways, straight ways? You’re one of the Between. Less than the things that burrow in this!” His kick freed a lump of soil, which flew to strike Kosgro on the knee. “Betweener!” Oomark hooted, making of that word an insult.
“Not by dale way,” Kosgro said for the third time, his tone quiet and unruffled. It held the authority of one who had been obeyed, and expected without question to be so obeyed again,
Oomark’s head dropped as if he could no longer meet the other’s gaze. He kicked loose another clod, but this did not reach Kosgro if he had intended it to.
“All right!” he cried at last. “I take you the out way!”
“That is better.” Again Kosgro’s calm reply had its effect. I could see that his winning this point had once more brought Oomark back to more his human self. And with Oomark the boy we could deal better.
He came and held out his hand to Kosgro, who took it, and at the same time offered his other to me. When we were so linked, Oomark started on. But this time he did not trot in a straight line as before, but rather wove in and out through the ankle-high grass. So I was reminded of the way I had stepped from block to block on the road that seemingly went nowhere. Here there was no pattern to be followed.
So we traveled in a weary way, which appeared to lead to no goal, but rather to be some senseless game. Yet since Oomark had only agreed to this under pressure from Kosgro, I knew it had importance.
I was so busy watching the twists and turns of those two that I had little attention for anything else. But at length I saw that the grass was thinning out. There were long stretches of silver sand strewn with flecks of fire, though those flecks were green not red. They grew thicker and thicker until the sand appeared formed of jewel dust.
When there was no longer any grass to be seen, only this gem sand, tall things arose out of the mist. At first I thought them giant trees; then I could see they were pillars of faceted crystal, milk-white or cool green. They were towers with carving on their sides. That is, so they seemed when we were yet a distance from them. But the closer we came, the less they were like that, being huge worn pillars instead. Still always ahead was the semblance of towers and more towers.