Sanone’s words broke through his thoughts, drawing his attention back to the present.
“What is happening? I understand none of this.”
“I spoke of the murgu who walk like men,” Kerrick said. “They are coming now from the south, in great numbers I believe. They want only to kill us. They have ways of knowing where we are well before they attack.”
“Will they attack us as well? What will they do?” Sanone asked, an echo of Herilak’s same question.
“They will know about this valley. They will kill everyone here because you are Tanu.”
Would they do that? Kerrick thought. Yes, of course. They would surely attack the sammads at the encampment first, then come here. But when? They would have to swing wide around the valley, might even be doing that now. But would they strike now, this very afternoon? It was a terrible thought that at this very moment the sammads might be under attack, destroyed. No, the Yilanè did not think that way. Find the prey, lie up overnight, attack at dawn. They had done this in the past, it had always succeeded in the past, they would not change it now. He turned swiftly to Herilak.
“The murgu will attack the sammads at the encampment in the morning, I am sure of it. Tomorrow morning or the next one at the latest.”
“I go now to warn them. The sammads must leave at once.”
He turned and ran and Kerrick called after him.
“Where will you go? Where can you flee that they cannot follow?”
Herilak spun about, faced Kerrick and his distasteful facts.
“Where? North, that might be best, to the snows. They cannot follow us there.”
“They are too close. They will catch you in the hills.”
“Then where?”
Where? As Herilik cried the words aloud Kerrick could see the answer clearly. He pointed to the ground.
“Here. Behind the rock barrier, in this valley with no exit. Let the murgu come after us. Let them face the death-sticks and the arrows and the spears. Let their darts strike the hard rock instead of us. Let us lie and wait for them. They will not pass. They will think they have trapped us here—but it is we who will have trapped them. We have food and water here, strong spears to aid us.
“Let them attack us and die. I think that the time for running away has come to an end.” He turned to face Sanone, for their survival depended upon him now. “The decision is up to you, Sanone. The sammads can go north—or we can come into this valley and wait for the murgu attack. If you let us in you risk the lives of all your people. They may not attack…”
“They will,” Sanone said with calm assurance. “For now the future has become as clear as the past. We have lived in this valley, gathering our strength, waiting for the mastodon to return. You have done that, brought them to us so that we may defend them. In the mastodon is the power of Kadair. Outside is the Karognis seeking to destroy that power. You do not know about the Karognis but we do. As Kadair is the light and the sun, so is the Karognis the night and the darkness. As Kadair put us on earth, so does the Karognis seek to destroy us. We know of the Karognis’s existence, knew that he would come one day, and now we know his guise, know that he has come. These murgu are more than you think they are—and they are less. They are strong—but they are the Karognis on Earth and war against Kadair and his people. That is why you came to us, that is why the mastodon child Arnwheet was born. He is Kadair incarnate. We are here to see that the Karognis is stopped. Call them in, all of them, quickly. The battle is about to begin.”
* * *
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
“How ugly these creatures are,” Vaintè said. “If anything this one is uglier than most.”
She put out one foot and turned the severed head over with her claws. There was dust now on the face and hair, caked into the dried blood of the neck.