There would not be warriors of all the tribes gathered here tonight without all that Blade had done. The strong bow was only part of it. More important was his leading the men of the Games of Hapanu against the soldiers of the Protector. He showed to all the Forest that the Stone Village could fall, if the Forest People brought all their strength against it. If there had not been a Blade to show this, Swebon knew that no chief or priest in the Forest would have thought of it.
Indeed, some of the priests were against all this, even after Blade had shown how it could be done. How many, Swebon did not know. None of the priests of Four Springs village had done anything suspicious since the day Meera returned and he spoke to them. Perhaps this was because of the way he spoke to them.
«One of you has worked with my brother Guno to kill Blade the Englishman, then to kill me,» he began. «In doing this he has worked against the Forest People and for the Sons of Hapanu. He has worked as if he wanted to sell his brothers and sisters into slavery in the Stone Village.
«He is evil.
«But I do not know who this evil priest is. Also, I do not want to punish good men for what evil men have done. So I will do nothing to anyone. But from this moment until I say otherwise, two warriors will be with each of you every moment of the night and day. They will go where you go, see what you see, and tell me everything you do and say. If I learn from them who is the evil priest, he will be thrown to the Horned Ones.»
After that, the priests were silent and most of them worked hard. That was enough for Swebon. Any man who worked hard now was helping to save the Forest People, whatever he did before. Much hard work was needed before the men of the tribes came together at Four Springs village to sail against Gerhaa.
Four thousand warriors were gathered here tonight. Swebon was the high chief over all of them until the Stone Village fell, although he did not lead the greatest number of warriors. But one chief spoke for all when he said:
«We must all follow one man to destroy the Sons of Hapanu, who do the same. Swebon should be that man. He is as wise as any of us. Also, Blade trusts him and he trusts Blade and knows how the man from England thinks in war. This is the War of Blade, so how can we find a better chief than Swebon, the friend of Blade?» No one could answer that question.
With the other chiefs, Swebon spent much time looking at the map Blade sent them. Meera helped them to understand how Blade had drawn it. In fact, at first she understood the map much better than Swebon or any other chief. No doubt Blade told her much, but certainly Meera was a very wise woman.
The Protector would have some of his men on land by the walls of the city, and others in ships on the Great River. How many would be in each place, Blade did not know. He did want the Forest People to send most of their men against the ships. Swebon did not need Meera to tell him why Blade wanted this.
To destroy the ships of the Sons of Hapanu would cut them off from their homeland. The homeland could send them no more men or weapons. The Protector would be at the mercy of the Forest People and the men in Gerhaa. Even if he did not give up the fight at once, the Forest People could go into Gerhaa any time they wanted, with warriors, weapons, and food. The Protector's enemies would get stronger and stronger, and he would have to give up or die sooner or later.
Before that happened, Swebon knew there would be much terrible fighting. He could not avoid this, and neither could Blade. Both of them could only hope not to lead too many of their people to their deaths. Swebon had a plan he thought would help, and the other chiefs agreed that it was a good one.
Trees stretched close to Gerhaa on the west-not the true High Forest, but thick enough so that the Forest People would be at home there. Some of the best warriors would go into these trees, creep close to Gerhaa, and do as much harm as they could to all the Sons of Hapanu they could find. They would not fight large bands of the enemy, but they would fight with the strong bows, so when they struck they would strike hard. Blade said the Sons of Hapanu did not know of the strong bow, so many would die and others would lose their courage when they faced it.
The Protector would not know how many men were coming from the Forest against him. He might think there was a mighty army. Then he would take men from the ships. When he did this, all the Forest People on the Great River in their canoes would come to attack the ships. Three thousand warriors would strike all together. Swebon did not see how the ships could stand such an attack.
So it would be, if the Forest Spirit allowed it. The Forest Spirit would certainly take many brave men as the price of the victory, and Swebon knew that he himself might be among them. But if they won, and he survived-
If he survived, he would do what Blade asked of him take Meera as his woman. She was wise and strong and beautiful, and their sons and daughters would be chiefs or the wives of chiefs.
As if his thoughts were calling her, Meera stepped out of the darkness. She wore a man's clothing, with a patch of the skin of a Horned One tied across her breasts. A strong bow and a quiver of arrows were slung across her back. In the dim torchlight she looked like something neither man nor woman nor indeed quite made out of flesh and blood, but something sent from elsewhere by the Forest Spirit.
Swebon knew that she was flesh and blood. He looked forward to the pleasures he would get and give when he took her to his bed. That was one reason why he was glad Blade was going to be returning to England soon.
Meera was the most selfish reason he had for wishing Blade to be gone, but she was not the only one. Swebon meant everything he'd said to Blade about the man from England being a chief warriors would follow. So many would follow him, perhaps, that Blade might begin to think of ruling not only in Gerhaa but in the Forest itself. It would take a fool not to see that this might be, and Blade was not a fool.
Only a fool would also yield without a fight, and Swebon was not a fool either. Without either man truly wishing to be the enemy of the other, he and Blade would sooner or later be at war. Then one or both of them might die, and certainly many men of Gerhaa and the Forest. Nothing would come of all this dying, except to undo the victory they had won over the Protector. That must not be, and perhaps whoever sent Blade his vision knew this.
Swebon laughed and beckoned Meera to follow him toward the waiting canoes. The Forest was large, and it would be larger still when the Protector was thrown down. It would never be large enough to hold two such men as Richard Blade of England and Swebon of the Fak'si.
Chapter 22
Blade was standing by the railing of the balcony at the top of the central tower of the Protector's palace when the messenger came from Swebon. From the balcony he had an excellent view of Gerhaa in all directions, out to the farmlands to the north and the Great River to the south.
To the north the campfires of the besieging army were beginning to glow in the twilight. They were divided into two groups, a good mile apart. The one on the left held the Protector's men, the one to the right the regular Kylanan soldiers. He'd heard reports that men had been seen going into the Protector's camp all day. Certainly there seemed to be more campfires in it tonight than there'd been before.
To the south the Great River shone like dark bronze as the light faded. Lanterns twinkled in the rigging of the ships anchored in the harbor, some almost at the base of the cliff. As Blade watched, he saw something black rise into the air from between the masts of one large ship. It flew high over the riverside wall, then plunged down into the city. Blade heard the crash and could imagine the screams, the clouds of dust and splinters, and the soldiers running to help the victims.