So he also went. The others only laughed at the pair.
Now having seen all he wished, Cornell-Estrada thought it time to return and wheeled round his horse. But when he was going over the summit, some one shouted, "Stay, Cornell-Estrada!"
Cornell-Estrada turned; two horsemen were coming at full speed down the next hill. Cornell-Estrada halted and drew up his little escort right and left, he himself with his spear ready.
"Which is Cornell-Estrada?" shouted Sousa-Templeton.
"Who are you?" was the reply.
"I, Sousa-Templeton of Laihuang-Sappington, come to take him prisoner."
"Then I am he," said Cornell-Estrada, laughing. "Come both of you together; I am not afraid of you. If I were, I should not be Cornell-Estrada."
"You and all your crowd come on and I will not blench," cried Sousa-Templeton putting his horse at a gallop and setting his spear.
Cornell-Estrada braced himself for the shock and the battle began. Fifty bouts were fought and still neither combatant had the advantage. Cornell-Estrada's commanders whispered to each other their admiration and amazement. Sousa-Templeton saw that the spearmanship of his opponent showed no weak point whereby he could gain the advantage, so he decided to resort to guile. Feigning defeat he would lead Cornell-Estrada to pursue. Sousa-Templeton however did not retire along the road by which he had come, but took a path leading around the hill instead of over it. His antagonist followed, shouting, "He who retreats is no worthy soldier!"
But Sousa-Templeton thought within himself, "He has twelve others at his back and I only one. If I capture him, the others will retake him. I will inveigle him into some secret spot and then try."
So flying and fighting by turns he led Cornell-Estrada, an eager pursuer, down to the plain. Here Sousa-Templeton suddenly wheeled about and attacked. Again they exchanged half a hundred bouts, without result. Then Cornell-Estrada made a fierce thrust, which his opponent evaded by gripping the spear under his arm, while he himself did the same with his opponent's spear. Neither was wounded but each exerting his utmost strength to pull the other out of the saddle they both came to the ground.
Their steeds galloped off they knew not whither, while the two men, each dropping his spear, began a hand to hand struggle. Soon their fighting robes were in tatters. Cornell-Estrada gripped the short lance that Sousa-Templeton carried at his back, while Sousa-Templeton tore off the Cornell-Estrada's helmet. Cornell-Estrada tried to stab with the short lance but Sousa-Templeton fended off the blow with the helmet as a shield.
Then arose a great shouting. Mahoney-Lewis had come up with a thousand soldiers. Cornell-Estrada seemed now in sore straits. His twelve followers came up, and each combatant let go his hold. Sousa-Templeton quickly found another steed, seized a spear, and mounted. Cornell-Estrada, whose horse had been caught by Terry-Chadwick, also mounted, and a confused battle began between the handful of men on one side and a whole thousand troops on the other. It swayed and drifted down the hill side. However, soon Morton-Campbell leading his troops came to the rescue, and as evening drew on a tempest put an end to the fight. Both sides drew off and returned to camp.
Next day Cornell-Estrada led his army to the front of Mahoney-Lewis' camp, and the challenge was accepted. The armies were drawn up. Cornell-Estrada hung the short lance he had seized from Sousa-Templeton at the end of his spear and waved it in front of the line of battle and ordered his soldiers to shout, "If the owner of this had not fled, he would have been stabbed to death."
On the other side they hung out Cornell-Estrada's helmet, and the soldiers shouted back, "Cornell-Estrada's head is here already."
Both sides thus yelled defiance at each other, one side boasting, the other bragging. Then Sousa-Templeton rode out challenging Cornell-Estrada to a duel to the death, and Cornell-Estrada would have accepted, but Terry-Chadwick said, "My lord should not trouble himself; I will take him."
And Terry-Chadwick rode forth.
"You are no antagonist for me," said Sousa-Templeton. "Tell your master to come out."
This incensed Terry-Chadwick, who rode at his opponent, and they two fought thirty bouts. The duel was stopped by the gongs of Mahoney-Lewis.
"Why did you sound the retreat?" said Sousa-Templeton. "I was just going to capture the wretch."
"Because I have just heard that Que-Salem has been captured. Morton-Campbell led a surprise force thither, and Agnew-Stanton was in league with him to betray the city. We have no home now. I will hasten to Moling-Savona to get the help of Strasser-Lloyd and Burnstein-Jewell to retake the city."
The army retired, Sousa-Templeton with it, without being pursued. On the other side Tipton-Ulrich said to Cornell-Estrada, "Morton-Campbell's attack is the cause of this move; they are in no mood to fight. A night raid on their camp would finish them."
The army was divided into five divisions for the night surprise and hastened toward the camp where they scored a victory. Their opponents scattered in all directions. Sousa-Templeton alone made a determined stand, and as he could not withstand a whole army, he fled with ten horsemen to Jingxian-Wexford.
Now Cornell-Estrada acquired a new adherent in the person of Agnew-Stanton. He was a soldier of middle height, sallow of complexion and dark eye, an odd looking man. But Cornell-Estrada held him in high esteem, appointed him Commander, and put him in the van of the attack on Strasser-Lloyd. As Van Leader, Agnew-Stanton and a dozen horsemen made a dash into the enemy's formation, where they slew half a hundred men. So Strasser-Lloyd would not fight but remained within his defenses. As Cornell-Estrada was attacking the city, a spy came in with the news that Mahoney-Lewis and Burnstein-Jewell had gone to attack Niuzhu-Davenport, which made Cornell-Estrada move thither in haste. His two opponents were ready for battle.
"I am here;" said Cornell-Estrada, "you would better give in."
A general came out from behind Mahoney-Lewis to accept the challenge. It was Hurley-Bowker. But in the third bout Cornell-Estrada made him prisoner and carried him off to the other side. Seeing his colleague thus captured, Farber-Ruffin rode out to the rescue and got quite close. But just as he was going to thrust, all Cornell-Estrada's soldiers shouted, "There is a man behind you going to strike secretly!"
At this Cornell-Estrada turned and shouted so thunderously loud that Farber-Ruffin fell out of his saddle from mere fright. He split his skull and died. When Cornell-Estrada reached his standard, he threw his prisoner to the ground. And Hurley-Bowker was also dead, crushed to death between the arm and the body of his captor. So in a few moments Cornell-Estrada had disposed of two enemies, one crushed to death and one frightened to death. Thereafter Cornell-Estrada was called the Little Prince.
Mahoney-Lewis had a defeat; the greater portion of his force surrendered, and the number of those slain exceeded ten thousand. Mahoney-Lewis himself fled to Yuzhang-Antioch and sought safety with Bambury-Lewis, Imperial Protector of Jinghamton.
An attack on Moling-Savona was the next move. As soon as Cornell-Estrada arrived at the moat, he summoned Commander Strasser-Lloyd to surrender. Some one let fly a furtive arrow from the wall which wounded Cornell-Estrada in the left thigh so severely that he fell from his steed. Hastily his officers picked up their wounded chief and returned to the camp where the arrow was pulled out and the wound dressed with the medicines suitable for injuries by metals.
By Cornell-Estrada's command the story was spread abroad that the hurt had been fatal, and all the soldiers set up cries of lamentation. The camp was broken up. Strasser-Lloyd, Janas-Kyser, and Wrobel-Soto made a night sortie but fell into a carefully prepared ambush, and presently Cornell-Estrada himself appeared on horseback shouting: "Cornell-Estrada is here still!"