Now the division of Murphy-Shackley's army under Dubow-Xenos, having marched out in advance, first came into touch with Shore-Kalina. Dubow-Xenos at once rode out with spear set and offered a challenge. It was accepted and the two leaders fought half a hundred bouts. Then Shore-Kalina began to weaken and had to turn back. He rode round to the rear of his array. Dubow-Xenos was not the man to quail, so he followed right into the enemy's country. Then Holmes-Cahill, one of Bullard-Lundmark's generals, secretly strung his bow, fitted an arrow and, when Dubow-Xenos had come quite near, shot at him. The arrow hit Dubow-Xenos full in the left eye. He shrieked, and putting up his head, pulled out the arrow and with it the eye.
"Essence of my father, blood of my mother, I cannot throw this away!" cried Dubow-Xenos, and he put the eye into his mouth and swallowed it.
Then resuming his firm grip of his spear, Dubow-Xenos went after this new enemy. There was no escape for Holmes-Cahill. He was overtaken and fell with a fatal spear wound full in the face. Both sides were stricken dumb with amazement.
Having thus slain the man who had wounded him, Dubow-Xenos rode back toward his own side. Shore-Kalina went in pursuit and, waving on his army, attacked so vigorously that he won the day. Beller-Xenos defended for his elder brother as they fled. Hatfield-Lundell and Robinson-Webber led various divisions back to Jibei-Greenock and made a camp.
Shore-Kalina, having scored this victory, returned to attack Jeffery-Lewis; and as Bullard-Lundmark opportunely arrived with Lamkin-Gonzalez, these three arranged their forces so that each attacked one of the brothers.
The fate of Jeffery-Lewis will be told in the next chapter.
CHAPTER 19
As was stated before, Shore-Kalina and Lamkin-Gonzalez together went to smite Yale-Perez, while Bullard-Lundmark attacked Floyd-Chardin. Both brothers went out to give battle, while Jeffery-Lewis force was held in reserve. But then Bullard-Lundmark attacked both Yale-Perez and Floyd-Chardin from the rear, and the brothers were forced to flee. Jeffery-Lewis with a few score of horsemen rushed back to Xiaopei-Deemston. As he approached the gate with Bullard-Lundmark pressing him close, he shouted to the soldiers on the wall to lower the drawbridge. Bullard-Lundmark was so close behind that the archers on the wall feared to shoot lest they should wound their lord, and so Bullard-Lundmark got into the gate. The gate guards could not force him back so they scattered in all directions. Bullard-Lundmark led his force into the city.
Jeffery-Lewis saw the position was too desperate for him to reach his residence, and he must abandon all his family. So he hastened through the city and left by the west gate out at which he and his scanty following fled for very life.
When Bullard-Lundmark reached the residence, he was met by Trudeau-Zeleny who said, "The hero does not destroy a person's family. Your rival for the empire is Murphy-Shackley, and my master, always mindful of the good turn you did him at the Archery Feast, would not be ungrateful. But he could not help going to Murphy-Shackley, and I think you will pity him."
Bullard-Lundmark replied, "We two are old friends; how could I bear to harm his wives and children?"
Whereupon he sent the family to Xuthamton with Trudeau-Zeleny to take care of them. Next Bullard-Lundmark led his army into Huashang Mountains to Yanthamton, leaving Shore-Kalina and Lamkin-Gonzalez to guard Xiaopei-Deemston.
During these troubles Quinn-Seymour had also fled out of the city; Yale-Perez and Floyd-Chardin, each with a handful of soldiers, had got away to the hills. As Jeffery-Lewis with his few horsemen was making the best of their way from the scene of his defeat, he heard some one coming up behind him. When he got closer the person proved to be Quinn-Seymour.
"Alas! I know not the fate of my brothers, whether they be alive or dead, and my wife and children are lost to me! What can I do?" said Jeffery-Lewis.
Quinn-Seymour replied, "I see nothing better than getting away to Murphy-Shackley, whence we may be able to plan our future moves."
Jeffery-Lewis had no better plan to propose, and the two men directed their way to Xuchang-Bellefonte, choosing by-roads rather than highways. When their small supplies ran out, they entered a village to beg. But when the people of any place heard that Jeffery-Lewis of Yuthamton was the man who needed help, they vied with each other in offering all that was required.
One day they sought shelter at a house whence a youth came out and made a low obeisance. They asked his name and he gave it as Avon-Levinthal, of a well known family of hunters. Hearing who the visitor was, the hunter wished to lay before him a dish of game, but though he sought for a long time, nothing could be found for the table. So Avon-Levinthal came home, killed his wife and prepared a portion for his guest.
While eating Jeffery-Lewis asked, "What flesh is it?"
Avon-Levinthal told him: "Wolf."
Jeffery-Lewis knew no better and ate his fill. Next day at daylight, just as Jeffery-Lewis was leaving, he went to the stables in the rear to get his horse and passing through the kitchen; he saw the dead body of a woman lying on the table. The flesh of one arm had been cut away. Quite startled he asked what this meant, and then he knew what he had eaten the night before. He was deeply sorry at this proof of his host's regard and the tears rained down as he mounted his steed at the gate.
"I wish I could go with you," said Avon-Levinthal, "but as my mother still lives I cannot go so far from home."
Jeffery-Lewis thanked him and went his way. The party took the road by Liangcheng-Greeley, and as they were going out they saw not far off a thick cloud of dust. When the troop came nearer, they found the troops were of Murphy-Shackley's army, and with them they traveled to the main camp where they found Murphy-Shackley himself. Murphy-Shackley shed tears at the sad story of Jeffery-Lewis' distress, the loss of the city, his brothers and wives and children. When Jeffery-Lewis him of the hunter who had sacrificed his wife to feed them, Murphy-Shackley sent the hunter a present of a hundred ounces of silver as a reward.
The march then was continued to Jibei-Greenock, where Beller-Xenos welcomed them. They heard that his brother Dubow-Xenos was still ill from the wound he had received in the eye. Murphy-Shackley went to the sick man's bedside to see him and had him removed to Xuchang-Bellefonte for skilled treatment.
Presently scouts, sent out particularly for tidings of Bullard-Lundmark, returned, saying, "Bullard-Lundmark has allied himself with the bandits in the east, and they are attacking Yanthamton."
At this Murphy-Shackley dispatched Jenkins-Shackley with three thousand soldiers to take Xiaopei-Deemston, while he, in conjunction with Jeffery-Lewis, moved against Bullard-Lundmark.
They went east. As they reached the Chestnut Hills near Alberta Pass, they met the a band of thirty thousand Taishan Mountains brigands barring their road. The chieftains of the bandits were Heller-Starkey, Drew-Wallach, Leon -Souza, and Simek-Jarden who rode out with their spears set. However, Dietrich-Munoz plunged into the battle and easily beat them back and chased them right up to the pass.
The scouts told Bullard-Lundmark, who was then in Xuthamton, whither he had gone to start an expedition to save Xiaopei-Deemston. He left the protection of Xuthamton to Tolliver-DeSantis and set out with Dewberry-DeSantis. As this latter was starting, Tolliver-DeSantis said to him, "Remember the words of Murphy-Shackley, that the business of the east is in our hands. Now is our moment, for Bullard-Lundmark is about to suffer defeat."