“I have seen no animals here like them,” I replied, “but there are
many kinds unlike us, so that we do not have to eat flesh of our own
race.”
“Then you have all the flesh that you want?”
“All that we can eat,” I replied. “We raise these animals for their
flesh.”
“Where is your country?” he demanded. “Take me to it.”
I smiled. “I cannot take you to it,” I said. “It is upon another
world.”
It was quite evident that he did not believe me, for he scowled at me
ferociously.
“Do you wish to die?” he demanded.
I told him that I had no such longing.
“Then you will lead me to your country,” he said, “where there is
plenty of flesh for everyone. You may think about it until I send for
you again. Go!” And thus he dismissed me. Then he sent for Orthis,
but what Orthis told him, I never knew exactly, for he would not tell
me, and as our relations, even in our captivity, were far from
friendly, I did not urge him to any confidences. I had occasion to
notice, however, that from that time Ga-va-go indicated a marked
preference for Orthis, and the latter was often called to his hut.
I was momentarily expecting to be summoned in to Ga-va-go’s presence,
and learn my fate, when he discovered that I could not lead him to my
country, where flesh was so plentiful. But at about this time we
broke camp, and in the press of other matters, he evidently neglected
to take any further immediate action in my case, or at least, so I
thought, until I later had reason to suspect that he felt that he
need no longer depend upon me to lead him to this land of milk and
honey.
The Va-gas are a nomadic race, moving hither and thither, either as
they are pressed by some foes, or till their victories have
frightened away the other tribes from their vicinity, in either of
which events, they march in search of fresh territory. The move that
we made now was necessitated by the fact that all the other tribes
nearby had fled before the ferocity of the No-vans, whose repeated
and successful raids had depleted the villages of their neighbors and
filled them with terror.
The breaking of camp was a wonderfully simple operation. All their
few belongings, consisting of extra clothing, trappings, weapons, and
their treasured skulls and bones of victims, were strapped to the
backs of the women. Orthis and I each bestrode a warrior detailed by
Ga-va-go for the purpose of transporting us, and we filed out of the
village, leaving the huts behind.
Ga-va-go, with a half-dozen warriors, galloped far ahead. Then came a
strong detachment of warriors, with the women folks behind them,
another detachment of warriors following in the rear of the women and
children, while others rode upon either flank. A mile or so in the
rear, came three warriors, and there were two or three scattered far
out on either flank. Thus we moved, thoroughly protected against
surprise, regulating our speed by that of the point with which Ga-va-
go traveled.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account