Read Online The Aebeling by Michael O'Neill - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Michael O'Neill
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his sons led the long horse and donkey train down the hillside through the trees, on a winding but clear path, into the now surprisingly cold and windy Lykia.
It became so windy so quickly that an hour later they decided to make camp for the day, three hours earlier than normal. They found somewhere that they could get protection for the animals from the cold wind that raged up the mountain – and given that it took some time for the four of them to unload the large numbers of pack animals – both donkey and horse – they were almost frozen by the time they settled for the night. They huddled around a fire to get warmth back into their hands and legs. Abrekan was confused.
‘Lykia is usually windy, but this is ridiculous. It’s spring and yet my hands are almost frozen. I had hoped to travel further today.’
After a meal, Conn went to stand watch. The wind had just as suddenly dropped considerably, and despite the animals corralled behind rope and bamboo, they had decided to keep a lookout for a wolf or bear attack. Unlike Halani, Conn could hear wolves off into the distance here in Lykiak, and although they were protected by the dogs, Conn felt inclined to provide some backup. Most were pups and wouldn’t stand much chance against a fully grown and hungry wolf.
It was after midnight when he was just about to retire when he sensed something amiss. A couple of the pups also responded with pricked ears and a small growl. Conn was well hidden in a grove of trees so he stayed still until he noticed shapes starting to move in on the camp from the north. These were not animal shapes – they were humans and they were not very good at it.
He told the dogs to stay and leaving his bow behind, he crept up the hill and away from the camp until he got behind the intruders. There were six of them, all Priecuman, and young; they didn’t have bows, but were armed with short swords. Conn watched them silently split into three and he crept up behind two males who had suddenly decided to argue.
‘You go to the right side’, one demanded in a whisper, ‘I’ll go to the left.’
‘Why am I going left, when we already sent Peig and Rab that way? I should go with you.’
‘No, they are going straight ahead; they are going to scare the horses.’
‘Why would they do that – that’s a stupid idea? We need the horses. They told me they said they are going to the left side and get the jump on those by the fire in their beds. We need to go to the right to get the guy on guard.’
‘I though Wilgar and Shona were going to do that? He’s the best one with a sword.’
‘Oh, this is ridiculous’, the first said, ‘we are going to get ourselves killed. So where is the big guy now anyway?’
By this time Conn was a yard behind them. This was his opening.
‘Right behind you...’
The two young men spun around in shock, to see in the moonlight, Conn with his Katana ten inches away from their throats.
‘Now, I wouldn’t say anything if I were you. Not if you want to stay alive.’ Conn beckoned to them and they handed over their swords. ‘Lads, your plan is full of flaws; you would have gotten yourselves killed. Lesson one; never lose sight of your enemy. Lesson two; make sure everyone understands the ‘plan’ before it is implemented. Lesson three – never bite off more than you can chew. Now, let’s call in your troops before they get an arrow for their troubles.’
Conn whistled, and some of his dogs came bounding over; ‘Guard them’, he said, and they gave a deep growl just to let them know they were listening. They had never seen a dog of this size before, so they weren’t going to argue.
‘Call them in’, Conn instructed again.
‘Rab, Peig, Wilgar, Shona, come here!’ the elder one yelled. There was no answer, so they yelled again ‘Rab, Peig, Wilgar, Shona, come here - it’s all over, they know.’
One yelled back, ‘I can’t, there are two big dogs watching us.’
Another yelled, ‘I can’t
It became so windy so quickly that an hour later they decided to make camp for the day, three hours earlier than normal. They found somewhere that they could get protection for the animals from the cold wind that raged up the mountain – and given that it took some time for the four of them to unload the large numbers of pack animals – both donkey and horse – they were almost frozen by the time they settled for the night. They huddled around a fire to get warmth back into their hands and legs. Abrekan was confused.
‘Lykia is usually windy, but this is ridiculous. It’s spring and yet my hands are almost frozen. I had hoped to travel further today.’
After a meal, Conn went to stand watch. The wind had just as suddenly dropped considerably, and despite the animals corralled behind rope and bamboo, they had decided to keep a lookout for a wolf or bear attack. Unlike Halani, Conn could hear wolves off into the distance here in Lykiak, and although they were protected by the dogs, Conn felt inclined to provide some backup. Most were pups and wouldn’t stand much chance against a fully grown and hungry wolf.
It was after midnight when he was just about to retire when he sensed something amiss. A couple of the pups also responded with pricked ears and a small growl. Conn was well hidden in a grove of trees so he stayed still until he noticed shapes starting to move in on the camp from the north. These were not animal shapes – they were humans and they were not very good at it.
He told the dogs to stay and leaving his bow behind, he crept up the hill and away from the camp until he got behind the intruders. There were six of them, all Priecuman, and young; they didn’t have bows, but were armed with short swords. Conn watched them silently split into three and he crept up behind two males who had suddenly decided to argue.
‘You go to the right side’, one demanded in a whisper, ‘I’ll go to the left.’
‘Why am I going left, when we already sent Peig and Rab that way? I should go with you.’
‘No, they are going straight ahead; they are going to scare the horses.’
‘Why would they do that – that’s a stupid idea? We need the horses. They told me they said they are going to the left side and get the jump on those by the fire in their beds. We need to go to the right to get the guy on guard.’
‘I though Wilgar and Shona were going to do that? He’s the best one with a sword.’
‘Oh, this is ridiculous’, the first said, ‘we are going to get ourselves killed. So where is the big guy now anyway?’
By this time Conn was a yard behind them. This was his opening.
‘Right behind you...’
The two young men spun around in shock, to see in the moonlight, Conn with his Katana ten inches away from their throats.
‘Now, I wouldn’t say anything if I were you. Not if you want to stay alive.’ Conn beckoned to them and they handed over their swords. ‘Lads, your plan is full of flaws; you would have gotten yourselves killed. Lesson one; never lose sight of your enemy. Lesson two; make sure everyone understands the ‘plan’ before it is implemented. Lesson three – never bite off more than you can chew. Now, let’s call in your troops before they get an arrow for their troubles.’
Conn whistled, and some of his dogs came bounding over; ‘Guard them’, he said, and they gave a deep growl just to let them know they were listening. They had never seen a dog of this size before, so they weren’t going to argue.
‘Call them in’, Conn instructed again.
‘Rab, Peig, Wilgar, Shona, come here!’ the elder one yelled. There was no answer, so they yelled again ‘Rab, Peig, Wilgar, Shona, come here - it’s all over, they know.’
One yelled back, ‘I can’t, there are two big dogs watching us.’
Another yelled, ‘I can’t
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