Sebastian Darke: Prince of Explorers Read online

  Sebastian groaned and shook himself awake. The party had gone on until dawn and he felt quite exhausted. He remembered dancing wildly with Keera at one point, and Cornelius had been dragged from his seat by a huge woman with red hair and thrown around like a rag doll. Sebastian and Cornelius had stopped drinking icara pretty quickly, but unfortunately Max had not. He had even joined in the dance, flailing around madly, kicking up his hooves and bellowing some old buffalope songs. At one point a back leg had flung up the embers from a fire and scattered them in all directions, sending people running for cover.

  Sebastian glanced around the interior of the hut and saw the strange bone-and-feather headdress that Maccan had presented to him; it rested on the handle of a sword, its blade stabbed deep into the earth. Outside, people continued to work, and though he really felt like pulling the animal-hide covers over his head and going back to sleep, he realized that he would have to show willing. He dragged himself up, pulled on his clothes, then stumbled outside, blinking in the harsh light of the early morning.

  A short distance from the guesthouse, a couple of burly warriors were assembling a rough wooden structure that looked like a large cart. They were using primitive tools and Sebastian noticed a pair of rough-hewn wheels waiting to be fitted – though he had previously seen no evidence that these people even knew about wheels.

  A little way further on, a second group of warriors were digging a shallow trench, big enough to enclose the central cluster of huts. A group of women followed behind them, packing the trench tightly with large bales of what looked like straw. Sebastian spotted Cornelius and Max supervising one group of diggers and wandered over to them.

  'What's going on?' he asked feebly. 'And whatever it is, do you have to do it quite so early?'

  'Ah, Sebastian, I was wondering when you were going to surface!' said Cornelius. 'What's the matter? You look a little weary.'

  'Can you wonder?' he cried. 'We only got to sleep a few moments ago. Aren't you tired?'

  Cornelius shrugged. 'I felt a little bleary-eyed when I got up at first light,' he admitted, 'but that soon passed. And besides, there was work to be done.'

  'What about you, Max?' ventured Sebastian. 'You must be feeling rough after all the icara you put away.'

  Max affected a look of unconcern, but his eyes were strangely unfocused and Sebastian could tell he was suffering. 'We buffalope are renowned for our hardy constitutions,' he said. 'And luckily, I was pacing myself. I know when to say "enough".'

  'Really? I didn't hear you mention that word last night,' said Sebastian disparagingly. 'I believe I heard you yell "more" quite often, though.'

  Max rolled his eyes. 'Such an exaggerator,' he said. 'I only drank that stuff to be polite.'

  'And you're feeling terrible?' Sebastian asked him.

  'Not one bit.'

  Cornelius gestured around at the partially completed circle. 'Well, what do you think?' he asked.

  Sebastian frowned. 'Umm . . . well, at first glance I thought you were digging a trench, but it's clearly not deep enough to hide men in; and besides, you're packing it with that yellow stuff.'

  'Well spotted.' Cornelius and Max exchanged knowing looks. Then the little warrior leaned down and scooped up a handful of the straw-like substance. 'This "yellow stuff", as you call it, is called conflagrus: it grows wild in the jungle. The Jilith have been using it since time began. Watch this.' Cornelius stepped away from the circle and dropped the lump of weed onto the ground. Then he knelt down beside it and took his tinderbox from his belt. He struck one spark and let it fall onto the weed. Immediately the clump erupted into flame, a high bright flame that seemed to give off intense heat. 'The Jilith use this stuff as kindling and to make torches,' he said. 'It burns hot and bright and for a surprisingly long time.'

  'So?' Sebastian was feeling too tired to do much thinking.

  'So it's going to be one of the secret weapons that will give us total domination over the Gograth,' said Cornelius.

  'I don't understand,' said Sebastian.

  'One spark in this lot and it'll go up like a whole pile of thunder-sticks,' said Cornelius. 'They won't know what hit them.'

  'What if it rains?' asked Max.

  Cornelius glared at him. 'It won't rain,' he said. 'It hasn't rained since we arrived here.'

  'It must rain sometimes,' said Max. 'Look at all the greenery around us. I bet it rains for days on end. How will you set light to it then?'

  'It won't rain,' said Cornelius, through gritted teeth. 'Suffice it to say that when the Gograth attack the village, the conflagrus is going to be one of the elements we shall use to destroy them.'

  'Don't you mean if they attack the village?' said Sebastian.

  'No, I mean when. And fire will be only one of our weapons.'

  'The other one is me,' said Max, looking rather pleased with himself. 'I'm secret weapon number two, but don't tell anybody – it's a secret.'

  'Not just you,' Cornelius reminded him. 'Max will be pulling the war wagon.' He pointed to where the warriors were piecing together their wooden contraption. 'My own design, adapted from a Golmiran battle sleigh. Those poor Gograth don't know what they're in for.'

  Sebastian stared at the trenches. He wasn't yet sure exactly how they were going to work; indeed, there was part of him that didn't really want to know. 'What about Max?' he asked. 'Won't he be very vulnerable?'

  'Yes,' said Max, suddenly looking a little worried. 'Won't it be dangerous?'

  'Not at all,' snorted Cornelius. 'You remember – we discussed this. You're to have your own armour.'

  'Armour?' said Sebastian.

  'Yes. We're going to make him a special suit made from layers of rusa hide, tough enough to withstand attack from arrows and spears.'

  Max smiled proudly. 'Oh yes, I forgot about that bit.

  Cornelius says I'll be like some invincible beast rampaging through the midst of the enemy. He says I'll probably be part of the Jilith's stories in years to come.'

  Sebastian frowned. 'Hmm. The one about the fabulous talking buffalope that turned into a great hairy pincushion?'

  Max's mouth fell open. He looked at Cornelius. 'I thought you said my armour would be tough enough to stop arrows!'

  'It will be!' Cornelius glared at Sebastian. 'Stop trying to put the wind up Max,' he growled. 'He already has more than his fair share!'

  'You don't think you're rushing things, do you?' said Sebastian. 'I mean, you've only been training the Jilith for a short time – I'm not at all convinced that they're ready.'

  'Of course they're ready!' snapped Cornelius. 'You'll see when the Gograth attack—'

  'You keep saying that, but how can you know that they will?'

  'Because we'll provoke them into it. I'm tired of waiting around for something to happen. You see, up until now the Jilith have always adopted a defensive role. Oh, they fight like demons when they are attacked, but they have always allowed the Gograth to make the first move. This time we'll strike the opening blow, we'll draw the first blood. Then we'll retreat in apparent disorder, back to the village. If this General Darvon is the kind of creature I think he is, he'll see this as a terrible insult – he'll have to come after us. We'll lure his army into the trap . . . and then we'll deal with them.'

  Sebastian nodded. 'It seems thorough enough,' he admitted. 'If a bit brutal.'

  Cornelius raised his eyebrows. 'Brutal?' he echoed. 'The Gograth were hardly gentle with us, were they?'

  'Well, no . . .'

  'They tried to kill us on sight and you were lucky to survive the attack. And you heard the stories Maccan told us about them – the terrible things they've done to this tribe. Women and children murdered in cold blood. I wouldn't waste any time worrying about them.'

  'Yes, but . . . it sounds like you're planning to destroy their entire tribe.'

  'That's about the size of it,' agreed Cornelius.

  'Good enough for 'em!' sniffed Max. 'Great hairy bullies, the lot of 'em. The jungle will be a better p
lace without 'em.'

  'You may be right,' agreed Sebastian reluctantly; but somehow he couldn't convince himself that this plan was acceptable. 'I mean, yes, the Gograth are brutal – but is that any excuse to sink to their level?'

  'Sebastian!'

  He turned and saw Keera coming towards him from the direction of the huts. She was carrying a large wooden bowl filled with green liquid.

  'Good morning,' she said. 'I'm surprised to see you up so early. I thought you might be feeling tired after last night's celebration.'

  'Me? Oh no . . . I'm right as rain,' said Sebastian. 'We've all been up for ages working on the battle plan, haven't we, lads?'

  Cornelius and Max exchanged sardonic looks.

  'And you,' said Keera, looking at Max. 'You drank a lot of icara last night. It's powerful stuff if you're not used to it.'

  Max affected a devil-may-care laugh that wasn't entirely convincing. 'Oh, don't worry about me. We buffalope can handle our drink.'

  Keera looked relieved. 'Oh, that's all right then.' She nodded at the bowl of green liquid. 'I was just bringing you this special medicine. But as you don't need it—'

  'Medicine?' said Max.

  'Yes. It can cure a headache instantly. The Jilith have used it for generations. But as you're feeling all right—'

  'Well, let's not be too hasty!'

  Before Keera could react, Max had lunged forward and thrust his snout into the bowl. He began gulping down its contents eagerly. 'Yes!' he said, between slurps. 'I can feel it working . . . or rather . . . I probably would . . . if I had a bad head in the first place. Which I haven't. Actually . . . it's quite tasty!'

  Keera was staring at him in dismay. 'You're not supposed to drink it,' she said. 'I was going to rub it onto your forehead.'

  'Really?' Max stepped back, looking worried. 'I don't suppose it'll do any harm,' he muttered. 'What's in it?'

  Keera thought for a moment. 'Let me see now . . . You crush tree beetles, green worms and white lizards in a gourd and then you add some rusa spit . . .'

  Max blanched. 'Excuse me,' he said; and hurried away behind the nearest hut. After a few moments they heard the sounds of him being spectacularly unwell.

  'Oh dear,' said Keera.

  'Don't worry about him,' Cornelius reassured her. 'It's not the first time he's been like that. Now, umm . . . was there some other reason you came to see us?'

  'Oh yes. I've come to take you to meet Joseph,' she said. 'Remember, the old man who visited the lost city?'

  'Ah, excellent,' said Cornelius. 'I've been looking forward to this.'

  Max came stumbling back from behind the hut.

  'Did you hear that, shaggy?' said Sebastian. 'We're going to meet Joseph.'

  'Oh, goody,' said Max.

  'Just give me a moment.' Cornelius moved away and had a quick word with the trench-diggers, then returned to the others, smiling. 'Let's go,' he said to Keera.

  She led them amongst the huts. The villagers were up and about, preparing fires and brewing their first shot of chai. Many bowed their heads respectfully to Sebastian as he passed. More worryingly, he noticed that some of the younger women were whispering to each other and giggling.

  Keera saw his nervous look and tried to reassure him. 'Many of our girls think you are good-looking,' she told him. 'You set some hearts aflutter last night with your wonderful display of dancing.'

  'Is that what he was doing?' muttered Max. 'I thought a spark from the fire had gone down his breeches.'

  'Do you mind?' growled Sebastian.

  'Not at all,' said Max.

  'So you are already making ready to face the Gograth?' observed Keera, changing the subject.

  'Oh yes,' said Cornelius. 'We believe in striking while the metal is hot. But everything must be ready, I want to leave nothing to chance. In a couple of moons, all the preparations will be ready.'

  'The young master seems to think we shouldn't be so hard on them,' observed Max gleefully. 'If it was up to him, he'd give them nothing worse than a good telling off!'

  Keera looked at Sebastian in surprise. 'This is true?' she asked him.

  'Not really. As usual, he's twisting my words.' He thought for a moment. 'I think they deserve a harsh lesson, of course, but killing every last one of them . . . ? Wouldn't it be enough to destroy some of them and let the others understand that it will happen to all of them if they don't mend their ways?'

  Keera shook her head. 'I'm afraid you do not know the Gograth,' she told him. 'They are animals, not men. Allow just one warrior to escape and he will keep his hunger for revenge alive in his heart. He would not have a moment's rest until he had taken it. They are hateful creatures, totally without conscience or remorse.'

  'But how can that be?' reasoned Sebastian. 'There must be families amongst them – husbands, wives, children. There has to be some love there, surely? Some . . . compassion.'

  'For their own kind perhaps . . . but not for anybody else, of that you can be certain. We have had to live with their barbaric ways for a long time now; and I have seen many of our best people die at their hands.'

  Sebastian was about to say something else, but he saw that Keera was heading towards the doorway of a small hut. It was dark and smoky inside. She bowed her head and spoke softly into the gloom.

  'Joseph?' she murmured. 'I have brought the visitors to meet you.'

  There was a short silence; then a croaky voice said, 'Bring them inside.'

  CHAPTER 8

  JOSEPH'S STORY

  Keera went in first; Sebastian followed, bowing his head to avoid banging it on the lintel. Cornelius strolled through easily, but Max's huge shoulders would not fit through the narrow opening, so he had to stand with his head poking through the doorway.

  There were just two people inside. At first glance Sebastian took the first, tending a metal pot over a fire, to be a longhaired boy of perhaps fourteen summers; but as the figure turned to look at him, he realized that it was in fact a skinny girl, who regarded him with bright green eyes. It occurred to him that under the layers of grime that covered her face, she might actually have been quite pretty.

  A few steps away from her, sitting up in a low bed, was an old man. He was skeletal beneath the animal-skin clothes he wore and his face was etched deep with the lines of a long, hard life. His grey hair hung to his shoulders and around his skinny neck was an assortment of beads and charms, worn one on top of the other as though he had acquired more and more of them over the years.

  'Please be seated,' he said, indicating a rug laid out beside the fire. He watched in silence as the visitors settled themselves down. Then he gave them a gap-toothed grin.

  'You are welcome to my home,' he croaked. 'Keera has told me much about you, but this is the first time I have seen you for myself. My legs are not good these days – I seldom leave the hut.' He looked at Sebastian – 'You are the Chosen One who seeks the lost city' – then pointed a bony finger at Cornelius – 'Obviously you are the little warrior who fights like twenty men.' His gaze shifted to the doorway. 'And this must be the magical talking buffalope.' He smiled at Keera. 'You described them well,' he said.

  'Well, he's certainly got the measure of us,' said Max; and Joseph gave a wheezy gasp of delight. He looked at the girl beside the fire. 'You were right, Salah, he does sound like he has the intelligence of a man!'