The Return of Tharn, Page 2

  CHAPTER II

  CRO-MAGNON HOSPITALITY

  As the two Cro-Magnon men rounded an abrupt bend in the elephant path,the jungle and forest ended sharply at the edge of a wide clearingbefore a sheer cliff, its surface dotted with many cave entrances. Nearthe escarpment base a dozen cooking fires blossomed against thedarkness, and the shadowy forms of members of Gerdak's tribe movedabout them.

  For a moment Tharn and his companion remained standing at the forestedge watching the activity. The cave lord's acute sense of caution,without which few dwellers of this savage world lived long, kept himmotionless while his sharp eyes took in every detail of the surroundingterrain. This business of approaching a village of strangers--andtherefore enemies!--was a move not lightly to be taken, even whenaccompanied by one of its inhabitants.

  Trakor tugged at his arm. "Come, Tharn! Come and receive the gratitudeof my father and my people for saving me from Sadu. When they hear howyou slew him with nothing more than a knife they will worship you as agod!"

  His vague reluctance still with him, Tharn permitted the youth to urgehim into the open. They were well into the clearing before one of themen about the fires caught sight of them and gave a warning shout.

  Instantly a score of warriors caught up their spears and formed abristling line facing the newcomers, while others piled dry branches onthe fires sending flames shooting high to illuminate the scene withalmost midday brightness.

  "Put down your spears!" cried Tharn's companion, laughing. "It isI--Trakor, son of Kygor. Where are your hunters' eyes that you do notknow me?"

  But the line of spear heads did not waver. Now, moving from behind theformation of fighting men came Gerdak, chief of the tribe. Short, squatand very ugly was Gerdak. Set nearly flush on his broad slopingshoulders was a bullet-like head, almost hairless as the result of anold scalp infection. Firelight reflected in his pig-like eyes made themglow like burning sparks as he glowered from beneath shaggy brows at thetall stranger at Trakor's side.

  "Who is he?" growled the chief, jerking a grimy thumb at the cave lord.

  "He is my friend," Trakor said, and there was the beginning of anger inhis tone. "His name is Tharn. In all the world there is no greaterfighter."

  Nothing changed in Gerdak's expression. "He is not one of us. Tell himto go at once or I will kill him!"

  Trakor stiffened. Suddenly his anger flamed into the open--flamed withsuch intensity that he completely forgot the object of his wrath was hisown chief.

  "_YOU_ will kill him! Ha! There are not fifty among you who could killhim! With only a knife he slew Sadu--leaping upon him as though Saduwere no more than Bana, the deer. He comes among us as my friend--treathim as such!"

  As he spoke Trakor, beside himself with the hot anger of the young, hadadvanced until he was standing directly before the burly chieftain. Withhis last words the boy so forgot himself as to shake a fist in theother's face.

  With a lightning sweep of one knotted fist Gerdak struck the infuriatedboy squarely in the face. So terrible the force of the blow thatTrakor's feet completely left the ground and he fell, unconscious, afull ten feet from where he had been standing.

  * * * * *

  Even as the boy's body was falling Tharn acted. With a catlike bound hereached the chief, fastened a hand about the man's bull neck and liftedhim into the air. Holding the dazed Gerdak in a grip of steel he beganto shake him until bones creaked in protest and his senses fled and hehung, limp and lifeless, in the circle of those mighty fingers.

  As Gerdak crumbled to the ground, his spellbound warriors came to life.With shouts of rage they leaped forward to close upon the stranger whohad dared to lay hands on their chief. But the agility and muscles thathad brought their owner through countless jungle battles were more thanGerdak's warriors had reckoned with.

  With a panther-like leap Tharn reached Trakor's prone figure. Snatchingit from the ground to a place across his shoulder the cave lord turnedand raced for the safety of the forest. Behind him came a shouting,cursing mob of raging fighting-men, brandishing spears and knives offlint. Had they thrown those spears within the first few seconds, theoutcome would have been certain and Gerdak avenged. But they did not,and seconds later Tharn and his burden were lost among the shadows ofoverhanging trees.

  For more than an hour Gerdak's warriors ranged the vicinity in search ofthe pair, thrusting their spears among the tangled undergrowth andracing along the game trail on the chance their quarry was following it.Finally they reluctantly abandoned the hunt and returned to where thebody of their chief still lay on the clearing floor. Discovering a sparkof life yet remaining, they bore him to his cave and after a whilesucceeded in bringing him back to consciousness.

  It would be many suns before Gerdak fully recovered from his experience,but deeply planted in his dull-witted mind were the seeds of fear--fearthat the mighty stranger called Tharn might return.

  * * * * *

  A weaving, bobbing sensation was Trakor's first impression as his hurtbrain struggled back to consciousness. Beneath him was warm smoothflesh, and now and then he felt the brush of leaves or a vine againsthis back and sides.

  When he opened his eyes he found himself being borne at a rapid pacethrough the forest top. For a moment he was unable to grasp the meaningof his strange position, then a familiar voice said, almost in his ear:

  "Lie still for a little while. We are almost there."

  It was Tharn's voice and with it came the memory of what had transpiredbefore Gerdak's fist struck him unconscious. With a sigh, Trakor let thetenseness leave his body and he lay quietly across his new friend'sbroad shoulder.

  Onward went Tharn, threading his way among the tangled labyrinth ofbranches with practiced ease. Broad boughs bent alarmingly beneath thedouble burden as he neared their tips while passing from one tree toanother; but always he found the next before the weight proved tooheavy. Yet so accustomed to such jungle highways was the cave lord thathe seemed fairly to be flying through the trees.

  Finally Tharn came to rest upon a wide branch high above the ground.Gently he deposited Trakor to a sitting position beside him, permittingthe boy to rest his back against the tree's bole.

  So intense was the darkness about them that Trakor was barely able tomake out the form of his rescuer although he was only a few inches away.Trakor grasped a small branch to insure him from slipping from his highflung perch and for a little while said nothing, waiting until he couldbe sure the words would come out without a quaver.

  "Where are we, Tharn?" he said finally, pleased at the matter-of-facttone he was able to muster.

  The darkness hid Tharn's understanding smile. "A short distance from thecaves of your people."

  "They are no longer my people," Trakor said hotly. "Even when I toldthem you were my friend they were against you."

  He was silent for a moment. Then: "What happened after Gerdak struckme?"

  Briefly Tharn told him of what transpired in the clearing. When he wasfinished, the boy was thoughtful for a little while. The realization wasstrong that never as long as Gerdak lived would he be able to return tohis own people. That alone did not cause him to regret what hadhappened; it was the knowledge he might never again see his father andmother that was hard for him to bear. As he was still hardly more thanboy quick tears stung his eyes and he was thankful the darknessprevented his companion from seeing these signs of weakness.

  The turn events had taken within the clearing had hurt Tharn, too. Lostwas his opportunity of questioning Roban, son of Gerdak, about the partyof Ammadians Trakor had mentioned. He broke the momentary silence tosay:

  "Have you any idea where the Ammadians scaled the cliffs you mentioned?"

  Not until now did Trakor recall the reason his new friend had sought outthe caves of Gerdak. The realization that his own unthinking anger waslargely responsible for Tharn's failure to get the information wasgalling and he said so at length.

  Tharn halted the flow of
self recrimination. "Gerdak," he pointed out,"would not have allowed his son to tell me anything. I hardly expectedany other reception so we have lost nothing.... Do the Ammadiantravelers who pass this way scale the cliffs at the same place eachtime?"

  "No," Trakor replied sadly. "There are many places that afford a wayover them."

  "And you recall nothing Roban said which would indicate the place thislast party used?"

  "No, Tharn. It could be any one of ten." When the man beside him made noreply, he added: "What do we do now?"

  * * * * *

  Trakor's use of the word "we" brought the realization to Tharn that hewas now faced with two problems. The first, of course, was to locate thetrail of Dylara's abductors--and already his keen mind had hit on ashort cut to that end. The second problem showed every indication ofbeing a great deal harder to solve: What was he going to do with Trakor?

  To permit the boy to return to the caves of Gerdak was unthinkable. Thechief would be sure to blame him for what had happened; and while hemight not actually kill Trakor he would certainly make his lifeunbearable. Nor could he leave this inexperienced youngster to face thejungle alone. Sadu or Jalok would be feeding on his soft flesh beforetwo suns were gone!

  The only alternative was to take the boy with him on his search forDylara. It would mean slowing his pursuit of the Ammadians to a relativecrawl--a thought galling to the cave lord....

  "What do we do now?" Trakor said again.

  Tharn shrugged lightly, his decision made. "We wait awhile. Now we shallsleep for an hour or two."

  "Up here?" Trakor's voice faltered a little.

  "Would it be better to sleep on the ground?" Tharn asked with grimhumor.

  As though to underscore the question, the distant scream of a panthercame to their ears. Trakor shivered. "The tree is better," he admitted."It is only that I have never slept in a tree," he laughed uncertainly."I suppose I can get used to it."

  "Lean your back against the trunk," Tharn said, "and allow your legs todrop on either side of the branch you are sitting on, resting your feeton the branches directly below. That way you will not fall, no matterhow soundly you sleep."

  The boy obeyed, and while he found the position less restful than theheap of pelts in the cave of his father, it was bearable. He knew hewould not be able to sleep, for already the chill of the jungle atnight was creeping into his bones.

  Seconds later he was sleeping soundly, while above him Tharn too sleptin a fork of the same tree.

  * * * * *

  A hand shaking his shoulder awoke Trakor with a start. Crouching on thebranch beside him was Tharn, his magnificent body faintly discernible inthe diffused light of Uda, the moon.

  "Come," Tharn said. "It is time we set about locating the path used bythe Ammadians in scaling the cliffside."

  "At night?" Trakor asked wonderingly. "Would it not be better to waituntil there is enough light to pick up the trail?"

  "I have another plan," Tharn replied evasively. "Here," he added,stooping. "Place your arms about my neck."

  Although he did not understand the reason behind the order Trakorfollowed his companion's bidding. An instant later he was swept up andout into the maze of branches while borne in Tharn's arms.

  Where before much of the passage through the middle terraces of thetrees had been hidden from Trakor by darkness, now the way was lightedby the moon, disclosing to the youth's horrified eyes the awful depthsbeneath. Gradually Trakor's fears grew less as he observed the unfailingsureness with which Tharn trod this high-flung pathway, and in its placecame an abounded admiration of his agility and strength. Never beforehad he heard of a human who used the same avenues as little Nobar, themonkey--and used them with the same nimbleness and speed. Occasionallywarriors of his tribe lay in wait for game among tree branches, but suchclimbing was as nothing when compared to this.

  That uncanny instinct which so often had guided Tharn through unfamiliarterritory did not fail him this time, and within half an hour he and hisburden were gazing from the safety of a high branch at the desertedcliffside containing the caves of Gerdak.

  At the sight of the familiar scene a great weight seemed to pressagainst Trakor's heart. Was his new-found friend desertinghim--returning him to certain suffering at the hands of short-temperedGerdak? Did not Tharn know that never again would he dare to return tohis own cave--that the chief would make him pay a thousandfold forchampioning the giant stranger?

  Dreading the reply, he asked: "Why have we come back here, Tharn?"

  "You told me Roban, son of Gerdak, knows the route taken by theAmmadians," said Tharn. "I am going to ask him where I may find it."

  "But you cannot!" cried Trakor. "The instant Gerdak and his warriors seeyou their spears will cut you to pieces!"

  "Then I must keep from being seen," Tharn observed lightly. "Point outto me the cave where Roban sleeps. I will enter and get him, bringinghim here that I may question him in peace."

  Trakor was horrified by the suggestion. "It is impossible! Mighty as youare, you could not hope to enter and leave the chief's own cave withoutbeing caught. Always several warriors sleep just within the entrance,for there are several among the tribe who hate Gerdak and he fearsassassination while he sleeps."

  For a long moment Tharn seemed lost in thought and Trakor wascongratulating himself upon his success in talking the cave lord out ofhis mad scheme. But Tharn's next words showed his silence had beenprompted by another reason altogether.

  "Describe Gerdak's cave to me," he said, "telling me, if you can, wherein it Roban is most likely to be sleeping."

  For a second Trakor was tempted to disclaim all knowledge of thesubject. But then the realization came that Tharn would go ahead withhis plan with or without the information he sought.

  Carefully he told all he could about the chief's cave, describing inminute detail its layout and plan, together with such information aswhere the guards were likely to be sleeping and the probable location ofRoban's sleeping furs.

  Roban, he said, would not be difficult to pick out. He was aboutTrakor's own age but very skinny, with long legs and arms and apeculiarly shaped head, the crown rising almost to a point. He was anunpleasant youngster, sly and cunning, and generally disliked.

  Tharn listened attentively; and when his new friend was done, heunshipped the quiver of arrows from its place on his back and handed itand his spear to Trakor. The grass rope he left coiled across hisshoulder and under the opposite arm, and his flint knife remained in thefolds of his loin-cloth.

  "Wait here for me," Tharn said. The boy nodded, not trusting himself tospeak, and watched the other slip easily through the branches to theground at the clearing's edge.

  * * * * *

  Broken cloud formations dotted the midnight sky and Tharn waitedpatiently until one of them could obscure the full moon long enough forhim to gain the foot of the steep scarp a hundred yards away. Severaltimes small clouds blotted out Uda's radiant beams; but not until asizable one moved into the proper position did Tharn leave theprotecting shadows of the tree.

  With great bounding strides, silent as the shadows themselves, Tharncrossed the clearing to the cliff's base. For a few moments he skirtedits edge until he located a series of man-carved ridges which formed arude and perilous ladder to the cave entrances above. With thesure-footedness of long practice he swarmed lightly upward, past caveafter cave, until he came to rest a few feet below the yawning holemarking the entrance to Gerdak's dwelling.

  He crouched there motionless, his ears straining for some indicationthat those within were still awake. But other than a faint sound ofsomeone snoring, he heard nothing.

  With infinite stealth he drew himself onto the ledge outside. To hisunbelievably sensitive nostrils came the assorted smells of a Cro-Magnonshelter. Through the medium of scent he established that five men andtwo women were within, all of them his ears said were sound asleep.

  Suddenly the
cloud was gone from the moon's face and silver effulgencebathed the cliffside, leaving Tharn exposed to possible discovery. Andso, crouching, the naked blade of his flint knife held ready, Tharnentered the lair of Gerdak, chief of a Cro-Magnon tribe.

  As Tarlok, the leopard, stalks the wariest of grass-eaters, so did Tharnmake his way into that black hole. No human ear would have been able tomark his passage as his naked feet, seemingly endowed with eyes of theirown, threaded their way past one sleeping body after another.

  Two warriors lay athwart the entrance; these Tharn stepped across, soclose he could feel the animal heat from their bodies. Past a stack ofspears piled against a side wall, avoiding a block of stone on whichwere piled several baked clay pots and dishes, skirting a heap of furswhere an old woman slept, mouth open and the breath whistling betweentoothless gums ... these were danger points along the way.

  At last he reached the rear wall of the cave--and there he found theobject of his search. A lanky length of tanned human lay face up on apile of skins, breathing heavily, arms thrown wide. A few feet away,near a side wall, lay the stocky form and hairless pate that belonged toGerdak, the chief.

  The time had come for the high point of danger in Tharn's plan.Crouching beside the sleeping form of Roban, Tharn tightened his hold onthe hilt of his knife, swung his arm in a short savage arc and broughtthe butt of the knife hard against the young man's skull!

  There was a single violent upheaval of limbs which Tharn smotheredinstantly beneath his own weight, a sobbing cry which died unborn as amighty hand pressed against the parted lips ... and Roban lay senseless.

  Swinging the unconscious youth to his shoulders, Tharn turned to makehis way back to the cave entrance. Three cautious steps he took ... andthen a muscular hand closed about his ankle!