[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
head was the last part to be consumed and disappear beneath the water.
The sun had gone, the last sliver of scarlet vanishing over the hills.
Darkness had come to the ville of Markland.
Ryan led the other friends back to their hut, feeling tired from the fight,
the killing and the brutality of the executions. And he still hadn't been able
to snatch a private moment with Krysty.
The night would call for a lot of thinking and talking with the others.
And the development of some kind of plan.
Chapter Twenty-Five
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THE SUN ROSE into a sky of brilliant blue, with only a handful of scattered,
purple chem clouds to mar its perfection.
Ryan, J.B., Doc and Jak had talked quietly until late in the night, trying to
formulate some sort of plan. There'd been general agreement among them that
Markland surely wasn't the kind of ville in which to pass the rest of your
life.
The conclusion was simple, and Doc voiced it best. "A rad-sick, brutalized,
antiwomen, primitive and lost community. To visit here is like visiting the
dark side of the Middle Ages on a bad day."
"So we get out." Ryan's words weren't any kind of question.
"Today," Jak agreed. "Tonight," J.B. offered.
Ryan hadn't been so certain. And now, as he stood with one hand on the crudely
carved door frame, looking out across the great lake, he felt his worries were
justified.
The setting of the ville made it difficult to break clear and run. The bowl of
wooded hills were a maze of twining paths, and the Norsemen would know and
hunt along all of them. Once the crest of the ridge was reached, there was the
perilous descent into the hothouse tropical world that hid the redoubt.
Some of the Vikings were obviously sickly, but there were enough healthy
warriors to make escape hazardous. Though Mildred looked as if she could
wrestle a grizzly, she obviously wasn't anywhere near fit yet, after the long
freezing. And stamina over rough backcountry had never exactly been Doc
Tanner's strongest suit.
J.B.'s idea to creep away at night was the best, but since the muties' sneak
attack, Jorund had announced that there would be extra roving guard patrols
Page 96
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
after dark.
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They'd even talked about trying the lake. In addition to the dragon-head long
ships, the ville possessed smaller boats. But there was little prospect of
getting far in those without the faster ships catching them.
On the far side of the steading, beyond the big central fire, Ryan glimpsed
Krysty's dazzling hair. Mildred was only a step away, as she'd been ever since
they arrived at the Norse ville.
Ryan glanced around furtively, then beckoned to the women. There was no doubt
that they had seen him, but they kept walking at an angle, cutting around the
side of the longhouse, ignoring him. Nobody noticed them. The ville went about
its business: men worked on one of the boats and a hunting party readied
itself to go out into the woods; women carried water and wood and began the
preparation of the evening meal.
Ryan looked back into the hut at his three friends, who were finishing off a
jug of buttermilk. "Women are off some place. I'm going to meet them if I can.
Stay here."
"Would it not be possible for the rest of us to accompany you, Ryan? A stroll
through the pine trees would be most beneficial in purging my mind of the
unpleasant scenes of yesterday. I would be most obliged, Ryan."
"Sorry, Doc. If anyone comes, try and cover for me. Don't straight out lie.
Kinda hint I'm inside resting. Be back soon as I can."
He left the rifle inside, carrying only the pistol at his hip and the sheathed
panga.
It was a fabulous day, one of the finest that he could ever remember. The air
was free from the taint of dust and death that still lingered, century-old
over so much of Deathlands. The gentle wind that came sighing in off the lake
stirred the topmost branches of the big pine trees as he walked among them. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl exclamation.htw.pl
head was the last part to be consumed and disappear beneath the water.
The sun had gone, the last sliver of scarlet vanishing over the hills.
Darkness had come to the ville of Markland.
Ryan led the other friends back to their hut, feeling tired from the fight,
the killing and the brutality of the executions. And he still hadn't been able
to snatch a private moment with Krysty.
The night would call for a lot of thinking and talking with the others.
And the development of some kind of plan.
Chapter Twenty-Five
file:///G|/Program%20Files/eMule/Incoming/Ja...eathlands%2010%20-%20Northstar%
20Rising.html (184 of 266) [12/29/2004 6:20:32 PM]
d14
THE SUN ROSE into a sky of brilliant blue, with only a handful of scattered,
purple chem clouds to mar its perfection.
Ryan, J.B., Doc and Jak had talked quietly until late in the night, trying to
formulate some sort of plan. There'd been general agreement among them that
Markland surely wasn't the kind of ville in which to pass the rest of your
life.
The conclusion was simple, and Doc voiced it best. "A rad-sick, brutalized,
antiwomen, primitive and lost community. To visit here is like visiting the
dark side of the Middle Ages on a bad day."
"So we get out." Ryan's words weren't any kind of question.
"Today," Jak agreed. "Tonight," J.B. offered.
Ryan hadn't been so certain. And now, as he stood with one hand on the crudely
carved door frame, looking out across the great lake, he felt his worries were
justified.
The setting of the ville made it difficult to break clear and run. The bowl of
wooded hills were a maze of twining paths, and the Norsemen would know and
hunt along all of them. Once the crest of the ridge was reached, there was the
perilous descent into the hothouse tropical world that hid the redoubt.
Some of the Vikings were obviously sickly, but there were enough healthy
warriors to make escape hazardous. Though Mildred looked as if she could
wrestle a grizzly, she obviously wasn't anywhere near fit yet, after the long
freezing. And stamina over rough backcountry had never exactly been Doc
Tanner's strongest suit.
J.B.'s idea to creep away at night was the best, but since the muties' sneak
attack, Jorund had announced that there would be extra roving guard patrols
Page 96
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
after dark.
file:///G|/Program%20Files/eMule/Incoming/Ja...eathlands%2010%20-%20Northstar%
20Rising.html (185 of 266) [12/29/2004 6:20:32 PM]
d14
They'd even talked about trying the lake. In addition to the dragon-head long
ships, the ville possessed smaller boats. But there was little prospect of
getting far in those without the faster ships catching them.
On the far side of the steading, beyond the big central fire, Ryan glimpsed
Krysty's dazzling hair. Mildred was only a step away, as she'd been ever since
they arrived at the Norse ville.
Ryan glanced around furtively, then beckoned to the women. There was no doubt
that they had seen him, but they kept walking at an angle, cutting around the
side of the longhouse, ignoring him. Nobody noticed them. The ville went about
its business: men worked on one of the boats and a hunting party readied
itself to go out into the woods; women carried water and wood and began the
preparation of the evening meal.
Ryan looked back into the hut at his three friends, who were finishing off a
jug of buttermilk. "Women are off some place. I'm going to meet them if I can.
Stay here."
"Would it not be possible for the rest of us to accompany you, Ryan? A stroll
through the pine trees would be most beneficial in purging my mind of the
unpleasant scenes of yesterday. I would be most obliged, Ryan."
"Sorry, Doc. If anyone comes, try and cover for me. Don't straight out lie.
Kinda hint I'm inside resting. Be back soon as I can."
He left the rifle inside, carrying only the pistol at his hip and the sheathed
panga.
It was a fabulous day, one of the finest that he could ever remember. The air
was free from the taint of dust and death that still lingered, century-old
over so much of Deathlands. The gentle wind that came sighing in off the lake
stirred the topmost branches of the big pine trees as he walked among them. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]