A Malazan Book of the Fallen Collection 2

each taking two on a lead. An hour before darkness fell, they came to a forking of the trail, rode down the lower of the two for thirty paces, then released the leads and drove the Rathyd horses on. The three Uryd warriors then slipped a single, short rope around the necks of their own mounts, just above the collar bones, and with gentle, alternating tugs walked them backwards until they reached the fork, whereupon they proceeded onto the higher trail. Fifty paces ahead, Delum dismounted and backtracked to obscure their trail.
    With the wheel taking shape overhead, they cut away from the rocky path and found a small clearing in which they made camp. Bairoth cut slices from the bear meat and they ate. Delum then rose to attend to the horses, using wet moss to wipe them down. The beasts were tired and left unhobbled to allow them to walk the clearing and stretch their necks.
    Examining his wounds, Karsa noted that they had already begun to knit. So it was among the Teblor. Satisfied, he found his flask of blood-oil and set to repairing his weapon. Delum rejoined them and he and Bairoth followed suit.
    'Tomorrow,' Karsa said, 'we leave this trail.'
    'Down to the wider, easier ones in the valley?' Bairoth asked.
    'If we are quick,' Delum said, 'we can pass through Rathyd land in a single day.'
    'No, we lead our horses higher, onto the goat and sheep trails,' Karsa replied. 'And we reverse our path for the length of the morning. Then we ride down into the valley once more. Bairoth Gild, with the hunt out, who will remain in the village?'
    The heavy man drew out his new bear cloak and wrapped it about himself before answering. 'Youths. Women. The old and the crippled.'
    'Dogs?'
    'No, the hunt will have taken those. So, Warleader, we attack the village.'
    'Yes. Then we find the hunt's trail.'
    Delum drew a deep breath and was slow in its release. 'Karsa Orlong, the village of our victims thus far is not the only village. In the first valley alone there are at least three more. Word will go out. Every warrior will ready his sword. Every dog will be unleashed and sent out into the forest. The warriors may not find us, but the dogs will.'
    'And then,' Bairoth growled, 'there are three more valleys to cross.'
    'Small ones,' Karsa pointed out. 'And we cross them at the south ends, a day or more hard riding from the north mouths and the heart of the Rathyd lands.'
    Delum said, 'There will be such a foment of anger pursuing us, Warleader, that they will follow us into the valleys of the Sunyd.'
    Karsa flipped the blade on his thighs to begin work on the other side. 'So I hope, Delum Thord. Answer me this, when last have the Sunyd seen an Uryd?'
    'Your grandfather,' Bairoth said.
    Karsa nodded. 'And we well know the Rathyd warcry, do we not?'
    'You would start a war between the Rathyd and Sunyd?'
    'Aye, Bairoth.'
    The warrior slowly shook his head. 'We are not yet done with the Rathyd, Karsa Orlong. You plan too far in advance, Warleader.'
    'Witness what comes, Bairoth Gild.'
    Bairoth picked up the bear skull. The lower jaw still hung from it by a single strip of gristle. He snapped it off and tossed it to one side. Then he drew out a spare bundle of leather straps. He began tightly wrapping the cheek bones, leaving long lengths dangling beneath.
    Karsa watched these efforts curiously. The skull was too heavy even for Bairoth to wear as a helm. Moreover, he
would need to break the bone away on the underside, where it was thickest around the hole that the spinal cord made.
    Delum rose. 'I shall sleep now,' he announced, moving off.
    'Karsa Orlong,' Bairoth said, 'do you have spare straps?'
    'You are welcome to them,' Karsa replied, also rising. 'Be sure to sleep this night, Bairoth Gild.'
    'I will.'
     
    For the first hour of light they heard dogs in the forested valley floor below. These faded as they backtracked along a high cliffside path. When the sun was directly overhead, Delum found a downward wending trail and they began the descent.
    Midway through the afternoon, they came upon stump-crowded clearings and could smell the smoke of the village. Delum dismounted and slipped ahead.
    He returned a short while later. 'As you surmised, Warleader. I saw eleven elders, thrice as many women, and thirteen youths – all very young, I imagine the older ones are with the hunt. No horses. No dogs.' He climbed back onto his horse.
    The three Uryd warriors readied their swords. They then each drew out their flasks of blood-oil and