Mack Reynolds: The Space Barbarians

John snorted. “Until one day your ship stumbled upon Caledonia, and you saw the great opportunity to rob a whole world of its treasures. Then you stopped working yourself and began to scheme to get others to work for you, even though it meant the destruction of whole towns and the dishonorable killing of thousands of women and children.”

DeRudder looked at him. “You’ve been doing some reading. I don’t think I’ve ever met a clannsman with what you could call an education.”

John said in a low voice, “That is one of the other things worthwhile that you have brought from Beyond, Samuel of the DeRudders. And we of the clanns are beginning to realize that if we are to be able to expel you from our world we must adapt to some of your ways.”

Don of the Clarks scowled at his words. He said sourly, “Actually, as the Keepers of the Faith continually say, all necessary knowledge is in four Holy Books.”

DeRudder allowed himself the luxury of a chuckle.

John was shaking his head. “No, Don of the Clarks. The Keepers of the Faith are wrong. The four Holy Books are only the small remnant of the books that must have come to Caledonia on the Inverness Ark . On this planet Sidon, and on all the other worlds Beyond, there must be…” John looked at the otherworldling for confirmation. “There must be dozens of other books.” He added sharply, “Why do you laugh?”

“A joke of my own,” DeRudder said wryly.

One of the sagamores behind called, “A vessel of the sky!”

John of the Hawks shot a quick glance back and upward.

“Scatter!” he shouted. “Make for the caves in the hills! Those who have weapons of the Sidonians, rally with me here. We will take the animals with the two laser rifles. Otherwise, all scatter and make for the assembly of the Dail!”

In times past, the meetings of the Loch Confederation Dail had been held each year in a different phylum of the loosely united claims. Today, with many of the towns leveled by the beams and bombs of the Sidonian invaders, it had convened in a large natural amphitheater in the mountains. Unlike the past, there were few women present, and there was little bartering going on. The invasion from the stars had cut the population, although the rate of decline had slackened now that the clannsmen had adapted to the new methods of warfare.

As John of the Hawks and his prisoner and small troop came riding in, he let his eyes go about the vicinity. There were large natural caves, which had been increased in size even further through the efforts of the clannsmen. He nodded approval. In case of discovery by the enemy, all would be able to find shelter.

He said to Don of the Clarks, “Remove the blindfold from the eyes of Samuel of the DeRudders and have him put under guard. He would never be able to find this place again. I go first to see to the emplacing of the laser rifles, to defend us if we are raided whilst in session. Then I go to report to my fellow sachems.”

Don grinned at him. “Stay clear of the bedels, John. Rumor has it that they are out for your kilts, for the proof is here before us that you have broken the bann a dozen times over.”

John of the Hawks snorted. “And will break ft a dozen times more, if ever we are to defeat the clannless ones from Beyond.” He turned his horse and led his group off to locate suitable stations for the laser rifles.

DeRudder looked after him thoughtfully and said, to no one in particular, “There goes the most dangerous man on all Caledonia.”

Don said mockingly, “Perhaps that is the way you think of it, Samuel of the DeRudders, but for us, there goes the hope for victory for the clanns.”

DeRudder looked at him. “There can be no victory for the clanns, Don Clark. Brave, your supreme raid cacique undoubtedly is, but it is the existence of such that will continue to lead to your decimation, since he will never give up, and others will continue to be led to their deaths because of him. I recall to mind a great… war cacique, you would call him, in the history of Mother Earth. He led a lost cause in a great civil war. So loved and respected was he, and such a genius in the military field, that he kept the war going for at least two years after his side had no chance of victory. His country was devastated as a result, and tens of thousands of brave men on both sides who could have lived, died. For decades, for a century and more after the conflict ended, his countrymen continued to honor his memory, never realizing that he had been a curse, not a blessing, to his people. His name was Lee.”

Don of the Clarks was scowling. He said. “We will see, man from Beyond. But brave clannsmen can never be defeated by clannless soldiers, slinks who are afraid to fight honorably with claidheammor, carbine and skean but must hide behind the defenses of large cities and kill at great distances and from ships from the air.”

DeRudder said dourly, “It is an often held fallacy, clannsman. Down through the ages, it has been repeated. However, I can think of few examples of tribesmen defeating civilized man with his weapons. You have never heard of them, but off-hand I can think of Fuzzy-Wuzzies and Aztecs, Zulus and Incas, Sioux and Iroquois, courageous men all, who also held to the delusion that brave barbarians can defeat lesser men, when it comes to courage, but armed with the weapons of technology.”

Don said, “I do not follow you, Samuel of the DeRudders. But come I will see that you are held in custody until the convening of the Dail.” He indicated the way.

“What do they want with me?” DeRudder growled.

Don grinned at him. “It is hardly for me to say, but for the assembly of the Dail itself.”

When all else had been attended to, John of the Hawks, his heart heavy, stopped off briefly at the tent that bore at its top his pennant as Sachem of the Hawks.

She whom he sought was carding wool in the women’s quarters when he entered. She smiled up at him gently.

“Alice,” he said. “Alice of the Thompsons.”

“John,” she said softly. “Perhaps at long last you are prepared to take your soma and enter with me into the Shrine of Kalkin.”

Agony came over his face. “Aüi, Alice. That is forever impossible. As impossible as our love, for there is no love for those who have taken this cursed drug of the men from Beyond.”

“All love is with those who walk with Lord Krishna, John,” she said with gentle reproof.

He took her by the hands and brought her to her feet and stared in misery into her eyes. “I know not why I keep you here. All others who have taken soma we have driven from the phylum, save only you. Perhaps I should let you go to New Sidon or one of the other cities. There, at least, you could attend the pagoda with the others who follow the new religion that is against the Holy. There, perhaps, you would at least be happy.”

She looked into his face and frowned slightly. “But I am happy here, John. We who have taken our soma are happy anywhere, for we walk with Lord Krishna. And here perhaps I can do the work of Kalkin, the final Avatara of Vishnu, by urging you and others to take the holy soma.”

He closed his eyes in pain and drew in a sighing breath. “Aüi, Alice,” he said meaninglessly.

He turned and left her. And she looked after him, deep, deep behind her eyes a hurt trying to come through.

John, as Sachem of the Clann Hawk, sat with his caciques in a body in the great circle that composed the assembly of the Dail of the Loch Confederation. Behind them stood the sagamores and renowned raiders, and behind them the multitude of full clannsmen. In his immediate vicinity were the other clan leaders of the Aberdeen Phylum, including Don, who, as Raid Cacique of the Clan Clark, held suffcient rank to participate in confederation decisions.