Markus Heitz - The Revenge of the Dwarves

“I told you we love and part when it is over. We never force anyone to stay together if feelings have cooled and died. We are a passionate people.” She gave him a kiss. “My children live in Letefora. They are brought up by the community and I visit them regularly.”

“Do they know you?”

“They call me their mother but it does not mean very much. They are children to all; everyone looks after everyone’s children as if they were their own.” She stroked his chest. “Rest. You have shown such fortitude today.”

She stirred a powder into a small dish of water and handed it to him. “Drink this. It will ease your pain.”

He did as he was bid and soon the throbbing in the eye socket grew fainter and allowed him to sleep. For the first time for ages he was not plagued by nightmares. He saw the Outer Lands in his mind’s eye, full of beauty and new creatures. Sirka was his guide in this new land, one that fascinated and enticed him. Even if there was much he would not understand until he had seen it with his own eye.

T he herd of befuns, the mounts that the ubariu had spoken of, were huge. They were like oversized orcs on four legs instead of two, with stumpy little tails. The body was muscular and as broad as that of a horse while the flat head had a snout with numerous protruding teeth. On their hands were three fingers apiece, covered in a hard layer of tough skin, with which they were able to pick up large objects.

To Tungdil the shape of the saddle seemed odd; it had a back support for the rider to rest against, relatively tall and curved like a small baldachin. He asked Sirka about the construction as someone pressed the reins into his hands. Stirrups were nowhere to be seen.

“The animals rear up in battle and help the rider by using their claws. The saddles are designed to stop us being thrown off.” She shook the back rest. “We’ve had them lengthened. You slide into the correct position.”

Rodario was getting to know his befun. “Stinks a bit, doesn’t it?” He sniffed at its light gray skin. “Stinks quite a lot, in fact.”

“It’s from their glands. They secrete a substance to toughen the skin. They’re safe against arrows and even a sword cut isn’t a problem.” Sirka showed him a damp shiny patch on the head. “A liquid also comes out there from time to time. Whatever you do, don’t touch it.”

“Is it acid?”

“No, it’s a sex gland, so if you don’t want to be jumped on by another befun for a bit of how’s your father I suggest you leave it well alone.”

“Aha!” Rodario slid right back in the saddle. “I enjoy making love but preferably not with this enchanting species. I probably wouldn’t survive its attentions.”

“Indeed. You wouldn’t.” Sirka vaulted up into the saddle and signaled to the troops behind her. She called out in a language her companions couldn’t understand; it sounded elegant and was reminiscent of elvish.

Flagur rode at her side, if you could call it riding; the befuns’ gait was nothing like that of a horse-more a series of rhythmical jumps, quite hard on the back and stomach if you were in the saddle. But they were swift and agile. Once equipped with an armored ubariu on its back, a befun would not be something Tungdil would want to face in battle. “Let’s move on!” Flagur announced. “If the distance they told us is correct we’ll be there in five orbits.

“That’s very fast,” said Tungdil. “That would be more than two hundred miles a day!”

Flagur grinned. “I keep forgetting things are different in Girdlegard. The befuns will run from sunup to sundown and they don’t need any more rest than that, or to stop and feed. They’re ideal for conditions back home.” He clicked his tongue and made a strange noise that the befun responded to. They set off at a trot.

“It’s amazing! I can hardly wait to escort the diamond back to your homeland,” Tungdil said to Sirka.

“And I can’t wait to show you around.” She touched his hand gently and followed Flagur.

The little troop set off for Weyurn-a journey that would take them through the dry northlands of Sangpur and forest margins of Ran Ribastur: about a thousand miles all told. On the first orbit they crossed Idoslane. A more direct route would have led them through the burning desert heart of Sangpur, but that was not a risk Tungdil wanted to take. Sandstorms and drought can be as deadly as any alfar.

Of them all it was Lot-Ionan who was finding it most difficult to adapt to the mounts. “I was a good rider once,” he said, “and could always keep my seat. But these befuns are quite a challenge!” Like the others he was constantly being jolted forwards and backwards and from side to side. To be on the safe side he had tucked the end of his beard under one of the straps securing the luggage, so that it wouldn’t blow in his face.

Tungdil was certainly feeling all the bones in his body. Often he would bite his tongue or his own cheek. No, if you weren’t used to it, these animals made for uncomfortable riding. Sirka and Flagur and the rest of the troop were managing to look good in the saddle, thus earning respect in the eyes of the humans they passed on the road.

The strange picture they made not only aroused interest, but also instilled fear into some, who sought to defend themselves. They knew all too much about orcs from the old stories and these looked much more dangerous than the old versions. Only the royal banners of Mallen and Bruron kept the group immune from attack.

Flagur did not arrange any rest periods until after sunset, when almost immediately the befuns spontaneously came to a halt and lay down like dogs to rest; the saddles stayed on their backs.

Rodario jumped off rather than dismounting. “Why, by all the gods, do they do that?”

“They can’t see very well in the dark and even at dusk their sight is bad. To stop themselves crashing into a tree or bumping into a rock they just lie down and wait for the sun to come up.” Sirka took a net out of her saddlebag and went off to the stream. “Will one of you come with me to help catch their feed?”

“Fish?” Tungdil went with her. “These funny creatures eat fish? They look more like predator carnivores to me.”

“You’re right. They eat everything,” she said, giving the word such emphasis that he preferred not to put further questions. “So it’s vital they don’t get hungry. If they set off to hunt on their own account the whole area could be devastated.”

“I see.” He waded into the water. “Throw me one end. We’ll make a barrier,” he suggested. “We can let the fish and the current do all the work rather than wear ourselves out continually tossing the net in.” She agreed and together they set about collecting sticks and branches to secure the net as a kind of funnel.

Tungdil’s empty eye socket was hurting badly, so Sirka gave him some more powder which he took with a handful of water from the stream.

The strangest insects were chirping away; soon the birds joined in with a twilight song. Tungdil realized it was one of very few evenings they had been spared any nasty surprises. “No alfar, no orcs,” he sighed with relief, sinking down on the grassy bank.

“Like in Letefora,” said Sirka, propping herself up on one elbow so she could keep an eye on the net. “May Ubar help keep it that way. Too many sacrifices have been made; it would be awful if we don’t succeed.” She looked at him. “Balyndis. Is that her name?”

He nodded. “Yes, but I don’t want to talk about her.”

Sirka watched his solemn face. “I am so happy we’ve found each other. It doesn’t matter how long it lasts.” She kissed him on the mouth.

He stroked the nape of her neck, pulling her close.

Laying her head on his shoulder she listened to the sound of his heart. “Sounds normal to me,” she said after a while.