Patrick O’Brian - Caesar & Hussein

The behaviour of these beasts reminded me of the way the animals acted when running from the forest fire. As a rule the pythons would have taken the opportunity of a meal in the form of the monkeys, to which they are particularly partial. However, they just ascended the tree in a panic-stricken sort of fashion.

Then one of the snakes half slipped on a rotten branch, and did not recover till he had fallen nearly three feet. He fell in among the front ranks of the ants. In a moment he was covered with them. They swarmed over his body; he opened his mouth to hiss, and they poured down his throat. They bit away his eyecoverings and blinded him, and before two minutes had passed they had killed him and were taking him away in small sections to their nest.

When they had gone I thankfully descended. I could have gone no higher as the branches were getting thinner, and they would soon have broken beneath my weight.

Having descended I made a bee-line towards the village, as I was feeling too lazy to track deer. In about two hours I reached the edge of the plateau. The flocks were there just the same, but there were six men also.

Stealing up to the edge of the herd, I sprang up a tree with low-spreading branches. The leaves afforded excellent cover and shade, and I remained there unobserved for some time, awaiting my chance for an easy kill.

After half an hour had passed I dozed off to sleep. In a few minutes I was awakened by the sound of humans chattering below, one of whom was pointing to my tail, which I had allowed to drop during my sleep so that it hung down through the branches.

The chattering ceased and one of the men took a bright kind of stick, and resting it on his shoulder pointed it at me. Then there was a tremendous report and a flash of fire which frightened me so that I nearly lost my balance, and then something terribly hot hit me in the shoulder, making a searing gash right to my shoulder-blade.

After that I remember nothing but a blind, unreasoning wave of fury which overcame me, and confused shouts — and my claws and teeth sank again and again in human flesh.

When I calmed down enough to stop the useless killing, I found myself alone covered with blood, with two dead men. I dimly felt sorry that I had needlessly killed these two useless things, for though I was hungry I could not bring myself to eat these smelly men.

I went to a small pond in the wood and had a drink. All the animals had disappeared, so I went downstream, homeward. On the way I was lucky enough to see a small pig which had wandered from the main herd. Fat and well fed, the pig could not run like a wild one, so I caught it with great ease.

I reached home, and while I was washing myself preparatory to eating the pig, I found that I had a large cut on my back, evidently from one of the sharp, shiny things which the men carried. It was not deep, however, and healed in a day or two. The pig, as I have said before, was fat and well fed — so I slept well. For three days I laid up in the cave, contenting myself with small deer that came down every evening to drink at the stream.

In this way I soon got over my wound, except for the old wound in my shoulder which left a permanent scar. I avoided the plateau for about fifteen days, but on the sixteenth I went up to the edge of the plain, and lying down in the rocks I formed a plan. After about a quarter of an hour I circled round the herds — always keeping up-wind of them, until I was within a furlong of the village itself, when I advanced towards the track which they always followed when going into the village. Here I concealed myself in some dense brushwood — awaiting their return.

My plan was this — when they were half way past me, I would spring out roaring, and in the confusion disappear with a buffalo calf, if I could get one, or at the worst a large pig.

I had not long to wait, and soon the foremost horned sheep passed me — but I let them go. Soon the men came, but they did not notice that the pigs and goats seemed a little frightened when they passed me. But the wind was blowing well in my direction, so they did not bolt or give notice that they sensed that I was around.

Soon, however, the pigs and sheep had all passed, and then the great water-buffaloes came by — first the bulls with their great needle-pointed curved horns and wicked-looking red eyes. I did not venture to pull one of these giants down in the sight of the rest.

For though the bulls might have stampeded, the cows would have killed me in an instant, for a buffalo cow with calf is easily the most dangerous beast in my fancy. So I changed my plan and waited for the stragglers.

The main body soon passed, and the stragglers began to arrive. I selected a half-grown bull buffalo and charged — roaring. In an instant all was pandemonium, and the main herd stampeded towards the village, which was what I wanted.

The calf seemed petrified with fear, and I sprang on to its shoulders, and in a moment my teeth had met in the back of his neck.

He fell, but from behind some bushes a small cow buffalo — his mother — came charging. I stood my ground over the little buffalo, being furious at my mistake.

When she was about six feet off I sprang, but not high enough, and she got in a blow with her horns which sent me three feet in the air. Luckily the points missed me, and I twisted in the air and fell on her back, and there I stayed. She dashed through the bushes trying to dislodge me, but I stuck on.

Soon, however, the loss of blood which was streaming from her sides weakened her, and as she slowed up I broke her neck, and she fell with a crash.

Slowly and stiffly I got up; my claws seemed on fire from the strain they had endured, and my back was scarred by the marks from branches.

Looking around I saw that we had left the village far behind, and I was near the great pile of rocks where I had been tracked by the dogs before.

I tried to drag my kill towards them, but I quickly realised that she was too heavy for me. I dragged her a little way, but after twenty yards I had to desist. Then taking her up again I succeeded in getting her to the rocks. The great weight was a reminder that I was not yet fully grown, for I remembered seeing my mother carrying a big buck sambhur with ease.

Once in the rocks I made a good meal, for I knew there was no time to lose. Running back after about half an hour, I picked up the little buffalo.

In the village fires were flaring and a terrific hubbub was going on. Taking it by the neck in my mouth and slinging the body over my shoulder, I set off at a rapid trot for home.

This time I did not attempt to cover my tracks by plunging into the stream.

Far behind me I heard the baying of the dogs, but soon I came to the rocky foot of the mountain, which I knew would leave no tracks.

Gaining home, I slept almost at once.

Next morning I wandered off towards the south until noon, when I slept as usual. Instead of a tree, however, I selected a broad slab of rock over a small stream — overhung by the branches of an aspen. Being tired I slept on and on, little suspecting the danger beneath me.