land they entered as they descended the southern slopes of the Grantens was almost desert. Yellow grass covered the ground, interrupted by th

at meat at last night’s supper. There was nothing larger than a small village on the path they would be taking through Wilterland, nowhere they'd be able to buy

re,” said Crane as he knelt to examine some rabbit droppings. “Beef, pork,

ntion,” replied Tallion. “Besides, it's too

d Crane. “You kn

tracker. How long have

ion with you. Your last

o was be

f the old timers, been wit

me and the Brigadier. Real ch

member the name of

had a tracker. So

aren't worth catching. Thin and scrawny.

, just from the state of those droppings. If you were a decen

here, just look at what they've got to eat. I

hair like the pennants flying from the walls of a castle, as if his large, muscular body was a fortress that could resist the might of a

than scrawny rabbit. Partridge, grouse, all good and

eeper,” he said. “I'll put a few snares out, then we’ll go take a look over that hill.” He reached in

be partridges

re might be s

ge. ‘Course, you've got to hang it for a few days to get the best from it, and you need some seasoning. Pepper and ga

pes on rabbit, that's all. I'm sure the Brigadier will

ot any herbs

ve a long list of all the stuff you’d

I had any

you said. You implied yo

in case. My dad always said to carry a bit of pepper around, just in case someone tries

e. “If you really don't like rabbit, I might be able to rustle up a couple of hedgehogs. There's good eating on them. Pity the soil's

ave partridge. What

☆

each other. “Are you sure this

d Spencer, slinging the brace of rabbits over his

aken us back to the camp. You should have

ess grassland that surrounded them. “Okay, let's go to the top of that hill. We'll be able to see

r looked over to see a jaycat looking at them, it’s yellow eyes fixed on the rabbits carried by Spencer. It trotted forward a few paces, eyeing them warily, a

ow us all the way back to camp,

eat them,” mused S

arper, wrinkling h

ads of places. The Carrowmen

ll t

tasty. Like beef, if you prepare it right. Maybe we can lure our friend into coming in close...” He reached for an arrow from the quiver strapped across his b

Harper dreamily. “Would be nice to get back and f

, unless there’s yellowface deer. They live in gra

might have found a patch of woodland, hidden from sight behind

free samples to passers by. Or a meat stall doing bus

sour look. “It's ea

s fun

“There!” cried Harper, pointing off to the east. “W

nting finger with his eye

st to the right o

a dead tree b

ught. “There must have been,” he sa

encer, pointing in another direction.

p!” insisted Harper.

ope of the hill towards the other two men. Ha

☆

ng towards the hill. “Oh, It’s o

asked Dacson. His hand wen

revealed itself. “I think they’ve just got too much energy,” he sai

sked Spencer as he skidded to a stop beside them. “Got two rabb

t open to show them the five carp it contained. One was a giant, nearly two feet

g there, on its side. I wouldn't eat it if I were starving! Mine are go

of breath, Harp?” laughed Smith. “Shame w

” suggested Dacson. “Why not offer him your f

in spots.” He looked up at the sun, now low on the

you brought a

istol. As he aimed, though, a second cat came trotting up to join the first, followed by a third. “He brought his family. Let's invit

,” said Smith, shaking his head s

tance.” Harper scowled as he holstered the gun. “I

ty, you just

he south. “Camp's nearly a mile away. We need to get

sty grassland. Dacson in the lead,

ld always eat one of the horses,” said Spenc

d walk the rest of the way

are small, they c

aving a horse is a death sentence, and we'll probably be passing through places like that b

loody hell, it w

r. Not when you're one of the Brigadier's own men. He only

le up when we're in a tight spot. Good mor

hree men...” Spencer gave him a hurt loo

t. “There’s always globs,” he said.

ore globs he’ll be the next thing on the menu! I think he is a glob that went straight to human in one step

re,” said Dacson, looking around the a

eplied Harper. “You might have

ike three inches

said Spencer. “The others’ll have had

☆

d popped it into his mouth. “At least we've found something t

m the other man. “A yellow faced deer! An actual yellow faced deer and all you had to

he past, in combat. He came to life in battle. A light came into his eye, an energy came into his body. He was fast and deadly, a terror

the shot. I can actual

rewarded by a look of disgust. It was the only thing he could do that brought any kind of reaction from the other man, and so he’d been doing it almost continually since leaving c

be essential to his thinking processes. If he stopped talking, it was as though his brain stopped working, as if new thoughts could only enter his head if he

us to starve to death out here. Starving to death

him crazy like that he might have decided to find out, but there was something about Spooner that freaked him out a little. He gave the impression, somehow, that if he ever did snap out of his mood, if he did start speaking, he might say fr

re somewhere, and it won't be the only one. If you see it, j

owing away from it. The deer won't go far from it. Harp and Spence went that way, I know. If there’re deer there, they’ve either caught them already

n the midst of Cowley's thick mane of greasy black hair. He knew how his face would disappear in an eruption of red spray, invisible to him from behind except for a momentary mist that would appear around his head like a brie

ded himself. There would be no way to conceal his guilt. They'd hear the shot, they’d notice Cowley’s absence. They'd kill him as a murderer, but the satisfaction he knew he’d

nities. A chance would come for him to satisfy his needs in perfect safety. He could wait

spoke!” He said. “You actual

though, and went back to exam

☆

of the smaller ones,” he complained, then wished he hadn't spoken. Griping only went up the chain of command, not d

n a year ago, with a brood of half turned rabbits back somewhere. This one

at from your p

y past. I pai

can be useful to us. I would have just shot

xt travellers to pass this way would have that

with us. Tell me, if you hadn’t been ca

ight up until he went back into the ground. It's a good

ame to Blane and he carefully laid the deer down on the ground. Then he made a hand signal to Cotton, the sign for a stealthy approach. Cotton grinned. The Sergeant wanted to carry out an impro

looked in their direction, dashing forward to the next scrap of cover whenever he looked away. Where was Malone? If he was asle

e had no trouble picking him off. Not that Blane would have used a rifle. The noise would wake up the whole camp. A bow and arrow would be better, but being far less accurate he'd gave to be much closer

e gave a start of surprise at the exact same time. Malone yelled, jumping to his feet and fumbling for his

ruefully. “It's just us. Stand easy.” Cotton

” Malone turned his back on the other two men as he adjuste

al sense, I suspe

e'd been approaching the camp from the other direction you would have b

the batman indignantly. “It just takes a couple of minu

lled Quill from the c

led back Malone. “It's j

got any

ing and failing to

You'll find a deer fifty yards back tha

rgeant could reprimand him further and Blane and

et?” asked the Serge

off to the north. “One of them’s Harper, I think, to judge from the shuff

out the B

pointed off to the east. “I think he wanted to

☆

rigadier thought it had happened more recently, possibly as a result of a lightning strike. The blackened remains of fairly large bushes stood within the

ions said that he should have come with a couple of men in case of trouble, but he thought the chances of the cottage actually being occupied were small. There were no trade routes or large towns within fifty miles, nothing that a ga

cover to watch the building for a few minutes. No horses tethered outside, not on his side at least. No sign that the undergrowth had been trampled down recently. No smoke rising into the sky. No sounds above the gentle sighing of the wind and

o have survived, but the inner door connecting the still intact eastern half of the building with the fire gutted western stood half open, allowing him to see part of the floor and the far wall. There was no movement th

lly scorched by fire, the rest warped and half rotted and with the remains of a coat of paint flaking and peeling away. As he approached the door, though, he was brought up short by a d

ome kind of accident, thrown from a horse or something. He'd crawled in here to die, knowing no help would come for him and that he faced a slow death from starvation. He'd kno

tiny globules of transparent flesh that split off and wriggled away in search of small, damp cracks in which to make a new life. The traveller had hoped that some of them would be adopted by worms and beetles and begin the long climb back up the ladder of life. Some of them might even become hu

eeds growing in the light slanting in through the empty window. He saw that the light was growing dim and red as the sun dropped towards the horizon and decided that the time had co

n, while Cotton was cutting up another haunch they’d cooked earlier into thin strips. The rest of the deer lay nearby, still waiting to be cooked, while Cotton scraped

e first to see him. “Come on in, Brigadier!” he called out.

ded Smith. “Got a nice bi

Malone as the Brigadier reached him. ”I didn't l

A nice big bit f