Chapter 10

Traveling on, they came to a city, well, a large town. At the gates were beggars, one of whom was dressed in yellow and orange robes, while the others were in tattered loin cloths if that, some so miserable they lacked even a turban. Vedeya said the robed mendicant was not a beggar as such, but a member of a religious cult who foreswore material goods (aside from the robes, a badge of office of sorts) and would rather food than alms, as long as there was no animal flesh in the food, and would spend or give away any alms given by nightfall. The cult required its members to exist day to day on the bounty of the grace of strangers and passersby. Amazingly, the cult was flourishing, and its members survived. John wondered if they really didn't keep back a coin here or there for lean times.

In the market place, they asked about latex saps, and there was an entire section devoted to the stuff! There were several distinct kinds, some which became hard and inflexible when heated, some which remained sticky and couldn't be cured, and one variety which cured but remained elastic. That was the kind John wanted. He asked about it, and found that they had traveled through the region producing it on their way down, but it wasn't the season for harvesting, and the harvesters were migrant workers, working deep in the jungle, of whom the local villagers knew little.

The harvesting season was on now, and for the favor of guarding the mule train, the travelers would be shown the way. They stocked up on supplies, and hoped their hardy horses would be able to follow the mule trails. It should be alright, with the ability to switch off onto fresh horses, and the light loads they carried. When they were ready, they reported to the teamster and his assistant, and set off into the deepest darkest jungles if India.

The teamster was telling them stories about the 'devil ghosts' that lived in this part of the jungle, wild pigs of monstrous size, in unnatural colors of pale blue, reddish brown, and dirty white. John made certain he had his pig spear with its cross-bar handy, and he made a few extras that night, for whoever else wanted them. They were taken up by the assistant and Zithrusa, who didn't want to depend on pokey style against a five hundred pound charging mass of muscle and razor sharp tusks.

The beasts were called 'devil ghosts' because of their uncanny sly intelligence, they seemed smart enough to lurk in ambush, and work in teams. They stalked travelers through the jungle, and seemed to make it a point to look for some weakness they could exploit. John dismounted his horse, thinking he could better defend on foot, and Tuk followed his example.

John sensed the presence of several stealthy beasts, and the horses did as well, their alert ears and noses twitching nervously. The first night, they built a large fire and kept it bright all night, having gone in well armed pairs to get the wood in daylight. They maintained vigilance, and so far nothing happened except for the expectation of attack.

It was around noon the next day, as they were crossing a broad shallow stream crossing the trail that a large boar charged out of the brush and at John who was the only one not mounted on that side of the mule trail. He leveled his pig spear, but there was nothing to brace it against, and he was knocked on his back and pushed through the mud, the spear managing to find the chest of the stout boar behind its lowered head, nose nearly touching the ground, and wide arced tusks, but only entering the muscular chest a few inches.

He maintained his grasp on the spear with both hands, and luckily the butt of the spear hit a tree before his head did, after he had been pushed through whipping brush and branches for fifteen feet, gathering weals and welts. The boar charged right up the spear at him, slathering and gnashing, stopped short by the cross-bar, John lying on his back nearly under the slowly expiring monster. Meanwhile, on the other side of the train, Tuk was also attacked, and he coolly held his ground, judged his moment, and removed the head from the beast with a perfectly timed slash. The ten inch long tusk ripped his loose fitting pants, but drew no blood. The remaining wild pigs faded back, to await another chance.

The two great beasts were left as they fell, no doubt to provide feasting for their cannibalistic brethren, as the teamster said the flesh was unclean, and would cause madness and bestial behavior if consumed. John supposed getting trichinosis or having pork tapeworms infesting one's brains could have a detrimental effect on one's behavior.

The boar who was nearly laying on John's legs as he lay on the ground, muddy on his back and welted on his face, was a reddish color, and was quite good looking for a wild pig, with longer legs than one would suppose, able to propel it at terrific speeds for short distances. The soft looking hair was interrupted by a bristly roach that ran from its forehead to two thirds of the way down its back. John thought the pigs had showed remarkable, if murderous intelligence.

The one that Tuk had dispatched was a pale blue, and had very sparse black hair except where the stubby black bristles formed the roach down its back. It was probably the beta male, and had charged in order to prove it was just as brave as the one which had knocked John on his ass. It was unfortunate for it that it tried something against Tuk and his sudden slash sword.