Chapter 4

With the addition of Vedeya a certain balance was restored to the travelers. The girls chummed up more, forcing a certain camaraderie between John and Tuk. This kind of male bonding was a very good thing for Tuk, something he had been missing, and had started to instinctively seek out from the moment he had first heard that John existed. Zithrusa also benefited from having a female confidante, something which John recognized and reluctantly accepted. He fell more into the role he had been cast as, and relaxed to being the crew, rather than captain. It was his familiar role after all.

They had a nice breakfast with the Raja, and then packed up their gear and rode out. Zithrusa had some waterproof silk panels by now, and it was only the work of a few hours that late afternoon to sew them into a tent for Vedeya. The color was plain white, which was actually quite attractive. It was a pleasing camp, with the purple, rose, and lily tents. Vedeya was already proving her worth, questioning the locals as to the knowledge of rubber sap and of the steel refineries. South, was the general consensus.

Part of the problem was that John wouldn't recognise a rubber tree if he saw one. He did know that they shouldn't be cut more than one third of the way around the circumference of the trunk to avoid harming the tree, in a downward angle to allow the sap to run into a waiting container, and that the cut had to be reopened every so often to keep the sap flowing. He supposed that the tree had evolved this as a way of making things a sticky mess for any attackers, and while it was a sound tactic against insects or birds, it wasn't of much use against humans who wanted the sticky sap produced. He hoped that humans had already found a use for rubber sap, as it would make his quest much easier.

Tuk was growing into his role well. He was used to big decisions affecting an entire Empire, but not accustomed to making day to day decisions or interacting with others as more or less equals. He didn't know how to relate to Vedeya, as she was quietly deferential towards him, but confident and assured when acting as translator. She laughed and conspired with Zithrusa, even joked and kidded with John, but she hid behind a mask of formality with Tuk.

She started to teach Zithrusa a little of the head position and eye movement communication of the women of this land, and it was not any harder than when Wong had taught her the Fan. A few simple head movements, glances, and how fast a blink was could convey an enormous amount of information.

It was perfect for a male dominated culture where the women were not supposed to speak, and Zithrusa wondered what had taken its place in her own culture. She just guessed that her own people's women spoke anyway, just not in front of strangers or during negotiations. After all, what had she taught John to observe and follow, if not an unspoken language? Perhaps it was just so much a natural part of her that she wasn't aware of it unless she had to teach it to someone else, or learn it.

As they went further south, away from the mountains, the underbrush thinned out, and they could all relax somewhat. The horses gave a snort of disgust for the terrifying time they had endured, then mostly forgot about it, as horses are likely to do. With the more open jungle, John felt more comfortable hunting, and brought in small pig-like spotted creatures, and once a large python. It was good roasted, and once the others tried the flaky white flesh, so like fish in texture, yet tasting like chicken, they fell to with gusto, despite any previous reservations.

John tanned the skin, and added a snakeskin vest to replace his sheepskin one which it had grown too hot to wear. He didn't think silk went with his barbarian image. They had to be careful to not cook meat too near a village, as some populations were disapproving of the eating of the flesh of animals, due to their belief that the dead came back in the form of animals. John could understand such an attitude given such a belief. They eschewed furs, and wore cotton garments.

If the animal wasn't killed, they didn't mind wool, felt, eggs or milk. Many villages had large bovines, cousins to the auroch that John had slain, which were allowed to wander at will, and used to pull a plough or cart at times. The large animals seemed mild natured, and John supposed given the treatment they received they had now cause to be otherwise.

As they went southwards, they encountered a large group of armed men, camped beside the trail. They were well maintained, having almost uniform arms and clothing, but acted more like a large family than an army. One of the men with the largest blackest beard that any of them had ever seen, had them brought before him, and Vedeya translated his words.

"One of you must show your honor, that we know you are not planning mischief in our lands." He spoke. Vedeya also said that he was one of the Janjua Rajput, a warrior tribe who were very big on honor, and protecting the innocent and punishing the wicked. John had thoughts about the knights of the round table, and wondered if the descendants of this honorable tribe had formed any secret societies which lasted until his own time. He waited on Tuk's response.

"I will answer for the honor of my group." Said Tuk honorably taking the responsibility to himself. He hadn't been there when the warlord had made the challenge to the caravan, but this was an entirely different situation, despite the similarities. This was about honor, not machismo. In this case, it wasn't about if you won or lost, but how honorably you played the game.