the Walking Drum (1984) (8 page)

The tavern's common room was low-raftered and shadowed but crowded by men from all the ports: from Alexandria, Venice, Aleppo, and Constantinople. The tables were long and lined with benches. I found an empty place and ordered a tuna fried in olive oil, a loaf, and a bottle.

Across from me was a lean and one-eyed sailor with a savage face. He lingered unhappily over an empty glass. "It is dry weather ashore," I said, "fill your glass." I pushed the bottle toward him.

He filled, then lifted, his glass."Yol bolsun!" he said.

"Your language is strange," I said.

"My people were born on the steppes, far to the east and north. The words are a greeting, but sometimes a toast. They mean 'May there be a road!' "

"I shall drink to that," I said, and we drank together.

"Long ago," I said, "a Greek told me of the steppes, of far grass plains where fierce warriors rode, and of a land still farther called Cathay."

"He was a knowing man. You travel far?"

"As far as necessary."

"I am Abaka Khan, a king among my people." He smiled with sudden humor. "A small king, but still a king."

"I am Mathurin," I said, "with another name better left unspoken for the time."

"A man's name is his own."

"You are far from home."

"Ah." He shrugged, looked into his empty glass, and I refilled it.

"You look upon a man," he said, "who has been a king and a slave, a warrior and a sailor, a fugitive and a rescuer."

"I have been nothing," I said, "but there is tomorrow."

A voice was raised in drunken argument. "Dead! I tell you Kerbouchard is dead!"

"I do not believe it," another said.

"There will never be another Kerbouchard."

"I will not believe he is dead," the second man insisted stubbornly.

"He lay upon his back, eyes wide open to the sun. I say it who saw him, a gaping hole in his chest and blood staining red the water about him."

"When I was young," I prompted, "I heard tales of this Kerbouchard."

"Whatever was said was less than the truth," the second man said. "I say it, who sailed with him! Oh, a good man! A fair man! An extra share for all when Kerbouchard commanded."

Eating my tuna and bread, I listened to the fine talk, the home from the sea talk of ships and men and fights and blood and loot and women and the sound of oars and flapping sails. Among it all, again and again, the name of Kerbouchard. The Turk watched me, and suddenly he said, "I knew him, too, and that other name of yours? I believe I know it."

"Do not speak it here."

"A name is a name"-he shrugged-"only some names have a ring to them, like Kerbouchard!"

"He was trapped in a cove when the sun rose," a man was saying, "and there were five vessels. They closed in from both sides, shearing his oars and boarding him. They swept his deck with arrows, then with the sword."

"He lives," the second man insisted. "A lion is not to be slain by jackals."

"Do you call Abd-al-Ala a jackal?"

Ordering another bottle, I glanced across the room and saw a beggar in a corner by the door, a beggar with the money to buy a bottle. Where had I seen him before?

He did not look my way, yet I was sure he had been. Suddenly the room seemed close. Tasting my wine, I saw a door open at the side, and a slave came in, followed by a breath of cool night air.

Abaka Khan's eyes followed mine when I again glanced at the beggar. "It is a thing I could do for you," he suggested, "small payment for the wine."

"When I give wine there is no payment." Some men had arisen cutting off the beggar's view of me. "Take the bottle," I said, "andyol bolsun!"

Swiftly, I was gone, taking the door through which the slave entered.

A moment for the door to open and close, another to let my eyes adjust. A narrow alley that debouched upon a steep hill above the harbor. From whom was I escaping? I knew not, but I knew the smell of trouble.

It was time to leave Cadiz. What I needed now was a horse. Down the hill I went to where the harbor waters were, and a wall. Following the wall, I found a narrow gate and a guard whose attention was distracted by a coin. Scattered outside were merchants and travelers awaiting daybreak and the opening gates. Several fires were still burning, and I crossed to one of them, then paused to study the faces for those which seemed honest. Loosening my sword and dagger, I went up to the fire. Two men were there, a graybeard and a smooth-faced young man. They looked up at me.

"You have horses," I said, "and I need one."

"You travel late."

"If I do not travel late, I may not travel at all."

"Horses are never cheap."

Over a cup of mint tea we talked of many things, and bargained here and there. Perhaps I bargained well, for I remembered Shir Ali and things he had said. Would I ever see him again? Or Abaka Khan? How many are the lives we meet and pass!

An hour before daylight I rode from their camp astride a dapple-gray. The horse was a Barb, a fine animal, almost black.

When the money from the ship's sale was divided I found myself with five hundred gold dinars, and sewn into my garments by my own hand were two fine emeralds, two rubies, a blue sapphire, and three small diamonds.

Buying the Barb, I bought also a bow and a quiver of arrows. Yet traveling alone was foolhardy, and I hoped to attach myself to some group who wished to add to their strength.

The beggar worried me. That he had followed me from the port there was no doubt. He had been nearby when I bade good-bye to Selim ... why? Who was he? Did he act upon his own, or was he serving someone else? From the shelter of brush on a hillside I watched the day's travel begin. My concealment was excellent and gave me opportunity to observe those who were upon the road.

A merchant passed with ten camels and several mounted men, then a dozen soldiers in spiked helmets and coats of mail rode by. A cart came along drawn by oxen and guarded by two mounted men, then came a motley, rough-seeming group. Two of these detached themselves from the others and took shelter on the hillside right below me, hiding themselves there. They settled down to observing the passersby.

Suddenly their talked stilled. A new party of travelers appeared, a tall man in black riding a richly caparisoned mule, with three retainers also on mules. All were armed, yet they lacked the bearing of fighting men. There were two pack mules also, yet the interest of the watchers below centered less upon their burdens than upon the man in black.

"It is John. It is John of Seville!"

When the small group had gone on along the narrow road, one of the two observers mounted and rode over the hill, passing close enough for me to see him well-a squat, powerful man with a greasy skin and uncombed hair. He was heavily armed. The second man remained a little longer, then went down to the high road to follow John of Seville.

The Greek who was my tutor had talked of John. He was a converted Jew who worked with Raymond of Toledo in translating Arab classics into Latin and Castilian. He was a famous scholar and a man of influence.

My father was a man who respected knowledge, and our home had been a stopping place for travelers. Over the wine at night there had been much good talk of scholars and seekers after truth. My father's interest had been whetted by his travels as well as his occasional contact with the wise men of Alexandria, Rome, Athens, and Moorish Spain.

My father was dead.

Hating the thought, I had almost come to accept it. Yet the man who would not believe Kerbouchard was dead had more faith than I. It was his faith against the knowledge of the other, yet did that man actually know Kerbouchard? He had spoken of seeing my father lying dead, and what could I place in the balance against that?

If he was dead, then I must return to Armorica and crush the Baron de Tournemine by myself, this man who destroyed my home and killed my mother and our retainers, this man must die.

There was no law to punish him, nor anyone but myself to see him pay for his crimes. I, Mathurin Kerbouchard, who was alone, I would see Tournemine die by my own blade.

Alone I was, but he who stands alone is often the strongest. By standing alone he becomes stronger and remains strong.

It was well that I felt so, for I was indeed alone. Trusting in my strong right arm and my wits might all be very well, but I had so much to learn and knew not if either the arm or the wit was sufficient.

The world into which I had been born was a world in turmoil. With the collapse of the Roman empire, the luxury and elegance of the world died also. Cities fell to ruin; aqueducts went dry, and unprotected fields returned to weeds and eventually to grass. For several hundred years Europe was a dangerous place in which to travel, infested by brigands or the ignorant, half-savage peasantry who slaughtered travelers and appropriated their belongings. Warlike monks raided caravans or demanded tribute from villages. Often they fought with the nobles who were no more than titled brigands such as Tournemine.

Few men in Christian Europe could read or write, fewer even appreciated the importance of knowledge. The Christian countries had become dark seas of ignorance and superstition with only here and there a light of learning to provide a fitful glow.

After the deluge of blood and victory that carried the Arabs across Asia and North Africa into Spain and Sicily, there came a flood of enlightenment. From Alexandria came translations of the Greek classics, followed by the music, art, and medical knowledge of the Greeks, the Persians, and the Arabs.

Persian and Indian scholars found a warm welcome at the courts of the caliphs, and when the Umayyads were succeeded by the Abbasids, Arab civilization entered its golden age.

In Europe books were few and priceless. Peter de Nemours, Bishop of Paris, on his departure for the Crusades presented to the Abbey St. Victor his "great library," consisting of just eighteen volumes. At the same time the Caliph al-Hakam, in Cordoba, possessed a library of four hundred thousand volumes.

Within my home, thanks to my father's travels, the atmosphere was different. We were not Christian and so were uninfluenced by the monks, for much of Brittany was still pagan.

Traveling monks as well as others were always welcome in our home and many a lively discussion took place around our table, so I knew of John of Seville and Raymond of Toledo.

Now I had seen him, but unless I was mistaken he was about to be robbed, murdered, or both. It was no business of mine, and I would do well to stay out of it, yet I knew I could not.

The sun was warm upon the hills, and I followed the road cheerfully. My Barb was an intelligent animal, and I held him back to conserve his energy for what might lie ahead. Yet as night drew near I began to close the gap, fearing I might be too far behind to help if an attack did come.

Before me lay a dense and wind-barbered forest, dark and tangled. A dim path led off into the woods, and it seemed to offer a cutoff that might put me ahead of John's party.

Turning quickly, I followed it, my sword ready for instant use. I went down a grassy slope and into the trail once more. Glancing back, I glimpsed three men staring after me. Had they meant to intercept me?

Drawing up beside the way, I let the party of John of Seville overtake me. As they drew near, they bunched as if for defense, although I was a man alone.

"Greetings, O Father of Wisdom! May your shadow never grow less!"

He was an oldish man with gray hair and a keen, inquisitive face, high cheekbones, and an aquiline nose. "You speak Arabic but with a strange accent. What are you? Who are you?"

"A man who travels, who would give you warning."

"Warning of what?"

"There is a party of men before you and another coming up behind, and I believe they mean you harm."

Those who accompanied him were but a fat old man and two boys, although one of the boys was tall and strong. "They mean to rob us?"

"It is my belief." He pondered the answer, obviously uncertain what course to adopt. "The man behind who watches us? We can wait for him and kill him. It would be one the less."

"Is it so easy then, to kill?"

"I prefer killing to being killed. One may talk of peace only with those who are peaceful. To talk of peace with him who holds a drawn sword is foolish unless one is unarmed, then one must talk very fast, indeed."

"We will seize him. Perhaps we can learn their plan." At a curve in the road we drew off to one side, concealing ourselves in the brush. John and the fat man prepared to block the trail. Yet then there was a time of waiting, and John looked over at me. "You are Frankish?"

"A Celt. From Armorica, in Brittany."

"I know of it. You are a landless man?"

"My home was taken from me. I seek my father who was lost at sea."

"And now?"

"I go to Cordoba to see the library there."

He looked at me more thoughtfully. "Do you read, then?"

"Latin," I said, "and some Arabic."

"But there are few books in your country." So I spoke of the books I had read, and we talked until the boy across the road hissed a warning.