'Arridi troopers,' Umar said, recognising the remnants of the uniforms they wore. Will noticed that none of the men wore boots, although they had torn cloth from their cloaks and shirts to wrap around their feet for protection. There was barely more than a mouthful each in the water skin and the distribution was being carefully overseen by a young man who still wore a lieutenant's insignia. The group might be ragged and close to exhaustion, but it was obvious they had maintained their discipline. Will wasn't certain but the officer looked vaguely familiar. He thought he might have been one of Selethen's men.
The three riders had carried extra water skins back with them and these were quickly distributed. The lieutenant moved towards Umar and made the traditional greeting gesture.
'Thank you, Aseikh,' he began. He recognised Umar's badge of rank, the triple strand of horsehair rope that bound his kheffiyeh. 'I'm Lieutenant Aloom of the – '
Umar stopped him with a gesture and passed him his own water skin. The young man's voice was dry and croaking. 'Drink first, Lieutenant,' he told him. 'The talking will be easier after that.'
Gratefully, the officer raised the water skin to his mouth and drank. Will noticed that even though he must have been parched, he sipped only small amounts of the water, drinking slowly so as not to overwhelm his body with a sudden flood of moisture. The people of Arrida maintained excellent water discipline, he realised, remembering how desperately he had tried to gulp the water he was given when Umar found him.
It was close to the tenth hour of the morning, which was the time Umar would usually call a halt for the first rest period. He signalled to the others to dismount and swung down from his saddle.
'We'll camp here,' he said. 'The Arridi can use the rest period to recover.'
Lieutenant Aloom had quenched his thirst now and told them of the Tualaghi ambush and the ensuing battle; how Halt and the others had been taken prisoner while he and his men had been turned out into the desert by Yusal, without boots and with a bare minimum of water. That had been two days ago.
'You've kept thirty men alive and marching with just two water skins?' Umar queried. There was a note of respect in his voice.
The lieutenant shrugged. 'They're good troops,' he said. 'They understood the need for discipline.'
'They have a good officer,' Will said. He'd been tempted to interrupt the lieutenant immediately and ask for news of his friends. But he saw that the man was close to exhaustion and thought it better to let him tell his tale in his own time. The lieutenant stared at him for a moment before recognising him. When the war party had set out from the oasis, Will had adopted Bedullin clothes – baggy trousers, a long flowing shirt and cloak and, of course, a kheffiyeh to cover his head and face. But the longbow and quiver slung over his back were unmistakable.
'You're the one they call Will!' Aloom said. 'We thought you would be dead by now!'
Will smiled. 'Glad you had such faith in me,' he said. Then the smile faded. 'Are Halt and the others all right? Is Evanlyn safe?'
Aloom nodded. 'They were safe when we left. Yusal talked about ransom, I think. The girl will be looked after. Chances are he'll want to sell her as a slave and nobody wants to buy a disfigured girl slave. The men won't be so lucky. They'll be beaten, I would expect.'
'I agree,' Umar said. He turned to Will. 'They'll be uncomfortable but it won't be too bad. There's a harsh practicality to it all. Yusal won't allow them to be badly hurt. It would slow them down. The lieutenant is right about the girl, too. If there's one thing the Tualaghi are good at, it's looking after their investments.'
'Aseikh, may I ask, what are your plans?' the lieutenant asked. He glanced into the distance, where he could see the main party of Bedullin approaching. His keen eyes took in the fact that the group consisted of fighting men only, no women or children.
'We're going after the Tualaghi,' Will told him. 'Aseikh Umar and his people have agreed to help me rescue my friends.'
'And Wakir Seley el'then?' the lieutenant asked.
Umar nodded confirmation. 'The Wakir is an old comrade. I don't plan to leave him in Yusal's grubby hands.'
They had been sitting in the narrow patch of shade thrown by the wadi's bank. Aloom scrambled to his feet now, with a new light of energy in his eyes.
'Then let us come with you!' he said. 'My men and I have a score to settle with those cursed Tualaghi! And I promised my lord that we would return!'
Umar frowned. 'Your men are exhausted – and half dead from thirst,' he said doubtfully. But Aloorn was shaking his head before he finished.
'They're fit and in good condition. Let them rest overnight with food and plenty of water. They'll be ready to travel by tomorrow morning, I swear it.'
'You're unarmed,' Will pointed out.
Aloom shrugged. 'Surely your men can spare a few daggers? Most Bedullin carry more than one. And once the battle starts, every Tualaghi you kill will provide weapons for one of my soldiers.'
Will and Umar exchanged a glance. 'It would be handy to have an extra thirty trained fighting men,' Will pointed out. Then he frowned. 'But how will they keep up with us? They're barefoot and walking.'
Umar dismissed the problem with a brief shake of his head. 'They can ride double with my men,' he said. 'There's only thirty of them. We can rotate them among the force so no horse has to carry double for too long.'
Aloom had followed the discussion between them eagerly, his eyes swinging from one to another as they spoke. Now he raised a hand and spoke tentatively.
'One thing,' he said. 'Four of my men are wounded. We've been carrying them. They're not fit for travel or a battle.'
Umar weighed the problem briefly. He liked the idea of having more fighting men under his command and he knew the Arridi troopers would give a good account of themselves. To him the answer was obvious.
'We'll leave two of my men to look after them,' he said, thinking aloud. 'We can leave some water with them but we'll need most of what we have. There's a small soak half a day's ride to the east. It will provide enough water for half a dozen men. One of my men can fetch water while the other stays here with them. If we're successful, we'll pick them up on the return trip.'
He considered his own statement for a second or two, then nodded. They'd lose the evening travel period – five hours. And he'd weaken his force by two men. But in return, he'd gain twenty-six trained soldiers. Better yet, they were soldiers who had a score to settle with the Tualaghi. It was a good trade-off, he thought.
'We'll camp here through the rest of today and tonight,' he said. 'Your men will have food and all the water they need. Tell them to be ready to travel four hours before dawn.'
Aloom smiled grimly. 'They'll be ready,' he said.
Chapter 38
The northern massif loomed over them, row after row of cliffs and hills climbing eventually to a plain high above. The open desert had given way to a narrow road, running between rocky outcrops and cliffs and angling upwards through the first foothills. At an elevation a hundred and fifty metres above the desert floor, there was a level section cut by nature into the sheer walls of the cliffs, cutting back to run in a rough north – south alignment. The town of Maashava stood there.
The town was a market centre for the Arridi farmers who lived and worked in the foothills and the plains below the massif. Its normal population was around five hundred, but it grew to eight or nine hundred in market weeks, when herdsmen and farmers came in from outlying areas and neighbouring hill villages to trade their goods.
It was a perfect temporary base for the Tualaghi warriors – large enough to provide accommodation for them and forage for their animals, and well stocked with foodstuffs brought into the market and stored in the town's warehouses.