Vicinius turned to look him in the eye. “Then I ask you, what is he doing? What is so important that he must leave us this way?”
“Well…sometimes Hunter reads omens that the rest of us do not notice.”
“Omens?”
“Yeah, I think so.” Steve shrugged. “Not real often. But sometimes he just has to, uh, act on them.”
“Your friend is more than a little strange,” said Vicinius. “I like him, but he is quite strange.”
“Come on,” said Steve, hoping to change the subject. “We can follow him. Let’s go.”
As Hunter rode through the heavy forest, he radioed MC 3 again. He received no response, which did not surprise him. Jane no longer spoke to him directly, but her communicator was still transmitting. He heard the shouts of many men, the whinnying of horses, and the clanging of metal.
Before he got close enough to hear the sounds of struggle with his own hearing, rather than the communication link, the sounds of struggle coming over the radio stopped as well. For several moments, he heard only the clopping of horse’s hooves.
“They’re gone,” Jane muttered quietly. “Gene and I are okay. Right, Gene?”
“Yeah,” said Gene, his voice sounding distant in the background.
“Decurion,” Marcus ordered, his voice even fainter. “Give me an injury report.”
Hunter could hear the decurion respond, but the signal was now too faint even for him to interpret. He was deeply concerned about harm to any humans who would not have been injured without the presence of his team. For now, however, all he could do was hurry in their direction as fast as he could.
Before Hunter drew near the site of the attack, the source of the signal began to move, as Jane rode away with the patrol. Now that the sounds of battle no longer covered his voice, he did not dare speak to Jane again, nor could she say anything to him directly. However, she did continue a stream of small talk with Gene, which provided him with a clear, strong signal to follow. The Roman patrol had clearly changed direction; Hunter guessed that they were returning to the main body of Roman legions to avoid further trouble with hostile Germans.
Steve and Vicinius hurried after Hunter, but of course they had no chance of catching up until he stopped somewhere. When Hunter’s tracks began to curve in a new direction, Steve guessed that Jane and Gene had begun to move, but he had no idea where they were going. As his determined strides gradually faltered from weariness, Steve decided to take a break.
“Sorry, Vicinius.” He stopped near a fallen log. “I’m not used to this kind of mountain country. I have to rest for a few minutes.” He sat down.
“Well…of course.” Vicinius reluctantly joined him on the log. “Not too long, eh? Hunter is still gaining ground on us even while we’re walking.”
“All right. Not too long.” Steve was sure that either Jane and Gene were in trouble or else MC 3 had been found; nothing else would have taken Hunter away like that. In either case, the imminent German rebellion might have influenced events. “Vicinius, do you know of any danger that might be out in the forest today?”
“The forest always has dangers-an angry wild boar, a mother bear protecting her cubs in the spring… in winter, a hungry wolf.” He shrugged. “Even a challenge from another warrior, maybe over a woman.”
“Uh-yeah. Well, I meant…” He trailed off, not sure what to say.
“You are wondering what omens Hunter saw?”
“I wish I knew, yeah.” Steve grinned. “But that’s not what I meant. We know the Roman legions are marching near here. I was wondering if trouble is on the way with them.”
“The Romans brought trouble with them a generation ago,” said Vicinius casually, looking away from Steve at nothing in particular.
“I guess you know they came to Gaul long before that.”
“So I have heard.”
“But the Gauls are used to the Romans now. Many even like the peace and prosperity they have brought.”
“The Gauls are…not strong enough. With respect to your masters, of course. Hunter is a fine man.”
Steve suppressed a grin. “He’s quite a…specimen, all right. But I have the feeling that the Cherusci tribe are not as tame as the Gauls, where Romans are concerned. What do you say?”
“Yes! Yes, we Cherusci are becoming impatient. I will grant you that.” Vicinius turned to look directly at Steve. “You are not a Gaul, but your masters are. They are my friends, but perhaps they are too fond of Romans for my own taste.”
“Trouble is starting, isn’t it?” Steve knew it was, of course, but in order to discuss the subject with Vicinius, he had to induce Vicinius to acknowledge the fact.
“Prince Arminius has been visiting each village for the past week or two,” said Vicinius. “He has been our leader in dealing with the Romans.”
“And?”
“He is rousing all the Cherusci villages. The men of my village will be moving soon. I will join them.” His voice lowered. “I am telling you this as a friend. Maybe you can keep your masters away from trouble when it starts.”
“I appreciate your trusting me.”
Vicinius stood up. “I believe I can judge whether to trust a man or not. Let’s go.”
“Good idea.” Steve got up and followed him through the forest.
16
When Wayne finally saw Ishihara walk around a large tree to meet him, he felt that he had found his only friend in the world. In this time period, in fact, that was true. He grinned with relief, but stifled an impulse to slap the robot on the back.
“I’m glad to see you,” said Wayne.
“You are well?”
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
“Good. What are your instructions now?”
“Well, you know who got MC 3 from you. Where is he now?” Wayne sat down against the base of a tree. “I’m worn out from walking all day.”
“He is with a party of native Cherusci warriors led by a young man named Julius. They come from the village of Prince Arminius, the leader of the Cherusci.”
Wayne tensed. “Yeah, I know that village. They didn’t like me much.”
“What do you suggest?”
“Hunter’s team is still trying to reunite. I want to find MC 3 and take him home while Hunter is distracted.”
“I agree. However, the only way to find him is to return to the outskirts of their village and wait for them to go home for the night.”
“Why? Can’t we find them out in the forest some. where, instead?”
“It is too late in the day now to locate them,” said Ishihara. “Besides, I have no idea of where they would be, except by tracking them. But we can rely on their need to return home by sundown.”
“I know roughly where they were not too long ago,” Wayne said quickly. “Maybe we can intercept them. I don’t want to go anywhere near that village again.”
Wayne tapped Steve’s lapel pin. “I can monitor the radio communication between members of Hunter’s team. A bunch of Germans attacked a Roman patrol while MC 3 was with them. They were over that way.” He pointed. “From the strength of the signal, I don’t think they were too far.”
“Excellent,” said Ishihara. “After a bout of combat, they will probably have returned early to tend their wounded or dead. They may be there already. I suggest we move in the direction of the village of Julius and Prince Arminius, despite your concern. I shall remain with you, or very close, to protect you under the First Law.”
“Well…I guess if that’s where MC 3 is, I don’t have much choice. But I don’t want to be captured by those German warriors again.”
“I understand,” said Ishihara. “I shall arrange a small fire and a lean-to for your comfort tonight, at a safe distance from the village. When you are comfortable, I shall attempt to observe MC 3 in the village this evening. I shall look for another opportunity to take custody of him, but I shall consult with you before taking any action.”
“I still have some dried packaged food, but I’ll need water.”
“In this constant drizzle, I can provide enough water with no problem.”
“Okay.” Wayne got up wearily. “I can hardly wait to walk some more. You know the way?”