Despite the success that Bunduki had had when dealing with the hyena which had threatened his adoptive cousin in the other clearing, he did not attempt to frighten away the herd of gaur by charging at them. Such behavior when dealing with Bos (Bibos) Gaur us would have been as dangerous and foolhardy as it would have been in Africa to attack the enormous Syncerus Coffer Coffer of the plains or the forest-dwelling S. C. Nanus.
Instead, the blond giant and Dawn Drummond-Clayton, who was equally aware of the danger, stood as still as if they had been turned to stone. Their complete lack of movement was all that saved them. At the end of three minutes, which seemed a great deal longer to the motionless pair of human beings, the herd bull gave a low snort. Turning, it walked across the clearing and into the trees followed by the rest of the gaur.
‘Why do they always look so much bigger when you come across them unexpectedly and at close range?’ Dawn inquired, after the gaur had gone from sight.
‘That’s because you’re a poor, defenseless woman,’ Bunduki explained, ready to take evasive action in the event of reprisals. ‘Now a big, brave—’
‘Male chauvinist pig,’ the girl finished for him and resumed her tracking before the blond giant could counter the charge.
The gaur had obscured the tracks for some distance, but Dawn and Bunduki had their bearings and knew in which general direction to go. Having covered about half a mile and recognizing his surroundings, the blond giant assumed the role as guide. While he was confident that his adoptive cousin could lead them to their destination, he had the advantage of knowing where he had left Joar-Fane and At-Vee. Although Dawn pretended to believe they were lost, she was not in the least surprised when they came in sight of the man and girl they were seeking,
Looking at the big tree in which he had planned to spend the night with Joar-Fane, Bunduki was relieved to see that she and At-Vee were on the platform which—after the fashion of chimpanzees, gorillas and Mangani—he had constructed on a sturdy fork of the branches.
Coming to her feet as the blond giant and his adoptive cousin walked forward, the Telonga girl waved. Showing just as much pleasure, the burly hunter also waved and, using his spear for support, he levered himself erect. Catching hold of the vine that Bunduki had cut and left dangling to help her reach the platform, Joar-Fane began to climb down.
‘My, my!’ Dawn remarked, studying the other girl and then turning her gaze towards blond giant, ‘Now I know why you took so long to come and rescue me.’
There was good cause, if no justification, for the comment.
Although only five foot three inches in height, Joar-Fane was an exceptionally curvaceous young woman. Nor did her skimpy attire, a brief halter of black and white colobus monkey’s hide and a short skirt made from not over many twisted strands of grass, do anything to conceal the fact. Since Bunduki had last seen her, she had plaited a band from jungle blossoms which held back her long, straight black hair to show off her brown skinned, beautiful Polynesian features.
On the point of replying to his adoptive cousin’s remark, the blond giant saw something that drove all thought of it from his head. Even as Joar-Fane reached the ground and started to run forward, five shapes appeared from the nearby undergrowth. Covered in coarse brown hair, they had the short-necked, projecting faces of apes. However, while their broad shoulders and heavily muscled arms suggested that they travelled by brachiation, xxxii they ran in an upright posture on legs and feet better suited to bipedal movement at ground level. Far from puny, the largest of them would weigh around three hundred pounds, they lacked the massive bulk of gorillas and were much bigger than full-grown chimpanzees. Not that Bunduki imagined they were members of either species. The pieces of branches or tree roots they carried, some short and thick like clubs and others with a sharpened end to serve as rudimentary spears, supplied him with the clue to their identity.
There was no doubt about it, the creatures were Mangani.
To make matters worse, they appeared to be an all-male ‘bachelor’ group. There was sufficient sexual dimorphism xxxiii for the blond giant to be sure that no females were present. Nor in view of the similarity of sizes amongst the quintet, were they likely to be members of a single-family party. Which meant they were young bulls, driven out by their fathers and as yet unable to collect mates of their own. However, Bunduki did not think they were rushing towards Joar-Fane with that in mind. xxxiv They were after food and had similar omnivorous tastes to human beings—with a partiality for eating meat.
Becoming aware of her peril, Joar-Fane let out a shriek. Instead of running in Bunduki and Dawn’s direction, she swung around with the intention of returning and climbing up the rope. Missing her footing in her haste, she tripped and sprawled to the ground.
Some thirty yards away, the blond giant watched the leading Mangani raising his thick branch-club in both hands. Bunduki knew that, no matter how fast he ran, he could not reach the girl in time to prevent her attacker delivering what was likely to be a lethal blow.
Regretfully, the blond giant accepted that there was only one way in which he could handle the situation. On the previous occasion when he had been compelled to confront Mangani, he had been able to use his knowledge of their ways and his training in unarmed combat to assert a physical superiority over them. There was no time for him to try and do so in the present circumstances.
Yielding to the inevitable, Bunduki let go of the Mun-Gatah spear and shook the shield into its position of readiness. Even as he did so, he rocked back on his heels and swung his right arm to the rear. Forward it whipped, with the quick, almost effeminate-looking twist of the wrist that he had been taught by the melomhuki xxxv Kira-Kangano who had instructed him in the fighting arts of the Masai.
The m’kuki left the blond giant’s hand. As it flew through the air, the stiffening ridges on either side of the blade caused it to spin like a bullet being driven along the rifling grooves of a firearm. Travelling in a low arc, so swiftly that it made a low whistling noise, the blade took the Mangani just below the right armpit. Such was its velocity that it passed through and spitted the man-ape to the tree’s trunk.
As agony convulsed the stricken bull-Mangani, he flung aside the club instead of bringing it down on the defenseless girl. Giving a bubbling roar of mortal torment, he wrenched himself free. It was an involuntary gesture. Spinning around with hands closing ineffectually on the m’kuki’s shaft, he toppled lifeless to the ground.
Much as Bunduki hated the necessity to kill, he knew that the affair was still far from over. At-Vee had flung his spear in a desperate and unavailing attempt to save Joar-Fane. Seeing that it missed, he grabbed hold of the vine to descend. His right ankle was still wrapped in the moss and leaves which the little girl had applied to sooth the pain of the bad sprain he had suffered. Hindered by his injury, he would not be of great assistance in dealing with the remaining Mangani.
Snatching out his bowie knife, Bunduki went into action. The second and third biggest bulls turned towards him. Realizing that they could only obtain their meal by dealing with the big tar-mangani xxxvi they gave him their full attention. Spreading out, they rushed to meet him. The larger of the pair was moving fastest, as the established protocol of the group demanded, wielding a long and sharp tipped branch as a spear. However, keeping them under observation over the rim of his partially raised shield, the blond giant noticed that the other bull appeared to be finding something of greater interest than him.
The something was Dawn!
Like her adoptive cousin, the girl knew that they were faced with a fight which might have to be taken to the death. Seeing what he was doing, she did not hesitate to back him up. She had already dropped the impala’s two haunches and gathered up the Mun-Gatah spear. Despite having learned to throw a spear the same way as Bunduki, she had no intention of attempting to do so with an unfamiliar weapon and after so many years without indulging in regular practice. Instead, she grasped it in the fashion of a soldier carrying a rifle and bayonet at the ‘high port’.
When Bunduki bounded forward, Dawn charged at his side!
In his desperate desire to protect Joar-Fane, who was still sprawled face down on the ground, At-Vee was acting rashly. Strong as his arms undoubtedly were, they were not quite equal to the strain that he was putting upon them. Handicapped by his injured ankle, he could not use his legs as an aid to the grip of his fingers. So he found himself descending the vine somewhat more quickly than was his intention. Tightening his grasp, he bent his right leg and alighted on his left foot. He swayed, but thrust out his left hand to support himself against the trunk of the tree.
Even as the hunter’s right hand began to draw the weapon he carried on a loop at the right side of his belt, he realized that he had made a reckless mistake by coming down in such a fashion. Although Joar-Fane’s treatment and the rest had done a lot of good, his sprained ankle was still not up to strenuous activity. Yet there was likely to be plenty of it in the very near future. Having killed the first of the ‘Hairy Men’, Bunduki was going for the second and Dawn clearly meant to tackle the third. That still left the last pair to contend with. At-Vee did not know if he could do it, but was determined to try. If necessary he meant to sell his life dearly rather than see harm befall the girl he planned to marry.
Although the blond giant could guess what was diverting the third Mangani’s attention, he did not dare spare so much as a glance to make sure. With the second man-ape closing in so rapidly it was completely out of the question that he should look, or even to try to advise his adoptive cousin against her proposed line of action.
Snarling savagely as he bounded along, the big bull grasped his rudimentary spear in both fists. With his knuckles pointing upwards, he swung the weapon above his head. However, instead of waiting until he arrived within stabbing range, he hurled it at the approaching tar-Mangani. The attack might lack the skill and precision shown by Bunduki when dealing with Joar-Fane’s would-be murderer, but it was not to be despised nor treated lightly. Propelled by all the power of those massive shoulders and arms, the sharp point of the branch would inflict terrible damage if it came into contact with flesh and bone.
Watching the enormous creature as he was coming towards her, Dawn did not underrate her peril. Cumbersome as it looked, the thick, knobbly-ended piece of root was anything but harmless; particularly when it was being wielded by the kind of strength the bull-Mangani clearly possessed. For all that, she continued her advance.
Letting out an awesome bellow, the young man-ape prepared to deliver his favorite form of attack. He had no way of knowing that Dawn was a female. Nor would he have allowed consideration of her sex to dissuade him from his intention of killing her. To a Mangani, with the possible exception of a she of his own kind, every living creature outside of his immediate circle of acquaintances was an enemy and a potential source of meat. So, gauging the distance with his eyes, he whirled the club in the direction of the girl’s head.
Like a flash, as his assailant’s weapon was rushing towards him, Bunduki interposed his shield. The branch-spear flew true, but its spike met a convex surface that was capable of stopping or deflecting anything short of a metal-jacketed bullet from a high powered, magnum caliber rifle. Feeling the impact, he sensed rather than saw the missile glance off. Then, keeping the shield held before him, he hurled himself onwards with all the propulsive force his immensely strong legs could supply.
If the man-ape’s blow had landed, it would have crushed Dawn’s skull like the shell of an egg. However, the club had barely started to move when she swerved to her left. While approaching the Mangani, she had planned her strategy. So as to be ready to put it into effect, she had moved her hands until they were gripping the spear just below its head. Coming to a halt as soon as she was satisfied that her attacker could not hit her, she carried the spear upwards until it pointed above her shoulder and then she pivoted from the waist. Then she reversed direction and struck like the slaughter men in an old time Texas hide and tallow factory using a poleaxe on a longhorn steer. xxxvii
Taken aback by the way his usually effective tactic of hurling the branch-spear had failed, the man-ape was given no chance to recover. The blond giant crashed into him with the driving force of a battering ram and, for all his weight, knocked him backwards. Even as the Mangani crashed to the ground, Bunduki leapt over him. On landing, the big blond threw a glance in his adoptive cousin’s direction. What he saw assured him that he need have no fears for her welfare.
Unable to change his club’s downwards flight, or to prevent himself from advancing, the third bull-Mangam lumbered helplessly into trouble. The shaft of the girl’s spear hissed underneath his descending weapon. It met his solar plexus with a resounding ‘thwack!’. Splintering under the stresses created by the impact, the bamboo shaft was jerked from Dawn’s grasp. The breath gushed out of the Mangani’s lungs in an almost human bawl of agony. Opening his hands so that the club slipped harmlessly from his fingers, he clutched at his mid-section and doubled at the waist. His momentum caused him to reel a few more steps, on buckling legs.
Although the girl had lost her recently acquired weapon, she did not let it worry her. Even before she spun around to see the Mangani collapsing to his knees, she felt sure that he would not be troubling her for at least several seconds. Two leaping strides carried her to him. Placing her left foot in the centre of his back, she pushed with all her strength and he plunged on to his face. Bringing down her leg, Dawn slid the Randall knife from its sheath and hoped it would not be needed.
Bracing himself so that the majority of his weight was on his good ankle, At-Vee had moved until he was standing between Joar-Fane and the remaining pair of Mangani. Hoping that he would be able to wield it adequately in his incapacitated condition, he grasped the shilva’s handle in his right fist. The weapon resembled a czdkan, the war hammer used by late 16th and early 17th Century Polish horsemen. It had a two-foot long wooden handle topped with a small hammer-like head from which jutted a narrow, slightly curved, sharp pointed six-inch spike.
The hunter was so engrossed in keeping his balance and watching the two man-apes that he was unable to find out how his friends were faring. Instead, he concentrated all his attention on preparing to meet the attack which he felt sure was about to be launched.
Instead of advancing on At-Vee as he expected, the two young bulls were staring at their companions. As with most primate societies, they lived in a social group that was controlled by a rigidly enforced hierarchy. When they had emerged from their hiding place to attack their selected prey they had allowed their superiors to lead the way.
Seeing the dominant male, Fol-Ban, struck down in what to their limited intelligence was an incomprehensible manner, they had slowed their pace. When Bunduki’s charge sent the second of their group flying and Dawn felled the third, they came to a halt.
‘Help At-Vee with those two, Dawn!’ the blond giant commanded, having noticed the pair’s indecision and deduced what was causing it.
Knowing that there was no time to pretend she objected having orders given her, the girl did not reply. Instead, she darted to the hunter’s side. Behind them, Joar-Fane started to stand up. Seeing her rising, the two bulls moving restlessly and made somewhat querulous attempts at menacing growls.
‘Keep still, Joar-Fane!’ Dawn hissed without turning her head, hoping that the other girl would not panic. If she did, her fear might give the clearly worried man-apes the courage to attack. Despite her success with the first bull, Dawn knew that she might not be so fortunate if she had to take on another—even one of lower social status—while armed only with her knife.
The warning was not necessary. For all her impulsive nature, Joar-Fane was no coward. What was more, she had the advantage of having seen Bunduki quell a larger band of Mangani without assistance. So, in spite of the aura of almost supernatural mystery with which her people endowed the ‘Hairy Men’, she was confident that her friends could prevail against their attackers.
Recovering the breath he had lost as a result of the blond giant’s attack, the second man-ape lurched to his feet. Having done so, he turned his savage gaze towards the cause of his misfortunes. He was amazed and shocked by the way he had been treated. Nothing like it had happened to him before, except for the time his father had defeated and ejected him from the family group. The recollection caused him concern and misgivings over the possibility of having to tackle the strangely armed tar-Mangani.
‘Gu-Bab kill!’ the young male roared, adopting the traditional way of building up sufficient courage to attack and hoping his blustering threat might avert the need to do so. ‘Go, or Gu-Bab kill!’
‘Tar-Numa not afraid!’ Bunduki countered in the same guttural, almost grunting word sounds, throwing aside his shield. On his previous encounter with Mangani, he had used the name ‘Tar-Ard’—“White Lightning” as a suggestion of how quickly he could move; but now he unconsciously adopted the title which Dawn had given him. Looking straight into the young bull’s eyes, he went on, ‘Gu-Bab leave now, or Tar-Numa kill!’
Gu-Bab had never seen a human being, few of whom ever penetrated into the dense jungle which the Mangani generally occupied. So he continued to regard the blond giant’s party as a peculiar hairless tribe, possibly related to his own kind. Hearing the tar-Mangani’s reply made him decide that he had been correct. It also raised another, much more important matter.
How should Gu-Bab respond now that his challenge had been thrown back at him.
In the Mangani’s way of life, such a situation could only be dealt with in one of two ways. Gu-Bab did not find either of them appealing.
From his earlier experiences and the way that the previously dominant Fol-Ban had been killed, the young man-ape realized that he was up against somebody with exceptional fighting prowess. It was sufficiently impressive for him to have doubts about the wisdom of resuming the conflict. Unable to continue meeting the challenge in the blond giant’s piercing stare, he turned his head. Looking around at his companions, he decided that he could not count upon them for support. Whatever action he took, it would be on his own.
‘Go!’ Bunduki thundered, taking a step forward and bringing Gu-Bab’s attention back to him.
For a moment, the blond giant thought that the Mangani intended to refuse. If that happened, there was almost certain to be a fight, and he had no wish to kill or injure—which might mean the same thing eventually—Gu-Bab if it could be avoided. So he gave a lion-like roar and sprang forward in a threatening fashion. Instantly aware of the consequences if he showed defiance, Gu-Bab leapt to his rear. Having started to retreat, he turned and lumbered away as fast as his legs could carry him.
Seeing their current senior member put to flight, the two junior man-apes lost all idea of aggression. Clutching their weapons, they swung on their heels and darted back into the bushes. Nor, if the crashing and rustling of disturbed foliage proved anything, did they stop once they were out of sight. Dragging himself painfully to his feet, but still bent forward hugging at his solar plexus with both hands, the last of the Mangani saw what was happening. Deciding that discretion was the better part of velour, he too took a rapid departure.
Throwing back his head, Bunduki speeded the man-apes on their way by giving the thundering, triumphant victory roar of a bull-Mangani.