第16节

find were even more doltish than usual and

could offer no assistance even when their spirits had been warmed with

a cup of sake.

On the fourth day, numb with the cold, hungry and ill-tempered, Izo

turned back towards Benton Harbour.

His patient escort, hardly able to believe their luck, followed in

grateful silence, buoyed up by visions of steaming tubs, hot food, warm

beds and glowing charcoal braziers. Their expectations of an early

return to 'civilization' were shattered when Izo, acting on a sudden

impulse, turned left and cantered off along an ancient hardway which

the cutting wind had .partially cleared of snow.

The three-man escort exchanged weary glances then followed with sinking

hearts, tugging the reluctant pack-mules behind them. Head down, face

averted, man and beast leant their right shoulders into the wind as it

tore thin white streamers from the razor-edged crests of the drifts and

sent them snaking across their path. On they went for the rest of the

day, covering some twenty-five miles - much of it on foot - urging

their exhausted animals through the more densely-covered sections where

the snow was often thigh-deep.

As darkness fell, Izo's party sought the shelter of a clump of pine

trees that stood huddled together in the freezing wastes like

beleaguered sentinels. Cutting branches to provide the tethered horses

and mules with a warm footing, they tied blankets to their backs, fed

them the last of the hay then set up the communal tent at the foot of

the innermost tree.

Supper consisted of balls of cold rice and meat washed down with hot

green tea cooked over a small charcoal firepot. Izo sent one of the

soldiers out to make a last check on the animals then, on his return,

poured a small cup of sake for each man as a nightcap and announced his

firm decision to start out for Benton Harbour at first light. Since

their rations were almost exhausted and their search had so far failed

to turn up one single piece of useful information his companions were

ready to believe that this time he meant it.

Warming their feet and hands over the embers, they slid into their

fur-lined sleeping bags, pulled the hood tops tight around their faces

and dreamt of home: of boughs heavy with pink cherry blossom,

sun-dappled meadows, the quicksilver flash of fish rising from the

mirrored surface of a lake, the laughter of children as they lay

sprawled on top of a wagon-load of sweet-smelling hay, the autumn sun,

a vast red disc, sinking through a golden haze, the scent of pollen and

wild flowers lying heavy on the still evening air.

On the morning of the fifth day, they awoke to discover they had passed

the night less than a hundred paces from another encampment: a curious

structure which betrayed its alien origin even under a thick coating of

snow. Arming their bows, the two soldiers approached cautiously. Izo,

brandishing a sword that had never drawn blood while in his hands,

called upon the occupants to show themselves. His imperious command in

Japanese was unlikely to be understood, but the sound of his voice

breaking the stillness ought to have produced some response.

Nothing moved, no one stirred.

Covered by the drawn bows of the two sea-soldiers, Izo and his servant

made a circular tour of inspection and found themselves confronted by

the snow-covered remains of a straight-winged vehicle which lay tilted

on one side. The body of the vehicle, whose width was less than the

span of his outstretched hands contained a windowed compartment, one

side of which had been crushed against the nearby tree.

Izo made a cursory examination of the snow-covered interior of the

compartment from a safe distance, noted the coverless, empty storage

space that lay behind it then walked round to the other side.

The downward-pointing wing had been turned into a make-shift shelter

using branches cut from the surrounding pine trees. Izo ordered his

servant to check that it was empty then followed him in. Smaller

branches had been laid inside to make a floor. A few charred pieces of

wood lay around a small soot-covered metal container.

There were several similar open-topped containers which, from their