第43节

South Dakota) in three months'

time.

Meanwhile, the five-week truce which came into effect during the

trading period was to be extended through the summer and would embrace

any clans of the D'Troit and C'Natti who were prepared to recognize The

Chosen as the heralds of Talisman and pledge their allegiance to the

Plainfolk.

In his guise as a simple warrior from the Clan m'call, Steve took no

part in the discussions and his interest in the emerging alliance was,

at best, academic. His overriding concern was the health of Mr Snow.

The M'Call delegation were also concerned but not to the same extent.

They were governed by the fatalism that coloured the Mute view of

death. After his experiences on the overground, Steve was increasingly

drawn to the idea of a continuing cycle of existence, but in his

present predicament the prospect of Mr Snow re-entering the world at

some future date in a new body offered little consolation. What he

needed was Mr Snow up on his feet and able to call down some heavy shit

in the here and now.

As a wordsmith, Mr Snow could be replaced by Cadillac. He did not have

the Old One's stature but even Mr Snow had been a young man once.

Cadillac's appointment would give him standing within the clan and in

time he would grow into the job, but he was not a summoner. There was

only one person who could replace the Storm-Bringer - Clearwater.

In urging the clan elders to do their utmost to keep Mr Snow alive,

Steve described the powers Clearwater had revealed during their escape

from Ne-Issan - powers that might one day surpass even those of the Old

One.

Aroused by his tales of derring-do the elders promised to do all they

could to help rescue her from Red River - even if Mr Snow died. If it

was the will of Talisman, they assured him, the whole clan would lay

down their lives for her.

A nice gesture but one which would make her rescue a totally pointless

operation. In trying to sound helpful, the elders were blinding

themselves to the fact that, without Mr Snow's presence and the use of

his power Clearwater could not be rescued. In his many arguments with

Cadillac, Steve had hammered on about not relying on earth-magic but

this time their lives depended on it.

Only a summoner with the power and presence of Mr Snow could give them

the edge they needed.

It was not just practical considerations that were involved; there was

a moral dimension. Despite the promise made by the clan elders, Steve

knew that without Mr Snow, the M'Calls would not attack the

wagon-train. And if Cadillac tried to persuade them to do so, Steve

would do his utmost to prevent it. He had witnessed the reckless

bravery of the Bears at the Battle of The Now and Then River when they

had been aided by Mr Snow's earth-magic. His powers had been awesome

but in the end, the M'Calls' irrational desire to throw themselves

headlong upon the enemy regardless of the cost had led to a senseless

slaughter and eventual rout. After the losses suffered at the trading

post he was not prepared to support any ill-prepared adventures that

could lead to even greater sacrifice.

Not even for you, little sister...

Over the next few days, as the talks between the delegations continued,

Mr Snow gradually recovered some of his strength. He could not sit up

unaided, and he was far too weak to walk, but his spirit had returned

from that twilight zone between this world and the next and was once

more anchored firmly in his physical body.

His face was still pale and haggard but the colour and some of the

sparkle had come back into his eyes, and the famous smile, though

tired, occasionally contained a hint of its old mischief.

His voice now seemed to be set in a husky whisper and he spoke only

when necessary using as few words as possible, but as time passed, his

powers of concentration increased, and from what little he said it was

clear that the brain inside the wizened, white-haired skull was as

sharp as a razor.

During these longer periods of wakefulness, Steve related in greater

detail his adventures in Ne-Issan with the ronin, his high-risk,

heart-stopping involvement with the Herald Hase-Gawa, the conspiracy

against the Shogun, and the final battle and escape from the Heron

Pool.