Chapter 27
Council Meeting and The Iyehyeh Campaign 10-1 K
(SD to VA, NC, 1378-9)
I worked on the maps while waiting for the council meeting. Padraig’s mappers had reached the coast at the mouth of the Salst River. From the map it seemed that there was a rather flat, barren or desert area beyond the mountains where the Salst and the Nimipu lived. Then there were more mountains and forests near the coast. They had also marked a waterfall on the river. They had not gone too far along the coast to the north, but had gone some distance to the south before turning back. It appeared to be no smoother a coastline than the eastern one. I wondered if he had any word on whether they traded with the Hanjen.
At last the council meeting was called. Kaidu brought us up to date on Padraig’s dispatch. It seemed that the mappers were attacked when they moved north from the Salst River. One was killed and the other badly wounded, as were several of the escorts. They managed to get away, but could not go far because of the wounded. They were attacked again, but had found a strong position and had repelled the attack. Still they were in bad shape, and decided to retreat to a more “friendly” tribe inland. The more “friendly” tribe, seeing their condition, also attacked them, and only a few were able to get away. Quite a few of the horses had been killed, but none were captured. The survivors managed to get back to the Nimipu before winter, but a few more died of their wounds. The following spring, they met the second group Padraig had sent out, and together they returned to scout out the tribe that had turned on them and the more northerly tribe. They also had a running battle with the latter, but got away and returned to the Antelope Ordu. We know exactly who they were and where they were, and they would be destroyed next summer.
Considering the problems, he thought Padraig’s suggestion to put an Ordu on the west coast was a good idea and had decided to implement it. The newest plains tumen, the Salmon, would be sent west with the Antelopes for the campaign and would remain behind on the best spot near the sea. We would also set up a yam system to keep them in touch. We would eventually put an Ordu in the valley of the Nomo, but the population could not support it at this time. All had gone well in the east, and we had organized a forest tumen, the Snakes, made up heavily of Mingue and quartered them to the south of the Great Bay some distance inland along a major river that emptied into the Great Sound. We also had established another forest tumen, the Pigeons, among the Pansfalaya. It would remain dispersed among them for now but could come together quickly if necessary. Eventually it would become a more formal Ordu and be placed on their eastern border. Finally, the Wildcats would be moved up the West Tsoyaha River next spring to a point to be determined by me, since I had just traversed the area. I suggested the southern bank of the South Aniyunwiya River.
I then gave my report on the southeastern tribes. If all those that sent observers allied with us, we would completely surround the elitist chiefdoms of the southeast. The long peninsula had shown some promise, and I passed on what I had learned about the islands offshore. I thought it would be good to look them over if we could win over the Calusa. I mentioned that the east coast had been completely mapped, except for the southwestern part of the peninsula, and all the coastal peoples except for the group below the Great Sound had been recruited. Then I told them about the prediction of the Pansfalaya shaman and asked them what they thought. Everyone looked at Givevneu.
“It must mean,” he said thoughtfully, “that one day the ke’let will find out where we have gone and will come after us. It may be our ke’let will hurt them, too, although I wouldn’t have thought so. But I can’t imagine what evil would come out of the east. Perhaps there are more lands there?”
“Well, according to the Hanjen,” I said, “the world is a sphere, and if one went far enough east, one would return to where he started. But, of course, no one could travel that far because of the huge ocean. In fact, from what I had learned from Smoking Mirror’s father, there seems to be a second ocean. This land is not just a very large island but seems to extend very far to the south separating the western and eastern seas.”
“The world is a sphere?” Kaidu asked. “Why would they say that? It always seemed to be flat to me.”
“The Hanjen are good at noticing things,” I answered. “They noticed a curvature in the surface of the water. When a ship sails away the hull disappears before the mast. If the earth were flat, that would not happen, it would all just keep getting smaller.”
“The world always seemed flat to me,” Givevneu added, “but I can’t say for sure, for when I make my spirit journeys I travel in a kind of tunnel, and cannot see what is around me.”
“I never gave it much thought,” Donduk shrugged.
“What did your grandfathers think of this spherical earth idea?” Kaidu asked.
“Grandfather Peter said it was heresy, or something like that,” I replied, “but Grandfather George said he trusted the Hanjen powers of observation. He said that, while they were spiritually inert, they were keen observers of the natural world.”
“I remember George,” Kaidu was thoughtful. “He was a true artist of a sword maker. It was a tragedy when he stopped making swords. Your father was quite good, but not as good as your grandfather. He was very innovative and resourceful. There was nothing he couldn’t do with steel. If he accepted the spherical earth, there’s probably something to it. So what do you suggest will be coming from the east?”
“I don’t really know.” I shook my head. “It would depend on just how large the world is. Just as this land turned out to be here, perhaps there is another land beyond, unless…”
“Unless what?” Kaidu demanded.
“Well, if the world is a sphere,” I said, “then the far west could be the near east. In other words, my original people could be across the eastern sea.”
“The Ferengi?” Donduk looked incredulous. “But they are worthless fighters, with no concept of tactics. We could wipe them out as easily as the Hotcangara. The only reason we didn’t conquer them was because the Khan died, and we had to return to elect his successor.”
“That was a long time ago,” Kaidu frowned. “It is a mistake to think they didn’t learn from their defeat. Remember, the Hanjen regularly scattered the Mongols until the great Chingis organized us into an invincible force. And even then the miserable Hanjen eventually managed to drive us back out of their Middle Kingdom. Never underestimate your enemies, and never rest on your victories.”
“That is true,” Donduk nodded. “But let them come, we’ll be ready for them.”
“I don’t think they were talking about the near future,” I interjected. “After all, first we’re supposed to bring death on them; then they should recover in time for the eastern threat. But, of course, they could be mistaken about it.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” Givevneu said. “These people are very mystical, and much in tune with the realm of the spirits. I have been very impressed by their shamans and their understanding of the spiritual realm. In fact, it has had a salutary effect on our Mongols. They, too, are becoming more mystical.”
“You know how I feel about religions,” Kaidu said darkly. “Why haven’t you warned me about this earlier?”
“No, no.” Givevneu shook his head. “Religions are simply public displays of cult that give exaggerated power to a priestly elite. Mysticism is a personal, private, individual relationship with the spirit world. It presents no danger. It is, in fact, the same sort of piety you display, Kaidu, but perhaps on a more intense level.”
“Ah.” He was visibly relieved. “As long as I don’t find a priestly class telling everyone what he must do and exacting a large tribute for the information, I don’t really care what people believe in.”
I brought up Smoking Mirror’s father again and passed on what he had said about the great cities in the south and about starting up trade with us. I mentioned that Kuyuk had thought it a good idea to send some spies back with him to look over the land, but I didn’t know if he had, since I didn’t see him when I passed through the Owls on the way back.
“He mentioned sending them when he was here,” Kaidu said. “He was here to ask about the west, of all things. When I told him about the coming western campaign, he asked if I would appoint his second son, Ogedai, head of the new Ordu. It was an odd request, but I granted it since he has been serving under Kuyuk for some time and he should know if he was ready to command.”
“Well, if he’s anything like his brother Juchi,” I said, “he would make a great commander. I’m afraid I don’t remember him at all.”
“He is some four years younger than Juchi.” Kaidu shrugged. “He would have been a toddler when you left. He was always more quiet than Juchi, and I don’t really know him well either, but Kuyuk assures me that he is ready for the position. I’ll put Padraig in overall command of the campaign and if he feels Ogedai can’t handle the job, he can replace him.”
“Is there something I can do,” Donduk asked, “besides growing old and fat?”
“I don’t want to send you west.” Kaidu frowned. “It is a very hard journey and you are too valuable to lose.”
“Perhaps you could send him to organize the Pansfalaya,” I suggested. “Since the whole tribe has joined us, their country could become a training center for the southeastern tribes that ally with us. No one can train men better than Donduk and the southeast is very important to us and could be a hot spot with all those hostile chieftains nearby.”
“Would you like that assignment?” Kaidu asked.
“Yes,” Donduk beamed.
“It’s yours then,” Kaidu said. “Now what about you, Raven. I think you should finish with the southeast and the east. Contact those tribes you missed this past summer.”
“As you wish,” I replied. “I also think it would be helpful to map the trade roads in the southeast, since they could come in very handy for moving troops quickly should any hostilities break out. Perhaps we could disguise our mappers as traders carrying copper, which is quite popular for ornaments.”
“Good idea.” Kaidu nodded. “Give the orders.”
With that we broke up until the spring. I wouldn’t have to leave quite so early next year, since I didn’t have as much ground to cover. I thought I’d go directly west and south from the new Snake Ordu and visit the various tribes between them and the mountains. Meanwhile, I decided to look around a bit and see if what Givevneu said was right. I had to admit to myself that I had been so busy running all over the land or caught up in my projects that I really hadn’t noticed what was going on in the Ordu. The Eagles probably had more of the original Mongols than any other Ordu. I nosed around a bit, listening in on conversations, renewing old acquaintances and visiting some of the ones I didn’t know at all. There had been some changes. The Mongols had moved away from many of their sillier superstitions and seemed to be more thoughtful and deep and less hearty and crude. They had also taken to the sweat baths favored by the locals. This had a very salutary effect on the smell of the camp, and even though I preferred taking normal baths, I did try the sweat bath and found it quite invigorating. The Mongols had also encouraged their boys to undertake the spirit quest like the locals did and insisted it made them much better men, more insightful, more aware of and in tune with their surroundings. They urged me to send my boys when they were old enough. They had also taken to using feathers for decoration in addition to their various bangles, but not excessively. The locals, on the other hand, had moved away from body paint and tattoos and had begun to look like clean Mongols. It looked like a very good compromise between the two was developing.
I suggested to Paula that perhaps this year Mathilde could come and stay with her since Padraig would be gone on campaign. She loved the idea and wrote to her suggesting it. She wrote back accepting and mentioned that Padraig would have to leave in late winter to reach the mountains at the best time. And he wouldn’t be able to return until the following year. It would be quite a trek, with two Ordu in such a wild country. I hoped he picked his route very carefully. The new Salmon Tumen had already joined up with the Antelopes in the fall, and they took pains to make sure they had plenty of food for the campaign with a truly legendary great hunt. All had been very busy drying all the meat before winter set in. I was sorry I couldn’t be on that expedition, but felt it was in good hands with Padraig.
We visited Henry in the winter as usual, and I looked in on the gunpowder and shell works. One of the Anishinabe apprentices, Migizi, seemed to have a real creative flare and had been experimenting with smaller more portable cannon. I told him about the handgun my grandfather had made for me and took him back with me to see it. He was quite excited about it, and I let him borrow it to see what he could come up with as a modification or improvement. The gun was good for piercing metal armor at close range, but was not very accurate at any distance. I found the bow a superior weapon in this land since no one wore metal armor.
Mathilde and her children arrived in early spring. She had seen Padraig off some two weeks earlier. Fortunately, it had been a rather mild winter in their valley, and there was not the usual heavy snowfall. Padraig had already set up a yam system to the Nomo; the Nimipu and the Salst and would continue it as he went beyond their lands so he would remain in touch. A large detachment from the Ox Ordu had arrived at the Antelope Ordu to guard it while the men were on campaign. Morale had been quite high when they set out. The men were confident of complete victory.
The spring council meeting had little new to discuss. Kaidu promised to keep us informed as to the western campaign, although it might prove difficult in my case. He urged Donduk to return in the fall, if possible, or at least send a report if not. He wished us luck on our assignments. We set out a week later and traveled together until we reached Murenbalikh. Donduk stayed there a few days to visit while my group continued on our way. We visited the Kestrel Ordu and looked over gunpowder production. All was well. We continued up the Wazhazhe visiting the river towns on our way. I finally got to visit the Amani yukhan, the Wazhazhe’s eastern neighbors. As reported they were virtually indistinguishable from the latter, except that their dialect was different enough to give me some trouble. They had been drifting eastward to fill in the vacuum left by our Mingue campaign. We stopped by the Otter Ordu, and I was told that the area was full of coal deposits. I urged them to try to get a fix on how much was here, where it was, and how it could be best transported. While at the Ordu, I copied the maps they had made of the area between them and the Turtle Ordu. The Ordu mappers had not been idle, but had been fleshing out the countryside between them. I was very glad they had shown such initiative and urged them to continue and to send updates to the Eagle Ordu at least once a year. Oddly, they had not established a yam system toward the east, but only toward the north. It seemed they thought it best to wait until they were sure there was no hostile force in the mountains to the south that might prey on the exposed yams. I thought they were being too cautious, but could hardly fault them for such prudence. We would have to rough it.
We followed the Wazhazhe to the point where it was formed by its north and south forks and took the north fork until we came to a river that would lead us east. The country was quite wild here, forested hills and mountains cut by rivers, streams, and creeks. Understandably, the land did not look like it had been cultivated or even settled, although we did find signs of hunting parties and camps. The river took us into some hills where we picked up another river that flowed east through a ridgeline and into a broad but hilly valley. We crossed the valley and plunged through a series of passes through line after line of mountains until finally we came out in a broad flat valley which led us eastward to the Kubilai River. Along this valley, I could see the charred remains of some of the Mingue villages destroyed in the campaign four years before. When we reached the Kubilai, we found a Leni lenape settlement. It seemed that they had been spreading west into the valley. We turned southeast along the river and followed it to the Turtle Ordu. The river was quite broad and full of islands, but also quite shallow. There were a few more Leni lenape settlements on the way to the Ordu.
The Leni lenape were a fine-looking people, tall and slim. The younger men wore their hair in the roach style like the Mingue, the older men let it grow long. The women wore it long but braided. There was some tattooing of animal shapes, and the men painted their faces, chest, and legs. The women used red paint on their eyelids, cheeks, and ear rims. They dressed in deerskin, breechcloths for the men, and skirts for the women. They tended to be heavily ornamented with jewelry made of stones, shells, beads and animal teeth and claws. The men wore a small skin pouch around their necks, which turned out to hold nawak’osis and assorted charms. Their villages were not palisaded, but strung along a creek or stream a little up from the river. Their houses were bark-covered frames of various shapes with a single door and a smoke hole. They had tiered platforms made of tree limbs covered with skins as furniture. They were very friendly and generous even offering us their wives or daughters for the night. I demurred, of course, but Smoking Mirror was quite happy to oblige, as were most of the others. We finally arrived at the Turtle Ordu in early summer.
We went on down to the Great Bay at the mouth of the Kubilai. It was quite a sight, although one would have to sail it to get a real feeling for it. From the map, it was much more long than wide. The Bay tribes were just like the Leni lenape in appearance and customs, and they reaped quite a harvest from the bay. Crabs, oysters, and a huge and delicious fish were most heavily exploited, but there were quite a few other kinds of fish also. Apparently in early winter, the bay teems with waterfowl, especially ducks and geese. In addition they also raised crops of the mondamin grain, beans, squash, and melons. I must admit the Bay tribes looked quite well fed. We cut across to a river the mappers had named Potomac for a village at its mouth. We crossed over to the west side and moved south along its course until it turned east; then we continued due south to avoid all the marshy peninsulas that bordered the Great Bay. We would occasionally come upon a village. More of them seemed to be palisaded along this path, and the people seemed to be more tattooed, but otherwise they were also the same as the Leni lenape. All the major rivers we crossed were tidal and fairly easy to cross. Eventually we came to the Snake Ordu on the north bank of the large river that had been named Hokomawanank. The commander was Khurumsi, a Mongol about twenty years older than me. He suggested that while we were there we go on down to look at the Great Sound. It was very shallow, but quite broad, about nine li across. We went over to the barrier islands and crossed over the sand dunes to see the sea but were soon driven back by a constant high wind that blew parallel to the shore.
The Great Sound tribes lived in small, scattered villages along the western shore of the sound and inland along the rivers and streams. They also were much like the Leni lenape, and they exploited their sound like the Bay tribes exploited the bay. The language of all these people did vary somewhat, but since I didn’t know the Leni lenape language, I couldn’t say how much. I thought the language was something like Anishinabe or Kensistenoug, but not enough that I could make it out. They were pleasant, peaceful people and had joined us mostly out of fear for their interior neighbors. The Ordu had not yet made any contact with the interior people, but had done some scouting and found them to be living in towns, mostly palisaded, often with mounds and ceremonial centers and surrounded with extensive cultivated fields. It was uncertain if there was any sort of state organization. About all the Sound tribes knew about them was they were huge, fierce, etc. I decided it would be best to have a bit of an escort when I visited these people, so I took a hundred men from the Snakes. The Ordu had been established in the area between our allies and the interior people, so we didn’t have to go very far before we ran into them.
As usual in the southeast, we first came upon farming hamlets. These were impossible to distinguish from their counterparts in the south. The farmers of the first hamlet were alarmed at seeing us and fled into the woods. We made no move against them, of course, and as usual I made sure we did not disturb their fields. As we drew near their little group of houses, I saw there was an old man who had been left behind. He sat defiantly in front of one of the houses awaiting his fate. I wondered if he was disappointed when we left him alone and passed by. A few of the men in the woods began to appear at the edge and give us a more puzzled look as we continued on our way. There was something of a path on the western side of the hamlet, and we followed it to yet another hamlet. The result of our approach was much like that at the last hamlet, although more of them tarried at the edge of the woods this time. We passed through a few more hamlets until we finally reached a well-used path through the forest. We followed this for some distance when suddenly the men urged me to stop. They felt something was wrong. Smoking Mirror also felt something was going on. We dismounted and began melting into the woods when suddenly the air was filled with arrows. There were a few wounded, but we had narrowly avoided walking into a trap. Still, we weren’t safe yet. We formed a bit of a line in the woods on both sides of the trail and returned fire when we could see a target. Finally there was a yell and a rush. Here the men’s discipline paid off handsomely. They picked their targets carefully and made their shots count. The attack was quickly repulsed, but I could see that they were trying to surround us, so I had the men pull back keeping the enemy in front of us.
They rushed a few more times to try to hold us, but we repulsed them each time. At last we were close enough to the edge of the woods, and I had the men mount up and ride about a hundred yards beyond the woods. We then turned and poured a memorable barrage into our pursuers as they rushed us across the open field. Again they quickly retreated, but I could see we were greatly outnumbered, and I couldn’t be too sure that we weren’t being flanked while we dallied with our pursuers. I got the men going at a good pace that we could keep up without tiring the horses. We went back through the hamlets, and this time everyone stayed out of sight. I sent out scouts to make sure we weren’t being flanked. We reached their last hamlet, and the scouts reported that the enemy was still behind us, but the flanks and front were clear. We were almost to the woods beyond the hamlet, when suddenly what looked like a drainage ditch erupted into archers firing into us. The range was only fifty feet and the effect was telling. Horses and men fell. We returned fire and made for the protection of the woods as best we could. Once there we began to get the upper hand, and they retreated out of range. We secured our wounded and dispatched any horses that couldn’t keep up, then hurried back toward the Ordu.
It was during this ignominious retreat that Smoking Mirror pointed out the arrow in my back. It had not penetrated far because of my leather armor, but I had been too busy to notice it. He got it out and placed some sort of poultice he carried with him on it. We paused for a short time to treat the badly wounded, and I sent out scouts to keep an eye on the enemy and to get help from the nearby Ordu. The scouts soon came back reporting the continuing advance of the enemy, so we mounted up the wounded and as many others as possible, and the rest formed a fighting rear guard. Just before nightfall, a strong force from the Ordu overtook us. They took over the rear guard duty and guided us back to the Ordu.
Only about twenty of the men were unscathed, forty-two were killed or soon died of their wounds. I sent a dispatch to the Turtle Ordu to join us immediately. It was possible that one Ordu was enough, but I couldn’t leave a frontier Ordu unprotected while we were on campaign. Meanwhile, I sent out scouts to find out exactly who had attacked us. While they were gone and until the Turtles arrived, we licked our wounds, and I sent a report to Kaidu. I looked over the weapons available to the Snake Ordu. They had a large supply of rockets, but still no cannon or shells. The rockets would likely come in handy. Later, I asked Smoking Mirror how he had noticed something was wrong before we were attacked. He said that the woods had sounded different, smelled different, and felt different. He found it difficult to explain, but the rest of the men had noticed it too, so I had a lot more to learn. We went into the woods, and Smoking Mirror pointed out the nuances for me, and I began to get the idea, but I’m still not sure I would have noticed. Needless to say, anytime any of the men felt odd about the path before us from then on, I took it very seriously.
It took two weeks for the Turtles to reach us. The Goose Ordu had come along as far as their new site, on the bank of a river called the Powhatan for a town farther downstream. They would be nearby if the campaign proved more difficult. The scouts reported back that from the obvious appearances, the trails of the attackers seemed to lead north of west, but after careful study, it looked like our attackers had melted less perceptibly southwest after first leading us to another tribe. The scouts had thought it odd that the trail ended abruptly at a river close to the other tribe’s farming hamlets. Filtering near the main town, they could see no signs of a recent campaign. There were no celebrations, no walking wounded, no groups of heavily armed men. They returned to where the trail ended and picked up the faint southwest trail right to the town we had been approaching when we were attacked. Here they found all the signs they were looking for. They had been holding a weeklong celebration, quite a few men were obviously wounded, and the approach we had taken was heavily guarded. They discovered a path from the southeast that was not guarded, however.
It was tempting to just rush them frontally and crush them as we found them, but it was irresistible to totally surprise them instead. I sent half the Snakes on the phony path northwest making sure they made no secret of their movements. They were to try to make friendly contact with the town to which the enemy had tried to lead us. I then took the Turtles and all the rockets downstream along the Hokomawanank, then southwest across the Secotan River until we picked up the uncovered trail, then northeast along the trail. The scouts kept reporting the path unprotected as we steadily drew near the enemy. We reached the edge of the woods still unnoticed, and I spread the men out for the rush to surround the town. We exploded from the trees and into the fields. Anyone caught in the open was cut down, but cries soon alerted the town, and those in the fields rushed headlong toward the town. After the initial charge, we began to fan out just out of their arrow range and soon had the town completely surrounded. I sent scouts to make sure no surprises would be coming from the surrounding forests.
The scouts flushed out a few sentries and brought one of them to me. We tried to communicate, but I couldn’t make out his language at all. One of the Turtles, an Amani yukhan, was able to make some sense out of his language. I remembered that Pesequan and Watang’a had mentioned that they thought the people here spoke a language that sounded like Amani yukhan. The sentry (his name was Datha) said that his people were called the Iyehyeh, and the ruler of this town was a woman. A stranger from the west had warned their people that we had come to kill them and had been trying to unite all the local people against us. Their ruler had married the man and put him in charge of their army. Some of the other towns besides those under the chieftainess had also joined. I asked him if he had any family inside the town, but he said his family lived in one of the outlying farming hamlets. I told him we would spare the hamlets as long as the people remained there and did not take up arms against us. He would also be spared if he led us to the other towns that had joined against us. He agreed, although not with much enthusiasm.
There was no point in giving an ultimatum, since I had no intention of sparing this town, so we commenced the usual fire arrow barrages, and soon the town was in flames. The people tried to sally forth against us, but the narrow passageway through their palisade made them leisurely targets. Then they began to jump over the palisade in numbers, but many were injured by the jump and again made easy targets. Finally they cut down a large section of their palisade for a final rush. I massed the men at the point, and the rush did not get far. As the resistance ended, we dispatched any of their wounded outside the town, then went into the town to look for any survivors among the ashes. There were none. Datha pointed out the ruler of the town, but couldn’t find the western stranger. I noticed that the ruler and some of the more ornate (copper and shell bangles) dead had the misshapen heads. I also noticed that some of them, especially the ruler, were very tall. It was odd to see a tall woman in this land. The warriors were oddly painted. Their faces were red with one eye circled in white and the other in black. It was weird, but hardly frightening. They also seemed to fix their hair in many strange ways. Some wore their hair variously shaved; others grew it long and molded it into fantastic shapes with grease.
Word came the next morning that a group of the enemy was seen approaching from the northeast. I set up a little ambush party for them in a small depression near the town and hid the rest of the men in the woods. They came rushing out of the woods in obvious flight only to be stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of the smoldering ruin of their town. They conferred hurriedly and turned toward a path leading west. At this point, the ambushers rose and poured a withering fire into their flank. Meanwhile more men came out of the woods and blocked their path; then the Snakes burst out of the wood behind them. The end was quick for th