"John Dalmas - Yngling 1 - The Yngling" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dalmas John)

believed in giving a man a chance and also in making
18
things clear from the beginning. And fear wasn't a
trait of his.
He matched Nils with a thick-armed man of
medium height, and without words they made a point of
pride in carrying bigger loads than any other pair
working. Even with the breeze, all of them were soon
dripping sweat-a familiar and agreeable enough
experience both to oarsmen and warrior. Soon Nils
removed helmet, harness, and sword, laying them with
his other things on a rowing bench forward.
Well into the afternoon one of the crew
suddenly shouted, "Hey! Stop!" A youth, who had
boarded unnoticed, leaped from the gunwale carrying
Nils's scabbarded sword. The captain, on the wharf
su-pervising the piling, bellowed, drew his knife and
threw it, but it clattered uselessly on the
cobblestones. Nils's bare feet hit the wharf running.
The thief was quick; he reached a corner and sprinted
out of sight. A moment later Nils made the turn, and
the thief realized he had dangerously underestimated
both the weight of the sword and the speed of a
barbarian who had spent much time running on skis. He
drew the sword as he ran, then turned and faced his
pursuer. Nils stopped a few meters from him, and
seconds later several of the crew ran up, panting, to
stand near.
"I can stand here as long as you can,"
Nils pointed out matter-of-factly. "If you try to run
away again with the sword, I will easily catch you.
And if you run at me to kill me, you won't be able
to. But if you lay the sword down and walk away, I'll
let you go."
The thief scowled and licked his lips
nervously. He was Nils's age, lean and wiry. Suddenly
he rushed
19
at Nils, the sword raised to one side in both hands,
ready to swing. The sailors scattered, and in that
instant Nils sprang high above the swinging blade. A
hard foot shot out, a powerful thigh driving the heel
into the thief's chest and hurling him backward. He
skidded on his back and lay still.
"What must I do now?" Nils asked.
"Is he dead?" asked the sailor that Nils
had worked with.
"He's dead all right," Nils assured him,
without needing to examine the body.
"Well then, there's nothing to do. A