Planet Out of the Past by James Lincoln Collier

Author:James Lincoln Collier
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: AudioGO
Published: 2013-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

___________________________ 9

Handy woke up instantly. He took one look at the line of habilines on the bank and began to limp across to the opposite side of the campsite as fast as he could, shouting, “Bek, bek,” at the top of his lungs. Weddy, Nuell and I drew together in the middle of the campsite. I was scared, and I could tell they were, too.

“They aren’t Handy’s people, that’s for sure.” Nuell said in a low voice.

“They must have smelled the smoke from our fire.” I said. I wondered why we were talking in low voices.

“Or else this is their camp,” Weddy said.

“Maybe both,” I said.

Up on the bank, the habilines began to shout and brandish their spears. “I think we ought to leave before there’s trouble,” Weddy said.

They would begin to throw stones pretty soon, I knew. But even though I was scared, I was curious, too, and I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to see what kind of signals they would give each other, or if they had verbal commands. “Let’s wait a minute and see what they do,” I said.

“Char, please,” Weddy said. “Let’s go.”

“It’s a threat display,” I said. “It’s fascinating. It’s the same as two groups of howler monkeys meeting in the forest and howling at each other. Or a chimpanzee baring his teeth at a rival. Or a silverback gorilla pounding on his chest and roaring. They won’t attack yet. They’ll display for a while first, until they work themselves up into a mood to fight.”

“Char, it’s stupid to take a chance,” she said.

“I want to see if I can talk to them, Weddy. We’ve got some words now. We might be able to make them understand that we’re friendly.”

“Maybe they don’t understand Handy’s language,” Nuell said.

He was right, although I hated to admit it. It was a smart idea. Even though they were the same species they might come from a different tribe and speak a different language. “It’s worth a try,” I said.

Two of the habilines were now sliding down the embankment into the dry riverbed, watching us cautíously and holding their spears in front of them with both hands, ready to fight in case we attacked.

“Char,” Weddy said. “Let’s go.”

“Wait a minute, Weddy,” I said. “I want to try to talk to them.” I gave Nuell a quick look. I figured he might be willing to take a chance for the excitement in it. “Don’t you think it’s worth a try, Nuell?”

He looked at the habilines. “I think we ought to stop fooling around and try to find Dad.”

He was right about that, too. I was torn: I knew we should be looking for the professor, but I wanted to see if I could communicate with the habilines, too. It’s what Professor Joher would have done. He wouldn’t have missed a chance like this for anything. But Weddy and Nuell were outvoting me. And it occurred to me that we would be better off facing them up on the top of the other bank, rather than down in the riverbed.

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