"Andre Norton - Operation timesearch" - читать интересную книгу автора (Norton Andre)

moment two-footed hunters appeared. They carried
nothing Ray could identify as a weapon, though one of
them had a short rod of metal. This he aimed at the
throat of the cornered elk, and from its tip shot a ray of
red light. Bellowing, the elk reared, to crash forward,
nearly striking one of the hounds. The dogs rushed in
to tear at the still quivering body, but the hunters
pulled them back from the kill, sending them howling
with well-aimed kicks and cuffs.
Drawing a dagger from a belt sheath, one of the men
set about butchering the fallen animal. Another fastened
leashes to the metal-studded collars of the hounds,
while the third wrapped the fire rod in cloth and
stowed it down the front of his jerkin.
All three were of medium height, but the broadness


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of their shoulders and the heaviness of their upper.
arms gave them a dwarfish look. Their coarse black
hair, shoulder length, was sleeked smooth with grease
and held by leather thongs. Their skin was between
copper and olive in shade. Broad mouths with thick
lips parting over strong yellow teeth, dark eyes, and
hooked noses comprised their features.
They wore tunics of grayish leather, tanned to the
flexibility of cloth, garments that reached from shoul-
der to mid-thigh. Over these were sleeveless metal-
enforced jerkins. High thick-soled buskins covered feet
and legs to the knees, but their arms were bare, save
for bands of metal set with dull stones. Their wide belts
supported sheathed daggers.

Ray crouched there, no longer attempting to recon-
cile anything he saw with reality. A dream-it must be
a dream. In time he was going to wake up-
Then one of the dogs discovered him. Its red eyes
found the source of the strange scent that had tickled
its nostrils. With a howl it flung itself to the limit of its
leash. The strand of hide halted its spring. In an
instant it tried again. This time the thong parted. But,
like the elk before it, it could gain no foothold on the
gully wall. It continued to paw futilely at the gravel,
giving tongue like a mad thing.
Bewildered, Ray was easy prey. With a shout one of the
hunters pointed to him. The leader whipped out the rod
and aimed. Ray had turned to him. The leader whipped
out the rod and aimed. Ray had turned to run, but he