paralyze the guards. You
bolt in and fill up those cans. We get the hell out of here, quick. When
they check, they find the cans still there. Maybe they won't commit
suicide then."

The men moved across the shadowy steps in front of the cache. There were
three Cascellans guarding the entrance, their knives stuck in their
loincloths. Fannia stunned them with a medium charge, and Donnaught
broke into a run.

Torches instantly flared, natives boiled out of every alleyway,
shouting, waving their knives.

"We've been ambushed!" Fannia shouted. "Get back here, Donnaught!"

Donnaught hurriedly retreated. The natives had been waiting for them.
Screaming, yowling, they rushed at the Earthmen, slitting their own
throats at five-foot range. Bodies tumbled in front of Fannia, almost
tripping him as he backed up. Donnaught caught him by an arm and yanked
him straight. They ran out of the sacred area.

"Truce, damn it!" Fannia called out. "Let me speak to the chief. Stop
it! Stop it! I want a truce!"

Reluctantly, the Cascellans stopped their slaughter.

"This is war," the chief said, striding forward. His almost human face
was stern under the torchlight. "You have seen our warriors. You know
now that you cannot stand against them. The word has spread to all our
lands. My entire people are prepared to do battle."

He looked proudly at his fellow-Cascellans, then back to the Earthmen.
"I myself will lead my people into battle now. There will be no stopping
us. We will fight until you surrender yourselves completely, stripping
off your armor."

"Wait, Chief," Fannia panted, sick at the sight of so much blood. The
clearing was a scene out of the Inferno. Hundreds of bodies were
sprawled around. The streets were muddy with blood.

"Let me confer with my partner tonight. I will speak with you tomorrow."

"No," the chief said. "You started the battle. It must go to its
conclusion. Brave men wish to die in battle. It is our fondest wish. You
are the first enemy we have had in many years, since we subdued the
mountain tribes."

"Sure," Fannia said. "But let's talk about it--"

"I myself will fight you," the chief said, holding up a dagger. "I will
die for my people, as a warrior must!"

"Hold it!" Fannia shouted. "Grant us a truce. We are allowed to fight
only by sunlight. It is a tribal taboo."

The chief thought for a moment, then said, "Very well. Until tomorrow."

The beaten Earthmen walked slowly back to their ship a