," said Serge, who was pressing his
helmet a little farther back and holding it there so that he could get a
good uninterrupted look all round.

"You didn't like it, then?" said Marcus, smiling at his companion's
perplexed expression.

"Course I didn't," growled Serge.

"Lupe did. Just look at him. He has curled himself up to go to sleep.
That's a good sign, isn't it, that he is not badly hurt?"

"Yes, he's not going to be bad," said Serge, without so much as a glance
at the sleeping animal. "Dogs always do curl up when they are hurt;"
and he kept on staring anxiously ahead.

"What are you looking for, Serge? More enemies?" asked Marcus.

"No," replied the old soldier, though it was more like a grunt than a
reply.

"What are you watching for, then? Not stones? It's getting smoother,
and we're going on at a nice steady rate now."

"Yes, boy, we're going along at a nice steady rate, but I want to know
where to?"

"Where to?" cried Marcus, quickly. "Why, to find the main army, and
deliver the message."

"Yes, boy," growled the old soldier; "but where is the main army?"

Marcus stared at his companion for a few moments in complete
astonishment, before gazing straight in front between the tossing manes
of the cantering ponies, and then looked to right and left.

"I don't know," he said, at last. "Somewhere in front, I suppose."

"Somewhere in front, you suppose!" grumbled Serge. "But where's that?
Nowhere, I say. We shall never come up with them if we go on like this.
We may be getting farther away at every stride."

"Oh, Serge!" cried the boy, excitedly.

"And it's O, Marcus!" growled the old fellow, sourly.

"What's to be done Serge?" cried the boy, despairingly. "Why, we may be
losing time."

"Most likely," said Serge.

"And I was thinking that in flying along as we have been we were getting
nearer and nearer to the army. Now, then, what is to be done?"

Serge was silent for a few moments, and then said slowly:

"Well, boy, it seems to me that the best thing we can do is to bear off
to the right."

"But that may take us wrong," said Marcus, excitedly. "Why not go to
the left?"

"Humph!" grunted Serge. "Because that may take us wrong, boy. You see,
there's a lot of chance in it, and we must use our brains."

"Of course. That's what I'm trying to do, Serge."

"Don't seem like it, boy. We've got to track the army, haven't we?"

"Yes," cried Marcus, "but they've left no traces.