The Tiger-Headed Horseman Page 14

  Presently a lady appeared and began slowly and gracefully to descend the staircase. She wore a long green dress that trailed two steps behind her. Upon her head was a tall felt hat that folded upwards in layers and was studded with emeralds. One delicate hand covered in a satin glove that swept up a thinly toned arm carefully touched the banister; the other cradled a small bundle of grey fur that much to Lily's surprise began to move. A slender cat with deep-green eyes yawned nonchalantly. The Hairy Hordes stood erect, trying their best to control themselves and not punch the man next to them. Drudger also stood to attention, respectfully holding his chin higher than he had lifted it since Lily had met him. Danyal stepped forward enthusiastically.

  ‘My lady,’ said Danyal, ‘how are we this fine day?’

  ‘All is as good as it can be,’ replied the lady. ‘Is this the girl?’

  The lady gestured towards Lily.

  ‘My lady,’ said Danyal, ‘may I present Lily. She is one of us. She has come from outside. She has bravely ridden across the exteriors to Baatarulaan. She knows the dangers but believes, as we do, in justice.’

  ‘How do you do?’ asked the Lady. Lily began to curtsey although didn't know why. ‘No, no, none of that please.’

  The lady took a gentle hold of Lily's elbow and brought her closer to her. Lily noticed that the lady was considerably more mature than she had first thought. She had exciting dark eyes set in a face that seemed to hold a millennium of wisdom. The cat purred gently in her other arm. The lady let the cat down and it curled itself around Lily's ankles. ‘Don't mind Jasmine; she's really quite gentle. My name is Millie. So you're a shaman?’

  ‘I prefer shawoman, if it's all the same,’ said Lily. ‘You have a lovely home. It is much grander than anything I have ever seen before.’

  One of the Hairy Hordes began to snigger. Millie shot him a glare and his smirking was immediately stifled.

  ‘Thank you, I like it,’ said Millie, ‘it's not what I'm used to but it's home. I see Jasmine likes you. She has exquisite taste, so I am sure we shall become the very best of friends.’

  ‘I hope so,’ replied Lily. She really did. Millie was an intimidating character and Lily was sure she wanted her on her side; the thought of Millie as an enemy filled her with dread.

  ‘Come,’ said Millie, ‘let us walk. Danyal, please, come too.’ She offered Lily her left arm and Danyal her right. The three slowly ambled off into the house. Behind them the Hairy Hordes pounced on top of Drudger who eagerly began bashing them around the head. ‘Boys will be boys,’ Millie commented indulgently. ‘Let me show you around.’

  Millie gave Lily a tour of her home. She explained the many stories that lay behind the multitude of portraits, paintings and tapestries that adorned the walls. Millie's family was an ancient and illustrious one. It dated back to the time of Chinggis's reign. Her foremother had been Chinggis's agriculture and industry advisor. Over the centuries Millie's family had nurtured their skills. They still provided the majority of food and fuel for Baatarulaan but had long ago pledged their allegiance to the Chinggists. Canvases depicted enormous fields of corn beneath transparent roofing; mills and production units were embroidered into huge wall hangings. There were many corridors each filled completely with works of art that showed in detail the extent of Millie's heritage and current commercial dealings. Lily was awestruck. She quickly realised just how important, influential and rich Millie was.

  Businesspeople first and foremost, Millie's family had grown sick of the Khadist regime imposing higher and higher taxes on their produce and claiming ever more ridiculous reasons for stealing property for its own people and purposes. As time passed, Millie's activities had become increasingly secret from the Khadists. The regime was keeping the best of what Millie had been producing for itself, while the people of Baatarulaan were given only the most meagre rations. The Khadists preferred to keep their people doped up and unhealthy as possible, in the belief that this would induce enough lethargy so as to avoid causing resentment or rebellion.

  As they strolled through the mansion, Millie told Lily how much she wanted the people, her fellow townsfolk, to live well. She had developed a means of privately engineering enough surplus supplies to provide for the neediest people of Baatarulaan. Some distance outside of the city, and far from the prying eyes of the Khadists, she had established two enormous complexes. Each building was three storeys tall with three hundred chickens on the top floor, a hundred goats and sheep on the middle floor, and a hundred cattle on the ground floor. The waste from the animals was collected using an intricate sluice system and carried to an adjacent collection tower. Inside the tower the waste was carefully managed. The energy it produced was powerful enough to provide the energy needed to keep the animals warm but also to provide power for several acres of covered fields where crops, vegetables and even fruits were grown. This more than satisfied the needs of the animals and was increasingly becoming the staple source of food for the residents of Baatarulaan. What was more, Millie gave the food away for free. Her production plants cost almost nothing and she needed no money.

  As she listened, Lily was overwhelmed with admiration. Danyal, too –although he had heard about Millie's doings many times before – never failed to be impressed.

  ‘So what can we do?’ asked Lily. ‘I know the Khadists are bad but I fear that Tengis could be even worse. There is something about him that makes me terribly scared.’

  ‘Don't worry,’ said Danyal, ‘we have a plan.’

  ‘My young dear,’ said Millie, ‘I understand. The Khadists have to go and Tengis is the means of achieving this change.’

  ‘But,’ said Lily anxiously, ‘he is a bad man. He cannot be trusted; I heard what he said at the Square Dance.’

  ‘We had our people there, too,’ said Millie. ‘What he stands for is irrelevant; what matters is that he gets the Khadists out.’

  ‘Our sources have reliably informed us that Tengis intends to bring about change through means of a democratic, open and fair election,’ said Danyal. ‘Our spies tell us that Tengis's advisors are pushing for him to blow apart the old regime. They want to see it replaced with what they feel the people want; a freely elected leader who will promote the teachings of the Ten Recommendations.’

  ‘You're mad!’ said Lily. ‘Tengis is evil. He will never let the people have a say in what happens to them. He is as bad as the people who imprisoned my father. You don't seem to appreciate the danger he presents.’

  ‘I don't underestimate the love you have for your father or your drive and desire to find him. Please don't underestimate us,’ said Millie. ‘Of the good people we have an understanding; fools like Tengis we appreciate and keep a large stick upstairs especially for them.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ asked Lily.

  ‘We have the Hairy Hordes,’ said Millie.

  ‘But,’ said Lily, ‘they are only six men, they might be tough and like fisticuffs, but the Khadists and Tengis both have far more and better organised support.’

  ‘You'd be surprised at just what the Hairy Hordes are capable of,’ said Danyal. ‘They practise the ancient art of guerrilla warfare. That's why they get called Hairy. No one outside of this house knows their identity and no one ever can. The Hairy Hordes believe in fairness for all, food for everyone and fighting for fun, or rather fighting against the kind of fun that Khadists have been promoting. They are a formidable force.’

  ‘You are underestimating Tengis,’ said Lily. ‘I saw the way the people took to him. They are so eager for a change from Khadism that they will take up the mantle of anyone who can assure them of a different future regardless of what that future might be. They are blindly following him.’

  ‘He has some powerful allies,’ said Millie, ‘but we have stronger allies – truth, honesty and justice. No further harm will befall Baatarulaan so long as we remain true to those friends. We will win out. I have a good deal of experience dealing in strategy and tactics. Business, politics and battle are not so very
different. We may not have a numerical advantage but we can make that work to our advantage. Trust me, please?’

  Lily found that there seemed to be a lot of people asking her to trust them but she also realised that she had little choice. She gave way, and the threesome continued their tour of Millie's home and returned to the hallway where the Hairy Hordes had prepared lunch.

  Boys being boys, the lunch they had prepared consisted of cheeseburgers and milkshakes.

  ‘Where are the greens?’ asked Millie. ‘What have I said about healthy eating?’

  ‘There's lettuce and gherkins in the burger,’ said the Hairy Hordes as one. ‘That counts, doesn't it?’ Millie shook her head.

  Lily bit gleefully into the burger – it was delicious. She found herself extremely hungry after her tour. It had been enlightening but, although it had filled her with hope, she was also afraid that they were taking Tengis too lightly. She couldn't explain it, but Lily was certain that Tengis was a bad man; she also knew that worrying about Tengis was going to be the death of her.

  ‘How's the food?’ asked the Hairy Hordes.

  Lily mumbled her approval between mouthfuls. The tall boy-rabbit punched the leg of the man with the odd accent.

  17

  After finishing her second cheeseburger Lily needed some fresh air. Saying thank you to Millie and her men, she assured them that she would work with them to bring about justice so long as they helped her find her father. They agreed that they would meet later that day at Danyal's yard to discuss their plans further. Leaving by a secret exit that led Lily through a maze of passages to a main road, she looked back and found that Millie's exuberant home was completely hidden by the squalor that surrounded it. Turning away, Lily set off out into the city streets. She found herself less intimidated than she had been previously. Whether it was that she now has the support of friends, and the Hairy Hordes, or just that she was getting used to the place, she couldn't decide. Baatarulaan had at first felt like a frightening city but the more time Lily spent there the more she realised that it was the city that was frightened. She had the luxury of not having been born and raised in fear of the Khadist regime. Unlike the Ongolians who lived there, Lily firmly believed that people should and could have a good life. She wanted to understand more about them. She couldn't understand why they had become so bad; why they were so very different from the people she lived with and why they behaved so differently from the way she believed people should behave.

  Passing nearby the scene of the Square Dance Lily noticed that there was pro-Tengis graffiti daubed on to nearby walls. A crazed man high on Khem chanted the Ten Recommendations from his addled mattress refuge. Lily pulled up her collar and hurried onwards. Leaving the square, she entered a district she assumed was for the wealthier city dwellers. Well-kept apartment blocks stood behind gated fences guarded by heavily built new recruits of the Leggie. They watched Lily suspiciously as she hurried past. While she wanted to take in her surroundings, she did not want to be conspicuous. Tugging her hat further down over her face, she hastily walked past the leering guards.

  Ahead of her Lily saw a large group of people milling around outside another guarded gated estate. The winter was biting hard as snowfall began to fill the air. Still more people joined the mob. The people carried placards bearing pro-Tengis slogans and chanted wildly: ‘Tengis, Tengis, he's our man. If he can't do it, no one can!’ Lily lurked near a smaller gate on the adjacent wall. The heat of the rabble radiated into the harsh cold. Lily pushed herself against the wall as she sought shelter from the wind. Her eyes were fixed on the crowd. She wanted to see if she was able to understand their behaviour; they were acting just like the herds of wild horses she had been brought up to train. As she watched, Lily noticed something coming towards the smaller gate next to which she was huddled – three men flanking another over whose head a jacket was placed. Lily was alone in observing them; no one in the throng noticed the movement. As they neared the gate to unlock it, the coat was removed. Lily immediately recognised the man it had been shielding.

  ‘You!’ hissed Lily. All self-control evaporated and she lunged towards Tengis. The men who had been flanking him held her fast. ‘How can you dare pretend to be Chinggis Khaan? What do you know about him? You are nothing. Chinggis was noble and wise; you are filled with hatred and spite.’ The venom in her voice was clear. Her eyes visibly glowed with poison.

  ‘Who exactly do you think you are?’ asked Tengis. ‘You look quite pathetic.’ He had never seen Lily before but immediately loathed her. The pit of his stomach lurched as acid boiled within and rose up in his throat. He choked back his anger. Tengis needed to appear in control at all times. His supporters expected it. Still, this mysterious woman invited an unknown beast to rear its head. He wasn't sure why but something within his dark soul told him that he absolutely hated her. He wanted her dead but knew he couldn't lose face by simply choking her there and then.

  ‘I am Lily,’ said Lily, ‘and I am not some petty little person you can bully and boss around. I have no idea who you are but I absolutely know that you are definitely not Chinggis. No one will believe you; people will see through you.’

  Some of the stragglers on the fringe of the throng outside the main gate started to drift towards the girl who was being held by the guards dressed in black. Lily fought hard to hold her nerve.

  ‘I don't think so,’ said Tengis. ‘Anyway, what on earth could you possibly know? Nothing, that's what!’ Tengis nodded to his henchmen to drag the girl away. He would deal with her someplace else, some place more private. As he did so the remainder of the mob started to circle Tengis's private party. They started to chant his name. The guards were unable to move.

  ‘Tengis! Tengis! Tengis!’ chanted the crowd.

  ‘Listen,’ said Tengis. He beckoned for Lily to move closer. ‘Listen, do you really think that people don't believe in me? Watch this.’ Tengis turned to face his crowd. ‘Who do you love?’

  ‘TENGIS!’ screamed the crowd.

  ‘What do you want?’ asked Tengis.

  ‘THE POWER OF TEN!’ roared the crowd. They were enjoying this impromptu rally enormously and most of them couldn't wait to get home and boast about it to their friends.

  ‘Who do we hate?’ invited Tengis.

  ‘KHADISTS!’ yelled the crowd. Hearing that word a few began to shout ‘boo’ and screech wolf-whistles. One more intrepid member moved forward with a Khadist flag and set fire to it. The throng bellowed their approval and braver men jumped on top of the flaming flag. Tengis turned towards Lily and sneered. He lifted his hands towards them, intimating their raucous support.

  ‘What do you worship?’ declared Tengis. From his pocket he snatched a lump of his wondrous shimmering shiny substance and held it aloft for all to see. It shone brightly glistening in the evening air.

  ‘THE ORANGEY YELLOW SUNNY STUFF!’ boomed the crowd. Some among the crowd squealed in delight and held their tight fists to their mouth. The people were becoming frantic with excitement. Tengis's henchmen looked on worried that he was about to start a riot.

  ‘Who's the man?’ hurled Tengis.

  ‘CHINGGIS!’ shouted the crowd.

  ‘I can't hear you,’ said Tengis. ‘Who's the man?’

  ‘CHINGGIS! CHINGGIS! CHINGGIS!’ cried the crowd. Although they only numbered one hundred their yells could be heard far afield throughout Baatarulaan. Tengis crossed his arms and smugly soaked up the plaudits. He turned to Lily. She did not look impressed. Her face still spat toxic anger in his direction. His stomach heaved again as the furious acids roared within his body. Although Tengis retained a calm serenity on his face, he was raging inside.

  ‘You are an imposter!’ shouted Lily. ‘The real Chinggis would never seek attention like this. He was an honest and just man. You are a manipulative bully!’ The crowd began to grow quieter. The populace of Baatarulaan was renowned for its fickle nature.

  ‘How dare you doubt my integrity!’ bellowed Tengis. His reflux was gettin
g the better of him. Being the possible president in waiting was taking its toll on him.

  ‘Integrity?!’ screamed Lily. ‘Integrity?! How can you stand there and talk about integrity? Have you even read your so-called Ten Recommendations? Please, enlighten us by telling us what particular aspect of those pathetic words shows an ounce of integrity. You have simply taken the words you think people want to hear and shaped them into false promises that are so fluffy they can be interpreted as you see fit. You have no substance, no integrity and no place even thinking about telling us how to act!’

  ‘You have no idea of my power!’ said Tengis. He tried to gather himself together more calmly. ‘I have the power of Chinggis Khaan within me. He and I speak freely; his spirit is in my soul.’

  ‘Is that right?’ said Lily. Although she was still fuming, she was able to stabilise her emotions a little. ‘And what do you know of spirits?’

  ‘I speak with the spirits,’ said Tengis. ‘Chinggis and I converse regularly.’

  ‘Are you a shaman?’ asked Lily. She knew the answer and Tengis's silence was the affirmation she had been seeking. ‘You're not, are you? So, how do you propose it is that you speak to the spirit of Chinggis? Everybody knows that it is only shamans that can speak to the spirits. I should know. I am a real shaman, or rather shawoman. I do speak with the spirits and, you know, it's funny, they never mention you. Are you sure you speak to the spirits? Are you sure you're not perhaps just a little bit mad and hearing voices in your head?’

  The memory of Odval's initial doubts flooded Tengis's mind. He recalled the humiliation he experienced as a result of his loved one's words. He fought to keep his anger hidden. Bile poured up his throat into his mouth as his chest clenched around his ribcage. In his cramped heart Tengis knew that Lily's words adhered to the same logic he had lived his whole life by but he also knew he was Chinggis Khaan. He was sure that he simply had to be.