Josh stood staring at the crash site. The knock on the head had dulled his senses. "Belt..." he thought to himself, slowly pondering its importance.
Behind the burly mechanic three of the tribe's warriors had crept into position.
Shee, with the dark brown fur and a torn ear, leapt first. Her arms circled around Josh's neck as she pounced on his back and used her body weight to draw him down.
The twins, Kii and Kaa, raced forward. Each dived at a leg, knocking Josh down before they scrambled over to lean on top of him and pin him. "Quick!" hissed Kii in a language that Josh couldn't understand. "The ropes. Ropes before the bald one finds his strength."
From the bushes more of the hunting party ventured out. Piroa, covered from toe to ear in midnight black fur, uncoiled the vine-rope from her hip belt and caught the strange alien's wrists. Even as Josh protested, "Hey! What? Wait!" he found himself bound up.
"Drag or carry him?" asked Shee, raising gracefully to her feet to study her new prize. His skin was almost as lovely as the tanned boar hide that was wrapped around her waist. |