Wayness asked: "If it doesn't work out, what then?"
"
"Mad Julian Mountain' might win a few votes," said Milo.
Julian shook his head sadly.
"Joke all you like. In the end you'll find that you can't laugh away either progress or the LPF."
Wayness said plaintively: "Let's not talk politics, at least so early in the day. Glawen, you're supposed to know everything; why is it called Mad Mountain?"
"In this case, I do happen to know," said Glawen.
"On old maps you'll find the name "Mount Stephen Tose." About two hundred years ago, a tourist in his excitement supplied the new name, which everyone began to use, and so now it's Mad Mountain."
"Why was the tourist excited?"
"I'll show you after we arrive."
"Is it a scandal that you're embarrassed to talk about?" asked Wayness.
"Or a delightful surprise?"
"Or both?" asked Milo.
Wayness told Milo: "Your mind runs farther and faster than mine.
I can't think of anything which fits."
"We'll just have to wait and see. Glawen may surprise us yet."
"I'm sure of it. Glawen is very subtle. Don't you think so, Julian?"
"My dear girl, I haven't given the matter a thought." Wayness turned back to Glawen.
"Tell us about the battles. Have you seen them?"
"Twice. When you're at the lodge they're hard to ignore."
"What happens? Are they as bad as Julian fears?"
"They are spectacular, and in some ways rather grim." Julian gave an ironic snort.
"Please instruct me in the ways that they are other than grim."
"It's mostly in the mind of the beholder. The banjees don't seem to care."
"That's hard to believe."
"The battles would be easy to avoid, if they were so inclined." Julian brought a booklet from his pocket.
"Listen to this article:
"The banjee battles are extremely dramatic and picturesque events;
happily they have been made accessible to the tourist. " "Squeamish folk be warned: these battles are horrifying in their frenzy and in the hideous deeds which occur. Shouts and screams rise and fall; the trumpeting cries of victory mingle with the anguished moans of the defeated. Without surcease or pity the warriors wield their mighty instruments of death. They slash and strike, probe and thrust; quarter is neither extended nor expected. '"For the Gaean onlooker, the battles are poignant experiences,
j" rife with archetypal symbology. Emotions are aroused to which f ; contemporary mind cannot even fit a name. No question as to t quality of the spectacle; the encounters reek with color: portento reds, the black gleam on the bizarre angles of armor and helmets; t : alkaline blues and greens of the thoracic cushions. i "
"The air at Mad Mountain is heavy with the sense of majestic fo| | and tragic destiny it goes on in that vein." | "It is a vivid description," said Glawen.
"The official guidebook. i: put to shame, and in fact barely mentions the battles." ) | "Still, are not the facts in order?" 3 E "Not altogether. There are not so many shrieks and moans, fe grunts and curses and bubbling sounds. The females and bantlin . stand by unconcerned and are not molested. Still, there's no denyL that the warriors tend to hack at each other." } Wayness asked: "Forgive me my morbid curiosity but exact!
what happens?" , "The battles seem absolutely pointless and could easily be avoidt The migration routes run east-west and north-south, and cross ji i below Mad Mountain Lodge. When a horde is approaching, the fi signal is a low sound: an ominous murmur. Then the horde appei i in the distance. A few minutes later the first attack squad cone running along the route a hundred elite warriors armed with thirt : foot lances, axes, and six-foot spikes. They secure the crossing ai i; stand guard while the horde runs past. If another horde is passing, t It! approaching horde does not wait until the other one has gone by, i, logic would dictate, but instead becomes indignant and attacks. :
"The warriors bring down their lances and charge, trying to fol | open an avenue for their own group to pass. The battle continues ud one or the other of the hordes has negotiated the crossing. It's disgrace to go last, and the defeated horde sets up a great howl of hi : feelings. ;
"About this time tourists run down for souvenirs, hoping to finds s undamaged helmet. They prowl through the corpses pulling and tugging. Sometimes the banjee is still alive and kills the tourist. I "The dead tourist is not ignored by the management. His picture is hung in the gallery as a warning to others. There are hundreds of these pictures, of folk from almost as many worlds, and they are a source of fascination to everyone." "I find the whole business disgraceful," said Julian.
j "I think it's distasteful myself," said Glawen.
"But the banj<S | won't stop fighting and the tourists won't stop coming so Mi " Mountain Lodge stays open." | "That is a cynical attitude," said Julian.
"I don't feel cynical," said Glawen.
"I just don't feel theoretical."
"I'm sure that I don't understand you," said Julian stiffly.
