He swung up the muzzle of the gun in his hand and knocked two snarling wrestlers aside. Ty, he screamed. There was a bald man in a gray jacket—he was middle-aged, he held a sword high above his head and he was crying aloud. Again Fanning turned to halloo at the blue froth beside him—he had lost his hat, and his hair was all tousled and childish. Sword glitter … bald head, you cannot do that … Dan pulled the trigger. The middle-aged man stumbled. His hand grabbed at the big barrel of the brass cannon, it was steaming, he coughed and said something about cold steel, and went down under a stampede. Dan dropped the musket.

Once he saw the tops of little oak trees trembling as the bodies pushed against them. There was a remarkable and increasing patter of shots on the right and the left; pink flag came down, and its staff glanced off the cannon barrel. Lonely outcry, Ah Surrendah … the stubborn clay washed back and disappeared, the musket rattle lessened, increased, and lessened again. Go to the rear, people were calling. Oh-my-God-oh-my-God-oh-God-kill-me oh-God-quit-it-oh-God-stop-it-oh … go to the rear. Lay down them guns, Johnny. The crush thinned and distorted itself; men were sliding down on their hands and knees. A red and black image fell against Dan Bale, the arms convulsed around him and then turned to dough and collapsed.

You could see a soapy gray remnant sliding back toward Codoris’, guns still popping, but most of the mass had lain down or gone staggering to the rear. Ty, Bale said. Where in damnation. He can’t be dead. He started to look around. Guns near at hand had all stopped their crackling. He yelled, “Fanning! Fanning!” and there came some kind of a responsive drooling. He climbed across the retching, gargling pile. Tyler leaned back, his face chalky, his shoulders against the cannon wheel. Here, he whined. He saw Dan and blinked at him. The devil, he said at last, and then lifted his wet hands and made a foolish gesture—he had been caressing his thigh and it was all soaked and purple.

Dan got down beside him. Was going to tell him something, he thought: what? I had to see you … the distant, stubborn volleys fought to take his words away from him. Tyler rolled his eyes this way and that … what-you-doing-in-the-army-ahhh, he said.

I came through the lines to see you. I was here—