Page:Sienkiewicz - The knights of the cross.djvu/158

134 in the forest, which were heard far in advance of them. Zyh reined his horse in at once, and listened.

"Some one is hunting, it would seem," said he. "Wait a while! It may be the abbot—it would be well if you were to meet him just now. But be quiet!"

Here he turned to the retinue.

"Halt!"

They halted. The horns sounded nearer, and a little while later the barking of dogs was heard.

"Halt!" repeated Zyh. "They are coming toward us."

Zbyshko sprang from his horse, and cried,—

"Give me the crossbow! Mayhap a beast will run out of the forest. Quick! quick!"

And seizing the crossbow from the hands of an attendant, he pushed it against the ground, pressed it with his stomach, bent, stretched his back into the form of a bow, and grasping the string in both hands pulled it up in the twinkle of an eye to an iron notch, then he put in an arrow and sprang forward into the pine wood.

"He stretched the string without a crank!" whispered Zyh, astonished at the sight of strength so uncommon.

"Ho! he is a deadly fellow!" whispered Matsko, with pride.

Meanwhile the horns and the barking of dogs were heard still nearer, till, all at once, on the right side of the forest was heard a heavy trampling, the crack of breaking twigs and branches, and onto the road rushed, like lightning, an old bearded bison, with gigantic head held low, with bloody eyes, and tongue hanging out. He was panting terribly. Coming out at a hole by the roadside he crossed it with a bound, fell on his forefeet, but rose; quickly and was ready to vanish on the opposite side of the road in a thicket, when the ominous string of the crossbow whizzed on a sudden, the whistle of the shaft was heard, the beast reared, squirmed, bellowed dreadfully, and tumbled to the earth as if struck by a lightning flash.

Zbyshko stepped out from behind a tree, drew the string of the crossbow a second time, and, ready to shoot, approached the prostrate beast, which was still digging the earth with its hind feet. But after he had looked a while he turned calmly to the retinue, and cried from a distance,—

"He has so got it that he is dying!"

"But just think," said Zyh, approaching, "from one arrow!"