Riddley Walker

by Russell Hoban

  Goodparley says, ‘O no and in deed he aint hes bettern clevver hes a mover hes a happener. Now Riddley Runner you jus tel me what you think youve got in that bag. Iwd be interstit to know what you think it is.’

  I said, ‘Truth is I dont have no idear what it is.’

  He says, ‘No you dont know do you I know wel a nuff thats Truth. All you done wer grab it becaws youre a mover and a happener aint you. Youve got to move about and make things happen o I sust that right a nuff and early on. Realy I wunt have to do nothing only tern you luce and let you run and youwd persoon get every thing all happent out and moving I wunt have to stress my self and strain like I ben doing so long. Yes thats all itwd take to get us moving frontwards agen is you and me working to gether. Abel Goodparley and Riddley Runner. Riddley Orfing. Why cant I have you for Shadder Mincer in stead of that dretful littl Orfing on my back and dragging his feet all the time.’

  He took me by the rist of my out stretcht arm and pult me to him. He took the bag out of my han he said, ‘You can feal it in there pecking to get out cant you. Like a chick in a shel. Whatwl it hatch I wunner?’ He put his han in to the bag and brung it out ful of stoans. I hadnt seen them in the lite befor. Yeller they wer. Broakin bits of yeller stoan.

  Goodparley lookit over to Phist like he wer going to have his head on a poal right soon. He said, ‘Wel you foun your self a sweets place did you and sweeter nor honey you foun your self the yellerboy stoan the Salt 4.’

  Phist said, ‘I dint fynd nothing Abel I aint no mover nor no happener.’

  Goodparley said, ‘No and for a true fack you aint my littl pink eyed frend you aint no kynd of a mover nor happener thats jus what I come plaining of this long time innit. “Tryl narrer,” you tol me. “Thats the way to do it which wewl do it in the new working,” you said. “Spare the mending and tryl narrer.” And all the time you ben waiting on your boat with honey sweets your Salt 4 you clevver littl man you yellerboy stoaner you. Whatm I going to do with you I wunner howm I going to put you strait it looks to me like youve tyd your self in such a knot there aint no end to it.’

  Phist said, ‘Abel I bint waiting on no boat I never knowit nothing about no boat til you come in here with your hevvys and claiming Trubba on me. I know I aint the frendyes bloak in the worl I know theres some dont like me may be theres some in the Mincerywd like to put some Trubba on me. I dont know what others myt be doing but I aint ben running no stoans. Them Fork Stoan hevvys they can say what they like that dont put nothing on me. You start beleaving that kynd of thing and any 1 can bring down any 1 they like all they have to do is jus only sen them some colourt stoans or powders or what ever.’

  Goodparley said, ‘What powders Belnot? What kynd of powders myt you be talking about?’

  Phist said, ‘Eusas sake Abel you jump on every word I say and progamming for Trubba. I aint talking about no powders I dont have no powders I jus only said stoans and powders sames you myt say sticks and stoans it wernt nothing only a way of saying.’

  Goodparley said, ‘Yes wel leave it with me jus a littl Belnot this wants thinking on praps youwl be so kynd to leave us the loan of your shelter and have a nice cup of tea in the gate house wylst I have a word with this here dog frendy oansome travveler.’

  The hevvy as brung me in took Phist out. Goodparley looking at me and smyling hard then he said, ‘Howd you get dog frendy Riddley?’

  I said, ‘I dont know it jus happent. I gone over that fents without realy thinking it out I jus run with them dogs nor they dint arga warga.’

  He said, ‘You jus run with them dogs did you o youre a deap 1 theres mor and mor to you aint there tel me whyd you go to Fork Stoan with Lissener?’

  I said, ‘I keap saying I dont know but its Truth it jus like come in to my mynd I thot we bes not break the circel then.’

  He said, ‘O yes I beleave you parbly you dont even know your self what levvils youre working. Horny Boy which is what you are the same as any yung man. Rung Widders Bel Ive heard about you and Lorna Elswint shes out livet moren 1 husbin and manys the time youve rung her bel. Stoal his Fathers Ham as wel. Which you took over your dads connexion when he got took off. Thats 3 blipful roun the circel nex you done your 1st acturel. Bernt his Arse. Bernt your arse here in the digging then over the fents you gone and running with them dogs to Bernt Arse where you bernt my arse killing 1 of my hevvys with your dogs. I sust youwd parbly hoal up til dark and I sust you myt do a nother acturel so on I gone to Fork Stoan a head of you. I wer there by The Warnings when you come and Forkt a Stoan which is that same and very bag of yeller stoans you brung here roading blipful agen bringing them stoans to Belnot Phist like I knowit you wud you Done It Over. You gone over this here fents in the morning and back you come doing it over agen at nite. Only this 2nd time you like broak a boan dint you in a way of saying. You got cawt by your old Nunkel Abel.’

  My head begun to feal like it wer widening like circels on water I dint know if it wud ever stop I dint know where the end of it wud be. The stranger it took me the mor I fealt at hoam with it. The mor I fealt like Iwd be long where ever it wer widening me to. I said, ‘How can you work all that out of a kid rime? Fools Circel 9wys is a kid rime for a kid game.’

  He said, ‘O Riddley you known bettern that you know the same as I do. What ben makes tracks for what wil be. Words in the air pirnt foot steps on the groun for us to put our feet in to. May be a nother 100 years and kids wil sing a rime of Riddley Walker and Abel Goodparley with ther circel game.’

  I said, ‘What put Fools Circel 9wys in the air then?’

  He said, ‘Dint Lissener tel you who ben the 1st Ardship then?’

  I said, ‘He said it ben Eusa.’

  He said, ‘Dint he tel you how the Eusa folk stoand Eusa out of Cambry for what he done? How they crowdit him roun the circel of Inland 1 town to a nother? Every town they come to they tol them on the gate, “This is Eusa what done the clevver work for Bad Time.” Them what wer lef in the towns them what wer the soar vivers of the barming they torchert Eusa then. Torchert him and past him on to the nex. Thats when the playgs come follering hot on Eusas road and wiping out each town he lef behynt him. 9 towns in the rime and 9 towns dead but Cambry shud be in it 2ce it ben the 1st it ben the las. Cambry where they stoand him out of starting him on to his circel and Cambry where they brung him back to blyn and bloody not a man no mor he ben cut off.

  ‘To the gate they brung him lef a space all roun him come the dogs then and licking his soars. Them on the gate they wer afeart they said, “Why dont you say Trubba not if you want in?” Eusa said, “I cant say that.” They beat him to death then with col iron becaws it ben col iron he done Inland to death with. Mynd you this wer his oan folk done it to him.

  ‘They took his head off then they put it on a poal for telling. Eusas head tol them, “Onlyes part of Inland kep ther hans clean of this ben the Ram which is the head of Inland. You cut my head off my body now the body of Inland wil be cut off from the head.” With that there come a jynt wave it wer a wall of water hyer nor a mountin. Dint it come tho. It come rushing it come roaring it come roaling down it cut acrost the lan right thru from Reakys Over down to Roaming Rune. It cut the Ram off sepert from the res of Inland that wer the day the Ram be come a nylan.

  ‘That head of Eusa said to them what put it on the poal, “Now throw me in the sea.” Which they done that and the head wer swimming then agenst the tide it swum acrost that water from Inland to the Ram. Them on the Ram took in the head and this is what it tol them: “Make a show of me for memberment and for the ansers to your askings. Make a show with han figgers put a littl woodin head of me on your finger in memberment of my real head on a poal. Keap the Eusa folk a live in memberment of the hardship they brung on. Out of that hardship let them bring a Ardship 12 years on and 12 years come agen. Let the head of Inland ask the Ardship then. Let the head of Inland road the circel ful and to the senter asking what he wants to know for all of Inland. When the right head of Inland fynds the right head of Eusa the anser
wil come and Inland wil rise up out of what she ben brung down to.” Then the head roalt back in to the water it swum out to sea.’

  Goodparley wer all as cited telling that his littl eyes wer shyning you cud see it wer hy telling for him. He said, ‘Theres your Fools Circel Riddley its that ful circel Eusa gone his hevvy road on time back way back. Its that circel I ben roading looking for the anser as wil bring poor Inland up from what she ben brung down to.’

  Dint say nothing for a littl nyther of us jus lissening to the hisper of the rain. Finely I said, ‘Why wernt all this in the Eusa Story then?’

  Goodparley said, ‘It ben Eusa wrote the Eusa Story he done it befor they stoand him out of Cambry. After that he dint write nothing mor. Words! Theywl move things you know theywl do things. Theywl fetch. Put a name to some thing and youre beckoning. Iwl write a message if I have to but I wunt word nothing moren that on paper. Eusa ben fetcht by words on paper you know.’

  I said, ‘What dyou mean?’ With my head widening in circels and my mynd sinking like the stoan what made the circels. Part of me where I wer and part of me with Lissener and coming in to Cambry. Thinking:

  Never did the Good Luck brother

  Tern a roun to help the other

  With a sickish fealing as I myt be the Good Luck brother and I contrackt I wud help the other Iwd get to him soons I cud and what ever Trubba he wer in wewd boath be in it. Cursing my self for leaving him and coming to Widders Dump which I hadnt done nothing only put them yeller stoans in Goodparleys hans.

  Goodparley had a peace of paper in his han and holding it in front of me. He said, ‘Have a read of this.’

  This is what I read wrote down the same:

  The Legend of St Eustace

  The Legend of St Eustace dates from the year A.D. 120 and this XVth-century wall painting depicts with fidelity the several episodes in his life. The setting is a wooded landscape with many small hamlets; a variety of wild creatures are to be seen and a river meanders to the open sea.

  1. At the bottom of the painting St Eustace is seen on his knees before his quarry, a stag, between whose antlers appears, on a cross of radiant light, the figure of the crucified Saviour. The succeeding episodes lead up to his martyrdom.

  2. The Saint and his family appear before the Bishop of Rome renouncing their worldly possessions and becoming outcasts.

  3. His wife is taken off by pirates in a ship; on the right the father and sons stand praying on the shore.

  4. St Eustace and his boys reach a river swollen by torrents. Having swum to the opposite side with one of the children, he returns for the other. As he reaches the middle of the stream a wolf runs off with the child he has left. He looks back and beholds a lion in the act of carrying off the other child. We see St Eustace praying in the midst of the river.

  5. Fifteen years pass by. St Eustace has recovered his wife and sons and is the victorious general of the Emperor Hadrian, who orders a great sacrifice to the gods in honour of his victories. Eustace and his family refuse to offer incense. We see them being roasted to death in a brazen bull. The Emperor Hadrian stands on the left with a drawn sword in his hand.

  6. At the top of the painting two angels hold a sheet containing the four souls; the Spirit of God in the form of a dove descends to receive them into heaven.

  The date of the painting is about 1480; the work is highly skilled in an English tradition and is a magnificent example of wall painting of this date.

  Wel soons I begun to read it I had to say, ‘I dont even know ½ these words. Whats a Legend? How dyou say a guvner S with a littl t?’

  Goodparley said, ‘I can as plain the mos of it to you. Some parts is easyer workit out nor others theres bits of it wewl never know for cern jus what they mean. What this writing is its about some kynd of picter or dyergam which we dont have that picter all we have is the writing. Parbly that picter ben some kynd of a seakert thing becaws this here writing (I dont mean the writing youre holding in your han I mean the writing time back way back what this is wrote the same as) its cernly seakert. Its blipful it aint jus only what it seams to be its the syn and foller of some thing else. A Legend thats a picter whats depicted which is to say pictert on a wall its done with some kynd of paint callit fidelity. St is short for sent. Meaning this bloak Eustace he dint jus tern up he wer sent. A.D. 120 thats the year count they use to have it gone from Year 1 right the way to Bad Time. A.D. means All Done. 120 years all done theyre saying thats when they begun this picter in 120 nor they never got it finisht til 1480 is what it says here wel you know there aint no picter cud take 1360 years to do these here year numbers is about some thing else may be wewl never know what.’

  I said, ‘What year is it now by that count?’

  He said, ‘We dont know jus how far that count ever got becaws Bad Time put a end to it. Theres a stoan in the Power Ring stannings has the year number 1997 cut in to it nor we aint never seen no year number farther on nor that. After Bad Time dint no 1 write down no year count for a long time we dont know how long til the Mincery begun agen. Since we startit counting its come to 2347 o.c. which means Our Count.’

  I said, ‘Dyou mean to tel me them befor us by the time they done 1997 years they had boats in the air and all them things and here we are weve done 2347 years and mor and stil slogging in the mud?’

  He put his han on my sholder he said, ‘Now youre talking jus like me I dont know how many times Ive said that. Now you see the woal thing what Im getting at its why Im all ways strest and straint Im jus a woar out man. Riddley we aint as good as them befor us. Weve come way way down from what they ben time back way back. May be it wer the barms what done it poysening the lan or when they made a hoal in what they callit the O Zoan. Which that O Zoan you cant see it but its there its holding in the air we breave. You make a hoal in it and Woosh! Nomorair. Wel word ben past down thats what happent time back way black. You hear what I said? I said time back way black. You ever hear the story of why the crow is black and curses all the time?

  Thru the smoak hoal I cud see the nite thinning out and the day coming on. I dint want to hear no storys about crows. I said, ‘Wheres Orfing is he gone after Lissener?’

  He said, ‘Gone a head of him to Cambry.’

  I said, ‘Waiting a jump on him.’

  He said, ‘Reaping a eye and a ear on him til I get there.’

  I said, ‘Whatwl you do when you get there?’

  He said, ‘Iwl do what I ben doing Iwl go on asking wont I. Do some Cambry asking then its up to Horny Boy and begin that woal Fools Circel over agen becaws it ben broak this time.’

  I said, ‘You going to help the qwirys on him?’

  He said, ‘Whats the use of helping qwirys on him that poor simpo I dont think he knows nothing to tel no moren any of them ever do. I do like other Pry Mincers done befor me becaws thats what the Mincery wants. Im terning them frontwards in a woal lot of ways only I cant do it all at Ice. We aint none of us what you cud call qwick but mos of them roun me theyre 2ce as unqwick as I am Iwl tel you that. May be you ben thinking Im your nemminy but that aint how it is. You think like I do you feal like I do we aint nemminys. Its them as cant think nor feal none of them things theyre the nemminy. Them peopl as jus want to hoi on to what theyve got theyre afeart to chance any thing theyre afeart to move even 1 littl step forit. I dont care if its Mincery or forms or fentses its them as wont move theyre the nemminy. Riddley may be you dont know it but you dont have no better frend nor me?’

  I dint say nothing.

  He give me a littl shake and took his han off my sholder. He said, ‘Wel never mynd les get on with this here writing. XVth century parbly thats old spel for some kynd of senter where they done this thing theyre telling of in this blipful writing. Episodes thats when you do a thing 1 part at a time youve got to get the 1st episode done befor you go on to the nex. Thats how youwl do if youre working chemistery or fizzics. Youwl do your boyl ups and your try outs in episodes, “Wooded landscape with many small hamlets.” Wel thats littl pigs
innit then theres a variety which thats like a pack or a herd and creatures thats creachers parbly dogs. May be Folleree and Folleroo in that pack who knows. May be them littl pigs is the many cools and party cools weare looking for becaws this here is blipful writing it aint strait. “Meanders to the open sea.” Mazy ways to a open see meaning a look see is what I take that to mean. Whatre we follering them mazy ways for? Have a look right here now weare coming on to the nuts and balls of the thing weare coming to the hart of the matter and the Hart of the Wud where them dogs is on the foller of them littl pigs. Whats at the bottom of the thing and whats this sent bloaks name? Wel it says right here: “At the bottom of the painting St Eustace”. That name mynd you of any other name?’

  I said, ‘Eusa.’

  He said, ‘Thats it. Its the very same name jus woar down a littl. Who ever this bloak wer what wrote our Eusa Story he connectit his self to this here Legend or dyergam and the chemistery and fizzics of it becaws this here Legend writing and the Eusa Story the 2 of them ben past down to gether in the Mincery. “St Eustace is seen on his knees before his quarry.” Which a quarry is a kynd of digging. Whys he on his knees? What brung him down what knockt him off his feet? What come out of that digging? A stag. Wel thats our Hart of the Wud innit we know him wel a nuff. Whats he got be twean his antlers its “a cross of radiant light”. Which is the same as radiating lite or radiation which may be youve heard of.’

  I said, ‘No I never.’

  He said, ‘Youve seen wite shadders on stannings cernly you seen the 1 in that hoal in Bernt Arse where you foun Lissener.’

  I said, ‘Yes I seen that wite shadder.’

  He said, ‘Wel it ben radiant lite as made that shadder. Radiant lite. Shyning. Wel we know from our oan Eusa Story where you fynd the Hart of the Wud youwl fynd a shyning in be twean his horns. Which that shyning is the Littl Shyning Man the Addom. Only in this Legend its callit “the figure of the crucified Saviour”. Figure is a word means moren 1 thing and 1 of the things it means is number. Number of the crucified Saviour. Now Iwl tel you some thing intersting Riddley Walker son of Brooder Walker you what put the yellerboy stoan the Salt 4 in my hans. Iwl tel you theres a working in this thing theres a pattren theres mor connexions nor wewl ever fynd reveals of. You know who put me on to what this woal things about? This woal blipful writing?’