– Don’t lie, old-hag! It doesn’t matter, we’ll find him anyway. – Damn, he escaped death again! KEIKUAT: I saved him. – How? KEIKUAT: Untie Hoelun-Ujin first, and then I’ll tell you. Hoelun-Ujin is freed from her bondage. – Well, tell me how you saved him. Did you know about our arrival? KEIKUAT: I knew. – How did you know? KEIKUAT: I had a prophetic dream. -A dream, she says. KEIKUAT: Yes, a dream. -Then you must be a seer. Tell me, fortune teller, are we to catch Temujin? Where is he? KEIKUAT: No, he will catch you. – Stop talking nonsense; you’re out of your mind, you hag! If I cut you down with one blow right now, there would be no one to pity you later. (The man raises his sabre, but another soldier shouts.) – Wait! We must kill Temujin and take his wife with us – that was the order. Where is Borte? – Look for Borte! – Where did they hide her? If you don’t hand her over immediately, we will burn you and your children. – I don’t understand how he managed to get away from us again? That cowardly Temujin left you and ran, saving his own skin. He couldn’t have got far, though, so let’s catch up. Tie up these women and children, both their hands and feet. And for God’s sake just gag their mouths with a cloth so we don’t hear their screams when they burn. As soon as the Merkits began to tie Hoelun and the old woman Keikuat together, pressing their backs to each other, Borte rises from the chest, pushing the lid up. Her sudden appearance is unnoticed by the Merkits BORTE: Temujin is not a coward. He went to gather his detachment. At the sight of the beautiful Borte in her nightie, the Merkits freeze in place with amazement and for a moment cannot come to their senses. – Who is this? An infernal fury or an angel? – Where did she come from? – Don’t you recognise her? It’s Borte! BORTE: Yes, I am Borte, the one you are looking for. – Well, well, she just fluttered into our arms. – Yes, tie her up. BORTE: Yes, tie me up. What else can robbers do when they burst into a house under cover of
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