the tall dead grass while its dead master lay
nearby.

Three Tartars peeled off from their formation and charged at Daoud. His
arrows took two of them, and an arrow from one of his men struck down
the third.

Elated, he whispered a prayer of thanks to God. Baibars's yellow
standard changed direction. Following it, Daoud pulled his horse around
and raced away from the Tartars. He stood in the stirrups, bow and an
arrow in hand with a steel-tipped armor-piercing arrow nocked. Resting
his right knee against his heavy wood and leather saddle, he turned
until he was looking over his horse's rear and took careful aim. To
steady his aim, he fired the arrow just after his horse's four feet
struck the ground. He saw a Tartar thrown off his pony by the force of
the arrow, and he laughed aloud.

He saw files of Tartars pulling away from the main formation, which was
pursuing Qutuz and Kalawun. Baibars's attack was pulling the Tartars
apart.

Love for Baibars surged within him. The Tartars were said to be masters
of warfare, but Baibars could out-general even them.

Following the yellow standard, Daoud rode back and forth over the field.
He lost all sense of the progress of the battle. For brief moments he
took his eyes off the enemy warriors to glance up at the sun, a pale
disk visible through a haze of smoke and dust, to see in which direction
he was riding.

Many times he shot his last arrow, got down from his horse and, standing
in the grass with horsemen galloping all around him, refilled his
quiver from those of fallen Mamelukes and from the bodies of Tartars.

Mounted or on foot, he felt as if no arrow or sword could touch him. He
seemed, when he had ridden out to battle, to have left fear somewhere
behind.

He recognized Mamelukes from other ortas riding beside him, and his
hopes leapt at the sight of them. They must have come back to join the
battle from the shattered left wing and center.

Following the yellow standard, he saw that the Tartars were now always
on his left. For the most part, he kept his eyes on them and stayed
close to the other Mamelukes. The plain was almost featureless, but
glancing to his right from time to time, he noticed certain twisted
trees and black boulders he was sure he had passed before.

The sun was halfway between the zenith and the western horizon when the
yellow standard halted. The Mamelukes turned to face the Tartars, whose
standard rose from their midst. Looking to either