Denanna was insistent that what was happening with the Chimudonii did not concern them and to walk into the middle of their conflict might bring the violence into to their own territory, rather than discouraging it. Some say charcoal black is really the darkest shade of old red. "I think by the time we return to the Ninth Cave, if I haven't had my flow by then I'll be absolutely sure. While everyone else was busy setting up the temporary camp, they sat with Melodene by the stream and questioned her further about her people. Every smell, every sound, every movement was noted and retained, her concentration was perfect, like nothing she'd ever experienced before. But when the Mother gives something there is always a balance that must be achieved. Cambarre had roused himself and had stuck his head out of the tent to see what the morning held weather-wise and noticed Jonayla standing in the stream, washing. He knew that this would be the best possible outcome. ", Ayla didn't want to face any problems this morning. "Then we leave to follow and capture them?" "The stone here is sandy and easily shaped, it only required sharp-edged stone tools to gouge out the sandy stone. Steeling her nerves Ayla replied, "Yes, we should probably have that meeting today, as you suggest. He managed to make himself understood and walked quickly past the Clan leader - who was still staring at Star in total astonishment. And when he looked up at her with his impossibly blue eyes and smiled at her, she felt her heart beat a little faster and the feel of his hand on her leg made her insides quiver. Although they had retired comparatively early, they didn't find sleep until just a couple of hours before dawn. She held wild celery, the first growing food to reach out from the warming soil, denoting that spring had arrived. I don't have much time but wanted to stop here so that I could discuss some things with both of you; such that you might share with the co-leaders of the Twenty-Ninth Cave and their Zelandoni." He looked at the young gray wolf wriggling in the sling carrier that hung from the young woman's neck, being supported in both arms as if proffering an offering of bounty. Jonayla was still standing by the fire when Lorala came to stand next to her. "I would congratulate you, but having been a leader for almost twenty years, I'm not sure congratulations are the right offering to make. As the Zelandonia negotiated the trail down the slope, Ayla in the lead, they looked out over the measureless golden grass-clad valley below where flowers would again bloom yellow next spring. Jondalar called his son to his side. When the horse felt Ayla's weight removed from her back she reared up and turned in one motion, snagging the Clan spear against a scrubby little tree. She had wedged the bag into a nearby tree to protect the food from curious small animals. Groog asked in sign, not knowing what the word 'harvest' meant. Willamar and Melodene rode away, dragging the pole-drag holding the dead cave lion. Once Madroman had been settled at the back of the cave where the root vegetables were stored, Ayla was able to relax by the Mog-ur's fire. "This is called an earthquake. Ayla agreed that it would be pointless to herd the animals all the way up north if her daughter's intent was to keep them for breeding. "All I know is what I've seen and I'm pretty sure that Brukeval and his bunch are the cause of the troubles. ", "Um, I thought you'd know about it mother. Cambarre behind Jonayla was oblivious to what Jonayla was enjoying. ", "Yes, I suppose so," Ayla said with a sigh. Willamar still called her by her personal name when they were alone. But that will have to wait until this Moon has come and gone. In moments there were other Doniers and their Acolytes filing out only to stand in surprise at the scene before them. "Well, I wasn't really going hunting; I was just going for a ride to get away from all the noise," he said, still not wanting her to feel embarrassed. He gave her a broad smile and hugged her tightly. ", The Donier of the Third Cave turned to Ayla, "I just hope we don't have too many candidates from the southern caves. A second pole-drag containing the body of Blandar was being pulled by Durcan. This witch's name was Armuna and she hated all men because she had once been beaten and defiled by a brutal man. When the Clan Mog-ur gave Ayla the spear, he told her it carried protective spirits. At once the magic bowl began to spin all by itself and out poured the most delicious looking food. "Creb did end up adopting me. "Fellow Zelandoni, please eat while I explain the reason for this meeting and why it is being held here instead of at our lodge below and then let us discuss what must be discussed." With a scream of frustration and anger, the huge eagle soared upward into the blue sky and flew away, continuing to scream angrily as it disappeared into the west with its antagonist following closely behind. "Joharran!" "That's right, don't move!" "Why would Zelandonii people be interested in something like this?" Sometimes you only realize how good a person is when they are no longer with you. A trip that would normally be completed in two days on horseback was slowed by necessity. Book 7 The Sacred Mountain - A FanFic Novel by Andy Black. Ayla said, truly surprised. Then the Donier turned to the Chimu leader and addressed her. The earth did shake and the sea did cover the village. "I think we should go now. Standing a few lengths away from the opening was an apparition standing beside a kneeling man of the Others with a rope around his neck. She had been preparing for this meeting long before her arrival here and every day since, she had walked away from the camp to a secluded meadow to prepare her dreaming tea. "Was the child attacked?" There were three boys and a girl lying in the grass beside a stream, one of the boys with a sinew fishing line dangling in the water. He wanted to scare them, make them run back across the river, never to return. "'Fish!' I loved him as family and I hope to love you that way too." he begged of the younger brother. "Mog-ur," Ayla continued. "Would you deny this man his life?" ", "I'm glad you decided to give her one of your baby wolves. You say he knocked you down, why did he do that?" Joharran and a few of the Zelandonii men dug the grave. Then as if awakening from a daze, she hurried off to do as Jonayla had asked. My people are very numerous in the south and we combine caves to hunt, sometimes we have as many as fifty people involved in a hunt and that takes careful planning when you have that many people involved." That was a good sign and very unusual. Their sleeping space was sectioned off from the main area of their dwelling by reed frames with taut hide panels that were painted with traditional Zelandonii symbols and hunting scenes. I also know if he were here, he would make you happier," said Jonayla, who was Acolyte of the Zelandoni of the Ninth Cave and Ayla's self-assured daughter. If you met her you would see what I see and hear what I hear, I am sure of it. She snuggled tightly against Jondalar again. Where, I didn't see him?". The old man looked around the hearth at his equals and saw by their faces they felt as he did and nodding, he sat down. On one such night, with only family members gathered, Jonayla disclosed a decision she and Cambarre had made. She is the female Mog-ur. It was a woman - on her own - walking down the path. She felt as if a weight had been lifted from her. She was surprised at the feelings he still caused her to experience - even after all these years. As Ayla approached, Willamar noticed her and stopped work for a moment. What of them, do they fare well also?" "Will you respect him, care for him and teach your children to respect him as befits your mate as their father and provider? Tonight though, he just wanted to let her unusual beauty soak in, like the sweet scent from a spring meadow. They both looked around at the profusion of paintings both complete and in progress. I don't think I could even if I wanted to. Cambarre's hands, as if with a will of their own, moved to Jonayla's bare breasts. There were eight children from Two Wolf Lodge that would serve because they knew the area and had been carefully trained in the necessary traditions as Donier Helpers. She has the real name, Jean Marie Untinen and was born as the second child among a total of five siblings. Mongar nodded, looked sideways at Ayla again and then turned away making the dismissal sign and walked to the back of his hearth area to his mate. You will discuss this with the people of your caves?" His horse would naturally stay with Gray. The men at the fire laughed and joked some more, hearing Jonayla's scream cut off so abruptly. They could always send someone back for more men if it became necessary. Apparently, according to him, there is a Shaman of the Chimudonii who has declared that the Clan people must leave his territory or die. Groog was startled when the man called 'Jonlar' tapped him on the shoulder and signed that he wanted him to lie down on a hide that was stretched between two poles. Out of necessity Ayla had developed the dried mud projectile that she had used to bring down the two men. He died at my feet, after running for more than a day. As dawn's light crept over the top of the far hills to shed its pearlescent light over the Zelandonii campsite, Ayla and Jondalar were already packed and ready to go. They came out at the top of the path and walked over to stand with their backs to the pinnacle as they'd done many times before. This way they would hopefully be able to take on the animal from multiple directions or at the very least confuse it. We will head straight to the Zelandoni lodge.". How do they seem?". Let us talk of Madroman. "Stay here, we don't want to threaten him. Everyone would find their sleeping furs early that night, in hope of an early start in the morning. You'll never see their like again and their trade value is ten times the worth of everything I have offered you so far.'. As the Fifth ended his recital of the prayer, all the other Doniers were looking toward Ayla. That would allow three hunters an entire day of training in hunting from horseback.". "The women do participate in the hunt," Groog assured her, "they butcher and dress the kills and carry the meat. "What have you done? Some of the Chimu didn't think he was really THE Skytalker, but many did. He was thinking that Cambarre had settled down nicely since he'd taken up with Jonayla. He'd been out all day hunting and had hauled his kill back on a pole-drag as usual. As they rode into the clearing Jondalar hailed a tall muscular man, "Greetings friend, it looks as if the Zelandonia gathering is over. More than ever before, there was concern for the future and all the individual Doniers had their own alliances and agendas to put forward. To help us make an important choice at a critical time. It had to come from within him. Well, here we are, some 30 odd years later, and I've finally finished them.''. "Well, if it isn't the noble Joharran? "Oh, I was just thinking about how much I've learned about people this summer. Dr. Clottes was responsible for exploring the Cosquer and Chauvet Caves, which were discovered in 1985 and 1994. He'd been there most of the day and now the sun was low on the horizon. I have seen very good results when I have used it, though it does not work for fevers that are not wound caused. The other women faded in his memory more and more each time he was honored to pleasure and be pleasured by this exquisite creature. "Sure you have. The images indicated that if nothing was done, more lives would be lost and the violence would escalate. They had spiritual leaders just like her Zelandoni, maybe even more powerful, if she understood correctly what he was saying about them. He began to babble in fear, begging whoever was holding him so roughly, not to hurt him, that he would do whatever they wanted but to please not to hurt him. She also wanted to stop at the White Cave near Hill Top Holding for personal reasons that she kept to herself. So had the man and his family, the compensation he had to pay for his violent actions had been ruinously high. We were captured by bad men from the Others in the forest behind us and we're not sure where we are. I wasn't born to the Zelandonii people and that will be a big impediment that I can't really see a way around. He would have to think about that later when he was by himself and had the time to concentrate on the problem. Then he looked at Durg and saw his mocking eyes and an expression that all but said, 'I would have told you if you would have let me.'. He could hear the man grunt as he bent down to crawl into the lean-to and he tensed as he heard Jonayla's scream of defiance. Jonayla, would you take our things to the guest hearth and Durcan would you help your sister?" Jondalar asked, not seeing the young white wolf in his spot by the door. She made the formal Clan introductions, verbally to Joharran, while signing for the benefit of her Clan guests, then explained what had happened while he'd been away. Jonayla was only wearing a loincloth so her legs and midriff were covered with scratches before they stopped to catch their breath. It has been this way since ancient times, a time before we ever saw Others in our land. It was most providential that you came here when you did, and with a wolf. Brukeval's eyes always looked angry. She immediately headed back out to the outside hearth to get the hot water. "What I haven't told you yet is that Atta sometimes tested Armuna in different ways. I will always honor you as my closest friend, one who understands me and knows my sorrows," Ayla said this with real meaning, turning toward the man and hugging him tightly, saying, "Thank you, thank you.". This is a good sized root and the fever fungus is small and almost used up? It was showing signs of age and needed to be mended. Ayla hugged the old man warmly and kissed him on the cheek. These new ceremonies were - in the case of the women - secret initiation rituals that stopped short of the old "opening" ceremonies that used to be a woman's coming of age event. It seems this deceitful trickster has ended up among the Chimu. I needed to get away from everything for a while and Lorala kept me company. He stopped when he saw the female kneeling in front of Durg. In her turn, Ayla looked into Jondalar's brilliant-blue eyes; eyes that had always captivated her, even the very first moment she'd seen them open after his near death from the cave lion attack so many summers ago. Ayla looked up at her friend. The moment of perfect understanding fled as the world around them intruded. The young wolf playfully yipped and frolicked past the people, as if urging them to follow. "What do you want Cambarre? Ayla looked at the older Donier and smiled, "It was planned, Donier of the Third Cave, that's why I didn't wait a day beyond the prescribed time to make the trek. "Proleva, greetings!" "Zelandoni who will be First among us all, the Zelandoni from Lance Rock Cave is down beside the stream.". Finally, it was agreed that everyone should sleep on all that had been said and then a decision would be made in the morning. It was disturbing to have Ayla telling everyone not to worry about the illusion they were about to see. She'll tell you that the cave lion as well as the horses and Wolf, only answered to her because they saw her as a friend. She turned back and scrutinized the area ahead of them but saw nothing. I mean the Zelandoni of the White Cave will do as I ask and allow us to place Wolf's essence in the Sacred White Cave. "Wait," she whispered. They would stop on the way and leave some of the people from the Nineteenth Cave at their cave to finish repairs to the damage caused by the false Shaman followers and to prepare for their people's return from the Summer Meeting. How was it that they hadn't put the two together before? The thought of leaving to travel east to a place where she had been accepted before, was a soothing one. "After he had eaten the gift, he said, 'Now I shall give you a gift in return. She had noticed that the woman kept her gaze down when walking by other hearths. Would you return to your people and ask their help to look for my daughter and her man? "Besides, when you start to rely on your horse and have horses around you all the time you stop wanting to hunt them for food. Ayla gripped the Chimu leader's hands tightly in return, showing her own gratitude with a smile. The afternoon sunlight stretched the shadows into long stripes that reached from one side of the long valley to the other. Jonayla was the first to creep out of the travel tent the next morning. They snuck away last night before the feasting was over so I'm told. Don't forget to prop them up on stones, so they can easily be lifted from the ground. How people can be honorable and caring." However, Iza does not think so. The Fifth Cave's Zelandoni silenced them and turned to Ayla as spokesman for them all. Groog wanted to talk to her. ", The young man looked familiar but Ayla couldn't quite place him. "What's the meaning of this Brukeval? These 'Dream Journeys' seemed to show her images of future events. ", "If you came with me, Mongar would only talk to you and we would have the communication problem. "Yes, without a second thought, I would follow you anywhere. All they wanted was to be close to the First Zelandoni who had the Sky Wolf. "Thank you Acolyte," he said. The people were clapping and patting Ralev on the back telling him that this was the best version of the story he'd ever told and the people were moving around now so Ayla let her thoughts come back to the present and rose to her feet to compliment Ralev for the telling of an interesting tale. We never found out if Ayla found her clanher family. ", "Of course I trust you Zelandoni. Ayla looked up into her old friend's face and saw his acceptance and friendship and was glad of it. The Chimudonii hunters grumbled as they picked up their equipment and straggled down the path, past the Zelandonii group who still held their weapons ready. Manvelar, leader of the Third Cave, had taken the lead as the sun reached the western sky and he was the one who first spotted smoke from Hilltop Holding. After all, we were the ones who convinced our people to get involved in the first place." Jaradal was the hunt leader of the Ninth Cave and was Joharran's son and would probably be the next cave leader someday. As they reached the sitting man before them, Ayla called out in a quiet voice. She tried to draw her hands away from this seemingly powerful woman, but they were gripped tightly and she could not. You have willingly learned what your father and I have tried to teach you, and you have mastered the skills to survive on your own if need be. "Zelandoni of the Third Cave and Zelandoni of the First Cave from the south, meet Madroman, who is apparently now pretending to be the ancient Shaman, Skytalker," Ayla said loudly, mustering as commanding a voice as she could. 'Mother and daughter,' Rubio thought, 'they look so much alike, one younger than the other but both sat strong and proud upon their horses.' "Yes father?" Wild rice was cooking in a travel bowl at the edge of the fire. I've asked Durc to care for the three horses I have left that weren't traded, so we're ready to leave first thing in the morning. Ayla had forgotten what a small wolf could get up to. I was thinking of calling him Sky, since he fell out of the sky, I thought that would be an appropriate name for him. The first thing Jonayla noticed as they neared First Place was a new corral with a shelter that had been built to one side of the main cave opening. "What is it you wish to have and what is it that you wish to give?" I just wish father and Durcan could be with us. If it is worth it, you will do it. The sacred place his people maintained was situated at the highest point in the eastern hills of Old Valley and was recognized by all the Zelandonii people as the Mother's Sacred Mountain. If the spear had been of normal Zelandonii design it would most likely have shattered, allowing the cave lion to maul her. Friends Following "Groog is an intelligent man but he comes from a very different background than ours. "Now, looking back, I know that my father would have seen through him and his hunt leader, but at the time when, as Skytalker, he overpowered our Shaman, we were all awestruck and afraid. ", "I know mother, but you're different, you have more confidence in yourself than I ever will and everyone says you're beautiful, even now when you have had three children they still say that. Ayla the spear, he told her it carried protective spirits a gift return... One of your baby wolves, showing her own - walking down the path and with will! N'T quite place him nearby tree to protect the food from curious small animals of your caves? as... Groog asked in sign, not seeing the young White wolf in his spot by the door glad it. Men at the feelings he still caused her to experience - even after all, should. 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