A Stop On the Road

 

At the burial place they stopped to feed the babes. Alithea inspected the ground where they had fought the strange creatures. Drindl and Fallon had cleaned up the area, but she found a few spots of blood that they had missed. She scraped the blood from the grass and carefully held it to a spot on her tongue. She drank some water to clear her palate and tasted another sample of the blood.  

"Can we go?" Fallon asked as he looked up to the cliffs and north to the stream. "I would rather not stay here much longer."

She nodded. "Sorry, have you got a knife?" He handed her a flechette and wished he hadn't when she cut her finger with the sharp edge. She handed the flechette back to him and placed the blood on a specific spot on her tongue. He started to ask her a question, but she held up her other hand to silence him. She took a drink of water, then spit it into the dirt and touched her finger to her tongue again. She turned to him. "Their blood tastes like ours."

"What did you think?" He turned back to the others.

She came up beside him. "I don't know. Where did they come from?"

"Down south?" Fallon offered. "Where else?"

//////////////////

They followed the dry stream bed until they came to the stone staircase that Alpen and Fallon had built. Bebe admired the layered soil strata visible in the cliffs, while Alithea dug out several shells and other remnants of marine life left exposed by the relentless cutting of the ancient river.

Fallon and Alpen stood off to the side and scanned the edges of the cliffs above. "I didn't see them but I'm reading you, brother," Alpen said.

Fallon turned again to the dry stream bed where it curved around the cliffs to the north. "We're too vulnerable here," Fallon said. "I don't want to alarm Bebe or Alithea."

"What a great idea!" Bebe called to Drindl, and they turned to the young warrior, who held the playpen balanced on one shoulder. He had cut a slit in the bottom of the playpen and slid his hand up inside the pen, where the babes licked at his fingers.

"Alsace juice," Drindl said as he waggled his fingers. Darden tried to hold onto one finger.  "I thought maybe they wouldn't bite a feeding hand."

"Good exercise for them," Bebe said.

"I ask my grandfather to warn me if he sees something," Alpen spoke in a soft voice to Fallon.

Fallon kept his attention on the stream bed to the north. He kept expecting more creatures. "Did you ever meet him?" he asked.

"No, he died in the war between the tribes," Alpen said. "Still, he talks to me sometimes."

Fallon looked over at the two women and Drindl. "Perhaps my grandfather will help also. I have only a faint memory of him. A good warrior. I have heard that their spirits can travel through the cracks in the rock."

The group moved on through the canyon to the west, keeping silent as they walked. The dragging of the travois' runners on the hard ground echoed off the cliffs. After several hours, the cliffs sloped down and the land lay out before them. "Green!" Bebe called, then remembered their pledge to stay silent and put a hand to her mouth.

To the West

 

They spent the morning packing up and carrying their gear across the river. Drindl took a moment and showed Erthen how to stay afloat in the shallow water. Bebe and Alithea constructed a play pen out of flexible tree branches and broad leaves growing along the river, and they strapped it to the travois. Finally, they began the journey west.

"Can you take us past the spot where you met the strange creatures?" Alithea asked Fallon as he pulled the travois. Erthen called to her so she could see him riding on Drindl's shoulders. She waved to him and looked again to Fallon.

"Unfortunately, that's the easiest path to the west," Fallon agreed.

"They walked on two legs, or did they just stand on two legs?" Alithea asked.

"Walked," Fallon said.

"I wish I could examine them," she said.

"Why would you want to do that?" he asked.

"We're the only living creatures that walk on two legs. Well, and birds," Alithea added. "And now these creatures. There are skeletal adaptations. How tall are they?"

"A bit shorter than we are, but bulkier," he said. "And their arms are longer than ours."

"They have hands?" she asked. "How many fingers?"

"Hands, yes. I don't know how many fingers," he said. "Their fingers were wrapped in some kind of cloth." His tone of voice betrayed his annoyance at the questions that he didn't know the answers to.

"Sexual characteristics? Were they male?" she asked.

"I don't know," he shook his head emphatically. "They acted male. Don't ask me what that means. I wasn't interested in their baby making machinery. I wanted to get them and their weapons in the ground as quickly as possible."

"Don't get mad," she said. "It's my job. It would have been nice to see what kind of weapons they had."

"Weapons are your job now?" he retorted.

"Well, aren't you curious?" she accused him.

"Maybe," he admitted. "We're not going to dig them up."

"No, not now," she said. "Do you think you could find the place again if we came back?"

He paused. From behind, Alpen asked if everything was OK. "Alithea wanted to ask Bebe a question," Fallon called back. Alithea looked at him, made a face and joined Bebe and Drindl toward the rear of their small caravan.

Options

 

"They walked on two legs but they have feet like a wolfbear?" Alpen asked as he stirred the breakfast fire. Fallon nodded. He turned to Bebe sitting next to him. "You're the historian. Any record of these creatures?" Bebe shook her head as she undulated the makeshift papoose she had made for Darden and Bella. Alpen reached inside and wiggled a finger, then drew it out with a sharp wince. "Damn those teeth. We need to get some meat into these little ones. They're growing so fast. I don't want to turn back. Any thoughts?"

"What lies to the west, between us and the ocean?" Drindl asked. They all looked to Bebe.

"I don't have my maps, but I believe it is dense forest," Bebe said.

"I went with my father to the land of the Cawthingi," Fallon said. "I liked it. Nice trees and the ocean nearby."

"No, this forest is more dense than that," Bebe said. "We might struggle to find a path through. Swollen streams, muddy gullies. Might be slow going."

"If there are more of these creatures, we might be safer," Alpen said. "I feel exposed here. We've got to get some meat for the young ones. There's probably game in the forest."

Fallon turned to Alithea. "You think we can move the babes this quickly?"

"I'm not happy about it," she replied. "We'll have to keep them out of the sun. We need to bring water and make sure it's boiled. How far do you think, Bebe?"

"The shoreline has been getting closer as we go south. You've all smelled it at times," Bebe said, then turned to Fallon. "How far could you see west? Did you see green?"

"The ground rises up, then some low cliffs," Fallon said. "Couldn't see." He looked to Drindl who shook his head in confirmation.

Bebe shrugged. "A day or two maybe? We'll have to stop for the babes."

"I vote to pack up this morning and head west," Alpen said as he raised his hand.

"We get a vote?" Drindl asked. He had been too young to vote on any decision before.

"On this we should vote," Alpen said.

"Maybe Fallon and I could explore the area first and we could see the forest in the distance," Drindl suggested.

"And if something happened to us?" Fallon asked. "The little ones. We have to stick together." He raised his hand and looked to Alithea who followed suit. Drindl and Bebe both raised their hands. No one was comfortable with this choice.

"Ok, let's get some water boiling," Alpen said.

The Light of Day

"What was the blood on your cloak?" Alithea asked that morning as she fed Alamea. "Did you and Drindl catch something?"

Fallon looked down at the right side of his cloak. He'd missed it. "A small dinjou scurrying around. I thought I'd killed it then it got up and ran away. Felt bad that it was suffering but I couldn't find it."

"Dinjou blood has an orange tint to it." Alithea said as she let the babe feed from her finger.

He shrugged. "Maybe it wasn't a dinjou."

She turned to look at him. "You know, one of the many things I love about you? Your courage, your caring, your fairness." He smiled at that. "But you really believe you're a good liar." She turned back to Alamea. Fallon burbled a few broken words and she turned to face him again. "You lick your upper lip right before you lie." He looked surprised. "I'm a doctor. Most of my patients lie to me. You warriors are the worst."

His shoulders slumped, then he told her about the encounter. "I'm sure there are more of them. That's why there are so few animals here in the south. They must be killing them for food."

"Why wouldn't you tell us? This is something that affects all of us, not just you." Alamea hiccupped. "You snarfulumpala, you ate too fast," she said to the babe, then placed her lips on the young one's mouth and sucked softly to reset the child's breathing.

"If something were to happen to us, you wouldn't know so you couldn't tell," Fallon said.

Alithea turned to him. "Torture, interrogation? That's what you thought? Even more important that we should all know."

"Where else can we go?" Fallon asked. "Some of our people may be living in the highlands or south of there. We can't live in the high mountains to the east. Not with young ones. I was trying to spare you."

"A burden shared lightens despair," she reminded him as she gathered Alamea into her cupped palms and turned to Fallon. "Here, hold your daughter. I'll get Erthen. Let's eat."

The Vacuum of Night

The day was getting late and the shadows descended on the ground below the cliffs. They went back to the stone staircase and took it apart. They set several stones on the travois and returned to the grave site. After setting the stones on the graves in a loose formation, it looked like the rocks might have fallen from the cliff.

They pulled the last two stones on the travois back to the campsite. "Ho! Any luck hunting?" Alpen asked as they descended the riverbank. Fallon shook his head. Alpen crossed the river and took a stone across the river. "It seems like there are fewer animals as we go south. Have you noticed that?"

Fallon set the travois down on the shore bank. He deliberately kept his voice casual. "Now that you mention it, I guess that's so." He  turned back to help Drindl. "You wash your hands?" Drindl nodded. They brought the rest of the gear across the river.

That night, Fallon had some difficulty falling asleep. His ears were alert for an invisible threat moving in the darkness. Not a wolfbear. Something much worse. There could only be one reason why there were fewer animals as they approached the southern highlands. There were more of these creatures. He fought down a primitive urge to turn away from their southern journey. And go where, he asked himself?  Take their chances with Sarten? To the east and the high mountains? How would they survive with four young ones? Alithea stirred at his restlessness. He held her hand and she relaxed. A warrior uses worry, his teacher told him. Like a whetstone, it hones his spirit to a sharp and deadly edge.

First Encounter

In two more days, they let Erthen play around the babes. Alithea and Bebe patiently showed him how to be gentle. When Darden kicked his hand once, Alithea showed Erthen that he could not hit back. "Darden is telling you he doesn't like that," she said. The boy learned quickly.

Fallon wanted to heat larger stones to keep the babes warm during the long night. He suggested the cliff where he and Alpen had been. "That's a job for younger warriors," Alpen laughed. "Older warriors must babysit."

Fallon and Drindl unloaded one travois, loaded up some weapons and flechette stones. "Maybe the hunters will bring some meat back for the old babysitter," Fallon teased Alpen. They set off across the river and disappeared over the ridge.

When they got to the stone stairway that Fallon and Alpen had built, they removed a few small boulders until they found something the right size. Fallon stood up suddenly and cocked his head. He had heard an unfamiliar sound bouncing off the cliff wall. He signaled to Drindl to keep quiet, then they both heard it again. Voices but Fallon could not recognize the language. "Cawthingi from the ocean?" Drindl whispered. Fallon shook his head. He guessed that the voices were coming from the north and they were following the old stream bed. Fallon looked around for a place to hide the travois. He spotted an indentation in the cliff walls away from the voices and they pulled the travois there. 

He slowly extended his head where he could watch the stream bed. There was nothing in sight but the voices were louder. Fallon waited. He motioned to Drindl to get their weapons ready. He kept his head still and barely protruding past the edge of the cliff face as he watched.

Two figures appeared around a curve. They were two legged but they walked in an odd manner. They carried some staffs or axes as they moved from side to side, casually inspecting the ground as they walked. When they saw the stone staircase, they stopped and knelt in a guarded position. Knowing that an experienced hunter scans for movement, Fallon fought the urge to hide his head. One figure stayed kneeling and scanned the surrounding cliffs and his partner inspected the stone staircase.

Fallon cursed their luck. The dew on the bottom of the stones would indicate that they had been recently moved. These strangers would be on high alert. The other one rejoined his partner. The two rose, weapons held at the ready as they walked forward. They didn't walk like anyone from the tribes. Who were they? Scanning the cliffs and the ground around them, they separated a few paces. Each figure rotated slowly so that they could spot an attack from any direction.

Drindl tapped Fallon's hip and he reached back. Drindl slipped a flechette into his hand and set a spear next to his leg. Fallon kept his head still as a rock. Both figures had strange clothing and weapon harnesses. The fur on their faces was long and wiry. Their arms were long. As one of them approached Fallon and Drindl, he scanned along the cliff. As the tip of his weapon came into view, Drindl stepped out from behind Fallon and let loose a flechette. The sharp edge of the stone cut across the stranger's neck and red blood matted the curly hair that grew from its jaw. It put its hand to its neck to staunch the flow of blood as it turned toward Fallon and Drindl. It made a gurgling attempt at a scream that bounded off the cliff walls.

Fallon rushed forward with his sword, dodged around the crumpled stranger and thrust the sword into the gut of the other creature. Its weapon made a deafening sharp bark that echoed off the cliffs. The creature doubled forward as Fallon withdrew the sword. He cut through the gloved hand of the creature and the loud weapon fell to the ground. Fallon jumped back as the creature fell prostrate on the ground, writhing in the dirt of the old stream bed. Fallon sliced through the creature's neck to stop the sounds coming from its mouth. There might be others.

He spun to check on Drindl. The warrior crouched over the dead creature and scanned the surrounding area. Fallon followed suit. After a while, they felt sure that there no other creatures nearby. They pulled each of the dead creatures to the indentation so that they would be out of sight from anyone coming from the north.

"Not Cawthingi," Drindl said as he tugged at some coverings on their hooves. Fallon motioned him back and sliced through the covering and Drindl pulled it off. They were shocked. These creatures had feet like wolfbears but smaller and without claws. "What is wrong with them?" He removed the coat on the one he had killed. They stared at the bare skin under the wiry hair. "Sick?" Drindl asked.

"They didn't move like they were sick," Fallon said. He removed the covering from the head of the creature he had killed. Fallon shook his head, stood up and peeked out past the cliff face. There must be others. He remembered the loud weapon and retrieved it. "We need to bury them so that no one else will find them." They dug shallow graves and laid the bodies and the weapons in the holes, then spread the extra dirt over the bloody ground. It would not fool a good warrior chancing on the spot, but there was nothing that would look out of place from a short distance. "We're going to tell no one about this," he told Drindl who looked at him with surprise. "No one," he repeated and Drindl nodded.

The Babes

 

They divided up the food and ate. Bebe and Alithea retired for the night while Fallon and Alpen sharpened the stakes. Fallon set them beside the fire and took first watch. Alpen helped Drindl into his overnight bag. Throughout his watch Fallon heard rustles and noises but saw nothing. At home in the mountains, he was familiar with the nightime sounds. Here they sounded different. Was it different animals or just his imagination? After several hours he awoke Alpen and climbed into bed with Alithea.

Alpen shook him awake in the early dawn. He whispered, "See if you can help Drindl. We have a boy and a girl! Bebe is huddled with them now. I need to get some water." The babes were blind for the first few days but had big mouths and needed water to swallow their food.

Fallon struggled awake and gave Alithea a tender lick. "You hear?"

Alithea smiled half awake. "Won't be long for us. Maybe today."

After helping Drindl get up, Fallon waited while the young warrior went behind a tree. When he returned, Fallon asked him if he had slept most of the night. Drindl said it was better than the past few nights. Drindl's eyes weren't as glazed. Maybe yesterday had been the peak.

Alpen and Bebe took turns huddled in the sleeping bag to keep the young ones warm. In mid-morning, they set up the tents so that the babes would be protected from the heat of the overhead sun but facing the warmth of the morning sun. Coated to resist rainwater, the tents were fairly heavy. "It has not rained since we started the journey," Bebe remarked. "How I wish I had my maps!" They were accustomed to short rains in the afternoon at higher elevations. "I'm sure there will be more moisture once we get to the southern highlands."

Drindl had a smaller bivouac tent which they set in the shade to protect it from the rain. His coat no longer glistened in the sun, another sign that he might have passed the peak of his musth.

Alithea closely guarded her and Fallon's egg. She wanted "first punch" when the baby used its elbow spur to punch through the egg casing. Fallon carried Erthen in the sling and followed Alpen along the river to gather plants and small stones. Erthen was curious about everything and had access to the plants in Fallon's side pouch. To keep him occupied, Fallon found an Anschloss leaf. The boy chewed and sucked on it while he studied Fallon's every movement. They returned to camp and Alpen made up a grass paste for the little babies and gave it to Bebe.

"Oh, no!" they heard Alithea cry out from inside the tent. Fallon rushed to the opening. Alithea was cleaning their baby. "It's a girl! I fell asleep and missed first punch." Fallon took a bit of the grass paste and brought it inside the tent. He and Alithea surrounded their babe as she fed.

"This is good that we can both stay with her. She will imprint on you as well," Alithea said. Although she was blind, she imprinted on the initial smells around her. They argued over the babe's name but Fallon gave in and they named her Alamea, a variation of Alithea's mother's name.

The next day, they were able to bring the young babes together. Alpen and Bebe had named their two babes Darden and Bella. Their eyes had opened but were unfocused. At first they stumbled into each other. They made sharp squeaks and jabbed each other with their elbow spurs as they navigated the small space. The first two days, Alithea and Fallon got little sleep. Erthen had to be kept away from the babes for the first week. Alithea examined Drindl on the third day and felt comfortable leaving Erthen with him. Bebe untied the stones from Drindl's feet and they used these to heat the tents in the evening.

"It's like two different people," Fallon said as he smoothed Alamea's new fur.

"It's been almost a week since his battle," Alithea said. "I'll test his knowledge today. After that, you and Alpen should talk up his deeds so he has a memory of them. He will act like someone with status. He will tell his son."

Fallon felt Alamea's elbows. "Her spur is starting to shed."

Alithea felt the babe's hooves. They were firming up. "We'll work with her in a day or two. Let her kick at our hands to build her leg muscles. Then we can let Erthen play with her. If he does get rough, she can defend herself."

"I wish I had been with Erthen this much," Fallon said.

"Yeah, you were busy on the end of summer campaign last year," Alithea reminded him.

"That's right," Fallon said. "Now that I think of it, the Ibik herds were smaller last year. That's why we needed another good hunt before winter set in." He watched as Alithea pushed lightly against Alamea's chest. "Balance?" he asked.

"Yeah, testing her core muscles," Alithea said. "She's a day younger than Darden and Bella. Just want to make sure she is safe around them."