Keeper of the People (Book One)

by Karah Quinney

  Roark stopped his daughter before she could apologize, he had come to know every nuance of expression upon her face. He did not wish to shame his daughter when she succeeded in enchanting the entire band with her story. Ordinarily a child would not interrupt the conversations of older people without permission and here Yaa’s story had stopped every conversation without asking.

  Roark clapped his hands together and the others followed suit while Giad and Anaay cheered at the wonderful story that Yaa had created. Kii laughed in merriment as Yaa’s eyes sparkled and Mar-ee jumped up and down with childish excitement.

  Taikiuu and Star Feather clapped their hands as well but the women looked at each other and shared a knowing smile. Yaa had a special gift of telling a story so that the listener was completely held captive. Not only had Yaa shown that she was an able storyteller, she had adapted her story to the needs of the band and turned the story into one of triumph and success. Taikiuu remembered the conversation that she had with Yaa as they walked throughout the day. The girl asked her, as the Ada’na what was needed to be a successful leader.

  Taikiuu thought about the question for a long time before answering, “A leader must always think of the needs of the band first.”

  Yaa studied the woman who she had always known as the Ada’na, a keeper of secrets and she wondered if there was more to her answer than her aunt would readily admit.

  “What does that mean exactly?” Yaa asked, forcing herself to be bold, when she felt only shyness fluttering around inside of her belly.

  “That is a difficult question.” Taikiuu smiled as she turned to look into Yaa’s eyes. She read the curiosity and the eagerness to learn in the child’s gaze and she also saw determination. “A true leader must always be willing to sacrifice.”

  Yaa held back a groan of frustration, it seemed that her Aunt answered each question with an open answer, it could mean anything. Even as she thought the words she glanced up and realized that Taikiuu was watching her facial expression. Yaa smiled sheepishly and cast her gaze downward.

  “Do not grow frustrated when seeking an answer.” Taikiuu gently instructed and smiled to herself as Yaa nodded eagerly.

  “How does a true leader best serve his people?” Yaa asked after allowing enough time to replay the conversation in her mind.

  “A true leader serves his people by being in service at all times. By making the hard choices, when no one else is willing. By journeying to new lands and taking on new traditions for the betterment of the People. These things make a true and honorable leader.” Taikiuu responded as she reached out to stroke one of Yaa’s many braids.

  The child’s hair had grown over the time that they had known each other. It was thick and dark and beautiful. Taikiuu smiled to think of the village of Aztlan and how the women had been forced to wear their hair short. As the Ada’na her hair was allowed to grow unfettered and it reached her waist.

  Taikiuu’s hair had always been a symbol of power but she was not sorry to see that the others had chosen to wear their hair longer. Each one looked softer, more feminine and beautiful. Taikiuu had not been the person to set the standard for the other women. The elders of Aztlan had decided long ago that this was the way it should be.

  “Thank you Aunt.” Yaa smiled gently as she thought about her Aunt’s words, even if the woman insisted that she was no longer the Ada’na, keeper of secrets, in Yaa’s mind she always would be.

  In Yaa’s mind Power shimmered around Taikiuu just as easily as she breathed. There was no way to deny such a thing and Yaa knew that Taikiuu was the force from which stories were made into legend. She smiled a secret smile to herself as she promised to always remember this story, so that it would be retold forever.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  “I wish there was a way to count the days.” Yaa spoke quietly to the Old One as he walked along beside her. The land had flattened out for as far as they could see and no longer were they tethered to each other. Yaa marveled that they had descended from the highest peak of the mountain so quickly, but the mammoth continued to show them the way and she hoped that they would reach fresh water again soon.

  “You do not count the days in your band?” The Old One lifted his white eyebrows in surprise. His people had kept time from the beginning of the world. While he had lost track of the days that he spent on the mountain, waiting to die, he knew the secrets of time.

  “What does it mean to count?” Yaa asked him with interest as she looked into his wizened old face.

  “Well how many people are in this band?” The Old One asked her, testing out her knowledge even as she looked around.

  “Almost two hands!” Yaa chirped excitedly as she realized that she could keep track of certain things. Details were important to a storyteller and she wanted to be accurate when she retold this story.

  “That is correct!” The Old One exclaimed, feeling a thrill at being able to teach a student who wished to learn. “You can count the days in the same ways already, but you must mark them down, one after the other in order to have an accurate count. Perhaps you can mark them down by the fingers you have on both hands. If you would like, I will tell you the names that go with each finger starting with your thumb.”

  “Yes, please!” Yaa held herself back from jumping up and down in delight. “If you teach me, I will share what I learn with my brother and Mar-ee.”

  The Old One began by teaching her the number for each finger and before long she could count forward and backward by using her fingers to remember each word. Yaa ran off to show Giad what she learned, but only after thanking the Old One graciously. “Thank you, Grandfather.”

  The Old One smiled in response, because he could not find his voice, nor could he remember the last time he had felt so honored.

  Jon’lan did not like the look of the sky, it appeared that a great storm was brewing and they had far to travel if they wanted to find a sheltered area to camp. Jon’lan and Roark marveled over the mammoth’s ability to make their way through the mountains. They didn’t know exactly where the other pathway would have led them, but even with the difficulty of the steep passageway, both men were thankful to have started down from the mountain before the storm struck. Jon’lan frantically looked around for a place to seek shelter.

  The mammoth herd was pressed up against the mountain and the Matriarch seemed to want to push them as close to the hard rock face as possible despite their protests. Jon’lan bypassed the mammoth and noticed a small indentation in the rock with a slight overhang, it would fit a few of them, maybe most of them. It was worth a try for the sky looked pregnant with pent up fury.

  He knew that the storm wouldn’t wait for them to find adequate shelter. Anaay seemed to sense his of urgency, he urged the women to walk faster and picked Mar-ee up in his arms to aid Jon’lan’s wife. The sky arched with flashes of sheet lightening and Jon’lan groaned in dismay.

  He remembered well that sheet lightening could be a precursor of a huge storm, whether it brought snow or rain. Jon’lan breathed into the air yet he couldn’t see his breath, which told him that he could expect freezing rain or hail. He struggled with his own fatigue as he climbed upwards to reach the overhang. He swung his rope down to Anaay as the young man reached up for it and tied his end to Star Feather and then Yaa. Next he helped Kii and Taikiuu make there way up to reach Jon’lan. There was only enough room for the women and children.

  Jon’lan looked at Anaay and he knew by the doubt on the young man’s face that the storm would be bad. Perhaps this is was why the mammoth did everything possible to reach this side of the mountain; perhaps they could sense the oncoming storm. Jon’lan helped the man he had begun to think of as “Grandfather” into the small recess in the shelter of the mountain. Star Feather held her son to her breast and she kept Yaa cuddled close between her and Taikiuu.

  Kii squeezed as far as possible into the cave wall with her mother on one side and the Old One on the other. She hoped that they could not feel her tremble in fear, be
cause her fear was great. She had always hated storms, ever since she was a child. She couldn’t remember why she feared them so much, except that they brought untold destruction, often without warning.

  Anaay took a moment to memorize every detail of Kii’s face, he looked at her finely sculpted cheekbones and her warm honey colored mouth, his gaze caressed her wide eyes shadowed by thick black lashes and he smiled suddenly, a rarity for the young man. Kii’s mouth opened in wonder as Anaay tried to instill confidence in Kii with his expression alone. She raised her chin defiantly and nodded. She would be brave and she would remain silent, no matter how loud the thunder rumbled or how often the lightening flashed. It was Anaay that she worried about, more so than herself, because he would bear the brunt of the storm along with Jon’lan and Roark.

  Giad wanted to remain with the men and Roark was almost swayed by the boy’s request. But then he thought of the situation that the women would face alone if the worse were to happen, Giad was able to defend and protect the women and he was also able to hunt. Roark pulled his son aside and spoke to him briefly.

  “I need you to stay behind and guard the women, children and the Old One.” Roark told Giad even as the young boy’s face clouded over with hurt. Roark shook Giad softly and said, “Have I ever asked you to do that which would cause you harm?”

  “No.” Giad replied as he thought about his father’s request.

  “I will not ask that of you now, my son. I need you to guard the women and children, as well as the Old One. We must seek shelter, there is no time.” Roark hugged the boy to his side for a moment and then he thrust his spear into Giad’s hands. It was Roark’s most treasured weapon, he was never without it.

  “I will do as you say, father.” Giad held the spear reverently as he fought back a sudden rush of tears.

  “Things will work out fine. We will return.” Roark assured Giad as he saw the look of despair that flashed over the young boy’s face. Even now the ground seemed to shake in anger as the thunder rumbled above. Roark took one last look at the women and children and then he met the ancient eyes of the Old One and the man seemed to be assuring him that he made the right decision by leaving the boy behind.

  Jon’lan kissed his wife briefly and then as one he and Roark faded into the night. Anaay was the last to leave the crevice that sheltered the small band and he looked back not at all, for he carried the true love that he felt for Kii in his heart and he did not need a reminder. Instead he raised his hand in a sign that said he would return and as the lightening flashed, he was gone.

  Anaay ran full out, doing his best to keep up with Jon’lan and Roark in the stormy weather. Sheets of rain began to fall and Anaay gasped along with the other men at the feel of the icy sleet. It was enough to chill the bones and still the rain fell shattering against the ground in punishing rivers of ice and water. Jon’lan ran full out, he needed to find shelter and then get them all warm and quickly. He hated to leave the women and children behind but he was comforted by the fact that they were not wet and out in the elements.

  Jon’lan stuck as closely to the mountain as he dared, the ground was covered with rock and debris and his footing was shoddy at best. He knew that Roark would be struggling sooner than any of them due to his weakened condition. The man was not yet fully recovered from the ordeal he had suffered on the mountain. Jon’lan looked frantically around him for anywhere that would provide shelter, but he could not see a safe place for them to stop. He was getting desperate, the cold was bone chilling and the rain drenched his parka and furs. He knew that the others had to be feeling the effects of the bone numbing cold. They needed to get warm immediately

  Suddenly there was a loud crash the likes of which Jon’lan had never heard before, he looked up and saw what appeared to be the top of the mountain falling to the ground. The rain put so much weight on the heavy snow that it created a ripple affect which ended in an avalanche. Anaay shouted as he saw a flash of black to his right. The sound of the snow hurtling towards them was enough to stun them all.

  Yet Anaay saw clearly a sight which he had only dreamed of over the past moons. A large cat ran towards them as the searched for anywhere to take shelter, the cat jumped up and landed agilely on a large boulder and then made a grand leap until she reached another rock before she disappeared into the side of the mountain. Anaay grabbed Jon’lan’s sleeve and he yelled with all his might that they should follow him.

  He saw a moment of indecision in Jon’lan’s eyes and then the man changed direction scrambling after Anaay. Jon’lan grabbed hold of Roark and helped the larger man climb, by alternately pushing and shoving until Roark made it on top of the first boulder. The world seemed to shudder as the snow fell from a great distance towards the ground.

  Jon’lan and Roark made a final jump to the next boulder just as the avalanche reached them. Anaay grabbed hold of Jon’lan’s parka and pulled with all of his might, screaming in rage against the storm. They had not come this far, only to die now, not in this ice and cold. Jon’lan made a mighty leap just as Anaay pulled him and he landed on top of Roark.

  The snow and melting ice crashed around them until the sound seemed to jar the very life from their bodies and still it continued. Anaay shouted in fear and rage, he would not give in to the madness of the storm, he scrambled back against the cave wall, looking around him frantically in the growing dark. Just as the cave entrance was sealed he made out several pairs of glowing eyes staring at him from the darkness and then he saw nothing at all.

  Taikiuu shuddered inside as she watched her husband lead the other men into the fearful storm. Roark turned to look again as Star Feather and the children before moving into the terrible darkness of the storm and finally Anaay was gone as well. Taikiuu knew that she might never see her husband again. All she could think of was that her life could not be so unfair. To be forced to live under the rule of men that governed her every movement and then to finally be free to love and to live only to have that taken away would be beyond imagination.

  She thought again that she and Jon’lan had not had enough time together, she needed more time. She felt Yaa shudder beside her and she saw the raw fear on Star Feather’s face. She looked to her daughter Kii and saw that the girl had her eyes closed and struggled for calm. She needed to be the calm force for her people, regardless of the inner turmoil that she felt.

  She breathed, feeling the power of the storm swelling outside the crevice that sheltered them. The power of the world. The power of the Great One unleashed by the forces of nature. Wind. Sun. Sky. Moon. Taikiuu thought of these things and she drew on an inner tranquility that exceeded all conscious reasoning. She remembered her husband’s last words to her before he left to war against the storm. “Be Strong.”

  Taikiuu repeated these words again and again in her mind. Silently she clasped the hands of Yaa and Kii willing strength and calm into each girl. Yaa felt the warmth of her Aunt’s hand clasped in her own and she stilled for a moment, pushing back the panic that threatened to take control of her mind and body.

  She felt the peace that only the Ada’na could bestow and she was humbled, she bowed her head and held on to the lifeline that Taikiuu’s show of strength represented. Yaa held her mother’s hand in her left hand and Taikiuu held on to her other hand and she did not let go. Even as she breathed in the stale air of the crevice and thought of her father out there racing against the storm, she held on with everything that she believed and willed her strength to him.

  Jon’lan didn’t know if he was alive. He had lost all feeling in his body and he couldn’t feel the cold that only moments before had tormented him. He felt no pain, no sensation at all, except that he was able to think clearly. He was shielded in darkness and the sound of the storm seemed to be separate from him now. He blinked his eyes, but there was no light, no sound except his own breathing. He looked around frantically searching for any source of light, but there was nothing.

  He felt something shift in front of his face, it was an animal.
Some type of large animal breathed heavily directly in front of him. It was not instinct that made Jon’lan lay still, he could not move even if he wanted to, as he fell Anaay had jumped on top of him, shielding him with his body.

  Jon’lan didn’t know why the young man would seek to shield him unless there was some danger present inside the crevice that sheltered them. Jon’lan suddenly felt sharp, excruciating pain and he realized that his body at first had been too numb with cold and shock to feel anything, but now he could feel his flesh begin to unthaw with every inhalation.

  Jon’lan wondered why his back was vibrating with motion and then he realized that he was still on top of Roark, the man was sprawled on his stomach and Jon’lan lay partially on Roark’s back. He wanted to move, but Anaay held Jon’lan still by pressing against him with all his might.

  Jon’lan did not cry out or make a sound, he recognized the sour scent of fear and he didn’t know if it came from his body or one of the other men, he only knew that Anaay sensed a threat greater than the storm outside otherwise he would not shield Jon’lan and Roark in such a way. Jon’lan wished for any source of light, but all he could do was use his other senses to pick out sound.

  The storm made the sound of a crashing river, but they seemed shielded from it for now and Jon’lan wondered if they had been buried alive. Yet that was not his immediate cause for concern. He smelled a pungent odor and realized that it was the smell of an animal, wild and untamed. Suddenly Anaay pushed against Jon’lan so strongly that it was difficult for Jon’lan to catch his breath. Anaay shuddered as the large cat that he had seen and mistaken for Rhea stalked closer to him.