The Thinking Rocks

by Butkus, C. Allan

She walked back to where the tall plants grew and gathered an armload of them and carried them back to the fire. There was little wind and the smoke was settling around Lomasi and Morf. She hoped that this was the plant her father had told her about. It was their only hope. She took more of the turtle meat and dripped more of the juice over it; she then took it to her captors. They were both eating as quickly as they could. The food disappeared almost as quickly as she brought it to them. As they ate they started to relax. The smoke was quite heavy but they didn't seem to notice. She looked over at Lomasi and he smiled at her. Her heart skipped a beat; it was working. She turned her back to Lomasi and looked over to Gennos. He had been watching her silently. She reached up and pinched her nose closed with her fingers and gave her a head a single shake.

  Gennos had been watching and wondering what she was doing. She had never had a fire with this much smoke before. Now she was telling him not to breathe the smoke. I don't understand, besides the smoke wasn't all that bad. It made him feel a lot better. The ropes weren't even as tight as they had been. He smiled at her. But she only frowned at him and pinched her nose again. He understood what she wanted him to do, but he felt good and just wanted to sit looking at her. But then a small corner of his mind whispered that he should do what she wanted. He shrugged his shoulders and lay down, facing away from the fire.

  Where Dola lay, little of the smoke was settling. He had been watching Na'pe and Gennos. He was having a hard time understanding what was going on. Then he remembered when Gennos and Cano where teaching him new things. This was one of those times when you must do something where all the choices are bad. What Na'pe was doing meant don't breath the smoke. Dola sniffed the smoke and found it pleasant. He looked over to Gennos and smiled. Gennos was facing away from the smoke and Dola couldn't see his face. That must be the rest of Na'pe message, face away from the smoke. He lay down and tried to breathe as shallowly as he could.

  Na'pe noticed that Dola was facing away from the fire and she was happy about it. Besides that she was feeling a lot better smelling the smoke herself. She smiled as she went back and got more of the plants and added them to the fire. The smoke was a soft brown color and had a sweet flat smell; it became more pleasant the more you smelled it.

  Lomasi was chewing on another piece of meat she had brought him. He had given her another big smile. This meat was some of he best he had ever eaten. He sat looking at the fire. It was so interesting to watch the flames as they climbed higher and higher, and then vanished. He wondered where they went. The smoke drifted over the campsite and he realized that it was a good day. He had his prisoners back; he had food and water, and a great fire to watch. He looked over at Morf; he was watching the river. The prisoners were asleep and no danger. Na'pe was working around the fire putting more leaves on it. There was a lot of smoke, but it smelled nice. Morf was foolishly watching the river; he should know that it was much better to watch the fire.

  Morf was indeed watching the river. He found it strange that he had never noticed how the surface flickered, it seemed to be constantly changing, but yet it seemed to be the same. It was hard to understand. Then he saw a bug climbing up a tall blade of grass at the waters edge. It was so interesting, up the bug went, it would stop and eat and then continue up the stem. Morf couldn't take his eyes off the bug.

  Downstream, the water had brought Cano back to consciousness. He struggled his way to the surface and found that he had drifted away from the campsite. He was having trouble remembering what had happened. Then it came to him; he had fallen out of the tree. He made his way to shore and that was when he found the spear embedded in the grass bag. Lomasi, it had to be. He looked around and found that he wasn't on the island where they were camped; he had been washed up on the opposite shore. He moved far enough into the tall grass so that he wouldn't be seen and then started back upstream. He picked up the faint smell of smoke before he found the campsite. Moving carefully through the tall grass he finally caught sight of the camp. He could barely believe it; they had been caught again. It was his own fault they should have kept going until they reached Na'pe’s clan. Now it was too late for that.

  He sat back on his heels thinking. How can I rescue them? I'm wet, hungry, and the only weapon I have is my Canohawk, and one small spear. He removed the grass bag and pulled the spear out of the turkey, it was broken. He laid the turkey on the ground and looked at it. The spear had been driven all the way through the body, if the turtle shell hadn't been behind it he would be dead now. Well I am alive and Lomasi is the problem, he thought. My people are trapped, and I'm hungry. I can't do everything at once, first things first. Food was the easiest problem to solve. He carefully skinned the turkey and then cut the neck and left it attached to the skin, as he did with the turkey's clawed feet. He then cleaned the body of intestines. Then he tore off a leg and sunk his teeth in. It wasn't as good as when it was cooked, but he could eat it.

  As he ate he looked down at the turkey skin that lay on the grass inside out. He then looked at the skinless body next to it. It was so different when things are altogether, he thought. The turkey feathers are small and neat. Behind the feathers the skin is not nice to see. He picked up the skin and slid his hand up into the feathered cavity. As he raised his hand the long neck flopped to one side and the feet hung down. He sat looking at the gruesome remains of the turkey.

  He caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. He didn't move his head, but he did shift his eyes to the side. There were two snakes moving slowly through the grass. They were both large, about the same size as Cano was tall. One seemed to be following the other. He couldn't tell if they had the teeth that kill or not. They were moving toward the river. He couldn't let them enter the river. They might attract attention if they did, and Morf was staring at the river. Cano knew if he were to do something to rescue his people, it would have to come as a surprise. He didn't need the snakes attracting attention.

  He slowly drew his Canohawk and waited as the snakes slithered nearer. The snakes must be trying to mate Cano thought; they are more interested in each other than they are in me. It is strange how mating can cloud the mind to danger. When the snakes were in range he struck quickly and took their heads off with two blows. The bodies thrashed and curled in rolls, but they made little noise.

  Cano wiped the blood from the blade of his weapon and then tucked it into the carrying strap at his waist. Then he sat looking at the turkey skin again. It had been turned inside out. He put his hand back into the feathered pouch. It was loose, so he put his other hand in and then spread his hands apart. The skin was quite large inside. Suddenly he had an idea; he removed his hands and laid the skin on the grass. He looked at it for several moments and then took his cutting stone and made a slit in the hide. Then he made another to the side of the first. He started to get excited; this might work.

  He crept through the grass until he could see the camp clearly. There was a lot of smoke and little wind; the camp was almost covered with a low cloud of the brownish smoke. Na'pe was usually much better about building fires than this. He could see her moving around the fire. She appeared to be adding more fuel to the fire.

  Lomasi and Morf appeared to be awake, but they weren't moving about, they must be tired, Cano thought. His plan may work if they stay where they are. I will float across the river, surprise them, and attack before they know what is happening. If I can free Gennos and Dola we can take them. He crawled back to the turkey skin and tucked it in the grass bag. He started to crawl away and gave a last look at the dead snakes. Another idea sprang into his mind. He reached down and picked up one of the still squirming snakes at the bloody nub end. The snake thrashed around and then curled around his arm. He moved to the second snake and repeated the process. The snakes were as dead as they could be, but their bodies continued to try to escape.

  He slowly worked his way upstream until he located a floating log he could use to drift across the river to the island. He held the snakes securely by the bloody nubs as he pus
hed the log off into the current. He placed himself at the end of the log and kept his head low in the water.

  When he had floated across to the island he stopped the log in order to get the grass bag up on the log. The snakes by this time had finally relaxed their grip on his arms and he was able to drape them over the log without fear of losing them. The life force was leaving them. Cano was able to take the turkey skin out of the grass bag. Without thinking he cast the bag aside and then holding the log with his elbows, he slid both hands into the feathered cavity and then spread it as wide as he could and then pulled it down over his head. The feathers were next to his face, and raw skin was facing outward. At first he couldn't see out, but then he adjusted the skin so that he could see out of the slits he had cut in it. It was difficult to breath, but he could. He pushed the log into the current and took up his position at the end of the log. He gripped the snakes by their tails and lowered his head until it appeared to be a part of the log. He was almost at the camp when he saw Morf walk up to the waters edge and stare at something in the water. Cano could see clearly out of the slits.

  Morf saw the log floating down toward him, but that wasn't what interested him. There was something strange in the water. He didn't know what to make if it. He felt good and everything seemed interesting. He felt fuzzy and his arm had stopped hurting. No, that wasn't right. His arm still hurt, but he didn't care. There was something in the water he didn't understand. It looked like a bag made of grass, and it was stuck on a small branch just below the surface. But it couldn't be. There aren't any grass bags in the river. He turned toward Lomasi to ask him what this was.

  As he turned to speak, he saw Lomasi look up and then jerk backward. He looked terrified.

  Morf heard water splash behind him and he turned to see what it was. A huge creature with a bloody smashed face sprang toward him. The skin on the face looked like crushed guts. It had black holes in its face where eyes should be. It had a short bloody snake hanging out of the top of its head. There were legs hanging out of the place were a mouth should be. It was dripping wet and had long snakes in place of arms. It was splashing toward him and swinging its snake arms at him and bellowing. Morf screamed and tried to run, but one of the snakes wrapped itself around his neck. He grabbed it as he tried to escape. It was slippery and he couldn't seem to get it loose; he looked at his hand and saw that it was covered in blood. He fell to the ground screaming.

  After Cano had cast one of his snakes at Morf, he drew his Canohawk. Morf was screaming and trying to untangle the snake around his neck. Cano struck quickly and landed a glancing blow to Morf's head. Morf fell into a forced slumber, which allowed him to escape his nightmare.

  Cano moved to where his brother was tied to the sapling and raised his hand to strike at the bonds that held him.

  The smoke had clouded Gennos's mind even though he had tried to avoid its affects. He had seen the creature spring from the river and attack Morf. The creature was killing everything in its path. He tried to pull away and hide, but he was tied too securely. The creature came for him in a rush. He closed his eyes and shuddered as he waited for the deathblow. He heard a blow land, but felt no pain. He waited longer still; there was no pain. He opened his eyes to see the creature approach Dola. He was huddled on the ground and tied to another sapling. The creature raised the Canohawk to strike, as Gennos screamed "NO."

  The creature didn't strike, it turned toward Gennos and waved a snake, and then it turned and swung down at the figure on the ground.

  Gennos's clouded mind saw that the creature had not killed Dola, it had cut him loose. He couldn't believe what his eyes were seeing. Dola rose and spoke to the creature. The creature nodded and then turned to where Lomasi cringed.

  Seeing the creature turn toward him, Lomasi scrabbled to his feet. He stood swaying while his drug infused mind tried to determine the best defense. The only thing close at hand that he could use as a weapon was a piece of burning wood from the fire at his feet. He almost fell as he snatched it up. Creatures of all kinds feared fire. He swung it back and forth in an effort to cast this demon away.

  The creature bent forward and made squawking noises that changed to growls. It came forward in ragged hops, dragging one leg behind it. Its shoulders shook from side to side, and then it stopped and straightened up and pointed toward Lomasi with the hand that held the Canohawk. The other hand swung the snake above its smashed face several times and then cast the headless snake at him. The muffled voice of the creature chanted, "Lomasi, Lomasi, Lomasi."

  The snake landed across Lomasi's chest and the tail swung around and over his arm. He snatched at the snake, got a grip on it and tossed it away with a shriek. He turned and rushed into the tall grass, heading upriver and away from the creature.

  The creature bellowed and charged after Lomasi.

  Lomasi crashed through the grass in a mad effort to escape from the creature. He cast his burning branch away. It seemed useless against the creature.

  Then the creature did a strange thing. It had rushed to the edge of the tall grass and then stopped, and then it turned around. It reached up with one hand and tugged at its face. It then leaned forward, and then straightened up after removing the mask. They all saw Cano's smiling face. "Tie Morf up, I will be back soon." He waved his Canohawk above his head and then, without looking back, charged after Lomasi.

  Gennos was stunned; he had trouble believing Cano was alive. He had just about convinced himself that he was dead and now he was here and alive. He looked over at Dola and saw him smiling.

  Dola spoke first. "I saw him come out of the river and thought that it was Cano by the way he moved, but I couldn't see his face. When he turned around, and I saw him cut you free, I was sure he had come back to help us.

  Gennos could only nod; so much was happening so fast that he was having trouble understanding. He sighed and took a deep breath of the sweet smelling smoke. Well, it probably didn't matter a lot anyway.

  Lomasi's drug fused mind was befuddled; he had trouble thinking too. All he could think of was getting away and hiding. Terror had sunk its long claws deep into his mind; he was more frightened than he had ever been. It was not afraid of fire, it had killed Morf, and it knew his name. It was after him now. It was then that he realized that he had no weapons. In a state of panic he crashed through the brush, he came to a large patch of brambles and without hesitation crashed into them. His arms and legs were slashed by the thorns and oozed blood from the long cuts. One of the slender vines refused to release his foot and he crashed to the ground, landing on his sore leg. The pain shot the length of his body like a spear tipped with fire. The pain make a gasp escape his lips, he could feel it all the way to his fingertips. It didn't stop his flight; he dragged himself to his feet and stumbled ahead. His mind flashed back to the campsite. The creature had come from the river. It hit Morf with a snake and then killed him with a blow to the head. It came after me and hit me with a snake, but I got away before it could kill me. How could a creature like that know my name? Animals can't talk, but was this thing an animal? He tried to think but his brain kept shifting colors, and he couldn't seem to think straight. He knew terror and fear, and he knew that danger was near. He continued to run, but the brambles and vines seemed alive and they kept pulling at him. He felt that he was running in mud. He screamed in frustration and fell again. He landed in mud. He squirmed to a sitting position and looked around franticly. He wasn't in mud; he was in soft dirt. It was all over his arms and legs. Then he noticed that the dirt was moving. And biting. It wasn't dirt it was bugs; they were crawling all over him. Ants, they were fire ants and he had fallen into an anthill. Franticly he slapped at his tormentors. They were everywhere. He heard a long scream, he looked around to see where it came from and then he realized the sound was coming from him. The ants were in his hair and on his back. He scrambled to his feet and ran from the nest, slapping and trying to scrape the ants from his body. He stumbled and fell; he rolled on the ground trying to crush his tor
mentors. But still they attacked, his body was swollen from their bites and welts where rising. He looked down at his festering leg wound and saw the ants were getting into his body. They were eating him alive. A searing pain struck him in the ear; an ant had gotten into his head and was biting inside of his ear. He screamed again and pounded on his head, trying to knock the ant out of his ear. It seemed to be trying to burrow its way deeper into his head. He ran ahead screaming in pain. He had come to the end of the island and saw water in front of him. He splashed into it and fell heavily into the shallow water. Something big was in the shallow water and it splashed its way into deeper water.

  Lomasi rolled in the shallow water like the crippled creature he was. He rubbed mud and water on the biting insects. He stuck his head under water and shook it from side to side. The water entered the ear that held the ant and it floated the tiny tormentor away. He pulled his head from the water and gasped for breath. He lay in the shallow water covered in black slime from the mud and sighed. His body was torn, bitten and bleeding. As he lay there he tried to understand what had happened. He looked the way he had come and saw smoke and fire coming toward him. Fire, a big fire was coming. His brain was starting to clear, but he was still having problems understanding what was happening. Then it came back to him. The creature was out there and it was after him. He sat up in alarm and looked franticly around. Maybe the fire had gotten it. But even before the hope of escape was born, it was crushed.

  A single figure was approaching in front of the fire. Lomasi's eyes where swollen from the ant bites and the river mud, but there were something about the creature that was familiar. He blinked his eyes to clear them. It couldn't be, but it was. Cano. How many times do I have to kill him before he stays dead? Lomasi sat in the mud watching the figure approach.

  Cano stopped short of where Lomasi sat. "So this is the great Lomasi. Sitting in the mud like a child. You don't look like a great hunter now. You look like what you are, a fool."