Ki'ti's Story, 75,000 BC

by Bonnye Matthews

  After the men returned, Chamul-na and Nanichak-na gathered Neamu-na, Gruid-na, Mootmu-na, Ermol-na and Hahami-na, together with Wamumur and Emaea. The hunters felt it was time to make Kai, Ekuktu, Lamul, Lai, and Manak -na hunters. All agreed. Wamumur said he also thought that Slamika should be included. The hunters looked at themselves. They were embarrassed. They should have included him. They hadn’t. Of course, they agreed, he definitely should become one. That same night, Gruid-na would make the pronouncement.

  Wind blew in the tree tops on the hill sending away colorful leaves that had served their purpose. The day seemed too lovely. Crystal blue skies were in evidence in the last year, making the People think the haze from Baambas had cleared. It was chilly. Even children wore boots and jackets. They had finished bringing wood to the cave and were getting ready for Wisdom to suck color from the land, when Wamumur called the cave to order. People wondered what was happening now.

  Wamumur said that he had some information to share. Gruid-na would make the pronouncement. Gruid-na called Manak, Lai, Kai, Ekuktu, and Lamul to the front. Chamul-na waved at Gruid-na, until he remembered to call Slamika. The six men stood there wondering what was about to happen. Gruid-na announced to the People the time had come that all these men were now -na hunters. The men were very surprised. This was not how pronouncements had been done in the past. But they were delighted to receive the honor.

  Gruid-na walked down the line saying their new name and putting his hands on their shoulders as he did. He put his hands on the shoulders of Manak saying “Manak-na,” then Lai saying “Lai-na,” then Slamika saying “Slamika-na,” then Lamul saying “Lamul-na,” then Kai saying, “Kai-na,” and finally Ekuktu saying “Ekuktu-na.” As each hunter’s name was called, he lowered his head.

  Knowing that this event was about to take place, Ki’ti had already explained to Untuk what was happening and what it meant and how it was to be received. The Mol had nothing like this and Untuk was intrigued. He hoped someday to have the -na designation. He wondered whether he ever would since his main job was to safeguard Ki’ti, not bring home food. He could and did hunt but it was secondary, not primary in his set of responsibilities.

  Emaea had paid attention to Gruid-na. His mind web was usually as well ordered as a slingshot hitting the center of a circle in practice, but recently he had begun to forget things like Slamika at the ceremony. That struck her as the slingshot missing the practice target altogether. She discussed it with Wamumur who had noticed the same problem. He thought it had gone on longer than she had. It was something to watch. Hunters needed every faculty to be keenly sharp if they were to survive. The death of Ghanya was one of those incidents that still struck Emaea as totally unnecessary. He left in the middle of the night, but hunters sometimes did walk at night. However, Ghanya was emotionally shaken when he left, Emaea had no doubt. That would be enough to throw the balance of life in favor of the hunter, not the hunted, and Ghanya had become the hunted. Emaea didn’t miss the fact that Ghanya had given his life for another.

  The season of warm nights had seemed warmer. At a discussion of significances with Wamumur and Emaea, Ki’ti asked whether the warmer seasons of cold days were because time had passed since the ashfall from Baambas. They discussed it for some time. They concluded either it had or they were getting used to the cold. They also reasoned they had been this far north for several periods of seasons. They really couldn’t compare with where they lived prior to Baambas. They were convinced the air must be clearing more and more each season. They thought it would be interesting to see when the temperature leveled out for several years so they would have a better knowledge of the real climate of the region. Wamumur asked Emaea and Ki’ti whether it wouldn’t be a good idea to include Untuk in the discussions they had. It would help him understand the People and the Wise Ones. They agreed it would be good, so Ki’ti went to find Untuk. He gladly returned with her to the meeting. The discussions lasted all day. Many topics were addressed, including what they thought of the progress of the three groups becoming the People. Their discussions became so involved they had to continue after the evening meal. Untuk had much to add that was of value, and the three were glad they had asked him to join them. All the while, Panriku lay at Ki’ti’s feet. The tiny size of the pup often brought tears to her eyes because she found him as faithful as the dog she’d lost.

  By the season of warm nights, Likichi had begun to make Untuk’s season-of-the-cold-days garments. His leather wouldn’t get him through the cold. She had never made such a huge garment. It was a challenge but she loved a challenge. His foot size made her smile. She had made him a tunic when he joined with Ki’ti. She just about had the season-of-cold-days garments finished. She wondered where Untuk might be found, and realized he was meeting with the Wise Ones. She would have to wait. At the evening meal she asked him to try on a few items to make sure they fit comfortably. He went with her and she did the fitting quickly so he could return to the meeting.

  The meeting continued. Wamumur had been speaking, and then he took a long pause. “I have thought long and carefully about what I am going to do now.” He touched Ki’ti’s shoulder. “Emaea and I have agreed on this. We think it wise. Beginning tomorrow, both of us step down from the roles we have had for so long. You are young, we will be available in advisory capacity only. You, my dear, will be Wise One to these People. You are ready.”

  Ki’ti recoiled. “Father, please, it is too soon! How can you think I am ready?” she asked.

  “Little Girl,” he said and paused, “you are more ready than I was when I began,” he assured her. He did a palm strike.

  “And the same is true for me,” Emaea told her, and followed with a palm strike.

  Wamumur continued. “The hunters will come to you with their questions. You will answer them to the best of your ability. Do not put them off. Go through your mind web, reason, and ask for Wisdom’s guidance and then answer them. If absolutely necessary, you may discuss with us, but I don’t want to have you coming to us for every little question—only the things that you cannot possibly reason out. Talk to Untuk first. He knows the hunter’s world. Don’t be uncomfortable asking the hunters questions. I have asked them as many as they’ve asked me.”

  “Little Girl,” Emaea began, “You know the world of Wisdom and you know what it is to be People. We have come a long way together. You need to keep the People together. Do not let little differences become wide breaks. The first responsibility you have is to be certain that the People learn to think things through and that they are supportive of each other. As long as those two things occur, you will be a good Wise One. Use the men’s council at night. Listen to them. You will learn a world of information that way. Keep it in your mind web. It will come in handy sometime in the future.”

  “You know,” Wamumur said, “we cannot live much longer. By doing what we do now, when we go to be with Wisdom, you will be experienced and have things well in hand. Little Girl, do not be weak. There are times when you must be forceful. Those who were Others will look for weakness. You already have respect that is given you by Wisdom’s choice of you. You must from tomorrow morning go forth and gain the respect of the People on your own. Be confident. Be strong. Treat all equally. Stay true to the stories, and always look for the next Wise One. Do what you do because it is right, not so People will like you.” He followed his words with a forceful palm strike.

  “I have listened, my father,” she assured him. She affirmed the palm strike with one equally firm. “Will you make the pronouncement?”

  “Yes. Now.” And he was good to his word.

  Wamumur cleared his throat and the People turned toward him. He said very clearly and slowly so there would be no questions, “Tonight Emaea and I turn over the responsibility of Wise One to Ki’ti. When you awaken tomorrow as Wisdom restores color to the land, you will have one Wise One. No longer do you come to Emaea or me with questions. You go to her. My seat at the men’s council after the evening meal will now be he
rs. Wisdom has clearly chosen her. Do not argue with Wisdom or me or Emaea. She is not immature in these matters. She is more mature than I was when I became Wise One. I have taught her everything she needs to know. There is nothing else I can teach her. She will go with you as Wise One from this time onwards. Go with Wisdom. That is all I have to say.” He did a forceful palm strike.

  The response of the People went from sharp inhalation and surprise to a sense of finality of Wamumur’s decision and dead silence. No one was prepared for the change, but they all accepted it as coming from Wisdom. The People followed him with forceful palm strikes. In time, some would talk about the age of the new Wise One, but none would say aloud they questioned Wamumur’s judgment.

  “This changes things,” Untuk told her after the pronouncement.

  “It surely does,” she replied.

  “No, I mean something different from what you mean.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked.

  “We can no longer go slipping off to the caves whenever we get a spare moment. You are going to have to be available.”

  “Untuk, I cannot live without occasionally going to the caves!” She was deflated.

  She had not considered having to be available constantly. It was one of the things she certainly knew, but knowing and reality were two different things. Her hair had fallen across part of her face, and Untuk reached out and smoothed it back. He put his arm around her and held her to him. “Come,” he said. It was not totally dark outside and he took her to one of the adult caves beyond the hillside across from the home cave. There they unleashed their passion briefly and fiercely, and then returned to the home cave and slept. Little did they know their sign that a cave was in use had doubled. Now it would also be a little dog named Panriku waiting outside along with a standing log used traditionally by the People. Not only did Ki’ti have a new role cut out for herself, but Untuk also had to keep her as Wise One as well as satisfied wife. With some People, that might not have been considered much of a responsibility. For Untuk with Ki’ti it was an enormous responsibility.

  At the morning meal, Ki’ti discovered that her place in the line of being served food had changed. She now was the last of the men. That made her want to laugh, but she dared not. She rose to the occasion, and took her food with her head lowered to the food servers. She and Untuk sat together in the greater gathering space and ate. Ki’ti realized that initially everything she did would set precedent. She was concerned that she be seen as Wise One to every member of the People. She forced herself to smile and recognize, eye to eye, every person she came in contact with. No longer would she allow herself to look down to keep her personal space. She was available to all, and she would keep an eye on all. She began to see herself as mother to the People. She smiled. Perhaps, after all, she could do this. Wisdom, she cried out silently, be with me. I can do this only with You.

  Song toddled over. The two-year-old daughter of Minagle was adorable. She had straight black hair like her parents, Minagle and Ghanya, and deep blue eyes. She had a piece of meat on a bone in her hand and she climbed onto Ki’ti’s lap without asking permission. Ki’ti smiled despite the grease smear on her tunic. Surely, she would be mother to the People, and Song had figured it out right away. Minagle called to Song, afraid she might be a bother to Ki’ti, but Ki’ti waved Minagle back and smiled. She put her hands on Song’s head and smiled broadly at her. Song leaned against her and smiled back. Untuk wondered whether they’d have children and when. He considered it. He didn’t think they were ready. He knew that Wisdom would be the judge, not he or Ki’ti.

  As the day wore on, Ki’ti found Nanichak-na. He was the oldest of the hunters and one of her favorites. She asked whether he knew of the location of other caves to the north. He was surprised, but assured her that other than the one that fell in the earthquake, he wasn’t aware of others. He wanted to know why.

  “I have often wondered about the earthquakes we get in this area. I was deeply troubled that the animal cave collapsed. I think that if we have another large earthquake, we should consider moving the People elsewhere. That is why I wondered.”

  “I have had similar concerns,” he admitted. “I didn’t discuss it because I didn’t want to alarm anyone.”

  Ki’ti stood straight and firm, reminding him of Totamu in her younger days. “I look at this place. It is perfect. Sometimes I wonder if it is too perfect. Could it be that earthquakes hit the same area over and over? If we went north, I wonder, could we avoid the worst of the shaking?”

  “You do know why we don’t go very far north from here?”

  “Yes. It is fear of the man-like apes.”

  “The last time we checked, we could not find any.”

  “Well, Nanichak-na, I am not suggesting we make any rash moves. I do think it is something we should be considering and devise a plan, so that if it becomes necessary, we know where we will go. I remember when Baambas started smoking, Wamumur and you hunters had a plan for a place for us to go to be safe. Cave Kwa wasn’t the most perfect place, but it saved our lives. I want to have a place that will be our sanctuary if this one seems to be failing. Sometimes, I look at the walls above us and sense that someday they, too, will flatten out against the floor here. It is unsettling when this place is so perfect with the fields where animals graze, and the dropoff, and the lake. Do you ever think about it’s being too perfect?”

  “Many times, Wise One, many times.”

  Ki’ti lowered her head the moment he called her Wise One. He had bestowed on her a great compliment, it helped her gain her assurance quickly.

  Nanichak-na reached out his hand and took hers. “I worried about your leadership. I worry no longer. You are truly ready to be Wise One. I respect you, Wise One.”

  She could not curb her impetuous nature and threw her arms around the old man. “I need you, Great Hunter,” she said. She had borrowed her sister’s epithet for Nanichak-na. It was fitting.

  “I am yours,” he said, pulling away a little shocked at what had just happened, but recognizing it was the Little Girl growing into Wise One. He realized he should not have been surprised, and returned the hug with warmth.

  “I will speak with some hunters. We can make a sweep of the area to see what we can find to the north. We can discuss it further tonight at the men’s council.”

  She lowered her head to him and thanked him.

  Her brother, Frakja, came to her. He lowered his head.

  “What is it, my brother?” she asked.

  “Are you still my sister?” he asked.

  Ki’ti touched his shoulder. “Of course, my brother. I just got a responsibility, not removed from you. You will always be my brother.”

  “I wanted to be certain. It scared me a little last night. You got taken away once. I wanted to be sure that you are still there.”

  “Always, my brother. Now, work to be a great hunter so I may approve.”

  “I will Wise One. I promise I will.”

  She watched him go, and smiled wistfully. Yesterday he would not have responded in the same way. What a difference a day and responsibility could make, she thought.

  As Untuk approached her from the back, he wistfully recognized that he could no longer use the hunter’s walk to go behind her and sweep her off her feet. She had to maintain a certain dignity now. He must do the same.

  “How’s it going, Dear One?” he asked.

  “It is going well, my husband. Very well.”

  “That is good,” he said, on his way to the creek to help some of the hunters move a fallen tree.

  “Wise One,” Pechki said, “I am having trouble deciding which kind of plant this is from the ones that came in from the gathering. Would you please look at it? I asked Likichi and she can’t remember either.”

  Ki’ti felt very strange when her grandmother addressed her as Wise One. She immediately followed Pechki to the place where herbs were dried and stored.

  “This is the one,” Pechki said, holding up the yellow
flowered plant.

  “That one, yes. Totamu told me about that one. Wait a moment.” Ki’ti searched her mind web. “For fevers. Use the whole plant dried and broken into many pieces. A pinch into tea is sufficient. If not, you can use more.”

  “Thank you, Wise One,” Pechki said. She was comfortable that Ki’ti had remembered correctly. She had been confident that what she didn’t know, Likichi might, and Ki’ti would. She’d been right.

  Ki’ti went through the day making sure to contact in some way or another every one of the People, if for no other reason than to ask if they were well. She treated all the People as equally valuable members. She truly loved them all. She wondered whether Wamumur had. This was the first time, she realized, that she was able truly to see through his eyes. She was making a pattern for her days. She realized she needed to be well grounded in her People, and in what their living circumstances were. She needed to care for their safety now and in the future. This day, she had learned more than in some years in the past. It was good. She also realized that it was good that Wamumur had done what he had done. She would have to remember to turn over her role as Wise One some day, before she lost it in death. It made things easier for the person who was new to the job.

  At the men’s council after the evening meal, the hunters gathered. Nanichak-na showed her where to sit. She took Wamumur’s seat in council. She was more comfortable than she expected to be. Panriku came to sit beside her. The hunters raised eyebrows but no one said anything. Nanichak-na opened the discussion with the idea he and Ki’ti had dealt with earlier in the day. There was no need to consider a move right away, but they needed to consider the earthquakes and the damage that had occurred at the animal cave and plan for a move north if the earthquake activity continued. Discussion began. “Does anyone know of caves to the north?” Chamul-na asked. He had considered that with the addition of the Mol, they might know of some.

  Ermol-na mentioned that he’d never seen any when they went northeast in their sweep of the area. Manak-na said that in all the travels he’d made south and east he’d seen none. Grypchon-na said there might be some beyond the place where the land flattened and the lake was, off the ancient path, but he’d never seen any.