by Sam Puma
Ixtlayo couldn’t run far. He was in agony. Jankaro hated to ride him, but he followed the Ashtari’s lead. He shared his fear and knew they needed to get away. They would be safe in the jungle.
Ixtlayo ran for a few miles and collapsed in a heap. He signaled for more juzi stick. Jankaro refused. He looked around but no one was there. Only the sounds of a jungle night. He breathed deep until he saw a snake slinking through a tree. Sukumi. He gasped in horror. In a flash, he pulled his sword and slashed its head off.
He turned around and surveyed Ixtlayo. Blood poured from the ragged stump that once held his front left paw. Jankaro reached for the medicine bag and found a powdered poultice. He remembered what Janesa told him.
“Use this if he loses a limb. Put the powder all over it.” He used the powdered herbs and stopped the bleeding. He poured the breath of life down Ixtlayo’s throat. If it wasn’t for him, he would be dead. Had anyone else survived? Janesa? Orion? He heard a sound and jerked his head around. It was only a bird.
He stayed vigilant and waited for Ixtlayo to recover as the hours passed. He poured him another gourd of breath of life. He wondered how to restore his missing foot. His other feet were severely damaged from the high speed slide down the cliff. His legs looked bent out of shape. His breath was ragged as he rested on his side. Jankaro felt fatigue and the aching of his own bruised ribs. He craved the juzi stick but he didn’t want to feel the anxiety of it. He wanted to rest. He leaned on Ixtlayo and struggled to keep his eyes open. He knew there were a few more hours until sunrise and he needed to keep watch. He tried to stay awake.
“Peace, brother,” a familiar voice called to him and he turned. He looked over to Ixtlayo’s head and Anhael was there, stroking the Ashtari’s forehead.
“Anhael!” Jankaro reached out his hand.
Anhael caught his hand and held it. “Rest. I will keep watch.”
Jankaro rolled into Ixtlayo for warmth.
“Got to watch out for the juzi stick.” Anhael looked down over Jankaro as the predawn lit the sky. “It makes you feel powerful, but it sucks the life out of you. We only use it in emergencies. You were right to deny him.”
Jankaro rose to his feet and faced Anhael. “How did you find us?”
“I knew you would be here. And this one has an unmistakable smell.”
“What do I do now? I think they are all dead.”
“They are not all dead. Many of them will escape through the tunnels below the city. There are boats waiting for them.”
“The one you painted. He came. He had a big club, a whole tree. He ran it along the wall and killed them all.”
“I know. But they’re not all dead.”
“I saw their bodies flying.”
“Some of them ducked. Many of the rear guard likely escaped.”
“Orion?”
“He is crafty. He runs into people like you. He may have gotten out.”
“Janesa?”
“I’m sure she got out through the tunnels. Did you see her?”
“She was with me on the pyramid. We watched together as a man…”
“Agustin.”
“Agustin. He walked to the top of the black rock and a Juruga cut off his head.”
“Hmm.”
“Janesa said he put his soul into another form. And it came alive. It was giant. Like me to a gecko.”
“Hmmm,” Anhael’s brow furrowed with worry. “I will tend to his wounds.” He turned and knelt down to examine Ixtlayo’s severed paw.
Beams of light pierced the trees. Jankaro drank from the water collected from leaves and shared with Ixtlayo. All of his feet were bandaged. “He shouldn’t put any weight on the severed foot. Don’t work him too hard.”
“Will you help me make a wooden foot for him?”
“I must go. Janesa will help you. She is tracking you right now.”
“Anhael, I’m sorry. You were right all along and we didn’t believe you. Come to Calixo with us. I will explain everything to Oranos.”
“I wish I had been wrong. But I cannot go there with you. I must stay with my master and help him. You go, and don’t give up the fight. We will find a way to help you.” They embraced and Jankaro’s heart ached as he disappeared into the jungle.
The Big Swim
Jorobai had a long talk with Gondaro but the giant Ashtari ignored him and continued swimming to the west. Jorobai’s frustration eventually diffused. He decided to surrender and trust that somehow, some way, Gondaro knew how to find Jankaro. He hoped and told himself the same story he had been telling himself all along. They tracked Jankaro every way they could, but lost his trail. He trusted his brother. Rongo took him to Ishikaya, who gave him Amoza. Amoza gave him Gondaro, who saved him from Juitao’s cruel game.
He clutched the handle of his knife and squeezed. He released with a long exhale and smiled. He was relieved to be free from Juitao. Gondaro could swim whatever direction he wanted.
Around midday Gondaro stopped at a small island. Jorobai half expected vines to crawl out and wrap around his ankle, but there were none. It was tranquil and he sampled a few pieces of fruit. Gondaro ate the fish that he had impaled on his claws during the long swim. He flicked the smallest one at Jorobai. When he lay down to rest, Jorobai gathered wood and lit a fire. He cooked the fish, added a squeeze from a citrus fruit, and ate. Then he leaned against Gondaro’s back and rested. The breeze caressed his face.
It wasn’t much of an island. Gondaro’s body covered about a third of it. Jorobai explored the rest and found it boring and comforting at the same time. It was just a pile of trees, and shrubs, a place for birds to rest. He felt safe as he watched the flocks of birds land on Gondaro and pick at his fur. They would stay for a while and fly away, and he calmly slept through it all. Jorobai realized how exhausted he felt after everything he had been through. His body sagged down next to Gondaro and there was nothing he could do but fall asleep. He rested deeper than he had in months.
He dreamed of the day he went to harvest the Amoza fruit with Kayo. He stood and watched as the jaguar emerged from the trees. She charged and sprung at him. He watched her fly through the air, watched her claws spring out and the opening of her jaws. He saw her claws sink into his shoulders and her mouth strain for his neck. He watched his knife sink into her throat and Kayo’s dart sink into her shoulder. He watched as her life force drain away. But why would she try to kill him? Maybe she wasn’t trying to kill him.
“That is my mother,” Gondaro said in the dream. “You are my father.”
“Gondaro?” Jorobai looked around but couldn’t see the Ashtari anywhere. He looked down at the dying jaguar and the blood that dripped on the amoza fruit. Their blood –human and jaguar - was mixed together.
“You were born of my blood, the jaguar’s blood, and the magic of Ishikaya,” said Jorobai in the dream.
He woke and opened his eyes to see Gondaro standing and looking down on him as orange clouds splashed across the purple sky.
“Time to go,” he seemed to say with his eyes. He lowered down and Jorobai climbed onto his back. A cold wind blew and Jorobai burrowed into Gondaro’s fur for warmth.
“My son?” Gondaro exhaled a big puff. “Go find your little brother.”
Gondaro charged into the water, but slowed down as he entered past his chest so that Jorobai did not fall off. Jorobai thought about being on the water at night and shuddered. The wind howled, the waves splashed, and Gondaro swam into the night, headed for the stars on the horizon.
A hard rain fell. Jorobai’s teeth chattered as he clung to Gondaro for warmth. Without him, he would surely die. He clung tight as the Ashtari swam steadfastly forward through the hours of the night. The wind blew wickedly, like it wanted to peel him off and cast him into the sea. He heard a sound that struck fear into his heart.
A great serpent came rushing up. It rubbed
Gondaro’s side as it surged into the dark night air. Jorobai pulled his spear as it came crashing down on Gondaro’s back. Gondaro roared as the impact bounced Jorobai into the air and plunged him into the bitterly cold water. He fought his way to the surface and looked for Gondaro, but could scarcely make out the disturbed water where they had submerged. He plunged his face into the water and saw nothing but blackness. He listened with his ears in the water and heard the faint tumult and thrashing as the sea serpent pulled Gondaro into the depths. Would he live? There was nothing Jorobai could do. He brought his head back up and gasped for air. Salty waves crashed over his head as he fought to stay afloat.
There were seven more waves and the last one sent him tumbling. He fought his way back up and looked around, listening for Gondaro in the blackness, but there was nothing. Only the stars and the movement of the water.
“Come back,” he pleaded.
After a few more waves, Jorobai felt the water moving beneath him. To his left Gondaro breached and gasped for air, his yellow eyes gleaming in the starlight. He looked very tired, but there was no sign of the sea serpent. Jorobai hastened over to cling to the back of Gondaro’s neck as he slowly started out again.
It was a hard night. Jorobai pleaded for the sight of land as Gondaro’s strength gradually diminished. He pawed along with the ocean’s current, but his body sagged. Jorobai had to perch on the top of his head to stay out of the water.
Gondaro grunted when he finally found land. It was a small rocky island, just big enough for Gondaro to lie down. Jorobai stayed on top of Gondaro while he slept. He watched the stars roll by as he shivered from the cold.
Jorobai welcomed the sun the next day and finally got warm. After a few hours he awoke and Gondaro was still sleeping. He paced along Gondaro’s body to spell his boredom, kicking the crabs that crawled up his fur back into the water. He was thirsty and there was no water to drink. He wondered about Gondaro’s battle below the waves with the sea serpent. If he put his hand to his forehead, would Gondaro share the experience, just as he had before?
He waited until Gondaro awoke. It was only for a moment, to wiggle his head and flick away the gulls that had collected there, disturbing his whiskers.
“Show me,” Jorobai said, as he placed his hand on Gondaro’s forehead.
He was taken to that moment and felt the sharp pain of the serpent’s body landing hard on his back. He saw it all through Gondaro’s eyes and felt his feelings as the snake wrapped him up, bit into his neck and dragged him down into the dark depths. He thrashed his body back and forth, twisting and turning to get away but it held tight. Fear surged and his lungs tightened. He whipped his neck around and dug into the serpent’s flesh with his fangs. It loosened its hold and he thrashed with all his might. His legs flew everywhere as he made a panicked effort to get free. The serpent retreated for a moment and he saw a faint glow on the bottom of the sea. He focused and it was a face, Rongo’s glowing face. He looked into his brother’s eyes. The huge gash inflicted by the shark was still across his chest and his body was blue.
“I’m watching you,” he seemed to say with his eyes. “My spirit will not rest until your quest is complete.”
By the light of Rongo’s glowing body, he saw the sea serpent swimming toward him again. He kicked his hind legs and thrashed wildly at the snake’s face with all four paws. It’s tail snapped against his face as it made its escape. Fighting for air, he swam back up to the surface to recover Jorobai. All of the supplies came loose and drifted to the bottom of the sea.
Jorobai pulled his hand away as Gondaro grumbled. He felt himself become very sick and retched all over Gondaro’s head. Gondaro roared and reared his head back. He pawed at Jorobai, pushing him away from his head. He sagged back down and slept again. Jorobai looked up at the birds migrating across the sky, then down into the water. He peered into the sea and tried to look through it, down into the depths.
“Rongo, my brother. You should be at rest now, go and be with your woman and children on the other side. All this you have sacrificed for me. I can only repay you by completing this quest and finding Jankaro.”
Hours passed and brought a rain shower. Jorobai leaned his head back and opened his mouth to welcome the moisture on his cracked lips.
A few more hours passed and Gondaro was up again. Jorobai clung to the back of his neck as he plunged into the cold water. He wondered how long the journey would take. Gondaro seemed to swim faster than Madrigo’s boat, but Jorobai had lost all sense of direction. He didn’t know if there would be another island before Gondaro lost his strength again. He had never seen an island on Madrigo’s boat, or when he drifted on the canoe. Gondaro seemed to have a sixth sense that was beyond his comprehension, and all he could do was surrender and go along for the ride.
After several hours of swimming through waters alternately calm and wavy, Gondaro tired. Jorobai was beyond exhausted from clinging to his fur. At sunset they spotted another island. It was mostly rocks and again, barely big enough for Gondaro. It was covered by over a hundred fat creatures, bigger than Jorobai. They had arms shaped like banana leaves and tails like fish. But they had whiskers like Gondaro and they lazed on the rocks, breathing the air and enjoying the last rays of the sun. As Gondaro neared they made shouting noises that almost sounded human and started flopping around on the rocks toward the water. Some of them were too late. Gondaro surged out of the water and thrust his claws into any of them that he could. He killed seven, rolled them into a pile, and greedily fed on their fat flesh. Jorobai dismounted and walked away from the sound and the foul smell, but couldn’t get far. The island was only slightly bigger than Gondaro. He saw crabs crawling but had no way to make fire. He knew he would gag if he tried eating their gelatinous flesh raw.
Gondaro loosed a mighty belch and sagged down to rest. Flies circled around the chunks of flesh strewn about. Gondaro pushed a piece of blubbery flesh toward Jorobai and grunted. Jorobai looked at it and frowned. His stomach growled with hunger, but he didn’t want to eat the raw flesh of the strange creature. It reminded him of the fish people he encountered beneath the waves, the ones who saved his life. Gondaro looked him in the eyes and growled, clearly imploring him to indulge in the flesh. Jorobai picked it up, smelled it, and set it back down again. It didn’t feel right. Gondaro growled at him more forcefully. He held it up to his mouth and bit into it. It tasted terrible. Maybe if he cooked it and seasoned it… he gagged. He nearly spit the bite back up. Gondaro softly growled more encouragement as he settled his body down to rest. Jorobai choked down a few bites, just to have something. He saw seaweed floating by and thought to get into the water to harvest some, but then thought better of it. Night was coming on and he didn’t want to risk the mercy of the sea. He nestled into the crevice that formed between Gondaro’s arm and torso, and in that warmth he gazed up at the stars.
“I see stars in your eyes.”
He heard Shalea’s voice soothe him as closed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest.
Gondaro woke him up in the middle of the night; it was time to go. He was having a good dream about his departed wife, and didn’t want to leave. Just as he was about to open his eyes, the image of his brother’s face, deep beneath the waves, flashed across his mind. He shuddered as he opened his eyes and looked up at Gondaro, still huge and fearsome. He looked around in the darkness, but couldn’t see much of the flesh that had been scattered. Gondaro had eaten his fill. He worried about his giant companion not drinking any water and wondered if there was anything he could do. He looked around the island and found some water that had pooled up in a depression in one of the rocks. He leaned over, took some in his cupped hand and tasted it. He spat it out quickly. It tasted like a mixture of salt and Gondaro’s sweat. It wasn’t the pool of freshly collected rainwater that he had imagined.
“You need to drink some fresh water, and so do I.”
He grimaced at his friend as Gondaro lea
ned down for him to climb up.
Gondaro swam for a few hours and started struggling. He was swimming slowly and his body was sagging again. Jorobai knelt on his head and all of his joints were aching. The sun was about to come up and by the predawn light, Jorobai saw shark fins. They were circling, keeping their distance and waiting for Gondaro to weaken. But once again Gondaro’s sense of direction came through. They found a big island about the size of the one with Juitao and his people. Gondaro staggered up and onto the island and they looked for fresh water. Jorobai was dismayed to see palika scramble to the air as Gondaro crushed the trees upon which they perched. He snapped at them, trying to get a snack. He caught one with his front paw and Jorobai clung to his fur as he nearly fell off.
“Don’t eat it!” Jorobai called out but it was too late. Gondaro stuffed the struggling bird into his mouth and grunted as he chewed and swallowed.
The island looked too much like the island of Jugon Drogon. Jorobai could see Juitao’s face in his mind’s eye and half expected to find him and his people camped somewhere in the trees. Gondaro found a pond at the base of a small waterfall and leaned down to drink. Jorobai slid down his nose and splashed into the water. He stood under the waterfall, leaned back, opened his mouth and drank his fill. Gondaro drained the pond he had been standing in, but the waterfall started to fill it again. He stopped drinking and leaned back into a stretch. He snapped up a few more palikas before he nestled into the hillside for a nap.
Jorobai was drained and tired, but feeling paranoid that he might get a spear in his back at any moment. The clouds gathered and a warm rain poured down as he climbed toward the highest point on the island. Gondaro slept peacefully. Jorobai kept his eyes wide open as his legs fought their way up the hillside. His body was exhausted from clinging to Gondaro for hours at a time. His calf muscles cramped and his fingers pulled on the grasses, dirt and roots to pull himself forward. He heard some monkeys squawking and looked up at them. A familiar brown variety that could be seen around Olaya. Surely it was a good sign. He continued climbing and made it to the top. There was a clearing and a circle of large stones. He kept checking his back regularly as he approached the stones. He sat down on one of them as he looked at what was surely a fire ring that seemed like it had not hosted a fire in a long time.