by J. H. Hayes
Even more astonishing was the fact that her display worked on more than just the children. The ambitious mothers who only moments before had inched toward her, now stood firmly planted, their faces twisted into scandalous knots of disapproval.
Daneel was the first to stop laughing long enough to pose the question. "So what do you want to do, Bird-Runner?" she asked, her playful tone dripping with mockery.
"Be quiet, girl! Don't ever use that name," Azaria said.
Daneel laughed, "Sorry! I won't again, I promise. I just had to say it once."
"I want some poison. Let’s fill our fists. Let's go find some fun!" Azaria said.
Daneel nearly tripped in shock. Azaria’s declaration was completely out of character, but then again, it’d been an especially unusual sun. "Now that's more like it! I know just where to go. There's a table at the back where all the boys are gathered. I think I saw Dogahn and Tiriz over there, and a bunch of other boys."
"Perfect," Azaria said. "Let's go!"
Fermented drinks had been masterfully crafted and merrily drunk for millennia by the humans who inhabited the earth before Azaria's people. No one remembered who was first given this particular knowledge, but the Ta'araki liked to credit the Watchers.
Nor did anyone fully understand why certain vegetation took on magical properties when properly prepared, or why the Great Earth Mother had provided such a resource in the first place. They did understand though, that the special drinks were a valuable commodity with many medicinal applications and when consumed in proper quantity, the resultant effects could be wondrous or the consequences of improper actions taken under its influence horrendous. What most people agreed on however, was that consumption should be moderated, especially among those as young as Azaria and her friends.
Her people had no way of knowing of the detrimental, long-term effects of heavy consumption on their bodies, but they did understand loss of judgment was a primary characteristic of those within its hold. Children were allowed small amounts of the brew during special occasions and those close to adulthood were allowed to experiment freely. Inappropriate behavior was not tolerated and would lead to immediate curtailment for the night and perhaps longer, depending on the severity of the infraction.
Of course, those same young adults understood all this better than anyone. Many of the boys spent the better part of their young lives conceiving of ways to get together away from the adults with poison in hand.
Daneel led Azaria around the many bonfires to an area away from the heart of the festivities. A swarm of young men were gathered around several gazelle bladder bags filled with the special feast drinks, the drinks the Natu called scorpion's brew or scorpion's poison or often just poison for short. Off to the side, a throng of girls chatted amongst themselves, giggling and trying to attract the attention of whichever boy they had their eyes on. Azaria noticed several of them were watching Dogahn. She walked straight up to the group of boys and asked one of the ones holding a bag to fill her cup.
"Hey, Bird-Runner! Why don't you show us how you fly?" said a boy from Swan Camp who'd recently become a full-fledged hunter, feeling supremely confident and thinking himself clever for coming up with the line.
"That's very funny, Bachtur," Daneel said, not laughing even a small amount. "Did you think of that by yourself?"
Bachtur apparently already had enough poison in him to dull any embarrassment he might have felt. "Yep, all by myself. Sorry Azaria... But congratulations! That was quite a race."
"Thanks, Bachtur. Can I have some poison?"
"Sure. If you dance with me. And maybe later we can fly off together to some place a little less crowded."
"We'll just use this one here," Daneel interrupted, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. She picked up one of the other bags lying on the table.
As the two girls laughed together at Bachtur's dreadful attempts at flirting, Daneel filled Azaria's fist. "Fill me up again," Azaria instructed after downing the poison in a few quick gulps.
"Whoooop! Azaria's getting stung tonight!" Daneel yelled.
"Whhooop!!" all the other young men around the table joined in, all their eyes now on the desirable young girls who'd joined them, especially the one who'd just recently gained an unprecedented amount of status and seemed to be in a mood for fun. Some of the girls who'd been hanging back approached, mustering their courage only after watching Azaria and Daneel capture so much attention.
"So Azaria, we're all wondering. What made you jump?" Jarem asked, another newly minted hunter. Although she didn't know him well, Azaria found the Fox Camp boy much less annoying than Bachtur. He talked without slurring his words and seemed sincere.
"It was the only way to beat Yumineh," she answered, looking directly at the tall girl standing back behind the girls who had rambled over. She flashed the Fox Camp girl a broad, friendly smile, trying to gain some sense of her mood. "Yumineh, you deserved to win. You're the better runner," she added with another smile.
Yumineh stared at her for a long moment before responding, "No, you finished first. You won." There was almost no emotion in her voice. Azaria couldn't detect any hint of her feelings one way or another.
"So what was it like?" another of the boys asked. "How did you know you’d make it? Did it feel like flying?" Everyone was crowding around her now, eager for anything she might share.
"I don't know. I've never flown. But I was definitely scared. For a moment I thought I'd jumped too far and was going to land in the shallow part of the river."
Despite her admission of fright, most everyone was staring at her in amazement, including Daneel. She hadn't wanted to pester Azaria because she knew how much trouble she’d been having since the end of the race, but she had a thousand questions she also wanted answers to. Bachtur, however, wasn't impressed, or at least didn't want to admit to it. "It wasn't that great. I'd have done it also," he boasted.
Dogahn had had enough of watching the other boys flirt with Azaria. "Why don't you do it now then, Bachtur? We'll wait for you here and you can tell us all about it when you get back." He was rewarded with laughs from the entire group, especially the other young men. He stepped up to Azaria and greeted her warmly, "Hey!"
"Hi!" she responded, holding her arms out for a quick hug. "Where’ve you been all sun?"
"I was resting. I couldn't even walk after the race," he laughed. "I had to crawl around my shelter."
"Aaahhhh. I'm sorry. But you placed, right?" She patted his arm, laughing playfully.
"Thanks to you," he smiled back.
Bachtur decided Dogahn was getting too much attention. "Hey Azaria, how about that dance?"
"I'd love to dance," she responded, and then grabbed Dogahn's hand and pulled him away from the group, toward the massive throng around one of the bonfires. "You want to dance with me, don't you?" she asked, turning around to look up into his radiant, hazel eyes.
"Umm... yeah, sure," he responded, fidgeting nervously with his head band. Although he liked the idea of being so close to her, he really hadn’t planned on having to dance. At least we'll get away from Bachtur, he told himself, finding the thought comforting.
Daneel joined them soon after with Bachtur, which raised Azaria's eyebrows, but the four skipped and twirled and swung each other around while the music droned. Dogahn even took Bachtur for a spin, which surprised Bachtur immensely but had the girls doubled over laughing. More than one suitor, a few of them much older, tried to steal Azaria away, but she proved adept at keeping them at bay, with a little of Dogahn’s help.
Dogahn found he enjoyed himself far more than he'd imagined he would, realizing having Azaria in his arms all night wasn't that bad. After one particularly fast spin, she landed in his arms with her back to him. He wrapped his arms around, his hands resting on her stomach. When she tried to spin out he held tight. It might have been the effects of the brew she'd been drinking all night, but when Azaria realized he wanted her in his arms she decided she wanted to stay there too. He brought his
head in close, inhaling deeply. She smells so good, he thought. She fits perfectly in my arms. I want to stay like this all night.
As if she'd heard the thoughts inside his head, Azaria began to feel self-conscious. Everyone is watching us. More forcefully, she pushed off and when Dogahn realized she was trying to break away, he loosened his hold. "What's wrong?" he asked.
"What? Nothing's wrong. Why?" she asked, and then realizing he might be thinking she didn't want to be with him, added, "It's just... everyone is looking at us. You know?"
"Oh yeah, right..." he agreed. He hadn't actually noticed. He was too heavily focused on her. He was peering deeply into her eyes, enraptured by the soft almond shape of them surrounded by long lashes and the light coloring of her irises. Her eyes are so beautiful. I don't know anyone with that shade. She broke the gaze and he noticed her look away to something behind his left shoulder. Her lips are so inviting, he thought, and had to stop himself from kissing her right there. She would stop me. There's too many people here watching us. "Azaria," he whispered into her ear. "Let’s go someplace else. Where there aren't so many people watching us..." He wasn't sure if she'd agree and doubted himself, anxious at how she might react.
Azaria paused for a while thinking it through, and then smiled. "Okay. I'd love too."
"I know a place where we'll be alone," he said, struggling to keep his excitement from creeping too much into his voice.
"Let's fill our fists first. So it's not too obvious we're sneaking away."
"Umm, okay," he responded, hiding his lack of enthusiasm for the idea, afraid she might change her mind. "Why don't you go ahead? I'll meet you behind my shelter." He hoped she wouldn’t let herself get distracted if she knew he was waiting for her.
"Sounds perfect. I'll see you in a bit then," Azaria answered.
Yumineh watched Dogahn leave and then Azaria wander around as if she were looking for something, stopping to chat with various people who called out to her. One pair of young girls pointed Azaria in a certain direction and Yumineh watched her approach a table with several bags of poison, fill her fist and leave also. She knew what they were up to. She'd been watching Azaria all evening, envy boiling within. She watched as she arrived with her parents. Watched as the crowds cheered her and as Ta’araki ushered her away. Watched as Daneel and her stole all the attention for themselves. And watched jealously as Azaria dragged Dogahn away and kept him to herself, not dancing with anyone else so no other girl would get a chance with him. And now she's sneaking off with him, Yumineh smoldered. Who knows what they're going to do by themselves? She'll probably put her tongue down his throat and let him put his hands all over her. I'm sure she'll let him - she'd do anything for the attention.
She was staring blankly down at the ground, the brew she'd been sipping all night heightening the grim thoughts coursing through her brain. She knew it wasn't healthy to let such negativity engulf one's self so thoroughly. Izyl had often chastened her for similar behavior. It was widely known evil spirits fed off such ominous thoughts, were drawn to them, like beasts to a water source. The spirits would overwhelm her and infect her soul, sending her body into a rotting state. But she couldn’t help herself. She'd endured too much disappointment. None of her hopes had turned out well. And it was all because of one person. One wicked, cheating, greedy, sneaking, pompous girl.
It should have been me dancing with Dogahn. It would’ve been, if she hadn't cheated. Of course you're allowed to pick your own path, but no one expected someone would jump off that cliff. That wasn't what was meant by the rules. She should've been disqualified. And then she had the gall to blame it on me? She did it to beat me? Why did she have to take it so personally? I didn't do anything to her. And then she dances all night with Dogahn. If she wasn't here, it would’ve been me dancing with him. It would’ve been me sneaking off with him, kissing him right now. It would’ve been my body pressed against his.
Yumineh realized she was crying and that people were probably staring at her. Suddenly embarrassed, she ran off towards her tent, wondering why she let herself get so worked up. Azaria wasn't worth it and neither was Dogahn. But the thought was little comfort. Her crush on Dogahn could not be cast aside so easily.
4
As the Pale Eye widened each night, Azaria’s departure for the Great Temple drew close. Her preparations for the upcoming duties kept her busy, leaving little opportunity to see Dogahn alone, although keeping her mind off that first wonderful night with him was proving difficult.
Thoughts of him seemed to surround her. When Quzo woke the morning before her departure, his messy hair reminded her of a tantrum he'd thrown a few suns earlier as Dogahn had greeted him by the river, tussling his hair. She couldn't help but smile as she remembered Quzo's irrational annoyance, throwing wild punches and then screaming as Dogahn picked her little brother up and tossed him into the river. Dogahn was constantly terrorizing the little ones. He was never mean-spirited though. Just having a little fun. She'd always thought it one of his more annoying traits, but at least he always seemed to treat her brother a little better than the others. And if anyone was ever bullying him, Dogahn would always step in.
She’d be at the Temple for over a full moon, arriving early for training and staying just until the next moon, when the new lot of girls would relieve her and her fellow attendants. On the morning before she'd be leaving, after the breakfast meal, her mother was yet again explaining what would be expected, emphasizing how important the work was.
"Azaria, don't forget to follow Izyl's orders carefully," Zephia repeated. "It's your duty to make the men as comfortable as possible while they work. You cannot refuse any reasonable request, unless you’re already helping someone else. Don't dote too long on any one worker, or the others will become jealous."
"I know, mother," Azaria responded. She'd heard different versions of these instructions from her mother already and also from Izyl, the beautiful Ta'araki from Fox Camp who was charged with preparing the girls for their servant duties.
"I'm sorry, dear," Zephia said. "I know you know. But like it or not, you’ll be looked upon to set an example for the other girls and-" a harsh cough interrupted her mid-sentence.
"Are you sure you’re okay, mother? Can father do nothing about that cough?"
"Oh, don't get me started. He has me drinking all kinds of putrid concoctions. The most recent tastes like it sat in the forest for a moon."
"Mother, you have to listen to him and do what he tells you. He’s been trained and I'm sure he's getting advice from Fahim and the other Ta'araki."
"Now who's being lectured?" Zephia laughed. "That's what's so upsetting though. It's just a cough and will pass, as these things always do. There's no need for bothering Fahim or anyone else."
"Mother! Even I know a cough can lead to something more serious. Especially if there’s blood. Have you been spitting up blood?"
"I didn't know you were Ta'araki, Azaria," Zephia said, mocking her to avoid answering the question.
Embarrassed, Azaria lowered her head and responded quietly, "I'm not mother, but some things are common knowledge."
Zephia put the fox furs down that she'd been sewing together and squatted, raising Azaria's chin with her two forefingers. "I'm sorry for mocking you, daughter. But there are more important things to worry yourself with than a tiny, little cough. Your father loves me too much to let anything happen to me and I drink every horrible thing he puts in front of me, because I love him so much too. Okay?"
"Okay, mother," Azaria responded with a weak smile.
The two spent most of her last afternoon packing her traveling backsack for her first extended period away from her family. Since she’d be gone a full moon, she would need several outfits, light sleeping furs, all of her grooming instruments, spare bits of leather and fur - including those for her bleeding period - cooking utensils, traveling snacks, tools, her spears and other hunting equipment and baskets for gathering, among other things. Izyl had also brought by more items
each of the girls were asked to carry. These included bowls, pots, furs, knives and many other heavy things useful for the servant work they’d be engaging in.
After their evening meal Azaria and her mother laid out each item, making sure nothing was forgotten nor unnecessarily brought before beginning the laborious process of packing them all in her backsack. With the exhaustive preparations complete, she finally fell into her furs. But sleep proved evasive, as her mind was filled not with expectations of her upcoming trip, but of how much she wanted to stay, or how she wished Dogahn would be there too.
---
A troop of over three hundred Natu walked together along the river-side path leading to the Great Temple. The early morning sun shone in their faces as they marched, obscuring much of what lay ahead. Dikshar, the lead Ta'araki of Swan Camp, led the way with two hundred or so workers following behind. Trailing them was Hadir, the junior Ta'araki of Boar Camp. Eufrat, the Third Ta'araki of Fox Camp walked with him. Next followed the young women who’d support the men as they worked. Izyl reared the procession, watching over the girls who were her charge. Together, all the Natu camps would be represented as they built and improved on the Great Temple complex - a force nearing a thousand workers including their supporting complement.
Everyone had a chance to rest when they reached their destination in the early afternoon. After a repose, the young women were given instructions on properly cleansing themselves in preparation for entering the Temple. An orientation followed. Fahim would be giving them a lecture on the significance of the sacred structure, followed by specific directions from Izyl on what they should be doing before first duties began in the morning. Those who had participated in the work in past summers would have to sit through it again. The Ta'araki believed a refresher would remind them of the urgency of their duties and serve as a point of motivation. But none of the returning girls ever agreed with that opinion.
