The Storyteller Trilogy
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NAGOONBERRY (wineberry), Rubus arcticus, Rubus stellatus: A ground-hugging berry plant that grows in wet, open areas. Leaves are trilobate and resemble strawberry leaves; red berries look like small raspberries. Blossoms are bright pink. The berries are delicious and high in vitamin C, but are difficult to find in large quantities. Leaves and roots are used to relieve diarrhea. Caution: use only fresh or very dry leaves. Wilted leaves are said to induce vomiting.
PLANTAIN (goosetongue, seashore plantain—not to be confused with broad-leaved plantain, an introduced plant), Plantago maritima: Pointed, narrow leaves grow from the plant base to a height of twelve inches. It grows along the southeastern Alaskan seacoast and is a favorite food of the Alaska brown bear. Leaves are good raw or cooked and are mashed to use as a salve for skin irritations. Caution: seashore plantain closely resembles poisonous arrowgrass, and they grow in the same general areas. Arrowgrass contains cyanide.
RASPBERRY, Rubus idaeus: A prickly shrub that grows up to six feet in height. Berries are prime, bright red and made up of many drupelets, each containing a single seed. Soft leaves have five to seven lobes, are pointed and have serrated edges. Flowers are white and contain five petals. Raspberry leaf tea is said to aid in the health of reproductive organs. Berries are high in vitamins B and C and a number of minerals, including calcium. Caution: wilted leaves are slightly toxic. Some people experience contact dermatitis after handling leaves or berries.
SALMONBERRY (not to be confused with Rubus chamaemorus; see Cloudberry, above), Rubus spectabilis: A woody biennial shrub that grows up to seven feet in height. Bright rose-purple flowers are five-petaled and mature into large raspberrylike berries, red or salmon pink in color. Berries are high in vitamin C. Bark and leaf infusions are used to treat stomach upset, and root teas are said to relieve diarrhea. Poultices of pounded bark are used to relieve toothache. Caution: wilted leaves are slightly toxic.
SPRUCE (white spruce), Picea glauca; (black spruce), Picea mariana: Evergreen trees with four-sided needles. Black spruce have a more scraggly appearance and generally grow on wetter, lower ground than white spruce. Needles are high in vitamin C and may be boiled into a relaxing tonic tea (carefully strained). Warmed pitch is used as a chest plaster said to help relieve congestion, and also may be used as makeshift “stitches” to close cuts.
SOUR DOCK (sorrel, curly dock, yellow dock), Rumex crispus; (arctic dock), Rumex arcticus: Leaves are shaped like spearheads, wavy at the edges, and fan out from the base of the plant. A central stalk grows to three or four feet in height and bears clusters of edible reddish seeds. Steamed leaves are said to remove warts. The root of these plants is crushed and used as a poultice for skin eruptions. Fresh leaves are abundant in vitamins C and A, but they also contain oxalic acid, so consumption should be moderate.
WILLOW, Salix: A narrow-leafed shrub or small tree with smooth gray, yellowish and/or brownish bark. There are presently more than thirty species of willow in Alaska. The leaves are a very good source of vitamin C, though in some varieties they taste quite bitter. The leaves and inner bark contain salicin, which acts like aspirin to deaden pain. Bark can be chipped and boiled to render a pain-relieving tea. Leaves can also be boiled for tea. Leaves are chewed and placed over insect bites to relieve itching. Roots and branches are used to make baskets and woven fish weirs.
XOS COGH (devil’s club), Echinopanax horridum: A prickly, woody-stemmed plant that may reach heights of eight feet. Large leaves resemble maple leaves. Tea decoctions are said to help stabilize blood sugar and prevent cancer. The root, pounded and heated, can be used to treat skin abrasions and infections and insect bites. The plant’s spines are considered a nemesis of hikers.
YELLOW DOCK: See Sour Dock, above.
YELLOW VIOLET, Violaceae: Small yellow five-petaled flowers are borne on stems that grow to approximately ten inches. Flowers carry irregular dark lines at the center of each petal. Serrated leaves are heart-shaped. Both leaves and flowers are edible. Leaves are a good source of vitamin C. Leaves were mixed with fat and used as a salve on skin contusions. Caution: leaves and flowers tend to have a laxative effect.
Acknowledgments
MERE WORDS CANNOT CONVEY my gratitude, nor the debt I owe so many for their help, encouragement and willingness to share their expertise.
All those I cited in Song of the River again deserve my mention: our friends in Akutan, Anchorage, Atka, Beluga, Dutch Harbor, St. George, St. Paul and Unalaska. You will never know how much I have learned and continue to learn from all of you, and how much you mean to Neil and me. To those steadfast friends whose expertise has guided me since my first novel, Mother Earth Father Sky, again I say thank you: Dr. William Laughlin, Mike and Rayna Livingston, Dr. Ragan and Dorthea Callaway, and Mark and Forbes McDonald.
My sincere thanks to those who read this manuscript in its many versions: my husband, Neil; my daughter, Krystal; my parents, Pat and Bob McHaney; my sister Tish Walker; my friends Linda Hudson and Joe Claxton, astute readers all. I am fortunate to have friends and family like you, willing to help by wading through pages riddled with notes and typos and pleas for feedback!
My gratitude to our friends at Shobunsha and Tuttle-Mori in Japan, and our translators, Akio Namekata, Hiromi Kawashima and Atsuko Sakurauchi, who patiently introduced us to their beautiful and complex culture. A special mention to Mr. Hashida Yoshinori, who was so generous with his books and information about the prehistoric culture of the Japanese Islands and the Jomon People; and to Mr. Ohno and his wife, who so graciously allowed us to experience a wide variety of the bounty of Pacific Rim seafoods at their beautiful Tokyo home.
My sincere thanks also to my father, who was able to give me information about dislocated shoulders from his firsthand experience, and not once chided me for lack of sensitivity when my interest proved to be motivated as much by literary concerns as sympathy!
I am truly fortunate to have Rhoda Weyr as my agent. She is a gifted editor as well as a wise counselor and friend, always astute in both business and literary matters. My most sincere appreciation and heartfelt thanks go to my editor at Avon Books, Ann McKay Thoroman, and her very gifted staff.
Words always fail me when I seek to convey my thanks to my husband, Neil. I am grateful for his insight, his computer work on the map and his knowledge about wildlife and survival skills. He is gifted in so many areas where I am not, and always willing to advise when advice is needed and to listen without criticism when I want a sounding board. We convey our appreciation to our children, Krystal and Neil and Tonya; to our parents and friends; and to our extended families, always supporting, always encouraging. We are abundantly blessed.
Call Down the Stars
The Storyteller Trilogy
Sue Harrison
To my husband, Neil, and
To those students who took my creative writing classes at Lake Superior State University
Encouragers and teachers all!
Contents
Character List
Prologue
PART ONE
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
PART TWO
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
Chapter Twenty-eight
Chapter Twenty-nine
Chapter Th
irty
Chapter Thirty-one
PART THREE
Chapter Thirty-two
Chapter Thirty-three
Chapter Thirty-four
Chapter Thirty-five
Chapter Thirty-six
Chapter Thirty-seven
Chapter Thirty-eight
Chapter Thirty-nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-one
Chapter Forty-two
Chapter Forty-three
Chapter Forty-four
Chapter Forty-five
Chapter Forty-six
Chapter Forty-seven
Chapter Forty-eight
Chapter Forty-nine
Chapter Fifty
Epilogue
Author’s Notes
Glossary of Native American Words
Image Gallery
Pharmacognosia
Acknowledgments
CHARACTER LIST
TRADERS’ BEACH, 602 B.C.
Elders:
Kuy’aa, (female) River People storyteller
Men:
Sky Catcher, First Men storyteller
Yikaas, River People storyteller
Women:
Qumalix, First Men storyteller
TRADERS’ BEACH, 6435 B.C.
Elders:
Qung, (female) First Men storyteller
Men:
Cen, River People trader, father of Ghaden
Dog Feet, Walrus Hunter trader
Ghaden, River People hunter, son of Cen
He-points-the-way, Walrus Hunter trader
Seal, First Men trader, adoptive father of Uutuk, husband of K’os Trail-walker
Women:
K’os, wife of Seal and adoptive mother of Uutuk
Spotted Leaf, third wife of the village’s chief hunter
Uutuk, First Men, adopted daughter of K’os and Seal
CHAKLIUX’S VILLAGE
Elders:
Sun Caller (male)
Wolf Head, father of River Ice Dancer
Gull Beak (female)
Ligige’, aunt of Sole and Chakliux
Twisted Stalk, deceased aunt of Dii
Men:
Black Stick, brother of Squirrel
Chakliux, husband of Aqamdax, father to Angax, brother of Sok, adopted son of K’os
Cries-loud, son of Sok, husband of Yaa, stepson of Dii, brother of Carries Much
Ghaden, brother of Aqamdax and stepbrother of Yaa
River Ice Dancer, deceased son of Wolf Head
Sok, brother of Chakliux, husband of Dii, father of Cries-loud and Carries Much
Squirrel, brother of Black Stick
Women:
Aqamdax, wife of Chakliux, sister of Ghaden, stepsister of Yaa
Dii, wife of Sok, stepmother of Cries-loud and Carries Much
K’os, stepmother of Chakliux
Yaa, stepsister of Ghaden and Aqamdax, wife of Cries-loud
Children:
Angax, son of Chakliux and Aqamdax
Carries Much, son of Sok, brother of Cries-loud
BOAT PEOPLE’S VILLAGE
Men:
Carver (deceased)
Fire Mountain Man, father of Day Soon (Daughter, Uutuk), husband of Cedar and First Wife
Water Gourd (Tree Hawk, Taadzi)
Women:
Cedar, mother of Day Soon (Daughter, Uutuk), second wife of Fire Mountain Man
First Wife, first wife of Fire Mountain Man
Flower Root, niece of Water Gourd (Tree Hawk, Taadzi)
Children:
Day Soon (Daughter, Uutuk), daughter of Fire Mountain Man and Cedar
FIRST MEN’S VILLAGE, YUNASKA ISLAND
Elders:
Water Gourd (Taadzi), adoptive grandfather to Uutuk (Daughter)
Men:
Chiton
Seal, husband of K’os and Eye-Taker, adoptive father of Uutuk (Daughter)
White Salmon
Women:
Eye-Taker, sister-wife of K’os, first wife of Seal
Green Twig
K’os, second wife of Seal, adoptive mother of Uutuk (Daughter)
Uutuk (Day Soon, Daughter), adopted granddaughter of Water Gourd, adoptive daughter of K’os and Seal
FOUR RIVERS VILLAGE
Elders:
Blue Lance, chief-hunter, father of Bird Hand and Moon Slayer
Ptarmigan (male)
Near Mouse (female)
Two-heeled Fish (female)
Men:
Bird Hand, son of Blue Lance, brother of Moon Slayer
Cen, husband of Gheli, father of Ghaden and Duckling, stepfather of Daes
Long Wolf
Moon Slayer, son of Blue Lance, brother of Bird Hand
Women:
Crane
Daes, daughter of Gheli and stepdaughter of Cen
Gheli (Red Leaf), wife of Cen, mother of Daes and Duckling Lake Woman, deceased wife of Bird Hand
Wing, third wife of Blue Lance, mother of Bird Hand
Children:
Duckling, daughter of Cen and Gheli, sister of Daes
PROLOGUE
Herendeen Bay, Alaska Peninsula
602 B.C.
THE OLD WOMAN’S BONES protested against the tight space where she lay. She shivered and looked up at the oiled sea lion skins stretched taut little more than a handbreadth above her nose. She worked her way farther into the bow, shifting her hips, scooting with hands and heels.
The traders had not allowed her to use hare fur blankets as padding, but rather had given her fur seal. Fur seal was thicker and warmer, they had told her, and she knew they were right, but it was foreign to her nose, and she longed for the good earth smell of hare pelts.
You think you would be able to stand the cold if the traders had given in to your wishes, old woman? she asked herself. And she was disgusted at her own childishness, allowing her wants to blur her reason.
She wrapped her arms over her chest and braced herself as Yikaas climbed into the iqyax, thrusting strong legs on either side of her. She heard his paddle as he pushed it against the shore, the grating of gravel on the bottom of the iqyax, and the sudden sway of the craft as the land released them.
Her stomach twisted, and she held her eyes wide, as though by stretching her lids open, she could see the sky through the yellow wall of skin that covered the iqyax’s red-dyed wooden frame. Though Yikaas’s body gave off heat, the cold stole in from the sea, and her ankles began to ache, crossed as they were to fit at the point of the bow.
She thought back to the last time she had traveled in such a way, like ballast rock, dead weight in a man’s iqyax. Then her husband had been alive, and she was young, though she had felt old, her womb empty for some seven winters, her oldest child grown and a hunter, her youngest certainly able to live a summer without her. Her husband had decided to take her to the Traders’ Beach so she could visit with other storytellers, some from villages as far away as the Whale Hunters’ islands.
She had been shy, saying little, listening much, but their stories had stretched her mind and sent her on journeys of words that made the world she had known seem small.
Over the past few winters, she had watched as Yikaas became a man. His shoulders grew wide, and even his otter foot took on strength. Young women honored him with coy glances, lured him with boldness, and he wore his pleasures as proudly as a warrior bears the scars of his battles.
He was Dzuuggi, already knew the secrets of the River People, but like many young men, he had become too full of himself. She had no choice but to show him how large were the boundaries of the earth, how small his understanding.
He had seen the journey as an adventure, come willingly, and now they had traveled for more days than she could count. Each morning they joined traders from the River villages, and these past few days even a few Sea Hunters had traveled with them. Each morning she berated herself for her foolishness in choosing to come with Yikaas. After all, he was young and strong. He could have made the
journey alone.
She had been teaching the boy the few words of the Sea Hunter language that she knew, and now she brought those words into her mouth, held them there, thick in her throat, as an amulet against the power of the sea. Each day on this journey she had told herself Sea Hunter stories of Chagak and Shuganan, Kiin and Samiq, called those ancient people to dance above her, silhouetted against the sea lion skins like shadows cast in a caribou hide lodge by those who live within. Today, though, to help her forget her fear and discomfort, she would rely on the tales of Chakliux, that great storyteller, and his wife, Aqamdax.
The old woman, Kuy’aa, spoke softly, filled the inside of Yikaas’s iqyax with whispered words, and by midday, the movement of the paddle, the comfort of the stories allowed her to sleep. She fell into dreams, and her mother’s voice came to her. For a little while, she became an infant, new in the world to which she had been born, bound in a cradleboard, knowing the rhythm of her mother’s body.
Suddenly the iqyax lurched, and her belly knotted in fear. She was old again, her hands reaching in reflex to scrabble at the iqyax’s carved ribs. She felt the bump of something beneath them. Animal, she thought, and could not remember whether she had checked her feet for stray bits of grass before they started out that morning. Sea Hunters said that a bit of grass caught between the toes was all sea animals needed to take offense. Then they would come from the depths in anger to bite holes in iqyax walls.
Her toes were numb, cold and stiff as wood, but she thought she could feel long strands of grass between them, tickling the bottoms of her feet, prickling her ankles.