Spirit of the Sky

by Paty Jager

  “That’s admirable that you’ve managed to forge ahead and keep the Indians in sight.” The colonel motioned for the troops to move out. A trumpet sounded and Wade fell in beside Miles.

  “Tell me what you’ve witnessed about this campaign.” Miles kept his horse to a walk.

  Wade appreciated the slow pace after his night of extended gaits to reach this battalion. “The massacre of women and children at Big Hole was monstrous on our part, and I believe the reason the Nez Perce are leaving a trail of civilian bodies in their wake. They don’t believe, even in war, of harming women and children. Our troops crossed that line at Big Hole and the Nez Perce feel even more betrayed by our government.”

  Miles stared at him. “Are you harboring sympathies for the Nez Perce?”

  He wasn’t going to lie. Miles was a strong leader and a military strategist, who held strong ethics.

  “I’d been immersing myself in the various Indian tribes’ cultures while at the fort. The more I follow the Nez Perce and see the way they keep us penned down while their families escape, the more I see they have compassion and are only trying to save their families. You can’t fault them for that.”

  Wade returned Miles’s intent stare. “They could have wiped us out twice in confrontations but they didn’t. Their fighting techniques are that skilled over ours.”

  Miles nodded his head and nudged his horse into a trot.

  The pace made it hard to continue the discussion. Wade settled in and watched those around him. Let his words sink in and maybe the colonel would come up with an alternative to a battle. It may be a long shot, but Miles had always been open to more than one way.

  Wade settled into the bouncing rhythm of the gait and thought about Sa-qan. The vision of her telling him to go hung in his mind. From the very first time he met her, she had exuded strength and life. Yesterday, the dark skin under eyes and the weakness in her motions worried him. She’d told him as a spirit she didn’t get tired or sick.

  Apprehension squeezed his chest. Dread, cold and deep, knotted his stomach. Something was terribly wrong, and she put her life after that of her people by sending him here.

  Sa-qan can you hear me? He called to her with his mind, hoping, praying she heard him and responded. He’d continue to work on changing the outcome of the confrontation between this platoon and the Nez Perce, but he would be continually searching for Sa-qan.

  Scouts raced back toward them.

  Wade listened in. The Nez Perce camped four to six miles ahead with mostly open ground between them. Miles spurred the group into a forced trot, determined to catch the group.

  They could be upon the Indians by evening. Frustration throbbed in his temples as he called out to Sa-qan. The troops will come upon your people today.

  Le’éptit wax mita’t

  (23)

  Sa-qan woke from her nap and found herself alone in the dwelling. The need to find Joseph and warn him of the approaching soldiers pushed her to her feet and out into the camp. Women carved on buffalo killed by the scouts and left to feed the hungry. Others packed horses preparing to continue their journey to freedom. Cold wind, hinting of snow, swirled through the encampment biting at her skin and seeping to her bones. Sa-qan hugged her arms around her body wishing she had wrapped a blanket around her before stepping outside. She had spent so many years as a spirit, needing a wrap for warmth had not entered her thoughts.

  Children scurried around the adults playing chase and stick games. She found Silent Doe cooking over a communal fire.

  Sa-qan touched the woman’s shoulder. “Where is Joseph? I must speak with him.”

  Silent Doe glanced at her and shook her head. “You will speak with no one if you catch a sickness from the cold. Go back to the dwelling and wrap a blanket around you.”

  “It is important I speak with him.” She did not wish to ignore the woman’s wisdom but the need to speak with Joseph pulsed in her head.

  “You have saved my life and that of my daughter, but I have yet to learn your name.” Silent Doe faced her.

  “I am Sa-qan.” She pushed her hair over her shoulders and straightened, peering at the woman with the authority her name commanded.

  Silent Doe smiled and nodded. “Yes, you have the shimmering white head and piercing golden eyes of a bald eagle. Your family chose your name well.”

  Sa-qan did not wish to tell the woman she could not remember her birth name before the Creator took her and bestowed Sa-qan on her along with her ability to become an eagle. “Thank you. I must talk with Joseph.” Urgency tugged at her heart more than her initial need to talk with the chief.

  “Come. I will not allow you to catch the sickness.” The woman wrapped an arm around Sa-qan’s shoulders, sharing the warmth of her blanket and led her back to the dwelling her husband and another now dismantled. Girl of Many Hearts stood next to their pile of belongings.

  “Are we moving?” Sa-qan couldn’t hide the hopefulness in her voice.

  “Yes. There are those of us who do not wish to linger even though Looking Glass believes we are safe.” Lightning Wolf said, taking down the poles.

  “You are right to continue. We are not safe. I have seen soldiers coming.” Sa-qan pointed the direction she last saw the soldiers. Urgency again stabbed her chest. She spun to Silent Doe. “This is what I must tell Joseph.”

  Silent Doe picked up a blanket and handed it to Sa-qan. “He and Noise of Running Water are checking the horses. May the wind carry you swiftly.” She pointed toward a meadow filled with horses.

  “Thank you.” Sa-qan wound the blanket around her and crossed the encampment with long strides carrying her toward the area where the Lake Nimiipuu horses grazed. She caught sight of Joseph at the same time a scout rode atop a bluff not far from the camp and shouted, “Enemies right on us! Soon the Attack!”

  The rumbling of many hooves vibrated the ground like a buffalo stampede. The soldiers appeared over a rise and spread, wrapping around the camp like embracing arms. Instead of security, the sight speared terror like frozen shafts of ice into her body. Her feet did not move as she frantically sought a familiar face among the soldiers.

  “Sa-qan! Hurry!” Silent Doe’s voice pulled her as violently as the woman’s grip on her arm dragged her back toward the camp. “We must hide.”

  The blast of rifles, rumble of running horses, and the cries of the women and children seeking cover blurred. Sa-qan followed Silent Doe trying to outrun the panic climbing her limbs and finding a grip on her heart. Fear for herself and the child growing within her pounded in her chest. As a mortal she could now be killed by a bullet, knife, or club. Shivers of dread wracked her body.

  Wade, where are you?

  How would she survive this? Now she knew first hand how the Nimiipuu spent the last moons under terror and uncertainty. She marveled at the stamina and strength of Silent Doe.

  Once the warriors formed a barrier between the soldiers and their families, the women cautiously returned to the camp. The blasts of guns, shrieks of horses, and cries of men filled the air. The sounds became background to the chatter of the women preparing for the battle.

  “Come. We will provide food and water for the warriors.” Silent Doe joined a group of women cooking over a fire pit in the center of the camp. Others sharpened knives and filled leather straps with bullets. The children gathered the skins of water in one place making it easy for the warriors to get a drink when they came in from fighting. All went about their jobs as if a battle did not rage across the river. Sa-qan took a deep breath and drew in the strength and resoluteness of her people.

  The warriors held off the initial attack of the soldiers, proving to be better shots and well hidden. The soldiers retreated, leaving strewn bodies behind on the cold ground. Sa-qan fought the urge to sneak away from Silent Doe’s watchful eyes and hunt for Wade among the fallen. Several times throughout the day she tried to talk with Wade in her mind. When neither he or Wewukiye responded she grew more despondent.

  Wounded war
riors wandered into camp, needing healing. She placed her hands on the first man and started to chant before she remembered she could no longer help in that manner. She continued chanting as she cleaned and applied herbs to the wounds.

  Dusk gradually hid the men fighting, but the sparks spitting out the ends of the rifles and the clusters of shots reminded the soldiers had not gone away. The sharp stench of gun smoke hung in the cold air, held down to the earth by the low gray clouds. Blasts of gunfire lessened and the wailing for dead loved ones filled the darkening sky. More warriors returned to eat, drink, refill with bullets, and tell of the wounded and dead.

  Silent Doe handed Sa-qan a wide blade knife. “We must dig holes for hiding in case the soldiers come closer during the night.”

  Sa-qan grasped the heavy knife and followed Silent Doe and Girl of Many Hearts to a spot in front of a bluff. Other women dug at the earth with knives and digging sticks. Shoulder to shoulder, all through the night, they bent to the task of chopping at the dirt, filling pots, and piling the dirt in front of the holes. Her arms ached from hacking and digging. Girl of Many Hearts had not spoken a word as she scooped up the loosened dirt. Exhausted, Sa-qan could barely climb out of the waist deep hole wide enough for six or more women to huddle in.

  “We will put our things in this hole,” Silent Doe said, slowly walking toward her family’s belongings still piled near the partly dismantled dwelling.

  Her arms refused to work as Sa-qan bent to pick up a basket. Why could she fly all day and night as an eagle and never tire, yet doing work as a mortal had stripped her of strength? “I can do no more. I must sleep.” She started to spread a blanket on the ground.

  “Not here. In the hole. It is safer.” Silent Doe grasped her arm, keeping her on her feet.

  Did the woman realize once she lay down she would not have the strength to get up again? Her feet weighed heavy as the granite boulders on the Lake Nimiipuu mountain. Her brother’s mountain. Had Himiin become exhausted this easily once he remained a mortal? How she wished he still lived of this earth so she could ask him.

  A burst of gunfire close to camp jolted her thoughts and jerked her body, reviving aches. The wailing for dead loved ones and children crying of cold and hunger had become the background noise of her thoughts during the digging.

  The darkness hid the enemy and her worries. The burst of shots reminded her Wade was out there somewhere. Was he safe? Or had he been in the front of the attack and lay wounded or dying among the soldiers? Her heart ached to find him. She could no longer talk with Wade through their thoughts, but surely her spirit brother would hear her. Wewukiye, if you hear me, please look after Wade.

  She, Silent Doe, and Girl of Many Hearts lugged their belongings to the trench and climbed in. Silent Doe spread all their blankets and hides over them to ward off the snow and sleet.

  ****

  Wade had managed to drop back during the initial attack. Now, he sat in the dark on guard duty. Miles posted the guards to keep the Indians penned between the troops and the bluff behind their camp. He’d rather be listening in on the strategy meeting of the officers, but he’d volunteered to sit here, hoping Sa-qan would come to him. Ordered to sit in twos, he’d waited until the guard change and made an excuse to go retrieve a knife he’d dropped. Once hidden in the dark, he wandered beyond the guard perimeter and looked for Sa-qan. Sa-qan, I’m here alone. Come to me.

  A volley of rounds exchanged between guards five hundred yards to his left and a spot on a bluff.

  He hunkered into his coat hoping the snow and sleet would let up and wiggled his toes to keep the blood circulating. Was Sa-qan warm? Wade stared into the darkness and snorted. She was a spirit. The weather didn’t bother her. What he wouldn’t give to be wrapped in her warm loving arms at this moment.

  A tap on his shoulder spun his body and lodged his heart in his throat.

  A hand grabbed his rifle at the same time he witnessed glowing blue eyes.

  “It is I, Wewukiye, Sa-qan’s brother.” The quiet deep melodic voice held a trace of Sa-qan’s tone.

  “It’s good to finally meet you, but where’s Sa-qan?” he whispered back. His stomach curdled, worrying something had happened to her.

  “She is in the camp of the Lake Nimiipuu.”

  Panic stabbed his chest. “Why? She should be soaring in the sky, not in danger.”

  “She wished me not to tell, but I fear for her as you do.” He handed the rifle back and placed his hands on Wade’s shoulders. “Sit. We have much to talk about.”

  Wade dropped onto the hard rock. The pain shooting down his cold legs registered slightly less than the panic squeezing his heart. “Is she ill? I didn’t want to leave her. She looked ill, not herself. But she insisted her people came first.”

  “She has a strong sense of duty, my sister.”

  The pride in Wewukiye’s voice bolstered Wade, relieving his initial fear.

  “She wished me not to tell, but I have never been able to keep silent. Especially when secrets could harm my family.”

  “What do you mean? Is she in danger?” Wade had found the slow delivery style of Sa-qan’s speech seductive, but when her brother spoke the same it only infuriated him the man didn’t get on with what he wanted to say.

  “When you and Sa-qan became one you planted a mortal seed in her.”

  Wade barely registered the disgruntled tone as the idea he could be a father nudged aside all else. “She’s with child? My child?” Elation grew into full blown euphoria. He hadn’t thought about children until Sa-qan came into his life and now, knowing she carried their child…he slapped the man next to him on the shoulder. “I’m going to be a father.”

  “Do not congratulate yourself. With the mortal seed growing in her, she loses her spirit powers. This is why she can no longer speak to you in your head. She can no longer change into an eagle. She has become mortal. And must live as a mortal in the village of the Nimiipuu.”

  Anger and terror rushed from Wade’s head to his toes and back up. The cold vanished as rage burned hot. Why had she sent him away knowing she carried his child? Knowing she could no longer take care of herself?

  Did she hate him for stripping her of her powers? Did that mean more to her than his love?

  “She is in the village, as vulnerable as the people. You must stop the soldiers to keep her alive.” Wewukiye’s voice pierced his thoughts.

  Visions of the carnage at Big Hole sickened Wade’s gut. Sa-qan and their child would be in danger. This had now become more than helping the Nez Perce. He must help his new family.

  Wade stood. He had to get back to the camp and talk with Miles. There had to be a way to stop the killing before it was too late.

  “Is she alone?” Wade didn’t want to think of her all alone with no place to stay and dependent on others for food. That would crush her independent spirit.

  “She is living with my daughter’s family. She is well and loved.”

  “Your daughter? Is your daughter mortal?”

  “It is a long story. One you can ask my sister. I must go.”

  “Tell Sa-qan I love her and the baby. We’ll be together as soon as I can get the fighting stopped.”

  “She will know. May you find the strength to follow your words.”

  Wade knew the spirit had left by the faint scent of smoke lingering in the air. His conviction to stop the fighting now took on a greater importance. The colonel had to listen. The lives of his family depended on him.

  At the camp, he sought Miles. He found the colonel walking among the wounded around the hospital tent.

  “We took a hard beating. Those Indians are crack shots,” the doctor said to Miles.

  “Yes. We can’t make another run at them or we’ll lose even more.” The colonel shifted, catching sight of Wade. “Lt. Watts, I see you made it unscathed.”

  “Yes, sir. Colonel, if I could have a word with you.” Wade motioned away from the wounded.

  The colonel nodded and followed him to a spot vo
id of other troopers.

  “Sir, seeing all the wounded and knowing the Nez Perce hold their freedom with high regard, maybe you should try to talk with them and see if they won’t come peaceably. They have women and children to think of. Once the sun comes up and they see there is no way out, they may be willing to surrender.” Wade struggled to keep the whine of desperation from his voice. His heart pounded with anxiety for Sa-qan.

  “We’ve got them in a good place. We’ll keep them penned in and wait for reinforcements.” Miles stared at him. “We weren’t able to stop some who escaped to the North. My biggest fear is Sitting Bull coming down here with a contingent to save the Nez Perce.”

  “You’re not even positive Sitting Bull will help the Nez Perce. Look at all the other tribes who went against the Nez Perce and helped us track them.” Wade had to get the idea of surrender in the man’s thinking.

  Miles glared at him. “I’ve been calling to the Nez Perce all day asking them to talk with me.”

  “Sir, will you talk to them about a surrender and not just call them out to kill them?” Dread sliced through his heart, icing his blood. He’d been witness to just such an injustice once before and didn’t want to see it happen again.

  Miles shrugged and walked away.

  He couldn’t be part of a military that killed women and children to make a point. If it looked like that was the goal of this leader, he’d leave and find a way to get into the Nez Perce camp and warn them before taking Sa-qan and fleeing. This campaign had sickened his heart, and he no longer wished to champion this government.

  Le’éptit wax pí-lept

  (24)

  Sa-qan woke cold, stiff, and hungry. Her stomach rumbled as did Girl of Many Hearts’s. They huddled in the blankets and hides chewing on the small piece of dried meat Silent Doe offered and sipping water. Many others huddled in the trenches to avoid the flying bullets from the rifles and big guns of the soldiers. She had only lived with the threat of the soldiers for one day and her body tensed with apprehension and fear dogged her every thought. How had her people survived the three moons of this terror? Their strength proved stronger than she had believed of mortals.