by Rod O'Grady
As they ran up the dry streambed, they passed the muddy remains of a shallow pond, crisscrossed by more animal tracks. The forest became less dense until the only trees were occasional pines. On they ran, through grasses, bleached pale as straw by the summer sun, and low-growing yellow flowers, amongst dark, spiky bushes.
At the base of a steep outcrop of rock shouldering out of the face of the mountain was a thicket of bare oak trees, and tall spruce pines strung with dead creepers looping down from the cliff above. Kaayii glanced at the wolf and looked to where he was staring. At the base of the pines, under the lowest of their branches he could now make out faces, and they were all looking at him.
Chapter Nine
Kaayii and his new wolf friend Huff stopped about two throws away from the pines, and slowly the wolf pack emerged. There were ten of them, mostly black but some a dark muddy brown. All were stocky, with shiny coats and clearly well fed. Huff nudged Kaayii’s leg with his black snout. Kaayii took a step forward. The wolf nudged him again. Kaayii stepped forward again.
Kaayii tuned in to the scents wafting around, carried by the swirling breeze that was rocking the tops of the trees as it gusted off the high grey rocks. He could detect the scent of pine, of wolf, of mud, flowers and fresh blood. Now he could see that some of the wolves, the bigger ones, had blood around their mouths, showing deep red on their black furry muzzles.
The feeling he got from the wolves was an alert curiosity, but not aggression and not fear. They were simply waiting to resume feeding. Within a moment the energy changed. The interlocking low green boughs of two spruce trees twitched and moved and parted. Pushing through them into the open came the largest wolf Kaayii had ever seen.
This wolf’s whole head was smeared, and his muzzle washed to the eyes, in warm blood. It dribbled from his jaws. He was twice the size of the smaller wolves, and bulging bunched muscles made the black fur ripple at his rolling shoulders as he walked. He halted in his advance, looked at Kaayii and bared his yellow teeth. Kaayii’s wolf nudged him on the leg again and communicated one thought to the young Sasquatch: fight him. Kaayii looked down at the wolf and communicated one simple thought back to him: no!
A young female, black but for one of her ears which was light brown, took a few steps towards Kaayii and Huff. Immediately the giant wolf ran and barrelled into her, knocking her to the ground, chomping on her ear. She yelped, scrabbled to her feet, and with her tail between her legs hurried back to her place in the pack.
Keeping his eyes fixed on the leader, Kaayii paced sideways, curious to see what was behind the trees. Between and behind two spruces the tall grass had been flattened and covered in blood from a kill. Sticking up from the ground, amongst the grass and low scrub he could see the remains of several deer, and could just make out the wide flat antlers of a moose. So big were the antlers that they must have been from a bull moose. He peered at them, studying the arrangement of the antler points, and something deep in Kaayii darkened.
The pack leader advanced a few paces towards Kaayii, baring his teeth and snarling aggressively. The rest of the pack advanced, and he knew he had to fight or run. Then he had an idea – from deep in his throat, he began to hum one long, low note. The wolves were creeping closer. He opened his throat, finding an even lower note, using his chest space so the sound rumbled more. The wolves kept coming. He took another deep breath and tried again, making an even deeper rumbling hum, and the wolves stopped, whimpered and backed away, except the big alpha male who kept advancing.
Kaayii bent down to his wolf companion, grabbed his ears, looked in to his yellow eyes: follow me. And that was when the giant wolf leapt. Its massive paws struck Kaayii hard on the shoulder and he hit the ground hard. Huff jumped at the wolf but not before it had snapped its jaws shut on Kaayii’s ear. Both wolves tumbled away from the Sasquatch, gnashing, growling, biting, and rolling. Kaayii grabbed the wolf by the scruff of its neck, lifting it off Huff, and hurled it into a spiky thorn bush.
Kaayii and Huff ran.
The sun was high and the wind sent a whisper through the tall grass as Kaayii and his wolf friend stood at the edge of the Sasquatch gathering place on the High Ridge. His ear, now with a V-shaped notch in it, had stopped bleeding but there was blood on his shoulder and chest. Behind them to the north, smoke rose in twisting ribbons and curtains of grey over the smouldering, charred, black slopes.
Amongst the pines near the clearing, Kaayii’s mother and his little sister Yaluqwa sat on the vast trunk of the fallen redwood and watched as eight Sasquatches silently and solemnly walked out of the clearing and stood together under the pines. There, looking down into the forest, were Kaayii, Taashi, Ahniiq, the other pair Ahnoosh and Yaaqwun, and their daughter Shumsha, and the older pair Wesh and Enksi.
Nothing felt out of place on the wooded slopes, so Taashi, Kaayii, and Huff the wolf, hurried down the game trail between the trees. Then two more Sasquatches left the stand of pines heading down the trail and, in pairs, they hurried down from the ridge and quickly melted into the dense forest.
As they traversed the tree-clad inclines at a steady jog, the crow flew along with them. Squirrels called excitedly, sensing something was afoot, and ground dwellers like raccoons, polecats, porcupines and possums lay low as the earth trembled with the passing of the giant running beings.
Hefty sticks were snatched up from the forest floor as they progressed through the trees and underbrush, and when they arrived at the dried-up stream Taashi raised his stick and the Sasquatches stopped and gathered round.
The water of the stream, when it was running, had eroded the ground and exposed grey rocks, and Taashi crouched down in the streambed and rubbed mud and dirt from a half-buried rock. It was quartz. He placed one vast hairy black hand on the glistening quartz and Kaayii took hold of his other hand. The other Sasquatches dropped their sticks and grouped together. The last Sasquatch in the chain, Ahniiq, crouched down and placed his hand on the quartz next to Taashi. They all closed their eyes and felt the energy from the earth pulsing through the forest, and through them.
A few moments later the crow called a warning. Kaayii led the group up the path by the streambed. The crow alighted on the branch of a pine by the dried-up pond, where the path opened up into the clearing of pale grass, yellow flowers and spiky bushes. The grey, rocky bluff towered above them. The Sasquatches advanced slowly on the stand of spruces at the base of the cliff.
Kaayii could not feel the presence of wolf but their senses were heightened and they approached with great care: silently, stealthily.
Taashi looked down at the wolf, Huff, close to Kaayii’s side and asked: where? Huff glanced at the Sasquatch and, trotting forward a few paces, sniffed the air. The wolf looked up at the high rocky bluff.
Behind the spruces were the remains of the bull moose – his head, antlers and feet. There were also carcasses of four white-tailed deer amongst the bloody, flattened grass. Taashi stood over the body of his friend the moose and the words he solemnly uttered meant, ‘It was not yet the time for my friend to pass.’
Huff sniffed a deer carcass and pulled some meat off a leg with his front teeth. He trotted off with the meat, and Kaayii followed him down a thin path snaking through huge boulders to the base of the cliff. Huff disappeared behind the boulders into a dark and narrow space. Kaayii followed. The wolf barked. It was a friendly bark, not a warning, so Kaayii twisted his body and squeezed in. Kaayii shouted, ‘Oosh!’ and his voice echoed in the deep, dark opening under the cliff.
Three Sasquatches leaned their backs against the boulder and heaved until it shifted a few inches. They heaved again. Ahniiq and Taashi could now squeeze into the gap and they disappeared into the gloom.
Kaayii and the others waited among the boulders, watching warily for the return of the wolves, sticks in hand. Huff turned his head towards the rocky slope and the hackles on the back of his neck stood up. Kaayii noticed and stepped to the wolf’s side, scanning the slope for any movement.
Moment
s later the brothers came out of the cave into the daylight, and Ahniiq was rubbing the top of his head. Taashi looked at Kaayii: this cave is too small.
Caw caw! Called the crow. The Sasquatches hurried through the boulders back to the feeding place, where the wolf pack could now be seen scrambling down the rock-strewn stony slope, with the massive alpha male leading them.
The wolves gathered on the bloody grass, the dominant male standing firm, facing the Sasquatches. He stepped forward, correctly identifying Taashi as their leader, looking directly into his black eyes, and lowering his head in wary challenge.
Ahniiq pointed with his club at the carcasses: you killed too many.
‘Wha! Whaa!’ barked Taashi, raising his club, but the wolves did not go, they did not move a muscle, they stood staring with piercing yellow eyes, alert and ready. The giant male took another step forward, glancing back at the ten in his pack. None advanced with him, and two looked away, down at the ground. But the proud male, primed for action, took another step towards the Sasquatch who stood almost three times the height of the wolf’s shoulders.
Taashi launched himself at the wolf, taking two quick short steps and springing through the air at him whilst swinging the club, which connected with the wolf’s shoulder as it ducked and sprang sideways.
‘Wha!’ he yelled again at the wolf, but it growled through its teeth, snarling aggressively. The pack advanced on Taashi baring their fangs, and instantly the other Sasquatches rushed at the ten wolves swinging their solid lengths of wood and in a split second all the wolves recoiled as one and fled, spraying blood and grass underfoot as they scrabbled for purchase on the wet, sticky ground.
Now the giant wolf was angry and bared hellishly sharp-looking yellow fangs and jagged teeth. He rushed at Taashi, sinking his teeth into his thigh even as the Sasquatch pounded his club on the beast’s black skull. Kaayii threw himself at the wolf, wrapping both his arms around its body with enough force to make the wolf release his grip on his father’s leg.
With the other wolves having retreated to a safe distance, Ahniiq also jumped on to the black wolf’s back. Subdued by the two Sasquatches the wolf lay on its side, eyes and snarling jaws furiously contorted by the indignity of being pinned down and having his muzzle shoved into the bloodstained mud. Taashi knelt down and grabbed it by the throat. Squeezing hard he growled at the brute, right in its ear…
They released the wolf and it ran to join the others in the pack. The Sasquatches ran after it, spreading out, with arms held wide, forming a semi-circle around the wolves, herding them up the rocky slope beside the grey cliff.
A lone female wolf peeled away from the pack, doubling back. Huff galloped after her. The brown-eared wolf slowed her pace when she saw Huff following her and circling round a small boulder she stopped as he came to her side. They sniffed each other.
The rest of the wolf pack crested the ridge at the top of the bluff, closely followed by the Sasquatches. The wolves scampered down the loose grey shale, now in shadow, beyond which the scorched forest lay dark and desolate. At the bottom of the slope the big alpha male stopped and looked back up at the crest where the Sasquatches stood together, silhouetted against the day’s last glow, eight towering, gargantuan figures. The wolf turned and trotted away.
Chapter Ten
It was almost dark by the time Kaayii, his father and his uncle left Huff and his new she-wolf friend sitting in the Watcher’s Place.
The three Sasquatches reached the first cabin on the trail down from the mountain as night closed in. They could sense a human energy inside the cabin. It was thrilling to Kaayii to be so close to the humans’ homes and he felt a rush of excitement course through his body.
Taashi crept down the side of the cabin listening intently. He peeped round the corner of the building. There was nothing on the deck, no humans in sight. He signalled to the other two. They trod softly, carefully. Straight ahead was the other cabin, with a rocky outcrop close to one side and a high fence on the other.
Kaayii’s father pointed at the one window on the rear of the cabin facing them. He and Kaayii reached up and placed their flat palms and fingers on the glass. It felt like nothing they’d ever felt before – smooth, but hard and cold, like ice. Taashi grunted angrily, and his words meant, ‘People are on our ancient trail!’
Ahniiq was by the fence smelling the odours from the plants there. Some were new smells, strange and pungent, whilst some were fruity, some earthy, some like nothing he’d ever smelt. The fence came up to Kaayii’s face. Ahniiq put his hands on the top of the fence. He realised it was not strong enough to hold his weight.
Taashi walked away from the fence back up the track in to the shadows mumbling gruffly to himself.
Kaayii and Ahniiq watched him go. When Taashi passed the first cabin he whacked the side of it really hard with the flat of his hand, BOOM! It was so loud that Kaayii and Ahniiq quickly stepped into the shadows of the underbrush under the rocky outcrop.
More lights went on in the second cabin. They could just about hear a human talking inside it. They stepped out of the shadows and Ahniiq whacked the back of the cabin right near where they were standing, BOOM! Then Kaayii stepped from the shadows grinning mischievously, and he too whacked the back of the cabin, BOOM!
They waited. They heard shouting and his uncle pulled Kaayii by the arm, yanking him back into the shadows of the underbrush.
A light came on inside casting a block of light from the small back window onto the dusty track. Slowly the window opened and the man looked out. He was so close that Kaayii could have lobbed a pinecone in through the opening. The man closed the window and the light inside went off.
Moments later a bright light was shone up the side of the cabin onto the fence and the cabin beyond.
A ‘warble-whistle’ rang out. Kaayii knew this kind of whistle meant ‘let’s go’ and it had come from his father in the trees. Ahniiq looked at Kaayii: I want fish.
Beyond the cabin the strong white light reappeared and started jerking around, sweeping the ground and flashing up into the trees. The man shouted something. He was carrying the light and was coming round the big pine tree onto the track towards them.
They crouched low in the shadows and though the light swept over them the man kept going. He stopped and turned the light back onto the cabin, light flooding the back of the building. Then he turned and hurried up the track to the other cabin up the slope.
The light went on again inside the small window and they saw two very small hands pressed against the inside of the glass.
Ahniiq nudged Kaayii: squirrels?
The man and a woman appeared, hurrying down the steps of the first cabin and running down the track, with the torchlight jerking around ahead of them. The window opened and the girl yelled out. The man and the woman stopped just a few feet from Kaayii and Ahniiq, and looked at the handprints. Ahniiq started giggling and Kaayii had to nudge him hard in the arm to shut him up. The man and the woman ran on and the window closed.
His uncle stood up and left the shadow of the underbrush. Kaayii grabbed a branch off the ground and quickly swept away any sign of footprints in the dust. He followed his uncle.
Ahniiq led him up the outcrop climbing a steep tumble of boulders. At the top of the cliff there was a tall, thin stick with what looked like four white seagulls’ wings on top, slowly turning in the wind. Kaayii sniffed the sea breeze and was reminded of the salty scent deep in the yellow wolf’s coat.
They looked down on the cabins dotted about the grassy slope. They clambered down the steep path scattered with loose small rocks leading to the shore and struggled to climb safely down the jagged tumble of slippery grey boulders in the dark.
The tide was still in and they lowered themselves into the water. Kaayii gasped with shock at the sudden coldness. It came up to Kaayii’s waist and they waded out holding hands, feeling the rocks, large and small, embedded in the sand and the slippery seaweed underfoot.
Kaayii watched as his uncle
stood still in the gentle swell, with both his long arms hanging in front of him. He copied Ahniiq and they stood there, motionless, waiting with their hands in the water. Kaayii could sense his uncle sending a calm energy through the water.
Moonlight glittered in the silvery splash made by Ahniiq whipping his hands up out of the water, clutching a wriggling, gleaming fish with whisker-like barbells protruding from beneath its mouth. Ahniiq promptly started to eat the fish.
Kaayii waded along the shore, where seaweed draped the rocks and swayed in the shallow swell of the sea. He glanced back to see Ahniiq pulling a handful of seaweed out of the water and biting in to it. Kaayii did the same – the seaweed was salty, slimy and delicious.
He stood waist high in the water near the end of the jetty, put his hands under the surface and sent calm energy out into the shifting watery blackness. He heard an eagle’s high-pitched cry above him just as a fish tickled his fingers. He seized it with both hands and in one motion pulled up and flung the fish onto the end of the wooden jetty.
Circling above him was the eagle, which at that moment swooped low. It brushed the top of Kaayii’s head with its talons and, lowering its huge wings, braked in the air to drop expertly and land softly on the jetty. The eagle’s cry of thanks pierced the stillness. The bird grasped the flapping fish and began to feed.
Suddenly a bright golden light burst from high posts by the jetty startling Kaayii. He ducked down into the perfect black shadow under the jetty, the water up to his neck. The eagle kept feeding and Kaayii’s uncle did the same, sitting on a rock, and watching the spectacle of the eagle feeding on the jetty while Kaayii hid below in the watery shadows. Then the eagle flapped his huge wings, and lifted up, still holding the fish, and disappeared into the night sky.
