As they were building the raft, they discussed what might lie beyond the valley. In the distance, far away and faintly visible, they could see snow-covered mountains—or were they only clouds on the horizon?
After the work on the raft was done, Zen went to Lela and told her of their plans. She was so excited that she wanted to tell Ador right away. Zen cautioned her to tell no one but Ador; they all had to be ready to meet at the top of the cliff at the first light of dawn. Everything had to work just as planned.
Lela hugged Zen and said, “Ador and I will be ready.”
Zen rushed to Jok and repeated what he had told Lela.
“Then it’s set,” Jok said. “We leave at sunrise. I’ll see you at the cliff in the morning, and I’ll have the girls with me.”
Zen cautioned, “This is a decision we each must make because if we fail, we will all be killed.”
“I know, and I’m willing to take that chance to prevent Ador from having to submit to the priests. She also knows the price of failure and is eager to escape. We’ll be there,” Jok smiled and shook Zen’s hand.
“All right, Jok, it’s on for tomorrow morning. Now I must help my mother and father get ready. They, too, want to escape.”
***
Zen decided to let his parents get all the rest they could because they were older and would have to withstand the rigors of a very difficult journey. What he didn’t know was that his half-brother Negg had seen their parents putting items into a skin pouch and figured that they were planning to escape. He went straight to the priests and told them what he had seen.
When Zen arrived at his cave, the priests were already there, questioning his parents. Zen hid in the bushes nearby, attracted his father’s attention without letting the soldiers know he was there, and gestured to him that he was going to help them escape. Zarko indicated with his hands that they would be all right, and that Zen should go quickly while he still could. Zen knew that no matter what torture the priests might submit them to, his parents would never divulge information about their plan to escape.
The priests still didn’t know that he and Jok planned to escape with the girls, so they had a chance if they could just get to the cliff. Zen rushed through the grove of trees to the top of the cliff and waited for Jok and the girls, thinking he had arrived ahead of them. The sound of a dry stick snapping told him that he was not alone. Zen looked in the direction of the sound, saw his friends and signaled for them to come ahead. They ran to him, knowing there was no turning back. They had made their plan, and now they had to make the plan work. They would either escape, or die.
Zen told his friends that the priests had detained his mother and father, and then led them to the cliff above where he and father had hid the raft. The cliff was so high, it was a frightening prospect to jump off it into the river. Zen knew that could be done safely because he and his father had done it. They would have to swim to the river bank where they had hidden the raft.
Zen was sure the soldiers would not follow them into the valley because they, like everyone else, were forbidden to enter there. The soldiers would never dare to jump from the cliff. They would walk around the cliff on the trail, but that would take time, and by then he and his friends would be entering the Valley of Mist.
They stopped at the edge of the cliff and were talking when spears started landing at their feet. Zen and Jok picked up two of the spears and hurled them back at their pursuers. A soldier cried out, and they knew they had scored a hit. That slowed the soldiers down, but just enough to allow them to jump. Ador hesitated when she saw how high the cliff was.
“It’s your decision, Ador,” Zen reminded her, “but you know the penalty if you are caught trying to escape.”
Ador looked at Zen and then without a moment’s hesitation, grabbed Lela’s hand and leaped into the air. The drop seemed to take forever. When they hit the water, they plunged deep into the swiftly moving stream. By the time they came to the surface, they were near Zen and Jok.
“Follow me!” Zen called out.
Lela started choking, so Zen swam to her and held her head up until she cleared her lungs. They swam to the bank of the river, but they still had to run to the raft. Jok and Adora were right behind them. They started dragging the heavy raft into the river, but it was almost more than they could do.
The soldiers were coming down the path, and spears were falling all around until they floated out of range.
“Let’s keep these spears,” Jok said. “They might come in handy when we have to fight off some of the beasts that we have heard howling in that valley. Each of the girls can have a spear also.”
The girls were shocked.
“You know women are not allowed to carry weapons,” Lela said.
“Those were the old rules, and they no longer apply,” Zen said. “Beginning right now, we’ll make our own rules.”
“How will we know what to do?” Ador asked.
“Each of us must do what we believe is right,” Jok replied, “and we must do what is in the best interest of the group as a whole.”
“I agree,” Zen said. “When we get to the White Mountains and build our new homes, we’ll decide what rules we want to follow, but for now, our problem is to get across this dreaded valley. We must work together to accomplish that goal. I have no idea what dangers we’ll encounter, but we can be sure there will be dangers, perhaps beyond our ability to foresee, but hopefully not beyond our ability to overcome. We must constantly be on the alert.”
The soldiers gave up saw them entering the valley, gave up the chase, and stood watching as the raft disappeared into the mist.
“They won’t survive even one night in that valley,” the lead soldier said, shaking his head.
***
Chapter 8
Entering the Valley
No one before had ever guessed the horrors that lay in the valley. Perhaps it had no limits, but if there was another side, what lay beyond?
Although thoughts of uncertainty ran through their minds, they didn’t express their fears out loud. They had escaped from the soldiers by floating down the river into the valley; now they hoped the river flowed out somewhere. In all memory, no one had ever entered the dreaded valley and returned to tell about it.
***
As they entered the mist, it was as though a curtain had been drawn; everything appeared in shades of gray. It wasn’t possible to see more than a few paces in any direction, and everywhere they looked the dense jungle had vegetation dripping wet from the steam. The air was hot and humid. Steam rose from stagnant ponds that filled the air with foul-smelling gases.
Zen touched the water. It was hot. Now he knew why there was always a thick fog shrouding the valley. This was a seemingly endless primeval swamp with steam rising from bubbling pots of mud. It would be impossible to walk through the valley. He shuddered and thought, If the terrible creatures don’t eat you, the mud will swallow you up. He looked at his traveling companions and gave a bleak smile.
Giant ferns grew everywhere. Huge trees with long vines hanging from their branches grew on the banks of the river. The vines would make the trees easy to climb should they need to escape from ground predators. But what about the animals that might live in the trees, animals they had never seen before or even knew existed?
The fog shifted at times, allowing a brief glimpse of their surroundings. The river was about two hundred paces across, and the water was moving slowly. They drifted along, looking at the strange sights and wondering what might be around the next turn.
Colorful birds and chattering monkeys filled the trees. At times, they could hear animals roaring somewhere. The raft passed by plants loaded with fruit that was unfamiliar to them.
“How will we know which fruit we can eat?” Lela asked.
“I don’t know,” Zen replied. “But I think we should watch what the monkeys are eating. If we start by taking small bites, we can determine what the effect of eating a particular fruit will be.”
“It sounds chancy to me,” Jok said, “but we may have to resort to that method. For now, we have the food we brought with us, and when it's gone, we can gather enough of the fruit that is familiar to us to keep from being hungry.”
As the raft navigated a bend in the river, they saw crocodiles lying on the bank, just watching.
To swim in this river would be a dangerous thing to do, Zen thought. I can see some of the danger on the banks, but there is no way of knowing what is lurking just below the surface of this turbid water.
Suddenly Lela screeched “Jok!” and pointed to a spot on the raft near him.
“What is it?” Jok asked.
“A snake!” Lela screamed.
Jok grabbed his stone axe and smashed the head of the large reptile. Its slithering body slid into the muddy water and was eaten almost immediately by something hidden just out of sight in the murky depths. The girls clung to each other and shuddered at the sight.
“Well!” Zen commented. “That answers the question of would it be safe to sleep on the raft tonight.”
“How will we know when the sun goes down?” Ador asked as she looked around at the surroundings.
“Good question. I think it will get very dark very quickly,” Jok replied. “We should look for a place to spend the night before the dark settles in. I sure don’t want to have to find a place to sleep in this jungle after it gets dark. It will be bad enough while it is still light, if you can call this dense fog 'light.'”
“I think you’re right,” Zen said. “It was still early morning when we jumped into the river, and it should be no later than mid-afternoon now; we still have a little time to find a place to sleep, so let’s float on for a while and be on the lookout for a big tree with vines growing on it. We can use the vines to climb into the tree’s upper branches. That will get us away from ground predators, and hopefully, we can defend our perch in the tree with our spears. We will take turns watching; two will watch while the other two sleep.”
As they floated along, they saw areas of heavy swirling water, which indicated that creatures were hiding in the dark, sullen depths. Once in a while, they saw a quick flip of a tail. No one dared to allow his or her hand to drag in the water. After what seemed a long time, they came to a sandy spot where large trees grew on the bank of the river. The sand was firm, and maybe it would prevent them from sinking into the mud.
Pointing to the trees, Zen said, “Those trees look like they might be a good place to spend the night. They are about fifty paces from the river, but we can reach them by walking in the open area. If we are careful, we should be able to get to them before we’re overtaken by animals.”
The girls looked at Zen, hoping he was joking.
Using their spears as poles, they pushed the raft onto the sandbar. In front of them was a large tree with smooth bark and hair-like fibers hanging from its branches. The branches were strong enough to tie vines to and make hammocks to sleep in. Upon reaching the tree, Zen climbed the heavy hair-like fibers and found three branches in a configuration that would allow them to build their hammocks there.
He called down, “Pass me two of the spears and keep two on the ground at the base of the tree.”
After securing the weapons in the branches, he passed down the end of a vine and called out for the girls to climb up. One after the other, they ascended into the tree.
“Now, Jok, you come on up,” Zen said.
“I’d better get the food from the raft first,” Jok called back and started for the raft, but after going a few steps, he heard something in the brush.
From his perch in the tree, Zen saw the source of the sound. It was a saber-toothed tiger, lying in wait for Jok.
“Jok, it’s a big cat!” Zen yelled. “Come back! Don’t go to the raft! Run for the tree!”
Jok turned and sprinted for the tree. For just the slightest moment, the cat was confused and then, realizing its quarry was escaping, bounded after him.
It was obvious to Zen that the tiger would catch Jok before he could get to the tree and climb out of its reach. Using a vine, he dropped to the ground, grabbed one of the spears, and stood waiting for the charging tiger. He threw a spear to Jok and said, “Together, we can beat this animal.”
When Jok reached the tree, he turned around and with their backs to the tree, they faced the dangerous beast.
“Don’t throw your spear,” Jok counseled. “Just jab him. When he turns to face the one jabbing him, the other one can stab him until we kill him or he kills us.”
“I was hoping there might be another alternative,” Zen said. “Maybe if we hold him off long enough, he’ll give up.”
Stabbing the attacking animal, Jok said, “I’ve never faced one of these things before, and I don’t know what to expect. I’m sure glad it isn’t a pack of werewolves.”
“We’ve got enough to keep us busy right here,” Zen said, knocking away the raking claws of the snarling giant tiger. “Let’s just concentrate on getting rid of this problem.”
The tiger growled ominously showing no signs of giving up and growled ominously. The young men took turns jabbing at the persistent cat. Each time they jabbed, they drew blood and the cat became angrier. It rushed at Zen; its claws caught in his tunic and pulled him to the ground. Zen would have been killed if Jok had not stepped in and made a swift lunge with his spear, driving the point deep into the belly of the tiger. Badly wounded, the tiger roared, withdrew, and then slunk away into the jungle. Zen and Jok looked at each other with relief.
“I’m still hungry,” Jok said, and ran to the raft. He came back with the food Zen and his father had stashed there.
The two men climbed into the tree and joined the girls; everyone ate the food and then gathered vines to make hammocks for the night. Then they all sat watching the light fade. It was getting dark fast.
Ador and Lela had watched the struggle with the tiger and realized that if their men had lost, they would have had little chance of surviving. The girls loved and trusted their men, but the fight left them feeling insecure. Jok and Zen were shaken also, but didn’t dare talk about it, as they didn’t want to worry the girls. They, too, realized how close they had come to not winning the fight, and what a difficult spot the girls would have been in had they been killed or maimed.
They sat in the dark, talking about the dangers they might encounter in the night. What they all feared most were giant snakes. Snakes could crawl into the trees without making a sound, or could drop in from the branches above, or crawl up from the ground. It would be nearly impossible to detect the slithering danger of a snake in the complete darkness of the jungle night. They were almost certain that large snakes would not be poisonous; however, they might have to contend with smaller snakes that very well could be poisonous.
It was a very frightening time, because every moment they were in this horrible valley, their lives were in danger.
Jok and Ador said they would take the first watch.
In the village of Lalock, it would have been a serious social error for a young man and a young woman to sleep together before the priests officially joined them in marriage, but Lela did not want to sleep alone. She wasn’t usually afraid of the dark, but this jungle frightened her, and she wanted to sleep in the arms of the man she loved.
Zen knew that the worst thing that could happen was for the girls to get pregnant before they reached the other side of this valley and got their new homes built. It was going to be very difficult for him to get any sleep. He was aroused by just looking at Lela lying in the hammock beside him. How was he going to sleep while he held her in his arms? To make matters worse, she could feel his arousal and cuddled up even closer. Zen felt the weight of his responsibility; he had never been more wide-awake in his whole life. It was because of him that they were in this dangerous situation.
At last, physically and emotionally exhausted, with Lela feeling wonderful in his arms, he fell asleep. Too soon, he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was Jok letting him know that it was h
is turn to keep watch. Reluctantly, he awakened Lela. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, knelt on a large branch, and put on her tunic. Zen and Lela had to feel their way along the branches until they reached the forks in the tree where they were to sit and watch. It was hardly accurate to call it watching, though.
The night was so dark that they had to feel each other to make sure that they were still there. Lela reached out and accidentally touched him where an unmarried woman shouldn’t touch an unmarried man. Any other time, she would have quickly moved her hand, but tonight, she let it linger. Zen slowly removed her hand and held her closely while they talked in quiet voices.
Ador and Jok took their places in the hammocks. Zen was worried about them sharing a hammock, but Jok must have been very sleepy. Zen could hear him breathing the deep sighs of sleep and was relieved that he did not hear the sounds of their lovemaking. He had not talked to Jok about the necessity of their not getting the girls pregnant until they got through the valley and found a place to build their new homes. Jok must have been tired indeed. He and Ador were very much in love and Ador would give herself willingly to him.
The night was dark as fear itself, and seemed it would never end. They couldn’t see anything, but they could hear animals moving about. The sounds and smells of the night changed with the slightest breeze. Zen and Lela listened to the roaring of animals echoing through the jungle, and played a guessing game of what animal made that noise. Finally, darkness gave way as the faint light of the sun pushed the shadows from the hollows and crevices. Jok and Ador stirred in their hammocks.
Zen squeezed Lela’s hand and said, “We have to get something to eat and find a place to bathe where we’ll be safe from the water monsters. We must stay clean, or jungle rot will kill us as surely as if some beasts had done it. I believe now, more than ever, we will survive. I feel certain that there is another side to this valley. We just have to find a way to get to it. I led you into this place, Lela, and I will lead you out.”
Beyond the Valley of Mist Page 4
