by Kevin Ashman
‘Two!’ stated Neifion triumphantly. ‘There will be enough meat for all of us. Let me make the kill, Ceffyl.’
‘No kills will be made here, Neifion,’ replied Ceffyl, ‘we will take these alive back to the valley.’
The hunters looked at him uncomprehendingly for a moment.
‘Why take them back alive, Ceffyl? Let me cut their throats, they will be easier to carry tied to our spears.’
‘It will be explained back at the cave,’ said Ceffyl, ‘Sky wants them alive.’
‘She is a woman, Ceffyl,’ shouted Neifion, ‘who is chief of this clan, her or you?’
Ceffyl spun around and placed the point of his spear tight up under Neifion’s bearded chin.
‘Do not take my decisions lightly, Neifion,’ he snarled. ‘You think only of your next meal while I must consider the bellies of all. Sky helps us all with her ideas. Has not your belly been full for many weeks because of her strange ways? I have promised her a live pig, and a live pig she will get.’ They stood there in silence staring at each other until Ceffyl removed his spear.
‘Forgive me my impudence, great chief,’ said Neifion remorsefully, ‘I have forgotten what the flesh of roasted pig tastes like, it has been so long. But surely she did not expect two. We could take one back and kill one here, I could make a fire.’
Ceffyl considered carefully weighing up the wisdom of Neifion’s words. He too was getting fed up of fish and the men’s needs were greater than the women’s were; they were hunters, after all.
‘No!’ He said eventually. ‘This time we will take them to the valley. Bring the net.’
The old fishing net obtained from the women had been weighted around the edge with stones and the men surrounded the pit spreading the net wide. When the two pigs were roughly central below, Ceffyl gave the word and they dropped the net over their target. The panicking animals scrambled to escape, squealing in fear as the hunters dropped down to claim their prize.
Several hours later, the hunting party returned triumphantly to the valley, the net containing the protesting pigs dangling between two spears borne on the shoulders of the young men. The women gathered on the valley floor below the cave as the men lowered their prize to the ground. Sky came up from the river.
‘You have your pigs, Sky,’ said Neifion, ‘so what is your great plan this time? But hurry. My mouth waters for the taste of Mochyn.’ Sky stared at him, fearing his reaction at what she was about to say.
‘Well,’ he said, ‘what would you have us do?’
‘Let them go,’ she said quietly.
‘What?’ hissed Neifion in astonishment.
‘You heard her,’ answered Ceffyl, ‘let them go.’
The gathered clan erupted in anger at the suggestion.
‘Why let them go when it had taken so much time to catch them?’ asked Mon-du.
‘You cannot allow this, Ceffyl’ shouted Neifion earning himself a warning stare from the chief.
Sky stepped forward
‘Wait!’ she shouted silencing her fellow clan members. ‘We must think forward if we are to survive. Even If we let them go, are they not still captured? She glanced at Ceffyl before continuing.
‘As you know this valley is enclosed, the cliffs are high on either side, the sea lies at the bottom and the shale slope at the top is difficult to climb. Any beasts living within the valley would not escape, but why would they want to? There is plenty of room for many to live here.’ Once again, she had their attention. ‘Yes, we will allow the pigs to run free, and we will not hunt them, well, not yet anyway. We will give them our waste to eat and the bones from the fish. We will let them eat the innards from our hunts and any food left over that rots. They will share the same valley as us and as more pigs are caught, we will release them too. Soon there will be many and they will breed within the confines of this valley and then there will be more pigs than even you can eat Neifion, all within half an hour’s walk from the cave and easily tracked.’
The gathered clan were enthralled at the idea.
‘But this is not just about pigs;’ she continued earnestly, ‘this place is big enough for many animals. We could even catch deer. Why should we chase them for days on end when we could bring them here to live in the valley?’ She talked quickly now trying to get all her ideas across in one rush. ‘The young boys could learn their skills hunting them in the safety of this place until we need the meat. They could not roam far and our people would not have to travel days to find them.’
‘What would they eat?’ asked Fox-tooth.
‘There is enough grass in the valley to support a whole herd of auroch if necessary,’ she answered warming to her subject. ‘During the winter, the grass remained strong on the dunes and I have noticed that the snow does not lie as long on the ground near the sea. There is plenty of water in the river and the trees will shelter them from the snows when the weather is bad.’ She paused. ‘Don’t you see?’ she pleaded. ‘There will be no more need to lose the lives of our young men. We will have all the food we need right here in the valley. We can harvest the meat as we do the berries from the bush. Our children can live in safety in this valley yet still learn the ways of the clan. The times are getting colder, and we have heard it said that a never-ending winter comes to our lands once again. Our clan is weak and though we have to stay here, we can take advantage of the situation and change to cope in the hard years ahead. Our people must survive!’
She finished her speech abruptly. It was the most she had ever spoken in her life and searched the eyes of the gathered clan for an indication of their feelings. Finally, Sky saw movement at the back of the small crowd and Fox-tooth came forward, a shadow of her former self, since the Baal had taken Little-bear. Pulling out the ever present skinning knife that all the women carried, she crouched down and tilted one of the pigs head’s right back clenching the terrified beast’s snout closed and exposing its throat.
‘Your ideas worry me, Sky,’ she said looking up as the girl held her breath. ‘They are not the ways of our people, and you ask us to change a whole way of life. The ways of our ancestors have run through our veins since time began. I am not happy with this.’ She paused. ‘But I have lost one grandson, and I will not lose another.’ With that, she bent forward and drew the knife quickly through the binding tangle of netting entwining the pigs. Struggling free the animals galloped away down toward the copse further down the valley, many of the clan jumping out of their way as they went. Fox-tooth stood up and looked at Sky.
‘Thank you,’ said the girl to the old woman.
‘Sky, don’t thank me,’ said Fox-tooth, ‘I did this for Little-bear, for even if Golau returns my grandson to me, I fear for the clan. We have no option. It is this, or we die!’ She turned her back and walked away.
Neifion turned to Ceffyl.
‘You knew of this, yet did not share your thoughts with us,’ he said accusingly.
‘Would you have listened if I did?’
‘Perhaps not, but we deserve to share such things, Ceffyl.’
Ceffyl considered carefully, staring into the eyes of the most senior hunter in the clan after him.
‘You are right, Neifion,’ he said eventually, ‘I have wronged you and you have my regrets. From now on, we will discuss such issues as a clan and decide together.’ Neifion tilted his head slightly in acknowledgement at the chief’s apology.
‘Alid of the Morfil,’ Neifion called suddenly raising his voice, ‘bring the rest of the boys, and come with me, we have work to do.’
‘Where do you go?’ asked Ceffyl.
‘We have pigs to catch,’ he said and led the excited young boys away to reset the trap in the forest. Sky came to Ceffyl’s side.
‘Don’t worry great chief,’ she said, ‘this will work.’
‘I hope so, girl,’ came the response, ‘for all our sakes!’
----
The last days of winter disappeared, and though there were still cold days, the snows lay light on the groun
d.
The mood of the clan had changed. Everyone now had a vested interest in the future plans of the clan and an air of optimism prevailed. Ideas were discussed openly around the fires and a new style of leadership slowly emerged. The men still hunted for meat and the boys learned quickly, and though they still slaughtered most of what they caught, they still brought the occasional live beast back to the valley.
There was now a herd of eight pigs roaming in and around the copse and the clan had gotten into the habit of collecting all their waste and leaving it for the pigs down by a lone tree at the end of the valley. The pigs soon learned their captors were a source of food and started to stay near the spot where the waste was left each morning in anticipation of the tasty morsels they would leave. This aspect of the plan was totally unexpected to Sky, and if it went on like this, there would be no need to search them out in the valley when it came time to kill them. They were always in the same place every day.
In addition to the pigs, one party had brought back a young deer, suspended in the nets. The meat stores were full and the fish supply was steady, so after a lot of pleading and begging from Sky, Ceffyl allowed her to keep the young animal alive. This time, she did not release the doe, but kept it tethered to a rock with a plaited vine tied around its neck.
At first, the timid animal strained at the end of its tether to avoid the human, eyes wide and nostrils flaring in terror, but soon became used to the daily armfuls of grass she gathered from the plains above the valley and the bowls of water she brought from the stream. She had built a lean-to shelter from saplings and covered it with thick foliage from evergreen pine trees.
Yet, despite her patience, Sky could not get the deer to come to her as the dogs did. It remained as far away from her as its restraint allowed though was visibly less stressed as time went on. Finally, out of frustration she decided on a course of different and drastic action.
She continued to supply grass and foliage to the deer, but didn’t give it any water for two days. On the third day, she sat well within the range of the tethered animal and placed a bowl of cool water on her lap, the deer watching her suspiciously, its nostrils twitching at the smell of the water. Sky stayed silent and stone-still for hours, and her colleagues from up on the shelf before the cave entrance watched her with great amusement. Many times the deer drew closer only to prance skittishly away at the slightest movement, its thirst getting greater as the day went on.
Eventually, as the day came to a close, and movement around the valley ceased, the deer walked slowly toward Sky, its head lowered to the ground, eyes wide and muscles straining, ready for instant flight should the need arise. Step by step it came closer; the smell of the much needed water overcoming its natural fear of the human. Sky held her breath, afraid even to blink, as slowly, the deer dipped its soft white muzzle into the bowl and drank deeply.
Eventually the deer jumped away as Sky let her stance slip slightly, but Sky was delighted. This was a wild animal, drinking from her very hands. This was how the ancestors had tamed the wolves generations before. It could be done, she had proved it.
She got to her feet, her body aching from the hours of inactivity and refilled the bowl from the stream before placing it well within the reach of the doe along with a fresh bunch of grass as a special treat.
Over the following days, Sky earned the deer’s trust and within the week, she was able to lead it calmly around the valley, tethering it at a different spot each day to graze on areas of fresh grass. Every evening, she brought the deer back to the shelter beneath the cave where it settled for the night.
----
The talk around the fire one night was about the increase in the size of the pig herd.
‘When will we slaughter the pigs?’ asked Alid. ‘They have grown fat and will be easily caught.’
Ceffyl looked at Sky.
‘Well, girl,’ he asked, ‘is the time right to feast on the flesh of the Mochyn or do we share our food with them for no reason?’
‘I share your frustration, Alid,’ she said kindly, ‘my mouth also waters at the thought of the flesh of the pig. I see no reason why we cannot slaughter one, especially that fat one who chased me yesterday.’ The group laughed at the memory. ‘But I ask a favour in return’ she said quickly, ‘you must replace the pig with another as soon as you can.’
‘Agreed!’ said Neifion quickly. ‘There is another pack in the forest shaped like a spear one day’s walk away. We will dig another pit and bring you many more.’
‘This is good; Neifion,’ she replied, ‘but this time there must be a Boar.’ All the hunters turned to her.
‘Why a boar?’ asked Ceffyl already guessing the answer.
‘The pigs give birth in the summer,’ she said, ‘so they will need to mate now. We have eight females and no male.’
‘This will be difficult,’ answered Ceffyl, ‘can we not replace the ones we eat with more from the pits.’
‘We could, but it takes a long time and great effort just to catch one. If the pigs will mate, they will each have four or more young. Within a year, we can be feasting on Mochyn every week if we require.’
‘The Boar is a worthy opponent,’ said Neifion eventually, ‘do you know what you ask?’
‘I know only that there will be much danger,’ answered Sky ‘and I cannot guide you on how to catch the Boar, but this is the next step and I am at a loss how to do it. I am in your hands.’
Neifion thought and finally responded.
‘Once again, your words have merit. We will find a way.’
‘What of your deer, Sky?’ asked Ceffyl. ‘She fills out nicely and her flesh will be a welcome treat on our knives.’
Sky looked horrified and the group burst out laughing at her expression. She joined in the laughter nervously, but soon sneaked off to check the young deer, curled up under her shelter. Sky had named the deer Euraid, meaning Golden in the ancient language, and as it sensed her approach, it got to its feet to nuzzle its snout into her hands to seek the treats that Sky often brought.
‘I won’t let them eat you, Euraid,’ she said quietly, embracing the deer’s neck, ‘I will leave the clan first.’
----
Chapter 25
The vaulted walls of the crevice shot upward on either side of them to meet at the top in a great cathedral of ice. Gaps in the ice sheet high above, allowed the sunlight to stream down to reach the cold depths of the naturally formed tunnel, as the six strong group trudged carefully forward along the freezing river edge at the bottom of the icy ravine.
Over the years, the fast moving river had carved its way down through the ice, only maintaining its fluidity because of the force of its current, and eventually reaching the bedrock, keeping open this unlikely artery through the glacier. Kraiach led the group onward, the path gradually rising toward the surface as they walked. The air was bitter cold and though Kraiach’s people coped better with the temperature, even they found the going difficult. Kraiach forced the pace until eventually Golau called out.
‘Kraiach, we must rest,’ he shouted and sat down on a nearby ice block leaning on his spear to catch his breath. Kraiach walked back down the path, confronting Golau.
‘We must move on quickly,’ he said, ‘we cannot spend the night in here, we will not survive.’
‘I know,’ said Golau, ‘but it can’t be much farther, the Baal have many prisoners and they cannot be travelling as fast as us.’
‘They run!’ said Kraiach
‘What, all of them, including the prisoners?’
Kraiach nodded.
‘All run.’
Golau’s thoughts sped to Little-bear, being forced to run through this forsaken place in this numbing cold.
‘It is not possible,’ he said.
‘The signs speak true,’ answered Kraiach.
Golau stood up again.
‘Lead on,’ he said and followed Kraiach up alongside the subterranean river toward the glacier surface. Within minutes, they came acro
ss the first evidence of the hardship being forced on the prisoners. A small mound on the path to their front turned out to be the frozen corpse of a woman who had obviously faltered on the forced march. The heads had been removed from both her body and that of the pitiful tiny corpse of the child clutched tightly in her frozen arms. They paused at the pathetic sight before forging on up the path. Brola lingered a while, and when the group had gone around a bend in the ice wall, he drew his hunting knife and approached the corpse of the woman.
Over the next few hours, the group passed more corpses as they went; each individual left in the same state as their predecessors. Brola fell further behind as he repeated his secret morbid task on each one.
The group picked up their pace, forcing themselves to extremes of physical endurance, pausing briefly at each headless body to check it was none of the Fire-clan. Eventually, they broke out onto the blindingly white surface of the glacier, collapsing onto the snow and gasping for breath as they soaked up what little warmth was offered by the last rays of the sinking sun. When they had recovered, it became obvious that the Baal had also rested in the same place, the black remains of the large fire still evident off to one side in stark contrast to the expanse of pristine whiteness surrounding them.
‘We too will need a fire,’ said Kraiach.
‘There is no wood,’ said Afon searching the horizon for sign of trees, ‘there is nothing, not even scrub. Where did they get the fuel from?’
‘Perhaps they brought it with them?’ suggested Gafr.
‘All this way?’
‘Why not? The slaves alone could carry enough wood to last weeks.’
‘There will be wood left in the fire,’ interrupted Kraiach and started to rummage through the charred remnants of the Baal fire.
