THE PRINCE OF HOUSE VLADD
CHAPTER 7
BOOK 3
BY ARTHUR
AUTHORS NOTE:
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Peter stood alone at the side of the empty runway, the distant sound of a small jet could now easily be heard by his sharp hearing, in his estimate, it was still about five minutes away but this did not worry him, Sin Yu and his mysterious passenger would soon tell him everything that had happened in his long absence, there had still been no explanation about his disappearance.
When the time had passed and Peter could at last see the small private jet begin to taxi towards him, he tried to look into the blacked out windows, the sun had set only half an hour earlier so Sin Yu should be awake by now, for the first time in a long time, Peter felt the subtle thrill of anticipation, it was an unfamiliar feeling for one such as him, the thought of seeing Sin Yu hopefully well and healthy made him feel like a little boy at Xmas.
The jet pulled to a stop only yards from where Peter stood waiting, the side door opened and Peter saw the slim figure of Sin Yu standing ready to disembark, Peter's face changed as he saw a small figure standing behind Sin Yu, it was obvious that it was a young teen boy, on closer inspection, Peter saw that the boy looked very much like Sin Yu only much younger, it was also very evident that the boy was a newly turned new blood, Peter was almost tempted to read the young teen but resisted the urge as he felt it would be an insult to Sin Yu.
Sin Yu lifted a weary hand as he saw Peter waiting for him, he felt his little brother step closer to his side as he started down the narrow steps, there were going to be a lot of explanations to make with his boss, he only hoped he knew Peter well enough to have his brother taken into the Princes household.
Peter watched the young stranger follow Sin Yu down the steps only half a step behind, it was as though the boy was Sin Yu's shadow, both in his actions and his looks, Peter was pretty sure he had the answer but did not want to presume too much, he well knew that Sin Yu would not have brought the teen with him unless there was a very good reason.
During the flight, Sin Yu had told Lim who he worked for so that his brother would not do or say the wrong thing in front of his Prince, as they left the steps and walked up to Peter, Sin Yu bowed low as did Lim.
"My Lord, I am home, I am sorry for the delay in returning but much has happened that we need to discuss as soon as possible."
"Welcome back Sin Yu, yes I assume you have a lot to tell me, and who is this, he looks like your shadow?" Peter said with a smile.
"My Lord, this is my little brother Lim Soo, I hope you will allow him to join us, I will vouch for him if it is needed."
Lim Soo bowed again, while his English was not perfect he was quite capable of understanding most of what was being said, he stayed in the bowed position as befitted a young one until he was told to stand by his brother.
Peter looked at the teen and smiled.
"You are welcome in my home young brother of Sin Yu, I hope you will join us and it becomes your home as well, if you are half as dedicated as your big brother then you will always be welcome."
Peter watched as the smallest of smiles came over the young teens face.
"Does your brother need to feed Sin Yu; I see he is just newly turned?"
"No My Lord, we have both fed recently."
"Good, then let's get to the car and back home, I need to hear everything that's happened, we've had a lot of attacks on the Vaga houses and are not anywhere nearer an answer."
"I think I might be able to shed some light on things although it will mean some very sad revelations I am afraid, it will also bring into question some peoples honour."
"Right, let's get home and we can go over everything."
Peter led the two out to the waiting car, within an hour they were back at home and Peter was leading the way to the ground floor office, for Lim it was one surprise after another as he saw the number of new species walking around the house and the grounds, even in his wildest Manga dreams, a form of game he almost used to live for, could he have imagined that these species were real, what surprised him even more was that most of the ground security were human, Sin Yu had explained all of the auras and what they meant so he was able to tell the differences, it was one thing being told about it but quite another to actually see it for the first time.
Lim's head swung around like it was mounted on a swivel, everything he saw was new and in a strange way welcome, he also noticed that everyone he saw would nod too him and smile, it was as though they already knew who he was, Lim still had a lot to learn about the Prince of House Vladd.
Peter led the way to the conference room, Lim stayed one full step behind his brother as custom dictated, he was the youngest and the most junior of the threesome and therefore should not be seen nor heard, his place had been defined as that of his brother's shadow, it was a position he was quite happy to maintain, it was the way he had been raised.
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Two Feathers was slowly making his way through the deep forest, he had left his Haida village two days ago on his quest, some said he was too young at fourteen to be doing such a thing but, he felt it was meant to be, the Medicine Elder had said it was different for each boy, some went when older and, the aged man had said when he was young, he saw a boy of only twelve years go out.
The quest was not the all important Vision Quest, this one was to find his Clan, his Father was Haida and of the Raven Clan but his Mother was Crow and her clan was the Buffalo, although now days it was not unusual to have such mixed marriages, in some quarters it was still looked down upon, for Two Feathers it was a little of both, the Haida were renowned for their more tolerant views but this did not stop some of the younger ones from having opposite views, Two Feathers had had his share of fights over his ancestry.
The forest felt inviting as he worked his way through it, he had no real direction to follow and would take a turn here or another direction there, it was the way of Creator to send the boy in the direction he needed to go, it was times like these that a boy had to have full faith in the ways of the Creator.
Two Feathers was dressed in the old traditional way, his moccasins were made by his Mother and were a little different to those of the Haida, his leggings were well tanned deer hide and stopped most thorns from pricking him as he tried to silently work his way through one thicket or another.
His Jacket was beaded and the symbols held their own power or so his Mother said, they were there to keep him safe, in his leather belt he carried a new knife that his Father had bought for him at the store and in his hand he carried only a long spear, over his shoulder was his carry bag, it also had small designs painted on it and was made from deer hide.
Two Feathers wore no hat or feathers, he liked to have his hair blowing free in any gentle breeze that might run through the trees, around his neck was a single strand of leather with a red stone fixed to it, he had found the stone when he was very small and he had taken a shine to it, his Father had made the necklace for him and he had worn it everyday since then.
Two Feathers nose was the first thing to pick up the scent of trouble, the heavy musky smell of bear filled his nostrils as he stopped to work out where the animal was, from his left he heard the faintest of rustling, a small shiver went through Two Feathers body as he realised he was upwind of the bear, it would certainly get his scent and there was little he could now do about it.
Looking around, Two Feathers considered the trees and his chances of making it high enough to dissuade the bear from chasing him, if it was a Grizzly he had a chance high up in a tree, if it was a black then he could be in real trouble, two Feathers started to edge towards a likely tree, not even the most foolhardy boy would consider taking on a bear with only a spear and a knife, it was certain death.
Two Feathers moved as silently as he was able, not a leaf or stick made a sound as he slipped closer to a tall fir tree, it was not long before he could distinctly hear the snuffling sound of a bear on the hunt, it was smelling the ground and the air around it as it moved closer, Two Feathers was now at the base of the tree, as slowly as he could he turned around and looked in the direction of where he expected to see the bear appear.
Slowly Two Feathers heart sank, the heavy dark head of a black bear moved into the small clearing, its dark eyes now firmly fixed on the young teen standing under the tall fir tree, the bear reared up on its hind legs and glared at the small animal that had walked into its territory, did the animal not see its signs of ownership on this land, the bear looked down at the animal as it stood under a tree.
Two Feathers felt the very forest pause for breath, there were no more bird calls and even the small things of the undergrowth had fallen silent, it was as though the forest was holding its breath and waiting for the death blow of the upright bear, Two Feathers mind was racing, he had to find a way out of this situation, head to head he was no match for the bear, even the promise of safety in the tall tree was now limited, black bears were notoriously good climbers.
Two Feathers took a deep breath, if this was to be his end then he would go down like a true warrior, if it was his time to be called to the mists by Creator then so be it but he was not about to run like a frightened child, even though his heart was pounding as he watched the bear fall down on all fours and start to shake its head back and forth in a show of anger, its large lips pulled back like a sneer at the small animal in front of it.
Two Feathers waited, when the bear made up its mind on what it was going to do then Two Feathers would know for certain if he should jump and climb for his life or stay and fight, he gripped his spear more firmly, as an after though he placed the butt hard against the trunk of the tree and, with his free hand, checked that his knife was loose in its scabbard, his eyes never leaving the swaying bear.
The bear rose up once more and let out an angry roar, with a speed that would have surprised many, the bear charged at the small figure, Two Feathers sent a prayer to Creator and then began to sing his death song under his breath as the bear grew bigger as it got closer, Two Feathers could now smell the bears breath as the huge animal reared up again right in front of the small teen, lashing out with its powerful paw, it came down trying to crush the very life out of the small creature under the tree.
Two Feathers felt the spear enter the bears chest as it came down on him, he also felt the searing pain of its claws as they raked down his shoulder and arm, its huge head was within inches of his face as the bear growled out in its own pain, Two Feather released the spear and frantically rolled sideways, the spear wrenched from his grasp as it went into the bears chest with the force of its own weight.
With his free hand, two Feathers desperately reached for his knife, his last line of defence as the bear tried to twist to the side and get its long sharp teeth into the small animal that had hurt it only too see the animal rolling away and out of reach, the bear tried to rise up once again but something was hurting it so much he had difficulty moving or breathing, it began to feel the wetness of its own blood matting its black fur, shaking its head in pain and frustration, the bear made a final lunge at the small animal that was now struggling to get on its own hind legs.
With a final desperate lunge, the bear swiped at the figure, its huge paw leaving another three deep gouges on the leg of the figure, as it pulled back for a last try, the small figure jumped forward and slashed out with its own paw, on the end of its paw was a strange shining claw, the bight of the claw sent the bear back onto the ground, it was all it could do to lift its head and look at the small animal that had defeated it, its eyes slowly going misty as the figure tried to regain its own feet, the sight and scent of fresh blood filled the air around the two combatants.
Two Feathers felt his head swimming as the blood began to drip from his two deep wounds, he had little doubt the bear had done him some serious damage, slowly he made his way to the now cooling body of the bear, taking a small leather pouch from his bag, he sprinkled a small amount of dried tobacco over the bear and sent a prayer to the Creator to carry the bears spirit through the mists, as he finished his prayer a sudden dizziness came over him and he fell on top of the dead bear, around him but unheard by him, the forest came back to life, the death battle was over and peace reigned once again in the land.
Slowly Two Feathers came around, his shoulder was throbbing and his leg felt sticky and stiff under the torn legging, his knife was still grasped tightly in his hand and the butt of the spear was projecting from deep in the bears chest, his head was swimming as he tried to look around, the sun had sunk closer to the horizon but he still had a little time left before dark, it would have to do he had a lot yet to do too finish before dark.
Using his ears he heard the faint sound of running water not too far away, he would have to bath the wounds before he did anything else, bears were not known for their hygiene, Two Feathers looked down at his leg hoping against hope that it was not too bad, the deep throbbing made him feel a little light headed, his left arm and shoulder seemed to be working but it was also painful, perhaps the bear had not done as much damage as he first thought.
The sight of the three deep gouges in his thigh gave him a little worry, they were deeper than he would have liked but, at least he could feel that his leg still worked although stiff, with a glance at his shoulder he was glad to see that he had only been grazed by the very tips of two of the bears claws, he would have some very nasty scars to carry for the rest of his life, perhaps they would even stop some of the boys from trying to start fights with him when he returned home.
Two Feathers turned to the large dead bear, using as little energy as he could, he placed his good leg against the chest of the bear and took hold of his spear, it took a good five minutes before the spear finally sucked free, Two Feathers now had something to lean on while he went to find the water.
Two Feathers guessed he had been unconscious for about four hours, his wounds had dried and the flow of blood had stopped but, as he forced himself to his feet, he felt a sharp pain in his leg and the fresh hot flow of blood, he had opened the wound again, with all his remaining strength, Two Feathers hopped as best he could towards the sound of the running water with the aid of his spear.
He had no idea how long it took to reach the small stream but he thought it about ten minutes, stripping off his torn leggings and then his ruined jacket, next he stripped off his store bought red cotton boxers, the only item of clothing that was not traditional, he sat himself in the centre of the flowing water, laying down so the clean water would get to his arm and shoulder as well, the cold bight at first felt almost as bad as the wounds themselves as the water rushed over and into them.
Two Feathers lay in the water for a good twenty minutes, the ice cold water slowly numbing both wounds and washing the blood away, he still felt light headed and knew he had lost a lot of blood but he was not going to give up now, not after he had found his Clan Totem, he had to go back and finish what he had started, with a grunt of pain he forced his limbs to work and slowly left the water, sitting on the bank he started to slice up his leggings into strips to cover the wounds after he had collected some nearby moss as a pad.
Fortunately for Two Feathers, it was the height of summer and the lack of clothing was not going to be too much of a burden, he looked at his now ruined leggings and decided to use the well tanned leather for straps, his jacket he would wear as it was, at least his body would be protected, he only hoped his store bought boxers would stand up to the return trip back home.
After putting on his moccasins, Two Feathers made the trip back to where the bear lay, this time it was quicker as he felt better now his leg was well bandaged with moss and the three gashes closed with the tight bindings, his next work was to skin the bear, this alone was a trophy worthy of the trouble of carrying back home, it would make a fine cover for his bed once tanned, after the skinning he would have to take four claws, two from each paw those that remained with the bear were for its spirit to defend itself in the mists, these would be taken home and made into a necklace by himself so that everyone would know he was now of the Bear Clan.
Two Feathers set too work, as a young warrior he ignored the pain and aches, just before dark he broke off the skinning to gather some dry wood for a fire, he would need it for warmth and for cooking, after all, he had some very nice fresh bear steaks for his dinner, if he cooked them just so, he would also benefit from the bears blood.
Two Feathers finished his two tasks by the light of the fire, the skin was rolled tightly and tied with some of the straps made from his leggings, two large steaks sat over the fire on a green stick, the four long yellowish claws sat in the bottom of his shoulder bag, he would place more meat on the stick so it would cook slowly while he slept, he would have enough to see him home.
Now that he had more time to stop and think as his two large juicy steaks cooked, Two Feathers was able to think about his trip home, the skin was green and heavy, with his injured leg it would be a hard trip, thinking more on this he determined to reinforce the bandage on his thigh, taking up what was left of his leggings, he cut a wide strip, enough to cover the whole leg wound, soaking it in the water he had carried back until it was fully wet and pliable, he wrapped it over the large moss pad and around his leg as tight as he could make it, next he cut four thin lengths and bound the wide bandage in place, he then sat as close to the fire with his leg close to the heat, as the hide dried it would tighten and, with luck it would stop anymore tearing open of the three cuts.
When his meat was ready, two Feathers began to eat, he could feel the new bandage tightening as it dried, it felt a little uncomfortable but it would certainly hold when he walked out next day, he decided to head straight down towards the coast, it would be easier walking than up and down in the trees and gullies, although it would make the trip a little longer, using less effort would pay off in the long run, or so he hoped.
The sun had been up for almost two hours before Two feathers opened his eyes, his head felt clearer and he could feel the tight fit of the extra bandage on his leg, the extra meat he had cooked was now well done and he could carry it in his shoulder bag, checking he had everything, he ate one of the well cooked steaks and then slipped the two straps around the bear skin over his shoulders like a back pack, his left shoulder protested but he would be able to make it.
Using his spear as a semi crutch, Two Feathers began his journey, if he could keep up a reasonable pace with his injuries and the weight of the skin, he may make it to the coast before nightfall, for water he had no worries, there were plenty of small streams between here and the place he hoped to come out on at the coast.
During the long day, Two Feather had to stop a little more often than he had at first thought, eating as he walked and only resting when the pain got too much, Two Feathers slowly made it downwards, by late afternoon he could, for the first time, smell the salt of the ocean in the air, in his mind he well knew he still had a good two or three hours to go but he was now closer to his target, tonight was a full moon so he would be able to continue on until he was at the coast.
As the soft sound of wavelets came to his ears, Two Feathers felt the full burden of the long day, his shoulder was now just a numb throbbing and his leg felt hot and ached like nothing he had ever felt before, when he reached his camp site for the rest of the night he would have to look to both of them again, the slight glint of water through the thinning trees gave him a last burst of energy.
At last his feet hit the black sand on the edge of the trees, with almost a sob of relief he slid the heavy bundle from his aching shoulders and slid down to sit on the soft ground under the tall tree, he had made it this far, he could make it through the next two days back to his home but, first he had to attend to his wounds then feed on one of the last two pieces of meat, he thought about making a fire but decided the night was warm enough to get by, besides he did not think he could get back on his feet to search for wood.
Two Feathers thought he had only been asleep for a short time when something disturbed him, it was the sound of angry voices down on the beach, where he lay he was well covered and even with the bright moonlight, he would be hard to see as long as he stayed still and made no sounds.
The voices sounded strange to his ears, it was a language he had never heard before, that and the obvious anger in some of them made him keep hidden, laying fully on his stomach to cut down any silhouette, it also gave him a good sight through the undergrowth, on the beach below him he saw a mass of men being landed on the beach, watching over them were a number of foreign looking and sounding men with weapons, the larger mass were all bound by the hands and seemed pretty dejected as they were pushed forward onto the beach from the large barge that had its landing doors open, Two Feathers could plainly see many more men inside the body of the barge.
For over an hour, Two Feathers watched this strange event, what did it mean he had no idea, perhaps he would tell someone back at the village when he got home, his Medicine Elder would know what too do, Two Feathers stayed as quiet as a field mouse as the men continued to be unloaded.
It was early morning, about four hours before sunrise, when he heard another large barge approaching the beach, this one was even larger than the first one, it gently nudged onto the beach and a new set of men started to push the captives onto it, an hour before dawn and the beach was clear, two Feathers could hear the deep throb of the barge engines disappearing into the early morning darkness, he turned over and went back to sleep, he would need to be strong for the next two days travel.
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Michael Strong was happy to get the call that told him five hundred food had been picked up off the deserted beach just south of the Canadian border, he would now have enough to keep his men fed for a short time, he had been promised more at five day intervals, at least that part of the plan was working, his continual defeats at the Vaga houses did not make him happy and now he had two strange meetings to attend, he called his leaders in and told them the men would not have to do any raids until he returned in a couple of days, they could do with the rest, his own new bloods could use the time to train while he was gone.
Michael sat on the empty bench waiting for the mysterious wolf to make himself known, the small park was unlit and, as far as he could tell, totally safe, his nose quickly picked up the smell of wolf as his eyes turned to his left, coming towards him he saw not one, but three wolves, their aura clear and distinct in the night.
The largest stopped two of the wolves from going closer and set towards Michael alone, the man was large and powerful looking, as he got close to Michael he gave the vampire something resembling a smile which could also have been a sneer, with a nod from Michael, the large man sat at the far end of the bench.
"Well, wolf, I'm here, what do you want?"
"It's not what I want Vamp, it's what I can do for you, that is if it's worth my while."
"So?"
"I know you're trying to kick that Prince out and take over."
"What makes you think that?"
"Firstly the fact that you're sitting here with me now, secondly, I've been having you watched since the first time you took a boy for a new blood."
"How could you know that?"
"One of my cubs was going to feed on the boy then you got too him first, my cub decided to follow you at a distance, not hard to do once he had your scent and the blood of the three boys you had led him straight to your nice cosy little silo, from there it was only a matter of waiting and watching."
"So where do we go from here?"
"I know you are not having much joy with the Vaga houses, you need some better fighters, I've got them, not here but it will only take a few days to get them all here, they're the meanest pack of wolves you never want to come across."
"So what do you want for this, ahh, favour?"
"California."
"That could cause a problem; I have had to promise that part to some others."
"What, them chinks, shit Vamp, we'll soon get rid of them when the Prince is out of the way, so we got a deal or am I wasting my time?"
"How many men are you talking about?"
"Four to five hundred of the meanest wolves in this land, all we want is a bit more land, where we are now is getting to crowded and we thought a bit of sun would be nice for a change."
"Fair enough, if you can get me some real fighters you have a deal, by the way, how did you stay out of the Princes notice, five hundred wolves can't be that easy to hide?"
"Ha, even that fancy pants Prince doesn't come into the Adirondacks without us knowing about it, we got numbers hidden up there that could make your eyes water, so just a hint, don't try to cross us, you give us what we want and you get what you want, deal?"
"Deal."
Michael watched as the large man got up and disappeared into the dark with his two friends, Michael suddenly realised he did not even know the wolfs name, still the wolf seemed to know where he lived so he would just have to wait and see if they turned up, if it was for real then he would have another chance at fulfilling his plan.
Michael walked away from the park and towards where he had hired a jet to take him down to Mexico for his next and probably most dangerous meeting, he should be able to make it to the Rialto before sunup if all went well.
The Rialto Hotel in Mexico City was well known by many foreign wealthy although most did not know of its two special upper floors, this Hotel had long been under the ownership of Vampires although it was run by very human managers who were well versed in what, and who the upper floors were reserved for.
Michael settled into his suite with little more than half an hour to spare, as the lethargy overcame him he suddenly missed his little helpers, he would have to correct that when he finally returned home, that is, if he was able to leave here in one piece after the next nights meeting.
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Two Feathers awoke to find his leg throbbing, with a light touch of his hand he felt the heat coming from his thigh, somehow he had got an infection, if he wanted to make it home he would have to attended to it immediately, by the height of the sun he guessed it was mid morning, he had lost nearly half a days travel already.
Two Feathers looked up to check that his bear skin was still safe on the broken tree branch and out of reach of any vermin, he then planted his spear next to the tree and began to carefully remove the wide and now stiff piece of leather from his injured leg, just the sight of the large blue flies and the slightly rotten smell coming from his leg told him he had better hurry.
The last few inches of the make shift bandage were the worst, he gritted his teeth in a grimace as he pulled it free and saw the mass of smelly moss underneath, first he would have to bath it clean and then find some herbs and leaves to make a new poultice, the leather bandage was now no use as it carried infection, he threw it to the side and rose unsteadily to his feet, with a hopping limp he made his way down to the sea, the strong salt water was the best thing to clean it with.
Two Feathers limped into the calm waters, the sharp sting of the salt water brought tears to his eyes as it rose up his thigh, gritting his teeth once again, he slowly sat down and began to clean the three long wounds as best he could, letting the salt water do its job, when he was sure he had cleaned out the three gouges as well as he could, Two Feathers rose once again and made his ungainly way into the forest.
It took another twenty minutes before he had found all he needed then, sitting down he began to grind the herbs and leaves into a thick paste between two stones, once this was done he lathed it on thickly and covered the wound with a layer of fresh mud mixed with moss, with luck the mud would draw out any infection still inside as it dried, using some wide leaves he covered the wound and bound them in place with more thongs from his cut up leggings.
Two Feathers now sat back under the tree that he had slept under, he had water and a little food left, he decided to stay where he was for the next night and start home on the following day, it would give the new poultice time to work and his body a chance to gain a little strength, pulling dry wood closer, he leant back and dozed until the last rays of the sun hit his eyes, he then lit a small fire and ate half of his bear meat and drank a little water, afterwards he slid down and tried to get as much sleep as he could.
As the sun rose the next morning, the small figure of Two Feathers could be seen already on the march as he limped his way towards home, the large black bear skin held high on his shoulders like some extra hump, his spear used to aid his unsteady steps, stopping only to drink from the occasional fresh water stream that crossed his path as it spilled into the sea, Two Feathers pushed on with gritted teeth and traces of pain written on his young face.
Even after the sun sank into the horizon, Two Feathers pushed onward, the brightness of the moon giving him enough light to see by, the flat smoothness of the hard packed sand made it a little easier for walking, near midnight, Two Feathers called it a day, finding a dry place back off the beach, he lit
a small fire and finished the last of his meat, his water bottle he had topped off at each stream he crossed, as long as he had fresh water he could easily get through the next day without food.
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Thomas Bent Spear was now an old man, he had trained all his life as a Medicine Elder, he was well respected in the village and around the nearby town, his abilities were well known of by his people and even some white folk, this night he had sat for a long time doing his normal spirit work as he did every night, the time was coming when many tribes would gather for the big Vision Quest it was the highlight of any warriors year.
Thomas had dozed off, as he was wont to do as he grew older, during his short nap, his mind filled with a vision, outwardly there was no change in Thomas as he slept, inwardly he was wide awake as the spirits talked to him, in the mists Thomas could see what looked like a buffalo man, he was a young warrior with a spear and a large hump on his back just like a buffalo, he was walking along a stretch of black sand, behind the figure rose a giant bear as though it was going to pounce on the smaller warrior.
Circling above the solitary figure was a larger than life Eagle, Thomas then saw that the footsteps of the small warrior were tainted with bright red blood, as the vision faded, Thomas opened his eyes, he had much to think on, the vision was of the now and not of the past, in the morning he would have to go for a walk along the beach towards the far off northern forests, he was sure that that was where he would find his answers.
It was late afternoon and two Feathers was now stumbling along, his back and shoulders ached with the weight of the skin, his leg throbbed in pain as he placed one foot in front of the other, his eyes were downcast and each step was now like fire in his bones, he knew he had to be close but how close he had no idea, nothing around him seemed familiar as it should be if he was close to home.
Somewhere in the back of his tired mind, Two Feathers heard a sound, it was almost like the voice of an old man calling out, the young warrior lifted his tired head and looked up the beach, coming towards him was an old man holding a long stick that was used to help him walk, Two Feathers tried to call out but his throat was too dry, the last few hours he had pushed himself beyond his abilities to try to make it home, his hungry belly was also complaining at the lack of food for such strenuous exercise.
With a half sob, Two Feathers fell forward onto the black sand, he was beaten, he had not made it home and his victory over the bear would never be known, with a soft breath and, for the second time in a few days, two Feathers began to sing his death song, he had done all he could do.
Thomas had been slowly wandering along, he did not know what for or why he was here only that the vision had said to move north, it was during the afternoon he saw in the distance, a figure resembling a small thin buffalo but walking on two legs, Thomas quickened his steps, as he got closer he called out only too see the small figure with a hump on his back fall forward onto the sand, Thomas hurried his steps, within minutes he was standing over the young teen, the large rolled bear skin on the boys shoulders now explained the hump, one glance at the blood on the boys leg told Thomas he had better hurry if he was going to save the boy.
Thomas quickly understood the smell around the boys leg, it was infected, he looked around until he saw a couple of small saplings on the edge of the forest, using the boys new sharp knife, he cut two of them and formed a travois, placing the boy and his skin on the improvised travois he lifted the ends onto his old shoulders and began to make as fast a pace as he could towards his home, it would be close to dark before he got home but at least the boy would be safe and he could soon fix what ailed the boy, it was what he did.
TBC.
Artcart65@vodafone.co.nz