Newsgroups: alt.pub.dragons-inn From: aaron@space.ualberta.ca (Alfvaen) Subject: Maleiu: [fire] to Bakr: A Story, Part 2 Message-ID: <1992Jun8.203616.17626@kakwa.ucs.ualberta.ca> Date: Mon, 8 Jun 1992 20:36:16 GMT Maleiu sips his milk and continues. "I was born in the Month of the Panther. We have many months, named for various animals. In many of your calendars that I have seen, your cycle of months is the same length as the cycle of the seasons. Unfortunately, my ancestors were not that simplistic." He smiles ruefully. "Our cycle is twenty-one months. It was originally the period of time when, on our wanderings, we would make a cycle of the Savannah. At the end of a cycle we would gather at Loamu Rock. The animals of the months would correspond to creatures prevalent in the terrain we travelled. In the Month of the Panther, for instance, we would be on the edge of the southern forest, where the Panther lurks. Now that our villages are more stationary, the months have less significance this way. "By tradition, though, the month of birth has another meaning for those who wish to become hunters. You must slay one or more of your birth-month creatures to become a hunter. You are given a set time wherein you may hunt. For one born in the Month of the Rabbit, for instance, you must slay a dozen rabbits in a day. For the Month of the Asp, you must slay only two. And for the Month of the Panther, you must slay only one." He smiles again. "There are not many hunters from the Month of the Panther, and I resolved when quite young to be one. My father had also been born that Month, and he had decided to become an artisan instead. He made decorative clothing, and he was one of the finest of all our people. But I resolved that there would be tales told of Maleiu, the great Panther-hunter. "Most of our people have dark hair and eyes, like I do. But there were some of the noble race among our ancestors. And out of every generation, some are born with one or more of their characteristics--lighter hair or eye colour, or a different set of facial features. They are our standard of beauty. And out of every generation, a very few are born with the pure white hair and eyes of the noble race. They are the holy people. "Loiu is the chief of the Nariawah. His daughter, Lyono, was born with the marks of a holy women. She was born the same day as I. And when I first saw her, I fell in love with her. "But the holy women are different from others. They take no spouse. Any may lay with them, without guilt, so that their holiness may continue to be spread among the tribes. I did not want that. I wanted Lyono to be mine, and mine alone. And I know she loved me, as well. But her father, the chief, did not approve of me. "When I came of age, I was allowed to make my hunter-choice. I caused a stir by accepting. Most Panthers did not. Fewer still of those returned alive. Loiu breathed a sigh of relief. Surely this young would-be hunter would meet his end in the forest, and the trouble would be over. He was outraged when I returned, with a large panther slung across my shoulder. He was even more outraged to learn about the one I had had to leave because I could not carry both." Maleiu smiles at the memory. "There is an ancient tradition of our tribes, that of the walkabout. When a youth has proved himself worthy of adulthood, as I had, the chief may require of him a quest. Normally this is done only in times when the tribe or the whole people are in great need. So all were shocked when Loiu required it of me. "'There are other peoples come into our world,' he said. 'The priests that are here seem to wish us well, but what of others? I have heard tales that others of our race are taken in great quantities as slaves by the northerners. I have heard that their lands are fraught with war, and that they will wish to bring this curse upon us as well. And I think that this is a time when we should wish to protect our culture. "'You all know the ancient tale of the lost city of Aradneh. There is a prophecy, that states that he who has walked all the shores of the world will return to us the ancient glories of our past, and the city of Aradneh will rise again. Well, this young warrior has proved himself a great hunter. I hereby call upon him to go walkabout, and walk all the shores of the world, so that he may return our glory to us.' "His proclamation caused a great stir. Lyono fell at his feet weeping, imploring him not to send me. The elder of the tribe said that no good would come of this, even should the prophecy be fulfilled. But Loiu cared for none of this. As far as he was concerned, I was gone from his life forever. "That night, I lay with Lyono in farewell, and it was bittersweet with sorrow. Then I took all that I would carry from my father's house. I found a new tunic, embroidered by my father with two panthers. That tunic is now lost, undoubtedly sold in some bazaar as a savage curiosity. I left the village of Nariawah, never to return until I completed my quest. "And here I am, on another shore. And I no longer know whether I wish to finish my quest or not. But it is a purpose I have followed for years now. How can I stop now?" He finished his cup, and signals Serene for another. "So what say you, Bakr? Is that tale worth a few cups of goat's milk?" -- ---Alfvaen(a.k.a. Aaron V. Humphrey) Canadian Network For Space Research, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Her hair spilled out like rootbeer... Current Album--Eurythmics:Touch