FIRE-ON-THE-SKY
“The Valley at the Foot of the
Mountain has always been the home of our people. We have lived here since the
time before mankind called itself “man”. Our people hunted here, enjoyed the
hot pools of water which rise up out of the earth, bringing its healing
minerals. The lakes have always been filled with fish, and its valleys have
always given good soil for food and flax for linens. We have been here since
the time of the buffalo, and the cougar and bear are our friends. The valley
has always been fertile, and its rivers and swamps have always given its bounty
plentifully. Even in the time of the great civilization, this land was home to
few, but visited by many. The ground was visited, and tread upon, but with
great reverence. Indeed, this very building was a place of commerce and the
centre of the city’s wealth. Now, it belongs to the people, our ancient
longhouse, its windows tell the tales of our people and our work. But more, we
also have a great treasure, for the mountains have more than is above it, for
it also hides great wealth beneath it. We exist here in peace, friends to all
who pass through, and traders spend their winters here by our fires ,sharing
with us great wealth from afar, comfortable in the knowledge that we are
protected by our mountains, and our vigilance. Our cousins from the Bow Valley,
we welcome you, for we are the People of the Book. We share the same fire, we
share the same blood, and we share the same truths within us. I can see that
you are tired from your journey, and we give you shelter and warmth. Your
family hearth is here, and it calls you home to rest. We know by your numbers
that you travel from danger, and we offer you what we can to give you peace.
Ask and it is yours, dear cousin, and know that when you leave here, you leave
with more than what you came.”
Fire-On-The-Sky reached over and
grasped his cousin’s arms, and pulled him close into a brotherly hug, their
chests beating the same chorus.
“Now, let us eat my friend, and
tell me why it is that you have come home in such a hurry.
You haven’t visited in over 18
years, we were young men at our last meeting.”
Tall Man thought for a moment
before speaking further. “You know, my cousin, we have little in the way of
arms. We have chosen instead to live by the plough, and to trade sparingly with
our neighbors. Their way is not our way. We have grown, and our families are
fat with many successful harvests. We have saved seed enough for a decade, and
our cattle are healthy. We haven’t needed to learn the way of the sword, and
indeed, any traders and warriors who have joined with us have laid down their
weapons in exchange for the plough, enjoying our ways as peaceful men. Our
women are wise and fruitful. Indeed, we have a good, bountiful life.”
Tall Man paused and
Fire-On-The-Sky, asked, “If all is bountiful and your people are happy, why are
so many of them ventured here to our valley such a far ride down the old coach road?”
“Sadly, our blessing is also our
curse, for our neighbors to the East have taken an eye to our crops, to our
soil, and to our women.”
Tall Man related the story of
Dull Knife’s adventure, and finished
with, “Many of our people stayed behind, hidden in caverns under the earth,
resting there with our animals and our harvest. Those who could not travel, and
those who knew to tend the animals. They have been underground for a week, now,
but hidden. There is water and air enough for them, there lies the old city.
The ruins.”
Tall Man stopped for several
heartbeats, his face crushed under the weight of his people’s needs. “I am not
a man of war. I have never learned the sword dances, and we have urged our
people to the way of the book, not to the way of the war. We have chosen
instead a search for wisdom, where a man might be learned of letters and study
the thoughts of generations past, and speak to the generations to come. We have
been peaceful. Those we have traded with have sent an army to destroy us, and
to take what is ours. We left before we could get there. And…” Tall Man
stopped, his words choked off in his throat.
“And?” Urged Fire-On-The-Sky, his
hand resting lightly on Tall Man’s shoulder, “Go on, my friend.”
“And we left behind three cases
of poisoned whiskey for their warriors. We may have murdered them. I do not
know, but I suspect it. We have taken the way of assassination, and I fear that
in my anger I may have instead provoked the beast, shaking a hornets nest. I do
not think that they will stand by.” Tall Man’s body shook with his
sobbing.
Fire-On-The-Sky gently lifted Tall Man’s chin
in his hand, looked deep into his eyes, and said, “My cousin, murdering the man
who has come to kill you in your sleep is no shortcoming. You protected what is
yours. Be glad of it. Now, the time has come for the feast. Our bretheren are
laying the fires for the feast as we speak, let us look to our families and be
sure that they have all they need.
The two men walked out into the
late morning light, their discussion completed for the moment, the solution
still unspoken between them, but an understanding and the groundword laid
before them. Neither man would speak about what was to be done until time had
been given to think, and for the counsel to discuss possibilities. But for the
moment, the time to rest had come.