Chapter 3: 2 Years After the Sling
Medicine Woman was content.
The Tribe was two ir three days away from the Sea People at the southern terminus of their annual migration.
She looked forward to seeing two cousins and their children, as well as many freinds. She felt she knew everyone in that village. They were always there, in the same place. Medicine Woman wondered what that would be like.
The Sea People took most of their food from the ocean. The Wolf People traded with them for nets, salt, dried fish, seashells (for jewelry and more utilitarian purposes), seaweed (as a seemingly rot-proof food), and many other things the Wolf People needed.
The Wolf People would stay with the Sea People for at least a moon (month) before migrating back to the north.
Over that time, young men and women would fall in love, and ultimately some of the Wolf People would remain here, while some of the Ocean People would come back north with the Wolf People.
Medicine Woman's month-old daughter was asleep, and safe.
Men were out hunting. Other women were out gathering fungus, tubers, roots, berries, fruits, vegetables, and herbs, as well as setting and harvesting snares and traps.
Medicine Woman had been abroad like them often until late in her pregnancy. First and foremost, she'd sought new plants, fungi, etc. for medicines and poultices, but of course she had also helped collect food for the tribe.
But Medicine Woman had also been one of the Protectors, as she was as good as some of the men with the sling and the spear, and (thanks to Sees More) had a hand-weapon which multiplied her strength.
Foraging women usually had at least one dog and one warrior in escort, but every woman carried a sling, stones, and a knife, and were trained to use them...including the children who sometimes went with them.
Now, Medicine Woman remained inside "the perimeter" with her daughter and the other mothers.
The mothers shared. The children wandered from one to another freely, and most of the women welcomed, cared for, and taught the other children, as well as their own.
Thus, the women were free to forage, or simply to wander--within reason, and the children learned from, and were infuenced by, many old and young women.
Some mothers ordered their children to avoid certain other women, of course, and took care to ask their children what they had been told or taught, and made sure to correct what they felt was wrong.
Medicine Woman felt that women were more combative than men were---only on a deeper and more complex level (women obviously had to be smarter than men).
Boys or men would fight. One would lose. They would embrace, and more often than not become good freinds.
Girls and women couldn't be like that. They had to think about the children they would bear, their status, security, and future. A male could leave a baby in a woman's belly and walk away.
Medicine Woman felt fortunate to have Goes Alone as her mate, even though he was absent more often than he was with her.
Goes Alone was the Chief Scout, the brother of Sees More (who had invented the spear-thrower, the sling, and tamed the wolves), and was all but worshipped.
Some of the other women fixated on Spinner, Sees More, Finds Tracks, or Log-Pusher because they had the most power in the Tribe, but Medicine Woman loved Goes Alone, and considered these other females shallow, and perhaps even stupid.
Finds Tracks had two wives, Log Pusher had three...
Spinner had a wife...these females were willing to share with other wives.
Medicine Woman understood how wives felt like sisters with other wives of the same man, but couldn't bear the thought of Goes Alone having sex with any other woman.
"You're just like a man!", her sister had told her. "They don't care where they stick it! They only care if anybody else gets in there!"
Medicine Woman didn't care. Goes Alone had promised not to mate with other women (as she had promised him), and she was happy.
She watched a young boy bringing in a fish he had caught, and his partner wading into the shallows to secure the fish.
This boy, like all of them, was using a fishing line of her own design, and she was pleased to see how well it had worked so far.
The line was made of twice-braided human hair (nine hairs thick).
Combs had long been carved from wood, but Medicine Woman had invented brushes.
She had had strips carved around the circumferance of fallen trees, and these in turn chiseled out in long strips.
These strips were then boiled in water, then pressed flat, while all but the lowest part of the strips were pounded by wooden mallets tp separate the sodden fibers.
After drying, most of the now stiff fibers were cut away, and the result was a hair brush, rather than a crude comb.
More importantly, the women (and men) were happy to bring her all the hair collected, so she could weave it into fishing line.
She had to bleach the hair, so the fish couldn't see it easily, but she'd found a way to do this, and make the individual hairs more flexible at the same time.
The fisherman's helper tossed the fish onto the shore.
That was important. The fishing line was strong when the stress was distributed over a long line, but a strong fish (or a hard yank by the fisherman) could break it once the length was shorter.
Sees More had offered her some complex explanation for this, but to her it was simply obvious.
Medicine Woman was experimenting with spiderwebs and caterpillars that wove cuccoons, looking for more "stretchy" fishing line, but this was a work in progress.
Sees More had discovered two substances embedded in rock which could be twisted, were impervious to water, and (in thin strips) would melt and re-form in fire.
He was carving something in a block of wood now, saying that he planned to melt some of the material and pour it in...once he figured out how to do that.
"Spinner!", a hoarse young voice made her (and everyone else) stand up.
"We've found the enemy!"
The Previous Afternoon:
Stalker crouched and growled, low in his throat. The three scouts near him hid themselves as well as they could.
Goes Alone gripped the soft flesh the back of Stalker's neck hard, and shook; be quiet.
Stalker understood. Only a few of the dogs could be trusted not to lunge or bark at some stranger, and Stalker was one of these.
Goes Alone and his subordinates were frozen--only their eyes moving--searching for what Stalker had sensed.
Goes Alone felt the rumble of a stifled growl as he gripped the dog's ruff hard, and shook it again (be quiet!).
Soon, the three scouts saw what the dog had sensed (despite being upwind.)
Three men, on the other side of the shallow river, walking towards the Sea People's village.
This wasn't a surprise. The Sea People were a large tribe, and some hunters came days inland...but these men were not from that Tribe, and they seemed wary, unfamiliar with the land, and alert.
Scouts. Goes Alone glanced at Light Foot, who was nearly his own age. The other nodded.
"What?" 15 year old training scout, Sees Far, whispered.
"The wooden rods belted to the older ones' waists, and the way they dress. These are the Enemy."
Sees Far stifled his visceral reaction, and Goes Alone stifled a smile as he saw it.
"The younger one", Light Foot told Sees Far, "is a slave. The wooden rods are for beating him, and we assume a symbol of their authority. They're training him. He may eventually carry one of those rods."
"That's..." Sees Far couldn't find the words, so instead asked "So we kill the masters, and free him?"
The three were almost out of sight now, but the scouts were in no hurry. Goes Alone held up a hand, closing his eyes. Light Foot grinned at the confused Sees Far. Goes Alone occasionally did this, when confronted with a complex problem.
After what seemed to Sees Far like an eternity, Goes Alone opened his eyes and met those of Light Foot:
"I think one of us should follow these three. This valley will lead them to the village. He should remain concealed. They will spy on the village to count the fighting men and see their weapons, then return to their main encampment to report.
"After they are gone--"
"What if they leave one, or even two, to watch the village?" Light Foot interrupted. Goes Alone nodded, thinking again.
"Kill the one, or sneak in to get help if it's two. Try to give the slave a chance, but make sure niether escapes."
Light Foot nodded. He already knew that he would be the one to follow the enemy to the village.
"Tell the Sea People what is coming for them. They should evacuate their vulnerable people to those small islands offshore, or to a better place, if they know of one.
"They need to use their boats, so there are no tracks to follow, and stay hidden.
"When their scouts return and tell the Enemy about the village, they'll send most of their warriors to take it. The Sea People are many and strong, and the Enemy will need as many as they have.
"Light Foot: this is important: you must bring all the warriors from that village you can back to this place, and hide your trail. Some of them will argue. Some will want to just wait until the danger is past, as if this is one of their storms."
"You sound like your brother now", Light Foot grinned. "But you're right."
"Tell them this: We are here to save them now, but these monsters will be back, and in greater strength. We can stop them, forever, here and now. And call them selfish cowards, if you must shame them into it."
"Now you sound like Spinner!"
"I will backtrack these three to their main camp, and study them--then return to this place, where the Sea Warriors and our own will come together."
Goes Alone put a hand on Sees Far's shoulder, looking into the boy's eyes:
"You will get back to our people as fast as you can. Tell them all that you just heard, and also this:
"We should attack the Enemy's encampment while their warriors are trying to take the empty village, and then ambush their warriors as they return from there. Repeat that back to me."
Sees Far did. Goes Alone slapped his shoulder, nodding. "Go. Now."
Light Foot and Goes Alone looked at eachother, somber. Each seemed about to speak, several times...but at last, they just nodded to eachother, and went off in opposite directions...
"...said to tell you we should attack their main camp after their warriors have left for the village, then ambush the warriors as they return", Sees Far concluded.
Medicine Woman and Discovers Things now stood with the leaders, the former's heart pounding. Goes Alone was stalking the Enemy!
Sees More nodded with a grim smile. "My little brother was always sneaky like that."
"It's the best plan." Log Pusher agreed.
Nodding, Spinner paused for a long moment, feeling the eyes of the others on him.
"How far from the Sea People were those scouts, at a walk?" he asked Sees Far.
"It was at the point where we always turn into the river valley that leads there. One day...maybe less, if they hurry."
"We're a half day from that turn", Finds Tracks commented, "if we hurry."
"No need. Their warriors can't get back there for two days, once they pass the turn, and we want to avoid them as they pass anyway."
Spinner stood on a rock to elevate himself, and spoke to everyone:
"All the healthy boys over fifteen years will collect their weapons. Gather up extra throwing spears. Bring as much trail food as you can.
"We will leave--" Medicine Woman raised her hand, respectfully. "Yes?"
"May I suggest that you leave soon. I doubt that anyone is going to get much sleep tonight anyway, and the journey to the turn will let you settle in and..."
"Get bored enough to sleep while we wait?" Finds Tracks asked with a grin.
"Yes.", Spinner said, gratefully. "We will leave as soon as everyone is ready, and take our time.
"We can only take the dogs that know not to make noise or attack prematurely. The rest will guard this camp.
"The old men will stay, to oversee the defense of this camp. They must accept this. I will listen to those who feel unfairly excluded."
"What about the girls?" a girl Discovers Things' age demanded. Her mother dragged her away from many angry glares. Discovers Things had never liked that girl. She seemed to want to be a man.
Discovers Things spoke up: "We will protect our children and this camp while our warriors are killing the Enemy!" Many women expressed agreement.
"Yes!", Spinner nodded, once again grateful. "The camp must move across the stream and against that ridge", he pointed, and continued to give instructions.
Sees More was glad to see his best freind had grown into such a wise and decisive leader. All who heard him were inspired. Spinner was a born war chief.
Not long after, the encampment had been moved to a less visible, and more defensible, position, and 32 warriors were on their way to "the turn", the Enemy, and war.
The Tribe was two ir three days away from the Sea People at the southern terminus of their annual migration.
She looked forward to seeing two cousins and their children, as well as many freinds. She felt she knew everyone in that village. They were always there, in the same place. Medicine Woman wondered what that would be like.
The Sea People took most of their food from the ocean. The Wolf People traded with them for nets, salt, dried fish, seashells (for jewelry and more utilitarian purposes), seaweed (as a seemingly rot-proof food), and many other things the Wolf People needed.
The Wolf People would stay with the Sea People for at least a moon (month) before migrating back to the north.
Over that time, young men and women would fall in love, and ultimately some of the Wolf People would remain here, while some of the Ocean People would come back north with the Wolf People.
Medicine Woman's month-old daughter was asleep, and safe.
Men were out hunting. Other women were out gathering fungus, tubers, roots, berries, fruits, vegetables, and herbs, as well as setting and harvesting snares and traps.
Medicine Woman had been abroad like them often until late in her pregnancy. First and foremost, she'd sought new plants, fungi, etc. for medicines and poultices, but of course she had also helped collect food for the tribe.
But Medicine Woman had also been one of the Protectors, as she was as good as some of the men with the sling and the spear, and (thanks to Sees More) had a hand-weapon which multiplied her strength.
Foraging women usually had at least one dog and one warrior in escort, but every woman carried a sling, stones, and a knife, and were trained to use them...including the children who sometimes went with them.
Now, Medicine Woman remained inside "the perimeter" with her daughter and the other mothers.
The mothers shared. The children wandered from one to another freely, and most of the women welcomed, cared for, and taught the other children, as well as their own.
Thus, the women were free to forage, or simply to wander--within reason, and the children learned from, and were infuenced by, many old and young women.
Some mothers ordered their children to avoid certain other women, of course, and took care to ask their children what they had been told or taught, and made sure to correct what they felt was wrong.
Medicine Woman felt that women were more combative than men were---only on a deeper and more complex level (women obviously had to be smarter than men).
Boys or men would fight. One would lose. They would embrace, and more often than not become good freinds.
Girls and women couldn't be like that. They had to think about the children they would bear, their status, security, and future. A male could leave a baby in a woman's belly and walk away.
Medicine Woman felt fortunate to have Goes Alone as her mate, even though he was absent more often than he was with her.
Goes Alone was the Chief Scout, the brother of Sees More (who had invented the spear-thrower, the sling, and tamed the wolves), and was all but worshipped.
Some of the other women fixated on Spinner, Sees More, Finds Tracks, or Log-Pusher because they had the most power in the Tribe, but Medicine Woman loved Goes Alone, and considered these other females shallow, and perhaps even stupid.
Finds Tracks had two wives, Log Pusher had three...
Spinner had a wife...these females were willing to share with other wives.
Medicine Woman understood how wives felt like sisters with other wives of the same man, but couldn't bear the thought of Goes Alone having sex with any other woman.
"You're just like a man!", her sister had told her. "They don't care where they stick it! They only care if anybody else gets in there!"
Medicine Woman didn't care. Goes Alone had promised not to mate with other women (as she had promised him), and she was happy.
She watched a young boy bringing in a fish he had caught, and his partner wading into the shallows to secure the fish.
This boy, like all of them, was using a fishing line of her own design, and she was pleased to see how well it had worked so far.
The line was made of twice-braided human hair (nine hairs thick).
Combs had long been carved from wood, but Medicine Woman had invented brushes.
She had had strips carved around the circumferance of fallen trees, and these in turn chiseled out in long strips.
These strips were then boiled in water, then pressed flat, while all but the lowest part of the strips were pounded by wooden mallets tp separate the sodden fibers.
After drying, most of the now stiff fibers were cut away, and the result was a hair brush, rather than a crude comb.
More importantly, the women (and men) were happy to bring her all the hair collected, so she could weave it into fishing line.
She had to bleach the hair, so the fish couldn't see it easily, but she'd found a way to do this, and make the individual hairs more flexible at the same time.
The fisherman's helper tossed the fish onto the shore.
That was important. The fishing line was strong when the stress was distributed over a long line, but a strong fish (or a hard yank by the fisherman) could break it once the length was shorter.
Sees More had offered her some complex explanation for this, but to her it was simply obvious.
Medicine Woman was experimenting with spiderwebs and caterpillars that wove cuccoons, looking for more "stretchy" fishing line, but this was a work in progress.
Sees More had discovered two substances embedded in rock which could be twisted, were impervious to water, and (in thin strips) would melt and re-form in fire.
He was carving something in a block of wood now, saying that he planned to melt some of the material and pour it in...once he figured out how to do that.
"Spinner!", a hoarse young voice made her (and everyone else) stand up.
"We've found the enemy!"
The Previous Afternoon:
Stalker crouched and growled, low in his throat. The three scouts near him hid themselves as well as they could.
Goes Alone gripped the soft flesh the back of Stalker's neck hard, and shook; be quiet.
Stalker understood. Only a few of the dogs could be trusted not to lunge or bark at some stranger, and Stalker was one of these.
Goes Alone and his subordinates were frozen--only their eyes moving--searching for what Stalker had sensed.
Goes Alone felt the rumble of a stifled growl as he gripped the dog's ruff hard, and shook it again (be quiet!).
Soon, the three scouts saw what the dog had sensed (despite being upwind.)
Three men, on the other side of the shallow river, walking towards the Sea People's village.
This wasn't a surprise. The Sea People were a large tribe, and some hunters came days inland...but these men were not from that Tribe, and they seemed wary, unfamiliar with the land, and alert.
Scouts. Goes Alone glanced at Light Foot, who was nearly his own age. The other nodded.
"What?" 15 year old training scout, Sees Far, whispered.
"The wooden rods belted to the older ones' waists, and the way they dress. These are the Enemy."
Sees Far stifled his visceral reaction, and Goes Alone stifled a smile as he saw it.
"The younger one", Light Foot told Sees Far, "is a slave. The wooden rods are for beating him, and we assume a symbol of their authority. They're training him. He may eventually carry one of those rods."
"That's..." Sees Far couldn't find the words, so instead asked "So we kill the masters, and free him?"
The three were almost out of sight now, but the scouts were in no hurry. Goes Alone held up a hand, closing his eyes. Light Foot grinned at the confused Sees Far. Goes Alone occasionally did this, when confronted with a complex problem.
After what seemed to Sees Far like an eternity, Goes Alone opened his eyes and met those of Light Foot:
"I think one of us should follow these three. This valley will lead them to the village. He should remain concealed. They will spy on the village to count the fighting men and see their weapons, then return to their main encampment to report.
"After they are gone--"
"What if they leave one, or even two, to watch the village?" Light Foot interrupted. Goes Alone nodded, thinking again.
"Kill the one, or sneak in to get help if it's two. Try to give the slave a chance, but make sure niether escapes."
Light Foot nodded. He already knew that he would be the one to follow the enemy to the village.
"Tell the Sea People what is coming for them. They should evacuate their vulnerable people to those small islands offshore, or to a better place, if they know of one.
"They need to use their boats, so there are no tracks to follow, and stay hidden.
"When their scouts return and tell the Enemy about the village, they'll send most of their warriors to take it. The Sea People are many and strong, and the Enemy will need as many as they have.
"Light Foot: this is important: you must bring all the warriors from that village you can back to this place, and hide your trail. Some of them will argue. Some will want to just wait until the danger is past, as if this is one of their storms."
"You sound like your brother now", Light Foot grinned. "But you're right."
"Tell them this: We are here to save them now, but these monsters will be back, and in greater strength. We can stop them, forever, here and now. And call them selfish cowards, if you must shame them into it."
"Now you sound like Spinner!"
"I will backtrack these three to their main camp, and study them--then return to this place, where the Sea Warriors and our own will come together."
Goes Alone put a hand on Sees Far's shoulder, looking into the boy's eyes:
"You will get back to our people as fast as you can. Tell them all that you just heard, and also this:
"We should attack the Enemy's encampment while their warriors are trying to take the empty village, and then ambush their warriors as they return from there. Repeat that back to me."
Sees Far did. Goes Alone slapped his shoulder, nodding. "Go. Now."
Light Foot and Goes Alone looked at eachother, somber. Each seemed about to speak, several times...but at last, they just nodded to eachother, and went off in opposite directions...
"...said to tell you we should attack their main camp after their warriors have left for the village, then ambush the warriors as they return", Sees Far concluded.
Medicine Woman and Discovers Things now stood with the leaders, the former's heart pounding. Goes Alone was stalking the Enemy!
Sees More nodded with a grim smile. "My little brother was always sneaky like that."
"It's the best plan." Log Pusher agreed.
Nodding, Spinner paused for a long moment, feeling the eyes of the others on him.
"How far from the Sea People were those scouts, at a walk?" he asked Sees Far.
"It was at the point where we always turn into the river valley that leads there. One day...maybe less, if they hurry."
"We're a half day from that turn", Finds Tracks commented, "if we hurry."
"No need. Their warriors can't get back there for two days, once they pass the turn, and we want to avoid them as they pass anyway."
Spinner stood on a rock to elevate himself, and spoke to everyone:
"All the healthy boys over fifteen years will collect their weapons. Gather up extra throwing spears. Bring as much trail food as you can.
"We will leave--" Medicine Woman raised her hand, respectfully. "Yes?"
"May I suggest that you leave soon. I doubt that anyone is going to get much sleep tonight anyway, and the journey to the turn will let you settle in and..."
"Get bored enough to sleep while we wait?" Finds Tracks asked with a grin.
"Yes.", Spinner said, gratefully. "We will leave as soon as everyone is ready, and take our time.
"We can only take the dogs that know not to make noise or attack prematurely. The rest will guard this camp.
"The old men will stay, to oversee the defense of this camp. They must accept this. I will listen to those who feel unfairly excluded."
"What about the girls?" a girl Discovers Things' age demanded. Her mother dragged her away from many angry glares. Discovers Things had never liked that girl. She seemed to want to be a man.
Discovers Things spoke up: "We will protect our children and this camp while our warriors are killing the Enemy!" Many women expressed agreement.
"Yes!", Spinner nodded, once again grateful. "The camp must move across the stream and against that ridge", he pointed, and continued to give instructions.
Sees More was glad to see his best freind had grown into such a wise and decisive leader. All who heard him were inspired. Spinner was a born war chief.
Not long after, the encampment had been moved to a less visible, and more defensible, position, and 32 warriors were on their way to "the turn", the Enemy, and war.
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