The Last Sundancer (27 page)

Kaichen’s eyes narrowed when all remained silent.  He knew that he could rely upon his instincts; he felt eyes upon him even now.   He continued to move forward though he was careful to keep his arms away from his body and his hands open.   When he passed through the towering rocks without feeling the
impact of an arrow as it plunged into his body he finally dared to breathe. 

He blinked and pulled the feather that adorned his hair forward, shading his eyes. He looked once more at the rocks around him and then he knew.  

Men waited there and the reason that he had not seen them immediately was because they were covered almost completely in the same color as the rocks.   One man stepped forward and Kaichen made out the flashing whites of his eyes and the dark centers therein. 

He waited. 

A large man moved forward with threatening steps.  His spear was raised and his white teeth were clenched together in a grimace known to warriors of the land.  He braced himself to throw his spear. 

A voice rang out, causing the man to lower his spear. 

“Shale lives in you.”

Kaichen closed his eyes for a moment as sweat beaded upon his forehead and traveled in rivulets down the side of his face.  It pained him to hear his father’s name, though the man had died well before Kaichen ever breathed his first breath. 

His mother had made Shale come alive for him, with her constant stories and whispered words that filtered into his dreams.  Like grains of sand they stuck to his skin and lived as he lived, day by day. 

He could not escape the words that were like forgotten memories anymore than he could escape the shell of his own body.  

Standing before him was a man that he had never seen before, but had always known through the stories given to him by his mother. 

“Kaichen.  You have returned to us.  You have finally come to take your rightful place
by our side.” Tamol walked forward proudly as he spoke to Kaichen but also for the benefit of his men. 

Kaichen was surprised
to see that Tamol was just as his mother had described.  He had thought that Tamol would have changed with the passage of time yet, the man walked with an easy stride that brought him to stand before Kaichen.  His back was not bowed by age or time.  Kaichen noticed that the stern plains of Tamol’s face did not shift into a welcoming smile and his eyes were cold as they appraised him. 

“I have come to you because you
once swore to stand beside my father.” Kaichen did not correct Tamol’s assumption that he had returned to join their band. 

He did not expect
Tamol to readily hand over the supplies and food that his mother’s people would need to survive.  If it had been as simple as asking for help, then his mother could have sent someone else with her request. 

Kaichen was not under the impression that the relationship between his mother and
the outlying bands had changed. 

“You are welcome amongst my band.  It is time that you took your rightful place
with us.  We welcome you.” Tamol clasped Kaichen’s shoulder noting the strength in the younger man and the way that he stood before him with the same pride and bearing of his father. 

Kaichen kept his eyes upon
Tamol as he turned to address his men.  “Remain here and keep watch.”

Tamol
nodded to himself as his men agreed to his request.

Kaichen did not move.  He did not doubt that he stood before a powerful man that could also become a formidable enemy, if he was not already of that inclination.

“You must tell me of your time with Azin.  Your mother was certain that he would ease the scars brought about by your twice cursed grandfather.”
Tamol did not say how he had come to learn that Kaichen had been sent to the mesas to live with Azin.  He spoke of Kaichen’s deepest pain as if it were nothing of great interest. 

Kaichen allowed himself a moment to truly look at
the man that was said to be his father’s closest friend.  Most of the dye used to coat his skin had been washed off by two women that appeared eager to do Tamol’s bidding. 

The women cast furtive glances at Kaichen, but they did not offe
r food or water to him until Tamol inclined his head.  At first glance, Tamol’s face was the face of a young man, though the man was at least twenty seasons his senior.  

When Kaichen looked
closely, he could see crow’s feet at the corners of Tamol’s eyes.  He knew at a glance that the markings did not come from laughter which eased the heart, but from the narrowing of one’s eyes to block the sun.  His eyes were dark like the night before the moon rises and his face was solid and strong though weathered.  Tamol held his chin at a proud angle and his stance was that of a man at ease with his physical strength and stamina. 

“Azin is a teacher of that which must be taught.” Kaichen did not give in to
Tamol’s carefully worded inquiry. 

Tamol
invited him to boast or lay claim to Azin’s teachings and skill.  Kaichen knew that wise men remained silent until speech was necessary.   Boasting was something that fools did often to their own detriment.  How many times had Azin told him to hold his tongue? 

Silence was a
hunter’s most treasured weapon. It was more powerful than a well-aimed arrow, more lethal than a well thrown knife.   Kaichen was a hunter of unparalleled skill and this he would remain. 

Tamol
slurped noisily from his clay bowl as he filled his belly with food.   When he was finished one of the women returned and refilled his bowl.  Only after Tamol finished eating did Kaichen press the bowl given to him to his lips. 

He did not taste the food that provided nourishment after his long day of walking.  He kept his eyes upon his
host as the man waited for him to finish eating.  

“
Have raiders sought to harm those of your band?” Kaichen knew that it was possible that the same problem that plagued his mother’s people also plagued Tamol’s band. 

“It is not a concern.  The men of this band are strong men
but they are not warriors.  Just like your mother’s people we live off the land.” Tamol shrugged his shoulders as if the matter was of little concern. 

But Kaichen was not fooled.  He had easily made the climb that many men would have found challenging. 
Tamol and his band lived upon the rock spires that rose out of the land.  A guiding rope had been lowered down to assist the men with their climb as the sun burned down upon them. 

“When did you start to dwell in the
high places?” Kaichen knew that his question was disrespectful and bold, but he felt a sense of urgency that did not allow for the necessary formalities. 

“Why have you come here, if not to join with our band and live as one of us?  This is your birthright.”
Tamol’s eyes narrowed, not due to sunlight, for the cavern that sheltered them was exceedingly dim. It was as if he sought to draw the truth from Kaichen with his stare alone.

“I am here to seek aid for my mother’s band.” Kaichen refrained from claiming his mother’s band as his own.  There was no need to anger
Tamol before he could state his request.

“Denoa.”
Tamol’s eyes closed in recognition.  “We failed to save your father’s life and your mother grew angry over our failure.  Why would I offer help to her band now when she has rejected the hand of friendship that we have extended in the past?”

Kaichen listened to
Tamol’s words, but he also watched the way Tamol’s face grew tense and angry.  It was the first time that Tamol showed any emotion, it was the first time that the calm mask slipped and Kaichen caught sight of the man beneath the stony exterior. 

Kaichen also noticed that he felt anger simmer beneath the surface of the still waters inside of him when
Tamol spoke against his mother.   

“Your mother sent you to Azin, so that your own people would not slay you.  How long did they suffer while you were raised to become
the salvation of your band?” Tamol laughed cruelly when Kaichen stiffened and glared at him without speaking.  “Did you think that I forgot?”

Kaichen remained utterly still.  He knew that
Tamol bated him and he could not understand what the man hoped to accomplish with his actions.  Tamol studied him with piercing dark eyes that captured every expression, every shift of his weight and every inhalation of breath.

“
Where is Farren? Do you still claim him as your friend?” Kaichen already knew the answer to his question, just as he knew that Tamol was waiting for him to speak.

“
That is not your concern.” Tamol’s voice was controlled but Kaichen could detect a resonate tone that he could not identify.

Kaichen and
Tamol did not speak for a time.  From their high place, they looked out over the land that spread out beneath them.  Kaichen felt completely at ease high up upon the spire that Tamol claimed as his own. 

“This land of our birth has been a good place for my people.  The men of my band have enough to eat, there is game to hunt and food for all.  We do not suffer.”
Tamol’s mouth grew tight and he turned to face Kaichen.  “What does your mother ask of me?  I owe her nothing now.”

“You failed my mother long ago, how is it that your debt has been paid?” Kaichen spoke of
Tamol’s vow given long ago.   Sympathy for the proud young woman that his mother had once been caught him by surprise. 

What had
his mother suffered while she had walked unafraid into the wild lands, searching for two small boys and their embittered grandfather?

“Your mother
once thought that her people were on the brink of death but she was wrong.” Tamol did not answer Kaichen’s question and Kaichen knew that the man would refuse to help at all if he continued to press for an answer. 

“I have seen the plight of my mother’s people with my own eyes.”

Kaichen did not say that he could also see that Tamol’s people did not fare well in his estimation.  Tamol’s people suffered much as they worked to cultivate grain and vegetation from the land. 

“My people are the children of the desert.  We have taken to the buttes and spires that offer natural protection from enemies and predators alike.  No man can climb as fast or as high as the men of my band.”
Tamol boasted proudly though Kaichen had surprised him with his agility and strength. 

It was like looking into the face of
Shale as he watched Kaichen take in his words and quietly analyze them. 

“I am disappointed to see that you do not take your rightful place amongst us.  You would have bee
n made welcome because of the man that I once called brother and friend.”

Kaichen remained silent.  Evening light shifted and changed before his eyes as he looked out over the vast landscape below. 
Tamol challenged him to deny or confirm his statement and Kaichen would not give in to the man’s prodding. 

“You are like your fath
er, silent and arrogant.” Tamol’s words caused anger to burn along Kaichen’s spine. 

It was true that he did not know the strong hand of his father but the urge to defend his father’s name was strong inside of him. 

“I see that your mother kept her promise.  She made your father come alive for you with her gift of storytelling.” Tamol’s laughter was dry and strained as if he could not shake aside the vestiges of the past. 

He could well remember the first time that he had caught sight of
Denoa standing over Shale’s weakened body.  He had known from the beginning that Denoa and Shale would become a mated pair.  They had all known or so it seemed as he cast his thoughts to the past.  

“Was there a reason that you did not offer my mother the protection that was her due, so long ago?” Kaichen’s question brought instant tension to
Tamol’s shoulders.  Tamol knew that it had been his responsibility to help care for Shale’s wife, their bond of friendship should have ensured Tamol’s offer of protection to Denoa and her children. 

“Your mother
could not stand the sight of my face or that of Farren.  She cast aside all of our efforts to help her.” Tamol’s quiet words made Kaichen flinch and look once more into the man’s face. He spoke the truth.

Kaichen had never spoken to his mother about her reasons for remaining
behind when Tamol and those loyal to his father would have taken care of her.  A woman without a strong hunter at her side would have been certain to waste away overtime, except his mother had defied the odds by calling green shoots to come forth from the land.  Others had walked with her, uncertain of the future, but loyal to the woman whose lifemate had given them their freedom.  

Kaichen watched as
Tamol turned away from his direct gaze, but for a moment he saw the true man behind the harshly spoken words tinged with bitterness.  He saw a man bowed low with grief and uncertainty, but also a strong leader.

“I see that our guests have arrived.  You should have told me from the beginning that you did not travel alone.” Tamol’s words brought Kaichen’s head up instantly.