The New World (The Last Delar) (4 page)

"I thank the great Chiefs for their warm welcome," Mia-Koda says.

Closing his blind eyes, Grey Back inhales deeply before returning the woman's greeting.  "Long has it been since that scent has filled these halls."

Red Fist stares at Mia-Koda in silence.  Black Claw leaves Mia-Koda's side and walks to Grey Back.  He speaks into his ear.  Red Fist leans in their direction, trying to pick up their conversation, never taking his eyes from the small child resting peacefully in Mia-Koda's arms.

"My Captain tells me you bring a child with you.  Is this true?"

"Yes, Grey Back, you have not been misinformed," says Mia-Koda.

"What happened to his family that you bring him into our borders?"

"The child was brought to me in the night by an Uluani."

Red Fist nods his head towards a man in a far corner of the room.  His eyes then return to the child.

"I know nothing of his family, but I assume they are dead.  I come to look for a foster family to raise him until he begins to walk the path of a man."

"Why, I wonder, do you not take the child?" says Grey Back.  "My Captain has told me what that child did to your Wicker.  Why should I permit this outlander with abilities unknown into the care and protection of our city?"

"The child is special, but a danger to you he is not . . . of this I am sure.  I will come back for him when the time is right and his powers start to grow.  A good and stable home is what young children need, and that I cannot give."

Grey Back points his finger, exposing his worn claws to Mia-Koda.  "Why should I believe that his boy brings no danger to our people?"

Red Fist snaps his fingers, and a man brings him a long wooden pipe decorated with Salali claws and various feathers.  He takes the smoking root from the pouch around his neck and packs the pipe.  He takes a long puff from the pipe and signals for Mia-Koda to also take a puff.  She walks up to Red Fist and hands him the child before accepting his offering.  Red Fist takes the child and begins to examine him.  Mia-Koda puffs the pipe, kneels down, and passes it to Grey Back.

"Captain, your brother lost his only son to sickness, did he not?"

Black Claw raises his head with suspicion toward his Chief, "Yes, he died from the black cough on a cold night last winter," he says to Red Fist.

"Word has reached us that Dirty Hands' wife can no longer bear children and has slipped into a depression.  Your brother is a farmer and has a hut at the western edge of the city . . . Good parents you both had.  Close to your adopted father I was.  Good of them to take you in and raise you, considering the circumstances," says Red Fist.

Black Claw stares at Mia-Koda.  Grey Back passes the pipe back to Red Fist, signaling that he supports his decision.  Red Fist stands and steps down from his throne.  "This child is in need and deserves our mercy.  I feel that he has already seen much evil and has suffered a great loss.  But I also believe this decision is not for the two Chiefs to make.  His fate we put in the hands of Captain Black Claw, for it is his brother's house the child will call home, and it is the captain's job to protect this city.  Either the child is taken by Black Claw's brother, or he is not welcome here."

Red Fist passes the child to Black Claw and takes another puff from the pipe.  Black Claw looks down at the baby and glances up to Grey Back.  "Do you agree, Chief Grey Back?"

"The child's fate is in your hands, Captain."

Black Claw struggles with the decision while the Chiefs and Mia-Koda continue to pass the pipe.  Black Claw knows that a child would bring joy into his brother's life.  He nods his head in agreement, without looking at either Chief, but keeping his eyes fixed on the child.

"Agreed.  The child will pass into the family of your brother," says Red Fist.

"Wise and merciful is the Chief's counsel," says Mia-Koda.  "I will see the child to his new family and then depart." She bows to the Chiefs before turning to leave.

The early dawn has faded into mid-morning, and the city market begins to fill with goods and gossip.  Children play in the dusty streets while young adults mingle in small groups.  Mia-Koda passes by the market and waves at the Menoli.  She is not surprised when her gesture of friendship is met with cold stares of indifference.  Although the city is filled with courageous and hard working people they are not trusting of outsiders.  To them the sight of strangers always foreshadows darker times.   Black Claw has not seen his brother in many moons and feels shame knowing why he has kept his distance.  Adopted by a poor Meno family, Black Claw has worked endlessly to gain the respect of the Salali he leads.  Now, he returns to the home where he was raised and finds himself lost in thoughts of his past.

"You made the right decision, Black Claw.  A decision that will bring joy and love to your brother's family for many years."

Stopping, Black Claw turns, "I know you have great wisdom as well as the power of will, but I have seen this child's eyes before.  They have haunted me since my son's birth, and only at my end will I understand their meaning.  My nephew he will soon become, so like family I will treat him, but trust him I never will for I see doom and death in those eyes."

"You are still a shadow of your parents, Captain of the Salali.  That is why I knew you would help this child.  You have your mother's strength and compassion." Mia-Koda leans on her staff and looks deep into Black Claws' eyes.  "No matter what this dream you speak of may foretell, in the end nothing but love will you feel for this child."

Black Claw turns and begins walking down the dirt path.  He leaves the road and walks into the forest underbrush, pushing it aside as he comes to a clearing. "His home is over there.  Wait here for me to bring them to you," he says to Mia-Koda. Black Claw walks up to the hut of his brother and calls to him, "Brother!"

There is a rustling, and a man walks out of the hut.  He is a stout man with broad shoulders and thick arms. "What brings you to my home, brother?" Dirty Hands says in his soft voice.

"I do, Dirty Hands," Mia-Koda says as she steps forward.  "I come to ask you a favor."

Dirty Hands looks at Black Claw, and Black Claw speaks, "She has a child that has been abandoned and needs a foster home.  Since your son did not survive the winter, the Chiefs thought you would be kind enough to take him in."

As soon as Black Claw mentions the child, Dirty Hands's wife, Meadow, comes out of the hut.  She is a short, thin woman with long, tangled hair.  Her clothes are worn, and her eyes have sunk into the darkness of her face.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" she asks in a quivering voice.

"The child is a healthy baby boy who needs a loving home," Mia-Koda says.

Meadow walks past Dirty Hands and Black Claw and takes the child into her arms.  Her eyes tear as she smiles down at the baby's face. "We will take him and love him as if he were our own," she says with a happiness she thought had long vanished from her heart.

"Now hold on,” says Dirty Hands, “I am the man.  This is my decision to make." Meadow gives him a glare that makes him take a step back.  "Well . . . I mean, if you want the child I will allow it."

Patting Dirty Hands on the back, Mia-Koda speaks, "Good! Then all is well . . . but there are some things that have to be said.  First, when the child begins to walk the path of a man, I will be back for him, and he will have to leave with me.  Also, the child bears a necklace that is very special-never take it off or hold it for too long.  This child possesses powers that must be dealt with later.  You must hide this knowledge from him and others." Meadow nods her head in agreement, and quickly rushes back into the hut with the baby.

Dirty Hands mutters to his brother upon his wife's departure.  "Maybe now she will have reason to smile again."

"I am glad for you, brother.  I will have my wife come visit to see if she can help her in any way."

"We would both be thankful for that, brother.  It has been too long since we all have been together for a meal."

"I must go back to the council."

"I understand . . . we both thank you for this gift for which there is no repayment." Dirty Hands bows to both his brother and Mia-Koda before turning back to his hut.

Mia-Koda grabs his arm, "Remember, Dirty Hands, I will be back for him when he begins to walk the path of a man.  Treat him well and tell others only what they need to know about the child." Mia-Koda and Black Claw turn and leave.

When Dirty Hands enters his hut he sees his wife running around with energy and excitement.  He grabs her before she makes her way across the room to make a warm bottle and looks into her eyes.

"Are you sure this is what you want?"

Meadow looks up at him, "This is all I have ever wanted, my love." They embrace briefly before going to the baby.  Together, they look down at the child who is lying on some furs. They both laugh as he chews on his feet and coos.  Meadow wraps her body around her Dirty Hand’s large arms and looks up at him.

"This is your son, so it is your right to give him his name.  What should we call him?" Dirty Hands looks down at his new son before answering his wife.  "Taeau, that will be his name.  Taeau, 'a gift from others.' "

---

“Always remember, Oskeau, love is why you lived.”

              These were the last words Oskeau heard before his mother, whom he loved above all things, abandoned him into the dark unknown world.  Her last gifts to him were some furs to keep him warm.  Unlike his brother, Oskeau was awake when his mother released him into the wild. He watched the one person he loved most fade into darkness. 

Now, hours after his mother released him, Oskeau is unaware of where he is or where he is going.  He remains in his blankets, resting in the log canoe, floating deep into the darkness of the forest.  The stream becomes shallower as the strength of the current dies. It eventually empties into a wetland covered in finger trees whose roots strangle the thick begrimed floor.  This part of the forest is a muddy plain that is flooded during wet periods.  The tree roots desperately combat each other in a tangled battle for better access to the nutrient-filled mud.  Oskeau’s canoe floats under one of these trees and halts in the soft mud.  The slithering creatures of the forest call this place home.  Constricting snakes, lizards, and other forms of primitive life scavenge for existence here.  Oskeau, now alone and vulnerable, would be a quick and life-sustaining meal to many of these beasts.

A small, humpbacked creature burrows its head into a muddy puddle, feeding on shellfish.  It is a Muddler, a short bottom-feeder that survives in the swamps of the forest.  Muddlers were once human, but in the Age of Darkness they were enslaved and transformed into hunchbacked diggers and miners.  They became short, weak shadows of themselves, forced to work in the mines and dark places of the world.  Once the darkness vanished, many Muddlers escaped the mines and scattered, becoming a broken species, devolving into skittish scavengers.  They developed a tough leathery back that they use for protection against predators. This slothy Muddler, who calls himself Puddle, waddles his way to the tree where Oskeau lies and begins to dig into the mud.  The Muddlers’ digging and plunging into the ground scares Oskeau, and he wails loudly, disturbing the stillness of the forest.  Puddle shoots up from hunting and stares at the small wooden canoe.  He wipes the muddy water from his face, and Oskeau cries out again at the creature’s strange look.  Instantly, the Muddler curls into a tight ball hiding under his protective leathery back.

The child continues to scream, and Puddle shakes rapidly, cowering in his protective position.  Sobbing, the Muddler cries at the child, hoping to quiet his bawling.  Soon Oskeau tires from yelling and becomes calm.  When he feels the danger has gone, Puddle timidly uncurls himself.  He looks down at the abandoned child and licks his lips at the sight of the small infant.  He thinks about how lucky he is to have found such an easy meal and picks him up and holds him in the air.  The Muddler swings the child upside down, holding him overhead by one foot.  He opens his gaping mouth and is ready to consume him, but a shining light distracts him.  The child starts to laugh and giggle, remembering how his father used to play with him.  The Muddler's stare becomes more intense, and his breathing heavier.  His eyes dilate as they follow the swinging necklace that dangles before his face.  A voice suddenly echoes in his head:  "Yes!" while chomping his teeth, "a slave for Puddle.  Puddle could be the master.  Little son of the tall deceivers would have to do everything I say." Puddle jumps up and down, "Yes, yes, yes!" Puddle moves closer to the necklace, mesmerized by its beauty. "What must I do with the tall walker?" The necklace shines again, brighter than before and pulsing with life.  "Find shelter.  Yes, yes, I have shelter.  I will show you."

The necklace dulls as quickly as it began to shine, and Puddle shakes his head.  He cradles Oskeau in his arms and runs into the forest.  As Puddle clumsily trudges between the trees, he is lost in excitement.  When he arrives to his shelter, a dead tree with a hollowed-out trunk, he is pleased with himself.  Puddle sits down, placing Oskeau outside the tree, and he begins to sway back and forth.

"What to do, what does Puddle do now?" Puddle says as he caresses the long coarse hairs that run down his face. Oskeau's necklace glows, shining in Puddle's eyes. "I have seen one, a large cave, it be a good place . . . but a dangerous Long-Tooth lives inside, eat Puddle it would.” Puddle stops swaying as a vision enters his mind.  The power and knowledge of Oskeau’s ancestors speak to Puddle showing him a path to follow. 

"An offering to him! Leave little deceiver at the opening and when Long-Tooth comes to eat it, I CRUSH HIM WITH ROCK!" Puddle jumps and rolls around on the floor with excitement.  "Puddle crush him, Puddle crush him! Yes, yes, yes." After his celebration, Puddle runs and snatches up the infant and takes off toward the cave. 

Later that evening

Puddle stands above the opening of the cave where the Long-Tooth lives.  Looking down the jagged, rocky face of the cave, he sees the floor covered with the bones of discarded carcasses.  Placing the child at the top of the cliff, Puddle wanders off to find the largest rock he can lift.