The Lost Tribe
CHARMIAN, MOON WOLF, and Niskigwun stared out of the entrance of Eagle Point Cave at the land sloping below, snow shrouded and silent. The sound of war whoops had faded into nothing long before but still they refused to move, the chilly air wafting across their faces and their eyes straining to make out anything. Nothing moved anymore.
Charmian's brow furrowed. "Where did they all go...? Not just the Iroquois, but our guys? There must've been dozens of them!"
Niskigwun slowly shook his head. "I do not know...I know only little of how your people fight."
"They're not my people! When my people want to fight, we either toss bombs at each other or watch Pay-Per-View!"
"They've gone further inland," Moon Wolf murmured, peering from side to side. "This is all I could see."
Charmian rubbed at her head, confused. "But I'm not getting...why Chakenapok would want to possess them, anyway! They're only humans--humans don't have that much power! And if he's after Manabozho, then why go to this sort of trouble? Why break up the spirit stone like that?"
"Perhaps it is another way for him to 'push your buttons,'" Moon Wolf suggested. "The same way he has before."
Charmian scowled. "Well, it's a pretty stupid one..."
From behind them, Black Elk Horn let out a soft groan and their ears twitched. "He must be waking up," she whispered, and made a face. "He'll probably want to kill me once he's conscious again!"
"Your face," Niskigwun said with a frown, gingerly touching a finger to her cheek. She put her hand up to the bruise forming under her eye where Black Elk Horn had struck her, and winced as she carefully palpated it.
"Yeah, I know...I'll be fine. Nothing any worse than anything Moon Wolf's ever done to me." She started to push herself up to turn around, the medicine man flushing and Niskigwun turning around as well. "Still, I think it'd be better if we try to keep him calm, so he doesn't start stabbing us ne..."
She froze, her eyes going wide, as soon as she saw Singing Cedars crouching just behind them, Black Elk Horn's knife in his hand. His eyes bored into hers and she could tell by the whiteness of his knuckles just how tightly he was wielding the weapon; an instant later both of the others had turned around as well, Niskigwun's spear pointed outward and Moon Wolf crooking his hand as if to throw a fireball. The four of them glared at each other in tense silence, in what was quite possibly the oddest standoff Charmian had ever seen.
Singing Cedars's eyes never left her own, and she felt almost like shrinking into the cave floor. After a moment he narrowed them, and she felt her heart nearly skip a beat.
"He's waking up," he said, and she blinked, and the three of them looked at Black Elk Horn. He still lay beside the cave wall, but had rolled himself over somewhat, and was pushing himself up onto his elbows, rubbing painfully at his head. Charmian stared at him until Singing Cedars spoke again, jarring her out of her daze.
"I thought it would be best if he did not wake up armed," he said, with the same steely look, and turned the knife around in his hand so its handle faced her, rather than its blade. She and the other two stared at it in surprise, then she let out a shaky breath and reached out to take it from him. It slipped from his hand easily, and she grasped the handle in her palm, feeling the weight of it. The blade was made of copper, leather wound around the grip, and it felt as if it could be used just as well as a cudgel as it could a knife. She looked up at Singing Cedars again but he had already turned away, crawling toward the cave entrance now and peering out. She turned her attention then to Black Elk Horn, creeping toward him and peering at him as he rubbed at his head with a wince.
"Elk...?" she murmured, trying to see into his face; after a moment he lifted his head, and a bruise was forming on his cheek too, where Moon Wolf had hit him. He blinked blearily a few times, looking around the cave in confusion before seeing his companions, and then his eyes widened. He still didn't seem to quite understand what was going on at first; then he gasped, and shot to his feet so abruptly that he hit his head on the low cave ceiling, and collapsed with a grunt. Charmian winced; he responded by clamping his hands over the top of his head and making a horrible face.
"We are in Eagle Point Cave," Moon Wolf said, as if this should be obvious.
"Are you okay?" Charmian asked, staring at him as he pushed himself up even more carefully this time.
"You're...you're that accursed wabano," he muttered, gritting his teeth. "And you..." He paused to take a better look at Niskigwun; then, apparently not being able to decide what he was, he turned his attention to Charmian. "And you are the one who I said was not welcome here! Would that you could understand simple words, maybe then you would be gone from here!"
Charmian scowled. "You're welcome! I'll remember that the next time you get knocked out!"
"Knocked--" He noticed Singing Cedars at last and gawked, then immediately reached for his belt; he glanced down at it when he came up empty, then lifted his head, eyes wide and confused.
Charmian held up the knife. "If you're looking for this...then I thought I'd hold onto it for safekeeping."
He gaped at her in disbelief, then his face went black and he took a step forward. Immediately Niskigwun's spear was leveled at his chest, and flames were dancing atop Moon Wolf's fingers; Charmian managed to hold his stare, but felt somewhat guilty doing so, seeing the stunned look on his face at the realization that he had no way to defend himself; the situation hardly seemed fair. Black Elk Horn froze for a moment, as if deciding whether or not fighting would be worth it; then to her relief he backed down, though he immediately clenched his fists and launched into a tirade.
"NONE of you are welcome here! None of you even BELONG here!" he snapped. "You belong on the mainland, and you in your damned little cave, and you wherever you come from!" He glared lastly at Singing Cedars. "And YOU belong in the ground, where I would put you, if not for all these OTHER people who do not belong here!"
Charmian knew the argument was a stupid one but couldn't help retorting. "The Island let EVERY SINGLE ONE of us come here!" she snapped back. "And that means a WHOLE lot more than YOU saying we don't belong here! Both Yellow Turtle and Geezhigo-Quae say the Island welcomes me! And Moon Wolf's always lived here and Niskigwun's the RIGHTFUL inhabitant here! And Cedars..." She paused, realizing that Black Elk Horn was right at least in his case, then shook it off. "...And like it does a HELL of a lot of good to scalp anybody right now, anyway! Like THAT'S going to make everything right!"
"And YOU have done any better?" Black Elk Horn fumed. He jerked his hand at the cave ceiling. "Take a look what you've done to the Island! All of this started when YOU first came!"
"It--"
"It started when your people came," Niskigwun said, and everyone looked at him. He flared his wings and gave Black Elk Horn the darkest glare imaginable. "This Island lived peacefully enough until your people came and ruined it! You were given every chance to respect this place, yet you did not. And so it was left to you. And it just grows worse and worse. You wonder why times have become so awful? Take a look at yourselves! You are the ones who bring discord wherever you go!"
That managed to still Black Elk Horn at least for the moment, a stunned look on his face, but now Charmian felt herself growing insulted. She bit back her own argument but still the comments stung. Black Elk Horn clenched his fists and took a step forward and she gasped and stepped back, but he seemed to have completely forgotten about her by now.
"You wish to know who brings discord--?" he snapped, then pointed at Moon Wolf, who seemed baffled at being so suddenly introduced into the argument. "THAT is who! He and his kind are the ones who hurt this Island! His kind, and hers!" He glared at Charmian now. "You think I do not know how you compel the manitous to do your bidding--? No manitou in its right mind would serve EITHER of you!"
Charmian's jaw dropped open. At which Singing Cedars put in, "ALL of you are mad!" When they looked at him he made a face and waved wildly at the cave entrance. "This damned Island can sink to the bottom of the LAKE for all I care!!"
Black Elk Horn's feathers just about bristled. "WITH YOU ON IT, I WOULD NOT MIND SO MUCH!"
"And this petty squabble you carry on helps matters any?" Moon Wolf barked. "When the Island is freezing and under attack, you leave your camp and try to start a war! These are the actions of a sensible ogimah--?"
Black Elk Horn looked ready to hurl himself into a temper tantrum. "You are the one shackling manitous and making bargains with DEMONS! Those OCRYXES have fouled things up even more than ANYONE! And you dare to blame me for all of this mess--?!"
Charmian's fists had been clenching tighter and tighter with each argument until her fingernails gouged into her palms, and her teeth ground together so hard that they hurt; at this she flung her hands up, her patience snapping. "SHUT UP!!" she shrieked, and her voice came out so loud that it bounced off the walls of the cave, reverberating much louder than it actually was. The other four froze and cringed, their faces twisting up at the sound; Charmian took a step back and shot them all the most infuriated look possible, her eyes stinging and her lips curled back. They all gaped at her.
"THIS IS NOBODY'S STINKING FAULT!" she yelled. "NOBODY in this stupid cave! Nobody on this stupid ISLAND! Everybody makes mistakes! GET OVER IT!!" She whirled on Singing Cedars, who stood just behind her, and he flinched. "YOU should've just stayed on the mainland where you belong!" She whirled toward Niskigwun, and then Moon Wolf. "YOU should get over your STUPID grudge--that was YEARS AGO! YOU should learn how to just ASK a manitou when you want something, and show a little respect!" She turned to face Black Elk Horn last of all and her teeth felt like they were going to snap out of her jaws. "And YOU--YOU SHOULD LEARN TO ACT YOUR FRIGGING AGE!! You DON'T solve every damn little thing with a fight, you DON'T take care of problems by pissing everybody off, and you DON'T blame EVERY OTHER DAMN PERSON for what YOU do wrong! Even your own people are getting mad at you!! Why wouldn't they? You're off running around chasing bad guys and bailing out on them when they need their ogimah most, and--"
At the word ogimah Black Elk Horn's face suddenly went white, and before she could continue he was pushing past her, shoving Singing Cedars aside and crawling toward the cave entrance. Charmian gawked at him and felt the blood rushing to her head. "I'M NOT DONE TALKING!!" she yelled, but he didn't even glance at her before pushing himself out of the cave entrance and disappearing from sight. The others stared in surprise, then Moon Wolf and Niskigwun glanced at Charmian. Niskigwun's brow furrowed.
"What was that about--?"
Charmian shook her head, dazed. "I...I don't know! Maybe I got through to him...?"
Moon Wolf now got much the same look that Black Elk Horn had had, and also crawled to the cave entrance, peering out. The other three furrowed their brows in confusion and crowded closer to him. He was staring off to the side, as if to look at the bluff.
"What is it?" Charmian asked. "Did I say something wrong? I know I was mad and all, but you guys..."
"Inland," he said, interrupting her. "I said that they had gone inland."
Charmian and Niskigwun shared a look, then looked back at him. "Yeah, that's right...and?"
"I didn't mention that they turned aside after coming up the bluff," Moon Wolf stated. "I didn't think it was important. Everyone was running every which way...at least, I thought they were..."
"What is it?" Charmian asked again, and crawled up beside him to peer out. She couldn't see anything but snow and woods, and the diminishing shape of Black Elk Horn as he ran off among the trees.
Moon Wolf bit his lip, and his fingers dug into the rock. "Immediately after they came inland," he said. "They turned south."
"South--?" No sooner was the word out of Charmian's mouth than her own face went white, and she sucked in a breath. "The tribe!" she whispered sharply, and without a further thought, jumped out of the cave opening to fall to the slope below. She landed on her knee but ignored the sting of pain, stumbling to her feet; she could hear the others coming down after her but didn't stop to wait. She sprinted off after Black Elk Horn's footprints, running almost as fast as if Mani carried her himself. She entered the woods and the trees flew by, low-hanging branches nearly whipping at her face as she went.
I can't believe I didn't THINK of it! The tribe--Black Elk Horn's tribe! They live right on the bluff--SOUTH of here!
Is that what Chakenapok's up to--? He CAN'T do that--can he--?
She gritted her teeth, her eyes blurring as she ran. "If you even TOUCH any of them," she grated at the air which whipped past, "then I'll knock your skull in MYSELF! BETTER than Noko ever did!"
She almost expected him to reply with some sort of snarky sarcastic comment, yet nothing came but her own fevered thoughts. The terrain grew more familiar from her earlier trek with Francois and the others, and she put on a new burst of speed which unfortunately did not last long before her legs started to burn and wobble and give out. She started stumbling her way along rather than running; the sound of footfalls came up behind her, and Moon Wolf grabbed onto her arm before she could topple over. She gasped for breath, slumping against him as Niskigwun pulled up on her other side, both of them panting and staring in the direction that Black Elk Horn had gone in. They could not see him, though the camp must have been nearby, as the light of a fire flickered through the trees.
"What..." Charmian gasped, grasping Moon Wolf's arm. "What if...they...got to them...?"
He didn't answer. Niskigwun made certain that his spear was ready, nodded at them, and they slowly moved ahead. The closer they drew, the clearer the sound and sight of the fire came; they then spotted Black Elk Horn, moving toward the camp faster than they were. Moon Wolf gawked, then let go of Charmian to dash after him; the other two picked up their pace, only to catch up as soon as the medicine man grabbed Black Elk Horn's arm and yanked him back. Black Elk Horn bared his teeth and feinted, making Moon Wolf let him go; before they could protest, he turned and pushed his way into the camp without another word. Moon Wolf just cast them a helpless look, then followed.
Charmian flinched. "Elk--!" she hissed.
Niskigwun glowered. "He has the common sense of a snail!"
"Silver Eagle Feather," Charmian blurted out, and then blinked as soon as she understood. "Silver Eagle Feather! She lives here! And Stick and White Deer--!" She followed Black Elk Horn's example, breaking away from Niskigwun and dashing ahead toward the light of the camp's fire. She heard the Michinimakinong let out a frustrated noise before following, and within a moment they were all in the main clearing of the camp, frozen into a dead stop and staring at the scene which lay before them.
The already trampled snow of the camp clearing had been trampled even further, into a dirty rutted mess; the fire still burned, but it guttered now, the wood scattered every which way and the communal stewpot knocked over, its contents spilled over the ground. That was hardly the worst of it, though. The worst of it was the wigwams...every one of them smashed and broken, a few completely razed to the ground, their frames and bark mat coverings scattered throughout the camp. Everyday belongings--furs, blankets, trinkets, toys--littered the ground around each, many of them shredded and mangled almost beyond recognition. Even the Mide lodge at the far side of the camp hadn't escaped destruction, its roof caved in and its sides ripped out. The branches of the trees nearest them hung at odd angles, many of them snapped and twisted, some of them fallen atop the chaos below; and even more chilling than all of this was the fact that aside from the apparent violence of the scene, the camp was completely silent. Aside from the four of them, there was not a trace of anything left living.
Charmian stared at the scene in utter bewildered silence, her heart thudding hard in her ears. She slowly turned her head from left to right, seeing the stunned look on Black Elk Horn's face, but even then she couldn't quite believe it.
"He..." Her voice came out paper thin. "He...couldn't have..."
She felt rather than heard Moon Wolf come up beside her, and her eyes grew blurry, the jagged, ragged lines of the camp fading from view. "He couldn't have," she whispered again, and took a shaky step forward, then another. "He wouldn't..."
Chakenapok...Chakenapok wouldn't do this! He would NEVER do this! I spoke with him--I saw him! He was sorry about what he did to Wenonah--how could he even do something like this--?
Her chest started hitching and she halted before the guttering fire, her fists clenching and unclenching. "I can't believe he would do this," she said weakly, her voice cracking. She caught sight just then of a wigwam with its roof crushed in, a tattered blanket dangling from its gaping doorway, the insignia of an upright tree branch and a star upon it; at that she almost lost it, and the tears spilled from her eyes.
Niskigwun stepped into the clearing. "Where are the bodies?" he asked; and at first she felt like whirling around and punching him for saying such a horrible thing aloud, when the meaning of the words struck her and she blinked the tears from her eyes, sucking in a breath and glancing around again. Off to her sides, she saw Black Elk Horn and Moon Wolf reacting in the same way.
Moon Wolf glanced around himself, then frowned. "There...are none."
Black Elk Horn blinked; Charmian froze on noticing that his own eyes looked wet. He turned away before she could be sure, striding out among the shattered wigwams and stooping to look into each. She followed suit, and the others did so as well, examining the camp from top to bottom. She still couldn't bring herself to look into Stick-In-The-Dirt's wigwam, and Moon Wolf had to do it for her; he stood up and shook his head at her, and she let out her breath. Niskigwun stepped into the remains of the Mide lodge, while Black Elk Horn reached his own wigwam and tore the blanket aside, sticking his head in the doorway. Charmian froze again; a great tree branch lay across the top of the wigwam and it still smoldered from the remains of its central fire; if anyone had been in there, they wouldn't have survived. Yet he pulled his head back out as well, his expression confused rather than grieving.
"There aren't any bodies," Charmian said aloud, echoing Moon Wolf's comment. Her brow furrowed. "But...where would they be? Something happened here! They were all here the last time I was--what would've happened to them so fast--?"
Niskigwun stepped out of the medicine lodge and came toward them, an uncertain look on his face. "They are the enemies of the Island's people, are they not?" he asked, sounding hesitant. "Perhaps they reacted in much the same way Sooleawa Chepi did..."
"You mean...going after their own ends first, and then Chakenapok's?" Charmian asked, and her brow furrowed even more. "But what does..." She blinked, then took in another breath and glanced around the camp. "You think they kidnapped them--?"
She caught a flicker of movement from the corner of her eye, and turned her head; a split second later Black Elk Horn held her up by the front of her coat, her feet dangling above the ground. Moon Wolf and Niskigwun both jerked and then took a step forward, but Black Elk Horn completely ignored them. He put his face right up to Charmian's, his eyes livid.
"If ANYTHING happens to them," he snarled, his voice cracking, "if they do ANYTHING to any of them--YOU are the one who will pay! For ALL of it!" And before Charmian could say anything he hurled her to the ground, where she landed with a painful thud, wincing at the jolt which ran up both elbows. He whirled to the nearest wigwam and wrenched a smudged and dirty knife loose from the debris, clenching it in his hand; the other two stepped forward again, practically bristling, but he ignored them and stepped back into the camp, looking from left to right as if seeking out the intruders. Niskigwun stooped down and helped Charmian to her feet.
"I'm fine," she said before he could ask.
Niskigwun's brow furrowed. "Are you cold--?"
"What?" When he looked at her she realized that her teeth were chattering and she was shaking like a leaf; she clasped her arms to herself to try to still the trembling. Even when he'd hit her, and yelled at her before, Black Elk Horn had never managed to frighten her as much as he had just now. With a start she realized that it was the fear in his voice which had frightened her. Until now she'd never even thought that he could be so frightened.
Silver Eagle Feather, she thought, and a pang stabbed through her. She lifted her head to look at the tattered camp. "What do we do? Where do we look for them?"
Niskigwun shook his head. "I...I do not know. I don't understand the ways of these people." His wings sank. "This is my fault, for letting them get the spirit stone..."
"It's not your fault," Charmian said, pulling herself loose, "and there's no time to talk about whose fault it is. We have to figure out where they went and how to get that stone back!" She turned in a circle, rubbing at her head and then throwing up her hands in frustration. "Where do we look?" She even tried examining the prints in the snow, yet they went every which way, and didn't help her either. She felt like pulling at her hair.
Every second longer we take, they could be doing things to them! I'll never forgive myself if they hurt Silver or White Deer or Morning Star...
Black Elk Horn kicked aside the remains of the Mide lodge and started heading into the woods. Niskigwun could only look around the camp disconsolately. Charmian turned to follow the ogimah from the camp when Moon Wolf gripped her arm again, and she glanced up at him. He was staring out toward the woods lining the East Bluff, his eyes wide. She paused, then followed his stare, yet saw nothing.
"Moon Wolf...?" she asked, and noticed Niskigwun and Black Elk Horn both halt and turn back to look at them. "What is it?"
Moon Wolf continued staring into the trees, then let go of her arm. When he spoke his voice was soft, almost nonexistent.
"I...sense something."
"Sense--?" The hair on the back of Charmian's neck prickled, and she held up her hand, ready to call up a fireball or a gout of water. "What is it? Is it them? Are they nearby?"
He shook his head as if in a daze. "It is close...but...I do not know what it is." His brow furrowed. "It feels familiar, somehow."
"Familiar...?" Charmian's unease grew into confusion, the other two stepping closer to peer at them. She scanned the trees, still seeing nothing; when Moon Wolf slowly walked toward them, she followed, and he halted right before the treeline, looking out over the lake as if seeing something there. No matter how hard she strained her eyes, she couldn't see anything but trees and snow.
As if to affirm this thought, Niskigwun said, "I do not see anything."
Moon Wolf shook his head again. "It's hiding..."
"Hiding?" Charmian echoed, then stepped even closer to the trees than he did, frowning. She threw out her sensory net but couldn't pick up anything...yet when she concentrated harder, she did think that she could feel something, though she couldn't be sure what it was.
Her brow furrowed. "Wait a minute...I feel it too. Something's out there."
Niskigwun drew his spear. Moon Wolf reached out his hand toward the trees, and just before his fingers could pass into the woods, it was as if the air...rippled before them, and he drew his hand back. The other three drew in a breath and took a step back as the image of the trees before them shimmered like an illusion and then settled back into place. Charmian gawked.
"What is that?"
"Someone's hiding," Moon Wolf said, and reached out his hand to touch the strange barrier again. Only this time, before he could, the barrier rippled on its own several yards off to their side, and they all turned their heads to look as something stepped out into the camp.
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