Fourteen: The Shaman

Tali was a fierce leader, and she led her riders through the dunes and even into the daylight. They allowed themselves, and by extension us, few breaks for water and to relieve ourselves. My backside was crying for us to reach our destination and never see another horse ever again. But the hours wore on as we rode, even through the rising of the sun. When my rider moved her eye-patch over to her other eye, I knew we weren't done with our ride. It was starting to get uncomfortably hot in the mid morning when I finally saw the dots of movement on the southern horizon. Tiny but bright patches of color against the sand.

"Is that the Khusuru?" I asked my rider.

I don't think she understood me, but at the word Khusuru she perked up. She nodded sharply and pointed ahead, roughly where I saw the movement on the horizon. On horseback it didn't take long to get within range for the humans to see it too. We adjusted our course slightly, and my heart sped up as we approached the tribe.

A village of tents was set up. They were much wider than they were tall, and they were round. Shallow cones that didn't disrupt too much of the landscape. I don't think I could quite stand up in the middle of the tent, but it seemed to have plenty of room for people who wanted to sit or lay down.

Being daytime, we didn't see a lot of activity but there were some horses moving about under a taller canopy. A few people milled about between the tents, but for the most part the humans were inside sleeping.

Puko descended and landed on Kai's shoulder. Kai grunted, surprised at the sudden weight but he reached up absently to stroke his black feathers as we watched the camp as we approached.

Tali rounded us up and waved at the scouts patrolling the immediate edges of the tents. They raised their short spear-like sticks in salute, and I narrowed my eyes to try to see them better. Each scout carried a short speared stick and a curved piece of wood or stone, much like Kai had with him as we went after the Mist walker.

"What are those?" I asked. But my rider paid me no attention. I'd have to look for an answer later.

The horses were slowed to a stop and as we dismounted they were taken away by some of the Khusuru scouts to be watered and rested. My legs and backside were sore once again, but I put on a strong face for the desert people who were now watching us intently. Tali said several things to them in their tongue, and the way was parted for us to go to a peculiar tent in the middle of the camp.

This tent was smaller than the others, and also colorfully painted. Designs of bright paint were brushed in the shape of what I imagine were the aoyi'ka that Kai kept mentioning. They looked a bit like the fae, but with more element to them. One seemed to be made of fire, another of wind, another of yellow light, and so on.

"That is the shaman's tent ahead," Kai came up next to me, followed by Nassir and Schula. "They want you to speak to her now."

The tent ahead had flickering light inside, and even from here I could smell the incense.

I took in a deep breath and sighed through my nose. "Well, let's go then."

With all eyes on us, it was hard not to be distracted. Children peeked from beneath the round tents as we walked by, only to be pulled back under by the arms of the adults watching them. The baroo of a dog at the edge of the camp was shushed and the horses that hadn't already been familiarized with us snorted and scraped at the sand with their hooves at the new scent in the air.

But soon enough, we were at the tent with Tali leading the way. Two women with those short spears barred our way to the shaman, until the leader of the riders said something to them. They had a hushed but urgent discussion, until finally the women guarding the tent moved aside and let us enter. Tali pulled back the tent flap a bit and nodded me through first.

The tent was lit dimly by shallow brass dishes with burning oil. In the center of the tent was a long wooden pole that held up the leather of the tent, and around the pole were woven rugs and mats for sitting. A few cushions for lounging on smelled like they were filled with the wool of some animal I hadn't encountered before.

And then, there was the shaman.

She was as colorfully dressed as the riders who brought us here, with maybe thirty or so years of life behind her. Her dark eyes and hair matched and were stark against the bright blue of her shawl. She sat on a mat near the center pole and kept her body in a similar position to how the fae sit when they meditate. When we entered, she looked up at me with amusement.

"Shaman, this is the one who slayed the Bunjudaa ta." Tali bowed her head and crouched behind me at the entrance to the tent.

I felt odd standing before all these sitting and kneeling people, but I wasn't sure what the polite thing to do would be for the Khusuru. I remained standing, and tried to appear confident. I glanced behind me, noting that Schula and Nassir hadn't followed me inside.

"No outsiders may see the shaman," Tali hissed.

I raised my eyebrow at her in silent question.

"Aoyi'ka do not count."

Of course Schula and Nassir were hearing all this anyway, so I just nodded to Tali. They were still keeping up the human act outside. Still, I would grumble later about having to do this alone.

I turned back to the shaman and she took a deep breath with a smile.

"Welcome to my tent, strong one," she said. "You can call me Daai. Please, sit."

"Thank you. I am Wren."

She gestured to the mats before her. I chose one and sat down with all the grace I could muster, hoping that would help me be the aoyi'ka they were expecting. Once I was seated, Daai leaned in a little to look closer at me in the dim lighting.

"Wren, thank you for coming to see me. I know Tali can be a bit gruff, but she always gets the job done. Tell me, did she say why she was bringing you here?"

I shook my head, then remembered Schula and Nassir outside who couldn't see my motion and would be relying on sound alone. "No, she did not."

"Many years ago we had a vision. The shaman before me, actually. And from it we knew that one would come to slay the Bunjudaa ta. A strong being with three heads that breathed ice and fire and stone." Daai looked at me with a smirk. "Well, our visions are not perfect."

"It is true that our party killed the Mist walker," I said. "But it was in self defense."

Daai held up a hand. "We do not harbor any ill feelings for the death of such an aoyi'ka. Please, don't worry about that. But with that vision brought us a solution to another problem. You see, we Khusuru may be nomads, but we do have a few sacred lands shared by the desert people."

I nodded, that made sense.

"For as long as the tribes have shared the sands, the Khusuru have been responsible for guarding one of those sites. The Stone of Spirits," Daai said. "But for the last year we've had a curse upon it. We've been waiting for you, Wren. The vision told of a strong being to slay the Bunjudaa ta, and we have waited for you. More this last year than before, but we have always waited. Please, an aoyi'ka such as yourself can surely lift this curse. Please, help us."

Daai leaned forward, placing her palms flat on the ground before her and bowing her head low until her forehead touched the back of her fingers.

I had never seen such a posturing before, but it was clearly a part of her requesting help from me. It was uncomfortable to be treated with something resembling reverence, and I wanted her to stop.

"I've never lifted a curse before," I said. "And I don't know if I can, but I will look at this Stone of Spirits and see what I can do."

Daai lifted her head with a smile. "That is all I can ask of one such as yourself. You have my gratitude, and that of my people."

I bit my lip, wondering how much this would delay our passing through the desert. "Um, where is this Stone of Spirits anyway?"

Daai sat back on her mat and resumed her meditative pose. "Tali will accompany you to it this night. It is south and east of this camp."

Well, at least it was sort of the right direction.

"I will need my companions with me," I said, looking at the empty tent behind me. Tali had slipped out at some point and I hadn't even noticed.

"Of course," Daai said. "Your other two heads, I presume?"

I laughed at that. "Yes, something like that. And Kai, I won't go without him either."

Her face softened at that into something sat. "The red star, of course. I suppose an exception can be made to bring him, but he won't be allowed to touch the stone."

That took me back. "Why?" I said before I could stop myself.

Daai's mouth was a grim line. "He is not of the sand tribes, and he is not allowed on any of the sacred sites."

"What did he do?" I asked. "Is this because of his parents? Because he is only half tribesman?"

Daai lowered her head to the mat under her for a moment before bringing it back up and looking me in the eye. "All I am able to say about it, is that his mother was cast from her tribe and her son now carries her sins. Unless he can atone for them, he is not of the sands."

"That's so unfair," I said. "Kai wasn't the one who did anything wrong!"

"I am sorry, aoyi'ka. There is nothing I can do. I was a child when it happened and it was not the Khusuru that did it. I know little of the circumstances, but what I can tell you is that the honor of the ancestors is passed to the living. The dishonor of the ancestors is also passed to the living. So according to the law of the sands, Kai carries his mother's dishonor."

My throat tightened and my fists clenched, but I could hardly blame Daai for what happened in another tribe when she was only a child. I sighed and relaxed my hands. "Alright, then I will be ready to see this stone. What would you have me do for now?"

Daai bowed her head. "Thank you for your understanding, Wren. For now, the headman would like to honor you with a meal."

"And my companions?" I asked.

"And your companions." She nodded.

"And Kai?"

"And Kai."

"Very well, I would be happy to join the headman," I said.

Daai smiled. "Thank you, Wren. Please follow Tali once you have exited my tent."

"Are you not coming?" I asked.

She shook her head. "I am shaman. I do not leave the tent."

I blinked at her, realizing the depth of what she said. "You never leave the tent?"

She shook her head with a smile. "I will leave one day, once my replacement has been trained. A shaman only serves as a shaman for ten years."

"Oh," I said. I bet Nassir was outside bursting with questions about this strange culture. I'd have to Kai what he knew about all this later, if Nassir didn't get to him first.

"Thank you again, Wren," Daai said. "Please enjoy the feast and do not concern yourself over me. I am happy to serve, and I will receive a plate in here."

"It was nice to meet you, Daai," I said and mimicked her bowed head. The tent flap opened slightly behind me, and I let myself out into the bright morning where Tali waited for me.

"Aoyi'ka, come with me to the head tent." She did not wait for me to follow, she simply turned and began walking.

I didn't see Schula, Nassir or Kai, but I could sense them nearby. I followed Tali and we wound through the camp to a particularly large tent, though it wasn't decorated as Daai's was. Tali lifted the flap and let me inside where I was greeted with thirty or forty bowed heads.

"What is all this?" I murmured.

I spotted Schula and Nassir by an empty mat which was probably mine. Next to that was a Khusuru man with golden armbands on his biceps and his clothes were more finely decorated that the others in the tent. His head was bowed less than the others. A prideful man, I could sense from here.

The headman lifted his eyes to me, and gestured to the empty mat by him. "Aoyi'ka, please honor me at my table. We have heard from the shaman that you will see the Stone of Spirits on our behalf, we wish to offer you first a feast."

The people in the room were seated in short rows facing each other with straw mats piled with food before them. The headman was in a row with Schula and Nassir and had the most elbow room. All eyes were on me as I walked over and sat on the offered spot.

"Um, thank you," I said.

It seemed to please the headman and the men in the room. And that's when I realized that there were only men in the room. I had only seen women in the riders and with the shaman, and now with the headman I only see men.

"Let the meal begin!" the headman ordered, and hands shot out immediately to grab the offered food.

Instantly the tent was filled with noise and merriment. I looked over at Schula and Nassir who simply shrugged and reached for some kind of dumplings that had been set in front of them.

"Where is Kai?" I asked Schula next to me.

"He was not invited, but he was offered a plate of food at the communal tent, whatever that means. Kai said it was more than he expected and not to worry about him. We will see him later I guess."

I shrugged. "These people are... interesting."

"Indeed," Nassir said with more sincerity than I did. "I would very much like to study them one day, when all this mess is over with."

"Strong one," the headman drew my attention and I politely turned to him.

"Please try the kho, they are our tribe's prized recipe." He gestured to the dumplings that Schula and Nassir had taken. I smiled at the headman and took one myself. I bit into it, it was softer than I expected and had another added surprise.

My eyes popped open as I bit into the hottest food I had ever tasted. Even for me it was almost too much, and I whipped my head to see Schula at the last minute take a generous bite.

"Schula!" I winced as her face contorted in alarm.

"Oh no," I said and reached over to hand her a bowl of water. Schula was worse than when she tried the cookpot back in Sulls, and she stuck her fingers in the water as she drank. I nearly snorted as I realized she was icing the water as it went into her mouth. I held back my reaction, steeling my face from too much attention in the room when the headman addressed me again.

"How do you like the kho?" he asked.

"I like it very much," I said evenly, not wanting to offend him.

His face lit up, pride blatant in his eyes. "Thank you, strong one. Cook! Another plate for the aoyi'ka and her guests!"

Schula shot me a seething look and Nassir was chuckling as he handed her his own water bowl. I shrugged helplessly, there wasn't much I could do about it now.

"You honor us," the headman said softly. "Tomorrow you lift our curse, but tonight we celebrate. Thank you."

He bowed his head a little and I did the same back, earning a round of impressed sounds from the tent around us.

A frosty finger poked me in the ribs and I almost yelped, but I managed to turn calmly to Schula.

"I should have gone with Kai," she hissed. "Unless he is eating fire too."

I held back a laugh. "Sorry, do you want me to make an excuse for you?"

She shook her head. "No, but you owe me a bag of honey pecans for this. A big bag."

I shrugged as Nassir was turning his laughter into a fit of coughing, drawing enough attention that someone brought him another bowl of water, which Schula took immediately.

"Well, let's make the most of tonight," I sighed. "Tomorrow we break a curse."

Schula and Nassir nodded, and for the rest of the meal we did our best to live up to the image of an aoyi'ka and her companions. And it was a long, long meal at that.

Today we feast, but tomorrow we work.

Stars help us.