Chapter 20

Our arrival at the Horse People’s encampment caused quite a stir. The Horse People were camped up on a hill overlooking the far side of the lake. Because the river was still near to overflowing its banks, my party had to ride beyond the lake and then uphill quite a bit from it, to find a passable ford. Then we had to ride back down the stream we’d crossed and over to the hill where the encampment stood. Our progress had been marked by the hunters of the tribe well in advance of our arrival. We were met by Baylor and a party of men upon our approach. Behind them were gathered a number of youths and children anxious to see the men who rode horses.

“Greetings Baylor of the Horse People,” I called out well before coming into spear range of the group of men. “I have returned as promised to deliver the saddles I have made for Chief Agar and his brothers. Am I welcomed?”

We were indeed welcomed! Baylor led my party and me to a spot on the edge of the encampment so we could pitch our camp. I left Tonko and Sygor to remove the travois and to unpack our gear. I then went with Baylor to greet Chief Agar and his brothers.

It was a funny situation from my point of view. The old chief of the Horse People was trying his best to be as formal as his culture insisted that we be towards one another; however it was clear that Agar was bursting with the desire to see the saddles that I had made and, very probably, he was bursting with the desire to go for a ride.

We went through formal greetings again and I presented him with a suitable gift. I didn’t give him salt this time around. Instead, I presented him with a knife that Uttar had crafted upon my request. It was a finely made flint blade with a bone haft and ornately carved wooden guard between the stone blade and the haft. The guard was carved with a horse head on each side facing away from the tang. The handle had been wrapped in wet rawhide and it had been allowed to dry and tighten to hold everything in place. I presented it in a finely made sheath that would fit on any belt. Agar was suitably impressed as were his brothers.

We’d arrived in time for lunch, so we ate first before any business was concluded. I wasn’t there to trade. I made that clear once greetings had been concluded. I was there to deliver the saddles and tack as promised, and to pick up the horses promised in exchange, and that was it. I would leave trading for another day.

That pleased Agar well enough. As I said, he was giddy with desire to see the saddles that I’d brought with us. Baylor had assured Agar in a whispered exchange that indeed, I had brought saddles along with me. That had put a smile on Agar’s face.

It also impressed Agar that I spoke his language well enough to converse with him freely and without the help of Baylor. I assured him it was only through the help of the people who had come with me from his tribe that I was able to do it. I made certain to praise the men in my company, speaking well of both Tonko and Sygor. That too impressed the old chief. He had a keen sense of the worth of people, and to hear that I valued his former hunters made him sit up taller, with shoulders squared, pleased beyond expectation.

We did speak over the meal. It was a basic stew that contained more meat than vegetables or roots. The meat tasted like horse. It was okay, but it became clear that the Horse People hadn’t weathered the winter as well as I had. By this point, Tonko and Sygor had joined me as guests at the hearth.

Our discussion had started off simple. Agar had asked how our trip had been. It had been uneventful and I’d told him that. I did point out that travelling by horses had cut our time greatly, even though we’d been dragging the travois he’d loaned us last summer when we’d visited him and his people. Agar had simply nodded his head acknowledging what I had told him and then he had asked the question that drew the most interest. He’d asked how well we’d survived the winter.

I tried to be gracious about it, telling him that our cave had been lucky in that there had only been a few minor sicknesses, and that we’d come out of the cold times well. Tonko, however, in the exuberance of youth, decided to tell all. Since Tonko was known to the Horse People, his words carried weight even though he was still only fifteen summer’s old. What he told Agar and the other men dining with us caused quite a stir.

Tonko spoke of the feasts we’d enjoyed, the entertainment that had kept us amused, and the hunts that we’d gone on during the dead of winter. It impressed everyone that we’d actually hunted while the snow lay deep on the ground. To that comment Tonko had replied that the horses had helped greatly in our treks to get game. His detailed descriptions of the horses pulling sled upon which the hunters had sat bundled up against the cold, caused a number of men to raise eyebrows with looks of interest. Agar was definitely impressed.

The thing that really stirred the interest of the men seated about us was when Tonko spoke of my magic. I really wish he hadn’t done that. I even gave him the ‘evil eye’ for doing it, silently chiding him for his imprudence, but by that point the cat was out of the bag.

The shaman of the Horse People took immediate note of Tonko’s words and my reaction to them. I got the feeling that he was sympathetic to my predicament. The old man must have experienced enthusiasm like that which Tonko was displaying, at least once in his life. He obviously knew the grief such talk could bring, especially if ‘the spirits’ were listening in. Magic wasn’t a topic to be taken lightly. The old man tried to turn the topic to other matters, but then Tonko dropped the bomb that our healer had breathed life into a dead girl.

“Enough,” I was forced to tell Tonko, cutting him off as the men about us started to get fidgety. Then turning to the shaman and meeting his questioning gaze, I spoke pointedly to the man. “I will speak with you later, once my business is done with Chief Agar. Your questions will be answered then.”

That satisfied the shaman and it satisfied Agar, as well. It was clear that even Agar was unsettled by Tonko’s tales and he appreciated my effort to placate the spirits of his people by directing any further conversation to his shaman.

We did learn that the Horse People had not fared as well during the winter as our people. A sickness had hit the cave killing several of the old and some of the young. A few hunters had died as well. In total the tribe had lost twenty of their number to the cold. Naturally, I expressed my condolences and then offered up a prayer that the Earth Mother would be kind to them this year.

There was no need to wait until the next morning to address the business that I’d come to the Horse People to conclude. Since I was delivering goods already traded for, and I didn’t intend to do any other trading, there was no need for Agar to spend the night thinking on whether he wanted to do business with me or not. Thus once the meal was finished I took my two young companions back to where our camp had been set up and we fetched the saddles and tack that we’d brought with us. We toted it back to the central hearth where Agar sat anxiously. It took a couple of trips. In the end I’d brought the extra three along with me. If we were going to move the cave this summer, extra horses would really help us out.

Agar was impressed. On receiving his saddle and tack and after inspecting it, the old man called for Balto the Horse Handler.

Balto showed up a few seconds later leading three horses. They were the same horses that Agar and his brothers had ridden, the summer before. With the help of Tonko and Sygor, Balto saddled up the horses for the chief and his brothers. While the three of them did that, I went and fetched my bay. If the chief was going riding, so was I.

We rode down the slope of the hill and we headed north. I noticed that Agar and his brothers were doing well riding their horses. They at least looked comfortable in how they handled the mounts and they seemed to be pleased with the saddles.

I kept them to a walk until we hit the bottom of the slope and then I let Agar take the lead. The old man prodded his mount into a trot and then after a short distance into a canter. In no time we were galloping across the plateau. We were quickly well past the foot of the lake where the big river started. We were riding neck and neck oblivious to where we were going. All Agar cared about was the freedom he was experiencing. It came as quite a surprise when we stumbled onto a problem.

The plateau on this side of the river was a mix of wide open spaces and hidden, somewhat sheltered hollows. We came bursting into a hollow unexpectedly, only to realize that we’d stumbled on a pack of wolves in the process of killing off a wild cow. Our arrival threw everything into a bit of disarray. By the time Agar was aware of the situation he and his brothers were in the middle of the pack and surrounded.

“Follow me,” I cried out as I rode through the pack once again, urging Agar and his two brothers to fall in behind me.

It didn’t take much to convince them of the wisdom of doing so. They had recovered quickly from the shock of finding themselves in trouble. None of them were armed except for knives they wore on their belt.

When I got to the top of the hollow I reined in once more and I spun the bay around. Unlike the three brothers who were hot on my tail, I was armed. I had an automatic shotgun in my saddle scabbard. I pulled it out as I settled the bay and waited until Agar and his brothers rode by me. It didn’t take them long.

By then the wolves were totally messed up. The wounded cow had run off and the wolves were annoyed, but more importantly they were confused at what to do now. They could easily go after the cow and bring it down, but there were also the horses that had just charged through them. To the wolves they’d make a great meal as well. As for Agar, his brothers, and me, I seriously doubted that the wolves had even noticed us yet.

I didn’t care and I certainly didn’t intend to wait until they did. I opened fire on the pack spraying them with a heavy load of buckshot.

The range was no more than thirty yards. My first shot tore the head off the wolf closest to me and my second and third shot dropped the next two wolves without much of a problem.

My only real difficulty was keeping my seat. The bay had heard gunfire before, but that didn’t mean she liked it. The multiple shots had the animal ready to break for the open terrain. I fought to steady the horse while at the same time trying to aim at another wolf. By then the pack leader was taking an interest in me and I wanted to drop him before the rest of the pack got the idea that it would be a smart thing to try and bring me down. There were still six animals in the pack and they all looked hungry.

I took my shot and dropped the brute and then whirled my horse up and about once again in an effort to get some control on the creature and to put a little distance between me and the wolves. It worked. I rode the bay off for about fifty yards and then spun her about again. By then we were out on the flat with nothing but open space between us and everything else.

I dismounted at that point and I handed my reins to Agar to hold. The old man took them the moment I thrust them into his hand. I then stepped away from him and the horses and I moved back towards the hollow. I was met halfway to the edge by the rest of the pack. I cut them all down as the came over the rim and headed for me. It took only four well placed shots to drop them all.

That night we feasted on freshly killed cow. Once the wolves had been dealt with, I’d gone and I’d tracked down the cow. It hadn’t gone far. The wolves had mauled it and it was limping. I put the poor animal out of its misery. I then asked Agar to send one of his brother’s back to the encampment for horses, travois, and helpers.

Agar had been so stunned by what had happened that it took two tries to get him to understand me. The shock of blundering into a pack of wolves unarmed had been unsettling enough, but to witness me slaying a pack of wolves single-handedly with a weapon that sounded like thunder had left Agar in shock.

It had taken well over an hour and some for Agar’s brother to return with help. In that time I’d dressed out the cow. I also rounded up the cow’s stray calf. That also took Agar by surprise. Then I skinned the wolves while Agar and his other brother watched over me.

“Cattle are like horses,” I told Agar when he asked me what I wanted a live calf for. “You can raise them in your cave for food and to provide you with skins. Their milk can be made into cheese, butter, and other products if you know what to do. This little calf will be the first of many I will have once I get a chance to find more.”

It gave Agar something to think about. He didn’t know what cheese or butter were (his people didn’t use the mare’s milk except to make their fermented drink), but my comment gave the man ideas. Like I’ve stated before, the man might be old and he might live in a tepee, but he wasn’t stupid. He’d seen the value of riding a horse the moment I’d told him why I wanted live horses from him. Now his mind was doing the math, figuring out how raising cattle might help his tribe out. Silently I wished him luck. If he could, I’d come and trade for some from him.

On the ride back to the camp Agar questioned me about the shotgun. I kept my reply simple. It was a sacred weapon of my people, it was impossible to replace and I had none to trade.

I don’t think Agar appreciated my abruptness, but there wasn’t much he could do about it without alienating me, and I knew he didn’t want to do that. I had seen his face while he had ridden across the plateau and I knew that he wanted to do that again. To help placate his ruffled feathers and to at least meet the man part way, I offered to show him how to hunt with a lance.

During the feast that night, once all the regaling of the day’s events had been concluded and everyone had heard how I had saved Agar and his brothers, I brought up my trip southward to the mountain pass. I asked if anyone had ever been to the other side. It turned out that the answer was ‘yes.’

Gogra, the youngest brother of Agar had made the trip once, long ago in his youth. He told me all about it.

The first thing he did was to promise me that the pass was clear by now. As it turned out the pass wasn’t high up where the snow stayed throughout the summer months. It was lower down and fairly broad. He promised me that he would show me where it was. I naturally thanked him for his promise of assistance.

I also brought up Sygor’s interest in finding a mate during our visit to the Horse People. That stirred up a considerable amount of interest.

I explained to the Agar and the hunters that Sygor had come to me from the Plains People who lived in the land at the foot of the plateau. I told him his family and tribe had been wiped out by bad men from my own people. I assured everyone that the bad people had been dealt with and there was no need to worry about them. I did however point out that Sygor had found no one in my cave that he wished to mate and now he was hoping to find a woman amongst the Horse People, if Chief Agar permitted it.

The answer turned out to be ‘no.’

It wasn’t personal, it was tradition.

The thing was that it was personal, in a manner of speaking, regardless of what Agar and his shaman told us. The Horse People didn’t want outsiders polluting their bloodline. Tonko had already forewarned us that the answer would be no and that the hunters won’t budge on the subject no matter how nice I played with Agar. Still knowing hadn’t kept me from asking the question.

Their answer in turn had opened the door to my next question.

“What about the young women living at the fringes of the tribe,” I inquired looking from Agar to the shaman. “The young women who either have no father or their fathers are not hunters. Are they ruled by the same custom or can my young friend seek out a mate there?”

The question was somewhat unexpected by Chief Agar and the hunters. The hunters held the top tier in their culture, even though the horse handlers and their families provided more to the tribe in the way of food and resources than the hunters did. To the hunters they would never mate one of their children to the child of a horse handler and they certainly would not mate a child of theirs to a child living with a widowed woman. There was status in being a hunter and defender of the tribe, but there was no status as a widow. For Sygor to even consider to mate a woman from either of those two groups was unthinkable. The shaman rescued the situation.

“If the woman and her family were no longer part of the tribe, I would see no problem in it,” the old mystic declared, looking at me in a manner that told me that the ball was in my court. Fortunately I was ready for his reply.

“How many are there?” I asked.

I got up early the next morning and I woke Sygor and Tonko at the same time. We had a full day ahead of us and I needed their help. I still hadn’t picked my new horses yet, and I had a few other jobs to do before we left the encampment and headed towards the pass. From the look of it I would be staying at least one more night.

I gave Tonko and Sygor a couple of jobs to do for me that morning. The first was to ride out and to find me a couple of tall, thin saplings that would work as lances for horse mounted hunters. I wanted a weapon longer than the standard thrusting spears used by the Horse People. I also wanted them to do some hunting for me. I wanted them to bring back at least one kill that I could offer to one of the two girls to entice her into doing a job for me. I also wanted them to do some scouting for me. I wanted them to find a small herd of cattle that had nursing calves in it. My acquisition of yesterday had given me an idea and I had decided to act on it while we were here. Hopefully, what I wanted to do would work. I sent them off with instructions to be back to the encampment as soon as possible since a lot of what I had to do that day depended on the successful completion of their jobs. Then I went off and I saw to my own chores.

My first stop was to tend to my calf. I’d fed it some mare’s milk last night, with moderate success. I got some more this morning from one of the horse handlers. Agar had left word that I would be by from time to time, and that the handlers were to respect my wishes. While the youth went and filled my drinking skin with milk I took a quick look at the herd.

The herd was about four hundred strong. Most of them looked a little on the light side compared to my horses. They’d obviously had a long, hard winter. Some however were in better shape than the rest. I marked those animals in my mind to be checked out once I’d fed the calf.

I tried feeding the animal. It wasn’t more than a month and a bit old. It tried drinking the milk, but I think a good portion of it ended up on the ground. I then led it over to the stream the encampment was situated near and I let it drink its fill from the stream. Once it had, I took it back to the horse herd. For now the horse handlers were keeping an eye on it.

I took an hour to check out the herd for the horses I wanted. Agar had taken all six saddles that I’d brought with me so that was the number of horses I needed to claim. I spotted the horses I’d seen before and I went to them first. I quickly located six animals that would take weight on their backs and who didn’t shy away when I approached them. With each I tied a piece of rawhide to the halter they were wearing to mark them as being chosen by me. I would let Agar see them later on before leading them away. From there I headed back to my camp to see if Tonko and Sygor were back. I got very lucky. Both were there with what I’d asked them to find.

“Okay,” I told the two young men, “I’ve got another job for you to do.”