Chapter 16: Explanation

Brgghhh

Jord sat in stupefied amazement as Jona hurried to Leana’s side. “What are you talking about? You’re not seriously considering this, are you?” Yet even as she spoke, she realized just how serious her friend was, and suddenly she knew who the fourth person must be. “Meta? Nooo!” Speechless, she turned to Jord, as Leana nodded.

“And they must go alone, without any help from us,” said Seth. “I understood that, from all the things Ylva told us,” he shook his head, as if trying to wake from a bad dream, “I understood that.”

“Not entirely alone, my friend, not alone.” The thought came to all of them, even as they heard a shouted alarm from outside the hut. “And now, if you will inform your people that I mean no harm to them, I will speak further with you on this matter.”

“What next?” said Jord as he climbed painfully to his feet and limped out the flap into the bright sunshine, to see the confusion in the village. The people were pointing up at something in the boulders overlooking the far riverbank, and several had bows and spears at the ready. “Stop!” he ordered, his command cutting through the chill air. “Do you greet a friend this way?” They looked open-mouthed at him, scarcely believing their eyes, and he turned to face a sight that unnerved him, as well.

Jona and the others joined him as he awaited the arrival of a huge, striped cat, which was almost daintily picking its way from stone to stone across the river. The contrast between the way it moved and the way it looked was startling. Its buff colored pelt was interspersed with darker reddish brown stripes. Two wicked looking tusks protruded downward from its upper jaw, and though now retracted, frightening sets of claws were apparent on its paws. The animal was huge, and Seth estimated it to be heavier than the bear that Rand and Dann had killed. Muscles rippled along its back and flanks as it slowly picked its way across the river. Then Jord had to suppress a grin as the creature reached a spot too wide for stepping, voiced a frustrated snarl, and plunged in to swim the rest of the way. The frightened villagers gave way as the cat climbed up the bank and walked past them, ignoring their weapons with visible disdain.

“I have come. Where is it warm and dry?” The big cat did not hesitate, but captured Jord’s thought and turned to enter the hut, where it stalked directly to the place where Jord had lain for weeks now. There it sat and began cleaning itself. “You will no longer require this sleeping place, my friend. It is best that you lie with your mate from now on.” It turned to look directly at Jona and Jord, “And, so far as is possible, regain your strength for the days to come.”

Jord had begun to voice his chagrin at first, over having his bed commandeered, but now he looked from the others to Jona, who had covered her face in embarrassment. They all began to chuckle at this, and it quickly turned to a roar of laughter, relieving the tension. “I am Brgghhh, and I do not like to be wet,” continued the cat.

“May I help?” Meta picked up a piece of the bark cloth that Jord had used as a blanket, and began rubbing it over the cat, drying him as he sat there. Brgghhh voiced his pleasure at her actions with a soft purring that gradually became a rumble that filled the small hut.

“I thank you, young woman of the village,” spoke the cat, “it pleases me that you are not frightened. Many are, with good reason, but you need not fear from me, and you accept that. We shall be good friends, you and I, and your other companions as well.” He shifted his gaze to Aard, who stood there smiling, “Especially that one, I think.” Now it was Meta’s turn to show her embarrassment as Brgghhh continued. “This is one of the mysteries we do not fully understand concerning you humans, your Joinings. There will be two of them now, I think, and no time to waste. The enemy stirs, and we must face him far away from here, and not long hence. But for now, I will speak with these, your own Elders, and answer the questions that they are bursting to ask. We still have a little time before Aigle joins us.”

Explanation

Jord sat cross-legged on the floor of the hut, with Jona and their friends seated nearby. His credulity had been strained to the breaking point, and now he shook his head in sheer disbelief. “A human that is also a machine? Our children going off alone into the wilderness with talking wolves and cats to do battle with evils we’ve never even imagined? And now we are to understand that the Lord of the sky, whoever that is, will be their guide?”

“Yes, my friend, that is the sum of things,” replied Brgghhh. Even his mental “voice” sounded like a growl, but there was an undertone of gentleness that belied his frightening visage. “The Elders have decided that it is time to help the humans who would live in harmony with nature in their fight against those who would enslave them – and us. Together we can overcome this monstrous creation that tries to destroy us all. None of us can do this alone, and these four have been chosen to stand for us all.”