Just Another Day

Huata nodded and they prepared to have lunch. It was a stew made of bear meat that Shanku found to be quite delicious. Shanku then told Huata her tale while they ate.

"And then I came here. While I was waiting in the cave for the storm to finish, in came Dakota, passed out and half frozen. I pulled him to my fire, we spent a day bored out of our heads in the cave, and here we are today."

"They seriously exiled you when you were eight?" Huata asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, most people get stuck on that too," Shanku laughed. "I don't fully understand it either. I'm understanding better the more I see and the more I learn about our tribe's history, but I still don't really get it. I know they're scared and hiding, and I guess they were afraid I'd bring something bad home with me and it'd start another long war that might drive us extinct this time. "

"Ridiculous," Huata shook her head. "Perhaps they feared you would one day bring man home with you?" Huata suggested.

"Perhaps. I was roaming farther and farther, and Dai was surprisingly close. But still, they can't hide forever. Man didn't stop their roaming just because we did, and Rhett often went into the Nyre. How he never saw one of the Peridæ clan, I'll never know. They're the clan between us and the ocean where Port Tephras lies. Come to think of it, I didn't see them either," Shanku scratched the back of her head thoughtfully.

"Perhaps they did not see you?" Huata suggested.

"Oh no, I'm sure they saw me alright," Shanku shook her head. "Sylvans are horribly suspicious of strangers in their land."

"And for good reason. The northenmost clan is full of raiders," Huata said glumly. "They might fear you would bring one of the raiding clans back with you."

"A Sylvan clan full of raiders?" Shanku asked in surprise. "I thought only the outcasts ventured out of their home territories."

"Not this clan. Some of the Arctic ones south of us have trouble from them each winter."

"That is very interesting," Shanku noted. That explains why Dakota was so uneasy around me and leery of me. Maybe that's why he lied about where we were? He probably thought I was a scout too. She then wondered aloud, "I wonder if I'll see them?"

"Doubtful. They rarely come this far north," Huata replied. "And I do not recommend seeking them out."

"I suppose I won't," Shanku shrugged. "I've had my fill of brigands."