Out of all the seven exiles, Janus had enjoyed the most adventurous and carefree day.
Their flight upon the Bregas into the lofty skies of Ave had taken them over a far-reaching swath of rolling lands bathed in radiant sunlight. The latter revealed many silvery rivers, shining lakes, and glittering streams, which shone forth brilliantly from the dense green foliage surrounding them. The docile skies were traversed by gentle breezes and dotted with a few small clusters of puffy white clouds.
There were several more unique sights that Janus espied below him within the Onan lands. One such vision involved an impressive group of falls, almost like a sequence of broad, low steps, with sparkling water cascading down them. Janus imagined that the incredible falls were exceedingly wondrous to gaze upon from the ground level.
Over the course of the day, Janus and Ayenwatha had proceeded to visit a few more tribal villages. Some were similar, and others smaller, in size to The Place of Far Seeing. Ayenwatha spoke to Janus about each. A couple of them belonged to tribes different than the Onan, though all of the tribes visited were a part of the Five Realms.
One of the villages belonged to the Onyota tribe, in whose lands Janus beheld a particularly spectacular lake, of tremendous size, nestled among the sprawling forests.
The other tribe that he encountered that day was the Kanienke, whose villages were arrayed along a very prominent river. While within their lands, he saw another incredible waterfall, whose waters tumbled down the face of a towering, rocky escarpment.
At each of the brief village stops, Janus found himself to be quite the object of attention. Highly curious villagers gathered excitedly to view the exotic newcomer traveling with the Onan war sachem.
There was much talk of prophecy from the bits and pieces that Janus was able to gather, just at the edge of earshot. The references struck him very oddly, and he wanted greatly to find out more about the intriguing remarks.
He withheld the questions that strained to be voiced on the tip of his tongue. Janus wanted to make sure that he did not inadvertently stumble into some unintended offense of the tribal people due to his lack of knowledge concerning their ways.
Ayenwatha and Janus did not stay long enough in any one place to cause too much of a disturbance. Yet it was very clear to Janus that Ayenwatha enjoyed a high rank and reputation among the surrounding village areas, in Onan villages as well as in the Onyota and Kanienke communities.
The sensations of flight through the skies continued to be exhilarating, even more so after Janus had acclimated further to the newer mode of travel. Janus found himself awash in regret when Ayenwatha finally indicated that they were returning back to The Place of Far Seeing. There was one consolation to the return, in that Janus was the one member of the group that was spared the long climb up the hill slope.
Janus and Ayenwatha landed within the midst of the village without incident, just as the light of the day finally began to fade. For the second time, Janus was astounded at just how smooth of a landing it was, marveling at the grace of the large winged beasts that they rode upon.
Janus accompanied Ayenwatha as they led Arax and Reazl to the far stable building situated near to the outer palisade. The two tribal warriors that had been attending to the steeds when the day began were still there. As Janus and Ayenwatha reached the front of the enclosure, leading their steeds by their long tethers, he saw that the pair of warriors were once again playing the game involving the bowl and colored seed pits.
Janus had smiled contentedly as he lightly stroke Reazl’s muzzle, eliciting a soft whine from the amiable creature. He showed no nervousness as he spoke in a low whisper to Reazl, thanking the noble creature for carrying him safely through the skies that day.
Janus glanced away and saw that Ayenwatha was regarding him with a smile. The sachem had evidently been watching the interaction between the learning rider and veteran steed. Ayenwatha had then given Arax a firm pat on the side of the neck, speaking some words of his own to the bearish winged creature.
The two warriors, having gotten to their feet at the others’ arrival, were waiting patiently to tend to the steeds. After Janus and Ayenwatha had expressed their gratitude to the creatures, the warriors had then taken the steeds away into the byre. One of them had paused for a moment, promising Ayenwatha that the hardy Bregas would be fed and cared for immediately.
Janus knew that the comments were not a formality, or even a passionless duty. He could see the genuine reverence that the tribal warriors had for the Brega, echoed in the very way that they handled the large creatures.
Janus felt a calming sense of satisfaction with the day’s events, as he traipsed back with Ayenwatha, wending their way through the bark-covered longhouses. They soon found the rest of Janus’ group, talking together outside the end of the Firaken-Clan longhouse that they were all lodged within.
Erika smiled buoyantly as she looked up, her gaze meeting Janus’ eyes directly. The others, in turn, showed that they were also pleased to see him, even the rather somber Logan.
“The last to return,” Erika had exclaimed brightly, though she had a weary look about her. “We’ll have to hear your story as well.”
“And spared the hike up the hill too! I saw you flying in,” jested Derek, with the mirthful grin that Janus knew better than most. “You’ve got it pretty good, don’t you?”
Janus chuckled and shrugged.
“And you couldn’t have come down and turned your steeds over to us at the bottom of the hill?” Logan added with a smirk, though Janus could hear in Logan’s voice that he would not have objected to such a gesture.
“I’m sure he just didn’t know where we were,” Erika said with a light laugh of her own, winking at Janus.
“Next time, though, that’s a good idea,” Antonio remarked, glancing upward from where he was hunched over, diligently rubbing his right knee, as if striving to knead the soreness right out of it. “Don’t forget it, Janus!”
Janus could see that all of the others had the same air of weary satisfaction about them. They were in a relaxed mood, and Janus was soon enjoined with their discussion of the day’s events.
He was as curious of their exploits as they were of his day-long adventure through the skies. Janus soon got a good feel for the things that they had experienced, and what they had gleaned out of their sessions.
For all of the others, the day had definitely brought a distinct sense of new achievements. The feelings of accomplishment represented a noticeable change, eliciting a more confident tone in the group that had not been seen since the mists had cleared to reveal the strange new world around them.
Janus was finding some things about Ave to his liking, even if many things were radically different from the world that he had known and called his own. There was none of the frenetic nature of the world that he had lived in for over thirty-six years, surrounded by ubiquitous technical devices, and the frenzy of importance attributed to even the most minor, insignificant of things.
Janus and his comrades possessed none of the inventions that his world had proclaimed indispensable, and that sense of dire necessity regarding such implements was eroding with every passing hour that he spent in Ave.
Janus’ group was subsisting well enough despite the absence of gleaming devices and modernistic conveniences. There was no sense of being tethered to those implements either, lending a feeling of freedom from the chains of humankind’s own inventions. He also found that he quite liked the fact that every moment of communication between people within Ave took place face to face, right in person.
Janus knew that Derek was consciously noting the fundamental changes as well. Earlier that morning, Derek had remarked to Janus that if it were not for the families, relationships, and friends that he had left behind, he would have missed very little from the hectic and relentless pressures inundating their own world. Derek was taking to the relaxed pace favorably, commenting that time itself seemed to move much slower in Ave.
Yet it was also clear to Janus that the people that they had all been separated from, family, friend, and even acquaintance, weighed down heavily upon their hearts. It was just that a distinction had been made, as they had discovered that the new world, its environments, and the things within it, did not seem quite so daunting as before.
The meal that the women prepared for the seven famished exiles that evening was more than ample, not much less of a fare than had been the previous evening’s substantial repast.
The cooking pots produced a rather good hominy, accompanied by roasted portions of deer and turkey, bread baked with dried blackberries, and some walnuts and fresh berries gathered from the bounty of the forest.
Janus had experienced venison before in his own world, but the meat provided by the Onan was delicious, as was the turkey. Ayenwatha and some other men of the village took their meal beside the otherworld guests, exhibiting considerable appetites of their own.
After they had all fully attended to their voracious appetites, they had proceeded to relate their various stories to each other. Ayenwatha and the other men sat cross-legged around them, listening quietly as the others described their experiences, and fielded questions from their comrades.
The peace of night settled in softly outside the longhouse, draping a blanket of cool air over the village. The star-speckled darkness brought a serene atmosphere along with it. The deep pools of shadows that formed held no threats, surrounded as they were by the palisades and numerous dwellings.
A more light-hearted conversation gradually ensued amongst the exiles, perhaps the first such one that had taken place since they had all come into the new world. The activity that day had loosened up many lingering tensions, and had obviously given the otherworlders some greatly needed easement of mind.
Janus noted that the others’ spirits appeared to lift further as they spoke of their respective endeavors, drawing strength from the presence of a little structure and sense of purpose. The unstable chaos of the unknown no longer held full dominance, as the first rays of understanding and knowledge about Ave began to crest upon their individual horizons.
Ayenwatha and the few men that remained were content to keep listening to the group in relative silence. Janus could see by their shifting expressions that they were very amused by the thoughts and reactions of their guests to the various elements of Ave and the tribal culture.
Janus’ companions listened in wonderment to his own description of flight upon the Brega. The more that he gave voice to his incredible experience, the more Janus realized just how very special the adventure had been.
Upon his conclusion, Erika and a few of the others immediately petitioned Ayenwatha for the opportunity to fly upon one of the winged steeds. The warrior sachem resolutely assured the others that they would all be given a chance for an airborne excursion in the coming days.
Mershad, with occasional input from Kent, had then related several fantastic and intriguing facts of their new world’s rich history.
His comments had soon inspired many questions from the others. Ayenwatha, or one of the other men present, had to interject a few times with clarifications, or to answer something beyond Mershad and Kent’s nascent learning.
It was incredible to contemplate the reality of a people that shared their heritage through an oral tradition. Conveyed dutifully and diligently from one generation to the next, the tradition had bound an entire people together, in a unity that had held strong throughout millennia.
There were also some moments of levity during the discussions. Antonio joked about how he had managed to shoot an arrow almost straight into the ground, just about two feet in front of him. It was an act that Antonio said was undeniable evidence of special skills that only he possessed, and that he had proven to be a very formidable archer against anything within two feet of range.
The truth of the incident was gradually revealed. Antonio had concentrated so hard on pulling the string of the hickory bow back that he had let the weapon slowly tip towards the ground. The men instructing Antonio, in their immense amusement over what was about to happen, had allowed the event to carry forward to its ignominious conclusion.
His next attempt had gone farther, though completely missing an oak tree’s broad trunk at close range. It was a target that one of the men had instructed Antonio to aim for due to the relative ease of striking it, even for a beginner.
To everyone’s relief, a few shots later, Antonio had managed to bury one arrow into the tree.
Gradually, as the tales of the day’s events were exhausted, the direction of the conversation begged some more participation from Ayenwatha and the other tribesmen. They seemed more than happy enough to oblige the exiles.
It could not have been a more perfect environment for the telling of tales. Janus’ belly was full, night had fallen outside, and a small fire hissed and crackled in the chamber’s central hearth, as all huddled about to listen.
One of the warriors then told the guests some incredible tales concerning the Stone Hides, a large and gentle race of beings that had once lived on the northern borders of the Five Realms, in Osini lands. The legends themselves were not altogether very old, the final events in them transpiring just a few generations prior.
Janus listened in rapt interest as the warrior spoke at length of the strange race of creatures. He knew enough about the unusual nature of Ave to realize that the tales were just as likely to be truthful as fanciful.
The gray-green skin of the Stone Hides was said to have been as tough as any thick leather. It had a stony texture to it as well, which along with the hue of it had given the formidable creatures their name by the tribal people.
The huge Stone Hides had once lived in great harmony with humans within the tribal lands, their presence tolerated fully by generations of the tribes’ ancestors. There had been some rogue elements among both the Stone Hides and humans that had resulted in a few unpleasant incidents, but overall relations had been quite good.
It was a time when another race called the Little Ones had also been common within the same woodlands. To Janus, they sounded like a kind of fairy folk, shy and sometimes mischievous, who occasionally aided tribal hunters and interacted with the people. From what the warrior said, the Little Ones still dwelled in the forests, though their appearances to the people were now much more infrequent.
Janus could see that the tribal warrior telling the story looked upon such an age wistfully, and with wonder of his own. The warrior spoke with an unmistakable undertone of regret, as he described what had subsequently happened to the Stone Hides.
The Stone Hides had dwelled primarily underground, but one day the ground itself had suddenly shaken and rumbled violently, all across the woodlands. The upheaval reached the point that the ground broke and crumbled in many places, and had permanently closed off the passages reaching down into their netherworld abodes. In just one terrible day, the Stone Hides’ presence had been completely removed from the midst of the tribal people.
The tragic event had been interpreted as a stringent punishment to the tribal people. Evidently, the same age during which the tribes had enjoyed the welcome presence of the Stone Hides and Little Ones was also a period when there was a considerable number of dire and loathsome evils existing within the woodlands.
By their relative inaction, the tribal people had been allowing subtle and cunning entities to spread their influences and manifestations. A being called the Dark Brother and those allied to him were beginning to assert themselves more fully and openly, their reach extending even into the village and war councils of the tribes.
The Stone Hides had warned the tribal people of this growing malignancy, even as the tribes had succumbed to more violent passions during wars that had led to grave abominations such as the eating of the flesh of captives.
The consumption of a foe’s vital organs was not the only wickedness to sprout in regard to captives, as new practices of cruel torture developed among the people of the Five Realms. The tortures took on a ritualistic, almost ceremonial tone, involving making captives run gauntlets of warriors who mercilessly beat them before they were tied to stakes for burning. Other horrific methods included the tearing out of fingernails and the setting aflame of bark belts filled with pitch and resin, which had been tied about the prisoners’ waists.
The abominations had not only been visited upon war captives, but also to some unfortunate Gallean monks that had come among the tribes to propagate the faith of the Western Church. In truth, some of the most brutal practices had been applied to the monks, including the pouring of boiling water over them three times to mimic the Sacrament of Three Immersions that the Western Church used to anoint new converts.
The tribes now looked upon such practices with a shudder of horror, and even an element of disbelief. The warrior telling the tale had been adamant to state as such after relating the blood-curdling details of the past. Janus could sense the sincere shame that the warrior felt towards the atrocities by his lineage, though it was clear that he was determined to render an honest and unfiltered account.
The telling of the dark practices was important to the warrior, in the context of what it eventually led to in the growth, wisdom, and redemption of the tribal people.
The powers of the dark had not spared the Stone Hides in those malignant times either, taking possession of some unstable individuals of their number to commit atrocities upon humans. As with the corruption within the tribes, these hideous violations also involved flesh-eating.
The only difference between the experience of the humans and the Stone Hides was that the latter had been quick in recognizing exactly what was happening. They had moved rapidly to drive out the shadowy influences from their midst, as well as those that had come under the sway of dark powers.
The warrior commented that their ancestors should have seen the trouble coming, long before the warnings of the Stone Hides. It had not been very long before that time that the Wizards Deganawida and the Light Brother had disappeared from sight.
From the perspective of hindsight, it was held by the wise among the tribes that the departure of the two mighty Wizards was a harbinger of the eroding corruption in the spirit of the people. In truth, it had not been much longer following the disappearance of the Wizards that the tribes had started resorting to bloodier and crueler impulses, openly committing horrific acts.
The loss of the Stone Hides, coupled with the people’s understanding of the vanishing of the two great Wizards, had served as a terrible shock that had spurred the tribes with a great urgency. As if awakening out of the paralyzing depths of a nightmare, they had begun to see things as they were, in all their naked and monstrous truth. The tribes had then been extremely diligent in rooting out vile witches and malevolent shamans from their haunts within the shadowy, more remote depths of the woodlands.
As they did so, they had come to fully recognize the abominations that they had been committing upon others. They were thoroughly chastened, realizing that the sickness was in truth one of the soul. The Five Realms had abruptly ceased all of the sickening, bloody behaviors, ushering in a period of widespread reform, reaffirming the tenets that underlay the Grand Council’s founding by the Wizard Deganawida.
Janus recalled the great caution that had been evidenced, and the quartz crystals that had been brought out, when he and the others had been discovered by the band of warriors. He understood then that the diligence reflected the story he was now hearing, an assiduousness that had not ceased since that period of reformation.
From the way that the warrior talked, it was now unmistakable that witchcraft was truly regarded as one of the most evil of pursuits that a human could ever choose to take, a transgression of the spirit even worse than murder. To the people, it was a direct mockery of the One Spirit, having no presence in the pure light of the world’s Creator.
The renewed mandate to oppose the dark arts relentlessly was unquestioned, becoming a major root within the story of the Stone Hides. It was the very lesson and wisdom that had been derived from what was a great, collective loss to the five tribes. The two Wizards were still gone, as were the Stone Hides, but the tribes had been able to reverse the slide into spiritual devastation.
The warrior finally ended his thorough tale of the Stone Hides and its profound lessons. Upon completion, the other warriors, including Ayenwatha, excused themselves for the rest of the evening.
In the wake of their departure, Janus and the others got up and made their way deeper into the longhouse towards their own quarters. They exchanged polite smiles and nods with the various families settling down for the night within the other chambers.
Janus felt a little awkward walking right through the midst of the families, but could see that there was absolutely no discomfort on their part. Their returning nods and warm smiles were welcoming and kind, and there was no sense of irritation or interruption.
Reaching their own chamber, the seven split up and found sleeping places up on the surfaces of the raised platforms on either side. Setting the cornhusk mats and furs into place, they bedded down for the night.
By then Janus and the others were all at the point of absolute exhaustion. He had already taken notice that more than one of his comrades had had to make a concerted effort during the last parts of the story of the Stone Hides. Heavily drooping eyelids had threatened to transit into sleep, and Janus’ companions had done what they could to resist it.
Once six out of seven of the exiles were comfortably arrayed upon their corn husk mats and hides, they had fallen asleep very quickly. The seventh, Janus, did not slumber.
He found that he was still a little restless, not yet ready to give himself fully over to the embrace of sleep. His mind was still churning with the excitement of the day’s events, the lingering images of flight yet flowing through his head.
He could not deny that it was good just to feel alive again, even if his inner torments would not completely remove themselves from his mind and heart.
Finding a little solitude was not entirely an easy task within such a communal environment, but Janus decided to seek some anyway. He quietly maneuvered past a lightly snoring Kent, and got down from the sleeping platform. With cautious steps he made his way back down the length of the longhouse, passing through the other compartments.
As with his previous nighttime venture out of the longhouse, he took great care not to let his passage wake up any of the villagers that had gone to sleep. He had to watch his step, and a few more friendly smiles and nods greeted him from the shadowed recesses of the dark compartments as he continued through.
A couple of small children in one of the compartments giggled and ducked their heads under their fur coverlets, drawing a grin from Janus. It encouraged him how he and his otherworld companions had been accepted so quickly by the Onan villagers, and their friendship and generosity continued to amaze him. He wondered if he would ever be able to return even a little of their kindness at some future time. Not being of their world, he strongly doubted it.
At the moment, he figured that simply being cooperative and respectful, and making an effort to learn their history and ways, would at least convey his sincere appreciation of their bountiful hospitality.
The hazy thickness of the air within the various compartments of the longhouse was supplanted by the crisp, clean night as he emerged out from the sheltered porch at the end of the longhouse.
Outside again in the fresh air, Janus took a deep, cleansing breath. A spectrum of stars sparkled in the wide sky above, as the larger moon, and its more distant, smaller companion, had begun their nightly ascension on the far edge of the horizon.
He walked casually towards the front entryway of the village. There were a few warriors standing around the opening, which was now blocked by a removable section of palisade. They regarded him casually as he approached, though their eyes narrowed in curiosity and attentiveness as he drew right up to them.
“Good evening… Is it okay to go down to the water?” Janus asked one of the warriors, as he caught the man’s eye directly. Then, remembering the parameters set forth by the village council, he added quickly, “Can a couple of warriors take me there?”
The stout warrior to Janus’ immediate right considered the request for only a moment. He then replied in an even tone, “It is not always safe at night, and very dangerous if you are not with a war party. There are many dangerous beasts that hunt these lands at night, and we must always look out for enemies. Even witches can be about, and they can take many forms.
“It is not good to go out of the village alone during the night… and not even if you have a couple of warriors with you. Your desire is not wise. You must learn these lands well first. You will then know that I am speaking to you truly now, and that your wish is not wise.”
Janus was not affronted in any way at the very direct manner of the warrior. He was fast becoming aware of the fact that the tribal people tended to speak their minds openly. He realized that this was their customary way, and not a method of conducting a personal attack.
“Then perhaps I will make a wiser choice than the one that my desires wish to lead me to. I’ll stay within the village. Good evening to all of you, and thank you for advising me well,” Janus said in return, smiling amiably. He nodded respectfully to the warrior, receiving an affable smile in return, as he turned and left the vicinity of the entryway.
Slowly, he walked back among the silent longhouses, finally nearing the one housing Ayenwatha and his own companions. Out in the open night air, and now living amid a culture so close to the things of nature, Janus found that he was little concerned over getting dirt on himself. He grinned at the sudden recognition, remembering how cautious he had been in his own world to avoid any substantial untidiness.
Lowering himself, he first got down to his knees, and then slowly maneuvered and shifted about to lay upon his back, with his legs stretched out along the bare surfacing of rough soil beneath.
In just moments, he felt his body settling down, as he concentrated his thoughts on letting the tensions in his muscles flow out bit by bit. At first he winced a little as his joints, lower back, and neck adjusted to the flat and even plane.
He looked up dreamily at the ocean of sky and stars above him. Only the faintest hint of scudding cloud vapors tampered with the clear, vivid scene spreading to all horizons above him. Janus had immersed himself into similar visions back in his own world, especially when he was able to go deeper into the countryside, away from the obscuring glare of the city’s ubiquitous lights.
The cool, invigorating air, the peaceful serenity of the gentle night breezes, and the unmarred, magical panorama filling his eyes slowly soothed his aching mind and heart, just as similar environments in his former world had done. It afforded him a concerted place and moment to empty out his worries and cares, and to let his mind drift, all the while cradled within the peaceful and encompassing refuge. It was a timeless sensation, one that seemed to suspend the very turning of the world.
His eyes slowly began to close, and Janus started to find himself flickering back and forth on the boundary edge between sleep and full wakefulness.
“There you are!”
Though spoken so very softly, Janus jumped in surprise at the sudden, high-pitched voice, even as the familiarity of it tugged at him.
The speaker, to Janus’ complete surprise, was the village youth that had visited with him so very recently. The cherubic youth’s face hovered right over him, blocking out the sight of the clear night sky. Despite the darkness, and the silhouetted nature of the boy’s form, Janus could see that the youth was smiling broadly and apparently very full of energy.
“And how are you doing, little guy? Well, it seems that we meet once again. Don’t get much sleep, do you?” Janus replied, smiling warmly at the youth, as he carefully eased himself up slowly into a sitting position, stifling a slight groan at the labored protest of his body.
“I’m doing very good,” the youth replied buoyantly, smile broadening.
“So where did you go off to last night?” Janus asked him. “I tried to look for you, but you disappeared on me. Couldn’t see where you went off to.”
The child grinned, and shrugged. “I have much to do.”
Janus smirked, raising an eyebrow. “At your age? You are too young to be so busy. Enjoy life while you can!”
“I do,” the child assured him, before asking, “And did you enjoy your friend?”
“Who?” Janus asked, momentarily confused by the seemingly ambiguous question.
“Your friend. I brought you him last night,” the youth said a little impatiently, as if the first reference should have been quite clear enough. Then, he added in a similar, matter-of-fact way, “And he’s brought a couple of others today.”
Janus had to grin, even as pangs of sorrow tugged anew at him. He remembered the full events of the previous night and the boy’s imaginative comments. Janus once had such a vivid imagination, when he was that young.
Janus’ voice took on a slightly more somber tone, as the echoes of those unblemished days touched the edges of his now-scarred memory, “Yes, I do remember that. You told me about him… last night.”
“He flew with you up there today,” the youth said with a flare of excitement, pointing up towards the sky. His eyes seemed to sparkle in the light of stars and moon. “You cannot fly by yourself, like he can, at least not yet.”
“Oh… so you saw me on those… what are they called? The winged creatures?” Janus replied, leaning back to rest on his elbows.
“The Bregas? They are really good animals. They have strong spirits. Very strong. They have been good steeds for the people of the villages. They have always been with this land,” the youth replied enthusiastically.
“They were amazing to fly on. We have nothing like them where I am from. At first I was pretty scared to get on them, but at the end I did not want to leave,” Janus replied, his thoughts going back to the thrilling sensations that he had experienced earlier in the day. His heartbeat picked up a few beats in the mere remembrance of the rush of vivid emotion that he had felt while soaring over the forested hills.
“Trouble is coming, Janus,” the youth then said, in an abruptly serious tone.
Janus looked over, and saw that the boy’s expression had grown very dour all of a sudden. The blunt change in the youth’s demeanor gripped Janus’ attention and concern at once.
“What do you mean?” Janus asked, wondering further at the rather brusque shift in the young boy.
As with the end of their conversation the previous night, the boy’s tone carried a hint of maturity that belied his seeming age. Janus wondered if the youth was about to suddenly vanish as well.
“Trouble. Great trouble. And I just know it,” the youth replied sadly, but firmly, as if to head off an expected question coming from Janus.
The boy had indeed guessed correctly, as Janus had just been about to ask the boy how he had come to know of imminent trouble. Janus paused for a moment, considering his words carefully.
“What kind of trouble is coming?” Janus finally asked.
“Where you were today,” the youth said gloomily, looking skyward. The sparkle that had been in his eye now looked like the glistening of sadness. “It will come from up there. Be watchful. Your friends will need you. You must be ready to move. The people of the village cannot protect you from all danger.”
Janus followed the youth’s sorrowful gaze on up into the star-speckled sky. At the moment, the majestic vision looked as if it was incapable of harboring anything that would put the village even remotely at harm. Such was the strength of the peaceful presence that it was emanating.
Looking away from the sky, Janus turned back towards the youth. His breath caught in his chest. Once again, the young boy had suddenly disappeared. Janus grew silent and turned his head swiftly in each direction. There was no trace of him anywhere that his searching eyes roved.
“Again!” Janus remarked in sharp frustration, shaking his head in disbelief at the child’s evasiveness. “Or I’m finally losing my mind.”
After waiting a little while longer to see whether or not the child would return, Janus finally roused himself and got back to his feet. With a last glance around, he walked back to the entrance to the longhouse, pushed aside the hide flap covering it, and entered.
As he made his way back through the chambers, he doubted that he would be getting a lot of sleep. Only time would tell whether or not the young boy’s warning had any truth to it, but in this strange new world Janus was not about to discount the youth’s words entirely.