From Book 1
As time passed, gardens were planted and a briar wall was erected around their small village. It was evident that there would be at least three new children born in the next few months and more permanent houses were needed. Carey also taught the older boys how to shoot the rifles they had gathered from Foresthill and Chai came home one day with some live birds that looked very much like scrawny chickens. They built cages for them on a rock ledge and soon, there were fresh eggs available!
As winter approached, they stored away dried meats, root vegetables and a few wild grains they had discovered growing near the stream. A great discovery was corn growing in a garden near Foresthill. Carey carefully saved all the kernels, hoping to plant a field of corn the next spring.
Just before the first winter snows, three couples came into their village. They were all teens and the girls were obviously pregnant. The oldest boy stood before Carey, "Me Pali womin Nara be. Papa spek?"
Carey smiled at the earnest young man and kissed them both on the forehead, "Pali un Nara min un womin be. Papa spek."
The next couple came before Carey and stood, "Me Nici womin Tina be. Papa spek?"
Carey performed the same ceremony and then the last couple came before him, "Me Bili woman Keli be. Papa spek?"
Before Carey could reply, a small girl came running up, "Me Rasi, no mama, no papa be." The little girl held Bili and Keli's hand, "Papa spek, me dottar be?"
Carey kissed the foreheads of each of them, "Bili un Keli min un womin be, Rasi dottar be, Papa spek"
Chapter 1 - FIRST WINTER
The first snows came with a vengeance and piled up against their poor hovels. As Carey worried that some of the children might freeze, they discovered that the piled snow blocked the wind and their crude homes were actually warmer. They were now a village of sixty-five people, Carey being the oldest at 20 years, except for Nellie.
He had no way of determining the date, so he placed a circle of pegs he had cut from tree branches behind his hut. He put a tall branch in the center and watched as the sun cast a shadow on the snow. He figured he would be able to determine when the shadow was at its shortest and they could call that the last day of the year.
Davie and Carl started to hold classes among the boys and girls who wanted to learn to speak better, soon they had to break the class up into two groups as every villager wanted to attend.
As a precaution, they had piled additional brambles and briars around their village to form a barrier against wild animals, sometimes at night, Carey could hear large animals investigating the barrier. He worried that a hungry saber-toothed cat would eventually find a way in and hurt or even kill some of his children. He pondered the problem for days when he happened to see Bili standing outside his hut, holding a club as if he were guarding the door. As he walked up to the young man, Bili bowed to him and said, "Greets, Papa. Bebe com, Mama Nelli Keli wit be."
Just then, they heard a terrible shriek from inside the hut, then the shrill cry of a newborn baby. Bili began to tremble and Carey held on to him, to prevent him from running into the hut. He spoke soothingly to the excited young man, for he was no longer a boy, he was a father! A tired Nellie brought a small bundle, wrapped in soft furs, to the door, "Oy, Bili papa be. Bebe Min be!"
The new father held his son, tears running down his face as he repeated, "Bebe, Bebe, Bebe" He looked at Carey and proudly exclaimed, "Bebe min Cari be!" He then shouted at the top of his lungs, "Bebe min be! Baby min Cari be!" Nellie told Carey that Keli was just fine, she was sleeping.
Carey teased her, "Granny Nellie?"
Nellie glared at him and doubled up her fist, "I will granny you!" Carey, still laughing, stepped back as she made a mock swing at him.
He said, "I think you are going to be busy this winter, there are more babies ready to come into this world!
Carey was still concerned about the safety of those who looked to him for safety, remembering Bili, he went to speak with the new father, "Greets Bili papa be. Papa help ned." He went on to explain to Bili that he wanted him to train a guard force to protect the village and keep its people safe. Bili agreed, so Carey announced, "Bili Warrior Min be. Mins com warriors be un Bili."
Six of the teens stepped forward, they were all expectant fathers and were concerned for the safety of their new families. They all bowed to Bili, "Me warrior be un Bili."
Bili kissed each on the forehead as he had seen Carey do, "U Warrior Mins me." Then he motioned for his Warriors to kneel with him before Carey, "Papa, us Warrior Mins be, Haven safe be, Haven mins, womins, un childs safe be us!"
The young father's sincerity nearly made Carey cry. Bili had a new baby to care for and he was promising to help protect the entire village. Carey was struggling to keep his eyes dry when Davie and Carl came up to him and knelt, "Uncle Carey, we have lost our father and our mother now, we are alone but for you. Will you be our papa?"
Carey lost the battle and tears began to flood down his face. He grabbed the two boys and hugged them fiercely, "Yes, I will be your papa!" Still holding Davie and Carl, "Davi un Carl mins be un me. Me papa be un Davi un Carl. Papa speks. Davi un Carl blod be Papa blod be. Papa speks" Carely looked fiercely at his two new sons, "If I hear the word prince, you will be old and gray before you get off shovel duty!"
Two of the new guard warriors, Pali and Nici were brothers and their father had been an expert knapper. They showed Carey their knives and told him that they had knapped them themselves, under the direction of their father, Jal. Carey asked them if they could make more knives and Pali pulled two beautifully shaped spear points from his pouch. "Me Pali make. Me make more un Papa?" Nici showed Carey several knives he had created and made a present of a beautifully made flint knife with a carved bone handle to Carey. They showed Carey into the hut the two brothers and their wives had made home. They had a workshop set up for the making of spear points and knives, some were true works of art. Carey asked them to make spear points for all the Guard Warriors.
The remainder of the winter was quiet, two more babies were born, a girl to Pali and Nara and another boy to Ali and Rala. A small wolf worked its way into the village and was found half dead by two young boys, Mor and Bal. They nursed it back to health, intending to release it back into the wild, but the little wolf was having none of that. He trailed the two boys wherever they went and curled up at their feet at night to sleep. Soon, the wolf had wormed his way into the hearts of the villagers, especially the small children, whom he adored. Whenever there was a larger animal lurking beyond the barrier, the young wolf, whom they had named Nel, much to Nellie's dismay, would growl and bark in warning. Carey told the boys the wolf could stay as long as he hurt no one. Before long, Nel became the universal pet of the village and was eager to chase a ball that Carey had fashioned out of an old hide.
Winter slowly gave way to spring and Carey led a team of young men to an open area near the stream. He had equipped them all with pointed sticks and showed them how to plant the kernels of corn. He had enough seed to plant what he thought was an acre, surely that would help supplement their meat diet. Nellie had saved some melon seeds and she gave them to Carey to plant also. The soil was surprisingly fertile and the warm weather brought the young shoots up within days of planting. He showed the younger boys and girls how to care for the plants and divert water from the stream to irrigate them. A Guard Warrior was stationed to be with the young farm hands at all times that they were outside the barrier, the wolf, Nel, would accompany them and give warning whenever a predator was around.
The corn was about knee high when one of the girls shouted, "Look, Nel un womin wolf!" Sure enough, Nel had collected a female wolf and she was very pregnant! The new wolf was shy at first, but Nel went up to his humans, wanting to be petted and praised. The female soon followed his example. She loved to be petted and cuddled and became part of their community, they named her Fuli. She would come running whenever she heard her name, expecting a treat or someone to throw the ball for her. One morning, she failed to appear for her breakfast tidbits, so Bal went looking for her. He found her behind their hut, in a nest she had made of leaves and twigs. She was nursing four little wolf puppies! Nel was standing guard, allowing only his special humans near his children.
There had been an old crosscut timber saw in the General Store down in Foresthill. It had been for decoration, but Carey brought it to Haven when they had cleaned out the little town. He took fine sand and a soft piece of leather to polish off the accumulated rust. With a small piece of granite that Nici had knapped for him, he sharpened the teeth as best he could.
Taking the most husky of their Guard Warriors, he went out into the forest and began cutting down trees. They used stone axes that Pali and Nici had made, to trim the logs and remove the bark. When they had accumulated a large pile of logs, they rolled them back to the village. Carey showed them how to notch the ends and stack them to make a building. By the middle of the summer, they had enough homes to get everyone out of the huts and into a snug log home.
Just as the last house was completed, Nici came running, screaming for Nellie, "Mama Nelli, quick com, Bebe, Bebe!" The excited young man grabbed her hand, urging her to run faster. Nellie had been training Rasi to assist her, the little girl was nine years old and was fast becoming a skilled care giver. Rasi came running after Nellie and Nici and stood in the doorway to prevent Nici from entering. Carey had arrived and stood with the shivering young father while Nellie and Rasi delivered his new daughter. He introduced the new child to the villagers as Dara, she was blond and has the bluest eyes Carey had ever seen. He knew all babies' eyes were blue at birth, but he hoped that Dara's would remain such a pretty color.
One of the young wolf puppies wandered into Nici's home and lay down beside the new baby, refusing to move. Dara was his!
Chapter 2 - NEW ARRIVALS
Summer was well along, and, as was his habit, Carey had arisen early and was walking around the village, Nel at his heels. Suddenly, the wolf went alert and ran to the new gate in the walls they had recently completed. He began to whine and whimper and he pawed at the closed gate. Carey called for the Guard Warrior on duty and, together, they cracked open the gate. There, stood a young man, about Carey's age. His face and body was covered in bloody cuts and wounds. As he started to collapse, Carey caught him. The young man managed to stammer, "The children, the children", as he pointed down the hill.
He screamed for Nellie and Bili, both came at a dead run. Nellie took over caring for the injured man and Bili called out his Guard Warriors. Carey and Bili began searching down the side of the hill that the man had pointed to, suddenly Gor called out, "Hurt Childs be here!" The wolf, Nel, had gotten there ahead of them and was comforting the children, two of his pups were with him, doing the same. They found nine children, all of whom had been injured. They carried the children back to the village and Nellie and Rasi went to work.
The young man, whom they had learned was Lee, was crying, "I tried, I tried, but I couldn't keep them safe."
Carey asked him, "There are more?"
Lee replied, "Maybe, we were attacked by a Cave Bear down at Two Peaks Campground."
Davie and Carl shouted, "We know where that is, Guard Warriors, come with us!"
Bili pointed to four of his Warriors and they bowed to Davie and Carl, "We come you with, Blod of Papa!"
The six young men started off down the hill at a fast pace and the villagers helped bring the injured boys to Nellie and Rasi. It was almost dark when those who had run to the Campground at Two Peaks returned. They had two injured boys on crude litters and four more were being assisted in walking. Davie, Carl and the Warriors were in tears as they related what they had found. They had to bury eight dead boys!
Lee collapsed to the ground beating his fists and sobbing, "NO, NO, NO!" He looked up at Carey, "We knew you were here, but we were afraid, now my boys are dead." At that, the young man passed out. They carried him to Carey's home and put him to bed. The injured boys were being treated at Nellie's house and then villagers offered them their own beds that they might rest. It was a somber group that gathered the next morning, Lee insisted that he visit all his surviving boys. He was accompanied by Carey and the wolf, Nel. Nel's young wolf pups made sure every hurt boy got a face lick and his belly sniffed each morning.
By the time the boys were able to play, the wolf pups had their hide ball ready. By adding sixteen more people, the lumber crew had to get busy cutting logs for new houses and also to enlarge the wall. One of the girls had found some sage bushes and had concocted a tea that was quite pleasant. Carey was drinking his tea and enjoying watching the boys and wolves play ball. He spotted his sons/nephews and went over to them. He looked down at them and said, "Hmmmm, Blod of Papa, huh?"
Both boys blushed, "Honest, Carey, that was not our idea!" Carey replied, "It had better not be, those shovels are waiting for you both!"
Over the remainder of the summer, several groups of young boys and girls arrived at the Gates of Haven, asking for shelter. Carey was amazed, he had assumed that all the natives would be Indian, but many were red and blond-haired with green or blue eyes and pale complexions!
Pali, Nici and young Gor had been out collecting stones to be knapped into spear points and knives, Gor had asked that the two brothers teach him their skill and Pali had told Carey the boy was quite talented. They came back with their tote bags full, they had discovered some wild grape vines that were loaded with luscious ripe berries. As they were returning with their treasure, they came upon an old orchard that had apples in it and they were ripe. Carey carefully collected all the seeds and dried them in the sun, he was going to have him an orchard! They harvested the corn and set aside one-quarter of the crop for seed. The melons bore a huge crop, and they experimented in drying some of the melon flesh, but only the cantaloupes were edible dried. They dug a root cellar for storing the root crops and fruits. The storehouse was filled with dried meats, corn and forest spices to liven up their meals. Carey made sure that plenty of sage leaves were stored as he had come to enjoy several cups of sage tea a day. The flock of chickens had increased, so about once a month they had a grilled chicken picnic for all the villagers, with melons and fruits, it had become an important festival.
As the weather had begun to cool, signaling the end of summer, Carey planned a Thanksgiving Celebration. There would be barbecued chicken, fish, cornbread with honey glaze, and fruit for dessert. As the day arrived, the villager's excitement grew. The girls challenged the boys to a ball game and Pali and Nici sponsored a spear-throwing contest, with a new spear as the grand prize. The ball game was hotly contested, the boys won by the barest of margins and a new boy, Rici, won the spear.
As soon as Rici had the spear in his hand, he marched up to Bili and bowed, "Me want Guard Warrior be. Me not let cave bear us kil childs more."
Bili replied, "Papa must first spek."
Rici faced Carey and knelt to the ground, "Me Rici want Guard Warrior be. Big tooth bear my brotter un sittar kill. Not more childs kil he. Me, Rici, kil he!"
Carey reached down and stood the young man on his feet. He gravely kissed him on the forehead and said, "Rici Guard Warrior be. Haven safe wit Rici be. Papa speks."
Bili then kissed Rici on the forehead and said, "Brotter Rici be, Guard Warrior Rici be, Bili speks, Rici be blod of Bili." Bili hugged the new warrior and held him from collapsing to the ground. Bili whispered in his ear, "BROTTER."
The winter winds began to howl and the villagers broke out their winter clothing and furs. Nel and Fuli accompanied the Guard Warriors on their patrols, two of their now full grown wolf pups usually stood guard at the gate, growling fiercely whenever there was danger lurking outside the safety of their walls. Lee volunteered to assist in schooling the youngsters, their speech was becoming more articulate and they were beginning to learn rudimentary arithmetic. Lee had been a Freshman at the University and planned on becoming a school teacher.
It was a winter of accomplishments, Lee dug out some slate from the creek bank and Pali knapped it smooth for him. A piece of soft limestone rock worked well in place of chalk. It was so successful, the children insisted on an expedition in the snow to retrieve more slate and both Pali and Nici were kept busy smoothing the stones.
Lee had come to Carey's house after he had finished teaching one evening. A winter storm was brewing and the wind was howling around the log village, blowing snow into every opening. Fuli was again pregnant and she was laying before the small fire pit, soaking up its warmth. Suddenly Nel jumped up and began barking furiously at the door, two of his pups, Gotti and Mott, with him. Carey went to the door and, as he opened it, all three wolves dashed outside. Carey and Lee threw furs over their shoulders and ran after them. The wolves were barking and digging at the gate and they could hear voices on the other side.
Bili and his Guard Warriors arrived and they cautiously cracked open the gate, standing there was an older couple and six small children. They were covered in snow and ice and were shivering in the throes of exhaustion. They carried the new folk to Carey's house, a Warrior was sent to bring Nellie and Rasi to treat their hurts.
As they cleaned the older couple up, Pali screamed, "PAPA, MAMA!!!!!!!!!!!" He dropped to his knees, holding the shivering couple and hugging them.
Carl ran for Nici and told him his Mama and Papa were in Carey's house. Nici ran barefoot and without his warm cloak at the news. His wife, Tina and Pali's wife, Nara, followed on his heels, both women were carrying their babies in their arms. The brothers were crying and hugging their parents, their mother.
Geri looked up and saw the two young women holding their babies. She knew immediately who and what they were, she opened her arms and called, "gret bebe, gret bebe!" She forgot about being cold and wet, she ignored her fatigue, she saw her sons' babies and wanted them in her arms, NOW!
The two young wolves were sitting patiently, intent that no harm come to the babies. Geri looked up and screamed, "Wolf!!" and tried to protect the babies. Gotti, the largest of the two wolflings came up to her and the babies, and before she could scream, he wiped his tongue across her face and tickled the babies ears with his whiskers. The babies, both used to the antics of the young wolves, began to giggle and coo. Mott, the other wolf pup, wanted some loving too, so he went to the other side of the bundle of babies and rubbed his soft muzzle fur against their faces. This brought even more delight and both babies clapped their hands and giggled.
Geri looked wonderingly at the two feared predators, making her grandchildren giggle and coo in delight. Her husband, Jal, saw two fearsome wolves practically in his lap and he promptly fainted! Pali and Nici knelt beside their mother and said, "Mama us, bebes be Cari un Dara, childs un us. You un us in Haven be, safe be." He pointed to the wolves, "Frens be, Nel un Gotti un Mott be. Nel be Papa."
The older woman looked at the two wolves, "Frens be? No et us?" Before anyone could answer, Gotti and Mott curled up against the two babies and snuggled them. Both babies were happily pulling on a wolf tail.
The Guard Warriors then brought in the children who had come with the older couple, the villagers had warmed them up and put them in dry, warm furs. There were four little girls and two boys in the group. They were a little shy and afraid of the wolves laying there until Davie rolled a ball out onto the floor and Mott launched himself after the ball, bringing it to the closest little boy and dropping it at his feet. The boy kicked at it and sent it rolling away. Mott leaped through the air and landed on the ball, bringing it back to the little boy. The little boy giggled and soon all the children were rolling the ball for the wolves to bring back to them. Jal and Geri shook their heads in wonder.
Nellie and Rasi brought over a warm stew for the newcomers and soon the children were asleep and the adults were sharing stories of their survival. Guard Warrior Rici proudly showed Jal his spear, "Me Guard Warrior Rici, Pali this make un me."
Jal studied the spear point and he stood up, facing his son, Pali. "Greets, Pali, blod of me blod. Pali maker be." He bowed to Pali and then hugged him.
Carey showed Jal the knife given him by Nici, "Nici this make un me."
The old man began to shake, "Greets Nici, blod of me blod. Nici maker be" He looked at Carey, "Papa, u be Haven be?" Carey replied that he was and the old man straightened up. "Greets Haven Papa be, childs of me blod mins be. Childs of me blod makers be. Pali un Nici mins be Haven be." He held out his hand to his wife, Geri, and said, "Papa Haven be, us be Haven be?"
Carey kissed both Jal and Geri on the forehead and said, "Jal un Geri be min un womin be Haven, Papa Speks"
Chapter 3 - NEW BEGINNINGS
By Carey's reckoning, it was a new year and he directed that a celebration be held. Nellie cooked up chickens in some of their carefully hoarded grains, along with wild onions and spices. The previous summer, two boys, Tor and Voli had been exploring and discovered a salt seep deep in a rocky cave. Nelli used some of the precious salt to season her chicken dish as an added treat. Tina and Nara soaked some of the dried meats until they were soft, then wrapped the meats around vegetables before roasting them in the rock oven that Davie and Carl had devised.
Soon, the smells of cooking food drifted over the small village, make all drool in hunger. The Wolf Family sat in front of the oven, soaking up the delightful smells. Fuli looked as if she were ready to split, everyone expected to see her new puppies at any time, but she was there with her family hoping someone would drop a tidbit of food in their direction.
As they all sat to eat their meal, Carey offered a prayer he remembered from his Scouting days,"Great Spirit, we humbly ask that you remember us and that you protect us from the perils of this new world, bless our children and make them strong. Help them grow and show them your ways. We ask your blessing, O Great Spirit in all that we do, make us the best we can be." Everyone had their fill of the delicious treats, the children made sure that their wolf friends got their share.
After the meal, Guard Warrior Rici stood before Carey, "Papa, me Reci be, me spek?" Carey nodded his head to the young man to continue. Rici waved his hand at a group of young teens and they came to stand beside him, "Papa, us hunters want be. Us animals hunt Haven peples et. Other peples us find, bring Haven be"
Carey replied, "Rici un Tor, un Voli, un Mar un Gel Haven Hunters be. Papa spek."
Bili looked a little sad that his friend and new brother Rici was leaving. Rici turned to Bili, "Sad no be Bili, me live house un Bili be. Me brother un Bili be. Me blod un Bili be," He hugged Bili, then picked up little Cari and said, "This Cari be, blod un my blod, blod un brotter me be." He placed the child in Bili's arms and whispered to him, "BROTTER BE."
The new hunters spent the rest of the winter gathering their supplies and making weapons for the hunt. When, at last, the winter snows ceased and the air began to warm, Rici called to his hunters that they gather at the gate. Bili stood in tears watching Rici ready himself to leave. Rici walked over to Bili, "Not sad be brotter be, us gone not long. Us back un meats un foods for peples et."
Bili was still standing in the gate, watching Rici and the hunters disappear over the hill.
TBC
The village of Haven will continue to grow. More new children will be born and the seeds of a new civilization will sprout. Two peoples are becoming one, using the best of each as humankind survives and flourishes. Read as THE HUNTERS OF HAVEN discover other villages, other peoples and trade begins.