The Days of the Deer (23 page)

‘Here I am, O disobedient one!’

When he heard the old man, the boy sat up. Desperately, he opened his eyes wide to try to see Kupuka’s face again. But his sight was fixed on other things.

‘Be still, my boy,’ Kupuka told him, sitting down beside him. ‘That day when you crossed the Owl Gateway, taking Wilkilén with you, I was afraid your curiosity would
lead you to a place of no return. Now I see that exactly this has happened.’

Once a year, immediately after the end of the rainy season, the Ministering Falcon called his family together. When the moment came, falcons flew into the air from all four corners of the sky.
Some of them flew alone, others in great flocks. They were all heading for the same place: the region of the great nests, high in the Maduinas Mountains.

The Husihuilkes did not know for certain what brought the falcons from everywhere to meet the Ministering Falcon. It was rumoured that this was when the Ministering Falcon challenged all the
young male falcons who wished to dethrone him; it was said there was a bloody struggle for the succession, and that almost always it was his own sons who killed him and took his place. This was
what was told and retold, but no one knew with any certainty. Yet the Husihuilkes did know some things about it. They knew it was forbidden for them to witness this ceremony. They also knew that
all those who had tried to do so were found out and punished. That was why on the day the falcons darkened the sky, they took great care not to go anywhere near the great nests.

Any human being who dared to see what was forbidden was punished through their eyes. The Ministering Falcon punished them by stealing their eyesight. Not to leave them in the darkness of being
blind, but by transferring his own eyes to them. From that moment on, whether their eyes were open or closed, they would see as the Falcon saw. If the Falcon was devouring its prey, the human being
saw a bloody mess. And even if he screwed up his eyes, he was still forced to see it. If the Falcon began to fight, the human would see the terrified or terrifying eyes of his adversary. If the
Falcon were resting in his nest, the man saw sky and rock. If the Falcon were flying in the sky, the man saw his beloved world from on high. When the man managed to fall asleep, he dreamt the
visions of the bird. When the bird slept, the man saw his dreams.

Piukemán, the disobedient one, Shampalwe’s curious son, had again defied the prohibitions. Just as on the day when he went beyond the Owl Gateway, he had wanted to see further than
permitted. This time he had paid the highest cost.

‘Once, the Falcon flew over our house,’ Piukemán said between sobs. ‘As soon as I realized it was coming in this direction I asked everyone to go outside, hoping the
Falcon would look down and I would be able to see them again. I thought I saw Kush, but could not be sure ... the falcon was flying too high and too fast.’

Piukemán had his eyes shut now: he was seeing Butterfly Lake.

‘The Falcon has stopped to drink,’ he explained to Kupuka. ‘I can see the reflection of his face in the water, and the stones on the bottom.’

The Earth Wizard held Piukemán close against his chest.

‘I saw the falcons fly by, and wanted to know. The same as that other time ... I left without saying a word. I walked all that day and the following night. I ran towards where the birds
were heading. At first light I reached the region of the great nests, and struggled so hard I found them. There was a ring of falcons with the Ministering Falcon in the centre.’

Piukemán suddenly jolted upright again. The Ministering Falcon had spied a squirrel it was going to hunt.

‘Don’t try to explain what I can already imagine,’ said Kupuka.

The Earth Wizard had understood that another difficult moment was approaching. He held Piukemán tight until it had passed. After some time, the boy’s body relaxed. The Ministering
Falcon had devoured the squirrel, and was now surveying the treetops.

‘Tell me, Kupuka, is there anything you can do for me?’

The Earth Wizard told him the truth at once.

‘There is nothing I can do. Nor anyone else. You have two choices. One is that of death. It is a short path, and offers you quick relief. The other is the path to wisdom. That is a long,
painful journey, but in the end you will find yourself in the best place on earth.’

‘What must I do for that?’ asked Piukemán.

‘First of all, you must let your human body pass into that of the falcon. The more you are akin to the bird, the less you will suffer. The rest will come. You will see, it does
come.’ Kupuka stood up to leave. ‘I have to go and talk to your elder brothers.’

‘Wait!’ Piukemán could see the treetops from high in the sky. ‘Promise me you will seek out the Ministering Falcon, that you will stand in front of him so that I can see
you.’

‘I promise,’ Kupuka said, and left the room.

Kush, Thungür and Kume were sitting on their rugs waiting to hear what Kupuka had to tell them.

‘Now I am the guide and the messenger. I am the one who will lead you,’ said the Earth Wizard. ‘Tomorrow we must leave for the Remote Realm. And I must tell you that all the
best warriors of the Ends of the Earth will join us along the way.’

‘What are we going to do in the Remote Realm?’ asked Thungür.

‘We are going to fight a war,’ said Kupuka. ‘The hardest ever fought.’

The next morning, Kupuka and Old Mother Kush were talking. A fresh departure was about to take place. It had taken Kupuka the entire night to say all that he had to say. Now he was giving the
old woman his final advice.

‘The rainy season is drawing near once more. There is no one in this house to repair the roof. Ask the birds for help. They love you, and will do it for you.’

Kupuka was trying to ignore how sad Kush looked.

‘Besides, you have to get ready to go and take part in the ceremony of the Sun.’

‘Do you think that with all the misfortunes they are facing, the Husihuilke people will want to dance and sing?’

‘They ought to celebrate all the more,’ said Kupuka, a harsh note creeping into his voice. ‘Did you hear me, old woman? More than ever!’

‘I don’t think I will be able to attend,’ said Kush. ‘Grief has left my soul empty. I’m old and tired ... my only wish is to leave this world.’

The Earth Wizard tugged at Kush’s long tress to reproach her.

‘I am sorry, old woman, but you cannot do that. Clever Old Mother Kush has enjoyed herself in this world, yet when evil draws near, she decides to abandon it!’

Kush stared at Kupuka with the look of a frightened child. Never before had the Earth Wizard been so angry with her. Worse still, he seemed to be growing even more irate.

‘You say grief has left your soul empty. I say to you: fill it with the grief of others! Remember that many mothers are saying goodbye to their sons. Everyone in the land of the
Husihuilkes has precise instructions to follow. You must continue to hunt, sow crops, to spin and weave. And you, clever Old Mother Kush, cannot be less than your neighbours!’

The old woman did not dare say anything. Two tears, which Kupuka pretended not to notice, ran down her wrinkled cheeks.

‘And especially you must take care of the three grandchildren who will be staying with you.’

On hearing this, Kush finally reacted.

‘I wanted to talk to you about that,’ she said softly.

‘What do you mean?’ asked Kupuka, calmer by now.

‘I mean Kuy-Kuyen,’ Old Mother Kush replied. ‘She is a beautiful young woman, bathed in starlight. Shampalwe’s family will soon be back for their answer. And I will have
to let them take her away to be married. She is of marrying age now, so there is no reason to refuse. If I do, the family will be offended. Unless ...’

‘Unless what?’ asked Kupuka.

‘Unless you take her with you.’

Kush thought this would enrage the Earth Wizard yet again. Instead, he waited patiently for her to explain.

‘I would like to see Kuy-Kuyen smiling and laughing from love, as her mother used to. I would like to see my beauty happy. And she will not be that if she has to stay here and is handed
over to Shampalwe’s family.’

‘What makes you think she will be happy if she comes with us?’

‘Well...’ Kush hesitated before going on. ‘Kuy-Kuyen often mentions the name of that Zitzahay messenger who came to fetch Dulkancellin. She mentions Cucub in her dreams and
when she is wide awake. She often gazes northwards and sings sad love songs. Take her to where he is. Perhaps the Zitzahay will love her in return and will want to marry her.’

‘But you are talking of weddings when we are going to war,’ Kupuka protested.

‘Look at it this way, brother: I am talking of love when death is drawing near.’

The Earth Wizard smiled. Human beings were the strangest Creatures!

‘What will you do?’ he asked.

‘Don’t worry about me. I have the experience, and Wilkilén the enthusiasm. As for Piukemán, I am sure he will choose the path of wisdom.’

Kupuka thought over what Kush was proposing. Kuy-Kuyen’s journey might possibly have a meaning the old woman could not even imagine.

All of a sudden Wilkilén came running up and flung her arms round Kupuka’s legs. The Earth Wizard lifted her to his face and whispered in her ear.

‘Yes, I’ll look after her with all my soul!’ she replied, giving away the secret.

The two old people stared at each other.

‘So be it! I’ll take her with me,’ said Kupuka.

A few hours later, Kupuka, Thungür, Kume and Kuy-Kuyen started out on their journey. They took the same path that Dulkancellin and Cucub had followed at the beginning of the previous rainy
season.

Kupuka strode off, muttering to himself.

‘They must be about to disembark. If I have properly understood the dreams that have come to me, their ships must be very close to the Remote Realm. But it will not be too late.’ He
kept on repeating, ‘No, it will not be too late.’

21

It was still raining over the Remote Realm. The day the strangers disembarked,
a thin, sharp rain was falling on Beleram. Like the thorns of a thistle.

The reception committee was waiting, formed up in the shape of a butterfly’s wings. Molitzmós’s warriors were surrounding the port. Dulkancellin and his men were watching the
proceedings closely from the rocks near by.

The three ships moored in the bay. Shortly afterwards, the first strangers appeared. Men dressed in black and wearing black capes left their ship, came ashore on the only jetty in the harbour,
and fanned out on both sides of it. The entire port was on the alert, ready for anything that might happen. An expectant silence, with the archers tensing their arms on their bows. Then another man
appeared, also dressed in black, but mounted on an animal no one had ever seen before. He came forward a few steps from between the twin rows of his escort, then halted for a long moment, which
some of those present measured in breaths, others in days. He came on. It was raining over land and sea. Rain like the thorns of a thistle.

Nobody there had ever seen an animal like this one: they had never even heard of its existence. Only two people had any memory of what it might be. One was Elek. He was in the first line of the
welcoming party, and immediately recalled animals mentioned in his elders’ accounts of the past. The other was Dulkancellin. From where he was hidden, the Husihuilke warrior could look down
on the port. The animal he saw advancing reminded him of the one he had seen in a dream, the night before the ceremony of the Sun.

The majestic animal continued its majestic advance. But before it touched the soil of the Fertile Lands, the rider halted it once more. Some hearts beat so loudly they could be heard through the
damp air.

The shoreline divided the day in two halves. On one side, the sea and black uniforms. On the other, jungle and brightly coloured tunics. All that united them was the rain, which continued to
fall. Rain like the thorns of a thistle.

‘The mark of their footsteps on our earth and
. .
. remember!
. .
. many generations
will reap poison.’
Dulkancellin suddenly recalled the words he had
heard in the forest at the Ends of the Earth. The old luku’s words took him by surprise. They seemed to him to come from a distant place that was not exactly memory.

The foreign rider paused at the end of the jetty. He took a long look at the waiting crowd. Digging in his heels, he made his mount rear onto its hind legs. From this height, the beast let out a
long, strangulated bellow from its throat, which sounded just like the battle-cries of the local warriors. Standing close by, the members of the welcome party felt fear clawing at them. None of
them moved, however, as their pride was greater than any fear. Behind them, the archers were ready to shoot to kill.

‘Greetings, dear brothers!’ shouted the stranger. His voice echoed all round the port. ‘May the heavens look down on this re-encounter.’

The rider spoke the Natural Language fluently. When he had finished his greeting, he bowed his head.

Three of the lesser Astronomers stepped forward to receive him. One of them, who had previously been appointed to the task, was the first to speak.