III
I
heard the chant of the eagle, the music of the hunter. I saw the dance of the Great Coyote and saw
far away the shimmer of a black shaft, the sharp pointed conclusion of an
obsidian spear. I looked around and
realized I did not know any of the Apsaalookes around me, they seemed to be
dressed differently as well. No longer
did they have the soft fur of the bison, instead, it was replaced by a matted
coarse hair. The hair seemed to stick
out like a porcupine’s quills. I felt
strange. This was the first time that
I’d seen such a material, and I was a child of the Great Coyote, how could I
not know a fur? Confused, I looked back
at what seemed to be the chieftain, they seemed to take no notice of me in the
midst of the dance, so I joined in.
Whooping and howling I reached up with one arm and back down with the
other I swooped down at the earth as though a bird of prey on the hunt. And then, as quickly as they started, the
drums stopped. I looked up and saw the
chieftain leading the men out on a crouching jog.
Everything
happened so quickly, before I knew it I was swept up in the hunt. I ran along stooping here, crouching
there. We ran, it seemed like miles, but
we crossed the vast expanse as silently and as thoroughly as a wave of ants on
the prairie. Hills, canyons, and plains
we crossed like clouds in the sky.
Suddenly we came to the crest of a hill, and looking down I saw
them. They were the largest beasts I had
ever seen. Mighty tusks like the horn of
brother deer reached down from their mouths daring to crush and flip anything
in their path. That same matted coarse
hair reached out haphazardly from their fly ridden tails.
Our
chieftain signaled and all fell to the ground.
He pointed to the right and ten of the younger men ran off in a long
circle behind the massive beasts. As
they disappeared into the distance, the chieftain signaled again and another
group went off to the left, cutting back to the center after swinging off to
the right. As they cut in, the other
group moved in directly behind the beasts.
As they did so, they began to scream and howl. The beasts, mighty and majestic as they were,
were disturbed. They tried to make off
together, but it was too late, one of them ran towards the spears of the men in
the left group. The mighty beast was cut
off from the flock. Whooping the
chieftain signaled, running forward, the men surrounded the great beast. A few foolishly threw their spears at the
great beast and watched as they bounced off his thick fur like water dripping
after rain. But the beast could not
escape.
He
was doomed.
The
chieftain ran forward and as he did so I realized just how large he was, he
carried a mighty spear the size of three husks of quakies. He lunged forward and drove the spear deep
into the chest of the beast. It reacted,
swinging his tusks, throwing the chieftain over the other members of the tribe,
but his bravery had done the trick, now those in the back stabbed at the rear
of the beast, and those in front lunged at his neck and broad chest. The beast could not escape, and I saw one of
the saddest, most majestic things I have ever seen that day. The beast lurched forward throwing hunters
out of his way it released its soul into the fight. It swung its head to the left, and I made
contact with its bloodshot eyes, the fury, the pain, the glory of its death all
conveyed to me in one instant, and then it blinked, careening forward, it fell
to the earth. It exhaled, and the ghost
of the beast was released back into the great abyss of life. The miracle of life, the tragedy of the hunt,
the glory of victory speckled the ground with the beast’s blood, and in one
moment, my brother beast was part of me, and so his spirit endures.
Forever
etched on that wall, both red for blood, and black for majesty.
Thank you for your support. If you would like me to write about something please contact me, and if you would like to sponsor my trip somewhere to showcase your business or to work with me please send me an email as well. You can also find my works for Kindle on Amazon.
Additionally, follow me on Instagram, Facebook, or check out my photography website at A River Runs Through It Photography. Finally, check out my travel guide website for planning trips and picking destinations at Travel Guide 201. Additionally if you like my work consider donating at the bottom or click on a couple ads and maybe even buy something :)
No comments:
Post a Comment