ByThe Playwright
"I've got to be honest. I think you know . . ."
"What was it?"
"I've never seen anything like that before!"
"What happened, Mog-ur? Was it in the roots?"
"What happened?"
"Are you okay?"
"Could hardly breathe . . ."
"You really shouldn't search like that anymore, it's not good for you . . ."
"You dare to talk back to me!"
"Durc, calm down. Vorg just meant that you're old, we both are, and this is hard on us."
"This man apologizes to the former leader for over-reacting."
"Fine. What happened, Drooz? Was something wrong with the roots?"
"No, nothing. But such a terrible vision . . ."
"Are the spirits angry with us?"
"I don't think so, Brev."
"Are you sure? I don't want the spirits to be angry . . ."
"The spirits have shown us great favor, Brev. Think of all the children that have been born recently, all the
successful hunts . . ."
"But brothers fighting, isn't that an omen?"
"Didn't Broud see that in a vision before he died?"
"No, he saw a cave lion and a wolf kill a rhino."
"He knew that mammoth hunt was unlucky."
"It wasn't unlucky: we got two young mammoths!"
"And the leader died."
"True, but Brac was more than ready to become leader."
"Brac was a much better leader than Broud, they say Brac was better than Brun!"
"And hopefully Brev will be just as good."
"Hopefully? He's been trained by the best!"
"Training isn't all. If the spirits are angry . . ."
"What if they aren't angry? What if it is an omen, and they're trying to help us?"
"Durc . . ."
"Brac, I tell you, I knew that man!"
"Who is he then?"
"I don't know. But I should know him, I tell you, he is my brother, my sibling!"
"Zorv is your brother, Durc, and Ora, your sibling."
"Not Zorv, another brother! A different brother!"
"Ayla died when you were a baby, how could she have another child?"
"She didn't stay dead though, Goov admitted on his death bed he broke the curse right before they left
that cave . . ."
"Broud killed him for it."
"Beat him to death."
"But I felt him, I knew him!"
"You always said Grev was like a brother, maybe it was Grev's spirit?"
"Ursus took Grev at the bear ceremony; he walks in the spirit world. I tell you, this brother is alive, he's
coming!"
"Who is he then Durc?"
"I don't know! Why don't you tell me Brac?"
"Enough, both of you! Former leader, former second-in-command you may be, but I am the Mog-ur and I
forbid fighting in the place of spirits!"
"But the men were fighting in the vision, Vorg, and then one killed the other, and he looked up and saw
faces in the trees."
"Two faces, identical in every way . . ."
"Enough! All of you, out, back to your hearths! I must meditate on this!"
"But Mog-ur, I am the leader . . ."
"All of you, get OUT!"
A few days later, while out hunting, the men stumbled upon a man of the others. He was unconscious, and
some dried blood was on his face from a cut on his forehead. It appeared he had fallen, but from what?
There were no trees around, no large rocks, nothing. The men were all very confused. "It's like he just fell
out of the sky!" Vorg insisted.
"You can't just fall out of the sky, you have to fall off something."
"Like a horse?" All the men turned to the direction that Zorv was pointing, only to a dark brown horse,
apparently alone, grazing.
"You can't fall off a horse! How would, no why would you be on a horse in the first place?"
"Beats me."
"Then why even say it?"
Brev held up a hand to stop the argument. "We will deal with this later. Right now, we are hunting," and
with a gesture towards the horse, he set off, followed by the rest of the men.
Once the kill had been accomplished, they debated what to do with the man.
"Let's leave him here, he's of the others!"
"He's not hurt that badly, take him back to the cave!"
"He can be healed, he won't be around long!"
"But what about the vision?"
"Oh! But that was in the woods, this is open plains, and he's not even conscious."
Again, Brev made the decision. "He will be carried to the cave, so Ora can examine him. If the injuries are
not so great, he will be allowed to stay and heal. If they will kill him, we will dispose of the body."
The men agreed, and hauled the man and the dead horse back to the cave. Ora, the medicine woman,
examined him. "It's a serious concussion, but if he wakes up he should be fine."
He was moved to a vacant area near the medicine woman's mate's hearth and placed in a bed. A few hours
later, he began to wake up. At first, while he was not completely awake, he muttered to himself in a
tongue completely alien to the clansmen. Then he started inserting Clan words, and would occasionally jerk
his hands in a rough gesture. The clan was becoming more and more interested in him, wondering who he
was and how on earth he came to learn their language.
In the late evening he was completely awake. Brev spoke to him. "I am Brev, leader of the 1st ranked Clan.
Who are you and how did you come to learn our language?"
The man appeared startled; then a twisted expression crossed his face. "Brev's clan? Brev who is the son
of the mate of Brac, who is the son of the mate of Broud, who is the son of the mate of Brun?"
"Yes."
"Durc here?"
"Pardon?"
"Durc, he live in this cave?"
"Yes, I does."
"Good!"
"Why is that good?" asked Durc as he hurried over.
"I find man I want!"
"Pardon?"
"We sibling, we brother, Durc. I am Jodroman."
"Brothers!"
"Yes, yes, brothers. We have Ayla, same mother."
"We have the same mother?" Durc was stunned at this revelation. He could feel his heart pounding and
fought the urge to cough. "How . . . how did you find me? Why did you come?"
"Mother always talk of you. She say, 'Jondroman, find Durc. Let him know, um, thing. Tell him, tell him . . .
not know all words."
"Tell me what? What did she say?"
"Not know words!"
"Don't worry about that. I understand. Just tell me about my mother. Do you have other siblings? Is she
happy?"
"We live with Zelandonii. She mate of Jondalar. Ayla have many children. First daughter, Marthiza. Then,
twin boys. Then daughter, Thonuba. Last daughter, Zelona."
"You have a twin?"
"Um, no. Brother dead."
"I'm sorry."
"Not problem. Mother learn us all language of Clan, since I very young. Mother say, make journey, find
brother, find Durc. I travel with man of Mamutoi, Danug. He live with Zelandonii for long time. I go back
with him and his mate, Madenia, and their children. Stay with Mamutoi for moons, then come find you.
Want to meet brother. Now I met you. You tell me of your life. I go, go back to mother, tell her."
"Tell her of my life. Well, my mate's name is Ura. She had many children, more than most woman can ever
hope to have. Vorg, Oba and Uda, Broov, Drouz, and Ara. I was second-in-command to Brac, the leader
after Broud. I was a good hunter, one of the best. The children are happy and successful. I am very fond
of my mate." He thought for a moment. "I am almost thirty. I am very old."
"Not so old."
"Will you stay long, Jondroman?"
"No, must return. Tell mother. I sleep now."
"Yes, sleep. You rest, you'll feel better."
Durc walked away, his head spinning with all he had learned. He glanced around and saw Brac talking with
Brev and Mog-ur. Brev signaled him to come over.
"Do you want something Brev?"
"To talk."
"About what?"
"Don, Dondro, how do you say his name?"
"Jondroman?"
"Jondro, Jon, oh I don't know!"
"What about him, Brev?"
"Did anything about him strike you as odd?"
"Like what?"
Mog-ur cut in. "His language."
"What about it?"
"Did you not find it odd that he has very poor grammar?"
"Should it?"
"He claims he learned it as a young child. Wouldn't Ayla have taught him better grammar?"
Durc paused to consider this. "I would assume so. But I don't know. Maybe . . .maybe he just doesn't
speak it much? I don't know."
Brac added, "And you didn't think it was funny that he makes the long journey here, finds the cave, finds
you, and then plans to leave as soon as his head heals?"
"I didn't really think about it much, I guess. I never expected to find my brother after all this time. He's of
the others, he's different. Maybe it normal for them."
"Maybe . . ." None of the men really knew what to do, or to think of the strange man.
A few days later, his injuries healed, he was preparing to leave. "Tell me something, Durc."
"What, brother?"
"Do you hate Ayla?"
"Hate her! Of course not! Why do you ask?"
"She leave when you small. You not resent that?"
"She had to leave, Jondroman. She had no choice. She left me with Uba, her sister. I was well cared for as
I grew up. I understand that she couldn't take me, I never hated her for it."
Jondroman appeared stunned, but he nodded with acceptance. "If that's how you feel Durc."
"How could I feel any other way?"
"I not know. Would you do me a favor Durc?"
"Certainly, brother. What?"
"You know of clearing north of stream, just past pine trees?"
"Yes."
"Meet me there tonight. I want to give you something."
That night, after the evening meal, Brev, Brac, and Mog-ur walked over to Durc's hearth to speak with him.
Jondroman stood at the mouth of the cave, and signaled, "Come?"
"In a few minutes," Durc replied, and Jondroman left. Durc faced the others. "Yes?"
"Durc, we've been talking." Brac began.
"Yes?"
"We think that . . . well . . . if you want to go with your brother, see your mother, it's okay with us!"
Durc was startled. "Leave? Why would I leave?"
"To see your mother, your siblings."
"No, no. I couldn't leave."
"Why not?"
Durc raised his hands to answer but was overcome by a fit of coughing so great it took several minutes to
calm down. Ura scurried over to his side and handed him wild cherry bark tea. He acknowledged her with a
grunt, took a sip of the tea, and then continued, "I could not leave here. My whole life is here. My mate,
her children, their and their mate's children. My friends and hunting companions. My siblings."
"He's your sibling. Don't you want to meet your other siblings?"
"He's a brother, for we were born to the same woman. But we aren't siblings. We know nothing of each
other's childhood, we were raised by different men and women in different places, we are not the same!"
He paused for a moment, then added. "Jondroman says it would take a year to return to his home. My
health is failing, I would not be strong enough."
"Durc, you're still strong, you're still an asset."
"For my wisdom only. I know I have the same coughing sickness my mother's mother had. I've had it for
years. My days are numbered, I can feel my spirit, aching to be set free of this old body and allowed to
walk, no, run, in the spirit world."
"Durc . . ."
"I have made my decision. I am staying."
"If that's how you feel we can not stop you."
He nodded. "Now, I must go meet my brother. He said he has something to give me."
And with that he left the cave.
Durc reached the clearing quickly. "Jondroman?" he called.
"Over here!"
"Where?"
"Here!"
He looked around the dark clearing. "I don't see . . ."
Jondroman suddenly leapt from the trees, and covered Durc's mouth with one hand. With the other, he
held a razor-sharp flint knife to his neck. "I give you something. Give you the miserable death you deserve!"
He gestured with one hand.
"WHAT!?!" Durc didn't know what to make of this.
Jondroman pulled the knife away, but kept it in his hand. He began, pacing, talking to himself and yet to
Durc at the same time.
"Oh, you ruin my mother! Jondalar would loved her, been with her forever if not for you!"
"I don't understand . . ."
"Understand! Understand! No one ever understands! He ruined her! She told me, find Durc, get revenge!
You ruin mother's life! Not Ayla's! Ayla fine, not mother."
"You aren't making sense . . ."
"You not care about me! You not come back, so I can kill you in front of mother. So I kill you here!"
"Kill me? But you said we were brothers. Why would my own brother want to kill me?"
"We not brothers!"
"WHAT?!?"
"We not brothers!"
Durc had a lot of Clan in him, and thus, couldn't fathom lying. "But you said . . ."
"I say, I say, I say many thing! You're mother Ayla, not mine! Her mate Jondalar, not my mother. I of
Jondalar's spirit. Not you! We not brothers!"
"But you said . . ."
"Not matter what I say. You ruin mother, I kill for revenge!"
And with that, he tried to stab Durc. He succeeded with stabbing him in the arm, shoulder, and leg, but
not in the chest or neck. Durc raced in circles, for he had no idea how to get away. Lucky for him,
Jondroman tripped over a tree root. This was the perfect opportunity to reach down and grab his sling. He
snatched up some pebbles from the ground. He had been gifted with Ayla's ability with the sling, and
quickly swung it around and let the stones fly . . .
It was a good thing he knew the double stone technique. The stone's struck Jondroman on the head.
Thwack! Thwack! Jondroman crumpled like a hyena on the spot. Durc walked over to him, and removed the
knife from his hand. He slit Jondroman's throat, assuring he would not rise again.
Durc began trembling, from fear and loss of blood. "I killed him!" he thought, "I killed my own brother! But
wait, he said he wasn't my brother, we aren't related at all . . ."
Durc fell to his knees, clutched his amulet, and looked up at the moon. He gestured, "Gray wolf, what have
I done? What have I done!" He tried to stand up, to return to the cave, but he found he could not. Sweat
running down his face and blood running down his arm and leg, he tried feebly to call for help. He felt
himself falling, loosing consciousness.
With his last conscious effort he glanced up. Sheer terror invaded his body, remembering the vision, as he
saw two men, identical in every way, running through the trees towards him. And then he fainted.
Durc awoke hours later. His arm, shoulder, and leg were all bandaged. "What . . . who saved me?" he asked
Brac.
"Your brothers, Durc."
"Brothers!"
"Yes, your real brothers."
"Brothers . . ."
"Not Jondroman, your real brothers."
The twins hurried over when they saw he was awake. "Durc, how are you feeling?" One of them asked.
"Better, who . . . who are you?"
"I'm Branziveg, and this is Crebrun. We are your brothers, Durc."
Durc was startled and tried to sit up, but was so overwhelmed by a coughing fit he had to lie back down.
"Branziveg," he gasped once he had regained some breath, "like the man of the others who stayed with the
clan so long ago? The man of the Mamutoi?"
"The very same. I was named for him."
"And Crebrun, for Creb and Brun?"
"Yes."
Durc felt dizzy from a high fever and wondered if he was dreaming this. "What happened to Jondroman?"
"Well you killed him . . ."
"No, why . . . why did he do what he did?"
The men looked at each other, and then Crebrun tried to explain. "We don't really know. His spirit was very
sick, I guess."
"He talked of his mother being ruined."
"Ah! You see he was the son of Marona, but he was of Jondalar spirit."
"He looks like you, sort of."
"We're of the same spirit, only we're Ayla's sons, and he's not. You see: his mother was supposed to mate
Jondalar, but he left on a journey. Marona was heartsick and very, very angry when she found out. She
mated Ladroman just to spite Jondalar. Jondroman was born to his hearth. When Jondalar returned a few
years later, he met Marona at the summer meeting. She tried to force him to mate her, argued with the
councils to get him to mate her. Even insisted she hated Ladroman and was through with him. Only the
councils wouldn't listen. She tried everything to hurt Ayla, only mother had gained a lot of power and
prestige, and nothing Marona did made any difference. Over the years, Marona became very bitter. I guess
her son thought if he came and killed you everything would be alright, and his mother would be happier."
"Why did he come with you?"
"A man of the Mamutoi named Danug had been living with the Zelandonii for many years, with his mate,
Madenia, and her mother Verdegia, both of the Losadunai. Danug and Madenia both wanted to travel back
to the Mamutoi, but Verdegia wouldn't hear of it. After she died, they decided to take their children and
return. We decided to go with them, to see what the Mamutoi were like. Jondroman asked to come at the
last minute. We had met him at summer meetings, since his family lived in a different cave, he seemed like
a nice person, and we could hardly refuse him."
"Then what happened?"
"We reached the Mamutoi, and were staying with the Aurochs camp, were Danug's cousins were the
leaders. One day, some Clan men came, to trade. It was through them that we found out where your cave
was. After they left, Jondroman got all strange, started talking to himself, acting like he was planning to go
on a journey. He said he was going to 'take care of something that would make his mother very happy.' We
figured he was loosing his mind and didn't mess with him. The he disappeared. We thought about it a while,
wondering where he had gone. We left on a hunt, and somebody made a joke about killing siblings, animal
brothers. Then we knew. We hurried after him, as fast as we could, and prayed it wasn't too late. We saw
you fight, we ran to help you when we saw you fall."
"You saved me."
"We assumed you were our brother, or Jondroman had really lost his mind."
Durc lay back, his mind spinning from the added information and the high fever. "Too much has happened
these past few days for an old man to take!" he thought.
He looked up at the twins. "My brothers. How can I ever thank you?"
"No need to thank us. Is there anything we can do for you?"
"Nothing I can think of right now. Will you stay long?"
"A while. We need to repair our gear before we head home."
Durc nodded, "You may stay at my hearth, if you wish, my brothers."
They agreed to, and left to get their clothes and tools from where they had hidden them. Brac and Brev
hurried over to talk with Durc.
"Are they really you brothers?"
"Or are they just faking it, like Jondroman?"
"They are my real brothers."
"How do you know?"
"You pointed it out yourself, Brac. Jondroman spoke poorly, like he had recently learned the language and
wasn't sure of it. Branziveg and Crebrun have been taught it their whole lives. They speak as well as any
born to the Clan."
Brac nodded. "It makes sense. They will stay for how long?"
"I'm not sure, they don't seem to sure themselves. A while, though."
Durc settled down into the furs and waved his hand. "Go now, I must rest. My wounds must heal quickly,
so I can spend more time with my brothers."
And with that he drifted off to sleep.
Over the next few weeks, Durc got better, and, yet worse. His wounds healed, but his old body felt like it
was falling apart. His lungs burned with every cough, and a high fever kept him in bed for days. His heart
skipped, pounded, and he felt short of breath almost constantly. Ora, the clan's medicine woman, tried
every medicine she could think of. One day, she examined him and shook her head. "You'll probably recover
from this bout, Durc, I can tell your improving. But you'll be completely well. The wounds were just too
great a shock to your system, and the lung disease has slowly weakened your heart of the years. There's
nothing I can do."
"Nothing at all?"
"Oh, I can give you medicine to keep you from hurting too much. With rest, no over-excitement, good
food, you'll last longer, feel better."
Durc nodded with acceptance, for he had known he was sick for a long time. Still, he didn't feel ready to
go. He followed Ora's instructions to the letter. Ura prepared all his favorite foods, and the medications. His
mate's children often came to share meals, and brought their mates and children. Durc smiled watching the
young ones, remembering when his own children were small.
And his brothers. He often spent time with them, just laughing and talking. The first time he saw them on
their horses, he could hardly breathe with shock. The very idea! Riding horses! Horses were meant to be
hunted, not ridden!
Branziveg and Crebrun offered to teach anyone who wished to learn to ride, but no one took them up on
the offer. Not even Durc. The twins insisted that it was easy, and really tried to encourage the clan to
learn.
"Its easy, just watch Crebrun," Branziveg explained, "See? Blizzard and Speed Demon are such gentle
horses, they'd be very easy for you to ride."
The Clan said nothing. Riding horses was just too strange an idea. Brev finally spoke up. "We have always
used horses as food. We do not wish to learn to ride them."
Suddenly, Vorg laughed. "Did Jondroman have a horse?"
"Yes."
"Old fiend of a horse," commented Crebrun, "We'd call it all kinds of bad things behind Jondroman's back."
"Was it a dark brown horse?"
"Yes."
Vorg looked embarrassed. "Was he a very loyal horse?"
"Sure was!"
"We killed him."
"What?"
"The day we found Jondroman, there was a dark brown horse grazing nearby. We were hunting, it was an
easy kill."
Ura looked even more embarrassed than Vorg. "You ate part of him for dinner last night."
"We what?"
"The horse in the stew? I think that came from . . ."
But she couldn't finish because the twins were laughing too hard.
"Old Fireball! Finally got would he deserved."
"Don't worry about it, Ura, it was a delicious stew. It was very good horse meat."
"Very good! That was the only good thing that horse did in his life: feed us!"
And the men continued laughing while the rest of the people looked on.
As the days went by, Durc found himself feeling weaker and weaker. Ora examined him on day and confined
him to his bed. "If you don't have to do anything, don't! Your heart is just getting worse and there's
nothing I can do to stop it!"
Knowing his days were numbered, Durc tried to get things in order. He was uncertain of what to do about
Ura, his beloved mate. She was a high status woman, and would have no trouble finding a hearth to stay
at, thanks to her many children. Durc didn't know which one would be the most willing to take her though.
He was very happy when, one afternoon, his mate's oldest son, Vorg, came over to speak with him about
that very matter. "My brother's, and my sibling's mates, have discussed what to do about mother when
you die, Durc. We have agreed: she will stay at my hearth."
Durc felt that was a good arrangement and was pleased to know his mate's children were so concerned
about her. He felt much better about it now, and could allow himself to relax.
One afternoon, a few days later, he was playing with his mate's daughter, Oba's, youngest son, Drev. Durc
found himself playing the sound game with the child.
"Ga va be cee wa na." He cooed.
The baby smiled and attempted to repeat the noise. The twins were sitting nearby, working on some tools,
but upon hearing the sounds, both turned and stared.
"Durc! Where did you learn that game?"
"From mother."
"Which mother?"
"From . . . from Ayla."
The twins smiled. "She always played that game with us. She'd always talk about how you learned to call
her 'Mama' because of it."
"Mama." Durc's eyes filled with tears. Branziveg and Crebrun immediately looked sympathetic.
"Durc, we've been thinking. If you were better, we'd be more than happy to take you back to the
Zelandonii with us. But you're ill, and we know you want to stay with your mate and her children, and their
children."
Durc felt a strange tightening in his chest and weirdly dizzy. He took deep breaths, hoping the pain would
go away. "Yes?"
"Well, maybe, we thought, you'd like to send something to mother."
"Send? How?"
"We'd take it back, it if wasn't too big or too heavy. Even if it's just a message, we'll give it to her."
"A gift for mother? Hmmm."
Durc tried to think of something, but he couldn't think. The world felt like it was spinning faster and faster,
and he found himself falling, falling . . .
"Durc? Durc!" cried his brothers, and it was the last thing he heard before he blacked out.
After what seemed like hours of turbulent dreams, Durc awoke to find his mate, the twins, Ora, Vorg, Brac,
Brev, and Mog-ur gathered around his hearth. "What . . .what . . ."
"You had a heart attack, Durc." Ora reached over to the fire and poured some tea. "Drink this, it will help."
He could hardly breathe, but he struggled to stay conscious. "Branziveg, Crebrun?"
"Yes?"
"You spoke of gift, for mother?"
"Yes."
"I know what to give her now."
"What would you like to give Mother, Durc?"
Durc reached down and gripped his amulet. "Mother, no Uba, always said Mama believed greatly in the
spirit forces, and found signs from her totem."
"She did. She had about 14 signs from her totem, the Cave Lion, in her amulet when we left, as I recall."
Durc nodded. "My totem, the Grey Wolf, has always given me signs." He pulled off the little bag, untied the
string, and emptied the contents onto his sleeping fur. He picked one up, and said, "The red ochre, from
when my totem was revealed."
He picked up another. "A wolf's claw, from the first meat eater I killed with a sling."
"The tooth of a reindeer, my first kill."
"A bit of reindeer antler, dyed red, like all men receive from the first kills."
"An unusual green stone, to tell me I should be mated to Ura."
"A cave lion claw, from when Vorg was born, to show me he was blessed by my mother's totem and would
be allowed to survive."
"An unusual shell, that was under the mammoth that killed Broud, to show my life would improve."
"A chunk of granite, to show I would be a good second-in-command."
Durc then took the wolf's tooth, the cave lion claw, the reindeer antler bit, the chunk of granite, and the
shell and placed them in Branziveg's hand. "Take these to mother," he told the twins, "To show her I had a
good life. Tell her about it, like I told you."
The twins nodded. Durc continued, "They were signs from my totem, so you should carry them in an
amulet, I guess Ura can make you one . . ."
"Oh no, she doesn't have to," Crebrun said, "Mother made all her children amulets when we were babies,
see?" He pulled one out from under his shirt. Crebrun and Branziveg each split the objects into two groups,
and each placed a few in their amulets. "We will give them to Mother," they assured Durc.
"Good." And Durc lay back, dizzy and tired, and watched life go on around him.
Durc died in his sleep that night. He dozed off and never woke up. He died with a smile on his face, so he
must have died happy.
They buried him in the back of the cave, next to Goov, the old and respected Mog-ur; Uba, the mother
who raised him and a great medicine woman; Vorn, a former second-in- command; Zoug, another former
second-in-command; and Brun, one of the most respected leaders the clan had ever known. Broud's body
was not there, of course, as he had died on the mammoth hunt and they had buried his body then.
They covered Durc's naked body in red ochre, and buried his tools, clothes, and weapons, with him.
His family: his mate, his mate's children, and their mates and children grieved. Ura was so grief stricken
that even her children could not console her.
Durc's brothers, Branziveg and Crebrun, stood with his sibling, the brother of his hearth, Zorv, after the
funeral rites.
Crebrun said something in Zelandonii to Branziveg, and he nodded. He then turned to Zorv and asked, "Tell
me, Zorv, did he play a good game?"
"What?"
"Oh I'm sorry. It's a custom at Zelandonii funerals. It's kind of like asking if they had a good life. It goes
with a story, a legend."
"What's the story?"
"Well, it's about a man in a race. It's kind of hard to translate, but I'll try. See, the race starts off good,
but then bad things happen: it starts to rain, he's chased by a wild boar, he cut's his leg on a branch, that
kind of thing."
"What does that have to do with the question?"
"The man in the story eventually trips and falls, and contemplates not getting up, not finishing the race,
but then he realizes . . ."
Zorv cut in, "Something like: it might not be a fair game, but you have to play right?"
The twins looked surprised. "That's it exactly, how did you know?"
"We have a similar Clan legend."
"I imagine most societies do."
Zorv nodded. "Will you stay much longer?"
"No. We need to get back home. We need to give the gifts to Mother, like we promised Durc."
"But it's almost winter."
"You forget we can travel faster on horses. We can make it as far as a group of Sharamudoi we met on the
way here, and stay with them for the worst part of winter."
Zorv said, "It will be sad to see you go. Will you leave soon?"
"In few days. We need to gather supplies and pack up."
"I will help you." The twins look surprised, and Zorv continued, "We share a brother, and both mourn his
death. I may have not been overly friendly, but I have great respect for you. You came, trying to save a
brother you never met from Jondroman, and then you stayed. You hunted; you were fine clansmen while
you were visitors. You speak the language well. And you brought Durc something he's always wanted:
information about his real mother. With your stories, jokes, everything, you made him happier these last
many days than he's been his whole life. He finally had everything he wanted. And for that, I have great
respect for you."
Zorv turned and walked away, leaving the stunned twins standing there.
They left three days later. They stayed with the Sharamudoi for a time, but then continued traveling. They
reached the Zelandonii in early summer.
When they got back to the ninth cave, they immediately gave Ayla the items that Durc had given them,
and told her of his life. And she cried, for she knew deep in her heart he had been very happy, and leaving
him there, with the Clan, so long ago, had been the right thing to do. For that, she was elated.
THE END