Free Aegis Rising by S.S.Segran Page A

time since the three of us have hunted together,” the taller neighbor began, “so we were eagerly anticipating this trip. We had our mates pack our necessities. Also, Huyani asked us to collect some herbs she needed for her stock. Once she gave us a list of what was needed, we departed for Ekota.”
    “Ekota? That mountain is quite a long way,” Tayoka noted.
    “Yes, it is. It was supposed to have been a four-day trip. The weather held up rather nicely. We did not encounter any game until sundown on the second day, when some caribou were taking a drink from a small brook. We almost got one of the animals, but it was getting dark and we missed. The caribou escaped, leaving us to continue on our way. We camped by a lake and ate our food, then turned in for some rest. We departed early the following morning.” He looked at Tayoka, who nodded and motioned for him to continue.
    “We followed some game trails that led us to a dead deer near a stream. It was a strange sight as the animal was not brought down by any predator or by old age, and foam covered its muzzle.
    “We turned and continued our hunt down one of the trails. Fiotez slipped on some lichen at one point and nearly tumbled into a crevasse. He must have passed on his clumsiness to us, because a few minutes later, we walked into some thorns.” The man chuckled tiredly, rubbing his bruised arm. “Besides that, nothing else strange happened.” He paused as his eyes followed a small insect in its erratic flight.
    “Please, continue,” Saiyu urged. “There must be something more.”
    His brows furrowed as he tried to recall. “Though our hunting expedition was rather unsuccessful, we managed to find the herbs that Huyani needed. As we were heading back, Fiotez insisted on trying to hunt game again. We reluctantly agreed, knowing what a passionate hunter Fiotez is. Late in the morning on our third day, he trekked to a nearby creek to refill his water pelt while we waited at the camp. We tried hunting for a little while after that, but fortune was not on our side. We got nothing and sought to come back, but Fiotez wanted to continue. We coaxed him to give it up and he reluctantly agreed; not so much because we outnumbered him two to one, but rather at this point it appeared that he was not feeling too well. So, that sundown we camped again around a good fire and made sure he was comfortably tucked in.”
    The man scratched his forehead and sighed, then continued. “The next day as we hiked back, he seemed to weaken. He complained that his legs were not steady, and at first we thought perhaps he was just sore from the grueling trek. But when he started getting dizzy and nearly passed out while descending a mountain, we knew something was wrong.”
    “We brought him back as quickly as we could, and it was then we called for help,” the shorter man finished.
    Nageau pressed his lips into a flat line. There was silence for a while. “What do you make of this?” he finally asked the other Elders.
    Stroking his short beard, Tayoka said, “I do not know. Nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary except for the dead deer.”
    “It is hard to determine what this is right now, as we do not know the seriousness or the cause of Fiotez’s condition,” Ashack said, adding, “maybe we should give Tikina some more time to let her remedy take effect.”
    Saiyu glanced at Nageau. “It is past midday now. Perhaps we should adjourn. Let us have Huyani relieve her grandmother at sundown. That way, I will be able to take Huyani’s place tonight. One of us must watch over Fiotez until dawn.”
    *  *  *
    A tender hand shook Tikina’s arm. The Elder opened her eyes blearily and gazed up at the youthful face of her granddaughter. Huyani knelt beside her and asked softly, “How is Fiotez doing?”
    Tikina stretched and shook her head. “I have tried every combination I know of for healing him, but I see no effect whatsoever.”
    Huyani put a warm hand on hers and turned