7. The Feast

Of course the Asha Tribe was on guard. They weren’t stupid; they had enough experience with animals playing dead just to attack you when you least expected it. But the smell of flesh enticed them from afar. As they carried the remains of the dead mammoth, the Jagu had apparently already grabbed some meat from their own storages.

They reached the northern border and noticed the camp was split into five separate campfires. Each of them roasted a piece of meat, while huts encircled the area almost like a walls to a room.

Though “hut”, dear reader, remained a strong word for some vertical branches with an animal hide haphazardly stretched over it.

Farshar was surrounded by his children and wife, but had to be supported, for two of his paws were still tied. The Asha Tribe split into five equal parts and mixed with the jaguars and Gosti surrounding the fires. Only the weaker Asha animals, such as deer, insisted on staying together and claiming one fire of their own.

Jagu smiled and accepted. Just as he let the Asha carry their weapons and keep them close.

Misha wanted to flee immediately, but her parents wouldn’t let her.

“You stay really close to use, dear.”

“You’re insane. You’re trusting them? And why would they let us keep our weapons? We must investigate the area. Perhaps the huts hide Gosti with bow and arrow, ready to—”

“We’ll secretly take a walk soon,” Farshar hissed, “when nobody watches and Jagu won’t see it as an insult. But you are not going anywhere without my protection.”

“Says the person who is tied and can’t walk!” Misha wanted to scream more angry insults, but Jagu was close.

Kesho looked around. Where was Jambir? Was he imprisoned? Was he given even more demanding tasks? Was he …

No, he didn’t dare think it. Jagu would be stupid to do something like that, just as Kesho was fighting to make things right between the tribes. He crept away from the fires to search for Jambir.

Jagu managed to raise his enormous body off the floor and walk amidst the mingling tribes. He was so large that he seemed to cast two shadows.

“I welcome all,” he said, “to this feast that will merge our tribes in harmony. Whatever happened before now, let us forgive and forget.”

He had learned. As soon as the majority of the Asha Tribe had mumbled “all is forgiven”, he continued.

“Tonight, no topic is off limits. Explain your desires, we’ll explain ours, and I’m sure we’ll find a solution.”

For some time, the only sounds in the dark night were crackling fires and impatient animals studying the food. Kesho’s stomach rumbled, but he forbade himself to eat before he’d found Jambir. The tribes were growing closer. When the moon came out, they’d sing songs together, and all would be well. Perhaps he’d safely live here the rest of his life.

Mrufa stood up. “Our first desire is that you let us through.”

“You desire that we destroy our own fences, built with years of effort and resources?”

“Not destroy. Temporarily open or lower them. Once we’re all through, do whatever you want.”

“You must understand,” Jagu said, “that we protect you. There are many murderous tribes out there. Why do you think we built the fence?”

Murfa turned red. “There are family members out there. Peaceful tribes such as ours.”

“You built the fence to protect your precious storages,” Farshar said. “And to lock up those poor Gosti—our own species!”

Jagu bared his teeth. “Those Gosti are rewarded handsomely! They are fed. If we don’t protect the storages, they’d be empty now.”

Many members, both from Asha and Jagu, focused on their food and shuffled further away. Some complained about tough meat that tasted weird, but without enough conviction to spread the message.

Murfa raised his front paws. “Let us stay calm. All of that is not important. All that matters is that we can go through.”

The king shook his head. “Impossible. You ask the impossible. We cannot temporarily remove our fences for you.”

By now, Kesho stood in total darkness. He’d walked all the way around the king’s hut without finding a trace of Jambir. The conversations were easy to follow from everywhere, partly because the night was otherwise silent, partly because they yelled at each other.

The storage rooms were within his grasp. All jaguars and Gosti were at the feast. This corner of camp was desolate. Kesho didn’t know if it was a good or a bad sign. A sign of trust to leave the camp unguarded? Or a sign of distrust that they wanted all guards at the feast?

The uncertainty slowly made him go insane—and his parents, worrying for their children’s safety, all the more.

He remembered Jambir’s words. That magical spark inside the huts—Eeris’ godly gift—that kept the meat from spoiling.

They didn’t have to stay here. If he could steal the stone, they could flee and start their own camp somewhere else. Of course, it would also help to steal a part of the meat with it.

As the discussion continued from afar, Kesho shuffled towards the final storage hut. The others were closed using a heavy stone, but this was actively used and only used an animal hide to cover the opening.

“One opening,” Murfa yelled, increasingly hopeless. “We ask for one opening. If you don’t want to hurt your fences, we, we will build a bridge over the fence!”

“That would render the entire fence useless! If you can move out, then those murderous tribes can move in—”

“There are no murderous tribes there. One opening, that’s all.”

Jagu groaned. His claws scratched stone with such ferocity that the piercing sound hurt Kesho’s ears.

Then he gave in. “Agreed. We break down the weakest part of our fence. Don’t come back to us with complaints when you are killed out there by—”

They clapped and cheered. The Asha Tribe thanked him and then attacked the meat with enthusiasm. Many needed all their strength to rip the meat apart—it was tough and it did have a shape he didn’t recognize. But it mostly caused more fun and games, while several Gosti were praying to Ardex, asking him to make the fires burn even brighter.

Kesho pushed aside the animal skin covering the storage. Inside were hundreds of fish, caught and killed long ago, but fresh as if they’d just jumped out of the river.

They wouldn’t miss one, right? The jaguars barely knew what numbers were. Surely they didn’t track any of this. And didn’t they just agree to cooperate and give everyone as much food as they wanted?

He knew what he was doing. He knew it was wrong. He knew there was food at the fires, to share with the others.

Still his mind wasn’t strong enough to fight his body and his nature, which always yearned for more food, as it was the most important thing in the world.

He grabbed a fish from inside—but froze before taking a bite. It had revealed that sparkle in the floor. He dove and hit it with his nose. It almost seemed … a Stone of Darus? One of the diamonds that the God of Stone and Earth had made.

This Darusstone, however, held a plant inside. It grew behind the glass, using a beam of sunlight that came from nowhere. Eeris had enchanted it. He didn’t understand why the Jagu received such a huge gift from the gods—and they merely received some berries and bushes.

Were they family of the gods? Had they bribed Eeris? Or was the Asha Tribe wrong in the eyes of the gods?

No, his tribe was much better than Jagu. They had the right to this magic. If he could only grab this one stone …

His one arm reached for it without success. The diamond nestled deep inside the stone. He scratched and stomped, but his nails were too weak to pry the stone loose.

Suddenly, Jagu’s voice sounded clearly, now that the initial praise had subsided. “As agreed, we shall have to live together for a short time. What do we get in return? You will eat our food for a while. You will enjoy the protection of our fences. We demand that every healthy member, young or old, works for us.”

Pardon? No no no. They’d never accept. The Asha were never slaves.

The only response, however, was silence. Even the buzzing of fireflies was deafeningly loud, though their light was near invisible in the bright moonlight.

Only his father would dare break the silence with an angry shout: “Disgusting! That is not an option.”

“Those are our desires,” Jagu said calmly. “Otherwise our cooperation is void.”

Kesho stopped scratching the floor. He ran outside to grab his spear, hoping its sharp edge would be able to loosen the stone.

He ran into a large, warm body.