Yet it was also clear to Janus that the people that they had all been separated from, family, friend, and even acquaintance, weighed down heavily upon their hearts. It was just that a distinction had been made, as they had discovered that the new world, its environments, and the things within it, did not seem quite so daunting as before.
The meal that the women prepared for the seven famished exiles that evening was more than ample, not much less of a fare than had been the previous evening’s substantial repast.
The cooking pots produced a rather good hominy, accompanied by roasted portions of deer and turkey, bread baked with dried blackberries, and some walnuts and fresh berries gathered from the bounty of the forest.
Janus had experienced venison before in his own world, but the meat provided by the Onan was delicious, as was the turkey. Ayenwatha and some other men of the village took their meal beside the otherworld guests, exhibiting considerable appetites of their own.
After they had all fully attended to their voracious appetites, they had proceeded to relate their various stories to each other. Ayenwatha and the other men sat cross-legged around them, listening quietly as the others described their experiences, and fielded questions from their comrades.
The peace of night settled in softly outside the longhouse, draping a blanket of cool air over the village. The star-speckled darkness brought a serene atmosphere along with it. The deep pools of shadows that formed held no threats, surrounded as they were by the palisades and numerous dwellings.
A more light-hearted conversation gradually ensued amongst the exiles, perhaps the first such one that had taken place since they had all come into the new world. The activity that day had loosened up many lingering tensions, and had obviously given the otherworlders some greatly needed easement of mind.
Janus noted that the others’ spirits appeared to lift further as they spoke of their respective endeavors, drawing strength from the presence of a little structure and sense of purpose. The unstable chaos of the unknown no longer held full dominance, as the first rays of understanding and knowledge about Ave began to crest upon their individual horizons.
Ayenwatha and the few men that remained were content to keep listening to the group in relative silence. Janus could see by their shifting expressions that they were very amused by the thoughts and reactions of their guests to the various elements of Ave and the tribal culture.
Janus’ companions listened in wonderment to his own description of flight upon the Brega. The more that he gave voice to his incredible experience, the more Janus realized just how very special the adventure had been.
Upon his conclusion, Erika and a few of the others immediately petitioned Ayenwatha for the opportunity to fly upon one of the winged steeds. The warrior sachem resolutely assured the others that they would all be given a chance for an airborne excursion in the coming days.
Mershad, with occasional input from Kent, had then related several fantastic and intriguing facts of their new world’s rich history.
His comments had soon inspired many questions from the others. Ayenwatha, or one of the other men present, had to interject a few times with clarifications, or to answer something beyond Mershad and Kent’s nascent learning.
It was incredible to contemplate the reality of a people that shared their heritage through an oral tradition. Conveyed dutifully and diligently from one generation to the next, the tradition had bound an entire people together, in a unity that had held strong throughout millennia.
There were also some moments of levity during the discussions. Antonio joked about how he had managed to shoot an arrow almost straight into the ground, just about two feet in front of him. It was an act that Antonio said was undeniable evidence of special skills that only he possessed, and that he had proven to be a very formidable archer against anything within two feet of range.
The truth of the incident was gradually revealed. Antonio had concentrated so hard on pulling the string of the hickory bow back that he had let the weapon slowly tip towards the ground. The men instructing Antonio, in their immense amusement over what was about to happen, had allowed the event to carry forward to its ignominious conclusion.
His next attempt had gone farther, though completely missing an oak tree’s broad trunk at close range. It was a target that one of the men had instructed Antonio to aim for due to the relative ease of striking it, even for a beginner.
To everyone’s relief, a few shots later, Antonio had managed to bury one arrow into the tree.
Gradually, as the tales of the day’s events were exhausted, the direction of the conversation begged some more participation from Ayenwatha and the other tribesmen. They seemed more than happy enough to oblige the exiles.
It could not have been a more perfect environment for the telling of tales. Janus’ belly was full, night had fallen outside, and a small fire hissed and crackled in the chamber’s central hearth, as all huddled about to listen.
One of the warriors then told the guests some incredible tales concerning the Stone Hides, a large and gentle race of beings that had once lived on the northern borders of the Five Realms, in Osini lands. The legends themselves were not altogether very old, the final events in them transpiring just a few generations prior.
Janus listened in rapt interest as the warrior spoke at length of the strange race of creatures. He knew enough about the unusual nature of Ave to realize that the tales were just as likely to be truthful as fanciful.
The gray-green skin of the Stone Hides was said to have been as tough as any thick leather. It had a stony texture to it as well, which along with the hue of it had given the formidable creatures their name by the tribal people.
The huge Stone Hides had once lived in great harmony with humans within the tribal lands, their presence tolerated fully by generations of the tribes’ ancestors. There had been some rogue elements among both the Stone Hides and humans that had resulted in a few unpleasant incidents, but overall relations had been quite good.
It was a time when another race called the Little Ones had also been common within the same woodlands. To Janus, they sounded like a kind of fairy folk, shy and sometimes mischievous, who occasionally aided tribal hunters and interacted with the people. From what the warrior said, the Little Ones still dwelled in the forests, though their appearances to the people were now much more infrequent.
Janus could see that the tribal warrior telling the story looked upon such an age wistfully, and with wonder of his own. The warrior spoke with an unmistakable undertone of regret, as he described what had subsequently happened to the Stone Hides.
The Stone Hides had dwelled primarily underground, but one day the ground itself had suddenly shaken and rumbled violently, all across the woodlands. The upheaval reached the point that the ground broke and crumbled in many places, and had permanently closed off the passages reaching down into their netherworld abodes. In just one terrible day, the Stone Hides’ presence had been completely removed from the midst of the tribal people.
The tragic event had been interpreted as a stringent punishment to the tribal people. Evidently, the same age during which the tribes had enjoyed the welcome presence of the Stone Hides and Little Ones was also a period when there was a considerable number of dire and loathsome evils existing within the woodlands.
By their relative inaction, the tribal people had been allowing subtle and cunning entities to spread their influences and manifestations. A being called the Dark Brother and those allied to him were beginning to assert themselves more fully and openly, their reach extending even into the village and war councils of the tribes.