The First Jumper (first draft version)

The First Jumper 43: Back to the Cave of Flying

Little Bear slept for two days, after pouring so much energy into driving off the big cat.  When he woke, he found that a trial had been held while he slept.

Shusgool had agitated so strongly that Little Bear was a demon who should be destroyed, that Tiger had threatened her with expulsion from the tribe, if she did not shut up.  As expulsion meant certain death, she shut up.

Pomegranate warned Little Bear that Shusgool had still created a scenario in which he would have to be very careful.  Anything he did which was too different would be viewed with suspicion by everyone.

"What about Briar?" he asked her.

Pomegranate shook her head.  "No, it was all Shusgool.  Briar didn't take part.  That's strange, since the two of them are always together, now."

The girl Orchid was healing, although she had been badly hurt.  She had a mild infection, but was getting over it.  Once she was well, she tended to follow Little Bear everywhere, almost close enough to step on his heels.  That bothered him, but she wasn’t causing any harm, so he began to teach her some of his knowledge of medicines and healing, and even some beginnings of understanding science.

Little Bear busied himself in preparation for another cold winter.  He was worried about the terrible cold they had experienced before, and wanted to have the tribe prepared to run a long ways to the south if they had to.

To his relief, Tiger listened gravely to his concerns, and let Little Bear organize rations for a sudden flight south.  They smoked enough meat that the tribe could, if need be, walk or even run for an entire week without stopping to hunt.

The winter, it turned out, was mild.  It was no colder than a typical winter had been, ten years before.  Shusgool claimed it was because of her that the winter was mild, and Little Bear was sure it was nonsense, but most of the tribe believed her.

Even mild winters still typically resulted in a few deaths.  This time, partly due to Little Bear’s planning, there was just one, in the entire tribe.  Shusgool died about the time the last of the snows were melting, in a time when they were short on food.  Even Little Bear could not determine what killed her.  He could tell she was relatively ancient, compared to other humans, but no one knew her actual age.

Little Bear tried to bring himself to grieve, but he could not.  What he mainly felt was relief, which made him ashamed.  Shusgool had not been with the tribe for long, but she had made an impression on the entire tribe.  Still, none but Briar seemed much affected by her loss.

Briar’s attitude towards Little Bear became more hostile, after Shusgool was gone.  Little Bear wondered if she somehow blamed him for her grandmother's death, or if she just saw him as a rival.

The year was shaping into a normal one, in terms of seasons.  The spring floods were much greater than anything in anyone's memory, but the spring was warm, and the summer bid to be a normal length, and moderately hot.  The tribe even talked about moving back north, at least as far as the cave, but they ended up staying in the hammock.  It made for a very hot summer.

Little Bear wanted to go farther north even than the cave.  His father had collected lichens from the Cave of Flying.  Eating them, Little Bear had experienced the flying sensation.  Along with the bat population, that experience gave the cave its name.

Since then, Little Bear had nibbled on small amounts of the lichen Raccoon had left behind.  As he did, he realized they had special properties that had made his mind experience the colors, hallucinations, and disorienting effects of flying.  They also, however, affected his body in other ways.

Little Bear began to sample all manner of things about him, in very small amounts.  Some things turned out to be very strong poisons, but he was able to affect his body enough to prevent the poisons from hurting him, other than some unpleasant nausea and cramping.