Destiny Mine by Janelle Taylor Page A

placed on this land by the Creator. We respect Atah ’s land and do not waste His creatures. That is our way. Once we challenge Swift Crane’s band and make an enemy of it, the conflicts between us will not end until we are destroyed or captured. We must wait and pray for peace to continue. The Bird Warriors will weary of coupless rides and cast their hungry gazes on those who can feed them.”
    “That will not come to pass, Bear’s Head. The one who escaped the battle with Kionee and the other hunters will tell his friends of their skills; they will return for revenge and to regain the fallen ones’ honor. Your people have proven they are worthy opponents with great medicine to steal.”
    “He is right, Father,” Night Walker urged. “You must hear his words and follow them.”
    “To the death and suffering of many, my son?”
    “If it must be. Only Atah can choose the sun we join Him. I am ready to battle for my people. I will ride behind my brother, Gray Fox, or I will lead our warriors if he is needed in camp to protect our chief and people.”
    “Your heart burns with wild fires I do not understand, my son. I fear they will consume you and those who follow you.”
    The shaman said in a reverent tone, “An owl whispered to me in a dream last night, my chief and people; Atah ’s messenger told me a cunning and powerful wolf would come to lead us to safety. I believe that sign and leader are here. This Cheyenne comes on a full moon to enlighten us. I say we listen and obey his words.”
    “You speak for war, Spotted Owl?” the chief asked in disbelief.
    “No, I speak for trickery and survival, as does Stalking Wolf. We must not ride into the large nest of Bird Warriors, but we must not allow them to take our land or steal our women and children for slaves and mates. It is against our law to join with those outside our tribe, even by force.”
    Stalking Wolf was pleased with the shaman’s first words, but troubled by his last ones. If a female was taken captive, she had no power to resist her owner’s desires and would suffer great harm or die for doing so. Was it not better, he mused, for her to obey to be able to escape and return home? Afterward, revenge could be taken for her abuse.
    “We must continue our guards and watch our camp and horses with eyes like the eagle’s and hawk’s. We must practice to be ready to fight. We will prove to the Crow and others we are not afraid or weak. We will not allow them to steal our land and possessions or capture our people. We must not beg for what is ours to use from Atah; we must prove we are worthy to keep it within our grasp. We must resist and fight as brave andhonorable men, or run and hide and die as the weaklings Crow say we are.”
    “Night Walker speaks wise and true,” Little Weasel concurred. “We must use our courage, cunning, and skills to battle them; that is why the High-Guardian gave them to us. Where is our pride if we do nothing to defend our families and ways?”
    As the men talked for and against resistance and challenge, Kionee studied their guest. His life was so unlike hers. His people were warriors and often raiders. They joined societies, with each having its own rituals and rules. They had a tribal council of forty-four minor chiefs and one head chief. They possessed four Sacred Arrows with special ceremonies to ensure the Cheyenne’s survival. Though the Cheyenne worshipped at Medicine Wheel, their most sacred location was in the Black Hills, claimed to be the home of the Holy Ones, their spirits. They honored the sun and faced their tipis to its rising face as a reminder that their god sent its heat and light to make things grow and to symbolize their own enlightenment. They endured agonizing rites where they offered bits of their flesh to the sun during a great dance after the buffalo season. Without viewing his chest, Kionee knew Stalking Wolf had done the Sun Dance because of the bloodred plume attached to the feathers on his