Page 56 of Caveman Alien's Bride

The older man bows. “Chief Korr'ax.”

The younger one doesn’t move. “Anything! Tell me where she is! I will go there and get her for the tribe! You may also Mate with her, Korr'ax! Anytime you want! Imagine!”

A sudden fury fills me, and I slowly get to my feet.

The older Krast man grabs the other by the shoulder, seeing the danger and trying to drag his companion out of the hut.

“I have never been so insulted,” I growl, contemplating murder. “I am married, warrior! I shall never Mate with anyone but Bryar!”

“Come on, come on,” the older man urges his friend, pulling at him with his full strength. “Apologies, Chief Korr'ax! We chose the wrong man for this.”

“Anything!” the young man sobs as he’s dragged out by his tribesman and my warriors. “I will join the Borok tribe! Please!”

The door is carefully closed from the outside.

“That was interesting,” Breti’ax creaks, sitting back down. “But it’s unwise to tease them, Chief. They may be acting silly here, but the Krast tribe is big, and they enjoy fighting wars.”

“Perhaps,” I agree, sitting back down and bringing Bryar’s hand to my mouth to kiss it. “I don’t think I offended them as much as they offendedme. The Krast tribe is divided now. Shaman stands against chief. We must make sure nothing like that happens in the Borok or Tretter tribes.”

“I wonder,” Breti’ax says darkly. “They may not be as divided as we think. Everything is strange in the tribes, Chief. As if the Darkness is somewhere close.” He gives Bryar a searching look.

“It looks to me as if it is thelightthat has finally come to us.” I squeeze Bryar’s hand. “Did you hear everything, my wife?”

“I heard,” Bryar says. “They want you to be chief of Krast. But only if you give them Piper.”

“Which is impossible,” I tell her. “Now, let’s forget those men and get some food. Today you start your mysterious project.”

After breakfast I assemble Tretter men to help Bryar. She’s asked for the best carpenters and wood carvers and smiths. She sits down under the totem pole and starts drawing on leather sheets. She seems to not need me, so I assign two men to protect her with their lives and start dealing with a lot of overdue tribe business.

Finally I sit down in the chief’s hut with shaman Vram’az and the tribe Elders. “The food stores are increasing, the oldest huts are being repaired and sometimes rebuilt, and the creek is clean again. This is fine progress, men! The Tretter tribe will soon be back to its old glory.”

“Now our task is to also make progress when the chief is not here,” the shaman says. “But we shall see.”

“We shall,” I agree. “Now, shaman Vram’az. As you know, Shaman Gerut’on of the Borok tribe was killed by a rekh. And so the Borok tribe has no shaman.”

“I heard, Chief.”

“Who is your apprentice?”

“Young Crok’ex, Chief. But he’s far too young and inexperienced to take over as shaman of the Borok tribe. It’s unfortunate when a shaman dies without a successor. Some tribes go under when that happens.”

“They do?” I ask. “Then you may have to be the shaman of both my tribes until either Crok’ex is ready or until you can train a Borok man. Which would you recommend?”

“I would train a Borok man,” Vram’az says immediately. “Crok’ex will be shaman of the Tretter tribe when I join the Ancestors. The Borok tribe needs a Borok man. And if you can be the chief of two tribes, perhaps you may allow me to be shaman of the same two for a few years.”

“Then so be it,” I decide. “When Bryar and Breti’ax and I return to the Borok tribe, you shall come with us and pick out a young man to be the next Borok shaman.”

Vram’az bows. “I’m honored, Chief.”

I stand up. “Then we know the way forward.”

Walking to the totem pole, I find nobody there. Following the sounds of wood being chopped, I locate half the work team, but I don’t understand what they’re doing.

“Where is Bryar?” I ask, not seeing her anywhere.

One man points. “Outside the wall, Chief.”

I walk out of the village as fast as my dignity will allow and hurry along the wall that keeps most of the dangers of the jungle out of the village. When I spot Bryar, I hide behind a tree to see if the men I assigned to guard her are doing their jobs.

---