Ino and the Shaman
by Jordan Miller
Ino pulled back the intricate beaded curtain of the shaman’s hut and poked her head inside. The aroma of incense and burning herbs was strong and mildly dizzying. The shaman, her hair gray from age, was fussing over candles and incense when she heard the curtain being drawn. She lifted her head toward the entrance. On her head rested a crown of leaves and sticks, and the dim candlelight made her eyes twinkle like two distant stars set in deep dark pools of water. She took up a long wooden walking staff and started moving slowly toward Ino.
“Come in child, no need to stand on ceremony…” The shaman chuckled quietly to herself. “Please come, come forward. We have much to do.” Ino came in through the entrance, the beads of the curtain clicked and clacked as they closed behind her. She stopped behind a simple chair at a small table. On the table were placed a large wooden totem carved with the image of a sweetgum leaf, several candles, and a cup.
“For centuries, our people have served as guides to the spirit of nature. Each generation the most cunning, intelligent, and honorable Inoka, the one who best embodies Tela the First, is chosen.” She approached the table and took the totem, holding it to her chest and humming a familiar tune.
Ino’s dizziness worsened. “What is that scent? I feel tired…” Ino sat down in the chair, and the world blurred around her.
“It is the ancient herbs of our people you smell burning. It is meant to relax you while you make your journey to the past.” The shaman replaced the totem and began to speak again. “Long ago, when our people first came to the forest, there was a young Inoka…” Ino could still hear the Shaman speaking, but her mind drifted to images of the forest she knew. Slowly they melted away to reveal a familiar terrain, but younger somehow, with smaller trees and shorter plants.
Suddenly a young Inoka ran past, wearing braces and carrying a small club fashioned from wood and stone. “You won’t catch me, Tela!” he cried out.
“Yes I will, Kirak.” Another Inoka ran past, carrying a long spear and wearing a small shield on her back. “I always do!” Ino somehow recognized the second Inoka as Tela, and her consciousness followed along. Tela stopped abruptly and looked sharply to the tops of the trees. She dropped her spear and brought up her shield from her back, holding it up with both hands, just as Kirak came flying down swinging his club. The club smacked into the shield as Kirak landed, planting his feet firmly on the ground. Tela could feel him pushing on her, all his weight leaning through the club into her shield. She reeled a step before dropping low under her shield and flinging Kirak over her. Kirak slammed into a nearby tree and dropped his club. Tela took this opportunity to recover her spear. As she turned to face Kirak, she could see him holding his club in one hand, rubbing the back of his head with the other.
“Did I hurt you?” Tela jibed.
“Heh, not likely.” Kirak took a defensive position, his club ready to knock her spear away if she tried to strike. “Gonna take more than that to beat me to the stone!”.
Tela feigned a strike, and Kirak took the bait. He flinched and stumbled left, his leg sore from the fall he took. Tela saw her opportunity and charged, bringing her spear up at the last second. Kirak tried to roll to the left, but the blunt spear caught him in the side. They fought like this for a while until they were far from the village at the edge of a sharp drop down a steep hill. Tela came to rest on one knee with Kirak standing a few feet away, his club raised. The hair on Tela’s neck stood up as she was suddenly distracted by something in the valley below, like someone was watching. Kirak took advantage and brought his club down with all his strength. Tela stood and brought up her spear. The club smashed through the spear, breaking it in two. Splinters of wood flew as Tela was shoved off balance. As she tried to regain her footing, the edge of the hill gave way beneath her back foot, and she fell.
She slid about halfway down the hillside before she hit a rock, knocking the wind out of her and sending her tumbling. The world turned upside down then right side up half a dozen times as she flailed down the hill. Her shield flew off her back, and pieces of her broken spear tumbled behind her. Tela wasn’t even sure which direction was up when her head smacked the ground at the bottom and the world went black.
To be continued…
