Iggy stood up, staring at the sky. Someone else noticed it too and in a few moments the entire camp was waking up, men and women coming out of their tents to see what was the matter. Nobody could explain such a thing.
Maguan called for his sister the shaman and Alaana and Ben finally emerged from their tent, sleepy and annoyed, accompanied by their grandmother, Old Higilak. The tupilaq waddled after them.
Alaana noticed the change in the night sky immediately. The spirit world felt this loss as a huge, gaping wound in the sky, oozing sadness.
“It’s the Moon,” said Iggy. “It just disappeared.”
“It will come back,” said Kigiuna. “It always comes again.”
“The Moon is gone!” said Maguan.
“It’s not gone,” insisted Kigiuna, squinting up at the sky. “You can still see the outline, black against the stars.”
“It’s dead,” said Alaana. “The Moon is dead. It won’t be coming back.”
A grim silence fell over the people. They knew the shaman did not ever lie. And the weight of her words, the complete and total dread in her tone, frightened even the hardiest among them.
“Dead?” said Kigiuna. “How can that happen?”
“What could have caused this?” asked Tiki secretly.
Alaana didn’t say anything. They both knew the answer.
“How will we see at night?” asked Maguan. “How will we see in winter? Hunt seal? We’ll all be blind men in the darkness.”
“Alaana?” asked Iggy.
Old Higilak let out a low moan. At sight of the sky she was thrown into a panic. Wild-eyed, a crazed look on her face, the old woman shook with a palsy of fright. “I’ve lived too long!” she screamed. “I’ve lived too long.” She fell to her knees, shaking and sobbing.
Alaana had never seen her so terrified.
“My fault,” she said. “It’s like a wave, surging, sweeping over us, going to wipe us away.”
“Alaana!” cautioned the tupilaq.
“Alaana, what does this mean?” asked Maguan. “Alaana?”
“I don’t know,” said the shaman.
But she did know. “We’ve lost,” she said to Tiki, using the secret language. She was swept up by a feeling of panic equally as great as that which had brought Old Higilak to her knees. She felt a strident need to protect her family. But she knew she couldn’t protect them; she couldn’t save them.
“Alaana?” asked Maguan again.
“Don’t say anything else,” suggested Tikiqaq. “You must not give voice to such terrible thoughts.”
“Why not?” muttered Alaana. “We’re all going to die, if I say it or not.”
“Enough!” said the tupilaq.
Alaana scowled down at Tiki. She couldn’t stand to be spoken to this way, and by her own creation no less. “Fine!” she said. “You be the shaman for a while.”
“I might as well,” said the tupilaq. “You’re useless to us like this.”
“Alaana, what should we do?” asked Maguan.
Alaana could face neither her brother nor her father. Ben at least had the good sense not to ask her a bunch of foolish questions.
“Leave her alone,” said Kigiuna. “And since when does the headman need to beg his sister for advice? You know what we should do. What we always do. Hunt, fish and put aside what we can for winter. Now let’s go back to bed. The Moon will take care of itself, or it won’t.”
Ben gently lifted Higilak from the ground and carried her back to their tent.
The rest of the people returned to their houses or stood milling about, gazing up at the sky.
Tikiqaq remained standing by its master, careful to say nothing else.
Alaana took no comfort from the tupilaq’s presence. It seemed she stood alone in the night, powerless as her world was coming to an end. She had never wanted to be the shaman, let alone the one who presided over the destruction of the spirit world.
“Where can we run?” she asked the tupilaq. “Where can we possibly hide from something like this?”
Then the sky erupted into flame. All eyes were drawn upward. The lights in the sky were falling, carving blazing paths down the curtain of night.
Alaana gaped in disbelief. It was a rain of stars.
“What new horror is this?” she asked.
“It’s the shamans,” said Tikiqaq. “All the dead shamans coming down from the sky.”
As the stars continued to fall, Alaana felt a buzzing in her ear.
“You will not fight alone,” said the familiar voice of Old Manatook. “Not anymore.”
Alaana’s heart leapt at the sound.
Not alone.
THE ADVENTURE CONCLUDES IN:
CLICK HERE FOR AMAZON KINDLE
ALSO AVAILABLE from Cat’s Cradle Press:
CLICK FOR AMAZON KINDLE
Praise for “Il Teatro Oscuro”:
“A heartbreaking work of fantasy that addresses the call of the lost, golden past in the human heart.”
-- Lois Tilton for LOCUS online
Praise for “The Woman Who Married the Snow”:
“This is a rich, atmospheric tale of the interaction of spirits amongst both living and dead. I appreciated the writer’s impeccable voice.”
-- Colleen Chen for TANGENT online
“A well-told tale with great details about Inuit culture.”
-- Sam Tomaino for SFRevu
Praise for “The Lost Elephants of Kenyisha”:
“This well executed story deserves a 'thumbs up,' for its well-crafted writing.”
--KJ Hannah Greenberg, TANGENT online
“The herd of ghost elephants is a neat idea and a great premise for a story.”
--Lois Tilton, LOCUS online
“This was another well-told story that I enjoyed immensely.”
--Sam Tomaino, SF REVU
COMING 9/25/16:
The Kingdom or the Girl?
Bloodthirsty demons attack him.
A seer foretells his shocking destiny.
In a primitive land filled with magic, witches and giants, a young musician named David is summoned by the king to chase away the nightmares that torment him, but the palace isn’t as safe as it seems. Demons haunt the king and two powerful foes—the Witch of Endor and a giant named Goliath—lead an army that threatens to enslave the country.
Princess Michal is drawn to David, but a romance with the poor musician is strictly forbidden. Only by defying her father’s wishes and risking her freedom, can they be together.
To save the kingdom, David will need more than music; he’ll need to defeat Goliath in a battle of champions. Only a fool would face the giant, but when David falls in love with the rebellious princess, his heart tugs him toward the impossible. As he steps into battle, he faces an unthinkable choice—either save the kingdom or be with the girl of his dreams.
He can’t do both.
GLOSSARY OF ANATATOOK TERMS
agiuqtuq a corrupted name causing sickness
aklaq brown or Grizzly bear
allaruk the vision trance
amaut pouch for holding a baby
amautik long woman’s coat
angatkok shaman
angakua shaman’s spirit light
Annigan Moon-Man
anorak woman’s coat
autdlarpoq! open!
Aviktugalik The Great Rift
Erlaveersinioq the Disemboweler, - a spirit who loves murder and death above all other things.
ieufuluuraq squirrel men of Lowerworld
iglu snow house
ikiruq fire
ilimarpoq the soul flight
inua spirit or soul
inuseq astral projection of the body
ipiitaq aularuq child’s string game, cat’s cradle
kabloona white-skinned man, stranger
kamiks light boots
karigi ceremonial house
ke’le disease demon
Kiptaitc
huq, the snowy owl
Kuttukuraq the Raven
mamut mammoth
masak, soft wet snow
maguruq prehistoric giant wolves
Nunatsiaq Our Beautiful Land
Sedna guardian spirit of sea life
Sila fickle wind spirit
Strixulula the owl-king
tammoagac dried tomcod and caribou tallow
tarraka dark, angry spirits
Tatqeq the Moon-Maid
Tekkeitsertok guardian spirit of the caribou
Tifmiaqpak, The Great Gray Eagle
Tingook reigns over the Dark side of the Moon
Tornarssuk guardian spirit of the polar bears
tornaq spirit guide
tukaq harpoon-headed spear
tukturjuit caribou
Tulukkaruq great raven spirit
Tumo trance state that generates warmth
tunraq helper spirit
Tunrit race of primordial supermen
tupilaq vengeful homunculus
turgat powerful guardian spirits
umiak whaling boat
ungarpaluk little harpoon
Usinuagaaluk Whale-Man
yaranga light summer tent