taken over. Zelandoni was smiling to herself and glanced at Ayla, who was fighting to keep her smile from showing. 'I didn't say I would take her. I always have to test my prospective apprentices. I don't even know who she is.'
'You know her. It's Norava. I saw you working with her last summer,' Kareja said.
Jondalar relaxed and grinned. 'Yes, I do know her. I think she could be an excellent flint-knapper. When we were on that aurochs hunt last year, she had broken a couple of points. She was reworking them when I walked by. I stopped for a moment to watch and she asked for some help. I showed her a few things, and she immediately caught on. She learns quick and has good hands. Yes, if you make sure she has a place to stay, Kareja, I'll take Norava as an apprentice.'
Chapter 19
Most of the people from neighbouring Caves who had not gone to the Summer Meeting were at the Ninth Cave when the travellers arrived; word had been sent ahead by a runner and others had been watching out for them. A meal was ready and waiting. Hunters had gone out and brought down a megaceros, whose massive palmate antlers were still in velvet, bringing the blood supply that enabled them to grow to their magnificent and increasing size every year.
In mature males a set of antlers could span in excess of twelve feet, each one three feet in width, or more. The projecting tines were often cut off for other purposes, leaving a large, rather concave palm section of strong bone-like keratin material that was very serviceable. It could be used as a serving platter, or with a sharpened edge as a shovel, especially for moving soft material like ashes from a fireplace, or soft sand on the river's edge, or snow. The huge deer also supplied meat for a gathering of hungry travellers, as well as members of the Ninth Cave and their neighbours, with plenty left over for all.
The next morning the ones who were travelling with the First gathered their belongings, and some extra megaceros meat for the Journey, and walked the short distance to The Crossing. They waded across The River to the wooden dock in front of the shelter known as River Place, the Eleventh Cave of the Zelandonii. Several rafts made of small whole trees that were stripped into pliable logs, then lashed together, were tied up to the dock, a simple wooden structure that jutted out over the river. Some were being repaired; the rest were ready for use. One new one was being made. A series of logs laid out in a row on the beach showed the process of construction. They were aligned with the thicker end of the small trees at the back end, and the thinner, upper part of the trunks brought together into a kind of prow and pointing forward.
The horses had pulled the pole-drags to the Eleventh Cave with most of the gear of the travellers, but now everything had to be stowed on the rafts and tied down. Fortunately, the Zelandonii knew how to travel light. They brought only what they could carry themselves. The only extra weight was the poles and connecting pieces of the travoises. Except for Ayla and Jondalar, they hadn't grown to depend on having the assistance of horses and pole- drags to help them carry their things.
The people of the Eleventh Cave, who would be guiding the rafts downstream, were directing the loading of the rafts, which had to be well balanced or they could be difficult to control. Jondalar and Ayla helped to load the long pole-drags onto the raft that would run first, the one that would carry the First, Willamar, and Jonakol. The heavier pole-drag, the one with the seat, had to be dismantled and was loaded on the second raft, which would float behind. It would take Amelana and Willamar's two young apprentice traders, Tivonan and Palidar.
Ayla and Jondalar, with Jonayla of course, would ride the horses on the riverbank, if there was one, or they would wade or swim, or in some cases ride farther inland. There was one area of rapids in particular, places with high rock sides and rough water, that Kareja strongly suggested they should ride around inland. She also pointed out that anyone who might be frightened by a difficult passage might want to walk the inland trail as well. A few years back they had lost a raft there and some people were injured, but none died.
While they were waiting, a woman came down from the rock shelter that was higher up and back from the water's edge and went to talk with the First. She wanted the healer to look at her daughter, who was in great pain from her teeth. Ayla asked Jondalar to look after Jonayla; then she and the First followed the woman back up to the living shelter. It was smaller than the Ninth Cave's shelter, but then most were. The people who lived there had made it comfortable. The woman took them to a small dwelling under the overhanging shelf. Inside, a young woman who could count perhaps sixteen years was tossing and turning on a sleeping roll, sweating profusely. One cheek was red and severely swollen. She was obviously suffering from a terrible toothache.
'I've had some experience with toothaches,' Ayla said to the young woman, recalling the time she helped Iza pull one of Creb's teeth. 'Would you let me look at it?'
The young woman sat up and shook her head, 'No,' she said in a muffled voice. She stood up and went to the First, and touched the side of her face. 'Just stop pain.'
'Our Zelandoni gave us something for her pain before he left, but it seems so much worse now; the medicine doesn't do much good,' the mother said.
Ayla watched Zelandoni. The big woman scowled and shook her head.
'I'll give her some strong medicine that will put her to sleep,' the First said to the young woman's mother. 'And leave some with you to give her later.'
'Thank you. Thank you so much,' the mother said.
As Ayla and Zelandoni walked back down to the water's edge, Ayla turned to her mentor with a questioning look. 'Do you know what's wrong with her tooth?'
'She's had a problem since her teeth first started to grow in. She has too many, a double row,' the First said. Then seeing Ayla's quizzical look, she explained. 'She has two sets of teeth trying to grow into the same spaces at the same time, and they have grown in wrong, all crowded together. She had terrible teething pains when she was a baby, and again when her second teeth came in. After that she was fine for a while; the teeth didn't hurt her for several years, but then the very back teeth started growing in and she started getting painful toothaches again.'
'Can't some of the teeth be taken out?' Ayla said.
'Zelandoni of the Eleventh has tried, but they are packed so tightly together, he couldn't get any out. The young woman tried herself a few moons ago, and ended up breaking some. Her toothaches have been worse since then. I think there may be suppuration and inflammation now, but she won't let anyone look. I'm not sure her mouth will ever heal. She will probably die from those teeth. It might be kinder to give her too much of the pain medicine and let her go to the next world quietly,' the First said. 'But that will be for her and her mother to decide.'
'But she's so young, and she looks like a strong, healthy woman,' Ayla said.
'Yes, and it's a shame she has to suffer so, but I'm afraid it won't stop now until the Mother takes her,' the Donier said, 'especially if she won't let anyone help her.'
By the time they got back down to The River, the rafts were almost loaded. Two rafts were being used to hold the six travellers who would be floating downriver and some of the gear from the pole-drags. Ayla and Jondalar on horseback would wear their backframes and carry their own personal things. Of course, Wolf would manage quite well on his own. Kareja told them that they considered taking three rafts, but there were only enough people to handle two at the moment. They would have had to send for more people and wait until they arrived, so they decided two would be enough. They never took such long and possibly dangerous trips with less than two rafts.
The floating craft were pushed upstream by using one or more long poles to thrust against the bottom of the river, and were carried downstream by the current. Since that was their direction, once the rope that held a raft to the dock was released, the river made the work easy. The pole was used mainly to help steer the craft and to avoid jutting rocks. They used another steering mechanism as well: an antler of a megaceros with the tines removed and the central palm shaped into a rudder and attached to a handle. It was mounted in the centre of the stern of the craft in such a way that it could be pivoted left or right to change direction. In addition, long oars were also shaped out of the palmate antlers of moose or megaceros and attached to poles to help propel and manoeuvre the floating wooden platforms. But it took skill and experience to keep the unwieldy, clumsy craft on course, and usually three people working closely together.
Ayla put the riding blankets on the backs of Whinney, Racer, and Grey, then attached a lead rope to the
