A Quiet Strength
by Anon Allsop

-Part One-

-Four-

Etu retraced his steps until once again he emerged in the area where the Sky Dancer spirit arose from within the cloud. As he passed the spot where she had been slumbering, he noticed a few of the tiny dancers as they flit and fluttered as though looking for where their queen had gone. Now, he didn't actually think 'queen' but the translation would be intelligible, however the meaning is quite the same.

Even at a slow jog, Etu was a half a day from his tribe, that return trip and his meeting with the Sky Dancer queen, gave him a great deal to think about. He replayed their meeting over and over again in his mind. Each time, he would pause his memory on her naked form. Almost unable to forget her beauty.

In nearly nineteen seasons, he had never witnessed such great beauty and feminine grace possessed by a single form. This pale Spirit, or as he would call her, Aponi which literally translates to Butterfly, held him transfixed as he watched her disappear right before his very gaze. He marveled at the speed of the beautiful nymph of the forest, eluding his pursuit as only one with the forest could.

He smiled as he again recalled her soft form, inviting and delicate as the sky dancers that saw to her every need. Sighing he adjusted the meat he carried, determined that he would speak of her to the ancient one, perhaps he would have more information on this breathtaking creature.

As evening drew he entered the lands of his tribe, skirted the lake and upon entering the village, made a beeline to the lodge of his family. There he left the meat with his mother and removed his bow and quiver from his bronzed shoulder.

"This venison is welcome my son." His father smiled and gave Etu's shoulder a slight squeeze. "You seem to be in a fine mood?"

Etu smiled, "I am father, I have witnessed something today that I never thought possible."

His mother looked up from where she had been cutting the meat as he continued, "Have you ever heard of any person seeing a great spirit?"

The mother suddenly looked at her husband, he tipped his head slightly. "You have?"

"Tell us about it?" The older woman stood up from where she had been working to listen intently to her son as he relayed his encounter. He hesitated as he was about to speak.

"It was a female spirit." His father raised an eyebrow, unsure if he heard correctly. "She emerged out of a cloud of Sky Dancers."

"You must be careful son, those from the realm of the spirit world can often be evil as well as good."

Etu stood before his parents, each could tell that their son was concerned about what had transpired. His father directed him to a bear hide that was stretched across the floor. "Tell us of the Spirit, Etu."

The young man sat cross-legged on the hide, cleared his throat and began to tell of meeting the wood nymph. "She rose up from the cloud of sky dancers, they swirled within the dappled sunlight that lit the grasses and ferns. The spirit rose and stretched, then turned slightly toward me. She was as naked as a child just born." He looked directly toward his father and then as his eyes met those of his mother, he lowered them in embarrassment of speaking so candidly.

"And then?" His mother asked, hanging upon her son's words.

Etu was taken back by her interest to his story, he continued on though, somewhat surprised by her openness. "The Aponi flew right toward me, there were as many as the stars at night, moving and dancing upon the wind as if controlled by the Aponi Spirit. Father, Mother, I could hear their wings as they neared, each beat grew in sound until the volume rose above the noise made by the entire woods!"

He looked down toward his hands as they rested upon his lap, "I could not move, I was as frozen as water in the winter. The Sky Dancer's flew straight at me, yet my sight was locked upon where the Aponi Spirit once was.

The older man studied his son's bewildered face for several seconds, then placing his hand upon his shoulder he gave him a squeeze. "This was a sign, Etu. If this Spirit wanted to harm you, she would have done it while you were frozen in her view."

His mother raised her dark eyes toward the roof of the lodge, she watched the thin tendril of smoke wisp it's way through ahole. Her mouth moved as though she was praying, Etu noticed and gently grasped his mother's hand.

"Son?" His father softly beckoned, "Then what happened?"

The youth nodded and slowly fanned his arms outward, "The Sky Dancers flew all about me, it was like being inside of a great snow. Only, it gave me a warm feeling, content and pleasing." He gave his parents a smile, reminding them both of the young boy he had once been.

"As soon as the Sky Dancers had passed, I looked to where I last saw the pale Spirit, she had vanished with the blink of an eye." He looked off wistfully, remembering the feeling he had when he realized that she was no longer before him. "I followed her to the rivers edge but that is where I lost her father, she had entered the water there and disappeared."

"It is good that you didn't follow her into the river, son." His mother patted his hand lovingly, "The spirit might be sisters with the water and could have dragged you under if you would have followed."

Her husband nodded and added, "I think this spirit was afraid of you, she didn't want for you to see her in her human form, that is why she fled. You must keep your distance from this one, it is dangerous for humans to pursue the woodland spirits."

"Father, she is beautiful, like the first snows of the cold season." He looked down at his hands, "Her skin is like the snow on the meadow, soft and white... and pure. I cannot forget her, I cannot push her from my mind."

His mother looked toward her husband nervously, "You must not follow her, Etu. Please tell me that you won't follow after her?"

"I cannot promise that mother, It would be like asking the spirit sun not to chase after his bride the moon. I can think of nothing other than her." He sighed and looked at the hide beneath his legs."

"Then speak to the ancient one of her, he will guide you correctly. If he says to go after her, then who are we to stop you." The old man gently grasped his son's neck and gave him a fatherly squeeze. Worry clouded his mother's eyes, yet it was a man's world and she would follow her husbands lead wherever it took them.

The youth nodded and gave them both a smile, "I will see the ancient one when the sun is high overhead, I will do what he says."

-Five-

Morning found Etu silently picking his way through a dense thicket of brush, his movement was barely negligible to the untrained observer. Slowly the muscles of his back flexed as he drew back the bow in his hand. Ever so slowly he moved, his sinewy muscles rolling effortlessly under his copper skin.

Before the young deer ever realized what danger she was in, it was too late. Etu's arrow had found her heart and she was making her last great decent into death.The young warrior slowly made his way to the deer, always cautious and alert as he knelt beside his quarry.

Etu looked down at his hand as it gently caressed the young deer's hide, the gray and brown hairs creating a very noticeable contrast against his own strong hand. "The great spirit breathed life into you, Forgive Etu, your human brother who has released you from that life." He reverently stroked it's neck as though saying goodbye to a beloved pet. Slowly his hand worked down toward the muzzle of the deer, he opened its mouth and pushed a few tender shoots of grass into it. "For your journey young one."

Sighing, he slowly knelt beside the deer and began the task at hand of preparing the animal for carrying. Softly he sang out a prayer to his creator for allowing him the deer.

As the sun climbed higher into the sky, Etu had transported the deer down to a stream where he washed the blood from his hands and cleaned and wrapped the meat in the hide. With strips he had brought with him, he was able to fashion a bundle that he could carry upon his back.

By the time the sun was nearing its peak, Etu was making his way back into his village. He headed directly toward the lodge where the ancient one lived. Seated upon a hide, the white haired man was skillfully painting a stretched piece of leather. Etu admired the craftsman's ability, the control he had still in those withered hands.

The elderly man bid the youth to take a seat beside him. As Etu sat he placed the bundle of meat where the man could see it. "It is a young deer, Grandfather." The ancient one wasn't really Etu's grandfather but the entire village called this man grandfather, it was a reverent homage to his wisdom.

Grandfather continued to paint upon the hide as Etu described meeting the strange pale female. As he concluded his story, the elderly man slowly sat down the fine pointed stick he had been using to push the paint, turned and gazed into the young man's face for several long seconds.

With half closed eyes, the old man spoke softly as if he was channeling directly from the realm of the Spirits. "The Aponi Spirit is in trouble, she will need your help." He continued to stare into the darkened corner of his lodge, "You must seek her out, her medicine is powerful."

"Grandfather, I do not know where to look." He replied with confusion.

"She lives in the high country, close to her people." He pointed in the general direction for Etu to look. "She is alone and in trouble."

"What of her people Grandfather? Will they not come to her aide?" Even as Etu finished speaking the elderly man lowered his head and sadly shook it.

"Her people live above the sky, they have abandoned her to this world." He slowly turned his face toward Etu. "You must find the Aponi Spirit. Befriend the Sky Dancers, they will lead you to her."

Etu's gaze slowly dropped toward the paint that the elderly man had been using, slowly he began to nod. "I will find her Grandfather, I will bring her back to my people."

"She is as dangerous as a lion, you must be careful with this one. Given time, she will come to accept your help." He gently grasped the shoulder of the young warrior, and smiled. For he alone knew how much this young Aponi female had taken over the warrior's thoughts. He alone could only fathom the eventual outcome.

-Six-

The stunning young woman picked her way along a high ridge, the breeze was cool upon her skin. Her soft legs wore the scratches from the weeds and brush that seemed to reach out to her each time she passed. Each time her smooth legs were violated, she softly cursed to herself. She knew what she wanted to say, yet no intelligible word would spring from her beautiful lips.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she thought back to what she had lost, forcefully removed against her will. As she picked her way between two great boulders she happened to glance down into a slight ravine, at the bottom was a large deer laying among the rocks.

The need for food quickly rose in her mind, other than a few handfuls of wild berries she had not eaten since the lunch she had on the ship. Carefully she began to pick her way downward, attempting to sneak up on the animal.

Something about the deer was strange to her, as she neared it, the smell told her that it had been dead for awhile and the meat was most likely uneatable. It was a antlered deer, velvety skin covered each side. She moved closer, holding her nose against the back of her lithe hand. From it's side was a piece of wood sticking out about the length of her foot.

She quickly scanned the surrounding region, if someone had been searching for this animal, they would not be far away. From the way the area was around the shaft, she could tell that the deer had most likely eluded those who hunted him and found its way to this spot to die.

Carefully she tugged upon the wood and felt it give under her effort, as more and more of the shaft was exposed, she could tell that it was the business end of a long spear. The smell was putrefying, she was forced to move away several times due to gagging. She examined this formidable weapon and realized that it would be something she could use to protect herself.

As she looked down toward the deer, she realized that if she took her time, she just might be able to remove enough hide to make suitable covering for her naked body. Without a second thought, she began to carefully cut into the foul smelling deer using the razor sharp edge of the spearhead.

As night began to fall, she had two round pieces that was pulled from the neck of the deer, each piece was about as long as her foot. Using a small length of the hide, she pulled her hair back and tied it off. Blood soaked her entire body and now, it even was in her golden tresses.

Another long strip was taken from the deer's back, it's purpose was yet unknown to her, yet it length could prove useful. Rolling the hide into one heavy parcel, she tied it off with a long thick strip also removed. When dark arrived, she was thankful to put some distance between her and this decaying creature.

Carrying the bundle was not easy, it smelled horrible and while it was void of the rancid meat, it still had enough weight to make it heavy. Downward she picked her way until she came to an area where water poured from a crack in the mountain, and over thousands of years, had formed a small indented pool. The flattened spot was about the size of the bed she had remembered back on the ship. It would overflow the pool and was carried on over the edge, dropping for several hundred feet and into a small river.

She surveyed the area, from here she could see all the way down into the valley. There was a large outcropping of rock just behind her, it had been used before for sanctuary by animal or perhaps these primitive men. With a bit of work, it could become a suitable temporary shelter. She crouched down and studied the underside of the outcropping, it went back a short distance. It would offer protection from even the fiercest of storms, she only had to clean it out to make a decent shelter.

She used most of the night to gather sticks to lean against the opening, drawing a limb still with leaves on it, she blocked herself inside the shelter. With one of the thin strips she had, she bent a short green branch and tied them to each end. Using another drier stick she looped the string around it and pulled over a split log, broken in half by last winter's storms.

She began to pile dried leaves and twigs into a small mound, in the middle she stood the stick that was looped with the string. With her left hand, she held a rock with a natural indent, placing it at the top of the stick. Slowly she began to draw back on the bowed wood, as she pulled it toward herself, it turned within the indented rock. Again and again she drew back the bowed stick, the constant rotation began to heat up and eventually caused the dried leaves and grass to spark.

She quickly bent over and blew on the glowing embers, as she blew she began to include more and more dried sticks. Soon a tiny flame leaps onto the sticks, growing slowly until the twigs she began to drop grew bigger and thicker. As the flame began to dance brighter, she placed a log about the size of her thin arm into the flame and sat back until it took hold.

Her structure would prevent great amounts of light to escape, yet offer protection from prowling animals. She pushed her ravenous hunger aside and began to use her short spearhead to scrape the tallow from the hides she had rescued. Hours later she could no longer fight the sleep which lay claim to her body, and drifted off upon a bed of clean, dry leaves. Her nakedness warmed only by the heat from the small fire.

***

Morning brought her awake and she slowly crawled out of her shelter, the fire had long since been reduced to gray ash. She carried the dried skins down to the water and gently placed them in, as they soaked she carefully picked her way into the valley and began to hunt for wild berries to eat.

As the warm sun climbed higher she again made her way back to the little pool, carefully she removed the wet hides and turned them so the hair was on the inside. She slowly rung what water she could from them and climbed back up to the shelter. The last thing she wanted was to be caught out in the open completely naked.

She shivered as she drew the larger ring of hide up her lithe legs, holding it at her knees she pushed against its inside to hold it in place. As she stood awkwardly, she fished the long hide through the opening between her knees and nether region. With trepidation, she slowly pulled the cold and wet hides up her thighs.

Working hard, she struggled to move the wet leather past her generous hips, rocking them back and forth until the came to rest on her hip. The longer hide hung slightly in front and slightly in back, it was all held in place by a belt that she tied around her tapered waist. She now wore what could only be described as the shortest skirt ever created by man...well woman, and she was as uncomfortable as hell in it!

Hesitantly, she picked up the smaller of the hides and began to work it over her head and shoulders. It was quite painful for her to collect her new breasts within the confines of the hide. Her teeth chattered as water ran down her hour-glass figure, dripping and dappling the dry ground.

Once the tube of hide had encompassed her ample bosom, she felt a slight bit of relief knowing that her nakedness was now covered, albeit temporarily. She knew that as the hide would dry, it would conform to her shape and become tighter. Her only hope was that it wouldn't loosen and fall, and that the hair on the inside would be a comfort rather than an irritant.

The new articles of clothing felt strange to her, never before had she been so confined by items worn, as she was now. The intimacy was too personal and she only tolerated it because of modesty. She longed for the loose jumpers she wore when she was still Park, and the fact that they covered so much more wasn't lost to her either.

Sighing, she thought back to the life she once had, and knew that she no longer could return to it again. They were out there somewhere, she thought as she looked into the pale blue expanse of the sky. Unreachable to her for the remainder of her days. That former life to her was in the past, and would have to stay in the past.

She shuddered as she looked downward, it was strange to see the deep cleavage she possessed now, the slight roll of her breasts as they began their decent into the deer hide. Never had the thought of seeing cleavage this way had ever entered her mind, but she was stuck with this view for as long as the heart beat within her chest.

Shaking off the funk she was in, she picked up the spear and studied how it had been made, how it had been fastened to the broken stick. Her warrior's mind returned toward the forefront, she felt that today she must focus her time and energy and fabricate some sort of weapon so that she could eat...and protect herself from danger. But most importantly for now...to eat.

-Seven-

"My son, will you be gone long?" Etu's mother asked the young man as she watched him ready his supplies for his journey.

"As long as it takes mother. Grandfather told me that it was my destiny to find the pale Aponi spirit, he said she will bring great medicine to our people." He smiled and gave her hand a reassuring pat. "I feel that her life and mind wind around each other as the leaves when carried by the cooler breeze when they drop from the trees. He stood up and carried his pack out of their lodge. His father was silently praying, his lips moving but nothing could be heard.

As Etu walked past, his father gently touched his shoulder. "Be careful my son, even though Grandfather sends you to seek this Aponi Spirit, do not drop your guard for they are often untrustworthy and dangerous when cornered."

"You make her sound like a great cat from the mountains, she is only a female." He said with a slow grin, "I will be fine father."

The older man scowled, "Do not take her being female for granted, if she feels threatened, like any frightened animal, she will lash out...and she can kill."

Etu let his father's words sink in, slowly nodding in understanding that his way of thinking would only lead to trouble for him. "I will be wary father, I will treat her with the respect that the Great Spirit bestows upon all creatures."

As the young man turned to leave, his mother walked from within the lodge. "Etu." The young man hesitated and turned back toward his parents. "Long ago when I was a much younger woman, I was given this by my own mother." She held out a bundle for her son, "The Aponi Spirit will be unclothed, cover her with these before entering into our village." Etu took the package as she continued, "The clothing will be strange to a Aponi spirit, but perhaps a gift to her would appease her human side."

He sat down his pack and gently pushed what she had given him down into it. "If the spirits are with me, I hope to be back before the cold winds blow." Standing and rehanging his pack upon his shoulders he hugged his mother and grasped the forearm of his father. "Do not worry my parents, I will return with the Aponi spirit.

With that he turned and slowly trotted down the path that would lead him outside the village. As they stood watching him, his mother sighed. Her husband turned to look down at her, "It will be alright, he will return."

"I know." She forced a smile and gave her husbands hand a slight squeeze. "The dream that I had last night told me as much."

"You had a dream about him?" He gave her a curious look.

"And the spirit female." She continued to watch him until Etu disappeared into the distance. "The great spirits told me that the female will bear a child, and her child's yet unborn ancestors would bring about a great leader."

"Are you sure it was the spirit?" He said without a moment's hesitation.

"Her skin is very pale, her hair is long and as light as winter's snow." She closed her eyes, "She is quite beautiful, our people have never seen one such as this female."

"Should we worry for our son's heart? Is he in danger?" He asked with great concern.

"Not in the way that you might be thinking..." She gave a motherly sigh, "His heart is already lost to this female, and yet he does not know it." She pushed a tear from the corner of her eye as she stood beside her husband.

As her words made their way into his thoughts he slowly turned his head and watched the last spot that he had seen his son. He too sighed, his mouth began moving with a silent prayer for Etu's journey and return.