Mongwu

Cilceii sat crouched and shivering in the tall grass, trying to make herself as small as possible as the huge, white-faced raptor circled overhead. She prayed to the AllMother that it was not her time and the creature would soon lose interest and find easier prey. Grandmother would be worried and she would surely get a tanning from one of the Elders, who would be furious if she did not return soon.

Cursing silently for her bad luck, she began a slow crawl through the grass and dense underbrush, looking frequently over her shoulder at the hunter still trying to search her out from above. She should have stayed within the protective circle of the forest. Her grandmother had often warned her of the white-faced hunters of the sky and other giant predators, but her fool curiosity had once again gotten her into a mess.

Just this daybreak, she had heard a rumor in the village that giants had once again taken occupation of the mammoth stone fortresses just beyond the wide expanse of field that bordered the forest. It had been many centuries since they had dwelled there before this, though she had grown up hearing stories about the beings who once ranged freely under the skies of her land. She just had to see what they looked like, so she had told her Gran that she was going to forage for mushrooms and bitterroot and had skipped out of the village with a basket on her arm. She had hidden the basket beneath a tree-fern just a few wingbeats of the village wall and had flown straight towards the forbidden fortress just as the sun began to sink behind the mountains to the west of her home.

And that was when things had gone so very wrong.

The worst of it was that she hadn’t even made it to the outskirts of the fortress, where she might have caught a glimpse of the giants. Legends were that the gigantic creatures looked much like her people, but for their coloring and lack of wings. She had made it nearly halfway across the prairie when she had felt the electric vibration of something huge swooping down towards her.

She barely had time to tuck her wings and dive to the grass before the Mongwu was on her, talons outstretched. The fierce woosh of those long claws snapping shut just above her had blown her hair straight back from her face. She had sent up a quick prayer of thanks to AllMother before scooting through the dense grass to crouch and hide.

And here she was, crawling through the dirt like a four-legged; hungry, covered in dust and grime, hunted by none other than a Mongwu, God of death. She cursed again and sighed deeply as she continued her slow journey back towards the relative safety of the forest. Alonqin, her sister-brother never had these kinds of mishaps. Probably why they were First Apprentice to her grandmother; the village Shaman, even though Cilceii was nearly half a century older and had equal or even greater magic.

Cilceii was startled from her thoughts by the sound of something whirring through the air above, followed by a quick, dull thud and a high-pitched scream of alarm. She spun around and looked up in panic just as the Mongwu spun from the sky above her, dropping to the ground and sliding to a slow stop just a few wingspans from where she knelt, heart threatening to beat from her chest.

What had just happened? She didn’t dare move for several moments, though the Mongwu lay still, eyes closed, just visible beyond her. It appeared to have its wings tightly bound by a rope with a stone tied to either end. As her heartbeat slowed, she slowly crept from her hiding spot towards the hunter. She could see its chest just barely moving, and as she approached it slowly turned its head towards her and opened one eye. The other side of its face had been damaged in the fall and the eye remained tightly shut, caked with mud and prarie grass.

From the far side of the prairie close to the sky-reaching stone buttresses of the fortress, she could hear the movement of something very, very big treading through the fields towards where she and the Mongwu were hidden. Parting the grass, she could make out a creature so tall that it seemed to block out the sky behind it as it stalked towards them. A giant. Though she could not make out its features or coloring in the twilight, she sensed it was a male of the species and enormous. The creature strode on legs so long that its torso seemed to meet the sky. A thong-strike was held loosely in one hand. Seeing the weapon, she realized the giant had been the one to bring down the Mongwu and was coming towards them to claim it’s quarry.

Nerves already frayed, Cilceii covered her mouth to keep from screaming. She was confident that her camouflage would hide her from the giant's awareness if she flew to the safety of the forest now, but looking back towards the raptor that had just been hunting her, she was torn. She unconsciously chewed her bottom lip, a childhood habit she had been unable to break no matter how often she had been scolded her about it. Her good sense told her to flee, but hadn’t her Gran always said it was her people’s duty to protect the creatures of the forest?

The Mongwu regarded her silently, expression solemn and sad. She cursed her luck a third time and strode forward. She had to at least try to save it. Allmother, this thing was big; nearly twice her height on its side, but quite beautiful, up close. When it wasn’t trying to eat her. Golden feathers framed a soft white face with dark, liquid eyes, and a long, dagger-sharp beak. She walked around the creature and it followed her with its head, pivoting its neck in a half-circle as she nervously tugged the strong cords that kept it bound. She didn’t think she would have time to cut through the ropes before the giant was upon them, and there was certainly no way she would be able to drag the Mongwu back to the village by herself. She would have to try a camouflage spell and hope the giant did not stumble over them.

Why hadn’t she practiced her spellwork more? Magic had always come easy for her, so she just hadn’t bothered with many of the intricate weaving patterns her grandmother was always trying to get her and Alonqin to form before moon-time. Now she was regretting the many times she had waved her grandmother off in favor of something fun, like stealing crabapples from old Jonas in the market. She always gave them back, of course. Most of the time, anyway. But regrets weren’t going to help her, now. She would just have to do her best and hope they weren’t crushed or captured.

Cilceii focused her will and cast a net of camouflage over her and the owl. She could see that the weave was not as tight as she would have liked, but at least the long grass also helped to hide them. The giant moved ever closer, sweeping the field to part the long grass, obviously looking for the Mongwu. She took out her hip-blade and began carefully sawing at the bonds around the creature, praying to AllMother that grandmother had known what she was talking about when she said the Mongwu were sentient and only hunted her people when it was their time.

She paused in her movement, a sickening feeling spreading through her stomachs. She hadn’t had time to recall that fact until now, what with the flying then crawling for her life and all. Was it her time to stand before the gates of the Otherworld? It couldn’t be. She was several centuries younger than most of the Folk when their time came, and she should have a good hundred fifty years or more beyond average life span due to the extra magic she contained as Shamani-descent.

Still, nausea threatened to overwhelm her - along with being in mortal fear of her life. Her wings drooped low and her legs felt weak, but she resumed her mission, sawing away at the ropes around the Mongwu. What was she to do? As her gran said, naught that she could change fate. If AllMother had cast her name, so be it.

The last of the bindings dropped away just as the giant swept past them, huge feet leaving knee-deep craters in the earth behind it. She heaved a sigh of relief and leaned against the Mongwu, gathering strength from its warmth before she caught herself and leaped away from the creature, crouching low with her dagger held outward. The owl shook its feathers and slowly stood, regarding her from a height three times her length. It still did not open the left eye and she could see that one the creatures' wings had been damaged by the impact of its fall.

She met the creatures’ gaze and lifted her chin, straightening her spine to stand erect, her own irridescent wings arching behind and above her. If it was her time, she would stand proud before the gates. The Mongwu spoke into her mind, voice stern.

“Child. I was sent by the AllMother as a token of esteem to your grandmother, whose time before the gates has come. I am to carry her to the entrance, but she wished to look upon you before she begins her journey onward. I tried to call out to you from above, but you took no heed, so much focused on the City of Man that you could not hear my call. Now I am badly injured and can not fly you home, so you must use your magic to take us there.”

Cilceii felt her knees finally give out and she sank to the ground, shock clouding her mind. Her grandmother’s time had come? It had never occurred to Cilceii that her grandmother would take the journey to Otherworld. She had assumed she would be there for many more centuries. Grandmother loved working in the village gardens and Cilceii had thought her and Alonqin’s apprenticeship had begun because gran wanted to be caretaker. Neither she or her sister-brother were ready to be Shamani. And she didn’t want to stay without her grandmother, her teacher, dearest friend and surrogate mother since the death of her own mother just after birth. The Mongwu’s sharp mind-voice pierced her thoughts.

“Cilceii! You must cast your magic to take us back to the village! Your grandmother’s time approaches quickly and I must be healed to take flight.” Cilceii looked up at the Mongwu, silvery tears dancing off her eyelashes before running down lilac-tinted cheeks.

“But my magic is not ready yet. I have only tried teleport spells a few times, and it was only myself or a small object. You are huge! There must be another way. Couldn’t you put off my grandmother’s time? Perhaps just a few moon cycles? She could teach me more. I will practice more.” The owl’s gaze softened and he moved closer to her.

“Child, AllMother calls your grandmother. I know that you grieve, but she is needed in Otherworld now. I have been assured you are perfectly capable of weaving this spell. You must take us to the village. Even now, the human moves back towards us, and your camouflage is failing.” Cilceii glanced up. The Mongwu was right. In her fright, she had barely woven her spell tightly enough to hold a few minutes, and they would be visible any moment. The earth vibrated as the giant approached their location.

She pushed herself to her feet, swaying a little. Her wings automatically shifted to lift her feet from the ground and she hovered upward, coming to eye level with the Mongwu. She must do this if she were to see her grandmother before her journey to the gates of Otherworld began. She reached out towards the owl, her skin shifting green in determination. She felt the grass part as the giant reached towards the owl just as she cast her weave, mind on home, and they vanished, the man’s hand closing on the empty space the owl had just occupied.

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