Chapter2
Kataalac opened her eyes, she was hanging about a meter below the cliff rim. Only a meter. It had felt like she had fallen for an age. She gritted her teeth, just a meter, only a meter, she could make it, she had to make it. Tentatively she started to release the rock with her left hand, her tiered fingers protesting. She felt around above her head for a hand hold her right hand screaming in the effort to support her. Wedging her fingers into a small cranny she relived the strain on her right hand and swung it up, scrabbling for another hand hold before her left hand gave out. She grabbed a small protrusion and relaxed, panting. Her entire body was a mass of aches. Slowly she began to edge her way up the cliff face. If was hard and excruciatingly painful. After what seemed hours she reached up with her right hand and felt grass. With a last final burst of effort she hauled her aching body over the edge. She fell sideways onto the ground in a dead faint.
Ruatonim was worried. He knew Kataalac went up on the cliff top every morning but she had been up there for ages, the sun was well clear of the horizon and climbing rapidly.
She should not be over taxing herself in her state, but it was just a walk she could not harm herself just by taking a walk, could she? Should I go and look for her? She needs her own private time to herself I can't just barge in on her. But what if she's in trouble, what if she's hurt?
Suddenly Ruatonim turned, left the hut and set off into the forest. He had to see if she was alright.
Ruatonim hurried through the trees, following the old animal track. He was the only one she had told about it. The trees seemed to be whispering to him hurryhurryhurryhurry…He turned past the last ones and stepped out into the sunlight.
Oh holy Kra! He had arrived just in time to see Kataalac haul herself over the edge of the cliff and faint. Her high boned face was dirty, scratched, bleeding and lined in pain. Her shirt and trousers was ripped and torn exposing numerous cuts and bruises. He copper hair had fallen over her face. He ran over to her, what to do? He moved her as gently as possible so she was lying flat on her back. He then ran back the way he had come. He needed help. She may have broken something, he dare not carry her back by himself he would only make any breakage she might have worse, he might even paralyse her if she had suffered spine damage. He raced back down the track.
Lelta Amonsovn (pronounce: Lel-tah Ah-mon-soon) was the Lelta or chief of the small tribe. She simply made the major decisions but there were not very many of those. A few months ago there had been a terrible storm and she had to organise help for people with collapsed homes and the like, also she had to find temporary housing for those who's houses had collapsed completely, but things like that did not happen very often so, to earn her keep she made different breads, flans, cakes and such like. She got most of her ingredients from a farmer called Kieltavn (pronounce: Kee-el-taan) in return for some of the things she made. Everyone in the settlement did something and traded it for the things they needed although if you needed an entire new canoe you had to arrange with the maker what they wanted and go out and get the things with the things you made which could get very confusing. She liked Kieltavn very much and he had insisted she call him Kiel the other day, well who knows, but she still was not sure she wanted a proper 'relationship' yet.
Amonsovn woke at dawn, as did most people, dressed and tied back her brown-gold hair with a strip of animal hide to stop it getting in the way while she worked. She was just starting a second dough mix, after shaping and leaving the others to rise on the sunny widow ledge, when there was a loud pounding on the door. She hurried over to open it
"Alright, alright I heard you the first time" She opened the door and saw Ruatonim, fist raised to pound again on the poor door that had by now taken a severe battering, his hair with its curious blue tinge was flying everywhere all over his face and he was still a bit out of breath and had a panicked look on his face.
"Lelta!" he gasped, "Kataalac is on the cliff," he babbled, "she fell off it but I think she managed to climb back up or something but she passed out and she's bleeding and I think she may have broken her ribs or some thing or she might have lost the baby or something, I don't know but I need help getting her back down here so someone can see her." Ruatonim gushed.
"Kataalac fell off a cliff?" Amonsovn asked incredulously
"Yes, and I think she may have broken her ribs or some thing or she might have lost the baby or something, I don't know but…"
"OK, calm down, I'll organise a stretcher to be sent to her and bring her back to healer Omiphaiga home." Amonsovn interrupted him before he could garble away to a finish. She pulled her apron off over her head and hung it up behind the door, she wiped the flour of her hands and steamed off with Ruatonim in tow. She had soon collected four other men ("You can't carry a stretch with a broken leg, Ruatonim!") and a plump middle aged woman with a strong scent of herbs who was healer Omiphaiga, who was lugging a large box of just about everything, though they do not have kitchen sinks so she did not have one of those. Ruatonim then guided them through the trees and out onto the cliff top. Kataalac was lying there still, unmoved and unmoving and her breathing was shallow and ragged, it barely moved the tendrils of hair fallen across her parted lips. Omiphaiga hurried over to her and sat down. She felt and moved her about a bit, tutting to herself all the while. The others watched on anxiously in silence.
" Right," Said Omiphaiga, " I want you two," here she pointed at two of the men, " to tip her gently on to her side while you two," she pointed at the other two, " will slide the stretcher under her and then you can gently put her back down onto her back." The first two, under Omphaigas strict supervision, managed to tip her on her left side, as it was slightly less battered, with out any mishaps and then back down again onto the stretcher.
"I want you to be very careful with her as I think she has damaged her spine and paralysis is possible, especially if she is jolted and banged about." Cautioned Omilphaiga sharply as the stretcher was lifted slowly into the air.
Lelta Amonsovn watched as the stretcher set off into the trees. Kataalac was her cousin and many said they had a very similar likeness; both were tall and slim with fine boned features and high cheek bones. Their looks were quite similar, some even said they should have been sisters, Amonsovn's sister was still born and Kataalac's mother had died soon after her birth and had only born one child. Amonsovn sighed and looked out over the cliff, she could see blood smears and tatters of clothing were Kataalac must have struggled back up the rocks. There was a lot of blood, it must have been a real struggle, and it is a wonder she did not pass out from blood loss while she was climbing. Kataalac was never one to give up on things, though, she was a mother even though pregnancy was driving her mad, she would not give up so easily on her son and husband. Icaieris, her son, was proving to be a bit of a handful, just like Kataalac when she was young. Amonsovn smiled, he was really a dear she thought. She looked up at the horizon. Kataalac probably came here just to watch the sun rise. She gasped. She turned and raced off quick after the others.
Slowly and haltingly the stretcher was making its way back down to the village although they were forced to find an alternative rout at one point as the trees were too close together and the stretcher did not fit through. They were part way down when Lelta Amonsovn came rushing past them, she would not tell them what the problem was she just said for them hurry. The Lelta soon was back at her house.
"What to do, what to do!"The Lelta ran her fingers abstractly through her hair as she thought, "Alright calm down, calm down. I need to think straight. Right. I need first of all to inform everybody, I'll start with Kataalac and then tell them what I think happened and then I'll ask for questions or suggestions. Right, OK, let's get that far first. Then I'll think about what to do next." Amonsovn took a deep breath and went to a cupboard tucked away in the corner. Inside there were two hand bells, one was very small and stained bright red, she had never had to use that one and hoped she never would need to, the other was the size of her hand and just ordinary metal, they had found iron deposits almost at the surface on another island and it had proved to be quite useful. She took that one out, went out of the hut and rang it, it emitted a long peal of harsh clangs. It was calling everyone to gather in the space before her hut.
Soon people started arriving in drips and drabs, some were wiping dirty hands down their fronts and many were still caring their tools. They all stood before her expectantly.
"Err, right." Amonsovn began hesitantly, "Now this morning Kataalac, who you all know, was found unconscious in a dreadful state at the top of highest part of the Dreegjarirganh cliffs (pronounce: Dree-jar-rig-ganh). She is now being taken back to healer Omiphaiga's home, although beyond that I do not know, but the question is how did she fall? According to Ruatonim she has gone up there every day since she was fourteen and has climbed the tree that leans out over the edge every day. I think I know what happened. She was sitting on a branch and she saw something on the horizon, I have see it too, and in her hast she broke one of the branches and fell but I could see a trail of blood up the side of the cliff and I think she hit the rock face, managed to hold on and then haul herself back up to the top. At the top she must have passed out from blood loss."
From the crowd there was a faint mutter, "Women, always fainting on us." Amonsovn looked and saw Yialdareth, a young man who had always been jealous of Kataalac's hunting skills, muttering to his friend Sciereth.
"Why don't we throw you off the cliff and see how you manage." Amonsovn snapped her patients worn thin. "Kataalac is pregnant and it is amazing that she managed to climb back up at all, why don't we go and see what you look like when you have endured a climb like that and that much blood loss. When she hit the cliff face she severely damaged her spine and yet she still got back up, I don't think there is anyone here who could survive that ordeal and not pass out at the end, in fact most here would not survive at all, and that includes you Mr oh so strong and brave man Yialdareth." By the end of her tirade Yialdareth was wishing the ground would swallow him up.
Amonsovn glared at him. "Right, as I was saying, Kataalac passed out from blood loss and Ruatonim was worried about how long she had been up there and went and found her. He came to me and she is being taken back to Omiphaiga's. When I was up there I also saw what I think caused her fall, on the horizon I saw…" she stopped, Ruatonim and the others had just arrived with Kataalac on the stretcher between them.
"It's OK," Omiphaiga called out, "I think she'll be fine. Although there is severe spine damage I don't think there will be any long term damage, just a few scars and she's got plenty of them already!" Amonsovn smiled in relief. The stretcher was born away into Omiphaigas hut.
"Right," Began Amonsovn again, "you will have to tell them about what I said because I am not going to say it all over again, but what I saw on the horizon was…"
AN. Well what is going 2 happen nxt? Thanks 2 greywhich and 1madcat 4 reviewing but I know u 2 so – PLEZ YOU MUST REVIEW OR YOU WILL FIND BITS OF EXPLODING BEETLE FLYING EVERYWHERE! MUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUSTMUST MUSTARD!