The grass went from dead to vibrant green in a line so stark it looked as if someone had painted it. Close-cropped blades swayed in the gentle breeze, the smell of flowers mingling with the stronger musk of animals. Lots of them. Deer, fox, wild cattle and many others she had no name for congregated on the green grass while birds of all shapes and sizes soared overhead with loud cries. Here lay the domain of Guardian Ng’ombe, the only part of the western grassland that remained untouched by withering.

Lilau and Makotae stood at the edge of the line.

So, should we ask one of them where the Guardian is? Makotae asked with a cock of his head.

She slid from his back and rummaged through his saddlebags. No, but I think here is a suitable spot to perform the ritual. No need to encroach on his sanctuary.

A tremor shook the earth, so small at first that Lilau barely registered it had happened, but its strength grew into something she could not ignore.

She jerked her head up in time to see a hulking, glowing mass barreling towards them as the animals scampered out of the way. Ng’ombe.

Lilau shot a command at Makotae, who took off to the right with a yelp, then turned and ran straight for the massive beast. “I wish to talk. I mean you no harm!”

The beast looked similar to the cow spirits she had seen, except for larger and angrier.

“Please, the animals are suffering!”

Lilau rolled and flattened herself against the ground, her petite body slipping through the gap between its lowered head and giant, thundering hooves. Anger washed over her in bright crimson as the creature charged past.

Its voice crashed over her like an avalanche. The animals suffer because of broken vows!

Lilau rolled onto her feet, a glance confirming that Makotae had realized she was in danger and now was racing back to her side. She needed to get this under control. Her hand still clutched the one thing she could get from the saddlebags, and she hoped it was what she needed. The spirit rounded in a tighter turn than she thought possible, its verdant green fur and golden horns standing out among the gray plains.

Lilau threw the thin bag as hard as she could at the ground in front of her. “Guardian Ng’ombe, I beseech you to allow me an audience!”

The bag hit, popping open in a cloud of yellow dust. Pollen, from a sacred flower, said to calm the Guardian. As the ground rolled from Ng’ombe’s approach, she could only hope it was enough.

Lilau dropped to her knees and closed her eyes. She projected all the worry over the state of the grasslands at the unstoppable force set to crush her. “I only wish to help. Please tell me what I can do.”

The images of the parasites clinging to dying livestock filler her mind, the looks of horror on Horse Tribe faces as their Great Horses fell ill, of death and decay across the grasslands.

The earth shuddered, then lay still. Cautiously, she opened her eyes and looked up, a burst of hot air washing over her. A large, flat nose filled her view, puffing out the scent of wildflowers in bloom.

You are either brave, desperate, or stupid.

Lilau winced under the weight of its tone, less dangerous than before, yet no less powerful.

Prove to me it is not stupidity, for your sake.

She caught sight of black fur in the corner of her eye. Stay back, Makotae. I have to do this alone. Her stern command met his surge of refusal. The Guardian can kill us both and will if you threaten it. Stay back.

As he receded from her peripheral, she shifted her focus back to Ng’ombe and bowed her head again. “Your people suffer. Their livestock is dying in ever greater numbers while the grass in their winter pastures is withering away. Medicine Chief Feechi has called out for the reason, yet has received no answer. I beg of you, on behalf of them all, to tell me why you have dealt this punishment.”

Feechi? Hmph. Another gust of air followed the Guardian’s response, blowing Lilau’s hair back. His failure is the worst of all. It is his duty to ensure the people of the grasslands fulfill their vows, yet they have all allowed their livestock to flourish at the expense of the land.

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

Lilau’s brow furrowed. “What do you mean, Great Guardian?”

What do I mean?

Lilau fought the urge to retreat as Ng’ombe stomped the ground.

Look around you! The land dies in the wake of their herds, proof of their failure to abide by our pact, and you dare to ask why?

Lilau gritted her teeth. Feechi had told her of the migratory patterns of the Horse Tribe, traveling east for autumn and winter, then back west for the rest of the year. She hadn’t realized the dying grass followed the same pattern, but....

“I cannot say how well your people have fulfilled their pact with you, Great Guardian, but must their punishment be extinction?”

Ng’ombe let out a low, gravelly moan that Lilau had heard from bulls about to charge. Left unchecked, they will cause the entire grasslands to die. Better to excise the poisoned flesh than let it fester.

Lilau wracked her brain for a way to gain what she had come for. “Great Guardian, did you tell your people of their failure?”

No, if they choose to break our pact, what point is there in telling them the obvious?

Hope blossomed in her chest. It seemed even Guardians weren’t infallible. “Because, if the grass withered behind them, how were they to know their livestock had grown too numerous?”

It is their responsibility to know these things.

“We are mere humans. What is obvious to one such as yourself may be too much for us to understand. What if they did not do it on purpose?”

Then the pact is still broken.

Another hot gust, but the ground remained still.

“What if they sacrificed the excess willingly? It would reduce the livestock numbers while allowing them to keep the best of their herds.”

Tell me why I shouldn’t just stomp them out of existence for the damage they’ve done.

“Because, despite their failings, the people and animals are your children.”

Lilau was reaching, going off of ancient stories told to her by the Elders and Feechi. Still, it was all she had. “Are you truly fine with letting them all die, Great Beasts included?”

Ng’ombe rumbled again and took a few steps back. Sure that she had made a mistake, Lilau raised her eyes just enough to see where Makotae had stopped, trying to gauge how to evade the next attack.

If they refuse to cull, I will not rethink my position twice.

Huh?

If they sacrifice, I will remove their punishment. Tell Feechi to contact me in a proper ritual. Now move!

She did so without hesitation, leaping out of the way as Guardian Ng’ombe charged back into its domain.

Makotae was at her side in a moment, licking her face in relief. That went... well?

With the immediate threat gone, Lilau’s composure went too. She mounted Makotae, not bothering to still the shaking of her body as she draped herself across him and wrapped her arms around his neck. We’re still alive, so I guess so.

Great. Are we leaving now?

Lilau knew he meant more than just the domain of Ng’ombe. A bit of introspection told her what she already knew in her gut. The mysterious pull that had guided them into the grasslands and through the Horse Tribe now pulled her onward, in the direction of the sky-river’s flow.

There was just one more thing she needed to do. Lilau urged Makotae towards Feechi’s village.

A windstorm caught her eye not too far off. Blades of grass and bits of dirt swirled in a tight circle as crystal horses galloped within. Lilau considered going around, but the spirits dispersed soon after she recognized them. They galloped past with high-pitched cries, their living wind threatening to pull Lilau from Makotae’s back and forcing her to cover her eyes.

When the air went still again, she found what they were harassing.

“Feechi!” she called, urging Makotae on.

The Medicine Chief was on his knees, head bowed, while Haji mantled over him with wild eyes. Coming to a stop before them, she called again.

Feechi jumped, the words he was muttering under his breath halting. “Lilau! I was sure Guardian Ng’ombe would kill you. How are you still alive?”

“It seems even angry Guardians are not without reason, although Guardian Ng’ombe insists it was the Horse Tribe’s poor stewardship that led to this.”

Feechi looked at her with wide, confused eyes. She detailed her conversation with the Guardian, noting Feechi’s pained expression when she got to the part about sacrifice.

“So the withering grass is not part of our punishment?” he asked in a somber voice. “I suppose we must cull our livestock more anyway, if there is little grass to feed them, but... this winter will not be kind to us.”

“I think if you mollify Guardian Ng’ombe, it will help the Horse Tribe to survive the hardships to come.”

Lilau didn’t know that for sure, but it felt right and the idea brought some color back to Feechi’s face.

“Yes, you’re right. Whoever is to blame for this, our survival relies on the continued relations between the people and their Guardian. Thank you, Lilau. I will gather what I need for the ritual immediately. As for you...”

Lilau cut him off. “As for me, Medicine Chief Feechi, I must thank you for everything you have taught me, everything you have given me during my time in Horse Tribe lands. I don’t think I could ever repay you. But, I hope in contacting the Guardian I have given your people a chance at recovery. May the sun find you well.”

Makotae turned on his paws and ran, both of them ignoring Feechi’s calls. He was a skilled teacher and one of the few to accept her as she was. Still, something told her she had to move on and it wasn’t just the pull of the river.

Zan’s voice echoed, clear despite the years. You don’t even deserve to be here, runt. You’re a curse on our village, a curse on me. It’s all because of you!

Lilau swallowed the lump in her throat and blanked her mind as she ran from something, and to something, she couldn’t quite define.